Origins: Rendak Schatten

I woke up face down on the bank of a river. I quickly got up and surveyed my surroundings. I was surrounded by evergreens and behind me was a slow current river where I assumed I came from. I had no recollection of where I was or exactly who I was. I knew my name… Rendak Schatten, and that I had wings coming from my back since I was born. The wings mirrored those of an angel’s, except they were not pearly white. They were dirty from the murky river water and mud that had collected on them. I found myself stripped of all my clothing except a pair of black pants I was wearing. They had many tears in them as if I had been in a fight when I was wearing them. I went to feel it with my right arm and freaked out at what I was looking at. My right arm was now made of an iron looking metal that was surprisingly light weight.

“A bionic arm?... How did I get this?” I said to myself looking at the extent of my new feature. On the side of my arm was what looked like an inscribed serial number, it read “RS-1790”. I quickly looked to check the other arm. It was my arm I was naturally born with, I sighed with relief. I than noticed on the forearm of my left arm had a tattoo on it. The tattoo was a sword blade facing my hand and a pair of angel wings coming from the hilt and on the blade of the sword was a golden halo. At this point I was confused as hell. I figured I had to get out of there and find somewhere safe to ponder what I was going to do. As I leapt up to fly gravity quickly took me down.

“I don’t tell me I forgot how to fly as well!” I thought. I jumped up with more force this time and sure enough, I was gliding through the air like I had always done. Below me I could see woods stretching for miles and than what looked like a small village up ahead. As I pointed my body that way to fly I started feeling woozy. I had just remembered I probably hadn’t eaten anything for a while now. I couldn’t keep enough energy and I started falling down and past out.

“Hey wake up boy!” I heard an old woman yelling at me and I awoke from my unconscious state and found myself in some old hermits home.

“You took quite a long fall there. For angel of your age, I’d think you could control that by now.” The old woman said in monotonic tone.

“Yeah” I replied

“I just sort of passed out.”

“Well lunch is ready. Eat some of this, it will get you better.” She slid some soup my way. I sipped a little bit and realized it was chicken noodle. I ate the rest so fast I think I scared the old woman.

“My goodness, you must have been hungry, ill have to make some more. Be right back.” I got up of the couch I had been laying on and decided to look around the house. I found a mirror and looked at myself. I was still the nineteen year old I knew myself as. Short blonde hair and blue eyes stared back at me as I was trying to figure out who I was and why I could not remember. Next to the mirror was a television remote so I turned it on. The TV turned on to what looked like a historical program.

“And on this day in history, the legendary fighting force, “The Guardians” disappeared from our lives.” The T.V. showed a symbol of a sword blade facing my hand and a pair of angel wings coming from the hilt and on the blade of the sword was a golden halo, exactly what was on my left arm.

“This force of saints worked all year round serving help to all people out of the kindness of their hearts. At the peak of their days, this five team force saved more than one thousand citizens of our fair realm. Then thirty years ago to this day, this group of saints that flew above us to beat a demon disappeared when they were received a tip about a large demon force plotted to terrorize a local neighborhood. No bodies were recovered except for the right arm of one of the soldiers. Unfortunately, “The Guardians” now are merely a figment of a past when demons terrorized us on a daily basis. Attempts to bring back a similar group have been rejected since no group is no longer needed. And that’s this day in history.” Was that who I was?

“No impossible” I thought

“The T.V. mentioned it was thirty years ago. There is no way that could have happened. Out of frustration I through my left arm toward the T.V. and out of my hand came out a yellowish white beam of light and everything in front of it was destroyed. I looked at my left hand in aw. I tried the same with right arm. Surprisingly, the fact that it was not my natural arm did not matter; I still shot this light energy from my hand. I found that I could control to be a long beam of continuous light energy or I could release it in short burst to make bullet like balls. The old woman came in with more soup.

“Oh dear!” She said surprisingly as she looked at the new hole inside her home. I was embarrassed.

“I’m so sorry miss, Ill make it up to you I swear.”

“Oh its fine” the old woman calmly said

“I’ll be moving in a week anyway. So tell me how did you end up passing out in flight?” I told her my story of how I ended up in a riverbank and started my way toward town.

“Can you help me out?” I asked.

“Well there’s nothing up river from here for fifty miles until you reach the next town. You can try there see if anyone knows you. It was worth a shot. I thanked her very much and started flying up river.

