Reformation
Author's Note: This story is based off of the movie "Control," and the original concept is © the writers. I'd suggest you go rent it, but then it would give away the story and defeat the purpose of writing this!
Chapter One
The bright lights brutally shone down into his eyes from the ceiling. Even through the his yellow suit, he could feel the cold steel of the table against his back. The clamps around his wrists and ankles that held him tight to the table began to cut off the circulation. They didn't want to risk him getting away. There were four people in the small room, and two of them were armed guards. Another was in a distinguished brown suit. The fourth was wearing white medical robes, and in his gloved hands was a sickening fat needle with a tube attached. At the opposite end of the tube was a dispensing machine with six separate syringes attached. Inside of each syringe was a yellow liquid. Negaduck didn't even flinch as the large needle pierced the skin of his left forearm and shoved into his veins. He just kept his cold blue eyes on the bright lights overhead.
Behind the glass windows separating the death chamber from an observation room sat half a dozen people. There were certainly more who wished to watch the execution of the villain, but only a few important people were allowed to witness. SHUSH's director, J. Gander Hooter, was among them. Flanking his right was Agent Jake Mallard. Unknown by the city, this top agent of SHUSH was the father of the criminal about to be condemned. But he watched intently, the fact that the villain was his own flesh and blood not phasing him. Also present were two people who were family members of the villain's most recent victim who watched with tears of pain and tears of vengeance in their eyes. And in the far back corner of the observation room was another mallard, also a renound agent of SHUSH. His hand wrapped over the top of the cane he carried and his eyes watched from the shadows.
The man in the brown suit held an official document in his hand. A death order. "As commanded by the State, you, Negaduck, are hearby condemned to death by lethal injection," the large round man read, and then turned his head to face the villain. "Is there anything you'd like to say?"
"To Hell with ya!" Negaduck spat in reply at him. Then he turned his snarl to the group watching behind the windows. "And to Hell with all of you, too! You can all kiss my tailfeathers!"
With a final growl, he let his head clunk back onto the metal table. The man in the brown suit stepped back and nodded to the worker in the white lab coat, who lifted his hand to the injection machine and flipped a large green switch. The machine whirred to life, and then a red switch was flipped up. There was a short sucking sound as the liquid in each of the syringes began to empty, slowly at first, but then faster. The lethal fluid flowed into the tube, through the needle, and into Negaduck's veins. Still, he didn't move a muscle as he felt his reign of terror coming to an end.
As he felt the poison sucking away his strength, Negaduck saw flashes in his mind. Flashes of his life. He saw his father brutally beating his mother when he was only nine years old. He saw himself being beaten and locked into closets at the orphanage where he was forced to spend his childhood. He saw himself donning the black mask for the first time, thus beginning his life of crime. Finally, he saw himself holding up a bank, only weeks earlier. He was able to watch as he fired shots from his gun at the frightened citizens before fleeing out the front door to make his escape with his prize. It was then that he nearly bumped into a young 22-year-old man, who had innocently getting out of his parked car. Negaduck had lifted his gun and shot the young man in cold blood, directly in the head. It was his family who was witnessing the execution now.
Negaduck's eyes began to violently flutter as the syringes emptied. The lights above him blurred together, and the humming of the machine faded. The last ounce of energy was quickly sucked out of him, and his eyes closed behind the black mask. After a few more seconds passed, his chest ceased to rise again.
Moments later, the body of St. Canard's public enemy was placed in a black body bag and zipped shut. As the guards wheeled the body bag out of the chamber on a gurney, the people in the witness room began to file out. Jake remained by J. Gander's side as they made their leave, but he didn't hesitate to pass his rival hiding in the shadows a glower as they passed. Jake Mallard and Jacob Mallard hated one another with a passion and had many scores to settle with one another.
"I must say, that was one execution I wish I didn't have to witness," J. Gander commented as he and his agent continued through the halls and into the lobby.
"This was a big step toward reducing the city's crime rate, and a hard blow to the criminal element," Jake pointed out, the fact that he had just watched his son die not affecting him. "He was a menace that needed to be taken off of the streets for a long time. A lot of citizens will sleep better tonight, J. Gander."
The director nodded once, seeming distracted. "Of course you are right. Thank you for your assistance, Mallard. You are dismissed for the day."
