Making Monster Girls 3: For Science! Page 26

  “Yes…” the ash-blonde breathed. “They said that you don’t understand the ‘installment’ the first few times you visit, but over time, you start to see what she means.”

  “Each of them has nameplates,” the aristocrat explained. “With the date and time they were captured. There are two or three that are laid out across the marble floor like bear-skin rugs, and she walks across them as if they were nothing. It was… disgusting. I felt like I was going to vomit the entire time I was down there with her.”

  “Is that where you questioned her?” I asked. “Down in the trophy room?”

  “Yes,” the honey-blonde whimpered. “I figured it was the best time. She seemed totally at ease down there, and my powers would go unnoticed.”

  “What did you ask her?” I probed.

  “At first, I reiterated all of the questions you asked her at the party,” Josephine uttered. “I asked her what she and Lucien were planning, why they were doing it, and how they planned to do it. Then I asked when all of this would take place.”

  “And?” I urged.

  “Edony said they plan to start testing within the next week,” the gorgeous woman replied. “She said that they have to wait until she’s ovulating, but they may start sooner than expected. She also mentioned that they gave her some sort of… potion or drug that will stimulate her egg production. I didn’t understand any of it, but I figured all of the information that I got would be of use to you.”

  “I only know what she means because of my doctoral background and all of the journals I’ve read,” I stated. “When she spoke about her eggs, she meant the eggs she will use to create the embryos. Every child born starts as a combined ovum and a spermatozoid, or a sperm cell. Ovulating is the time of the month where the egg drops through a woman’s fallopian tubes, rests in the uterus, and waits for sperm to fertilize it.”

  “Oh, I understand now,” Josephine nodded. “I understand what ovulating is, but I’ve never heard of the term for it.”

  “They’re starting next week?” I grunted. “That doesn’t give us very much time…”

  “I forced her to show me the laboratory,” the honey-blonde blurted. “I even took notes of everything they had in there if you would like to take a look.”

  Josephine reached into the pocket of her dress, searched around for a second, and then pulled out a small notebook. The blonde aristocrat flipped through the pages, found the right one, stuck her tongue out the corner of her lips, and then handed it over to me. I scanned the page for a second, reading over each of the items, it was clear that Josephine didn’t know the technical terms for a lot of the equipment, but each bullet had a short description.

  “What’s this?” I asked. “Oval shaped tubs with glass coverings with retractable tubing? Do you remember how big they were?”

  “Enormous,” the honey-blonde recalled. “Large enough for two or three men to lay down side by side. They were filled with this strange, neon yellow goo. I went near it, but Edony warned me not to touch it because it’s toxic. Charles, do you have any idea what it could be?”

  “It sounds something like an incubator,” I stated. “But on a much larger scale. I’m unsure what the liquid inside of it could be.”

  “Charles,” Rian interjected. “Didn’t you say that Lucien told you that they’re going to inject the embryos with chemicals or special potions made from other alchemists? Maybe that’s what the liquid inside the incubators is.”

  “True,” I nodded. “They’ll probably put the fertilized eggs in the incubator, and the liquid will be absorbed into the amniotic sac.”

  “I’ve heard through some other sources that the Duchess has gotten even worse than she was,” Josephine explained. “I heard that she killed one of her workers when he tried to enter her chambers and bring her breakfast. I’m not sure if she’s reacting this way because of your serum, her own delusions, my mind control, or a combination of all three factors. She’s never been like this before. The Edony I knew has always been calm and collected no matter what was happening.”

  “It might be all of those together,” I nodded. “Along with her desperation to kill the Queen. When I worked for her, she’d come to the manor in such a blind rage. She was almost unrecognizable from the woman she is out in public.”

  “What do you think we should do next, Charles?” Daisy probed.

  “Edony already thinks that we’re involved with this,” I cupped my chin. “Even if we weren’t, we’d be the first that she’d look in to. So, I think we should write an anonymous letter that includes the information that we know she committed treason to lure the Duchess to us.”

  “Are you so sure she will come?” Rian boomed.

