[center][URL=http://s362.photobucket.com/user/NMShape/media/coollogo_com-268541366_zps8df63356.png.html][IMG]http://i362.photobucket.com/albums/oo63/NMShape/coollogo_com-268541366_zps8df63356.png[/IMG][/URL][/center]



Scott sat in the back corner of The Hub in one of the booths that offered both a fair amount of privacy, yet at the same time a nice view of the entire floor of the club. He should have been happy; the opening of The Hub had been a resounding success, in fact, the grand opening had gone much better than either he, or Eric could have hoped. The club was at capacity, and there was a line outside that extended halfway down the block of people waiting to get in. 

He should have been happy; however he couldn’t help but to feel that the one person that he had hoped to share this moment with, aside from Eric, wasn’t there. She had left for Pacific Point earlier in the afternoon, and she made it perfectly clear that she was not planning to return. He couldn’t really blame her, she had been right. Lost Haven had always been a troubled city, however, in the recent months things seemed to be getting worse and worse. 

Though, he had to admit, seeing so many people come out for the grand opening did help to keep him mind off his woes, even if it was just a momentary distraction here and there. 

“So, I’d say we’re a hit.” Eric said as he seated himself in one of the plush lounge chairs in the booth across from Scott.

“Yeah.” Scott said noncommittally.

“Dude, look, I know that Amber leaving royally sucks, but we’ve got other things to worry about right now. We’ve got a packed house right now, and you really need to enjoy this.” Eric scolded. 

“This is great,” Scott said, “This is more than we could have hoped for. I really am excited, it’s just…”

“Yeah, I know. You thought that she’d be here for it.” 

“Exactly.” Scott confirmed.

“I get that, I really do. But you can’t sit here being all butt hurt because she left, especially not tonight. I won’t allow it.” Eric said with a mock resolve.

Scott didn’t answer; instead, he resumed watching the packed dance floor. He knew that even though Amber was gone, he would have to move on. He questioned whether he should have told her his secret, and whether that would have made a difference in her decision to leave. However, he knew that it was too late to question his choices. Then he wondered to himself, if perhaps loneliness was the price he had to pay for his double life.

[center]***[/center]

[i]US Research Facility Nautilus[/i]

Nautilus sat on the floor of the Laurentian fan, just over three and a half miles below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean off of the eastern Canadian coast. The facility was known only to a select few within the inner circle at the very top of the political and scientific world. It was at this facility, named for Nemo’s famed submarine in Jules Verne’s classic novel, where the most sensitive experiments were conducted. 

Dr. Bruce Wood stood before the large LED display in his office looking over the results of the latest round of tests on one of the more intricate operations that he had overseen at the facility. With the sudden arrival of the meta humans, the US government quickly realized that they were outmatched by these super beings, and if those so called meta humans decided to mobilize, there would be little that the military could do. So they set out to create their own meta human. 

A so called “Super-Meta.”

Thus far, the project had been an abject failure. The mixture of meta human DNA that had been spliced into the subjects had proven to be more than their bodies could handle, and each of the subjects had died.

Except for Him.

Subject 535073 had managed to survive the infusion of meta DNA, and had begun to manifest a vast range of powers. Everything from Telekinesis, shapeshifting, and superhuman strength, and that was just a few. In fact, the subject had demonstrated strength that was thought to be on par with Icon himself. However, as the infused DNA had destroyed the bodies of the other test subjects, the concoction had destroyed this subjects mind. Soon after the manifestation of his powers, Subject 535073 began referring to himself by the name of the project. 

The Hybrid.

This Hybrid had proven to be unpredictable, and had directly caused the deaths of over a dozen researchers. Eventually, they were able to secure him in restraints that left him virtually harmless, however their attempts to destroy the specimen all met with spectacular failure. Indeed, this subject had proven to be unkillable. 

And now, he was loose.

The Hybrid had proven to be just as intelligent as he was insane, having lulled the researchers into a false sense of security while he bided his time. Once the researchers had let their guard down, he was able to capitalize on their mistake. He killed the researchers and made his way freely through the facility, killing anyone who he came into contact with, and did so with a maniacal glee that caused a sense of dread to wash over Dr. Wood and the other facility staff who manned the Nautilus. 

However, that was not the only thing that Dr. Wood feared. He knew that it was only a matter of time before The Hybrid broke free of the facility, and at this depth, a breach to the hull of the submerged facility would bring the entire crushing weight of the Atlantic down on the Nautilus, causing an instantaneous implosion that nothing, except The Hybrid himself could survive. He hoped that such a move by the maniac would result in his own destruction as well, but the doctor knew deep down that it was just wishful thinking. Soon, he was certain, his hellish creation would be loose upon the world, and he, not his creation, would be responsible for any loss of life that resulted. It was not something that he could live with, which, for him, he knew would not be an issue for much longer. 

Suddenly, his office was awash in red and blue flashing lights. It was an alarm, but not just any alarm, it was an impact alarm warning those inside the facility of an impending doom. Once the alarm sounded, the facility only had a few moments before the hull was breached. There was no time to get to the escape pods, all that anyone aboard the Nautilus could do was make peace with the fact that it was all over. There were 187 souls inside of Nautilus, and soon, they were all going to be dead, and The Hybrid would be free, and Dr. Wood knew that it was all his fault. 

“God forgiv-“ Dr. Wood began to say, just as the hull was breached, and the fatal pressure of the Atlantic rushed into the ruined hull, causing Nautilus to implode upon itself. 

As the Hybrid hit the surface of the Atlantic and went skyward, the only thing that could be heard by any living creatures in the vicinity, was laughter. Maniacal, murderous laughter.