About ¾ the way up river to my destination I discovered a large grey complex that looked like it had been abandoned a long time ago. From the air it was camouflaged to where you could not see it unless you were squinting. I flew down to investigate. When I landed I discovered it was a large military complex with words on a stone sign reading

“Izan Research Center”. The bunker door looked pried open so I walked in. Walking down the halls I had a chill run down my back, I felt like I was here before. At the end of the hallway was a door that said

“Biogenetic studies laboratory” I placed my hand on the hand pad lock system to see if I could open it. It rejected me with a red light a small buzzer and a giant boulder rolling toward me.

“Security counter measures online” went a robotic voice as the boulder started closing in on me. I quickly used my right arm to try and stop the boulder and to my surprise, I stopped it. I also found that I could pick it up without breaking a sweat. I rolled it back to where it was. I used my right arm to break open the door and walked in. The room looked like it had been ransacked. There were papers everywhere, cabinet wide open but empty. And a few lockers were placed in a corner that remained locked. Next to those lockers was a computer terminal. The screen read

“Welcome doctor, please select an action” someone must have left this on before they left. One of options read

“Patient Status” so I clicked it out of curiosity. The screen flickered and then the text

“Please choose a patient” came up along with a list of serial numbers similar to the one on my right arm. I scrolled down the list and sure enough, RS-1790 was their. I clicked it and the screen flickered to a screen with a few audio files numbered 1-4. I clicked on the first one that was dated thirty years ago.

“Log 332-01, our squad successfully ambushed those damned guardians, perhaps next time they’ll learn not to meddle in our affairs. The two senior officers died on scene but the other three have are still alive, although one of the guy’s arms was cut off. The guy was an idiot for doing that, does he not know he could be leaving evidence!? Grr.. Anyway the ones that survived are being processed and will be thrown in cryogenic suspension until they are needed for experimentation.

The next one was dated 3 months ago.

Clinical Trial 14 Ivan Research Facility: Today I have brought in subject RS-1790 to be unthawed and his memory wiped to test a new drug. Lot 696 codenamed The Shadow serum. Early tests of this drug show much promise but preliminary findings on these creatures tend to end fatal. Since this subject had to have his right arm fully replaced with a military grade bionic arm, he makes an ideal candidate for the test.

“Eh, where am I, what’s going on?!” Quiet you. I am injecting Lot 696 into subjects neck.

“Ah!!” As suspected the initial side effects are excruciatingly painful, we will now take subject to observation room 7 to test it out.

The next video read the same date but a later time.

Continuing clinical trial 14, subject RS-1790 has now been placed inside observation room 7 to test out the Shadow serum.-Loud speaker turns on- Ok RS-1790, we are placing another subject in there with you. We want you to build up all you power and destroy it. A demon was placed in the room with Rendak.

“I don’t see a point in doing that, he hasn’t done anything.” You listen here RS-1790 if…

“My name is Rendak sir!” …. Yes, Rendak… you see if you do not do as we tell you were going to take this female here and were going to beat the shit out of her. We know who you are and we know from psychological tests that you do not like this. It’s your character, innocents being killed, raped, and beaten are your weaknesses. Will get you to test our serum RENDAK… whether you like it or not.

“Ah AH WHATS HAPPENING TO ME! AHH ROAR” the other demon in the observation room chocked loudly than silently went dead. Splendid, tests show that subject RS-1790 responds to his deep emotional anger by changing into what we expected. A stronger, darker side of himself. Subjects hair has gone from blonde to silver, his eyes from blue to red, his skin tone has gotten tanner , his teeth appear sharper, and his wings are now pitch black. Rendak looked up at the doctor.

“When I get out of here, I’m coming for you next doc.” Yes ,yes whatever you say Rendak.

“Rendak is gone, I am Shadow… I am your worst nightmare!

The final audio file clip was dated a month ago

Post clinical trial 14. Subject RS-1790 has finished all combat simulations thrown at him with flying colors. Subjects standard light based energy blasts that he emitted have changed when under the shadow serum. When subject uses his powers in this form a black gaseous beam is shot at the target. Preliminary damage reports show quite small compared to original weapon, but it has an amazing ability. This beam when it comes in contact with its target, puts the target in a hallucinogenic state where the target starts to face its most inner fears as if it is stuck in a nightmare of its rendering them practically helpless. The subject then uses scare tactics to taunt than kill its target. The subject also has increased reflexes, perception, and physical status to super human abilities; however intelligence seems to decrease when under the shadow serum. This is most likely from the excess rage and anger the subject is dealing with at the time. When the subjects rage lowers, he slowly changes back to his normal self with exception to nighttime. As a side effect to this serum administered, the subject seems to have his hair changes silver and his wings black when it comes nighttime and by sunrise, his appearances go back to normal. We still however can not make his form permanent. Further trials may show improvement on this but… Security breach in Biogenetics Lab, Security breach in Biogenetics Lab. What?! What’s going’ on, lock the area down now.

