Chuck felt a torrent of volatile emotions sweep through him as he stomped through the hallway and stormed into the camera room, “What happened to CX21?”


    ”It seems that two of the Nameless went rogue last night,” Merrin said, reliable as ever. ”The footage shows them collaborating to insert CX21’s mind into the hypnosite and then murder his human body. They took the hypnosite form of CX21 in a small container off the facility shortly after.”


    “Where did they take him?” Chuck said, keeping a lid on his bubbling anger.


    ”I don’t know,” Merrin said. She looked back at him with a pain in her eyes that let him know she truly cared.


    ”Why don’t you know?” Chuck growled. As much as he knew Merrin didn’t deserve it, he couldn’t help taking some of his anger out on her. He replayed last night’s footage several times over. It didn’ make sense for a Nameless to do something like this. Their loyalty was unquestionably absolute. He had made sure of that by making their daily serum highly addictive. So how did something like this even happen?


    Merrin winced, “I just found out a few hours ago, but I have all hands sweeping the area looking for the rogue Nameless.”


    “Damnit!” Chuck pounded the screen in frustration. He rubbed at his hand that was, unlike the screen, harmed in his anger. This didn’t make any sense. He took a deep breath and reminded himself to think rationally about the whole thing. The Nameless wouldn’t defect for nothing and they couldn’t stay away for longer than a day without debilitating withdrawals.  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    “It’ll be okay, Charles,” Merrin said, “Look on the bright side. We still have his data and I can use that on myself to reach further. Who knows? Maybe that will be enough for me to help you find the breakthrough you’ve been after. I’m all yours.”


    “Thank you, Merrin,” Chuck said, her idea helped calm him down considerably. Merrin knew just what to say in order to make him feel better. She was right, all hope was not lost. He coughed hard, wiping away the blood afterwards with the back of his hand.


    Merrin handed him a handkerchief and he wiped his hands clean. He took a deep, yet ragged, calming breath.


    “How about you leave the testing to me today?” Merrin said, “You go rest and take care of your health. You’ve been through enough stress for today.”


    “But what if there’s another anomaly?” Chuck protested. So far, only CX21 had blown past the limiter; had shown him a potential that screamed of something more. He had given Chuck a newfound hope. It was hard to let go of the possibility of finding another one like CX21, even if the newest subjects had yet to show anything special.


    Merrin patted him on the leg in a chiding way. It was a playful gesture that she saved only for him. She looked up to him, her beautiful simian eyes sparkling from the recessed lighting, “That’s enough now. It’s all recorded. If there is anything significant, then I will let you know immediately. Go get some rest.”


    Chuck picked Merrin up, closed his eyes and pulled her tightly into a loving embrace.


    “What would I do without you, Merrin?” Chuck said. And he meant it. She was his rock. She was the one always by his side and willing to risk everything to help him escape the impending countdown of his own mortality. He didn’t deserve such an amazing woman.


    Merrin hugged him back and in a gentle whisper she said, “I promise I’ll do everything I can to make sure you’ll never have to find out.”