After the events of Wolverine Mystery: Return to Traveller's Village, Andy wakes up in an interrogation room with the mysterious Dr. Zwo. After a brief discussion, Andy succumbs to Dr. Zwo's suggestion to undergo the genetic transition of Project Corse, leaving the man permanently altered beyond recognition.

This short is part of the Wolverine Mystery arc.

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Andy: A Violent…Man?

Written by: Ryker-Wolf

      Andy woke up quickly, a shooting pain sinking into the back of his head. Perhaps a concussion? His head lurched back from his slumped-over position as he took a deep breath, wakefulness returning to him.

      His eyes opened quickly, only to squeeze shut shortly. The bright light in the room stung his eyes. He slowly opened them again one at a time, allowing them to acclimate to the light. Once he could see, Andy took stock of the room. It looked like an interrogation room, much like the ones he’d seen on tv. In front of him was a metal table, various bars on his end to which he was handcuffed to one.

      The walls were painted a dark grey. The light above was harch, little effort went into diffusing the light. He looked towards the darkened corners, swearing he could’ve seen the shine of a rat’s eyes. He blinked and they had disappeared.

      To his left was a one-way mirror. He looked disheveled, his hair stuck out in all directions like a bad case of bedhead. His skin looked pale in the light, with smears of red littered about the backside of his limbs and head.

      He heard footsteps echoing from beyond the lone door of the room before the door swung open, revealing briefly a white, tiled hallway. The man who entered was wearing a lab coat with large glasses on his face and a clipboard in his hand with an attached pen.

      “Hello, Mr. Wenston. My name is Dr. Zwo, you may recognize my name from the company newsletters. I’m here to discuss a recent incident of yours.” The man’s glasses hid his eyes briefly as he sat down, catching the glare of the light in the room. He looked at something on his clipboard, “What is the last thing that you remember?”

      Andy groaned as he leaned forward, racking his brain for the information. “I was with my crew…and we were supposed to be transporting a subject from Traveler’s Village to Homestead. Ack! I can’t remember the rest!” He groaned again and sat back.

      Dr. Zwo leaned forward. “It’s understandable that the few minutes preceding your loss of consciousness would be lost. Let me fill you in on what happened, according to the incident report your colleagues filed.” He flipped a page on the clipboard. “According to your colleagues, you were in an agitated state before picking up the subject from the sanitation lock. Once outside, you ‘snapped’ and started assaulting the subject known to me as subject W-A-H-R-R-01.” He briefly glanced up from the paper towards Andy, who fidgeted in his seat. “It is also written that they had to tranquilize you. Once shot, you fell backward and hit your head on the pavement, knocking you out before the full effects of the tranquilizing solution could occur.”

      “How long was I out?” Andy asked, a darkness in his voice.

      “Considering that you just woke up, I would say roughly 6 hours, give or take 15 minutes.” The doctor replied.

      “So…what is this about then?”

      “There are a number of things we’ve needed to discuss with you. We’ll start with your record.” He flipped to another page on his clipboard. “It is documented in our files that you have had a history of violent outbursts and a few cases of assault against others while on the clock. You have been with us several years, but your temper has been there since day one when you ‘punched that monster’s lights out.” He paused again to observe Andy.

      He smirked, “The thing had it comin’. The bastards gave up a life with human people for one as a lab rat.”

      “Mr. Wenston, hardly any of the subjects chose to become rats, let alone complete isolation from humans.” He paused, “We expect more professionalism from our workers, especially when concerning test subjects.”

      “So, am I getting fired?” Andy retorted.

      “Not necessarily. There are a few courses of action you can take, but we’ll get to those in a moment.” He flipped through more pages on the clipboard. “Now, this most recent incident is grounds for dismissal. Your extended history of violent outbursts is also grounds for incarceration upon dismissal. Many of the subjects you’ve assaulted have stated how willing they are to press charges through Intramorph’s internal judicial systems.”

      “So…what’s going to happen, doc?”

      “Like I said, one of a few options. First and foremost, you could accept dismissal and subsequent incarceration by local law enforcement. From there you will be blacklisted from security work of all sorts among the stigmas of hiring incarcerated persons. Perhaps there is a halfway house program here that you could make use of.”

