Experiment X1A-9424

X1A-9424 raced out of the compound he had been raised in. He immediately skidded to a stop, his bright blue eyes round as he took everything in. Huge things in an array of colors, a carpet like green thing covered the ground along with many other things he couldn't even start to describe.


The lights were turned on to, it was very bright and hot. He wondered if he was making a mistake as he sneezed and coughed. The air was different, heavier....wet. Noise behind him made up his mind and he took off again. The floor under him felt hard and soft at the same time, rough and sharp, and warm. Not hard, smooth and cold like he was used to.


As he continued through the trees, his chest hurt as he sucked down air his body wasn't use to. He felt dizzy and confused. Everything looked and sounded different. He didn't stop however, he said he was going to be free though he didn't really understand what that meant. He just knew he didn't want to be in pain anymore and staying at the compound meant pain. He wasn't sure how far he was from the compound, though he was sure he had to be far.


Things at the compound had started to change over the last few months. At first things were ok to put it mildly. He did anything the doctors wanted, not everything was painful. He didn't understand what they were looking for but he knew he could do things they liked and that they couldn't do. He knew he was faster then them, stronger and he could jump higher too. Why these things were important he also didn't know, but they constantly tested him on these aspects. He could hold his breath underwater for a long time. He had overheard the doctors saying something about six hours and something minutes but he didn't know what that meant either but they were happy about.


Happy doctors were a good thing. Happy doctors meant he could have more time with his piano. He had also been singing since as far back as he could remember. The doctors seemed content to let him continue to sing. He didn't understand why they allowed him to do this. He had vague memories of a doctor saying it was in his genetic code. After that a piano had been placed in his room for his use. At first he didn't understand what it was for but after some test runs he had figured it out. He loved his piano and the sounds it made. He loved to make sounds with it. The doctors called this singing and music. Once a lab assistance gave him a book with lined paper. She said it was for him to write down his music. He didn't understand and the book was currently sitting inside the bench of the piano seat, unused.


X1A-9424 didn't know how to read or write. He didn't know anything really except from what he observed from the doctors and their assistants and anyone else that came into the compound. He could talk of course and he could play his piano.


However, after his fifteen birthday, another thing he didn't really understand except that it meant a lot of tests, things started to change. There had been a lot of yelling, angry voices. Something he knew was not a good thing for him. Angry doctors were never good. New people kept coming to the compound yelling at the doctors then yelling at him. There were more tests. Bad tests. They seemed to never end. Then they got happy. Very happy and he thought he could finally go back to his piano but something went wrong. This wasn't a normal happy. He knew this because the tests didn't stop. They became more and more, with more happy doctors and new people.


Happy doctors meant he could play his piano. This however was not happening. This was a bad happy. That is when he realized he needed to run away. A concept he never even thought of until he overheard the doctors discussing if now because he was different, he would try to run away, leave the compound. X1A-9424 didn't understand what they meant about him being different, ebolv---evolv-ting..ling---evolving and what it had to do with him leaving the compound. He did realize that apparently now he could run away, so he decided to try it.


He couldn't run anymore, he slowed to a stop, his hand on the rough thing next to him, it wasn't a wall it was too small and it was cylinder like a tube with weird things on the top. He leaned against it when he realized it wasn't going to fall over. He panted hard, his grey hair sticking to his face, he felt unsettled and disoriented, he felt like he couldn't breathe like when he was underwater and tried to take a breath. He wasn't sure how long he stayed there, trying to catch his breath until realizing it wasn't helping, he still was struggling to breath but he wasn't panting anymore. He needed to keep moving, he didn't want to be found.


He shook his head and forced himself forward realizing the ground had changed, it was hard, rough and very hot. He winced and hopped a little looking down at the black floor with yellow lines. A loud sound startled him and he jerked his head up to realize something red was coming at him, fast. He jerked backward, hearing the loud sound again, realized there was another of the fast moving object coming towards him from behind this one was blue. He could see a person inside it. He twisted, scrambling to move out of the way, he wince when the stick on the side of the blue object hit him in the arm. The object skidding to a stop along with another one.


"HEY KID WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING ON THE ROAD!!! YOU BROKE MY MIRROR!!!" an angry male voice shouted at him as a man climbed out of the odd blue object, waving a finger at him.


X1A-9424 took a tentative step backward, as another person got out of the other red object, this one was a woman and she was on a phone, speaking rapidly.