  “She’s spiraling out of control,” I went on. “She’s not in her right mind, and if she receives a letter taunting her with the threat of being found out, she’ll immediately assume it’s from me.”

  “Bringing her straight to us,” Josephine grinned. “Brilliant, Charles, just brilliant.”

  “I’ll get right on it,” Daisy giggled. “We all know how convincing my letters can be.”

  “What does that mean, Charles?” the honey-blonde asked.

  “I’ll explain it to you later,” I grinned, placed my hand on her shoulder, and gave it a tender squeeze. “So, we taunt the Duchess, bring her here, and then--”

  “And then?” Rian echoed. “What happens after that? We have to have a plan.”

  “Daisy and Josephine are waiting in the wings,” I instructed. “I get Edony to admit to everything, she screams that I don’t have proof or anything like that, and then, tada, two aristocrats appear out of the shadows.”

  “But what if she attacks?” Rian offered. “The Duchess is incredibly powerful, and I doubt if we brought all of this to her, she would allow us to live.”

  “You’re right,” I grunted, cupped my chin, and thought a bit harder. “We’ll have to figure something out for that.”

  “I might be of some assistance here,” Josephine uttered. “I believe that I could neutralize her power while she’s here.”

  “You can do that?” I asked.

  “I believe so,” the blonde heiress nodded. “I’ve done it before a few times with my mother and other aristocratic women. When I enter into their minds, I can control everything for a few moments. Their thoughts, their words, and more importantly, their powers. I’ve already entered her mind once before, so I’m sure the Duchess would barely notice that I’m there.”

  “Will it work?” I grunted. “I want to be sure that it’ll work and we won’t be blasted with the full force of a lightning bolt.”

  “It will,” the honey-blonde nodded. “Here, let me demonstrate. Valerie, try to activate your power. Charles told me it’s invisibility, correct?”

  “Yep!” the feline-woman giggled. “Here I go!”

  Valerie’s blue eyes fluttered closed and she took a deep breath, but nothing happened. The cat-girl grunted under her breath, curled her hands into fists, and puffed out her cheeks. The gorgeous ash-blonde woman’s cheeks flushed pink and soft groans escaped her firmly pressed lips, but try as she might, her power never activated.

  “See?” Josephine purred. “Go ahead and try it again, Valerie. It’ll work this time.”

  The feline-woman nodded, clapped her hands in front of her, bowed her head, and then disappeared. Within seconds, the ash-blonde came back into view with an enormous grin.

  “I did it that time!” Valerie cried. “Josephine, I can’t believe you did that! I knew that you could read minds, but I didn’t know you could completely neutralize someone’s power.”

  “We’ll use it on the Duchess,” I stated. “We lure her here and trick her into admitting that she committed treason. When she tries to lash out, Josephine will knock out her power with her mind control.”

  “And then crash, boom, bang!” the feline-woman cried. “We got her ass!”

  “I’ll get to work on writing the letter,” Daisy chuckled, stood from the table, a
nd then leaned across it. “This is so exciting… How many times have aristocrats showed up here and accused us of wrongdoings? It almost feels like this situation is the exact opposite, and I love it so much.”

  The brunette smiled at each of us, turned, and hurried back into the central part of the house. I swiveled in my seat, took Josephine’s hand into mine, and gave it a soft squeeze.

  “Are you going to build the tank for the nix now, Charles?” Valerie asked.

  “Yes,” I nodded. “Josephine wanted to see the laboratory, and I said that I’d enjoy some company down there while building the tank. You’re welcome to join us if you’d like.”

  “Maybe a little later,” the feline-woman giggled. “There’s a ball of yarn in the library that is just calling my name.”

  “Clean up after yourself when you’re finished, please,” Daisy called through the open kitchen door.

  “I wiiiill!” the cat-girl grumbled, hopped from her seat, waved to us, and then skipped inside the house.

  “And you, Rian?” I inquired.

  “I’ll probably help Daisy with the letter,” the red-skinned imp-woman smiled. “I’m still practicing my penmanship, and I hope that one day I’ll be able to be as good as Daisy is.”