      “Doesn’t sound too good.”

      “Then there’s the second option. You will be dismissed, but not incarcerated, so long as you undergo extensive behavioral therapy and capable of showing proof of lasting change. You will not be blacklisted from work, but highly discouraged by the company towards any future career path. You will also be monitored for behavioral regression.”

      “Sounds less bad.”

      “Lastly, there is a third option. May I remind you of the new oncoming terms of work for low to medium-level employees such as yourself?” Andy grunted, leaning back in his seat. “In order to retain your employment with Intramorph, you will be required to undergo the transformation process into ‘Beast-folk’. This will come with a pay cut, however, the benefits package has skyrocketed!” He smiled as he flipped the page. “This includes complete and free healthcare on all levels, general, surgical, dental, and vision! Not only that, but retirement funds will receive more funds to make your golden years shine! You will be granted residence at the facilities, required at first as is currently the case for all test subjects of Project Corse. After the one-year tenure, you will be free to return to life outside our walls or to continue living under our roofs, free of charge!”

      “But all that comes at the cost of my humanity, right?” Andy replied coldly.

      “No, not really. I must also mention that your permanent record we have on file will be completely and utterly expunged from our databases, allowing a fresh and clean start to your career, no incarceration, no blacklisting, no anger management training.”

      “I do like being mad.” Andy scoffed.

      “Additionally, depending on the singular species or perhaps multiple species you pick, you could become incredibly strong and powerful, at a much greater capacity to perform your duties than you are currently.” Dr. Zwo stood up and began to circle the table. “Statistically, you’d just be a better version of yourself. If it helps, you could see it as a kind of dramatic cosmetic surgery!” His eyes narrowed. “What do you think?”

      “I’m still not sure,” Andy replied. “If I were to undergo the change…what would you recommend?” His bravado began to deflate, and curiosity began to take hold.

      “Based off of your personality…” Dr. Zwo leaned against the wall, flipping through his notes. “I’d say a wolverine would be ideal. They’re ferocious like you. They are very intimidating little things.” He smiled and handed a printed photo of a wolverine over to Andy.

      “They look pretty mean!” He paused and looked down at his shoes. “But, aren’t they kinda small?”

      “Hmmm…we could hybridize you with a similar-looking creature.” He pulled out another photo, this time of a grizzly bear. “Grizzlys are often considered the most dangerous of the bears. Not only that! But their size will do wonders for strength AND that intimidation factor.” The doctor’s smile began to show teeth.

      Andy looked at the two photos deep in thought. His mind struggled to keep up with the conversation, a full-on migraine starting to pound in his head.

      “While I’m making suggestions,” the doctor continued, “why don’t we add some scorpion DNA to the mix?” He handed Andy a third photo, this one with a side-by-side comparison of a scorpion under daylight and a scorpion under ultraviolet light. The ultraviolet one glowed a bright, almost neon blue. “This will give you some venom to paralyze your targets with as well as give you a more prehensile tail compared to the other two species I’ve shown you today.”

      “I…I don’t know. This seems pretty drastic of changes.” He squirmed in his seat. “I’m not against it, but…would there be any of ME left?”

      The doctor’s smile widened just a bit, beginning to show the lower row of teeth. “From our observations, ALL test subjects have retained their personality and the human capacity for compassion even after a full conversion like this.” He pointed to the photos in Andy’s hands. Andy continued to shift uncomfortably in his seat. Dr. Zwo’s eyes narrowed further, almost snake-like in their focus.

      “How about this,” he continued, “You follow through on this conversion, I’ll convince payroll to maintain your wages! Now it–”

      “I’ll do it,” Andy responded.

      “Well…let me hand you the new contract.” Dr. Zwo pulled out a neatly organized and stapled contract. “It’s nearly identical to the one you have been working under, just a few modifications for what we intend your new body to look like!”

      The doctor sat down in his seat and cleanly pushed the contract in front of the man. From his coat pocket, he produced a shiny blue pen, engraved with the iconic double helix all along the length of the pen. He gently placed it into Andy’s still handcuffed hands.

