Kaleb awoke to the taste of pizza in mouth. Which confused the fuck out of him. He moved his tongue in his mouth tasting the pizza-like taste. It stuck to the roof of his mouth and it even felt like he had pieces of it stuck in his teeth. It made little sense, they last thing he remembered eating was…

Oh god Kaleb thought giving a loud retch. He tried to move his arms but someone strapped his left arm down and his right was still regrowing. He finally took in his surroundings as he struggled against his bindings.

He was in a large domed dirt cave. Six large halogen work lights lit the room casting eerie shadows against the walls. All around him were metal tables full of equipment. Tubes of various liquids were in test tube racks while nearby machines hummed with life. Power cables ran along the floor into a nearby tunnel. Standing at one machine was Doctor Kane, he was studying a readout on the machine.

Kaleb saw that Kane strapped him standing to a table. The table pivoted at its base allowing Kaleb to lie down or stand as needed. Judging by his still stinging right arm, he assumed that Kane had taken more blood from his arm. Taking another look around he realized that Deckart was not in the room.

“Your friend is in another chamber. He is fine if that was what you were wondering.” Kane said while still studying his screen.

“Actually,” Kaleb grunted “I was wondering where you got a pivoting table.” Got to keep him off-guard Kaleb thought.

Kane looked up from his machine, surprised. “Really? That’s your question? Not wondering about the high-grade equipment or maybe what’s powering all this?”

Kaleb grinned to himself showing an outward appearance of casualness. “No, not really. I mean you control rats. You could probably get access to most places or things.” Kaleb checked his equipment page. Most of his gadgets had been removed and set on a table he could see nearby. All except Shocky which sat stored in his robotic arm.

Kane looked miffed. “I have an Electrophoresis machine AND a freaking Microplate reader. You can’t just find those anywhere!”

Kaleb gave his best attempt at a shrug. “Either way, this is all stuff your rats could find for you and then the bigger rats can go collect it. But this pivoting table was probably the hardest to find. I mean what other use would a table like this have except to strap an unwilling person to?” Got to get him near Shocky somehow Kaleb thought as tried to shift down so the small buckler would be free to deploy.

“You’re probably right, but I have a fully working genetics lab down here. Shouldn’t you be a little more impressed, Mr…?” Kane looked more annoyed now, pressing a button on his machine and moving in front of Kaleb.

Kaleb stopped shifting as Kane moved in front of him and smiled down at the shorter man. “Professor Pack Rat, at your service.”

Kane arched an eyebrow. “Your first name… is Professor?”

The mention of his first name surprised Kaleb no NPC in the game had mentioned anything about the strangeness of his name. Kaleb gave another small shrug. “It’s my Super name.”

Kane nodded. “And before you became a Super?” He asked looking at Kaleb’s robotic arm.

His constant questioning confused Kaleb. Why was the game forcing him to talk about a past that didn’t exist? He was about to go into the menu and try to contact support when a notification window popped into his view.

*Notice*

You have activated the Back-story System. Based on your submitted back-story certain story elements or characters will be generated by Modern Age Online’s AI. Be advised: it will take a while for the AI to integrate complex story elements. So it is best to submit a back-story as soon as possible.

Ohhhh, That’s what this is about. Kaleb thought as he stared at Kane. He had not giving a back-story at character creation assuming it was as pointless as it was in other games. But in MAO it seemed the system would make your written back-story a virtual reality. Kaleb wanted to take this chance although the systems sudden intrusion ripped the tension from the moment.

Trying to look forlorn Kaleb said. “My old name does not matter, I was just a regular student studying to be a teacher out in Arizona.”

Kane seemed stuck for a second before he asked. “And your Clan? Basilinoids Are usually part of a Clan.”

Kaleb nodded solemnly. “I am shunned in my clan for my hubris and my vocation.”

Again, Kane seemed to take a while before saying. “Ahhhh, so you gave yourself a robot arm and wanted to be a Super. So your clan chased you out?”

Kaleb shook his head quickly. “No, they know where I am and what I’m doing, they have just chosen to ignore me.”

