The two guards on the ship were bored. They were posted to guard the ship itself and to stand at its entryway. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew went off to party and do as they wished, while they were left to take the fall. The only people on board were themselves and anyone too tired to get off the ship.
"Man, this blows." One of the guards said.
The other guard turned and said, "I know, right? We get back from that mission down south, and our reward is to play babysitter for a giant hunk of metal!"
The guard would hit the ship with his hand and grunt whenever his hand took more damage than the ship did. As they stood there, lamenting their current situation, they stopped as they noticed something. They saw three men in full military uniform walk up the gangway to them. One of them, the one walking further up than the rest, had a full helmet on with no face visible.
As they walked closer, the guard said, "Slow down now. We're going to need some identification before you can get on."
The man with the helmet said, "Oh, my apologies! I thought you were notified in advance of our arrival."
The guard said, "You weren't, so I'll need some I.D. Or, you could just scram, either works fine with me."
The man with the helmet replied, "My name is Roland; I am the police chief of this city. I've come here with some of my recruits to relieve some of you soldiers of your service for the evening."
The other guard exclaimed, "Sweet, really? Come in here, man!"
As Roland attempted to walk through with his men, the guard moved to stand in front of him, blocking his path.
The guard said, "Hold on. You're not Roland."
Roland replied, "What do you mean?"
The guard said, "I've never heard of a war vet that speaks like you. Plus, why would you be wearing a helmet if you just came to sit here and do nothing like us?"
Roland stood there, thinking, before he said, "That's just preposterous."
The guard replied, "Then show me your badge before I have to escort you, bud."
Roland shook his head before he said, "It seems like not all dogs want treats."
He punched the guard in the face as Roland's recruits took off their uniforms, switching into outfits that they had on under them. The other guard raised his gun but was quickly disarmed by one of the men, who seemed quite muscular and had a buzz cut. Then, he was thrown off the gangway by said man.
The guard said, "No!"
However, right after he said that, he felt a coldness around his stomach. He looked down and saw an arm that had pierced through his chest.
The Doctor said, "Don't worry about your friend; he may yet live if he knows how to swim. However, I need a tour guide for this fine vessel. So, congratulations, my bright friend; you seem the most equipped to give me that luxury.
After he said that, spikes erupted from where the arm entered and shot out of the guard's body from every direction. Though he still lived, as the spikes seemed to block the bleeding and missed any truly vital organs. The pain, however, was not inhibited. Then, somehow, the arm that pierced through the guard moved to The Doctor's back, with a new arm growing out of where the arm was. The Doctor's whole body changed too, spreading and shifting while ripping the uniform off of him, replacing it with his usual garb. Of course, with his plague doctor mask in tow.
Stol said, "A bit violent, don't you think?"
The Doctor replied, with a bit too much satisfaction in his voice, "It's just a flesh wound. He may live if he proves useful. Aqua?"
Aqua stuck his hand out, with a small tendril of water connected to it that seemed to run down to the ocean, "Vahn's getting started with his fight. I can't tell much more, my connection's shoddy."
The Doctor smirked, "Great. Hopefully he serves his purpose well enough before he croaks."
The ship swayed with every movement that The Doctor made as he and his team walked through the dimly lit, narrow corridors of the ship. Grime and rust were visible in the corners of the halls.
Stol said, "I would've thought that they wouldn't dock Navy ships in the river anymore. Especially when they're building that large naval base closer to the sea."
The Doctor smugly said, "It seems that I owe the gods a favor for such luck."
As they came to an intersection in the halls, The Doctor raised the officer up and said, "Which way leads to the bridge?"
The officer grunted out, "S-shut up, you m-monster."
The Doctor slapped the officer with the back of his hand and said, "What about now?"
The officer weakly pointed to the left.
After walking quite a bit, they made it to the bridge. It was wide and empty, with only dim lighting from the ceiling and other light fixtures. There was a small balcony outside, with two doors on both sides of the room to access it. Outside, it was dark, the lights of the city nearby being shaded with the black of the night.
The Doctor walked over to the main control console and began looking into an accurate map of the ship while also bringing up the weapon controls.