      “All you have to do is sign on the dotted line at the end.” Andy blinked hard, hands growing cold and clammy. He scanned the near-identical contract, picking up the weighty pen and flipping to the final page. “Along the dotted line.” The doctor's voice began to echo in his ears.

      Anger rising, the seeds of revenge had taken root in Andy. After only a moment of hesitation, almost imperceptible, he signed his name. The blue ink sunk into the page, sealing his fate.

      “Very good, Mr. Wenston. We’ll have you flown out to our headquarters in Washington for the procedure and some subsequent observation to make sure you don’t hurt yourself or anyone else. (Anyone we don’t want hurt that is.)” I’ll meet you out there shortly, but I must first conclude my business here in Colorado. I have a big announcement to make to the facilities here.”

      The doctor turned and headed for the door. “Mr. Wenston, I suggest you get some rest. It’ll be a long flight for you.”

      Over the next two weeks, Andy was flown out to Washington and prepped for his conversion procedure. He lived comfortably within the HQ facility of Intramorph. He had a room all to himself, sure it was small, but it wasn’t bad. Intramorph had filled out the paperwork for his move of legal residence and helped treat what turned out to be a concussion.

      As the two weeks rounded off, Dr. Zwo returned to HQ and met up with Andy once more deep underground. They stood in a theater of sorts, a theater for doctors, yet no audience would wait to clap and applaud the doctor’s efforts. The eerily quiet room only buzzed with the fluorescent lights far above their heads and the soft beeping of equipment from the observational room attached to the doctor’s stage.

      Dr. Zwo’s assistant worked to finish setting up the machines and programming their data collection as the doctor began to review the procedure. “Not to worry, Mr. Wenston, the procedure will only last a few minutes.” The doctor retrieved five bands and affixed one to each appendage and one at the neck. “These will help us keep track of your vitals and monitor your progress as effectively as possible. My assistant is working to sync them up right now.” The two looked over to the assistant who, after a minute of fiddling with the controls, gave the thumbs up and brought out a briefcase.

      The case sat on a small cart next to the doctor. He opened it up, to reveal a delicately packed case with only a single empty syringe and a bottle of amber solution. Dr. Zwo filled the syringe with the solution, squirting out a little to remove excess air. The assistant returned to the observation room with the cart.

      “Let us begin. I’m going to insert the needle into the back of your neck, just below the base of your skull.”

      Andy nodded, “Understood.”

      Dr. Zwo carefully lined up the needle and inserted it deep into his neck. Once secured, he pressed down on the plunger, allowing the amber solution to enter the other man’s body. “It will begin shortly.” Dr. Zwo quickly joined his assistant in the observation room, discarding the syringe into a biohazard bin and looking on intently at the lonely man.

      There was a long silence that filled the room. “Hey, i-is something supposed to ha–ACK!”

      Loud popping sounds echoed throughout the chamber as Andy’s spine began to grow longer. His skin stretched out over his body with each new vertebra. Soon, a nub of a tail began to sprout. Each segment of his forming scorpion tail bursting into existence like a water balloon being filled and falling into a bucket. A very short layer of fur sprouted on each segment as they grew into existence. Rich, chocolatey brown fur coated each segment as it rose higher and higher into the air.

      Once it had fully grown into place, nerves and nerve endings grew into place, connecting the new appendage to the rest of his body. With a shiver, Andy’s new prehensile tail curled and flexed. Small segments of vertebrae filled each segment with rubber-like cartilage filling the individual joints between segments making them incredibly flexible.

      The newly grown tail flicked around in the air cautiously, twisting around and even spinning 180 degrees at just one joint. The head of the stinger bloated with venom as Andy’s anxiousness began to bubble up further. In a flash, the tail twisted back into its front-facing position and penetrated the soft flesh of his back, depositing its first-ever dose of venom.

      “AH!” Andy screamed in pain, the tail recoiling and flattening against the floor behind him. It was too late, the venom spread throughout his body, reducing his body to a pile of immovable mass on the floor of the chamber. The changes however did not stop.

