A Very Unfortunate Truth

Paul lay there for what seemed like forever, his heart and head still pounding from both exhaustion and the injection. His back and neck were itchy, probably sore from his time out cold. He couldn't seem to fathom what had happened within the last hour or so, what she had planned for him. He couldn't understand what has happened, what mass this woman named Maya was speaking of.

What he did understand was how urgent the situation seemed.

"So... a mass? I-inside me?" Paul asked, wearily. "A-and that... stuff, Proxitol, it holds it back?"

Maya sighed again. "Yes, so far as we know. As long as we can keep you on treatments, we should be able to--"

Maya placed her hand to her mouth and hacked, blood splattering across her fingers. She continued hacking, with not just scarlet, but mahogany, emerald, indigo, a large assortment of colors, all emerging from her lips.

When she calmed down, she looked at her palm with an almost nonchalant expression. As if she expected such an occurrence.

As if she was waiting for it.

Paul looked at her, first confused, then terrified, as he tried to sit up as best he could. There was no chance for him to leave. He would need to wait for one. He scratched his neck.

Maya turned back to him, wiping her hand with a handkerchief that she pulled from her right pocket. "Sorry for that. Now, then..." she said. "Paul, that man on the bus... he was infected. With a virus. And he managed to pass it on to you through the stain. And it's evolving."

Paul looked at his rash, seeing now as the colors began to peek out from under his clothes. He watched, again, as it all collided, a technicolor explosion being unleashed inside his membrane. It felt as if someone was holding a match near his leg, a burning sensation that was at once painful, and yet, wonderfully exhilarating.

"When it is fully developed, it will proceed to take over. And try to spread more. We need to destroy it, Paul. And we have the means to do that; through the Proxitol. It may not be the greatest way to do it, but it will be all worth it when we're not burdened with having to clean up bits of you from all over the place." Maya said, a strange smile glimpsed from her face.

"But, if that man was i-infected with a virus," Paul said, trying to ignore the weird sensation of the collapsing lights. "Why would it try to latch onto someone like--?"

"Thankfully," Maya interrupted, "he was only infected for so long. The virus needs a suitable host to 'develop'. Unfortunately, it's also as intelligent as us, even when it's growing. We had been tracking it down, but then it managed to escape into you. Luckily, we soon hopped on your trail. And good thing, too." she smiled. "It's hard enough to keep a bead on someone without being identified. And we do have others to track."

Others. When Maya said this, Paul shivered, with excitement and terror. What did she mean, others?, he thought. He felt an itch in the back of his neck. He scratched.

"There are others?" Paul said, a look of exasperation on his face. He was holding back all the fear.

Maya sighed. "Yes. Unfortunately, this virus had been spreading for quite a while. And they've been doing so at a steady, but alarming, rate. And from what we've learned so far, many decided to take London. And then, there are the sisters."

"Sisters? You mean, they have blood relations? Like a family?" Paul asked, justifiably confused.

"We're not sure about that, but what we do know is that two viruses are having a little game of 'cat and mouse', and we're the playing field." Maya paused, glimpsing towards someone behind her. She scratched her neck, then rolled her eyes. "One of the sisters is hunting down the other's strains, apparently trying to wipe out the other. And we don't know who's carrying which."

She pulled a wad of paper from her pocket, then unfolded it. She handed it to Paul.

It appeared to be a listing of names, of all sorts of residents, tourists, travelers.

And his name was the latest on the list.

Paul looked up from the page to see Maya rubbing her head, humming something under her breath. She coughed into the same handkerchief as before, now spotted with various colors, like paint. He looked on the page for her name; he couldn't find it.

"W-what is this?" Paul said, truly frightened now. Maya turned to face him directly, a stern look on her face.

"All the infected we've managed to identify and 'deal' with. None are holding either of the Sisters, but they're all hosts." Maya nodded towards something behind Paul. Paul didn't look; he was too shocked. "We add new ones to the list when they come up. Then we manage to 'neutralize' most of them. And you're next, Paul." she said, taking out a syringe filled with a strangely-colored liquid. The needle was poised to be injected. She walked towards Paul, her figure now imposing.

Paul felt as if he was about to shit himself.