"Aqua, go and get the rest of my forces, and begin your land assault. Stol will stay with me." The Doctor said.
Aqua nodded before going outside and diving into the water.
Stol walked to The Doctor, and said, "I assume you want me to go arrange for the excavation equipment to be moved?"
The Doctor replied, "Yes, but not now."
The Doctor then stomped his right leg into the ground, visibly making damage to the floor. Barely a second after that, he grunted before turning to the door. As he did, a metal spear came piercing through the door and made impact with The Doctor. He blocked the tip of the spear, causing sparks of metal to violently flake off as he did. The moment the spear slowed to a stop, it flew back, landing in the hand of a man. The man had a
leather jacket on, and blue jeans, but one could see a police uniform under it. He had brown, messy hair and stubble on his chin. Stol immediately tried to rush the man, but The Doctor raised his hand up, giving Stol pause.
"Now, who may you be?" The Doctor said, maintaining his composure.
The man said, "You have a lot of nerve to pull this stunt."
The officer, who was still impaled on The Doctor's previous arm, said, "R-roland..."
The Doctor feigned embarrassment, "Oh, so you are this mighty Roland? Your reputation precedes you!"
He then laughed and said, "At least, that's what I would say if I gave a damn. Anyways, as I was doing..."
The Doctor turned back to the console and, in a couple movements, finished what he was doing. The moment he did, though, Roland lunged at him, forcing himself and The Doctor over the console and onto the balcony.
Roland yelled, "What the hell have you done, you madman!"
The Doctor replied, "Oh, give me a break. Why'd you even come here anyways? What, you had a feeling?
Roland said, "If it means anything, it seems that my men trust me more than yours do."
The Doctor groaned, "Spare me the dramatics."
The Doctor raised and launched the officer on his previous arm, sending him sailing into Roland as the arm sunk back into The Doctor. Roland and the officer were sent tumbling off, with Roland grabbing the balcony and the officer grabbing Roland's arm. Roland tried to grab the officer tighter to try and lift him up.
The Doctor walked forward and clapped, "What a real man's man you are! Saving your men, even at the cost of your own life. Bravo."
Roland grunted, "If you're going to do something, just do it now. You don't have to go around and brag."
The Doctor said, "If you insist."
The Doctor raised his arm and extended it in an inhuman fashion. It curled around the balcony and grabbed onto the officer's hand. One by one, it began to peel each finger off, forcing Roland to try and grab them back.
The officer cried out, "I-I don't want to die..."
Roland began to sweat even faster as The Doctor said, "This is so boring..."
Suddenly, the hand on The Doctor's arm turned into a blade and stabbed through the officer's hand, cutting it off. The officer fell down from the bridge's balcony and landed on the deck, with a large thud sound coming from his impact. Roland held the detached hand for a few seconds before dropping it and frantically getting back on the balcony.
Roland coughed before he said, "W-what the hell is this all for? Between this and those "Angels", why do you do any of this?"
The Doctor said, "I've just started, my dear police chief. What you call an "Angel", is simply a failed prototype. I have been unsuccessful in producing a real one, at least one better than those ravenous beasts your men have brawled with before."
The Doctor then looked out and continued, "However, this is really nothing more than business, I will say. While I do enjoy this, it's just to get some more funding. You know how it goes."
Roland said, "What the hell are you ta—"
A deafening roar erupted from the deck as all of the artillery batteries began firing. One by one, they each activated and sent their shells into the city. Roland turned and saw building after building get toppled by the armaments.
Roland yelled out, "Damn you! What have those innocents done to you?"
The Doctor said, "Like I said, business. Besides, you have much bigger things to worry about.
The Doctor took a syringe out from his pocket, containing a golden liquid.
—————————————————
Michael, Joseph, Layla, and Ken ran through the streets. It was a disgusting sight. Smoke filled the street, afflicting all within it. Parents could be seen comforting children, running for their lives. Children tried to wake parents, who had their lives run. Shrapnel erupted with each shell that hit the ground.
Ken yelled, "I'll head to the station, make sure everything's fine there. You all, go to the ship!"
They nodded, and Ken split off into a back alley, disappearing from sight.
