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41| ANTI-HERO


The room was dimly lit, casting eerie shadows on the walls that seemed to dance with every flicker of the fluorescent lights. The air carried a faint metallic scent, a lingering reminder of the countless amoral trials that had taken place within those walls.

With stacks of documents left on top of slapdash workstations, the room's masonry desks were put in the centre to provide access to the shelves on the sides. A stainless-steel operating table was sitting eagerly, ready for the next little exploration.

And Seojin's body tied to the table was the biggest trophy.

It was two in the morning in the lab in the Harvard University administrative building, which was now on the outskirts of Massachusetts's downtown. In the frigid labyrinth of stainless steel and offbeat machinery, Dr. Kim Sejin, an extraordinaire, worked in the depths of relentless winters. His heart, like the unforgiving Siberian cold, knew no warmth nor compassion - a fitting place for his dark inventions.

The gentle buzz of computers and the peculiar aroma of chemicals filled the lab. And Sejin, huddled over his workstation, was engrossed in his plenary experiment, unaware of the passage of time. This once-famous conglomerate that worked in many fields of study, from developing great new facets of technology to manipulating the internal workings of cell nuclei, was now reserved for the plutocrat Sejin.

Walking over to the counter where the perfectly set microscopes had been placed, he noticed something. There was already one on, and it had been defaced. When he bent over to retrieve the damaged apparatus, he heard a loud crash and, in retrospect, saw Jaden.

"Sorry, professor, I will clean it up."

Sejin barely nodded, still focused on his work. "Quick buddy. We need the DNA analysis."

The younger man looked closely past his reflection in the boffin's glasses as he passed by. His eyes were slender and black, and his skin was pasty. The top of his head was covered with an unkempt, grey slop that was brushed back at the forehead. Covered from collar to waist by a long, grey coat that was bizarre, handcrafted, and functional, he made a sweeping motion with one gloved hand while spreading his fingers.

"The computer is working, professor. I'll extract the remains."

"Fast, buddy, you don't want me angry now. Do you?"

Jaden was quick to shake his head at the words, picking up the bits as he nodded his head to Sejin's back, knowing pretty well that the man had eyes even on the back of his head.

"I don't understand nods there, kid. Words perhaps?"

"Y-Yes, professor, I understand the urgency, but I assure you, I will work as quickly as possible," Jaden stammered, hoping to appease the man's impatience.
Why was he always so intimidating?

The sudden sound of the doors crashing into their frames, the clattering of glasses, muted footsteps, humming, and the speed of the cars had been an agony. Someone very insecure slipped through the door; the hasty steps continued till Sejin and stopped.

With his hands on either side of the table, he stood there for a long time without even saying anything to anyone else.

"How much more, Sejin?" Tobias nearly cried.

"Glad you are here. Can you prick your finger on this needle?" The response was nonchalant.

"Sejin, I asked something."

"I need the drop for you. Fast!"

Knowing how adamant he was, Tobias quickly picked up the needle, and without even flinching, he pressed his finger at the bevel with much more tissue tear and blood.

Watching the blood drip, Sejin grinned and took a moment to think before responding. "Thank you, Tobias," he muttered, placing the petridish away.
"I can't say for certain, Tobias," he replied slowly, "But we must remain patient and keep moving forward."

Confined in and under tight barriers on one end of the room, not allowed to move or speak, Reiko remained motionless inside the chamber, floating inside the shimmering green fluid. Her eyes closed as if she were barely asleep, still very young.

Her body appeared serene, completely at peace despite the restraints. The soft glow of the fluid enveloped her, casting an ethereal aura around her delicate form. With such intense pain at his very core, Tobias felt she would open her eyes and call for him. He needed her.

"You said you would, Sejin! You said you knew how to!" Tobias screamed.

"Oh, did I now?" The mockery too adept in his tone. Sejin had always been a liar.

"Sejin, tell me!"

Tobias' concern felt soothing to Sejin, and his grin ratcheted up. Oh, how he relished the shreds of agony that came his way.
"I feel your pain, Tobias, but even when we think we know the path ahead, unexpected obstacles come visiting. We must all work together to adapt and move on."

