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“That’s good…” he replied in a distant, blasé tone.

He was tiring. Swimming always wore him out, that’s why he enjoyed it so much. It was the perfect workout; however, he’d over-exerted himself badly. His head still throbbed with unbelievable pain.

Jordan’s step skipped its rhythm as one foot collided with the other in his exhausted stupor. He stumbled and could feel himself toppling over. “WHOOoooooooooooaaaa!!” he cried out, slamming his right arm hard into the nearest tree, accompanied by a painful grunt. It hurt like hell, but it was the only way to keep himself from crashing on the ground, so a little pain could be tolerated.

“W-wait up Gallen…” he closed his eyes as he laid his head against tree bark. He couldn’t muster the will to move from the one thing holding him up. “I gotta stop for a moment… I’m not feeling good…”

“I’ll be alright.. I’m just a bit out of it.. and feeling this heat..” he remained propped against the tree, while rubbing the bridge of his nose between his eyes. He wasn’t going to be a burden if he could help it. “I’ve lived in this weather all my life and I’ve never adjusted too well.. must be the ice in my veins..” he chuckled sardonically, taking a potshot at his northern climate heritage that hailed primarily from Norway and North Dakota. “Air conditioning spoils a guy…”

He took a few breaths, definitely feeling the heat in his tired condition. His forehead pressed against the tree, eyes closed, letting out a soft sigh of frustration. He could do this. He had to endure long enough to complete the trek, only then could he be rewarded with the prospect of rest. Jordan couldn’t quit now, he couldn’t just give up! He was never allowed to just give up a moment in his life and he wasn’t about to start!

A prickle of sensations ran up the back of his neck- hot, itchy sensations of a motivational nature, driving him to push himself harder. His fingers clutched at the tree bark, tensing, tightening his grip to pull himself to stand upright.

He hurt. He was tired. It had not been the time, nor the place, to slack off. He stepped back from his pro-tem crutch, staggering a moment till he acquired his bearings. Jordan opened his eyes, but kept his face to the ground for a moment or two, slowly lifting his head as he rubbed the back of his neck. Man, that prickling heat was irritating.

“I feel fine.” He commented with an astonishing renewed vigor. “Let’s press onward.” Jordan walked up to Gallen and past him by a few steps. There was an enduring air about his resolve.

“C’mon. Let’s get moving. It’s not much further anyways, right? I can manage the rest of the way. I’m strong enough to take it the last stretch and then we can rest.” He was awfully determined to press on without continued hesitations. It was hot, he was sore, and he did just want to pass out, but that wasn’t an option. One leg forward then the other, like an unstoppable juggernaut he trudged, forcing beyond exhaustion to move his legs. The more he moved, the more it burned. The more it burned, the more motivated he’d become to keep moving.

He kept a few steps ahead, like a scout, even though Gallen was leading the way. He felt compelled to stay in the forefront.

“The last thing I read was a People magazine at my doctors office. Hmmmmmm…” he tried remembering the article he read “I only read a few pages briefly, but what I do recall is the article was about a missing actor. Think his name was… oh now what was his name… Di-something? DiRossi?” He wasn’t hindered by the conversation and it did offer some minor diversion from the pain. “I think it was Vasile DiRossi that went missing? Sounds right, so we’ll just go with that. Apparently, he was a cocky big shot actor and just disappeared one day when his plane disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle. Weird, huh?”

Finally reaching the outskirts of wooded scenery, the duplexes were only a pleasant few yards in sight. His legs burned even more with relief so close, but stubborn will persevered. Jordan had been leading Gallen towards the unit he believed he was residing in, until Gallen moved ahead. His gaze caught a glimpse of the tattoos adorned on the man's backside curiously examining them absent-mindedly.

"I don't read too much beyond work-related materials. Never got into comics and.. well.. most books just bore me. I'm a picky reader, when I do read."

They reached the door, unlocked, and he led them both inside with a sigh of relief. Jordan crashed on the bed and just laid there, groaning in pain. His muscles were aching, his head throbbing. Hands clutched the sides of his head, massaging the pulsating temples.

"Every part of me hurts... what a stressful day..."

He sprawled out, leaving one leg dangling off the side and the other off the end. It hurt to stretch his legs out, wincing a bit in the process.

"I need a hot shower so badly... ungh... barely have the energy to move right now... Say.. Gallen.. could you open my bag and grab me some ibuprofin and a cup of water? I've gotta do something about this migraine... It''ll be in a little black zipper pouch..." he covered his eyes "And could you grab my sunglasses? The migraine is making my eyes a bit too light-sensitive now.."

Inside the bag, Gallen would see a change of clothing, a pair of red sunglasses, and the black pouch he spoke of, as well as a thing or tow buried underneath the change of clothing. He hadn't much time to take more than what had been with him at Feral, hence the light pack.

"Two please. And thank you." he reached over to the desk and picked up the sunglasses, now able to have his hands free that he's not as blinded. He tried to sit up because taking pills lying down was just not possible for him. He propped himself up with a groan, feeling the soreness ache throughout his body.

Taking the pills and the water, he dumped the water in his mouth first followed by the pills and swallowed with his head tilted back. He was a lousy pill taker. He had to have water in his mouth befopre the pills already or he'd gag and if that wasn't bad enough, sometimes they'd come back up on him. Luckilly, they stayed down this time.

He turned his head to Gallen "I had to take what I had on me at the time. There really wasn't time given to pack. Basically, the incident ocurred, security took me ot a secluded room and then we were off after they their answers."

He wasn't sure how exactly to answer. Jordan looked down at his legs, formulating the words, peering off to the side at Gallen's feet, rather than face-to-face.

"I obeyed orders and attempted to access information that wasn't meant for my eyes." That answer would have to suffice for the moment. He feared causing himself more strife if he divulged too much about the mainland incident. "And yes, instead of firing me, they sent me here to attend a re-education seminar, similar to the way the military breaks down new recruits then molds them into hardened soldiers."

He shifted his body so he was leaning against the wall because that was more comfortable than holding his sore body up on his own.

"I guess I'll just wait and see how it turns out. Can it really be as bad as you say? Honestly? Maybe it won't happen to me. I'm doubtful they'd do anything to an employee as you claim they have to your friend, Dai."

Jordan cocked his head to the side. Every so often, the man who'd been his company on this island excursion had the habit of acting a little funny. He was curious if this man Gallen was displaying common symptoms of the experimentation process. If he were, this could be a most genuine opportunity, he thought. Then he could prove or disprove this evil island experimentation nonsense. This was going pretty far for a joke. That's it! This had to be some Feral Labs practical joke and he'd be able to start his re-education if he passed or failed this test. Did that even make sense? Well, a little -a lot- more than people being changed into animals on an uncharted island in the Caribbean, that's for sure. Maybe a bit of his skepticism leaked through his expression, but he was also not wanting to offend this person who risked his life to save him.

"Lowering base intelligence is a potential side-effect? Well, I guess that makes sense.."

He'd decided it was good policy to gain as much information on this as he could, because it was most likely just an elaborate practical joke with some very realistic costumes.

"Tell me, what other side-effects are there? What else can you tell me?"