Failing Moon

Hi everyone! So, the back story (chapter 1) has been up for a while, but I have heard from a few people it stops them from going forward. The chapter is a little rough reading, so I am thinking of removing it and just incorporating bits of Tarrin’s back story throughout the upcoming chapters. Let me know what you think. :)

“Father, why is it called the Failing Moon Project?” young Tarrin asked, having over heard his father, who just hung up the phone.

“Have you ever heard the story of how the Sun loves the Moon, boy?” his father responded.

“Oh yes, it was a sad story about how we must give up our happiness for the greater good of things. Mommy always called you her Sun.” Beaming up at his father, he was waiting for recognition for knowing something important.

“Wrong son, it’s about the Sun never being strong enough to be with the Moon. Instead he listened to her because he was weak and didn’t take what he longed for, causing him eternal sadness.” Looking at his son, Rolin didn’t see the young boy standing there, but a means to end his own regret.

“No, Mommy always said she was strong for sacrificing. Isn’t that why she died, because she was sacrificing? Wasn’t she strong, Father?” not understanding what his father was saying, Tarrin looked up to his father, expecting agreement.

“She wasn’t Tarrin. She was weak because she sacrificed her happiness, leaving us all alone. She failed us. That’s fine though, son, because I will ensure you never have to make the same mistake. Now it’s time to take your medicine, be a good boy, and drink this.” As Tarrin’s father handed the small boy a cup of water, he pulled the brown pill bottle out of his office bag. Taking a white oval pill from the bottle, he handed it to Tarrin. His son took the pill and struggled to swallow it.

Gulping down that last bit of the water in the cup, the boy stood there waiting for the pat his father always gave him on his head after Tarrin did well with taking his medication.

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Tarrin’s father was a pharmaceutical genius. He developed the Failing Moon Project to save his wife. With advancements in foreign medicine, he was able to secretly work on developing a pill that would change the genetic makeup of someone if taken in a series of increments. It corrected all anomalies in the genetic code. Other than aging, it could cure almost any inherited disease.

He had failed with Tarrin’s mother, who refused to take it and died from a rare disease to which there was no cure.

In Rolin’s agony of losing her, he feared Tarrin would develop the same disease. So, he decided to give it to his son, knowing the risks. He became so obsessed, that it'd evolved into him proving himself rather than actually saving his son.

It was first named Failing Moon Project because Tarrin’s father knew his wife’s life force was failing to keep her going, In his eyes, his Moon was dying.

“There, that’s a good boy. Only a couple more times, and you shouldn’t have to take it anymore,. Isn’t that wonderful?” His father’s eagerness was eerie, but Tarrin never noticed.

He patted Tarrin on the head and stood there waiting for the pill to take effect

“I don’t feel good, father, the medicine always hurts my stomach and gives me nightmares.” saying this, Tarrin suddenly felt drowsy and started to pass out. His father caught him, picked him up, and carried him to the living room. The actual treatment would begin then.

Twice a week, Tarrin’s father would drug him with a sedative, calling it ‘his medicine’ so that Tarrin would take it. Rolin would take his son downstairs to the lab that was hidden behind a large portrait that hung from ceiling to floor. He always looked at his wife’s painted smile and his heart would break, only a moment, before his greed to succeed would take over.

Down in the lab, he would lay Tarrin on a medical bed, then place an oxygen mask over his face. Hooking his son up to an IV, Rolin would administer 60 ccs via slow drip of the genetic altering serum. He would keep watch as his son would sometimes wriggle and cry out in pain. If necessary, Rolin would inject a little bit more sedative to further put Tarrin into a deep sleep. Watching the monitors of Tarrin’s body, brain, and nervous system, he could tell from the data,the serum was working.

Relaxing in the chair waiting for the drip to finish, his father watched as Tarrin had finally finished one of his struggling dream fits. Getting sleepy, Rolin started to doze off until the alarm for the house sounded. Looking at the security monitor by the door, he realized they had found him. Grabbing his phone from his pocket, Rolin made a phone call.

“They’re here. It’s time.” saying this into the phone, the voice on other end assured him 3 minutes and they would be there to take Tarrin.

Hanging up the phone and smashing it on the concrete gray floor, Rolin quickly checked the progress of the drip. It wasn’t finished. This would be it, the last of the treatment.