As they ran, Michael saw a building that was about to fall on a woman, who was stunned on her knees. He dove forth and cut into the building, making a hollow where it would have hit the woman. Joseph grabbed some of the children and pushed them inside buildings, where they would be safer than in the streets. Layla spawned barriers as they ran, blocking shrapnel around people. However, Layla was sweating hard and almost ran in a way closer to an animal. She was stumbling as she ran but was able to keep her speed.
Joseph said, "Layla, you really should slow down. Clearly, that guy's serum did something, even if it hasn't done anything yet."
Layla grunted, "It doesn't matter... I need to protect everyone."
Joseph replied, "I get that, but still..."
Layla turned as if she was about to say something but stopped her tongue. They had reached the ship. The waters around the ship were stained red, with someone who seemed to be knocked out on the ground next to the shore. On the ship itself, a man who had his hand cut off was visible from the ground.
Michael breathed in before he said, "We need to keep going."
They continued into the ship, slowing down as they neared the bridge. As they made it to the top, they saw Roland facing off against a strange man in a plague doctor outfit, who held a syringe, and a man standing to the side on the bridge, seemingly just watching. The man standing to the side almost immediately reacted, until the man in the plague doctor outfit raised his hand.
Michael said, "You must be The Doctor."
The Doctor snapped his fingers, "Took the words right out of my mouth!"
Roland turned, "Layla, Michael, and Joseph, get out of here!"
The Doctor said, "No, no. These are welcome guests. In fact, this lady is the guest of the hour!"
He pointed at Layla, who was in a worse state than she was back on the street.
The Doctor continued, "Judging by her state, clearly that good-for-nothing idiot was good-for-nothing after all. I bet he messed up the percentages. Though, I suppose this is a great time to show what I mean by a true Angel."
Roland lunged at the Doctor, but it was too late. In what couldn't have been more than a few seconds, The Doctor dove in through the broken window and slammed the syringe into Layla, emptying the whole thing directly into her heart. The Doctor stood back as Layla stumbled into the center of the room. Michael and Joseph immediately went to go attack The Doctor, but were stopped by something. They looked in front of them and saw one of Layla's barriers blocking them. They began to rapidly emerge out on the bridge, some even cutting through the steel.
Roland yelled, "What the hell did you do to Layla!"
The Doctor said, "I perfected her."
Joseph said, "Hang in there, we can get through!"
Michael started to cut through the barrier, but it was too late.
Layla stood up and said, "C-come on guys, stop freaking out."
Michael said, "Just stand still, we can get him still."
The Doctor laughed, "Oh, you fools have no idea what's going to happen."
Layla softly said, "I-It's fine, guys! We can still win, I can still protect you all!"
"I'm fine!"
From where Layla stood, she changed. Her body began to change, blood shooting out where it crushed itself, and the sounds of bones breaking filled the room. Joseph stood and watched in horror until Michael grabbed his hand and dragged him down the stairs.
Joseph, with a hoarse voice, said, "Let go of me! We need to go get her!"
Michael had felt this fear before, but for some reason Joseph wasn't. Joseph didn't understand, but Michael did. They stood at the bottom of the stairwell and looked up. The stairs above them began to crumble and crush as they went to their core. Layla. In an instant, it seemed that the entire bridge disappeared. Looking out in front of them, they were on the level as the deck now. They saw the batteries on the front missing. They saw Roland, who stood in abject horror and rage. They saw The Doctor and his soldier. They saw her.
Their minds could not comprehend Her existence for a bit, but when they did, they wished that they could go back. She was curled up into a ball on the ground. Her body had shifted into something entirely alien. The outside of her body was clear, with only a glassy look to show that it was the same barrier that her magic used. However, under her skin, her insides slid and curled in her body, like some kind of red sludge. As she began to get up, more parts of her body were apparent. Her arms had what looked like the barrels of the batteries laid horizontally on them, clear as her skin and attached like some kind of wrist-strapped gun.
The Doctor yelled in pride, "Behold! This is my new personal best! This is a true, unstable Angel!"
The being known as Layla looked at her hands and at her body. Realizing her own existence, she screamed. For she had been denied the one thing that everyone possessed, that was guarenteed to all people since their birth.
Humanity.