"Yes, yes. It is him I think. He seems disorientated, taking shallow breaths, like a fish out of water."


"KID! DIDN'T YOU HEAR ME!!!" the man all but shouted into his face.


X1A-9424 did the only thing he knew to do, he had seen the lab assistants do it when the doctors were mad at them and were yelling at them.


"I'm sorry! I am so very sorry sir! Please, please give me another chance!" he said quickly with dismay backing up another step, a rough slow cough bubbling up from a lack of oxygen, his vision seeming to become unfocused.


"Leave the kid alone can't you see he is confused and frightened!!" shouted the woman to the man as she approached them, other cars were stopping because the two cars and the people were blocking traffic.


Car horns and people shouting out their window filled the air.


"ANOTHER CHANCE? Oh you on probation kid?" the man asked, his voice changing becoming filled with disgust.


"Let me guess foster kid perhaps? You on drugs kid? You high? You good for nothing punk! Its punks like you that make hard working people like me pay a shit load of taxes to take care of your worthless ass!"


HONK!! HONK-HONK-HONK!!

"MOVE!!!!"


The man's hands gave small pushes against X1A-9424's chest, making him stumble backwards. He tripped and would have fallen backward if the man hadn't grabbed him by his medical shirt, jerking him forward.


"You deserve to get arrest and thrown back in juve. Worthless piece of trash!"


HONK!!


"Leave him alone!!!" the woman shouted grabbing the man's hands and pushing him backwards before she leaned forward to whispered, "the kid has mental issues and violent issues. The cops said not to agitate him."


"GET OFF THE ROAD!!!"

HONK!! HONK!!

"MOVE IT!!!!"


The woman turned to look at the young boy, noticing the almost grey tinged to the boy's face, the unfocused glaze over his eyes, the trembling of his body, "Sweetheart? Are you ok? Help is coming. We will get you home."


X1A-9424 shook his head, a mix gesture of uncertainty and trying to clear it. There was too much noise. He couldn't breathe. He didn't understand what was going on. His vision was turning grey, he felt like everything was spinning hard. He felt his knees buckle, his knees hit something hard and unyielding. A new sound was added to the mix of car horns and yelling. High pitch and non-stopping. He clutched his head into his hands and tried to scream for it to stop.


"PUT YOUR HANDS INTO THE AIR XIA BARNETT!"


X1A-9424 groaned at the new sound that bombard him, he sank to the hard floor, his forehead against the rough surface, his hands over his ears, desperately trying to get air into his lungs. Sound of running feet. Hands grabbing his hands, forcing him onto the hard floor. A high pitched screaming, the woman. The world moved slow and disconnected. Something cold and hard was put around his wrists before he was turned over onto his back.


"SHIT! CALL AN AMBULANCE!!"


"Kid? Kid, can you hear me? Hold on! Breath, take a breathe kid! Shit, his lips are blue!"


"The fire truck is here, their EMT is on her way."


A new sound, softer and calmer, "hey kid, take it easy. Easy now. Breath, slow and easy. Take those handcuffs off him!"


He fett something on his face, something cool went into his lungs, air. Normal air. He was shifted, the things on his wrist were removed but he couldn't move. He felt too weak.


"Hey, easy easy. Slow, slow. How far is the ambulance?"


"Three minutes out."


"Tell them they have a minute, the kid is in shock and deteriorating quickly. He needs to be hospitalized immediately. Tell them we might have a possible overdose too."


"Got it."


"Xia? Xia Barnett open your eyes. Come on kid. Open them!"


New hands, new voices, lights in his eyes. He tried to raise his hand to push them away but he couldn't. Several sharp pricks, he knew were needles. He felt himself lifted and put onto something they used to put him into a large square object. More lights, less sounds.


"Xia? Xia Barnett, do you heard me?" said a soft male voice.


X1A-9424 turned his head where it rested to look at the person speaking, he nodded weakly his vision grey and spotted, he closed his eyes. He was tired. He had never felt this tired before.


"Xia? Xia!? Hey kid, wake up!"


Someone shook him but he ignored them and let darkness take him.

--------------------

Sounds, lights, yelling again filled the air around him as he regain consciousness but that wasn't the worse of it, there was something down his throat, he tried to swallow but couldn't. Panic set in and he started to struggle.


"He is waking up! Xia, Xia. You are fine. You need to stay calm"


"Pump quickly!"


