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 Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 9:45 am
"Her organs are failing; one by one. I'm afraid it's only a matter of time until..."
The words seemed to echo through her mind as if in a nightmarish sort of dream. This couldn't be real, right? It just couldn't be.
"I'm sorry. There's nothing more we can do."
There had to be something, right? Something they hadn't tried yet? Some new experimental drug or surgery or other treatment. Something...ANYTHING! Desperation was beginning to set in...
No, that was a lie. Desperation had taken hold long ago; back when she'd started volunteering for experimental treatments, both legal and...not so much so.
Out of tears, she didn't cry this time. At least not where one could see. The doctors left the room after a while, though she didn't acknowledge the event in any way. She'd already receeded to her private world inside her head. A world where she didn't have to deal with her situation anymore. She could simply float, weightless and thoughtless, free from the bonds and worries of the real world. It was the only place she felt at peace and if she hadn't been able to seek sanctuary there, she doubted that she would have lasted this long without cracking. A nervous breakdown...or worse...would have undoubtably taken place by now.
Perhaps some thought that she wasn't taking the situation seriously. Maybe others thought she'd lost her mind. Maybe they were right. Who knew? All she knew at this point was that she didn't want to die. No matter what it took, she wanted to live. She was too young to die like this, wasting away in some hospital while she waited on her organs to fail completely; with doctors, nurses, and family members all offering false hope and words of encouragement, all while their eyes told the true story. There was no hope. Their eyes were dead; they'd all given up on her. She saw no hope, no love, no optimism in those eyes anymore. All she saw was sadness. Sadness...and pity. She wouldn't stand for pity. Pity was for the weak and pathetic; those who gave up on themselves and didn't fight back. She wouldn't be one of those.
She'd stopped shedding tears months ago. Her only reaction to the usual announcement of bad news now was silence. Maybe she really had lost her mind somewhere along the way. Who knew? She sure didn't. And even if she had lost it, it was doubtful that she would have even cared. She spent her days floating passively through life, wondering whether this day would be her last...or if some miracle would save her from this pitiful existence.
She barely even registered the soft click as the door to her hospital room opened slowly.
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Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 12:03 pm
The door opened slowly with a soft creak and a tall, somewhat-lanky figure slipped inside. He shut the door quietly, shoes clicking against the tile floor as he crossed the room to the lone hospital bed and its quiet occupant. A near-painful scraping sound echoed off the walls as he pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down.
His brown hair hung loose in his eyes and his appearance was disheveled, as if he had dedicated all his energy to something more important than personal grooming for a substantial amount of time. He sat with his head in his hands for some time before raising his eyes to look at the still figure in the bed.
"I'm so sorry you've had to go through all this. If only there had been something more I could have done to spare you this pain." He reached for her hand, sparking the first response from the girl since he'd entered the room. Unfortunately, it wasn't a very positive one, as she pulled her hand out of his reach.
"Samantha... Please..."
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 1:03 pm
A pair of narrowed eyes turned in his direction. The look was anything but friendly and one could assume that had she not been in her current situation, there might have been a more violent, physical response.
"Save it, Uncle. I've heard it all before, a thousand times over by now. All sorts of 'wishes' and 'what ifs' and 'if onlys...' To be honest, if I hear anything like that just one more time, I think I'll vomit from disgust."
Despite being in a hospital bed, hooked up to various monitoring devices and beeping machines that were essentially responsible for keeping her alive, Samantha's glare remained intimidating. She had been no push-over before her illness and she wasn't going to let that change her.
"I'm serious this time. No more false hope and lies. If I'm going to die, then tell me I'm going to die." She sat up, leaning back on some pillows as she finally turned to look at the man directly. "So...what's the verdict, Uncle Carl?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 2:35 pm
Carl Hakan sighed, running his hand through his hair hesitantly before speaking. "Well, to be honest, the general concensus isn't good. But that's part of why I'm here."
He leaned forward, looking up and meeting her gaze, surprised once more by how intense the stare of this young woman really could be. Clearing his throat loudly, he plunged ahead.
"You see, I'm here to offer you one last chance. Now, before you answer, let me stress that the procedure is very radical and we'd have to keep your involvement with my employer top secret. The treatment would involve a massive multiple organ transplant as well as some precautions to keep your body from rejecting the transplants. But...if all goes well, we could completely eliminate all of your problems."
