Half a man

Underground Asylum: West wing

Looking out the barred window from my room, the oak tree's leaves began to change their color of everlasting green to the warm color of orange and reds. To those on the outside world, this meant that festivities were near where family and friends share fond memories of good times. But to me, it was only a representation of another year passing in this godless place. Though the trees only reminded me of my imprisonment, I still yearned to be able to walk among them and feel their rough bark and smooth leaves. However, only those with special privileges were allowed to explore the garden, and due to my... special circumstances, I was not one of those people. Having enough of my self-torment, I raised myself from my sitting position and examined my room as I did every morning.

Like most of the others, my room was a standard 10ft x 15ft living space. The only things I was allowed to have was a small cot, a mirror and the clothes on my back. Walking towards said mirror, I checked myself over for any further corruption. Lifting my white shirt, I involuntarily flinched at the blackened shape on my torso. Everyday it become more defined and bigger, a sign that he was winning. Rolling up my pant leg, I was only slightly glad that it was still bare of any sign of corruption.

'I hate this part...'

Reaching for the gas mask encasing my head, I unlocked all the seals and pressurized locks adorning the neck and lifted it off my head. At first, all I did was look at my face, or at least part of it. Moving the stray black hairs from my eyes, I let out a small gasp at what was in front of me. The upper right part of my face was a lifeless black. It even reached the upper part of my eye, which only reflected pure white. And then the voice came again.

Do you like what I've done?

Ignoring the voice, I quickly put my mask back on. Letting out a tired sigh, I readied myself for the tests that were to be performed on me. At 8:00 a.m., I heard the footsteps of the warden as I did every morning.

"001!", he shouted. All the response he got was a simple thud like every other day.

"002!" This time a heavy Russian accent responded him.

"Da." The voice said. This pattern repeated, whether it was a thud or a voice that responded, he took roll call. When he got to me, I only gave a simple grunt to alert him of my presence. As he moved onto 020, something felt off.

"020!, he shouted. There was no response, which was very odd, 020 was usually the most talkative. The few times I met him during testing were some of the most annoying minutes of my life. He would always prattle on about something of his past. Besides him being an annoyance, I never saw or felt anything strange from him. He did seem more deep in thought the past few weeks though, almost as if he had been planning something....

Before I could finish my thoughts however, the wardens voice boomed in a threatening tone.

"020, RESPOND!" Even with the warden's temper rising, there was still silence. This peaked my curiosity, making me press the side of my head to the wall to hear any sign of 020.

'Maybe the poor bastard finally killed himself. Can't blame him, anyone who's locked up in here goes crazy sooner or later, even me.... Wait, what's that noise?'

Pressing my head closer, a low but constant hum emitted from the other side of the wall. The humming only grew in intensity as it became more louder, almost as if it were charging up...

'SHIT!'

As I finally realized what was happening, the warden did as well. From my guess, the warden probably already had his communicator out by now.

"Subject 020 is attempting escape, I repeat, subject 02-" His voice was cut off by a booming sound which was followed by the sound of metal ripping off hinges and the sickening crunch of flesh and bones being torn and broken.

For a moment there was complete silence. This silence however was broken by the soft sounds of footsteps walking away.

'That crazy bastard actually escaped... Which means...'

Unlocking my mask and taking it off, I placed it to the side as I felt a wave of power wash over me. Concentrating, I moved the flow of energy into my arms, which in turn caused them to be surrounded by a black aura.

Having some fun are we?

"Shut up.", I said aloud. Walking towards the steel door, I brought both my hands back behind my head. Tensing my arms, I swung them at the door, which went flying into the opposing wall. Picking up my mask and placing it on, I moved through the open doorway and observed the damage. Spotting my own door rather quickly, I noticed 020's door a few feet away, with a pool of blood surrounding it. Satisfied for now, I sprinted down the corridor.

'With 020 having all the heat on him, I have enough time to reach 057.'

Keeping an eye on the numbers placed on the doors I sprinted past, I was glad to be at 055 already. In my excitement though, I failed to notice the guard in front of me.

"Return back to your cell!" She shouted at me. I simply stood there, dumbfounded at how close I was to freedom, yet so far away. As I stood there, the guard reached towards her belt, where she pulled out a whip.

'Calm down, it's just whip'

Well it was a whip, until the guard switched it on, making it come to life in a dazzling effect of electricity.

'Shit, it's all or nothing now.'

Tensing my legs, I went into a mad dash, trying to charge the guard. The guard only looked at me with tired eyes.

"Idiot.", she said as she pulled her arm back. Bringing her arm down in a arc, she twisted the whip mid swing, causing it to lash out to the side. Unprepared for this, the whip wrapped around my neck, sending a strong current of electricity throughout my body. As my body went into a spasm, I fell to my knees, clawing at my neck to pry off the whip. The guard seemed rather neutral to the pain I showed considering she was just waiting for me to pass out. The next thing that happened though both enraged and pleased me.