“Hello Doc, I told you I’d be back” No ,no you stay away from me you…. OMG AH AH!

“Look into the bowls of your fears, you are in my world now.. AH..” wait what’s happening. The subject seems to be suffering cardiac arrest and his fear inducing has ceased…. Subject appears dead most likely from the shadow serums toll on the body. His body is to be properly disposed via the river conduct. All traces of him will disappear from here. As of now our hopes for project shadow serum is terminated until further notice.

It was now all coming back. The research tests, my stay here. It was hell. But I still couldn’t remember anything before that. But I still didn’t know, was I still under this shadow serum? I looked at the bottom of the screen and it said

“Subject’s locker contents” I clicked on it. Screen flashed locker 3 open. I heard a locker behind me unlock. I went to open locker 3. Inside I found a pair of brown military style boots and socks. I put them on since my feet were so dirty from walking outside. I then found a white tunic with slits on the back so my wings could fit inside them. I put that on to. Than I found what looked like a short stick about a foot long. When I grabbed it quickly extended 1 more foot both ways and blades came out of it. It was a double bladed sword. Inscribed on it was my initials R.S. All of a sudden I was bombarded by a load of flashbacks quickly zooming by in my head. Then before I knew it, gained back all my knowledge on using it in combat. I really was a soldier, I couldn’t believe it. All this recollection that came to me got me so happy I was quickly remembered I was not watching my guard. A demon came in front of me and pulled out his pistol.

“Rendak, so good to see ya. We all thought you had died and without you coming back to return back that arm we gave you.” He reached for my right arm and got shocked. Apparently my arm had a counter measure system to keep itself on.

“Ow, you lil bastard ill show you.” He had his men come up behind me and take my double bladed sword and led me into a room.

“Now where’s the rest of your kind?” I replied

“You bloody twit, you wiped my memory remember?”

“Hehe, well you managed to find your way back here just fine. Hmm, if you wont talk than maybe we can at least torture you” the guard snapped his fingers and had his thugs bring in a girl about my age in handcuffs. She looked like she had just been raped. She was begging for mercy but none of them shed a tear. I was shocked at what I saw. How could anyone be such an animal?

“Hehe alright go ahead there Franky” the guard close to her than took his knife started cutting up her face. She was screaming so loudly in pain it hurt me just to watch. Finally when he was done torturing her he slit her neck and shot her in the back of the head. I was angered but what they had done to such an innocent person. All of a sudden I felt myself convulsing.

“Haha that’ll teach that little snot nose bitch to walk around our base. What the…. No, that can’t be… the serum should left body by now.” Just then I roared with anger and my vision changed to bright red a voice said to me,

“I am Shadow; we will destroy these animals and make them fear us for bringing fear unto the innocent.” I had become an entirely other person. I saw the three guards shaking in fear trying to find an exit. I pointed my arm to use my light energy beams to hurt them but instead came out a black gaseous beam going toward them. All of a sudden they started swatting at their surroundings, obviously hallucinating there worse nightmares. I grab my double bladed sword and walk toward one and slice him up into many pieces. I ran and jumped on another and broke slit neck. I walked toward the leader and said

“I am your worse nightmare mortal!”

“Please don’t kill me” he pleaded.

“Take me to jail, beat me up, just please don’t kill me” My normal side would have let him be, but in this form I had a different moral system. I ripped off his arm and beat him to death with it until I ripped out his heart. I was sadistic,

“You get no jail, animals get put down!” I then flew off toward the town I was told to go to begin with. When I got there it was night time. For some reason that voice in my mind said

“All sins have been cleansed, Shadow out” Shadow must have been my dark side the files talked about. All of a sudden I was back to normal seeing normally. I retracted my double bladed sword and walked into town to see if anyone knew about my past. Although I knew more about myself, I was not sure about my personal life. Did I have a wife, kids, girlfriend, and family… What happened to them in the past thirty years? So many questions, so little places to start. And so I continued on my journey to find my answers.