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The Archway, Part 4
🕑 Added 2021-05-19 21:47:07 +0000 UTCPart 4
“Do you think they'll be any surprises waiting for us in there?” I asked Dr. Yamamoto.
“I cannot rule it out ma'am. We should assume that the Duchess is marshaling the considerable forces at her disposal to deal with us. I did not anticipate her last attack, and she may be hesitant to risk additional losses given your new abilities.”
That was an awfully long “maybe”.
“I must also regretfully inform you that I have soiled myself.” she said with her usual flat tone.
“Thanks. I noticed.”
“She has stinky pants!” agreed Princess Boom-Boom.
When our troop arrived at the minimum security area, it was living up to its name. The hallway was abandoned. The double doors that led into the common area were built of reinforced steel, but that wasn't much of an obstacle. My main worry now was that the Brights had had time to cook up some nasty surprise for us. Finding ways to bypass weird superpowers was their main profession, after all.
Five teddy bears in various colors now waddled along behind us. They could no longer speak, but didn't seem to be in any distress and followed behind me when ordered to. Seeing no other way forward, I lifted the door out of the way. Even with my new strength, it did not come easily. My companions covered their ears until I was finished.
Inside was a fairly spacious room that looked a little like a break-room at an office. There was a kitchen area with a fridge and a coffee machine, and a living room area with a large couch facing a television. Several figures were visible, crouching behind the counter and the couch.
“We surrender! Don't hurt us!” said a woman's voice from the kitchen.
“That's fine. Come on out.” I called back.
They showed themselves. There was a scrawny teenage boy with the beginnings of a ill-advised mustache, a pale girl with stringy black hair, a bald man with glasses, and a gorgeous blonde woman in light blue scrubs. They were all staring in bafflement at the three diapered women and a troop of teddy bears invading their living area.
“Are you in charge here?” I asked the woman in scrubs. It seemed reasonable, as everyone else was wearing plain clothing.
“That is Nurse Prachett.” Dr. Yamamoto informed me before the woman could answer. “She is the floor warden for this area.”
“Yes...I...oh god, Suki, is that you? What happened?” she stuttered out. There was something funny about her voice. Even as frazzled as she currently was, her voice had a soothing, lilting quality.
“Yes, it's me. I have gone through some...changes recently.” said Dr. Yamamoto, or Suki, apparently.
“Hopefully she'll be going through another one soon.” I quipped. Princess Boom-Boom laughed, but no else did. Maybe the smell hadn't hit them yet.
“Where are the rest of the Level One residents?” asked Suki. “There should be at least three more.”
“Some of them were taken up to Analysis a few minutes ago. I wasn't given any explanation.” said Nurse Pratchett.
“Damn.” said Suki under her breath. That surprised me. I was beginning to think that she might not have human emotions. “What? Why?” I asked.
“Those were the three I was hoping you could convert. Their abilities are not very useful in their current form, but I believe that certain alterations would turn them into major assets. Apparently, Duchess Cross came to the same conclusion.”
“Darn. Well, may as well make the most of it.” I decided that even if the Oddballs that Suki had hoped for weren't here, there might be somebody here I could use. “Alright, listen up everyone. As of now, you are on my team. When I point at you, tell me your name and what you can do!”
I noticed that Suki let out a sigh as I said this. I suppose I could have just asked her. As a Bright she knew everything about this place that wasn't actually a secret. But, I'd already committed to this, so I might as well continue. I pointed at the bald guy.
“Uh...name is Larry Dunbar. I can count.”
I blinked. “Count?”
“Yeah. I can count any visible object instantly and with perfect accuracy. Show me a jar of loose change, and I can tell ya how much it's worth.”
I stared at him. “Seriously?”
He shrugged. “Hey, not everybody is lucky enough to have...” He gestured toward my troop of animate teddy bears. “...whatever you got going on there. Some of us get the power to be really good cashiers.”
“Why are you even in here? This is supposed to be a facility to keeping people that are too dangerous to be free.” I asked.
He shrugged again. “You know, I keep asking that, and I just get the same run-around. At first, they brought me here because I my abilities were unknown, then they were worried I had some hidden side power, and then they thought I might end up counting money in organized crime, and before I knew it, I was thirty-eight. Once you're in here, you're just in here.”
Now it made sense that I was treated like garbage by all the staff here. Oddballs weren't just kept here for safety reasons. That was the excuse, but not the reason. We were strange. We didn't fit into the Utopian ideal of society. In short, we were the object of prejudice.
“Good to know. How about you?” I pointed to to scrawny kid.
“Josh Mendelssohn. I make smoke.”
I gestured for him to expand a little on that comment. He responded by pursing his lips and blowing a series of smoke rings.
