“’Ere’s yer food!” with a loud clang a tray fell out of the steel slot on the wall. Most of the brown sludge slopped out of the tray, onto the dirty floor. Jack, like all prisoners within the _ facility, was given no cutlery, lest he decide to use them on himself to prematurely end his stay at the facility. Jack crawled over to the tray, exhausted from his little marathon around his cell over the past four hours. He picked up a few pieces of meat with his fingers. “Oh please let it be beef!” he prayed as he popped the disgusting meat in his mouth. “Damn it! Pork again!” he shouted as he threw the tray against one of the dark walls. Jack looked at the splatters of brown sludge on the floor. Although it tasted like grit, that was the only meal for the day. Jack sighed, got on all fours, and began lapping his meal off the floor. As Dr. Savage ate, much to the resemblance of a dog, he wondered how Max’s right hand had fallen so far.
Ivan stared at Jack for a long second. “You’ve been stirring up quite a bit of noise Jack.” Ivan glanced over at the others in the bar. Some had gone back to drinking while a few were still staring at Jack. In a hushed tone Ivan added,” He wants to talk to you. Now. He’s in the cellar.”
Jack sat in his little wooden box, looking from the jury to Judge Johnson. Along the way his gaze was met by that of a slender man. He stood at least a head taller than Jack, making him well above seven feet tall. He had a frail frame, but a sturdy stature. Standing erect as he looked at Jack, there was one other offsetting thing about this man. He always smiled. Whether it was a smirk or a full toothy grin, from the moment he had entered into the court room, never did a smile leave his face. Jack had silently nicknamed him Mr. Smiley. Partly because Jack had never been good with names, but mostly because Mr. Smiley’s real name was stupid.
“Mr. Euphoria,” judge Johnson said as he looked at Mr. Smiley. “You have the floor.”
“Oh yes, of course,” Mr. Smiley walked towards Jack as he spoke with his unbearably jaunty tone. He placed one arm on Jack’s witness box and turned towards the jury as he spoke. “Pleas answer these questions to the best of your abilities Dr. Savage. First off, were you ever an employee of the Maximum Firepower Corporation?”
“Yes,” Jack answered simply.
“And your position within the company?”
“I was the head medical officer, chief doctor on staff, part weapon designer, cyber-biotics engineer, and head of a variety of projects,” Jack answered as he attempted to appear as professional as he could.
“And from when to when were you employed with the company?”
“I began my position with the company on July 8th of 2038, and was dismissed on October 29th of 2060.”
Mr. Smiley flashed his teeth as he asked his next question. “Well, Dr. Savage, after twenty-two years of service to the Maximum Corporation, why did they decide to terminate your employment?”
Jack stared at Mr. Smiley’s stupid smirk with a look of utter hatred. “You already know why,” he replied quietly.
“Well why don’t you share it with the rest of the class then, Doctor Savage? C’mon, answer the question. Why did the Maximum Corporation fire you after twenty-two years of employment?”
Jack knew exactly why he was being forced to answer. Taking a deep breath, he answered the question as quickly as he could. “For unethical and immoral practices regarding the treatment of human test subjects within the Locust project.”
Ivan lead Jack through the back of the bar, passing through an ill lit corridor. They reached a steel door at the end and Ivan pounded on the door. Three slow, powerful knocks. “Jack, he’s going to ask you where Hunter is.”
“I know.”
“So, where is he?”
“Dead.”
“Oh.”
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