"Sejin!"
The distaste in the scream was almost tangible. His vision had partially dimmed from his headache, but he still remained straight despite all this pain.

"Talking to ourselves again, are we?" Sejin muttered quietly, torquing the necessary gears.

With his jaws clenched, Tobias felt his feet firmly planted on the insulated floor and assumed that the walls, hidden somewhere in the shadows, were listening to every secret.
"You are playing dirty, Sejin; keep your promise. Give her back."

The small smile widened around his face as Sejin whispered under his breath, "Reiko was a nice girl, wasn't she?"

He paused for a second, gazing at the specimen jar with amusement rather than sympathy. It seemed that this woman had somehow stayed serene despite her death because there were no signs of any trauma or pain on her face whatsoever.

"A woman of petite stature, with a sun-kissed complexion and a breathtaking physique. Sadly, fate intervened, and she passed away before I could savour her essence," Sejin lamented.
Tobias's boiling temper reaching its breaking point. With a fierce determination in his eyes, a mélange of fury and melancholy, he raised his unscathed arm and delivered a resounding backhand to his icy countenance, causing Sejin to stumble back with a pained cry.

"How dare you?" His tone was dry like dirt beneath their toes, "I won't let you live your life without regretting it now! I will make sure you suffer for your words, Sejin."
The fear in his voice had slowly faded into an almost resigned look in his eyes.

Thumbing at the corner of his lips, Sejin took a glance at the blood intently, grinning like a maniac on the hunt for a clue. His eyes gleamed with a twisted satisfaction as he licked the blood off his fingers, relishing in the taste of victory.

Sejin's grin widened. "I will make you suffer for your words," he sing songed. "Sure sure, make me suffer, old man!"
He had finally pushed his tormentor to the edge, and now there was no turning back.

Tobias, with a menacing glint in his eyes, lunged forward with ferocious determination. He slammed against Sejin like he was nothing more than a piece of meat that could be smashed underfoot. His age didn't seem to be a bother as he sat up on Seojin's torso, hands curling at the collar.

"I. Won't. Be. Silent. Anymore." Each word came with a punch. Sejin's body crashed to the ground, the impact knocking the wind out of him, yet the devious grin never seemed to let go.
His mind raced with a concoction of revenge and satisfaction, fuelled by the power he held over his tormentor.

"I did just like you asked me to! I lured Seojin, helped you catch him. I even got that goddamning DNA sample! And you-"

With his fists clenched, he tried to swing another hit, and that was a mistake. The blood rushed to his limbs and left his head. Tobias stumbled, his senses blurring as dizziness overwhelmed him. The taste of iron filled his mouth as he struggled to regain his balance. He could feel his blood rushing to his brain, but it was too late.

For a split second, he was floating. No, more than a fraction of a second. Two seconds. Five seconds.

There was a brief period of pain as his brain comprehended it couldn't keep up, led by blissful stillness and blackness of numbness, coupled by the sensation of slowly spiralling down over Sejin's body. He felt his body succumb to the involuntary jerks, and his face contorted, hooking into the corner of Sejin's neck.
And Sejin lay there, Tobias' body over his own, convulsing arrhythmically. He relished every jerk as the waves conducted to his body.

Sejin's mind was consumed by a strange mix of attainment and exhilaration, as if he were riding a rollercoaster of sensations. Each cry escaping Tobias seemed to make Sejin feel more alive than ever before.
Sejin laughed with delight, and like clockwork, he moved away. Grabbing the hair in his hold, Sejin yanked Tobias away, swamping him down like the corpse of a pest on the floor.

"Remember Paraquat Tobi?" Sejin whispered, turning to lie on his side facing Tobias, "Your matter of research in high school? It works wonders."

His gaze moved to an expressionless body as if it were painted black for days or weeks before being washed out by dry air, his teeth still gritting in pain. Sejin lay there for minutes, enjoying the calm and peace.
But then, finally, things shifted. There was something different about this head now. Something more sinister, like some sort of doomsday device had been turned on.

"If anything I have learned over the years, Tobi, it is the slow burn," Sejin chuckled, turning away from Tobias as he stared back into the dark ceiling.

_________

I know, I know. Trigger warning!

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