works for me.”
She considered the options. She already knew the gist of what was going to happen. Jamie was going to insert some sort of serum into her bloodstream, which would activate her DNA and make her Hunter abilities dominate her human limitations. She would be able to run faster, jump higher, aim more accurately, all of the skills she would need in order to successful hunt and kill Vampires. She knew he was also injecting a medication that would make her sleep for at least twenty-four hours. This was essential for two reasons. First of all, it would allow her body to Transform while in a dormant state, which allowed the process to happen more quickly and any damage to be repaired without delay. Secondly, while some Hunters never felt a twinge of pain while undergoing Transformation via serum, for others it was excruciatingly painful. Jamie had perfected this method so that no one need suffer for no reason. “You can just do it,” she finally decided.
“Alright then,” he said, his smile reassuring her once again.
“Will it hurt at all?” she asked. She had asked that question earlier and she felt like she got a non-answer so she decided to try again.
Jamie cleared his throat, an indicator that Cadence was not going to like his answer. “There is a possibility that it might hurt a little at first, depending upon whether or not you are predisposed for a painful Transformation.”
Cadence glanced past him at Aaron who was avoiding eye contact with her now. Clearly, he had known about this possibility and left it out of his rousing recruiting speech.
“And what sorts of Hunters are predisposed toward painful Transformations?” she asked.
Jamie glanced at Aaron this time, and by his expression he could tell his leader would not be fielding this question. “Well, usually those who have the most genes to transform are the ones who are most affected by it.” Her eyes widened and she glanced at the faces at the foot of the bed and then back to Jamie. “But don’t worry,” he assured her again, “It will only last a few minutes, and then you’ll be out.”
“What do you mean by a few minutes?” she asked. “And what do you mean by excruciating?”
Jamie already had the first syringe ready to inject. Her arm had been cleaned, tourniquet wrapped, Hello Kitty Band-Aid ready to apply. “I promise you Cadence, you’ll be just fine,” he said, glancing at Eliza who was nodding. “There are a few minutes between when the serum begins to activate the DNA and the medication kicks in, but I’ll be able to help you through those.”
“Why can’t you just give the medication first then?” she asked.
He chuckled a bit, trying to lighten the mood a bit. “Because I don’t want to kill you,” he said.
She took that to mean he had tried it that way before, hopefully on lab rats or something, not actual Hunters, and it hadn’t worked out right.
“Alright. You all set?” he asked in that soothing voice.
She nodded, and he began to slide the needle into her arm. She had to look away. She had never been a big fan of needles, and the fact that she was growing more terrified by the minute would only make matters worse.
At first, there was just a slight burning sensation at the sight of the injection. Then, it started to radiate up and down her arm. Jamie was saying something about waiting two minutes before injecting the medication, but by the time he completed his sentence, Cadence could no longer hear a word he was saying. The serum was spreading through her body quickly, and she felt like surely her veins must literally be on fire. She could feel the tears rolling out of the corners of her eyes, but she was powerless to move or even speak. In fact, she was in so much pain, she was finding it hard just to breathe.
Upon her initial reaction, Aaron had crossed the room immediately. She could feel his hand on her arm, but she couldn’t really see him or anyone else.
She considered the options. She already knew the gist of what was going to happen. Jamie was going to insert some sort of serum into her bloodstream, which would activate her DNA and make her Hunter abilities dominate her human limitations. She would be able to run faster, jump higher, aim more accurately, all of the skills she would need in order to successful hunt and kill Vampires. She knew he was also injecting a medication that would make her sleep for at least twenty-four hours. This was essential for two reasons. First of all, it would allow her body to Transform while in a dormant state, which allowed the process to happen more quickly and any damage to be repaired without delay. Secondly, while some Hunters never felt a twinge of pain while undergoing Transformation via serum, for others it was excruciatingly painful. Jamie had perfected this method so that no one need suffer for no reason. “You can just do it,” she finally decided.
“Alright then,” he said, his smile reassuring her once again.
“Will it hurt at all?” she asked. She had asked that question earlier and she felt like she got a non-answer so she decided to try again.
Jamie cleared his throat, an indicator that Cadence was not going to like his answer. “There is a possibility that it might hurt a little at first, depending upon whether or not you are predisposed for a painful Transformation.”
Cadence glanced past him at Aaron who was avoiding eye contact with her now. Clearly, he had known about this possibility and left it out of his rousing recruiting speech.
“And what sorts of Hunters are predisposed toward painful Transformations?” she asked.
Jamie glanced at Aaron this time, and by his expression he could tell his leader would not be fielding this question. “Well, usually those who have the most genes to transform are the ones who are most affected by it.” Her eyes widened and she glanced at the faces at the foot of the bed and then back to Jamie. “But don’t worry,” he assured her again, “It will only last a few minutes, and then you’ll be out.”
“What do you mean by a few minutes?” she asked. “And what do you mean by excruciating?”
Jamie already had the first syringe ready to inject. Her arm had been cleaned, tourniquet wrapped, Hello Kitty Band-Aid ready to apply. “I promise you Cadence, you’ll be just fine,” he said, glancing at Eliza who was nodding. “There are a few minutes between when the serum begins to activate the DNA and the medication kicks in, but I’ll be able to help you through those.”
“Why can’t you just give the medication first then?” she asked.
He chuckled a bit, trying to lighten the mood a bit. “Because I don’t want to kill you,” he said.
She took that to mean he had tried it that way before, hopefully on lab rats or something, not actual Hunters, and it hadn’t worked out right.
“Alright. You all set?” he asked in that soothing voice.
She nodded, and he began to slide the needle into her arm. She had to look away. She had never been a big fan of needles, and the fact that she was growing more terrified by the minute would only make matters worse.
At first, there was just a slight burning sensation at the sight of the injection. Then, it started to radiate up and down her arm. Jamie was saying something about waiting two minutes before injecting the medication, but by the time he completed his sentence, Cadence could no longer hear a word he was saying. The serum was spreading through her body quickly, and she felt like surely her veins must literally be on fire. She could feel the tears rolling out of the corners of her eyes, but she was powerless to move or even speak. In fact, she was in so much pain, she was finding it hard just to breathe.
Upon her initial reaction, Aaron had crossed the room immediately. She could feel his hand on her arm, but she couldn’t really see him or anyone else.
Similar Books
