Leaving This Planet
The air, as usual, was filled with their screams. The machine tore Null's arm off, only to push it against the socket and graft it back on, a dash of healing goop making it good as new. Then it did the same with his other arm ane both his legs, then it tore his chest open and ripped his heart out.
He managed to fight against the pain and open his eyes, only to immediately regret it when he saw a needle aiming at his heart. He rocked against his restraints as he went through the extraordinarily painful experience of being stabbed thousands of times in the heart.
"I don't know why we haven't gotten rid of your vocal cords already," this month's scientist said, his face scrunched like he had just eaten a sour grape. "All you ever do with them is scream."
Hours later, the machines finally stopped, the shackles retracting and allowing them to stand on shaking legs. Hercules' knees gave out, and she dropped to the floor. The man in the lab coat sneered.
"What a pathetic display." He raised his clipboard, placing a pen to the paper on it. "Pain resistance test…" he glared at Hercules, flourishing his pen in an exaggerated 'X' on the page, easily visible to those in the room. "Failed."
Null staggered to his feet, ignoring the pain and cramps in his legs as he shambled over to the scientist. He placed his face inches away from the other man's and met the man's scornful gaze with his own wrathful one.
"Touch me, and there'll be pain resistance tests for the next month."
Null stepped back, and an arrogant grin spread on the scientist's face. "That's right, you can't lay a finger on me."
"There'll be tests like this regardless," Null said, jamming his fist into the man's jaw. The man stumbled back, sliding down against the wall as Null advanced.
"You bastard! Get back or I'll-" His words were cut short as Null punched him again, and again.
Null whaled on the man until his face was an unrecognizable landscape of blood and bruises, then struck some more until two guards came into the room and grabbed him by the arms, hauling him away as he struggled and kicked.
The scientist rushed to his feet, leaning against the wall for support. "You'll pay for this!" he screamed.
"I guess your vocal cords are unnecessary too!" Null shouted over his shoulder. The guard on his left smacked Null on the head with the butt of his rifle, and Null's vision went black.
Fate opened his eyes, finding Garrett staring back at him with a frown. The older man dropped his hands, his warring thoughts hinted at through his conflicted gaze. Garrett had seen thousands of instances of Fate's time in the Advanced, and because his technique relied on his Time Manifestation, he knew that those weren't just memories. They were real events.
"Ythmun is going to bring us all to ruin," he said solemnly.
"There's still time to stop him, gramps."
"No… He'd put me down with a flick of his finger. Even I can't stand up to him. But you're welcome to go and get yourselves killed. I won't stop ya." He stepped aside, gesturing to the locked door at the end of the room. The locks clicked, and the door swung open, revealing another long hallway. Cait's time loop was broken, and a quick headshake from Fate told her not to attack Garrett.
"Thanks, old man," Fate said, putting his armor back on and motioning Cait to follow. When they were about to cross the threshold of the door, Garrett called out.
"Wait," he said. Fate and Cait turned to him. "If you do survive, somehow… take me off this rock, will you? I hate it here."
Fate nodded, and he and Cait broke into a jog down the hallway. Now alone, Garrett sighed heavily, feeling the orb of energy within him pulse.
'You have betrayed me, Garrett,' Ythmun's voice echoed in his mind, with the clinical detachment of a surgeon. 'A shame. You were quite useful. The deal's off. I'll do everything within my power to make sure you are forgotten, that the ages after this one will not know who you were. Goodbye.'
Garrett fell to his knees, his skin shriveling as the muscle underneath lost its vitality. He dropped to the ground, his head popping off and rolling along on the ground until it collapsed into a pile of dust, his body soon following suit.
Unbeknownst to Ythmun, however, a flickering ball of energy rose out of Garrett's remains, zooming along through the palace and out of it until it came to a stop in front of Cait's ship, all within the span of a single blink.
The energy morphed, molding itself into the form of Garrett, before it solidified and a newly-made man dropped to the ground, his joints popping as he stood to his full height. Garrett grimaced, placing his hands on the small of his back and leaning backward, causing another pop to ring out.
"I'm too damn old to die just yet," he groaned. After his stretches, he took in the ship in front of him, marveling at how it was completely invisible. The only thing that gave away its position was the flattened grass in the area, but the grass was already so short that it was almost impossible to spot. Garrett was certain he wouldn't have been able to find it without Fate's unknowing help.
Along with looking at what the Advanced did to him, Garrett looked through Fate's past to find how he and that lady – who Fate called 'Cait' – had gotten on this planet. He smiled, a cheeky, knowing smile that elderly folks were great at giving, and felt around the invisible ship's exterior for the button that opened the ramp.
He found it, hit it, and the ramp extended, a door opening like a portal to another world, hovering in the air. He glanced at the palace in the distance, his smile turning to a hesitant frown. After shaking his head, he sidled his naked body into the ship and closed the door behind him, heading to the closet to borrow some clothes.
'I'll give those brats three days,' he thought. 'If they aren't back by then, I'm taking this ship and leaving this shitty planet.'
Now fully clothed in a set of Fate's spare clothes, he hopped onto the couch and turned on the television, using his memory of Fate's past to turn the thing on with the remote. He found a show called "The Grand Fire Ball" and put it on, munching on a hot burger.