Topic: Scene14: The Parchment

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-03-28 12:14 EST
Afternoon, March 27th..

Toby leaned his forehead, along with his palm, against the door to his room, breathing like he'd just come out of a bad dream. He sort of wished it was..

His shoulders tensed and he grunted through a shiver. He could still feel that girl's blank purple eyes on him, staring at him..but not at the same time. He remembered her face like it was burned into his head..she had been curious.. Or something close to it..

"What are you?"

"Nothing.."

"You lie."

He had already been irritated..ready to hit something..when he came here.. He should have just gotten a drink and gone upstairs.

He took a deep breath and the scent of copper made his nose itch.. He pulled himself away from the door, his hand sliding along the wooden surface. Rust brown streaks of blood were left behind. He felt it flake off his fingertips when he clenched his fist.

He had to get rid of it..

He turned sharply for the bathroom, tossed the bottle of soda he had almost broken onto the bed..shouldered the door open so hard it banged into the wall and slid back in an arc..nearly closing. He turned on the faucet, shoved his hands under the warm water and started scrubbing his fingers even before he had soap.

He hadn't wanted to hit her that hard.. He didn't think he'd even wanted to hit her.. Just..get her away from him..make her stop touching him, asking questions..

How did she even know..

He rubbed and scraped at his fingers until he couldn't feel her flesh breaking against them.. He cupped palmfuls of water and splashed his face..ran his hands back through his hair.. He listened to the water rush out of the faucet and back down the drain for a minute, until it didn't even sound like a noise anymore..then he shut it off..

He dried his hands on his wine stained khakis, prying a yellow piece of parchment out of his back pocket on his way out of the bathroom.

All of it..was for that stupid paper.. He didn't want to have it anymore. He didn't want to even know it existed..or want anyone else to know that it did.. He had been just fine..before Lisa had given it to him..

But he hadn't been able to get rid of it. He'd lost count of how many times he had stood in front of a small fire..kindling in one hand..parchment in the other, ready to pitch it in and watch it burn.. Without it..though..

He grunted again, sighed as he lowered himself onto the bed, leaning back into the bunch of pillows propped against the headboard. He peeled the parchment open, fold by fold, held it up to the light..turned it around..

...and began to read.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-03-28 12:53 EST
Day One -- 0926

As I sit and write this parchment, I know that any documentation of my actions, however small, is a grievous mistake. Though, even with that knowledge, I am unable to stay my hand from grasping a pen and ink, and immortalizing what will happen here in the coming months.

I shall remain anonymous.

Earlier this evening, I came into possession of the boy attached to Number Forty-six. He was fleeing a large building and I can only assume that he had no absolute idea where he was going. I carried his body with me back to Sutafu and began my work.

I cannot yet say that the implementation was a success, for I have done so for more reasons than creating another soldier. Physically, all seems to have gone well. He is still unconscious in a hidden chamber within these walls and I have heard no screams as of yet. If it continued, such would be a good thing.

The mental process that the child must endure, however, will commence after he has awoken. Even I cannot predict when that will be, if ever. It is true that I have not used the proper measure of Yoma's flesh required for a soldier's creation. For that reason alone, anything is possible.

I will admit to taking pity on the boy as he laid before me, asleep, and completely unaware of the horrors his own body was readily accepting. I pity all who must endure this, but it is Our way of life, and such cannot be changed without force.

That is one of the many things that he must learn. Our burden is one that can only be faced by one of Our own. To truly understand this, he must become one of Our own. A shell of a human, tainted by the beast. He must suffer through the stigmas that go along with a title such as Claymore, possess the awesome abilities... and the risks.

The only premonition that I have for his life afterward is one of great sadness and pain. While I do still pity him for that, I console myself in thinking that this was not my choice to make, but his. He had already chosen to dive headfirst into Hell, long before I laid eyes on him.

And that is where he will remain. For our choices, and our decisions, always have consequences.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-03-28 13:19 EST
Day Two -- 0927

No changes.





Day Three -- 0928

No changes. The boy's body is, however, covered in a thick, cold sweat. His muscles and facial features twitch sporadically. I have readied restraints and clasped them around his wrists and ankles and the clatter of chains has become a usual sound.

