Life is pain

“Holy shit this hurts.”

“We warned you.”

You are currently strapped into a wheelchair. Once the chamber had finished, it spat you out and it was only when the aesthetic started to wear off that you noticed the intense pain coming from… everywhere. The Doctor brought you a wheelchair and handed you over to Carmine, who wheeled you back through the base to a plush meeting room.

The only people present are you, her, and Bloody Nose. The masked woman swings idly on her seat in boredom. Carmine takes her place at the head of the table and crosses her shapely legs. Everything she does it sexy. “Did you enjoy it?”

“No, it was boring as hell.”

Bloody Nose scoffs, “I’m sorry that getting the body of a Greek god wasn’t entertaining enough for you.”

“She asked.”

Carmine pulls out a small black remote and dims the lights. “I’d like to have a word before we get into business properly. It’ll be a while before you are ready to go outside of the base and do my work. At least another week or two.”

“A week,” Bloody Nose nods, “I can guarantee that.”

Carmine bites her lip, “Unprecedented.”

“That’s why he’s here.”

“Hey, I’m right here you know.”

“I’ll keep it simple for you,” Bloody Nose continues, “You have a genetic makeup that makes it easy to manipulate your body.”

“Okay?”

“So any modifications that we do perform will take root quickly.”

Carmine shushes her, “But that isn’t what I want to ask you. You’ve met Leah, what do you think of her?”

“She seems fine. Down to earth.”

“She’s going to betray us.”

“What?”

Bloody Nose leans back in her chair, “She’s a mercenary. She works for the highest bidder. But she’s also an invaluable asset to our organization. She’s the most experienced leader we have. She has also received modifications that far exceed our normal troops. Losing her would be a waste of our investment.”

“W-wait a second, how do you know that she’s going to betray you?”

“Us.”

“Huh?”

“She’s going to betray us, and you’ll be the first person in her firing line.”

Carmine bites her lip, a rare show of anxiety from the usually confident mastermind. “We know everything that happens on this base. Leah can’t hide anything from us.” Something isn’t squaring up right here. Sure, they could snoop through her phone calls or browsing history – but why does Bloody Nose think that you’re the one in danger here? “We need you to do something for us.”

Bloody Nose taps the side of her mask, “A favour. Between friends.”

“Do you know what our latest project is?” You shake your head. Carmine smiles. “It’s rather exciting. If I do say so myself. In order to secure the loyalty of our most valuable assets, me and Bloody Nose have been working on a little something together.”

“Mental conditioning.”

“…You mean, brainwashing?!”

“Correct.”

Carmine stares a hole through you, “Audio and visual stimulus, combined with hormonal and chemical manipulation over a short period of time. It leaves the target in a state that could be described as incredibly suggestive.”

“We’re going to give Leah a… gentle nudge, in the right direction. Our direction.”

“You two are insane.”

“Being observational today, are we?” Bloody Nose laughs. “At what point did you think otherwise?”

“I’m not going to take part in that.”

“You will,” she speaks with boundless confidence. “In exactly forty minutes, you will encounter Leah again. She will confide with you, as the newest member of the Red Hand, that she feels like leaving us. When you express doubt – she will then try to kill you so you cannot inform us. Unfortunately for her, this has been set in motion a thousand times over before the thought crossed her mind.”

You waver for just a moment, but it only serves to confirm your worst suspicions. This masked woman knows everything about you, and everyone else. You’re all just chess pieces to her. You’re an indecisive asshole, and she knows it.

“Fuck.”