There were so many turns that I lost count. I haven't smelled or heard the creatures in some time. The hologram was taking me somewhere, but I did not know where.

"These creatures... What were they? How long had they been down here? She called them pseudo vampires. Were DNA Labs creating them... or were they... test subjects too?"

This was a frightful notion. I thought about asking her about this issue. It seems like a matter for another time. I can ask when I get out of this place. Being down here was dangerous, and I wanted to escape as soon as I could. The crunching of metal caught me by surprise.

"Shit, the corridor is unstable,"

This was just what I needed. I couldn't see much, even with the glow of her light guiding me. But what her light did reveal was heavy damage to the concrete walls and structure. I could see metal rebar and columns through the cracked concrete with vast patches of rubble on the floor. Part of the floor had gaping holes leading to the level below. It looked like something incredible caused a serious amount of damage that went on for a good portion. Any part could collapse under my pressure.

"Careful up ahead. There is significant structural damage for several meters," the Core Mother said.

"Yeah, this is going to be fun," I whispered, moving with extra caution.

I stood at the edge of the collapsed floor as the Core Mother stood beside me. Her light barely lit up the level below and I could barely make out what was down there. It took a moment for my eyes to notice the slight movement below and I gasped. The entire floor below glistened and moved ever so slightly.

"Fuck, I don't want to know what's down there," I considered as I focused on the only way across the vast darkness below.

A jagged metal I-beam went off into the darkness over the wrecked concrete floor. I took a step forward on to the I-beam and the metal groaned under my weight. Taking extra care in placing my hands and feet barely made a difference. I had a doubt if it would hold up for long.

"Could I make a break for the other side? I might have too. That would be a lot of ground to cover," I crawled a few more feet.

As I crawled a little more, I felt it before it happened. My hand went straight through the corridor. The section was giving way and I tried bracing myself with my other hand and legs, but I couldn't get it to hold. The next thing I knew, I was falling.

I hit the ground with a loud thump, just missing the fragments of metal. Pain shot from every corner of my being. The fall was a long one, but none of my bones felt broken. Just a lot of pain and bruises. The stickiness of the floor was disgusting. A thick coat of flesh covered the floor in both directions as I surveyed my area. It was another corridor, larger than the one I had been in. Mother showed up again, lighting the way. The fleshy material covered the walls and floor and seemed to react to every step I took. She motioned for me to follow her, and I stumbled to my feet, pushing onwards. The foul scent the flesh gave off caused me to gag several times before I made it out of the flesh. I looked back and for a moment it seemed like the fleshy meat crawled towards me. I shivered at the thought.

"What if the fall had knocked me out? Would this shit be trying to crawl over my body?" I shuddered at the thought as I turned to follow the Core Mother.

Ahead was yet another maze of right or left turns. Someone could get lost down here and never find a way out. This place had to be massive. A familiar smell was growing ever more present. I knew I had to be on guard. Those creatures were here too.

"If I got caught out in the open,"

Up ahead, a flicker of light came into view. I noticed patches of flesh on the walls and floors the further I went.

"There are... pseudos ahead...," she whispered.

"What do I do?" I whispered.

"There is no other way but to proceed. From here, you can access another smaller corridor," she whispered.

I had no other option but to find a way past them. She disappeared once again. I glued myself to the wall. Trying to keep my profile low and make as little sound as I could. The closer I got to the light source, I could hear several of them inside. The sounds they made sent chills down my spine. Again, I almost gagged at the smell coming from inside the room. A watery smacking sound echoed out of the room.

"Oh God, I hope that fleshy shit isn't in this room!" I worried as I clung to the wall.

I felt the bare concrete against my back and hands, and I sighed in relief.

"At least it's not here," I thought as I moved closer to the light. It seemed to be a larger chamber.

A few more steps brought me into the light. There were six of them inside. They differed from the ones I saw earlier, but definitely pseudo vampires. I froze in my tracks when one of them noticed me. In a frenzy, they all went into an alarming stance. I was wide open when they rushed me. There was nowhere to go when they stopped just feet from me. One of them seems to have forced the others back.

There was a bluish glimmer on its face, around its eyes. The color and shape were familiar for some reason. Then, I remembered where I had seen this before. Doctor Kent wore glasses with blue frames. The realization sent shock and disbelief through my mind. As if the creature recognized what I was thinking, it turned away. The others did the same thing and returned to whatever occupied them before my arrival.

"This... This... This couldn't be Doctor Kent. It was impossible; I saw him just a day or two ago," I thought in confusion and terror.

The creature raised his mangled hand to his face as if to push his glasses over his nose. I shuddered as more signs of the unimaginable truth became evident. Bits and pieces of a white lab coat clung to his body like rags all over his body. I recognized the tattered pieces of clothing the nurses wore day in and day out. Some of the clothing the creatures wore resembled what the security guards wore.

"Oh my, they must have been our nurses or guards," I thought as I covered my mouth in disgust.

As I looked at them, I began gagging. For the latter creatures, their armored vest appeared as if their flesh had grown into them. The skin seemed to be covered in malice growths of flesh with gaping holes covering their bodies. As I looked on, I noticed the fleshy material that formed roots. That was the best way I could describe them. The fleshy roots tangled up with other tangles of flesh that came from each of them. They intertwined like something had woven their flesh together. Some of them looked overgrown while others had mutated limbs. The doctor seemed to be at the center of all of them with the most disfigured afflictions.

