Virus: Insanity

~15~

Stephen knew something was wrong. All of the kids under ten had suddenly lost their mutant side overnight. Since they were young and not fully developed, their devolution happened fast. Now the older kids were getting sick, their mutations fading away. The home-ec room was now a hospital wing, everyone trying to make the teens as comfortable as possible since they couldn't stop it. Stephen watched as the young men and women he and the Rebels had helped train and formed bonds with writhe in pain and scream as who they were disappeared. The adults were showing signs of sickness now too. What was happening?
    "We need to figure out what this is," Ellie said, "and fast."
    "It's taking everyone out," Vera added. "The adults should be affected by next week."
    "The virus is dying," Tori said, making everyone fall silent. "It's just...going away."
    "So...we won't be mutants anymore?" Madison asked quietly. Tori shook her head sadly.
    "As much as we respect the wishes of the humans to stay human," she said, we shouldn't go back to being them." All of a sudden, the teenagers stopped thrashing and screaming. The Rebels looked over at them sadly. They were humans. They began to wake up, slowly, one by one. A few broke down in tears when they found out, most just sat there in shock. The kids who had already devolved watched from the doorway, looking sad and angry. What was happening? Why was the virus dying? Why was Insanity dying? The Rebels moved the teens to the gym with the kids, moving the adults into the home-ec room. Time for another week of torture.
The pain is worsening. I am being destroyed, one mutant at a time. My everything hurts. I won't be able to keep it from Stephen for long. It hurts. It hurts so much. I almost want it to stop. Almost. The only thing keeping me going is my sister's coming. And Stephen. Stephen...he will forget me when my sister comes. I'll be dead, just a foolish dream. I'll never be able to watch him grow up with me, never let him know how important he is to me, how much I'll miss him when I'm gone. We are more than partners, more than friends. He won't remember...Every second, every minute, more pain. More and more and more and more... The pain makes me tired. I've been tired, but it's getting more tiring, being tired. So tired...NO! Stay awake... Must protect Stephen. Stay awake. Stay awake. Blind Stephen to my pain. Keep him safe. Keep...him...ohhhhh... I.... Stephen... I'm so...so...so sorry...
Stephen was trying to fall asleep when it started. His eyes were flickering closed when his whole body suddenly became sore. He sat up, the sheet that covered him falling off his bare chest. He sat cross-legged on the floor, debating whether or not to deal with the minor pain or go next door and bug Tori about a numbing spell. Then the pain worsened. It felt like a bunch of little kids were punching him on every inch of his body. He grimaced and forced himself to his feet, staggering towards the door. The pain suddenly flared up and worsened, making him fall onto a wall with a grunt of pain. He was sure he woke up at least Maddie. She was a really light sleeper. He forced himself up and kept going even though he felt like every inch of him as being pulled outward. Then the pain flared again and his whole body was on fire. He fell onto the floor with a cry of pain, unable to stand any longer. The world was tinted red, not its normal yellow. Breathing, moving, simply being was painful. The pain flared, making him yell in agony. He was in a volcano, his skin and muscles melting off his bones. Hot tears flowed down his cheeks, his muscles unable to move or react for fear of more pain. He could feel himself hit the floor when the door opened, making him scream. The red world began to blacken. The last thing he heard was Stephen...I'm so...so...so sorry...