Sanctuary's Fiend
Chapter 9

The sun beat down on me relentlessly. I took off my suit jacket and left it in the car. I was resisting having to dress down as much as I could, but… a vision of myself in shorts and flip flops flashed through my mind. I undid the top button on my shirt and adjusted my waistcoat. I could persevere. As a teacher, I had certain standards to uphold.

I’d pulled up outside Sanctuary University. It was all the way on the other side of town for me, but this was where the chemist worked. I’d been busy, but after last night’s attacks, I needed to meet her.

It was a modern building with lots of glass, metal, and curves. Nice, if you like that sort of thing. Bad, if you’re a fan of right-angles. I had a certain fondness for a good solid block of concrete. Easier to hide behind.

Claire was waiting at the big glass entrance for me. At least, I assumed the blonde woman in the white lab coat was her.

I waved as I got closer.

She threw me a smile, and said, ‘Hey. Anderton, right?’

‘If you are Claire, then I am Anderton, yes.’

I was now close enough to see her ID badge. Claire Winters, lab technician. She must have been about five foot two, and aside from her lab coat, was wearing running trainers and black leggings.

‘So, Miss Winters, it’s ready?’

She grinned wickedly. ‘Oh yes. Come on through to my lab.’

As we walked through the spacious lobby, I said, ‘I didn’t know this was such a big University town.’

‘Oh, it’s not really. Average size,’ Claire said, ushering me through automatically opening doors.

‘It must have cost a fortune to build,’ I said, admiring the curves. Of the building, of course.

‘Yeah, I wouldn’t ask too many questions about that.’ She started walking backwards so she could talk properly. Quite the multitasker. ‘There are some very rich people that put a lot of money into Sanctuary. No one’s quite sure why. I personally think it’s actually a shadowy underground organisation.’ She chuckled, to show me that she was half-joking, at least.

‘A shadowy organisation that wants to make sure the populace is well educated? Sounds terrifying.’

‘I know, right? It’s devious!’

I followed her through winding corridors, my shoes tapping a staccato rhythm. It was eerily silent for such a large building, but I guessed that was just Universities on the weekend. I made small talk, and she laughed a lot. After a few minutes, the air was thick with the smell of chemicals. She finally picked one of the glass doors to open. As we stepped in, she flicked a switch, turning the glass door and wall behind us opaque.

‘Well that’s kind of cool,’ I admitted.

She grinned again. ‘We do have some awesome tech. Anyway, the guy said you’d need something very specific.’

‘I was told you knew the situation?’

‘Oh yes. Not to worry there.’ She held up a test tube with a deep purple liquid swirling inside. She had labelled it “Lyfe”.

‘Why is it called leaf?’

She lost her grin. ’What? No, it’s pronounced life.’

‘Oh. That makes more sense. I’ve got to say, I haven’t seen a formulation that looks quite like this before. It’s normally… lighter.’

‘Well, this isn’t what you’ve had before. It’s not identical.’

‘Hmm. What will this do to me?’ I shrugged uncomfortably, remembering past experiences. Still, I appreciated the room’s air conditioning compared to the furnace that was the outside in this town.

‘I’ve never seen the old stuff in action, so this is a bit of a guess. But it’s your standard stuff. Dulls your inhibitors, tons of adrenaline. It will just get you really amped up.’

‘Amped up?’ I remembered the last time I had gotten “amped up”. ‘That’s nice, but I require something a bit more than simply “amped up”.’

‘Don’t worry. It’s good.’

‘You’ve tested it? It’s safe?’

She barked out a laugh. ‘It’s as safe as something like this can be. Afraid of a little danger, Scion?’

The word startled me. She shouldn’t have known what that meant. She must have just heard it somewhere and was testing me. I ignored it. ‘I try to avoid danger whenever possible, actually. It’s probably why I’m still alive.’

‘Yeah. I’ve got to admit, you’re not quite what I was expecting for someone that likes to hunt and kill monsters.’ She started pushing things around on her desk.

‘I think “like” is a bit of a strong word. But now that you mention it, you’re not quite what I expected from my chemist over here.’

‘Aren’t we just a couple of anomalies.’ Her grin returned, and she handed me a small metal box from her desk. ‘That should keep you going for a while.’

‘Thank you,’ I said with a smile.

‘Did you hear about what happened? In the park?’ she asked.

‘As soon as I read it, I contacted you, yes. I’d been foolish to wait so long.’

