Ninth Friday Flash: By The Horns

It was cold. Deathly cold. Andy tried to squirm further into his make shift-blanket, but he could go no further. His head was perfectly warm. Even in this weather it was too warm, which made it worse because the sweat would roll down from his sweaty head and down his body, freezing in the cold.

Two days. It had been two days since he had escaped the test facility. He was hungry, but he didn't dare wander any further. There was no telling what the general public would do to him.

Just before dawn he decided to go out to look for food. Anything to quell the raging hunger inside him. It was still frosty outside, but the chilly wind had died down. He hugged his thin facility issued clothes tightly around him.

It would have to be a short excursion. His neck was already starting to kill him.

About ten minutes away from the abandoned train he had been using for a shelter he spotted a tiny hill. In truth he smelt it more than anything else. He didn't know when he had picked up the ability, but it smelt strongly of grass. Using the strange gait he had adopted to move around he made his way up the hill. It was hard work and he almost fell over backwards a couple of times. Once there he collapsed to his hands and knees.

The smell of grass seemed to inflame his savage hunger even more. He swiftly swept away the snow with almost numb hands. He tucked in as soon as the green grass came into view. The green stuff was soft and luscious. He could see why cows stood around eating it all day.

Andy chewed the grass, ripping more and more of it out of the ground.

Somehow it was warming him up too. Maybe this transformation wasn't such a bad thing. Maybe he could find himself a secluded spot in the countryside where he could live out his days.

There was a clearing of throat.

Andy froze. Swallowing he tilted his head to the side.

It was a man wearing a white coat and sun glasses. Andy recognized him instantly. It was the smooth Dr. Wako.

“You know it's futile, right?”

He had lost the ability to talk quite a while ago. Andy just snorted.

“This whole thing has been staged. You never escaped. We let you escape. We have been watching you the whole time.”

Andy fell back onto his backside and clutched his overweight head in his hands.

“Don't look so glum!” sighed Dr. Wako. “This is all very important.” Andy wondered exactly what kind of doctorate the man had.

Andy shook his head.

“There, there,” said Dr. Wako patting him on his head. “Soon this will all be over and we can move onto the next project. April is going to make an excellent test subject.”

He couldn't believe it. They had his wife. He was enraged. He suddenly remembered the horns that had so painfully grown out of his head. Channeling his rage he lept forward and caught Dr. Wako in the chest. The man screamed in agony as they rolled down the hill. Head over heels, they seemed to roll forever...