Chapter 2 - Chapter 2: The Lab in the Desert

Deep in the sands of the Indian subcontinent, buried far beneath the dunes, lay a secret laboratory no one was meant to find. Its walls were cracked, its machines old, but it was there that Daniel Frost worked tirelessly not for fame, not for money, but for redemption.He moved quickly between benches, gloved hands trembling as he mixed chemical compounds that glowed faintly blue under the flickering light. On a metal table beside him lay two infants, barely old enough to crawl. Frost glanced at them, exhaustion pulling at his eyes. "Maybe with you… it can finally be undone," he whispered. He injected each child with a serum derived from years of experimentation, watching closely as their small bodies absorbed it without rejection. Relief crossed his face for the first time in years.Then came the sound distant at first, then unmistakable. The crack of weapons, the grinding of steel doors. Someone had found him.Alarms blared as the facility erupted into panic. Frost grabbed the infants, clutching them close as explosions echoed through the corridors. Security glass shattered, and fire lit the halls. He ran, triggering the failsafe that would destroy everything behind him. Flames roared through the lab, consuming decades of forbidden work.He emerged into the cold desert night, dust and smoke billowing behind him. Feet sinking into sand, he ran with all his remaining strength, his lungs burning. Reaching the edge of an abandoned town, he found an old park, littered with the remains of forgotten statues. There, under a broken tree, he placed the two children. "You'll have a chance," he breathed, voice quivering. "A life this world denied me."The wind carried the smell of smoke and ash. Frost turned to flee but froze shadows moved among the dunes. Figures emerged. Mutants tracking him for days.He fought, desperate, but they were faster, stronger. A single blow sent him sprawling. The last thing he saw was the moonlight spilling across the sand before everything went silent. By sun rise, the lab had vanished into ruin. Only two infants remained alive, untouched, and unaware of the destiny waiting for them.