"You must be here because you heard about the mutant suppressants I'm producing," Nyx mused, his voice dripping with mockery. "Did that frighten you?"
Isaac's jaw clenched. His fists trembled with barely restrained fury. "You sadistic bastard."
"Sadistic? No, no…" Nyx smirked, stepping forward with that insufferable arrogance. "I prefer visionary." He waved a hand dismissively. "And spare me the righteous act. Your so-called morality is nothing more than self-indulgent hypocrisy."
His gaze sharpened, and his expression practically glowed with pride. "You and all the others are what you are because of me. Instead of hunting me down, you should be thanking me. I am humanity's saviour, leading us toward true evolution."
Isaac barely held back a snarl. To him, it was nothing more than the spouting of a lunatic who was directly and indirectly responsible for innumerable deaths.
Nyx glossed over him with a look of amusement before glancing down at his robotic left hand, idly adjusting something. "You're not much for conversation, are you?"
Isaac didn't reply, his muscles tensed, on edge.
Nyx chuckled. "You know, after your last little stunt, I had to wonder - how does one deal with a mutant like you? A ghost who can slip through walls, untouched by physical barriers?"
Isaac smirked. "By shutting up, for starters."
Nyx ignored him, his grin widening. "Untouchable. But flawed." He tilted his head, eyes gleaming. "Your abilities exhaust you quickly. Leave you weak and vulnerable. But that wasn't enough for me. No, I needed something... better."
Isaac took a slow step forward, his instincts screaming. "You really love hearing yourself talk, don't you?"
Nyx clapped his hands, the sharp crack echoing through the sterile lab. "And yet, here you are, walking straight into my hands."
Isaac flinched as soon as Nyx moved, his ability activating instinctively. He expected an attack - but that was exactly what the deranged man wanted.
"Foolish mutant," Nyx sneered, tapping a command onto his sleek, metallic wrist. A low hum pulsed through the walls.
Instantly, Isaac was struck by a wave of extreme nausea. His vision blurred, his body lurched, and most concerningly, his powers flickered out of reach.
Nyx's grin stretched, predatory. "A simple frequency adjustment, and just like that, your precious phasing is worthless." He cocked his head, watching Isaac struggle. "You don't need to worry about mutant suppressants. You're already useless."
Isaac grit his teeth, struggling against the disorientating vibrations pulsating from Nyx's left arm. He felt helpless. The ability he relied on both for combat and to escape whenever he needed to was now obsolete.
"You won't get away with this-" he groaned.
Nyx let out a sharp laugh. "Empty threats. Unsightly and frankly, pathetic. If only I had a real challenge." He almost appeared to be bored and disappointed. "Someone who doesn't break so easily."
A slow smirk curled his lips.
"Subject 357… now he was something else."
Kshhhht...
The lab door hissed open, and as if summoned by Nyx's words, Kai stepped in. His red eyes were cold and calculating as he took in the scene: Isaac struggling, Nyx basking in his own arrogance...
"Subject 357!" Nyx exclaimed, practically beaming. "It's unbelievable. You're alive!"
Kai's voice was low, deadly. "You won't be for long."
Isaac's gaze darted between them, confusion flickering across his face. "Wait, who are-"
Bang!
Kai didn't let him finish. His hand shot to the pistol at his hip, drawing it with expert precision. Before Dr Nyx could even blink, a single bullet tore through the air, aimed dead centre at his chest.
But it stopped short.
The air in front of Nyx shimmered like rippling water as the bullet struck an invisible barrier, the impact followed by a crackling surge of energy. Sparks danced across the surface of the shield, the spent round clattering harmlessly to the floor.
'Figures. That would have been too easy,' Kai thought, eyes narrowing.
Meanwhile, Nyx smirked, entirely unfazed. "Tsk, tsk. Such impatience," he said, stepping forward, his hands clasped behind his back.
'Those red eyes and his sudden recovery... I did it!' Nyx was elated and began to clap like a child at a magic show.
"Magnificent! Do you realise, Kai, how unprecedented you are? The first successful artificial mutant! The future of humanity!"
"I wonder, what kind of abilities do you have?"
Kai's glare was ice cold. "You're insane."
"And you're still a feisty one," Nyx's voice rose with excitement. "It's a miracle, really. Though we'll see how long you last. So much to test, so much to learn."
Nyx's smile twisted further. "But none of that will happen here. This facility won't be here much longer."
"What do you mean by that?" Isaac demanded, his voice sharp despite his weakened state.
Nyx just laughed, his mania lighting up the room. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough."
'But first I'll need to capture these subjects and see just what they're capable of,' he thought to himself before clicking his fingers.
The shadows at the far end of the lab stirred, and from the darkness, three figures emerged. Two twin boys, their bodies grotesque and misshapen, flanked a woman whose form was just as distorted. Clawed hands gleamed under the harsh, sterile lights, and their lifeless eyes held nothing but an eerie, mechanical obedience.
Their skin was a sickly shade of grey, stretched taut over distorted bones, with purple veins snaking across their bodies like an unsettling map. Every movement was jerky and robotic, as if their very existence was a mockery of life itself.
"Meet my family," Nyx said, his voice filled with pride. "Aren't they beautiful?" He gestured lazily.
"Once weak, fragile beings - I've made them something more. My wife, my children - they'll live alongside me forever, as we guide humanity's evolution," he declared, his voice dripping with self-righteous madness.
Isaac's gaze darted between the grotesque creatures, Nyx, and Kai, his expression a mix of confusion, dread, and disgust. Every fibre of his being screamed to flee, but doing so felt impossible with Nyx dampening his phasing ability.
Kai, on the other hand, stood unnervingly calm, his crimson eyes fixed on Nyx. One thought burned in his mind after all he had endured at his hands. 'I'm going to kill him.'
"Now, my good children," Nyx cooed, his grin widening. "Fetch me my subjects."
The two smaller creatures lunged forward, their grotesque forms moving unnaturally fast. Kai and Isaac barely had time to steel themselves before being attacked relentlessly, with Nyx's deranged laughter echoing through the lab like a macabre symphony...