  The black-haired beauty stood from the table, patted Josephine on the top of the head, and then hurried out of the room.

  “Shall we head to the laboratory?” I smiled. “I just have to bring down all of the supplies I bought at the mercantile.”

  “Do you need any help?” the blonde asked, stood from her chair, and tilted her head. “I may be an aristocrat, but my arms work perfectly fine.”

  “No, it’s quite alright,” I chuckled. “Come with me.”

  I guided Josephine back into the kitchen, through the hall, into the foyer, and out onto the porch, The two of us hurried down the front steps, I paused at the wagon, grabbed the glass sheeting from the back, held them tightly in my arms, and then nodded toward the side of the house.

  “It’s around that way,” I smiled. “The stairs will be on the left. You can’t miss them.”

  “Are you sure you don’t need any help?” the aristocrat asked. “I can carry some of those metal pieces you have in the back. They don’t look too heavy.”

  “Sure,” I chuckled. “As long as you’re willing.”

  Josephine nodded, grabbed the metal rods that would be the joints of the tank, held them loosely in her arms, and then followed after me. I stepped down the stairs, the temperature immediately dropped as we neared the laboratory, and I reached for the handle to the door.

  “I just want you to prepare yourself, alright?” I grunted. “My… guest is a little different than most. He won’t talk to you, though, but it is… a bit shocking for most people.”

  “I’m a noble, Charles,” Josephine giggled. “I’ve met a lot of different people. I’m sure I can handle whoever is waiting in there for me.”

  “Alright,” I snickered. “Don’t say I didn’t try to warn you.”

  I swung the corrugated door wide open, gestured with my head for the blonde to enter first, and then stepped in right after.

  “Charles,” A.B.’s voice cried. “I’ve been waiting for you all damn day! What took you so long? I heard you speaking to someone outside, who was it? I… Oh… Oh-ho-ho, hello there.”

  Josephine paused for a moment, the black, metal rods held tightly to her chest, her orange eyes narrowed, widened, and then her mouth dropped open in surprise.

  “Charles?” the honey-blonde asked. “Is that… is that a brain?”

  “Yep,” I chuckled. “That’s Abraham Benjamin, or A.B., for short.”

  “Who’s the pretty blonde, Charles?” the brain purred. “Oh, my, my, I’ve never seen you before, come here often? Hang around musty laboratories a lot?”

  “A.B., this is Josephine,” I tittered. “But she can’t hear you, so don’t try to talk to her.”

  “Charles?” the aristocrat croaked. “Are you… are you talking to the floating brain? As if it were a living, breathing person?”

  “Well, it’s quite difficult to explain,” I stated. “I found A.B. in the back of a curio shop a long, long time ago. I wouldn’t say I found him, he called out to me, spoke directly into my brain. I’m not sure how I can hear him, but Rian, Valerie, and Daisy can hear him, too, and I’m almost sure that it’s something to do with my blood.”

  “So, when I eventually become a monster-girl,” the honey-blonde whispered. “I’ll be able to hear him, too?”

  “Yes, absolutely,” I nodded. “Though I’m not entirely sure you want to be able to hear him, he’s a bit of a…”

  “Comedian?” the brain called out. “Loverboy? A handsomely hilarious brain that everyone should love and adore?”

  “A character,” I snorted. “But I’m sure you’ll love him.”

  Josephine stepped forward toward A.B.’s tank, her breath came in and out in short gasps, her mouth hung open, and when she reached the water-filled container, she pressed her hands against it. For a moment, the golden-blonde stared into the bubbling solution and took in all of A.B.’s details with wide eyes.

  I half expected her to pull away, scream, and run from the room as if I were a madman, but she didn’t. The aristocrat knelt down for a closer look, tilted her head, and then turned slightly to look back at me.

  “Fascinating,” the heiress whispered. “He’s gorgeous… I’ve never seen anything like him before in my life. You said you procured him from a curio shop?”