Carl was careful not to say too much just yet. He could explain the details later...or not. However, he needed her permission to transport her to the CRONUS facility and begin the life-saving treatment. There was no other way to get her out of the current hospital, seeing as she was of age and therefore responsible for making her own decisions regarding her health and treatment. Then again, this last facility hadn't exactly been the most open and honest place Samantha had sought treatment. If necessary, Carl was sure he could find some way to get her out of there and to CRONUS if need be.
Frowning, Carl watched his niece carefully, knowing she was mulling the idea over. Taking a chance, he reached up, gently stroking her cheek, as he noted how her complexion seemed slightly sickly after her latest failed treatment. "Please, Samantha... This might be your last chance. And think of it...all of your problems and complications, gone. Isn't it at least worth a try?"
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 3:06 pm
Samantha sighed loudly, reaching up and weakly swatting his hand away from her as she turned and stared off in the opposite direction, deep in thought and suddenly very fascinated by the blank wall. The possibility seemed too good to be true. All this time, she had just been shooting for some form of survival, but promise of a full recovery? Without the worry and hassle of managing diabetes ever again? Definitely too good to be true. Something had to be wrong here.
Her uncle had said that the procedure would be radical and extensive, but if it did what he promised, then that was pretty much a given. And why all the secrecy? The treatment probably wasn't finished with official testing or something like that. That's what the case was with most "secret" treatments she had tried. And she wasn't particularly worried about possible side effects, seeing as if the treatment didn't work, she was going to die anyway. So, what did she have to lose?
It was some time before she turned back to her uncle. "So...last chance, eh?" There was a hint of a smile creeping in at the corner of her lips, the first in a long time.
"Where do I sign up?"
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Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2006 5:52 pm
A few weeks later...
"Increase her dosage," Dr. Hakan ordered the anesthesiologist in a clipped, business-like tone. The middle-aged doctor snapped out orders left and right while bustling through the numerous nurses and lab technicians scurrying to carry out his demands.
He glanced momentarily as the figure on the operating table; his niece...his own flesh and blood. If all went well, if this experimental surgery succeeded... Well, the possibilities for the future were nearly endless.
"Are you ready, Samantha?"
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2006 6:02 pm
'I should be used to this sort of thing by now,' Samantha mused silently, watching the figures hurrying about their business, preparing for her surgery. Nonetheless, she couldn't help the sickening anxiety that grew slowly in her stomach. These medical treatments always made her nervous on some level, but something about this one seemed different from those in the past.
Her uncle wouldn't have pushed her to accept this treatment if it was too dangerous, right? Well, even if it was, she had nothing to lose at this point. Either she died in surgery or she died afterwards when her organs failed. Did it really matter which?
She turned her head towards her uncle, the question being processed slowly in her drowsy mind. Nodding once, she slurred, "Let's get this party started, eh, unc?" Grinning as the sedatives took effect, her vision began to blur. Sinking into the darkness, she didn't see the smirk that passed briefly over her uncle's face. Or the tortured howls from the next room.
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Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2006 6:29 pm
A few long hours later, Samantha was being wheeled out of the operating room to recover in a private 'room.' Dr. Hakan exited as well, collapsing tiredly onto a couch in the doctor's lounge as he pulled off his face mask. "Well, that took longer than I'd planned on, but I think it went better than I'd anticipated. Much better." Yeah, he was talking to himself, but he was pleased with their success. Not only would his niece survive thanks to this experimental surgery, but his mind reeled with the possibility of what she could become. This could be the start of a new era of mankind...
Of course there were the moral implications...
Bah. He waved his hand in the air as if brushing the thought away physically. Such concerns were for the weak-minded fools that had laughed at him so many years ago. We'd see who was laughing now though, once his latest discoveries were made public. Though that would be some time in the future, the thought of it along with the dreams of his own success and fame would tide him over for now.
Somewhere deep in the back of his mind, however, a tiny voice struggled in vain to be heard. 'What have I done...?'