Later

The screams have begun.

I have had to stifle them with the rag I use to clean his body. He gags and garbles words as though he is trying to communicate with me. He tries fruitlessly to pull himself from the table, writhing and twisting until the chains that bind him are taught.

Because of his constant movements, I had almost missed the remarkable phenomenon taking place before my very eyes.

The bones in the child's hands and feet have begun to break of their own accord, snapping like twigs underfoot and appearing just as bent. His skin stretches and, according to my measurements, his extremities are growing at a rapid rate. Some small bones have protruded up against, and even through, the flesh and have needed to be manually corrected.

I could never have imagined such a thing. Using half of the amount of flesh that We infused Number Forty-seven with, I had assumed that no physical changes would take place. However, I seem to have been wrong, and I can no longer be apart from the specimen.

I confess a scientist's excitement, and curiosity. The child will be first of his kind, if he survives and endures. Without proper testing, I cannot be certain whether or not he will prove useful.

As of now, I can only remain vigilant.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-03-31 04:26 EST
Day Four -- 0929

Several remarkable things have transpired in such a short period of time, though I will do my best to record each and every one.

Of the first, the child seems to have stopped his growth. According to my measurements, his body now stretches to a height of six feet and three inches, as opposed to his previous height of exactly a foot shorter. I dared not cut his restraints to calculate his weight.

The tremors and disfiguration of the bones in his body has ceased, however there are mild twitches every now and again. Throughout the most severe transformations, such as his ribs, spine and legs, I myself had to manually form a cast of sorts to restrain him further. Such was more difficult than I first imagined when his spinal column arched and fractured in more than one area. I do not believe that the sounds of his cries or the snapping of his bones will ever leave my mind.

As grotesque as he looked throughout much of the process, his body is now in peak condition. He has gained generous, visible musculature that is taught and no doubt speaks of potential. There are no scars on his flesh from the several puncture wounds he has experienced.

It only leads me to believe that, even while completely unconscious, the Yoma flesh within him reacts to wounds and repairs them. Without a complete examination of his innards, I cannot discern the extent of his internal damage and I shall test his body's thresholds later when I have acquired the proper tools. I feel confident in my prediction that, should he survive, his capabilities will lean mostly toward defensive tactics than offensive. It is a pity. We are in need of several more skilled offensive soldiers.

He awakens for very brief periods of time every few hours. His eyelids open to reveal pale, silvery blue irises. Such seems to be the only indication of his infusion in terms of what makes one of Our soldiers noticeable. He has retained his violently orange hair. He has also tried to communicate with me on more than one occasion, but I cannot make any sense of his ramblings beyond his desire to know where he is.

He sleeps soundly now, for the first time in four days, or drifts in and out of a slumber that I can only assume is sound. I have heard accounts of the terrible pain Our soldiers endure during their own infusion process. I would not be surprised if he is experiencing a silent nightmare. Even so, never before have I seen such drastic physical changes. It must be a different side effect from using such a small amount of Yoma flesh.

I shall wait until he wakes again to begin further analysis.

Later

I am lucky that I have not yet been found out. Had it happened, beyond killing the boy and disposing of his body, I'm not sure what I would have done. Moving him as he is now is out of the question.

While waiting for the child's awakening, I have retrieved his dagger as well as several other blunt instruments of varying weights and sizes. I could not subdue my curiosity and, under the assumption that some tests would be easier to perform if he is sleeping, have decided to begin earlier than I anticipated.

I inflicted several surface wounds upon the boy's flesh and witnessed their almost instant disappearance. Blood barely ever got the chance to flow before it was being stemmed. The same was true when I carved pieces from him. However, instead of an immediate regeneration, the new flesh took several seconds to form. His body seems to follow the pattern of -- the deeper and more severe the wound, the longer it takes to heal. Though, the fact that his body is capable of such feats while he is unconscious is intriguing, and there is virtually no scarring. Only those with formidable talents for healing possess that ability.