Jake turned to make his leave. Once he was out of sight, J. Gander shifted his eyes to the side, noticing Jacob silently standing by. They made eye contact with one another, and then J. Gander passed him an approving nod.
Three black sedans and a coroner's vehicle pulled up to the back entrance to one of SHUSH's sub-units: the morgue. It was in the later hours of the evening, and many of the employees had gone home for the night. But a few were still on duty, including Jacob Mallard. He stepped out of one of the sedans with his cane held firmly in his left hand. He watched as the gurney with the black body bag was lifted from the back of the coroner's van and wheeled inside of the morgue. The senior agent casually strolled behind them, standing upright despite the limp in his left leg. This was something he had been awaiting for a long time.
Once inside the morgue's examination room, Jacob limped over to the gurney. He acknowledged J. Gander, who was also present, and then he nodded to one of the agents who were chosen to participate in this secret assignment. "Alright, open the bag."
The agent unzipped the body bag and pulled it open around the unmoving body of Negaduck. He was still in his red, yellow, and black costume, and his wrists had been handcuffed. The agent stepped back, awaiting further instructions, but the room was silent. Jacob just watched patiently, waiting.
Then, a sharp gasp. The villain had taken in a short breath, and his chest began to move effortlessly once again. His fingers twitched, and his dilated eyes slowly fluttered open. As they focused, the moved around in all directions, taking in the new surroundings. And the people surrounding him.
"Wha...?" Negaduck gasped, still weak and taking in deep breaths of air. "Where am I?"
"You're in the SHUSH morgue, Negaduck," J. Gander answered from the side.
Negaduck looked around again, putting the pieces together. He was in a morgue. "But...I'm not dead?" he observed, first sounding confused, but then he let out a weak chuckle as the fact sunk in. "I'm not dead."
"The injection you received was nothing but water and anesthetic," Jacob spoke up.
Negaduck looked up and his eyes fell upon Jacob, whom he had known of. "You?" he growled lowly, and his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What's going on?"
"You're getting an opportunity, Negaduck," J. Gander began to explain. "An opportunity to participate in a scientific research experiment. If you agree to participate, we'll put your toe-tag on another corpse to be cremated and you'll go along with these gentleman to a closed SHUSH facility."
"If you don't agree, then you'll be injected with a real lethal chemical and the execution will continue right here, right now," Jacob finished evenly.
Negaduck raised an eyebrow, not completely believing what he was hearing. "Oh yeah? What kind of experiment are we talking about here?" he scoffed.
But Jacob remained calm. "It's a behavioral modification drug trial."
"And what do you have to do with this?"
"I've been assigned to oversee the experiment of this new drug. Contrary to what many believe, I specialized in chemistry and bio-physics at one time. You'll be under my supervision," Jacob said with a bit of a mischievous smile on his bill.
Negaduck glowered and shifted himself on the gurney. "So you want me to be your little guinea pig, eh?"
Jacob shrugged. "If that's what you'd like to call yourself. But we prefer the term 'test subject.'"
There was a short pause, and then J. Gander spoke again. "You have one minute to make your decision, Negaduck."
"You want my decision?" Negaduck snarled as he turned his glare on the director. "Bite me!"
The defensive remark had no affect on J. Gander and he nodded to one of the agents holding a syringe and needle--this time filled with real poison. "Proceed." The agent timidly stepped up beside the villain as if he were a rabid animal.
"This is your last chance to do something good in your life, Negaduck," Jacob warned, his voice having a slight urgent undertone as time began to run out. "This is your only chance to give back to society."
Negaduck's dark eyes snapped to Jacob. They were filled with anger. In a quick motion, his handcuffed hands shot out and grabbed Jacob by his suit, pulling him down so that there faces were inches apart. Jacob blinked in surprise but otherwise remained collected as he stared into the public enemy's cold eyes. "Screw society," Negaduck growled, his voice dripping with spite. "What has society ever done for me, huh?"
With those words, he roughly pushed Jacob backward, who stumbled a step or two before quickly regaining himself. He adjusted his light blue tie and nodded. "Have it your way."
The agent with the needle gripped it tightly in his hand and poised it just inches above Negaduck's now exposed arm. But as he began to lower the needle to his flesh, Negaduck suddenly pulled his arm a few inches to the side and held up his bound hands to stop him.
"Wait..."
Minutes later, the caped felon was secretly being led out of the SHUSH morgue to an awaiting vehicle.