      His body began to pulse with his heart rate until a large wave of growth racked his body from the injection point of the serum. With the first wave, fur spread across the rest of his body. The man already had a moderate amount of body hair, but the fur grew dense and thick as it spread across his body, coating his arms and legs. His hands and feet bloated as the fur spread over them, turning into the paws of a wolverine. The man continued to scream as the changes continued.

      A second wave pulsed across his body, this time turning those paws into proper claws with ivory white nails. A third rounded his torso into a barrel shape for his growing organs and a large hump formed on his back. The fourth wave of growth focused on his head, the stunned and terrified eyes watered and stung as their color changed from a bright green to a dark brown iris that coated most of the eye. Little white remained. His ears rounded further and migrated to the top of his head.

      Andy’s screams started to sound more like crying sobs as the penultimate wave hit his face, stretching it out into a dark brown muzzle with razor-sharp teeth. The longer his snout grew the more distorted the cries became until they turned into an outright roar. The final wave hit. This time filling in his massive frame with muscle mass. His body ballooned outward in all directions until it resembled that of an amateur bodybuilder. What little definition that was visible through the fur quickly faded as a thin layer of fat coated him from head to toe and insulated the newly minted hybrid chimera-like monster.

      Andy’s roars became low and guttural, shaking the room like a powerful base speaker. Control began to return to his body, but before he could even return to his feet, strong chains burst from the floor and attached to the “vital bands” and held the beast to the floor.

      The main doors to the theater burst open and a dozen aids entered the room, half of them Beast-folk themselves. They varied in species and hybridization, from canines to avians to even a dragon. Each one carried a long stick with a hook at the end, just small enough to loop through a chain.

      One pair of aides held an additional band and aimed to affix it to the still-flat tail. However, the tail sprung to life and stung the human member of the pair, rendering him paralyzed. This small victory didn’t last as the other one attached the band and activated it. A new chain burst from the floor to attach to the band, fully immobilizing Andy’s monstrous body.

      One by one the aides attached their hooks to the chains. The incapacitated one recovered after a minute and attached his hook to the tail’s chain. They all turned to the observation chamber and nodded to the doctor.

      Dr. Zwo looked to his assistant. “Hit the lights.” They nodded and pressed a large button on the control panel in front of them. The lights flickered out, leaving the room in absolute darkness before a new hum echoed around the room. Soon it was bathed in a purplish glow as ultraviolet light illuminated the chamber.

      Andy’s body began to glow, albeit strangely. His teeth began to glow a similar blue to that of the scorpion he had seen two weeks ago. The ivory claws began to glow as well, but the most unsettling part was the main body’s glow. Through the fur and skin, Andy’s skeletal structure glowed. It glowed much like that of the unfortunate workers who were exposed to Radium over a hundred years prior. Fortunately, this was a naturally occurring glow, rather than from radiation.

      “We have success!” Dr. Zwo cheered over the intercom of the chamber, much like he had done recently with a previous experiment in this very chamber. Andy only growled, rage bubbling behind his beastly eyes. “Do not worry Mr. Wenston, your speaking voice will recover in time. That’s what physical therapy is for!” The doctor chuckled before regaining his composure. “Aids, escort our new subject to his room.”

      The aids nodded as the chains released from the floor. The aids slowly dragged the thrashing Andy through the large double doors and down the hallway. Andy looked desperately around for some kind of help, only coming across a door labeled as “SUBJECT R.A.T.” From his brief view of the door, the viewing window was covered with webbing and his enhanced hearing could barely hear the quiet sobs of a broken man beyond the threshold.

      Soon they had arrived at his new living quarters, though quarters would have been a luxury. The room was little more than a cell, akin to those of psychiatric asylums. Once inside, a new aid entered the room and injected a mild sedative into Andy’s hide, relaxing him long enough to attach the chains to mounts scattered around the room. When they were done the aids exited the room and locked the door.

      Sometime later, Andy could hardly tell, the familiar voice of Dr. Zwo called from beyond the door. “Mr. Wenston, I am glad to announce that the observation period has ended and physical and mental training can begin.” The doctor smirked, “Buckle up because your new career begins today. You’ll get to be as violent as you wish.”

      Andy’s ears perked up and the growls quieted as a wicked grin spread across the dark face of the Beast-folk Andy.

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