I covered my face with my hand. “Moving on. You?” I pointed at the pale girl.
“Megan Strauss. I can subsist entirely on a diet of petroleum products.”
I turned to my loyal troops. “Alright I think we're done here.”
“The utility of these individuals is less obvious, but I believe it would still be worthwhile to convert them.” said Suki.
“Why?” I asked.
“The exact nature and limits of your transformative abilities are as yet unknown. Even if they don't turn out to be helpful, experimentation might yield useful information that would be helpful later.”
Suki made a valid point, but I couldn't accept it. It was the same cold, detached reasoning that had caused her to treat me so badly in her lab.
“No. These people haven't done anything wrong, they aren't a threat, and I don't even need them. They can remain as they are.” I told her.
“That is your choice, of course.” conceded Suki immediately. “In that case, we should move on.”
“Where do you suggest? Back to Analytics?” I asked. Suki shook her head.
“If the Duchess has actually moved the three Oddballs there, she will certainly have a strong defense in waiting. If she has actually moved them somewhere else, she will set a trap there anyway. Better to move on to...”
I looked at Suki as her voice trailed off, and saw that a small syringe with a tuft of fletching was now sticking out of her neck. She collapsed to the ground.
Princess Boom-Boom was at her side and trying to shake her awake in a second. “Suki! Wake up! I'm sorry I said you have stinky pants!”
I turned to the Level One residents, just in time to catch a dart of my own in the neck. I immediately felt dizzy, and my vision blurred. I could barely make out Larry struggling with Nurse Pratchett. One of them must have fired the darts, but I had no idea who.
I fell to one knee. Whatever had been in that syringe must have been potent stuff. I heard the sound of something very large approaching as I passed out.
“Miranda? Oh please tell me you're okay!” came the voice of Princess Boom-Boom.
I groaned and sat up. “Yep, yep, still here. What was that?”
I looked around as my vision cleared.
“I'm afraid Nurse Pratchett hit you with a very effective tranquilizer dart.” said Larry.
We were in a large, dark room full of crates. Nurse Pratchett and Suki were lying unconscious in a corner. Larry, Megan, and Princess Boom-Boom were standing over me.
“How did we get here?” I asked.
Larry looked like he was about to speak, but Princess Boom-Boom cut him off.
“Oooooh, ooh, ooh! It was so cool! This big snarling beast guy showed up, but Josh made this big smoke cloud, and Larry and Megan brought us all down here! They are so awesome!” she recited excitedly.
“Indeed.” confirmed Larry. “ I believe the Duchess released one of the Knaves from upstairs to help capture you. Luckily Josh was able to keep it occupied long enough for us to escape. I regret that your teddy bears weren't able to follow us through the ventilation duct, and Josh has likely been captured or killed.”
I suddenly felt the urge to lie down again. I hadn't wanted so many people involved in this escape attempt. This situation was definitely out of hand now.
“Guys, I'm really sorry. You didn't deserve to get caught up in this.” I told them.
Larry shrugged. “You must be pretty important if they thought releasing a Knave was worth it just to catch you. I'm just sorry I didn't stop Pratchett in time.”
“I've never seen anyone scare the Duchess like this!” said Megan. “Its really exciting!”
I smiled. “Princess Boom-Boom is right. You guys are awesome.”
Larry cocked an eyebrow. “Thanks, but I hope that doesn't mean you'll try to “convert” us now. I mean, you seem okay and all, but you're a little scary.”
“Sorry. I really just wanted a normal superpower.” I said. Larry, the human calculator, nodded his sympathy.
“So you tranked Pratchett?” I asked, hoping to change the subject.
“Yeah, she got shot when I was wrestling with her.” said Larry.
“Why did you bring her with us?” I asked.
Larry frowned. “You know, its weird. I saw her lying on the ground, and I had the sudden urge to bring her along. I knew she was working for the Duchess, but I just felt like I needed...”
“...to protect her. To keep her safe.” I finished.
“Yeah!" he said, as though suddenly realizing something that had eluded him. "She isn't even very nice to us, but everyone treats her like royalty!”
“Because she's a Sweet. I have a sister who's a Sweet, so I know the signs. I thought there was something familiar about her voice. They always seem innocent and friendly, even if they aren't. They're great at manipulating people and making them drop their guard. Rebecca can get away with anything, and Mom just goes along with it.”
“Shit! We've been under her spell all this time and we didn't know it! What will we do with her?” asked Megan.
The gorgeous woman in question began to shake herself awake. Suki was still fast asleep. Even knowing what I did about her, even the simple act of opening her eyes took away some of my resolve. I hopped to my feet and rushed over to question her.
“Morning Sleepy-head.” I greeted her.