Kane looked speculative before saying. “You must be someone special if your decision to leave was ignored without consequences.”

Kaleb shrugged, hoping his back-story wasn’t becoming too crazy. He didn’t want to involve some lizard clan royalty or something with his back story. “I think I was just easy to ignore.”

Kane nodded before tapping Kaleb’s table with a finger. “We got the table from a morgue, they use it to drain blood from cadavers.” He walked back to his machines.

*Back-story Submitted*

Kaleb looked down at the table he was on and said. “Ohhhh, that would explain it. And how did your rats-”

Kane cut him off, saying angrily. “They are not MY rats. I told you my power only extends to mutating their genetics.”

Kaleb titled his head in confusion. “You can communicate with them. Aren’t you controlling them?”

Kane looked annoyed. “I told you, my power of telepathy was a recent acquisition. I only gained it in the last couple of weeks.”

“Then who’s their master, if not you?” Kaleb asked. The whole situation confused him. He had assumed that Kane was the mastermind behind the attacks. But, maybe there was someone down here with Kane.

“That is a question you do not want the answer too.” Kane smiled as he went to the Microplate reader. “We will need more of your blood Mr. Rat, it appears the regenerative qualities of your DNA are having a hard time being assimilated into the rats.” Kane picked up another Auto-syringe.

Thinking quickly Kaleb asked. “Sure, But first tell me where your FRIENDS found a pivoting table that can immobilize my robotic arm?”

The question seemed to confuse Kane. He moved over to Kaleb and asked. “What?”

“My metal arm, I have been trying to move it since I woke up. I have no power in it. So what is it? Magnetized table? Magical power sapping table?” Kaleb asked as he made a show of moving every part of his body but his metal arm.

Kane reached over touching the table. “I wasn’t told that the table had any special properties.”

Kaleb shrugged. “Maybe it doesn’t, check my arm for me?”

Kane gave Kaleb a dubious look. Kaleb just stared back saying. “I am tied to a table what am I going to do. Not to mention I can’t move my one good arm.”

Kane seemed to struggle with the decision before moving alongside Kaleb’s arm and looking into the various gears and pistons. Kaleb quickly stretched his arms out and activated Shocky, mentally flipping the switch to turn on its stun effect. Kane went rigid, Kaleb could just make out his incredulous look out of the corner of his eye.

As Kaleb heard Kane hit the floor, he rocked his standing table as hard as he could. It was a few tense seconds before Kaleb felt the table come off the floor and tip over. Right onto Dr. Kane’s legs. Kane screamed as Kaleb rocked the table again, he was staring around the room looking for something to cut his binds when a deep roar sounded from one tunnel.

“Shit!” Kane said obviously no longer stunned. “He’s coming.” Kane squirmed himself out from under the table, forcing Kaleb to fall to his back. Staring up at the ceiling Kaleb closed his eyes as another roar shook the cave causing dirt to fall on Kaleb’s face. From his position on the floor Kaleb could feel tremors in the ground. Something big was coming.

Kane limped over to a machine and pretended to be pressing a few of the buttons as a shadow fell across the wall Kaleb could see. Kane stared down at the machine he was pretending to work with not looking around. Suddenly Kaleb heard Kane speak up. Answering a question no one had asked.

“It had nothing to do with us, maybe to was the other one. They placed him in the stone cavern if I remember.” Kane said. Kaleb struggled to get a look but he couldn’t get an angle to see where the shadow was coming from.

Kane spoke again. “No, I placed him on his back. No need for him to be uncomfortable.”

Kaleb tapped his metal hand against the table saying. “Hey Doc, going to introduce me to our guest.”

There was the sound of movement and suddenly a furry man was staring its elongated nose at Kaleb. Wait, not a man. It was a rat, but a rat that was more man-like than any Kaleb had seen all morning.

“Not. Guest. MASTER!” A voice echoed in Kaleb’s mind making him wince at the intensity.

“Holy shit! Who are you?”

The man-rat’s face scrunched up in anger. “ME. SAY. MASTER!”