Bruises and mild abrasions heal much the same way -- almost instantly. I shall note that it takes a great force to inflict them, again, as is true with the rest of Our soldiers.

Tomorrow I will test the strength of his new bones and ascertain the depth at which his body is able to handle puncture wounds. The removal of organs and extremities will follow. I dare not try too much at once, or remain absent for too long. I must keep myself as far from suspicion as possible.

I must confess that I am, very much, looking forward to it.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-04-01 05:35 EST
Day Five -- 0930

It is as I have predicted. The amount of stress his new bones can handle is almost as much, if not the same level, as that of Our soldiers.

I began my testing with simple fractures, things that I could bring about with my own bare hands. The bones of his hands and feet were the easiest to destroy, as well as those in his face such as his cheekbones, brow and nose. It took several blows to accomplish the latter, and in the end, I made use of a metal rod if only to move the process along.

Next, I tested his limbs. I damaged the bones of his arms and legs with stones found in our immediate environment, but I became curious as to the power and strength of his regenerative capabilities. Therefore, I left the stones as they were and waited.

Within one minute, the bones of one limb began to reform. Within four, they all began to do so. The stones were forced from his body by the tenth minute. I performed the same test on his legs and ribs. His breastbone was nearly as difficult to demolish as his femurs. I would compare it to trying to fell a large tree with a single blow... difficult, yes, but doable if you have the right equipment. That injury, however, took twice as long to regenerate, even longer to force the stone from his body. Blood had collected in the boy's mouth as well as dribbled from it across his face throughout the process. It spoke of great internal injury, and I performed an inspection once my work was done, assessing if that was still the case.

His spine and neck, given the proper leverage and application of pressure upon the junctures of vertebrae... were embarrassingly easy to sever. Once I had done so, there was no change in the boy's physicality for several hours. I am relieved to report that he still breathes, regardless of the state of his body.

I have decided to wait and give the child some time to rest before continuing with the experimentation.

Later

When I returned, his spinal column and neck had been almost fully restored. I have chosen to stay away from those areas as much as possible in the future lest I cause further problems for myself.

His body is able to handle deep puncture wounds with the same efficiency as it does with surface abrasions. It never ceases to amaze and astound me how a simple collection of foreign cells would be able to bring about such change. Were I not seeing it for myself now, and with countless other soldiers, I would not have believed it possible.

New muscle tissue takes a great deal more time to begin reform, new bone even longer; fifteen and thirty minutes respectively. I have kept several specimens for my own collection.

The observation process was slow and tedious. However, the monotony was punctuated by several awakenings by the boy through which he thrashed and cried out, causing his injuries to worsen. It was a prime opportunity to witness how he would do in actual battle with the need and want to move being felt. He lacks the threshold for physical pain that the rest of Our soldiers possess, but that will come with harsh training. Even Our own were Human... once upon a time.

I was also able to study his eyes when they were revealed to me. Even though they kept the same silvery blue color, the pupils stretched to thin slits and continued to expand and contract. They did not turn gold, and I am left to wonder if they will. If such slight injuries cause that change, though, simply inflicting more stress upon the body may be the answer.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-04-04 23:52 EST
Day Six -- 1001

I was delayed in beginning my work by a mandatory impromptu meeting. Such things aren't out of the norm, though I confess that throughout it, I was much more nervous than I would have liked to be. I made sure to stay away from the boy's chamber, resulting in my late arrival. I found, however, that the deepest of his wounds had not yet healed. I decided to remain nearby until they were, performing another thorough surface examination.

I had neglected to report that there was no physical marring anywhere on his body, minus that which I myself inflicted. It is yet another dissimilarity between he and Our soldiers. For they all bear some sort of disfiguration that speaks of their infusion, but the boy's flesh remains smooth.

That fact continues to amaze me. He seems to be nothing but unconscious, however he heals like he is not. I wonder, should he be a success, if he will change the way we view male soldiers. If his capabilities are this vast with only a mere sliver of Yoma flesh... he may be able to master himself without awakening.

Unfortunately, I have my doubts. His eyes have indeed changed to gold and it has been a while since I have seen the natural color of his iris. His eyelids hover half closed over them and I, sometimes, have the feeling that he is watching me and waiting for a chance to strike.