‘You didn’t have this. There was nothing you could do then, right?’

Was she fishing for information on me, or was she just being nice? ‘Maybe, maybe not. I suppose you don’t know what it was?’

‘Nah. There’s not much of an active hunting network in Sanctuary. A few lone guys pass through every few months heading to the big cities, but that’s it. Never had monsters before.’

‘Don’t be so sure. Sometimes they’re good at hiding.’ I realised that she was excited. ‘But that means you’ve never seen one?’

Her grin widened. ‘Nope! If you need some backup, just give me a call. I’d love to see one.’

I ignored the comment, and made a mental note to never get her involved.

‘Did you see the photos?’ she asked. ‘There was blood everywhere! What does that tell you? Was it a monster?’

Maybe she was just a harmless thrill seeker. There were a lot of them around this calling. ‘Not anything particularly. Monsters hunt and kill for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes to feed, sometimes just for fun.’

‘Could it be a pack or a herd or something?’ she asked. Rather morbid, I felt, but of course it wasn’t real to her.

’Monsters are very solitary. I’ve never seen more than one at a time. They don’t tend to gather together. From everything we - I - know, there’s maybe no more than a dozen monsters of any type per state. Maximum.’

She tapped a finger to her chin. ‘What about werewolves? They run in packs, surely?’

‘They’re tortured and deformed humans, driven insane once a month by a cursed biological contaminant. They kill each other just like they’d kill humans.’

She seemed gratified by even that tiny bit of information. ‘So, when are you going to get whatever it is?’

’As soon as I can. I don’t want any more people dying because of my laziness.’

‘You’ve got my number. Just call and I’ll help out.’

I smiled. ‘Thank you, Miss Winters. I’ll keep that in mind.’

As I stood waiting for the elevator doors to close, she gave me a little wave of her fingers and another infectious grin. Perhaps I’d contact her again, ask her to meet for a drink. Getting better acquainted with my support staff could only be a good thing, right?

On my way out I took a look inside the metal box. Ten vials of Lyfe. I’d have to try one when not hunting, to see just how strong it was, so really it was nine. I wondered if it would give me the same rush as before. The same feeling of… I closed the box. I took it because I had to. I took it to make the world a better place for Richard and his friends. This drug had earned me a reputation I’d rather forget. I did this for him, not myself. For him. I pushed the memories aside and stepped back out into the blazing sun.

I had wanted to start a new life in Sanctuary, but my old contacts had made that impossible when they told me they’d heard word of something big happening here. The mutilation last night must have been the start of it.

I put the steel box in the back of the car. I allowed myself a moment to feel the sunshine on my face. I ran my hand through my short brown hair. I’d known that getting out of this life would be hard, but I hadn’t expected this from the moment Richard and I had landed. As soon as I’d turned my phone on, I’d gotten the call. It had just been a heads up. A warning for my own safety. Before I knew it, I’d told them that I’d handle it. You can’t just magically leave the Scions.

My thoughts were interrupted by a man on the sidewalk shouting a, ‘Hello!’

I turned and saw a man in navy shorts and a polo shirt. His blonde hair was artfully styled and he was taking his sunglasses off, hanging them on his collar. I didn’t recognise him.

‘Hello?’ I said.

‘Mr. Anderton, right?’

My muscles tensed. How did he know me? ‘Yes, that’s right. And you are?’

‘Tom. Looks like you’re having a rough day.’

‘I’m afraid I’m new in town. I can’t quite place you, Tom.’

He gave a brilliant smile as he shaded his eyes from the sun. ‘Sorry, it’s Tom Miller. I’ve seen your picture in the school newsletter. Rel’s dad.’

I put thoughts of monsters, drugs, and death from my mind. My teacher’s brain kicked in and I returned his smile. ‘Oh, Mr. Miller. So nice to finally meet you.’

We shook hands. He had a remarkably strong grip.

‘What brings you to the university?’ I asked.

‘I work nearby and saw your car outside. Thought I’d catch you quickly.’

‘Ahh. I suppose this is about Friday night?’

‘I think we should have a talk.’

‘Yes, definitely.’ I looked around hoping to replace a nearby pub. Then I remembered this was America. We’d have to go with the local coffee shop instead, as it was only midday. Sanctuary had a perfectly acceptable local coffee chain called “The Grind”, and Tom and I had plenty to talk about. Maybe a talk with him would sort the kids’ issues out, and who knew, maybe I’d make my first real friend in Sanctuary.