Kaleb’s eyes widen as he realized that this creature was probably the one controlling the rats. Kaleb was about to ask another question when the man-rat lifted him and the table bodily. It tossed Kaleb across the cave slamming Kaleb into a nearby cave wall. Kaleb felt the dirt give way behind him. With the softness of the wall the throw hadn’t hurt him but it meant the throw had embedded him in the wall.

Kaleb finally got a proper look at the man-rat. It stood on two legs and was a little shorter Kaleb, Maybe six foot. Kaleb glanced at Kane who was watching their exchange. Sick bastard looked like he was studying a new species of a rat. The man-rat slowly approached Kaleb and Kaleb felt the words forced into his mind again.

“Hu-Mans. Not. Only. Mu-ta-shun.” The rat’s telepathic voice sounded proud. It stalked closer to Kaleb. It had a muscular build, it looked like a bodybuilder with a furry fetish. As it got close to Kaleb, it shoved its snout in his face and inhaled deeply.

Suddenly it gave an ear-splitting roar right in Kaleb’s face. “SMELL! LIKE! ENEMY!” It cocked back its fist, probably about to punch Kaleb’s head through the table.

Kane spoke up, voice sounding more annoyed than concerned. “You need him! If you want your kind to have the ability to regrow limbs, then you can’t hurt him right now.”

The creature gave another roar before slamming its fist into the table beside Kaleb‘s head. The metal table was bent inward digging deeper into the cave wall. The creature turned away from Kaleb and stared at Kane. Probably speaking again. Kane just nodded before he went to another table and scooped up a tablet. The creature huffed loudly, and it made its way out of the cave. As it walked backward out of the cave, it stared daggers at Kaleb before disappearing complete into the dark.

Kaleb exhaled loudly as his mind raced with what he just learned. Apparently a rat had Mutated all on its own. It had telepathic abilities and freaking super-strength, if the table was anything to judge by. Kane glanced up at Kaleb’s noise.

He had a bemused tone as he said. “Yes, he is marvelous, isn’t he?”

Kaleb stared, incredulous. “Where in the hell did he come from.”

Kane shrugged. “According to him he has always been down here. Before my friends found me, He hadn’t even met a human before.”

“You can’t be serious. Someone had to know about him.” Kaleb said.

“Not to my knowledge.” Kane said setting down his table and going to the genetic sequencer.

“Well, how long has he been down here and have any other animals mutated into humans?” Kaleb asked.

Kane groaned annoyed at the constant interruptions. “Long enough to dig all this tunnels alone and, again, not to my knowledge.”

“One last question, dear doctor.” Once Kaleb saw he had Kane’s attention he asked. “What about my smell pissed him off? Is it because I smell like a predator to him?”

Kane nodded. “Got it in one. Lizards as I am sure you know are omnivores. And some larger lizards, at least here on earth, eat rats. He does not understand Aliens, to him you are just another creature like him. Now if you’re quite done, He gave me a deadline and I have not missed a deadline.”

“Deadline?” Kaleb asked. But the doctor remained silent. Kaleb looked around for a means to get the other man’s attention when a devious idea struck him.

*TAP*

*TAP*

*TAP*

*TAP*

Kaleb Kept a steady rhythm as he tapped his metal fingers against his table again. Kane’s face seemed to get redder and redder as the noise continued.

“FINE! I have until tomorrow morning to collect whatever data I can from you.” Kane screamed annoyed.

“And what happens then?” Kaleb asked trying to remain calm.

Kane’s smile looked particularly mean spirited. “And then, you inquisitive lizard, he intends to eat you in front of his entire family.” Kane moved to a small refrigerator, opening it and pulling a small vial of blue liquid.

“Now if you don’t mind.” Kane said slapping the vile into an auto-injector. “I would like you to be quiet now.” Kaleb tried to struggle as the doctor jabbed the injector needle into his neck.

Kaleb watched Kane return to his equipment as he felt his eyes becoming heavy. Well, that sucks Kaleb thought as he noticed a prompt appear at the bottom left of his vision informing that Kane had sedated him. Shortly thereafter his body slumped against the metal table and his mind slipped into darkness for the second time.