The constant surge around my neck managed to malfunction the locks on my mask, causing it to fall off. Feeling a renewed energy, my whole body became surround by that sadly familiar black aura. Slowly standing up, I yanked at the whip still attached to me, causing the guard to fly towards me. As she landed at my feet, I unwrapped the whip from my neck and threw it to the side.

Time to teach the bitch a lesson, right?

Grabbing the front of her neck, I lifted her easily into the air. Bringing my free hand back, I plunged it into her stomach, easily bypassing the cloth and body armor encasing her. Feeling around her intestines, I dug deeper until I could feel her spinal cord. Looking at her face, it was quite obvious she was in pain, and there was even a constant flow of blood escaping from her mouth. It angered me that he was enjoying every second of it. With a strong tug, I ripped out her spine and threw her to the ground. Picking up my mask, I placed it back on, though without the locks to keep it in place it shifted a lot. Looking over my body, there were no major injuries inflicted onto me, although I was covered in blood. Walking to the guard's corpse, I searched her body for any thing that could come in handy.

Searching the various pockets and compartments on her, I managed to find a passkey to the prison doors and even a few snacks. With time of the essence though, I opted with just taking her belt and figuring out what was in it later. I also picked up the whip and put it into its respective slot on the belt.

With 057's room in front of me, I placed the passkey into its slot, which caused the door to swing open. What I saw in front of me was a pathetic image. 057 was in a corner crying. His hair was a mess and he smelled like shit.

'Too bad he lost his mind, but it does make this easier.'

Walking towards him, I grabbed him by his collar.

"Listen, I'm gonna break your collar, but you're gonna get us both out of here or I'll kill you, got it?", I said in a calm voice. 057 seemed to understand as he slowly nodded his head. Taking off my mask, I held onto the sides of 057's collar. With a slight pull, it broke into two. Putting my mask back on, I noticed a faint glow coming from 057 until it was almost blinding.

'The bastard is trying to go without me!'

With my only chance of freedom about to go away, I tackled 057. As I made contact with him, there was a sensation of my body being torn apart and spread into nothingness. Yet only mere seconds later, I felt myself being pulled back together in an instant. It was very unpleasant. Opening my eyes, I saw that I was laying on top of 057. Bringing my fist back, I punched him as hard as I could in my current pained state.

"You were going to leave me!", I shouted. As I brought my arm back for another swing, 057 put his hands up pleadingly.

"P-please stop!", he shouted. Ignoring his pleas, I continued to swing at his head, I even threw in some elbow hits. I only stopped until I became tired and 057 was blacked out. Standing up, I suddenly lost my footing at what I saw. Above me were treetops bathed in sunlight. In the distance I could hear animals frolicking in the distance. Taking off my mask, I took in a breath of fresh air, something I haven't done in a decade. The glee inside of me built up until I just couldn't help myself and hugged a nearby tree.

What the fuck are you doing? Are you raping that tree?

With him spoiling my fun, I walked towards 057, who was still blacked out.

Kill him. The piece of shit already turned on you, it won't be long until he does it again.

Letting out a sigh, I knew he was right, but I wouldn't admit it. Lowering myself to 057's level, I pressed my thumbs onto his windpipe. Within a few seconds, 057 began to stir. Increasing the pressure onto my thumbs, I kept them in place until I hit the five minute mark. Turning him over, I grabbed the sides of his head and turned it until I heard a sickening snap.

'Better safe than sorry.'

Raising myself, I dusted myself off, but stupidly only filled my hands with more blood. Looking at 057's corpse, I was surprised to see how clean his clothes were, despite his smell. Stripping his body of his shirt, I put it on and threw mine over his body. With a new shirt not filled with blood, I placed my mask back on. With that out of the way, I began my trek through the forest.

After an hours walk, I began to notice the denseness of the trees thin. Quickening my pace, I saw the sunlight intensify through the trees. With a final step, I stepped out into the open. Looking into the sky, I saw the sun still proudly lighting the world. In the distance I spotted a trail.

'Better than nothing.'

Walking on the path, a sign came into view.

'Ponyville? Thats a weird ass name. Probably somewhere in Europe...'

Continuing on the trail, it led to a hill which overlooked a quaint little town.

'Why the hell does it feel like I remember this place?'

Reaching the edge of the town, I spotted a few animals in the distance.

'The hell are those? Are those ponies?'

Getting more near the ponies, one of them gave me a quizzical look. I returned the favor since the pony had a blue and pink mane.

'I've seen some stuff but pastel colored ponies? The fuck?'

As I drew closer, the ponies eyes widened in fear.

"MONSTER!", a feminine voice yelled. I responded the only way any other reasonable person would.

"SHIT NUGGETS, A TALKING PONY!"