She pushed it out of mind. Too dangerous to dwell on. Small mercies it hadn’t happened while she’d been going through the motions of proving to herself and to Victoria’s body that there wouldn’t be any repeat occurances, which was—

Her hand trembled slightly. She rubbed it with the other, thumb hard as it massaged the hand, rubbing along the golden portions of the tattoos.

—not even a factor. With this personal victory, this triumph, she had all the confidence in the world that the next time she saw Hunter, she would be able to mend what was broken.

“I’m in control. So there’s no need to be afraid.”

⊙

Now

“Don’t be afraid. Be calm,” Amy murmured.

She was working blind, in a way. A monitor to the left showed one series of waves and numbers. A monitor to the right showed another. Strings of A, G, C, T.

One adjustment, and the screen to the left shifted, flaring red, or shifted, flaring green.

Step by step, getting the measures and recordings to match the ones on the right.

She did other work. Altering the body, helping it on its way. Altering the mind. Bringing it up to speed. This figure had been dumber than a dog, before, less personality, and now… very close to human. A man, now.

“We’re close enough,” Chris said, so close behind her that she could feel his hot breath on her neck. Her skin crawled.

“Personal space, Chris.”

He snorted, which was pronounced, because his form was anteater-like, with a pronounced snout. Large ears, and narrow eyes. Its torso, however, was cadaverous, ribs exposed, organs and other sacs floating in a clear blob that the ribcage and pelvis held.

He stepped away, and he picked up a syringe, which was attached to a hose.

“Do what you can to steer,” he said. “But control is paramount.”

Amy looked back over her shoulder. Mark wasn’t there. He was looking after Hunter. Marquis was there. Which was fitting, considering this didn’t feel like something a good person would be pulling.

The sound of machines chugging to life drew her attention back to what she was doing. Fluids were flowing in…

And she was suddenly working in a flowing river. Form became mutable, less something solid she was changing, and more something fluid she was trying to hold on to.

Control was paramount, as Chris had said. Control meant the brain, the blocks, the loyalty and obedience.

The figure grew. Not so unusual for what Lab Rat usually did.

But this growth… it was an unmasking. As Hunter had implied, these were people with nothing but the powers and the meat to hold those powers in this world.