"Doctor Kent?" I groaned.

There was a long pause, but I could see tiny strains of blonde hair. I knew before he began to speak. "Yes... I am... Doc... tor... Kent," he said in a dead unrecognizable voice. The creature that resembled Doctor Kent struggled to situate himself.

This was the Doctor that had treated us like we were humans out of all the people here.

"Why was he down here and like this?" I thought.

"What... what happened to you?" I whispered. His expression seems to struggle to form a thought.

"The price... The price for not following the rules. This is what happens to those that... don't," he said.

"But that doesn't make sense? You were fine the last time we saw you. What... What did you do to deserve this?"

"I'm afraid it's been quite some time since we last met. Are you aware? No... I think not, how could you be aware. We made sure you and the others would never know... As for what happened to me... Breaking any rule set forward by the board of directors results in an employee being designated as a test subject,"

"Why... For God's sake why would Doctor Ashland do this to his own coworkers?"

The Doctor again struggled to set up on his one good arm as he used his mangled hand to adjust his disfigured glasses. It was probably a habit that compelled him to adjust his glasses although they had long ago become useless.

"It wasn't him. No one chooses to work for DNA Labs. Some may receive a deal or contract to avoid incarceration or clear criminal acts. But once in... following company policy is an absolute. The alternative is this...this... hell. For those that have the unfortunate fate of being a test subject. Being human, the chances of a," The Doctor coughed violently and began to readjust himself again. He seemed to struggle to form his words. He looked up at me and the mere act seemed to cause his body such pain. I could see the swollen lump covering the side of his neck. It pulsated as if something was growing inside it. He breathed heavily as he struggled to complete his sentence.

"The chance of a... reasonable outcome is slim to none. This is a fate worse than death. A neverending nightmare. Courtesy of a small thing called immortality," he revealed. He coughed and a viscous fluid leaked out the side of his mouth. The flesh covering his teeth stretched unnaturally giving him a hideous smile. His teeth were overgrown which only aided in his struggle to speak.

"All this because you... talked to us? What kind of corporation is DNA Labs? All this suffering... what is it for?"

The glow of the Core Mother returned as he began talking. "For the singular goal of the mandate given to DNA Labs. That's all I know. Some purpose that those like me were not privy to,"

"What kind of mandate would require all this? This... this is absolute hell...,"

"I hope that you escape. For those like me... there is no end... no remorse... no redemption. Just this unending existence. In time, my mind will develop into nothing but the basic of instincts,"

"Is there any way I can help you?"

"For me, there is no coming back. This... is irreversible. You... should go now. They are watching... they always are...," he said in a labored voice.

Again he tried to readjust himself with his one good arm. He cradled his malformed arm close to his chest as he looked at me with sincerity.

I could see no hope, no peace in his eyes. This was the penalty just for showing an ounce of compassion. This was our fault, we did this. For every action we did, there was someone that paid a price. I held myself with my arms, forcing myself to move away. To move towards the way the Core Mother was leading me. Her flickering light was all too recognizable to him and the others. I took one last look at the horror behind me. My mind was in tatters. I shivered with a horrid fever from this knowledge. There were other test subjects other than us. It didn't matter who you were. No one was safe from the grips of DNA Labs.

A few minutes passed before I asked the biggest question lingering on my mind. I stared at her flickering image. She walked just a few feet ahead of me.

"What is the purpose behind all this? What is DNA Lab's mandate? The reason they can commit all this suffering?" I asked.

"Does it matter? What will knowing achieve?" she whispered.

"How many people are suffering at the hands of this insane corporation?"

"Do you believe this world is cruel?"

"Of course this world is cruel! How could people let this go on?"

"Let me ask you a question. Is it that the world is cruel or that people are cruel? If it is human nature to be warlike... Yet why can certain people restrain or hold back those tendencies, while others cannot? Is it that the world is peaceful or that a few cruel people rule this world?"

"What are you trying to say? I don't understand?"

"Are you a cruel person or peaceful?"

"I'm not like these people that did that to Doctor Kent,"

"Individual people are cruel. Not humanity as a whole. You have the choice to be tempered or the choice to be cruel. But what if there was a cause behind your choice. What if being cruel was only a means to an end? Would you as a human change your choice?"

"What could possibly make me... a person choose to be cruel to other humans?"

"Would it change your choice not to be cruel or would you agree with their actions?"

"Hell no, there is no reason to treat another human being this way?"

"I wonder if you are right. The mandate they have been tasked with must be followed. Knowing would not change your circumstances or the other unfortunate ones,"

"What the hell is this damn mandate?" I yelled.

The Core Mother stopped in front of me as she slightly turned back to look at me.

"As I said, knowing would benefit you little. It would only poison you. With what you must achieve to attain your freedom, knowing would only serve to hold you back. It would lead to you failing,"

"How could knowing cause me to fail?"

"You seek knowledge you are not ready for. Knowledge that could become deep rooted in your mind. Knowledge that would certainly affect your chances of escape. Why tell you only for that knowledge to lead you down the path to Doctor Kent? Focus on what lies before you... not behind you," the Core Mother revealed as she turned and continued to guide me through the maze of corridors.