Perhaps I am in need of a short recess.

Later

Because of my earlier tests upon his body, opening his chest cavity was quite simple. The extent of such an infliction meant that I had a significant amount of time to work with.

I found the physical marking that was not upon his flesh. The heart muscle is twisted, clumped and colored a deep, but sickly, purple. Other than that, his innards are in peak condition. His body shook repeatedly throughout the inspection. It was amusing to touch several inner workings of his system and watch as the respective body part responded.

I decided that I would leave my day's work at that, not only because it was quite a lot for the child's body to deal with, but because of my late start, I wasn't sure whether or not I would have enough time before tomorrow's engagements.

I closed his chest and wiped him clean. I have no doubts that he would be either healed, or very close to it when I return.

Toby Aradam

Date: 2010-04-05 02:58 EST
Day Seven -- 1002

Disaster. There is no word currently in existence that is able to adequately describe it...

I have been humbled, if I can call it such. Reminded of my own mortality. Should those under Our control ever learn of that fact, all will be lost.

When I returned to the boy's chamber, I knew immediately that something was wrong. His body was tensed, his muscles corded and tight under his skin... fists clenched and knees bent. A growl was squeaking from his throat.

I neared him, noticing the fat line of coagulated blood on his chest, marking where I had cut only the day before. Such was the only thing that made it apparent that he was wounded.

He thrashed against his bindings, his head twisting to and fro. Then, his gaze stopped upon me. His golden eyes were wide and appeared to by trying to leap from his skull.

I have stared into the faces of countless children before, during and after their infusion. I have also met the eyes of several Yoma. However, I have difficulty articulating just what it was about that child's face that froze me and made me pause.

It was as though I were staring at two faces. The first one was of the small boy whom was now trapped in a larger husk. His golden eyes were wide, not with madness, but with fear... pain. His facial features, however, constricted into a mask of pure, unadulterated evil. It was the face of a monster, one that wished to rend flesh and turn it to ribbons.

His skin paled to bone white in the next instant. It bled into his orange hair, turned it the color of snow. He sneered at me, and I shook off my paralysis just as his spine arched away from the stone slab. He tore his right arm and leg free with a roar, chains rattling, rock crumbling. His left side followed and I found myself pinned between the stone wall at my back and the marble white body that stood before me, its hand closing around my throat. The child's mouth dropped open, revealing teeth sharpening into razor points.

He was cutting off the air into my body. Had I not picked up the heavy stone when I did, I fear that I would have met my demise then and there. I lifted my arm and struck him against the side of his head until blood flowed, bone splintered... and he cried out and let go. I landed on my feet sloppily as the boy's golden eyes, now flickering back to their natural hue as would a dying candle, rolled back in his head. He crumpled where he stood into a heap of naked flesh that darkened, erasing the whiteness.

I knew then what I must do.

My experiment was, indeed, a success. He would be deprived of the training he needed to control his monstrous side, and if he did not receive it, I have no doubts that he would awaken, and then We would take care of him. I did not know what other sorts of hardships he would have, but of that one point, I was certain.

He was well on his way to learning his lessons.

I swabbed his face and torso with the damp cloth and towel he had thrown off in his rage, stemming the flow of blood. I gathered his one possession, the dagger that was on his person, and I tucked it away within my own clothing. I then hauled his body into my arms and quickly vacated the chamber, and the premises.

I left the child and his knife in the care of a young boy traveling in a horse drawn cart. I inquired whether or not he knew the way back to the city called Rhy'Din, and he informed me that he did. I would have done the same even if he had not, though I felt it important to at least ask.

He is out of my hands now. It is no concern of mine if he does not find his way back to those that know and possibly care for him. I must work diligently on concealing my activities. If word gets loose on what I have done, it will not only be the end for me, but those that I govern. Soldiers though they are, I do care about them... pity them for their chosen burdens. Some more than others.

I slightly regret taking on this venture, though I have learned much through it. All is not lost, yet.

I can only hope for the boy's swift, painless demise.