X1A-9424 felt the worse sensation of his life like he was vomiting but he wasn't vomiting. He tried to gag against the vomiting sensation. His arms and legs were tied down. Hands help his head firmly into place. He couldn't move, he couldn't scream.


"Xia. Listen to me. We are pumping your stomach to remove any drugs you overdosed on."

The machines flared with a power surge and electric popping stopped the machines in the entire ER. The lights were out and the back-up generators kicked in.


"Shit, get the tube out! Untie him, turn him over!!"


The tube was removed as his hands and feet were unbound and he was flipped onto his stomach were he promptly vomited all over the floor next to the hospital bed. A hand rubbed his back, patting it firmly to encourage the vomiting, which it did. Finished X1A-9424 tried to turn over and lay back down but hands forced him into a sitting up position on the gurney.


"Oh no, if you need to vomit again you will choke."


Nurses quickly cleaned the floor. A police officer stood on the right side of his bed.


X1A-9424 shifted so he could focused on the person speaking on the left side of the gurney; a woman with chestnut brown hair that stopped at her shoulders, wearing a long lab coat, a pink sweater and black slacks. This put the officer behind him but he didn't really care about the police officer, he didn't know what he was, another doctor perhaps in an odd blue uniform.

The woman wiped his mouth with a towel before approaching his face with a plastic cup with a long clear tube attached. He jerked back unsure before another set of hands, strong and large held it into place from behind him and the woman put the cup on his face, the white string tight around his hand and he noticed the air coming from it, he took a deep breath feeling the oxygen enter his lungs.


"There see, that didn't hurt," the woman said with a soft smile.

The police officer release X1A-9424 head and crossed his arms. X1A-9424, took a moment to glance at him, re-evaluating the purpose of the man when the woman spoke again. The woman crouched in front of him, checking his I.V. line, his vital cables, and pushing a chuck of his grey sweat soak hair from his face.


He felt tired, extremely tired and everything hurt, he didn't realize how badly he had hurt himself running through the woods. Two women were cleaning the bottom of his feet, he winced but hands on his ankles held his feet firmly in place as they applied a thick salve and wrapped them with white bandages after the doctor looked them over after they had cleaned.


"Now, Xia, we took some blood and are running tests but it would help your treatment if you told me what drug you took."


He shook his head because he had no idea what she was asking him. Was this a new doctor? He was obviously back at the compound but in an area he had never been in. Why was she calling him Xia? The other doctors always called X1A or it. X1A-9424 was confused and this just made him feel even more exhausted. The lights soon turned back on as full power was restored.


The doctor sat on a stool next to him, a tray of things next to her and she slowly and gently cleaned up a variety of scratches and cuts on his face, arms and hands, all the while speaking slowly about what she was doing or going to do, as if she was handling a wild animal before she tried again.


"Xia, we are going to find out what you took anyways. Why don't you help us along?"

"The kid is damaged doc, I doubt he even knows what he took. Besides don't be too nice to him, apparently the kid can be violent. We have been luckily he hasn't become violent so far."


"Officer I think I can handle a sick fifteen year old kid."


"Uh huh, when he comes at you with a scalped don't blame me doc. Hey kid, tell the doc what pill you took! What color was it? Surely you aren't too messed up to not even know that."


X1A-9424 jerked forward as the man entered his personal space, snapping his fingers in his ear to grab his attention.


X1A-9424 cried out as the sharp sound shot through his skull, one hand went to cover his ear while the other tried to find his balance by grabbing the edge of the gurney but his equilibrium was off and he missed. He tumbled forward, tangling with his I.V. line, the oxygen mask snapped off, his vital machine screamed as it was pulled off and now read that he had flat lined, he had hit the tray sending everything crashing to the floor. The doctor caught him before he could hurt himself too badly.


"Officer!! That is enough! Leave this room immediately!" the doctor yelled at him as several nurses raced in because of the commotion.


"Sorry ma'am. I have orders to stay at all times. The kid has a history of violent tendencies."


The police officer walked around the gurney and jerked X1A-9242 back onto it. He groaned, his hands clutching his head as everything spun around him.


"Enough!" she shouted not realized her own voice was not helping the issue.


"Stop....please..." X1A-9424 begged softly before he was promptly sick all over himself.


