The Twentieth Chapter | Desperation

The Twentieth Chapter | Desperation

The nose wrinkling smell of chemicals and forbidden items floated through the room. Anyone who came in would almost certainly be curious about what was going on. The small four-walled area was dimly lit with candles and every side of it was toe-to-toe with a table that had haphazardly thrown items all over it.

A pseudo-scientist was anxiously making their way around the room.

They reeked of desperation.

Their hands switched from being filled with glass cylinders holding miscellaneous fluids to holding empty test tubes with every unnatural liquid they consumed.

Was it safe? Most certainly not.

Was it necessary? Maybe.

Each pot that was lit by a flame was either gurgling, hissing, or borderline boiling over. They sported all sorts of strange colors which paired well with their just as strange smells. The scientist tossed another batch of chopped-up ingredients into a pot of bright orange liquid and promptly filled up yet another cylinder with an ingestible portion. The glass made its way to their lips and soon after it was empty, the wait began.

They had done everything right, just as had been told. Would it even work? What if they had been lied to? What if the information had been fake? Well, there was no going back at that point. And the scientist would have much rather tried and failed than have to sit idly by and witness the possible chaos that would happen if they didn't.

The materials they were using were hard to get their hands on. Some even earned the scientist strange looks when they asked if they could be bought. Eyes that shine a sunset orange, bark from a tree as old as time, the scales of a virgin dragon were a few of said items on the scientists' list.

"Who would even have these just laying around the experiment with?" The scientist said to themself.

No matter. They had been able to get it and were well on their way to finishing the task. They looked up at the clock. It had been ten minutes.

Something should have happened already.

They let out a reluctant sigh. Had they done something wrong? Were the dragon scales not from a virgin as they had believed? Or had the tree not been as old as time like they thought? The recipe dictated that within a tenth of an hour the body should begin convulsing rapidly.

Would it be painful? Definitely.

However, the scientist knew it was necessary to go through it. There wasn't another option available. They slid down the large cupboard they had been leaning on until they were crouched on the floor, knees touching their chest. They were fatigued from the recent days that had passed without giving them the luxury of getting a wink of sleep.

They couldn't sleep, even if they wanted to. If they did, they'd just end up having nightmares that would keep them awake. They thought they were cursed but they knew they couldn't be. It was most likely guilt, but the longer they thought about it, the more they believed that everything happening was their fault.

Maybe it was.

A small part of them was curious about what would happen if they failed. It was selfish and evil but part of them wanted to witness the possible chaos that would erupt from them sitting idly by. Maybe it would rid them of the shackling responsibilities that chained them down daily. They could just imagine standing over the tallest cliff in the land, looking down at the burning ruins and decaying bodies, finally free from everything they had been forced into their whole life.

Maybe they should fail. Maybe it would be a good idea. Everyone deserves to be selfish at least once in their life, right? Even if it is at the expense of others. It is human nature, isn't it? They wanted so badly to believe that but they knew that all they were searching for was an easy way to justify their selfish desires. Besides, they weren't even human. Rules like that didn't apply here.

On the other hand, human or not, not being was perfect. Nobody was exempt from making mistakes. The only thing is that if they failed, they knew it would be out of their own reluctance to try not because they tried and couldn't get it. They would be failing on purpose and it would be just as selfish.

They wrapped their arms around their knees tighter, trying to ignore everything else around them. They were absolutely lost on what to do.

They reeked of desperation.