The data proved it work, but Rolin didn’t know to what extent. Grabbing a large syringe, he withdrew more serum from a large vial and injected Tarrin directly until a total of 140 ccs entered the boy’s system. He didn’t know to what the side effects might amount to, and he knew he’d never find out.

As he finished unhooking a very drugged up Tarrin, Rolin could hear gun shots upstairs, and talking as they looked for him. Suddenly a small metal hatch opened on the floor at the far wall. The man popping through was an associate of Rolin.

Cradling Tarrin to his shoulder as he removed the iv and folded the boy’s arm over the cotton ball covering the site where it just was, he reached over with his other hand and snatched a memory stick out of his computer that was hooked up to the monitors. He handed both Tarrin and the memory stick off to the man.

“Take both of them to Nora, she will know how to contact my brother.” His associate nodded and carefully pulled the boy with him through the hatch.

With the most important thing of his life, finally off safe, Rolin pushed a heavy file cabinet over the hatch covering it completely. Running over to the keyboard at the monitors displaying Tarrin’s biology data, Rolin entered a self destruct virus code waiting at the computers back door. He always had it ready, knowing they would find him eventually.

Pushing ‘Enter’ on the keyboard, he backed up from the computer just as the big metal door at the base of the stairs started being cut into. He quickly kicked his shattered phone pieces under the shelves containing medical equipment. The phone wasn’t traceable, but he didn’t want them to know he’d called anyone at that moment, giving his associate time to escape with the memory stick and Tarrin.

The door finally popped on its hinges and came down straight in front of him, showing 2 men and a woman standing there. They were dressed in suites, with one man holding the cutting equipment, while the woman was holding a gun, pointed in Rolin’s direction.

“It’s been a while, Professor.” The 3rd man said as he walked into the lab flanked by the other 2.

“Yes, it has. Ho..how are things Chris?” Rolin asked while walking around the table to put it between him and the 3 unexpected visitors.

“Oh, they’ve been pretty swell. Here alone, Rolin?” The main man said looking around the lab.

“Yeah, well, you know, it’s a solitary life, always in the lab, doing this and that.” Rolin continued to slowly circle around the table as the visitors eyed him.

“That I do, it’s just the way it goes.” Smiling at this, the man met Rolins eyes. Sweat had started to drip on the sides of Rolins head.

The man noticed but then felt a crunch under his shiny pointed shoe. Stopping and bending down, he inspected what he just smashed. He realized it was a piece of plastic. Noticing more broken plastic pieces and glass sticking out from the bottom of a medical table, he grinned.

Standing up, he quickly went over to the small medical table and practically throwing it out of the way, he scooped up the rest of Rolins smashed phone.

Turning to the man on his left, he nodded. The man started speaking to the mic in his ear, and left quickly with the woman running up the stairs.

“You lied to me Rolin. I find it odd that your phone became obsolete on its own.” Holding the broken phone, he suddenly let it drop out of his hand onto the metal table with a loud clang, making Rolin jump.

Just then, the woman came down the stairs still holding the gun, pointed up this time.

“He’s gone.” She announced. Rolin realized they were looking for Tarrin.

“Ah, I see. Where is he Rolin?” the man asked.

“You’ll never find him! He left days ago. It’s only me here, so you might as well give up!” Rolin yelled at the man.

“Yes, we will find him, Rolin. Your abomination will be found, and when he is, well....” The man just smiled and shrugged.

“No!” Rolin shouted in fear.

Turning away, the man nodded at the women. Rolin started screaming about the project being a success, and that the man would regret ever being born. The man who was once Rolin’s student, just chuckled at this while ascending the stairs. A sudden gun shot, then another, could be heard echoing behind him.

Reaching the top, he waited for the women. Her red heels clicked as she came up.

“Find the boy, I don’t care what it takes. I want him dead. Burn the lab down, the house down, even the damn neighborhood if you have to. I want all traces of the monster lost to anyone who comes looking. This is my hunt. I refuse to let my father down.” nodding at his words, the women pulled out a phone from her suit jacket pocket and made a call.

Moments later fire trucks could be heard blaring down the street as the lights on neighboring houses flicked on. It was already late into the night, but the sound echoed in the neighborhood.

A single figure stood at a distance, watching, as a blaze of orange engulfed the large house. Her hair and face were hidden by the dark ankle length trench coat, blending into the darkness across the street. No one noticed her.

Turning, the full moon’s light revealed tears streaming down her face. She slowly walked away, clutching a small brown bear.