The doctor lunged forward; as the boy pitched forward unable to keep his balance as he vomited. She held him up right up, patting his back and giving quiet orders to the nurses for further tests and a page to the toxicologist on staff. Once he was done, they cleaned him up, changing his hospital gown for a new one with the officer's help before getting him settled into bed.


"Hey Megan you paged me?"


"Ah, Ryan, thank goodness. I have a possible drug overdose with some unusual symptoms."


Ryan was a fair haired man, tall and well built but without being overly large. He sat on the stool and peered at the pale young boy on the gurney. An oxygen mask covered most of his face, his skin was pale almost grey tinged, sweat coated his skin in a soft sheen.


"He came in with disorientation, blue lips, irregular breathing, going from slow to rapid and a low blood pressure. Blood is being ran, I pumped his stomach but the lights went out. Luckily he continued to vomit. He is showing signs of sensitivity to sound and some equilibrium unbalance. Not to mention his low body temperate, yet he is sweating, and I don't dare take him off the oxygen. He also vomited again."


"Uh...kind of sounds like an overdose but doesn't at the same time. Any sensitivity to light?"


"Not that I have noticed."


The doctor touched the boy's hand, noticing how cool his skin felt, he shifted his hands to check his blood pressure finding it slow and almost nonexistent. He also noticed the boy's lack of response to being touch. Depending on the drug some overdose cases were extra sensitive to touch. The boy didn't so much as twitch. He seemed weak and tired; his breathing was slow and shallow but even. He reached over and pulled the mask off the boy's face. This caused him to stir, his eyes opening slowly, revealing blue eyes that were dull and unfocused. Ryan glanced at the chart on the table side.


"Xia. My name is Doctor Hammond. You can call me Ryan. Can you blink once if you understand me?"


He watched the boy blink after a moment.


"That is good. Do you feel tired? Blink once for yes, twice for now."


The boy blinked once after a pause as if struggling to understand or come up with the energy to blink. He watched those eyes closed again as if keeping them open was an effort.


"Xia, open your eyes please. Xia?"


He watched them twitch as the boy tried to open them, finally they opened slowly. Ryan watched the boy, his mouth slightly open taking in breath after breath. Ryan noted his breathing becoming more labored, his lips going from pale to blue-ish. The boy's hand shifted as if wanting to grab the oxygen mask. Megan noted the change in her patient's lips, moved to put it back on but Ryan stopped her. He watched the O2 stats drop on the screen.


"Xia, listen to me. You do not need the mask. You can breathe without it. I want you to take a very slow and long breath. That is good. Good. Again. No, Xia, calm down. You are fine. Xia!"


Ryan moved to sit on the bed, his hand touching the boy's forehead, smoothing back the sweat damp hair,, "shh...easy easy..you are fine. Breath. Slowly. There is plenty of air."


The issue here was the boy was panicking. He felt like he couldn't breathe so he was having an anxiety attack. Ryan had several overdose cases with this kind of issue and sometimes the patient just needed to feel safe. It was all it took for them to calm down enough to realize they could breath just fine. This however was not the case. The boy became tense and tried to struggle even though he was too weak, his breathing became more labored. Ryan put the mask on the boy's face but continued to run a hand over his head.


"Breath. Breath Xia. Good boy. See, you are fine. Easy, easy." Ryan said softly.


The police officer rolled his eyes, "he is a juvenile delinquent not a puppy."


"Megan, 20% please."


Megan immediately reduced the oxygen level as Ryan shifted to block the boy's line of sight so he wouldn't realize what Megan was doing. He watched the boy's breathing even out though still slow and shallow, the O2 numbers slowly climbing back up.


"I agree his symptoms are unusual. I would like to observe him for a few days," Ryan said after moving to Megan's side near the door so they could talk privately, the boy having fallen into an exhausted sleep.


"I can't release him in his current condition and you are more than welcome to partner with me on this case. What are you thinking?"


"I am thinking the oxygen is psychological. I am assuming whatever drug he took caused a mild anaphylactic shock which caused him to have shortness of breath and this caused panic. Once oxygen was administered and he could breathe again, he connected the oxygen with being able to breathe. Some part of him knows he is still under the drug's influence and I think he is afraid of being unable to breathe again. It is possible he could have had some mild claustrophobia issues before which could explain why his fear is so heighten. Panic attacks can cause shortness of breath, which of course just starts the vicious cycle all over again. I think once the drugs are out of his system, he should be fine but until then we should keep him on a low level of oxygen and continue to monitor his O2 stats. Until we get the toxicology back it will be hard to determine anything at this point."