  “Gorgeous?” the brain gasped. “Did you hear that, Charles? She loves me! She really, really loves me!”

  “Yeah,” I chuckled to the blonde woman, set down the glass panes in my hands, grabbed the metal rods from her loose grasp, and began to set up my workstation. “He was covered in a thick layer of algae, and he was severely shrunken. I brought him back here, cleansed him, dropped him in some hydrating solution, and brought him back from the brink of death.”

  “I wouldn’t say I was on the brink of death,” the brain cried. “I was still hearty and full of gusto!”

  “Barely,” I shook my head.

  “And he’s fully conscious?” Josephine asked. “He can speak to you and your women? Can he see?”

  “He can speak to all of us,” I confirmed. “I think he can see, but I’m not entirely sure how since he doesn’t have eyes. He can hear us, even if we speak aloud or in our heads, he’s still capable of replying.”

  “How strange,” the blonde murmured. “But so utterly fantastic. It’s unbelievable… but you’ve shown me some pretty strange and extraordinary things before, and they are all very real.”

  Josephine stood up from her crouch, turned toward me again, smiled gently, and then settled herself down onto the wooden stool by my examination table. The heiress glanced over at the metal table, ran a finger across its cool, smooth surface, and then settled in. I smiled over my shoulder at her, brought over the glass panes, dragged the welder across the floor, and got to work on the tank for the nix.

  I placed the welder’s helmet over my face, switched the welder on, and got to work on the tank for the nix. I knew in the future, whenever we created our next monster-girl, I’d probably have to build a bigger tank for her, but for right now, this would do for the magical beast.

  First, I welded the metal rods together into the rough framework of the tank, attached a sheet of metal to the bottom, melted that into place, and then began to fit the panes of glass into the framework. I heated the edges of the glass, carefully enough not to crack it, and then laid the molten pieces against the metal. Since this was a smaller project, it didn’t take me very long, and only after thirty minutes or so, I leaned back on my heels and switched off the welder.

  “Will you help me lift this onto the stand next to A.B.’s tank?” I asked. “It’s solid, but not very heavy. I need to fill it with water, add in a few key nutrients, and then we can place the nix within it.”

  “Alright,” Josephine smiled, ho
pped up from the chair, and hurried over. “I can do that.”

  I grabbed one side of it while the aristocrat grabbed the other, and we lifted it together. I smiled gently over at her, shifted the tank a little higher, and together, we brought the container over by A.B.. We set it down. I reached for the small length of hose attached to a faucet, placed one end of it into the tank, and switched it on.

  “You said that you need to put nutrients into the water?” Josephine asked. “Why is that?”

  “Well, most aquatic animals can only survive in certain types of environments,” I told her. “So, I concocted the nutrients to change the water into the same kind it would’ve been in your lake. Daisy told me about it. She reads all the books on them, and is our resident magical beast specialist.”

  The tank filled quickly, and right before it reached the top, I switched the water off. I bent down, grabbed a small bottle on the shelf underneath the new tank, opened it, and then shook three large tablets into my hand. I tossed them into the water, watched them fizz for a moment, and then crossed the room toward the metal box we’d put the nix in. I lifted it easily from the ground, heard the soft singing from inside, chuckled under my breath, and brought the box closer.

  “You may want to stand back a little bit,” I uttered. “I don’t want you to get your dress wet.”

  “Oh,” the honey-blonde breathed. “Of course.”

  Josephine shuffled backward a few steps, placed her hands loosely in front of her, and nodded at me to continue. I held the box steadily from underneath with one hand, reached up with my free one, and flipped the lid open. The singing was louder now, but I ignored it, tipped the metal box forward, and sloshed all of the lake water inside into the tank.

  “Where is it?” Josephine gasped, hurried forward, and pressed her hands against the tank’s glass. “I knew they were in my lake, but I’ve never seen one up close.”

  The bubbles obscured the nix from view for a few seconds, but as they settled, the small being slowly came into view. I’d never seen a nix either for that matter, so I crouched down beside the blonde aristocrat and leaned in close to the glass to get a better view.