She blinked and smiled endearingly. “Oh goodness! What happened?”
“Don't try that innocent act. You darted me and Suki. Did the Duchess put you up to it?”
“I was just trying to stop you from destroying this facility! I know you haven't been treated well, and I really am sorry, but you have to go back to your cell! You aren't well.”
I focused my mind, trying to force myself to stay angry. I hated dealing with Sweets. They could do as they pleased, and no matter what they had done, if you got angry, they would always turn the tables and make you the bad guy. I heard a rustle behind me. Larry was pointing the tranquilizer gun at me. His face was full of confusion.
I tried to reason with him. “Larry, stop. This woman wants to keep us all trapped in this hell-hole forever. She wants us to be prisoners. Don't you want freedom?”
He didn't move. Pratchett spoke in a soothing tone. “Of course you have to stay here. You're all freaks. You know that. You'd never manage in the outside world. This is a safe place, where you can be a benefit to society instead of a burden. I know its hard sometimes, but this really is where you belong. Shoot her, and we can all go back to the common room and watch TV. What do you say?”
I could tell Larry was struggling now. The thought occurred to me that I could probably just convert him and be done with it. I wasn't what he might become, but I was sure he wouldn't shoot me then. But I couldn't do that now that I had offered him freedom.
“Hugs!” yelled Princess Boom-Boom suddenly. She grabbed Larry from behind and locked the gun against his body. For all she had said about being useless and weak, Larry could not seem to free himself from her. Megan swept in and snatched the gun away.
“Got it! She announced, pointing it at Pratchett. “Now, transform her, before she can cause us any more trouble.”
I turned back to her. The artificial guilt of the Sweet poured over me like pancake syrup. Any thought of harming her or displeasing her, and you immediately felt like crap.
“You know that isn't right, Miranda. You know you belong here. You're too dangerous to ever be free. Let me help you.” she said in that same calming voice.
I struggled. The instinct to let her do whatever she wanted was strong and everything she said made so much sense. But I had another instinct, now. Looking at her, I suddenly knew exactly what she ought to be. I looked into her eyes in a way I never dared look into Rebecca's. It felt wrong, but it felt right.
“Nurse Pratchett, you are now mine.” I said. Her eyes widened in fear. I could see that it was her turn to struggle internally.
“I...dammit...I...am yours.” she finally said.
“As punishment for your misdeeds, I sentence you to permanent diaper duty. You exist to change diapers. You love to change diapers.” I said. The words didn't even feel like they were coming from me. It was the voice of destiny speaking through me.
“I am...fuck...I am on permanent diaper duty. I exist to change diapers. I love to change diapers.” she said, the words coming more easily now. Her professional-looking nurse's uniform was transforming, becoming a form-fitting parody of itself. A white nurse's cap with a red cross symbol appeared on her head. A matching blue diaper bag materialize over one shoulder.
“You are now Nurse Wipes” I said to her.
“I am now Nurse Wipes.” said Nurse Wipes. She stood up and examined herself. “Oh, my goodness! Everything is different now!”
Larry and Megan stared at the transformed nurse. Larry now seemed to recovered from her spell. “Sooo, you're not gonna stop trying to capture us again?” asked Megan.
Nurse Wipes smiled. If anything, her smile was now even warmer and more genuine than it had been. “Oh, absolutely! Miss Hubble wishes to be free, so I wish that too now! Besides, if she was imprisoned, I wouldn't be able to change her diapers!”
Nurse Wipes sniffed the air thoughtfully. “Oh, I'm so sorry! Where are my manners? We have a full diaper over her and I'm standing here yip-yapping!”
She reached into her bag, and, with a motion that made my eyes water a little, produced a full-sized changing table from inside its depths. She then scooped up Suki from the ground and deposited her on it. Suki groggily began to wake up as her overalls were removed.
“Huh...wha?” she asked. Nurse Wipes didn't miss a beat. “Good Morning Suki! Thanks so much for making such a lovely stinky diaper for me to clean! Don't worry, Nurse Wipes will have you changed in a jiffy.”
I watched with interest as Nurse Wipes worked. She was a true professional. Doting and caring, as well as efficient and smooth. Suki's initial confusion and fear at being woken up on the changing table melted away as the nurse cooed over her and lovingly wiped her butt. By the time Dr. Yamamoto was sealed into a generously powdered and perfectly fitted diaper, I had arrived at a decision.
“Me next!” I announced. I squatted and deposited a massive load into my already soggy diaper. Nurse Wipes was thrilled. “Oh my, I am so lucky! I can't believe I get to wipe up poopy messes for the rest of my life!” she bent down to take a deep sniff of my dirty diaper, as though it were a bouquet of roses.
