The Mind manifests 17




  "Hey, what have you got there?" the bulky Orderly asked, so I handed it to him "It's a pendant."

  I looked over to Maxwell "Do you know anything about where or how he was picked up?"

  "Not a whole lot, just the dossier, here."

  He handed me a folder, and I opened it, reading the paper inside


--CONFIDENTIAL--

  <sub>Documentaition and anatomical details of subject 7763-32
  {All data accurate to time of capture and preliminary study, [5:02H 8/10/2010]}

Gender: Male
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 150 lbs
Blood type: O-
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Hazel

  Further details could not be achieved by the capture team, due to the violent nature of the subject. They have been transferred to your care and, by the time you read this, should already be arriving.

  Subject was apprehended in a civilian hospital and had reportedly suffered trauma from an explosion, so expect shrapnel and foreign debris.

  The outer appearance of the alien tissue on the subject appears reptilian, in the same nature as the two winged specimens who were previously sent into your care. Because of this, you are the most highly qualified for further study.

  It is imperative for national defense that you discover the exact nature of the assimilation so that it can be stopped or potentially reversed.

  The crystalline objects found with all other subjects were not found with this one, yet the change is progressing. It is therefore advised to take precautions against possible mutations.

  Additional:

  Your query into the treatment and care of subject 2790-51 has been reviewed and granted. Due to an increased mental capacity and submissive nature, it has been released back into your custody along with the other alien reptile, subject 1189-82.

  If you can find the cause of the mutations, or any data that could point to the origin of these crystals, there is most definitely a promotion in it for you.</sub>

--CONFIDENTIAL--


  I looked back up at Maxwell "This says confidential. Why'd you share it with me?"

  "It concerns you and I need to be sure you're in the loop. You're the only one here who knows about these things more than me."

  I just sighed and put the folder down. "Look, Doc, I've only had this body a short while. Outside of what I know from what I've experienced recently, I only know things from fantasy and fiction. I could go on all day with theories, but I don't know any solid facts about myself" I pointed at Aaron and then continued "or even him for that matter."

   "And getting those facts will be my job. Your job is just to keep him calm and stable and hopefully able to talk."

  I sighed again. Although I wanted to help him, I had no idea where to begin, and I dreaded what would happen if my instincts took over again. I winced as I recalled the fireball on the police officer and the strangling of the guard. There was something in me now, some malevolent force, which manifested occasionally. If it got out while I was working with Aaron, it could be disastrous.

  A chirp caught my attention, and I looked down to see Tealwing peeking out from under the computer desk "Yes, Teal, it's safe now." He squeaked, and sprinted across the floor, jumping up on to me and climbing back around to my back again.

  The orderly gave me a quizzical look, and asked "How is it you have a kid that old already?"

  "He's not mine. He kind of adopted me as his mother."

  Teal snorted and pressed his head against my neck, nuzzling me, and I laughed a little, "See?"

  "Where are its real parents?"

  "No idea, and since he can't talk, he can't tell us."

  I went back over to Aaron and examined him before sniffing at him again. I had to find out what that faint odor was. It took me a little while, but I was able to identify it as beef. "Doc, what's the one thing other than music that tames the savage beast?"

  "Morphine" Maxwell said sarcastically.

  I was a little startled he actually showed humor, but replied "I can just barely smell beef on his clothes, that might be a way to get through to him, no animal fights on a full stomach."

  "Right, I'll have several steaks prepared immediately."

  I continued examining him carefully, and, despite his scaled arm, he seemed like he should be perfectly fine.

  "Damn kid kicks like a mule" I heard the orderly spout.

  "What exactly got you into this line of work?" I asked, mostly just to fill time until the doctors were done examining the data.

  "What line of work?"

  "You know, restraining animals and such."

  "Dunno really. I've always been a little overbuilt, and people always assumed I was dumb muscle, so they gave me jobs that fit. Bouncer, lumberjack, repo man, and even a wrestler for a while, but eventually I got tired of not being allowed to use my brain, so I joined the army in the medical branch. I was hoping to become a doctor, but instead, they just have me pinning down post-traumatics and rabid animals all day long."

  I was a little surprised as even I had been thinking that he was just dumb muscle. "Oh, damn, that sucks. Have you put in requests for a transfer or for continued training in the medical field?"

  "I'm already doing it. Been taking classes at a medical college for the past two months."

  I smiled a little, and replied "Good for you. The only jobs I ever got were as dumb muscle myself, then I got turned into an alien lizard. I guess no one ever gets what they want."

  "What was it you did want, anyways?"

  "Graphic design. I wanted to be a video game developer, but I couldn't afford the classes, and I was too cowardly to join the army, which would have paid for college for me."

  "And yet you ended up on an army base anyways, poetic irony."

  "Indeed."

  I just kept staring at Aaron for the next half hour, examining him. Eventually, Tealwing must have gotten bored, because he jumped down off my back and started wandering around the lab, the orderly watching him carefully the whole time.