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 8:25 pm
Out and About Other Involved Characters: Raena Vaccin, Tara Maijin, Phil Butters, (Warren?), Shawn Darrow, Karen Mariston Summary: Still weak and recovering from her surgery, Samantha seeks some welcome sunlight and is 'forced' into socializing with a number of other new 'arrivals'. First, she meets Raena Vaccin, and after a snarky start, the two seem to hit things off well. So much cannot be said about Tara Maijin, especially once Samantha's last name is known. Oops. Already, Samantha realizes that something isn't quite right on the island, especially with this many people here, but the odd reaction to her last name, linking her to her uncle, sets off warning bells. After a momentary pause to sing to calm herself at the edge of the fence, unaware of her secret audience, Shawn enters the yard with a bit of a commotion. After going to check on him after a fall, Samantha and Shawn exchange a few words, despite the boy's hesitant nature to trust anyone else after being betrayed by one of the guards at CRONUS named Hayden. Still, with a few honest statements, something much like trust began to form between the two. She stayed long enough to watch the arrival of a reporter named Karen before her exhaustion proved to be too much for her. Sam took her leave of the group, heading back to her room to sleep off the headache and dizziness that assaulted her senses.
http://www.gaiaonline.com/guilds/viewtopic.php?t=5526531
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Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 1:41 am
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Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 1:43 am
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Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:33 am
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Posted: Mon Jul 30, 2007 5:19 pm
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Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2007 4:29 pm
Search For the Truth -- Part 1 "I can't go anywhere, I can't do anything...this is frickin' ridiculous," Samantha muttered, practically hissing the last part as she paced restlessly in her cell-of-a-so-called-room. Sure, she could wander to the cafeteria and the exercise yard, so she wasn't exactly caged or anything...but this many days or weeks of nothingness? She'd lost count at this point and she feared she was losing her sanity as well. How long now since her life-saving surgery? She couldn't remember, but she knew she had been at full-strength for a long time now and still they refused to release her. Not that she knew what sort of home she had to go back to, but it was odd behavior to be noted...that much was sure. She wanted out of here. The staff here was obnoxious, the guards were either sick, perverted, or just pathetic losers, and she could say worse things of some of the other guests here... Granted, not all of them were bad. Raena, Shawn, Karen, Diana...they were decent enough, sure. It was hard to balance out the lesser elements of this place though... Shoving dark thoughts regarding a certain wannabe street punk or whatever the hell she was supposed to be to the back of her mind, Samantha focused on another fact that had been bothering her more and more as of late. She hadn't seen her uncle since she'd arrived on the island before her surgery; though, she'd certainly heard enough about him from some of the other guests. What exactly was going on around here? Why were there so many other people as 'guests of the lab' right now? Wasn't this supposed to be a secret facility? Why so many people? And what exactly did her uncle Carl have to do with all of this strangeness? The others seemed to have come to a pretty accurate judgment of his character and personality, she had to admit. He was a right a**. Most of the time...nah, let's be honest...all the time. Frowning deeply, she finally stopped pacing and flopped down on her 'lovely' cot-bed, elbows on her knees and head in her hands. What was going on? She knew why she was here, yes, but why the others? Surely, a secret lab out in the middle of the ocean wasn't performing life-saving, experimental surgery on THIS many people all at once? No lab had that many test subjects for medical procedures that were under the radar. She would know. Plus, the others she had talked to thus far all authenticated her own guesses; no one else seemed to be here for the same reason as she. Speaking of which, exactly what was this 'life-saving proceedure' that no one seemed willing to talk to her about? It was her own body, dammit! If anyone had a right to know what had really gone on, she did! The mere thought of strangers poking around in her insides while she was unconscious gave her the creeps. This was not eased by the thought of her uncle being involved in the same. Unconsciously, her hand slipped beneath her shirt, fingers tracing lightly over the area that should have left her with a horrible scar. ' No more hope of a modeling career here,' she had thought snidely. Not that there was one to begin with. Instead though, she'd been pleasantly surprised to note that the scar was almost gone. Pleasantly surprised at first, anyway. Not quite so much when she thought about it deeper. No scar like that should disappear this quickly, no matter how healthy the person is. Something odd was going on here, within her own body, and she desperately wanted to know what it was. Practically snarling, she pushed herself up off of the bed and resumed pacing. That's it. This farce had gone on long enough. She wanted answers...and she wanted them NOW dammit. Slamming her hand against the intercom button, she shot the speaker a glare as if it could travel through the wires and straight to the person on the other side. "Hakan here. Samantha Hakan. No, I would not like another soda, or a punching bag, or an MP3 player, thank you. I would like to see my uncle. And don't give me that s**t about him being in a meeting, surgery, or otherwise unavailable. He can NOT be that popular around here or anywhere, so don't give me that crap. Tell him his niece would like to see him for a little family chat, so he can just make a little time for me in his oh-so-busy-schedule, 'k? I'll be expecting an escort at my door within five minutes. Thank you." Releasing the button, she stalked over towards the door to her room, shooting an obscene hand gesture at the badly-hidden security camera in the corner of the ceiling on her way.
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