Page 25 of Drenched

“You sold us out?” My voice cracked. “Behind our backs?”

“This isn’t just science. It’s survival. It’s power. And you’re in my way.”

“Jonathan, listen to yourself!” The words tumbled out. “This isn’t medicine. It’s alive. You’ve seen what it does.”

He grinned, manic. “Exactly! That’s why we can’t let it go. This could change everything, medicine, warfare, humanity!”

“Change? It’ll destroy us!”

He let out an empty laugh. “You’re pathetic. A scientist afraid of discovery.”

He lunged, shoving me aside. His hand shot under the bed, fingers curling around the jar.

“Let go!” he yelled, yanking hard.

“No!” I shouted, lunging forward as his grip tightened on the jar. My hands found it too, wrestling against his hold. Panic roared in my ears, every breath coming short and sharp. Desperation surged through me. I kicked him hard, aiming low. He let out a strangled sound and staggered back, his grip loosening just enough. I fell to the floor, the jar in my hands now. My fingers worked instinctively, twisting the lid open. Before I even realized it, I tipped the jar to my lips.

The algae hit my tongue, cold fire spreading through me. Bitter, salty, wrong. I choked as it burned down my throat, ice and heat flooding every vein. My body convulsed. The jar slipped from my hands.

Jonathan grabbed my shoulders, shaking me. “What did you do?”

I couldn’t answer. My muscles locked, cold searing through me. Darkness fringed my vision. Jonathan’s face blurred, rage twisting his features.

“You ruined everything!” His fingers bruised my arms.

I stumbled back, hitting the bed. “Jonathan, stop!” My voice broke.

He didn’t stop. He shoved me down, his weight crushing me. His hands tore at my clothes, frantic.

“You think you can take this from me?” His breath was hot, sour. Fabric ripped. I scratched at his face, his arms, but he didn’t flinch.

“Get off me!” I screamed, kicking, thrashing. His knee pinned my leg. His hands clawed at my collar.

“You don’t get to ruin me.”

Tears blurred my vision. My heart pounded, wild and erratic.

Then the temperature dropped. A sudden, brutal cold filled the room. The sound of shattering glass cracked through the air. I gasped as the storm burst in, icy wind clawing at my skin.

Jonathan’s grip loosened. His face went pale, his eyes flicking to the broken window. He took a shaky step back.

That’s when I saw it or him.

A figure stood in the frame. Water and shadow coiled together, shifting and fluid. The storm bent around him, as if the wind and rain obeyed his presence. His form glistened with a sheen that made my stomach twist. But those eyes, deep, endless voids, caught me. They pulled at something raw and instinctive, a silent demand I couldn’t fight.

Jonathan’s voice broke, a thin whisper. “What… is that?”

The figure glided forward, each movement deliberate. His attention didn’t waver. His gaze stayed locked on me. Tendrils of water curled toward Jonathan, wrapping around his arms and shoulders. He thrashed, but his strikes passed through like smoke.

“No… no! Let me go!”

The figure didn’t care. His focus was mine alone.

The tendrils tightened, water swirling into a suffocating bubble around Jonathan’s head. He choked, his body shuddering. The bubble vanished just long enough for a desperate gasp, thenwater surged into his mouth, forcing its way inside. His eyes bulged, veins straining beneath his skin. His body swelled.

A wet pop, and Jonathan exploded, flesh, blood, and bone splattered across the room. The warmth splashed against my skin, sticky and vile.

I couldn’t move. My chest heaved, each breath ragged. My vision blurred, tears mixing with the blood on my face.

---