Free The Seven by Sean Patrick Little Page B

being dragged down the back of her esophagus, and when the noise blasted from her throat, all hell broke loose.
    She couldn't stop screaming, though. She knew she was hurting people. She could see Holly, doubled over in pain. Every detail in Holly's face was crystal-clear and sharp. Every minute dollop of agony that was heaped on Holly registered in Posey's eyes. She knew she was hurting her, maybe killing her, and she couldn't stop. The scream seemed to have a life of its own, turning over and over in her throat and her chest, and destroying everyone she loved.
    The pain kept intensifying and burning in her. She struggled to raise her arms, causing more pain; malicious waves of flames seemed to be licking at every inch of her flesh. She clapped her hands over her mouth and tried to muffle the sound. She could feel the pressure of the noise against her hands. Her scream had physical presence, it had body and weight. It was a beam of destruction.
    In the muffled din, John somehow got to his feet. He was hurt, she knew, but John was tough. He never got tired, he never gave up. He staggered toward the med-kit on the wall by the hyper-womb tank. Posey watched him, wide-eyed with fear, the scream still blasting from her throat. She didn't know what had happened to her. She didn't even remember being brought to the lab. She remembered the spines, and the bones jutting out of her back. She kept one hand over her mouth and reached back with the other hand, feeling a large appendage. It hurt to touch, like prodding an open wound. She flinched when her fingers contacted the flesh, and the appendage moved. Posey discovered a new sensation in her brain---she could move that appendage. It was like suddenly discovering you had an arm you never bothered to use. Posey mentally checked her other shoulder and found another appendage that she could move independently.
    John grabbed a jet-hypo of sedatives from the med-kit. When they had first begun testing, the doctor told all of them that he placed just such a sedative in there for just such a reason. When John had asked why, the doctor had only replied, "You'll know when it happens." John took two running strides and propelled himself to Posey's side. He slid to her on his knees, jabbing the hypodermic into her neck, and released the spray.
    Posey felt the delicious burn of the sedatives traveling through her bloodstream. She started to get sleepy. The scream dwindled in her throat as the pain decreased. She began to drift into that terrible blackness beyond sleep. It was better than being awake.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Holly scrambled to her feet. Her sensitive ears were still throbbing, a loud, squelching, ringing noise echoed in her head; the sound had actually made her physically sick. She clutched her stomach and fought the urge to vomit. Kenny tossing his guts had been enough for her to witness for one night. Holly stumbled to Posey's side and cradled her friend's head in her lap.
    "What did they do to her?"
    "I don't know," said John. Andy had stopped screaming, toning his discomfort down to pained grunts. "Let's help Andy." He stumbled away from Posey and dropped to his knees next to Andy. "You okay?"
    Sarah was at Andy's side in an instant. She grabbed his wrist and slipped her hand into his. "Andy, I'm here. You're not alone."
    Andy's head turned to look at Sarah and John. Blood vessels had burst in his eyes and they were now a vibrant crimson, giving him a demonic appearance. His skin was still rippling and surging as his muscles roiled in intense transformation. His arms were bulking up ridiculously. He looked cartoonish, an exaggerated caricature of his former self.
    In the distance, somewhere down the tunnel, a loud, low "boom" reverberated down the corridors, down the elevator shaft, and into the lab. Everyone froze. Holly looked over at John and Sarah. "They're coming."
    "They blew the first door," said Indigo. "We need to get out of