Really bad turn into so Good!



The prickle turned into a full-blown itch, crawling under my skin like a thousand tiny spiders. I watched in fascination as the crimson faded from my fingertip, leaving behind just that faintest blush of warmth where it had burrowed its way in. It was spreading fast – a wildfire through my veins.

I could feel them multiplying, adapting. Not with the usual artifact hum, but something…deeper. More primal. Like a heartbeat quickening under pressure, or maybe like a caged animal straining against its bars. I traced the line of red along my arm, watching it snake around my elbow and up towards my shoulder blade. It was mesmerizing.

The lab around me suddenly felt suddenly stifling. "Damn," I breathed out, leaning back in my chair with a sigh that felt more…hot than usual. My pulse throbbed against my temples, echoing the insistent hum pulsing through me. The lab seemed to shimmer around the edges, everything taking on this warm and hazy, almost liquid quality. I wasn't sure if it was the crimson or just the late hour – probably both.

I ripped off my shirt, the cotton clinging to me like a second skin as if trying to hold onto something that was already slipping away.

"Damn it," I muttered, staring at the crimson stain blooming across my chest. It wasn't spreading outward anymore; instead, it seemed to be sinking deeper into my flesh, leaving behind smooth, unmarked skin where moments ago there had been a pulsing red web of nanites.

I ran my fingers over the fading mark, feeling for any lingering heat, any sign that those goddamn things were still alive under my skin. They weren't just multiplying; they were becoming part of me. It was like watching your own cells turn into something…else. Something hungrier. Something with a taste for more than just data streams and electromagnetic fields.

"Claudia?" Artie’s voice crackled over the comm system. "You still there in the Lab? Any luck with that fluid?"

“Yeah,” I said, my voice sounding strangely husky even to my own ears. “Nothing yet, Just…doing the preliminary tests.” I wasn't sure what those tests were anymore skipping the fact that I was now part of the test. The lab felt miles away, and all I could think about was the pulsing warmth spreading through me like a second skin. It was almost...pleasurable.

A low hum vibrated through the room, resonating deep in my chest where it felt most intense. I closed my eyes, trying to focus on the familiar thrum of the Warehouse itself – its heartbeat against mine. But all I could hear was that pulsing echo, like a second drumbeat urging me forward.

I knew what Artie would say: "Claudia, you need to contain those things! They're artifacts gone rogue!" He’d probably throw in some lecture about responsible handling and the dangers of letting emotions cloud your judgment.

Emotions? What was he talking about? I felt…charged. Alive. Like a dormant circuit board suddenly jolted with power. And that feeling, it wasn't just buzzing inside me; it was pulling me towards something specific. Something in this damn warehouse.

I stalked out of the lab and down the endless rows of artifacts, my bare feet padding silently on the worn concrete floor.

The warehouse seemed to hum in response to my thoughts, its usual quiet thrumming taking on an insistent rhythm that echoed the beat of my own heart. My gaze drifted towards the endless rows of artifacts lining the towering shelves – miles and miles of them, each one radiating a unique energy signature. But something was different tonight. Something pulled at me, like a beacon in the darkness.

It wasn't the usual artifact pull; this felt more…personal. More visceral. My feet moved before I could think about it, pulling me towards the far end of the warehouse where the erotic artifacts were kept – a collection that usually made my cheeks burn even hotter than they already did thanks to the crimson coursing through my veins.