Megan nodded, “I agree. I want to move him to ICU until we can get him off the oxygen just in case.”


“I agree. Has his parents arrived yet?”


“It his uncle from what I understood. He should be on his way.”


“Dr. White?”

Megan looked up at the nurse that walked into the room, “Yes?”


“The guardian is here and he is demanding the boy be released into his custody immediately. He wants an AMA form.”


“What?” Megan hissed in anger and shock.


“Apparently he is a doctor and said he can take care of the patient’s immediate medical needs.”


“Of all the egotist…I bet he is a doctor alright but some sort of specialist who thinks they know everything…AMA… my ass,” Megan fumed as she started to exit the room.


“Ryan can you have him moved to ICU and keep an eye on that cop.”


“Got it,” Ryan said kissing his wife on the cheek and he grabbed the phone on the wall to start the transfer process.


Megan stormed down the hallway ready to do battle with the so-called doctor of a guardian.


“Mr. Barnett?” Megan asked approaching the thin man looking anxiously down the hallway towards her patient’s room.


“Oh no..I am his uncle on his mother’s side. Barnett is his father’s name. I am Dr. Marco Varius.”


“Uh huh. My nurse was telling me you wished to have your nephew removed from the hospital against medical advisement.”


“Yes. You see my nephew has some issues and this kind of environment will only make those issues worse. I can treat him at home.”


“Are you aware of the reason your nephew is in the hospital, Mr. Varius?”


“Dr. Varius and yes I was told a drug overdose but you see that is impossible. He has a rare medical condition which is what is causing these issues. I need to get him home and get him his medicine.”


“Mr. Varius, if you can inform us of your nephew’s medical condition we can treat him here, where he can be in a stable environment. He is being moved to the ICU as we speak because of his instability. Also why is he not wearing a medical bracelet if he has a medical condition?”


“I am afraid his condition is very rare and most hospital do not understand the condition or how to treat it. I have spent my life focused on his condition in order to give him the best care. Now, if you would please give me his paperwork I can be out of your hair and get him home to be treated quickly.”


“I am afraid I cannot do that. You see once a patient is in the ICU, they cannot be moved even with an AMA form until they are considered in a stable condition. Since I am his current doctor and I say his condition is not stable he cannot leave the hospital.”


She smiled at the cowed expression on the man’s face before frowning at the sudden change because the man went from cowed to coward in a split moment. She turned around to see a tall and muscular man in military fatigue along with six other men approaching them.


“Lt. Barnett,” Dr. Varius said softly, his voice almost trembling.


“I am away for a short period of time and you lose my son?” Barnett growled.


“You’re his father?” Megan asked, squaring her shoulder, finally a man who would do what is best of his son.


“Yes, I am.”


“Good, I was just telling Mr. Varius here that your son cannot be moved-“


“Kelley, Deer, get the samples from the lab and then deal with security. Marshall, Sullivan clear the halls to the doors. Mathews, O’Donnell get my son to the truck.”


“Sir!” the six men snapped to attention and moved to complete their orders.


“Mr. Barnett!”


“It’s Lt. Barnett, Dr. White. I have all the paperwork to have my son release. My son is not yet in the ICU and even if he was you cannot hold him there as long as he is my son. You do not have the facilities to treat him and I will be damned if he dies here because of some incompetent, Ms. I-think-I-know-it-all doctor. Also here is an order from the board of the hospital directors informing you to release my son to my custody as well as all his medical files.”


Barnett shoved the papers at the woman before grabbing the weasel of a doctor and all but propelling him down the hallway.


“Make sure his transfer is smooth,” he growled at Varius.

“Any questions Dr. White?”


Megan clutched the papers in her hands, fuming with rage, “yes, what does he have?”


Barnett grinned at her, “nothing you will ever come across again in your career. If you were wise, you will let this go, forget about today and my son and go on with your pathetic little life.”


Megan watched the man stalk down the hallway where two of the soldiers and Dr. Varius were rolling the unconscious boy out of the hospital.


Megan wasn’t sure what the hell was going on but she knew one thing, that man was not that boy’s father and she would put her head on the chopping block if that boy wasn’t part of some sort of military project. She definitely was not going to let this go.

Notes

Longer then expected. Debating breaking it into two chapters..but figured one LONG one would be nice.


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