WHITE HOUSE – BASEMENT – NIGHT
The elevator opened onto an endless corridor.
White. Sterile. The neon lights hummed. The air was cold, almost freezing. A smell of formaldehyde and stagnant Ether floated.
Erasered advanced.
The tubes were lined up on both sides. Immense. Transparent. Creatures floated inside, motionless, in an amber liquid.
She passed the first one.
"MeruHeru."
Her voice was calm. Clinical.
"Chimera ant. Ant, cockroach, purple beetle DNA. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: fear, isolation. Devil's Serum. Injected into a male human subject, 34 years old. Result: possession, army, evolution."
She continued.
"Absolute Damn!."
The next tube. A massive, deformed body, barely human.
"Modified human DNA. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: anger, frustration. Devil's Serum. Injected into a male human subject, 28 years old. Result: automatic adaptation. He equalizes and surpasses."
She passed Atomic Stats Rainbow.
"Starry mist. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: forced joy, hysteria. Devil's Serum. Injected into a female human subject, 22 years old. Result: transformation of victims into monsters."
She passed SCP-Matvanta.
"Alien demon. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: paranoia, grandeur. Devil's Serum. Injected into a male human subject, 41 years old. Result: laser, flight, orbs, thermal vision, sonic scream."
She passed The Lion King.
"Demon lion. Animal, human, demon DNA. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: rage, territoriality. Devil's Serum. Injected into a male human subject, 36 years old. Result: brute force, roar."
She passed Nomu.
"Constant evolution. Unstable DNA. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: confusion, despair. Devil's Serum. Injected into a male human subject, 19 years old. Result: permanent genetic adaptation."
She passed The Sea King.
"Red fish. Aquatic DNA. Unstable Ether. Negative emotions: abandonment, loneliness. Devil's Serum. Injected into an animal subject, unknown species. Result: transformation into a sea monster. Water dependency."
She stopped before the last tube.
Immense. Luminous. Inside, a silhouette. Human. Perfect. Blond hair. Closed eyes. A serene face.
"Adam."
She placed a hand on the glass.
"Pure human DNA. Pure Ether. Positive emotions: hope, love, altruism. No Devil's Serum. Original creation. Result: the ultimate masterpiece."
She closed her eyes.
---
Flashback – The Creation of Adam
The laboratory. Erasered and her husband. Years earlier.
"Artificial demons are a failure."
Her husband. A man in a white coat. Tired face.
"We wanted to evolve. To make humans equal to demons. But we created monsters."
Erasered looked at the tubes. The failures. The corpses. The deformed creatures.
"The Devil's Serum. DNA mixed with Ether. Negative emotions. It was a mistake."
She had smiled.
"No. It was a first step."
She had approached an empty tube.
"Negative emotions create demons. So… what if we tried with positive emotions?"
Her husband had looked at her. Horrified. Fascinated.
"You're insane."
"Maybe. But I'm the only one trying."
---
Months. Years. Failures. Then…
Adam.
The first. The only one. Born of pure Ether and positive emotions. A perfect being. Human. Divine. The apotheosis of the White House.
"Too bad my dear husband isn't here to see you."
Erasered opened her eyes.
"You are the consecration of all my work. The ultimate masterpiece of humanity."
She stepped back.
"Time to come out."
---
Nano-Neko – Young Terry's Live Stream
A streamer. Young. Energetic. Round glasses. A permanent smile.
"YO MY FRIENDS! Young Terry's live! And today, we've got HEAVY stuff!"
He leaned toward his camera.
"You've probably heard about the tweet that leaked, the Association's secrets, the government lab, experiments on demons and humans."
He nodded.
"Right. So let's keep it simple. The Association is BACKED INTO A CORNER. The leaks reveal that some demon appearances were CAUSED by the demons from this lab."
He raised his hands.
"We don't know how deep the Association is involved. But hey. Where there's smoke… there's fire."
He smiled.
"Meanwhile, the Gambling Agency continues its recruitment. And guess what? They've got a hero in their pocket. Tapeshot. The tape hero. He posted a message on Nano-Neko."
He read.
"The Association has really crossed the line. My tapes and I are out. It's impossible for me to be associated with that kind of organization."
He nodded.
"There's a hero who wants to protect his image. And I love that."
---
Association Communications Office – Panic
"HOW DARE THAT TAPESHOT INSULT US LIKE THAT?!"
Ren Daiki. The department head. Red with anger. The veins in his neck bulging.
"HE'S ONLY IN THE TOP 10 OF CLASS A! WHAT A CRUDE CHARACTER!"
Employees tried to calm him.
"Mr. Ren, calm down. A small glass of water, maybe?"
"I DON'T WANT WATER! I WANT HIS HEAD!"
The door opened.
Lion entered.
"I quite agree with you."
Ren froze.
"Uuuh… boss?"
He calmed down instantly.
"You look well, I must say."
Lion approached.
"Enough chatter. We need to counter-attack."
He looked at the assembly.
"Say that the Association will commit to suing the Gambling Agency and all persons divulging the Association's information."
He crossed his arms.
"I remind you that we are an institution."
---
Gambling Agency HQ – Midas's Office
Sharky entered.
"Midas. Everything is ready."
Midas stood. Before the bay window. He looked at the city.
"Let's go."
He went down. A private elevator. Floors. Then a warehouse.
Immense. Lit. Filled.
Heroes. Many heroes. Pariahs. Rejects. Forgotten ones. Ambitious ones. Broken ones. Thirsty for justice.
Tapeshot was there. And others. Dozens. Hundreds.
Midas approached the stage.
He took the microphone.
He smiled. A Machiavellian smile.
"MY PARIAHS."
His voice echoed through the entire warehouse.
"WELCOME."
---
TO BE CONTINUED…