mind.”
“What? No, my legs -.”
I shook him. “It’s not real. Look! Your legs are still there!”
Chad looked down and slowly the terror slid from his face replaced by relief. He ran his hands up and down his legs. Slowly he stood up, looking at them in amazement.
“You’re right,” he said. “Thank God. Thank -.” His face twisted into an expression of fury. “I’m going to kill that guy.”
“Later,” the voice called from the shadows. “He’s the least of your worries down here.”
I grabbed Chad’s arm and slowly led him into the alcove. Two men were in there. One of them was asleep. The one who was awake was sitting back on a bench. He was dressed in little more than rags.
“Thanks for the advice,” I said.
“Advice is free,” he said. “Do you want some more?”
“Sure.”
“Snitches get stitches,” he said.
“Which means?”
“We don’t speak to the guards,” he said. “We tell them nothing. If you snitch on an inmate your life won’t be worth living.”
I nodded. “What’s your name?”
“They call me Drink,” he said.
“Drink?” Chad said. “That’s a pretty strange name.”
The man grinned. In the next instant he seemed to turn translucent then before Chad or I could say anything he turned completely to water. He splashed onto the floor into a puddle. While we stared open mouthed at him, he just as quickly reformed into a human being.
“Still think it’s a strange name?” Drink asked.
“How do you do that?” I asked.
“I’m a mod,” he said. “You are too otherwise you wouldn’t be in here.”
I nodded. I wasn’t about to reveal my powers, but Chad had no such qualms. He held his hands out. In one hand he produced a ball of fire. In the other he held a ball of snow.
“An elemental. That’s good. That’ll help you survive in here.” He looked at me. “What are you?”
“I’ve got some abilities,” I said. “I might show you later.”
He nodded. “Keeping it close to home. Clever.”
“How did you become a mod?” Chad asked.
“I was in an Israeli jail,” he said. “They made me an offer. I could be part of an experiment or I could spend the rest of my life in jail. I decided to be a guinea pig.” He continued. “I didn’t know the Americans were doing modifications. I thought they were following the UN ruling.”
“What ruling?” I asked.
“Don’t you boys know anything?” he asked. “Sit down and I’ll tell you the facts of life.”
We sat down on the bench next to him.
“You know mods have been around for centuries,” he said.
“You mean, like vampires?” I said.
“Vampires and all the others,” Drink said. “They were the natural mods. As soon as the enlightenment began, people started manipulating the human creature to improve upon it. You’ve heard of Frankenstein, of course.”
“Yeah, but you don’t mean -.”
“It’s a fictional story,” Drink said. “But it’s based on fact. Governments had been experimenting in secret for years trying to create soldiers that would give them an advantage in combat. After WW2, upon the formation of the UN, it was decided to ban all human modifications.”
“So no more modifications were allowed,” Chad said.
“They weren’t allowed,” Drink explained. “But they still happened. Oh, not all countries and not all the time. And it’s a dangerous process. Most mods die within days of the process. A lot don’t last a year. But the ones that do last…”
He pointed to himself.
“So what are you doing here?” I asked.
“All mods discovered on foreign territory are supposed to be in jail,” he said. “You know that? Right?”
“Uh, no,” I said.
“Hell,” he shook his head. “You boys really are green. Didn’t you get told anything?”
“Not really.”
“I was spying for the Israelis,” Drink explained. “I got caught. How did you boys end up in this predicament?”
“A prisoner exchange,” I said.
Drink nodded. “Sounds
“What? No, my legs -.”
I shook him. “It’s not real. Look! Your legs are still there!”
Chad looked down and slowly the terror slid from his face replaced by relief. He ran his hands up and down his legs. Slowly he stood up, looking at them in amazement.
“You’re right,” he said. “Thank God. Thank -.” His face twisted into an expression of fury. “I’m going to kill that guy.”
“Later,” the voice called from the shadows. “He’s the least of your worries down here.”
I grabbed Chad’s arm and slowly led him into the alcove. Two men were in there. One of them was asleep. The one who was awake was sitting back on a bench. He was dressed in little more than rags.
“Thanks for the advice,” I said.
“Advice is free,” he said. “Do you want some more?”
“Sure.”
“Snitches get stitches,” he said.
“Which means?”
“We don’t speak to the guards,” he said. “We tell them nothing. If you snitch on an inmate your life won’t be worth living.”
I nodded. “What’s your name?”
“They call me Drink,” he said.
“Drink?” Chad said. “That’s a pretty strange name.”
The man grinned. In the next instant he seemed to turn translucent then before Chad or I could say anything he turned completely to water. He splashed onto the floor into a puddle. While we stared open mouthed at him, he just as quickly reformed into a human being.
“Still think it’s a strange name?” Drink asked.
“How do you do that?” I asked.
“I’m a mod,” he said. “You are too otherwise you wouldn’t be in here.”
I nodded. I wasn’t about to reveal my powers, but Chad had no such qualms. He held his hands out. In one hand he produced a ball of fire. In the other he held a ball of snow.
“An elemental. That’s good. That’ll help you survive in here.” He looked at me. “What are you?”
“I’ve got some abilities,” I said. “I might show you later.”
He nodded. “Keeping it close to home. Clever.”
“How did you become a mod?” Chad asked.
“I was in an Israeli jail,” he said. “They made me an offer. I could be part of an experiment or I could spend the rest of my life in jail. I decided to be a guinea pig.” He continued. “I didn’t know the Americans were doing modifications. I thought they were following the UN ruling.”
“What ruling?” I asked.
“Don’t you boys know anything?” he asked. “Sit down and I’ll tell you the facts of life.”
We sat down on the bench next to him.
“You know mods have been around for centuries,” he said.
“You mean, like vampires?” I said.
“Vampires and all the others,” Drink said. “They were the natural mods. As soon as the enlightenment began, people started manipulating the human creature to improve upon it. You’ve heard of Frankenstein, of course.”
“Yeah, but you don’t mean -.”
“It’s a fictional story,” Drink said. “But it’s based on fact. Governments had been experimenting in secret for years trying to create soldiers that would give them an advantage in combat. After WW2, upon the formation of the UN, it was decided to ban all human modifications.”
“So no more modifications were allowed,” Chad said.
“They weren’t allowed,” Drink explained. “But they still happened. Oh, not all countries and not all the time. And it’s a dangerous process. Most mods die within days of the process. A lot don’t last a year. But the ones that do last…”
He pointed to himself.
“So what are you doing here?” I asked.
“All mods discovered on foreign territory are supposed to be in jail,” he said. “You know that? Right?”
“Uh, no,” I said.
“Hell,” he shook his head. “You boys really are green. Didn’t you get told anything?”
“Not really.”
“I was spying for the Israelis,” Drink explained. “I got caught. How did you boys end up in this predicament?”
“A prisoner exchange,” I said.
Drink nodded. “Sounds
Similar Books
