Chapter 1: The First Experiment
The world was already broken before they came for me.
Food was scarce. Gangs ruled the streets. Families vanished every night.
My daughter would cling to me in the dark, whispering, “Daddy, don’t let them take me.”
I swore I never would.
But I was powerless. Just a weak man watching the world rot around us.
Then the soldiers arrived.
Big black trucks rolled into the camps like saviors. They promised “help.”
Bread for the starving. Shelter for the homeless. A future for the children.
But it was all a lie.
They weren’t looking for heroes or soldiers.
They were looking for the desperate.
People with something left to lose.
People like me.
That’s why they chose me. Not because I was strong. Not because I was brave. But because they knew I would say yes to anything if it meant saving her.
I didn’t hesitate. I signed the paper. My little girl needed me.
And then they took me away.
---
The room they strapped me into was colder than death.
White walls. Bright lights burning in my eyes.
Men in lab coats whispering, scribbling, staring at me like I wasn’t human anymore.
My wrists were chained to the chair. Metal biting into skin.
They didn’t even ask if I was ready.
One of them just nodded.
The needle slid in.
The serum burned instantly. Fire crawling under my skin, racing through my blood, twisting into every nerve.
I screamed, but the sound barely left my throat. It felt like my lungs were melting.
At first, I thought maybe it was working.
My vision sharpened. Colors brightened. Every sound in the room rang like a bell in my skull.
For a brief moment, I felt powerful.
Unstoppable.
Like I could finally protect her.
---
Then the pain split me open.
My veins darkened, black lines crawling under my skin.
My body convulsed against the straps.
The lights above me blurred, burned, vanished into streaks of white.
I begged them to stop.
I begged to see her. Just once. Just for a second.
But they didn’t listen.
They only stood behind the glass, scribbling in their notebooks, eyes gleaming like vultures circling a corpse.
My skin blistered. My mind tore open.
The screams pouring from me didn’t even sound human anymore.
And then—
The restraints snapped.
---
The hunger hit me instantly.
Not hunger for food. Not even for survival.
Hunger for flesh. For blood. For life.
I don’t remember everything.
Just flashes.
Boots pounding on the floor.
Guards rushing in, weapons raised.
The first man’s scream as my teeth sank into him.
The hot flood of blood filling my mouth.
Another flash—
Bones cracking.
Alarms blaring.
My own laughter echoing in my skull, low and twisted.
And then… silence.
---
When I came back to myself, I was kneeling in the wreckage.
The smell of iron and death choked the air.
Corpses lay around me, broken and torn apart.
My hands were red. My face was wet.
And for one horrifying second… I realized I had enjoyed it.
But then another sound cut through the haze.
A memory. A voice.
Her voice.
“Daddy.”
Her laughter echoed in my head. Her tiny hand in mine. The way she used to fall asleep on my chest when the world outside was burning.
It was like a flicker of light in the dark.
A reminder that I wasn’t gone.
Not completely.
---
That’s when I realized: I wasn’t like the others.
I hadn’t died.
I hadn’t turned into one of those brainless husks.
Somehow, I was still me.
But not fully.
My mind was split. My body was changed.
Stronger. Faster. Unstoppable.
Half man. Half monster.
A weapon they couldn’t control.
---
And now… I’m loose....
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Thank you for reading Part One of Patient Zero
This story means a lot to me, and your thoughts keep me going.
Drop a comment if you're curious about what happens next -
it really helps me know you're out there
Part Two is coming soon...
