Part One: Purgatory

     Footsteps echoed across the empty city streets. A haunting wind flowed through the alleyways, fine misty smog mingling with the pavement the young boy so bravely ventured upon in the dangerous hours of night's reign. The scent and sound of the lake's chilly waters rushed went through him like a lonely phantom. Lights flickered in protest to his approach, and faded as he dashed along paying no attention to the sounds of screaming. He could not be distracted, not even for a moment. A cold, precious cargo lie nestled in the crook of his elbow.


    The City is a demon, marked by the touch of a genius where once perverse inspiration would lead sensitive minds to glory or madness. Even now, Doctor Hyde's shadow loomed over, instilling its citizens with fear and insight in equal measure. The creations of the fallen dictator now roam free, deprived of the energies and equipment needed for their maintenance. Once just projects to protect the doctor and modify human intelligence, some became like gods here; beings that could determine the fate of the society around them. Most of his genetic engineering projects had gone feral though, living like animals or hiring their services to short-handed madmen in exchange for parts and sustenance.


Night was when they frolicked, which made it hard for "normals" like Todd to travel. But he risked his life for both the money he barely earned and for two others.

These two he visited on a daily basis, ever since they had made their home on the fiftieth floor in one of Dr. Hyde's abandoned "super apartments". Such apartments had been built to create more "effecient" living space, while the sprawling commercial districts were slowly turned into laboratories, research facilities and training grounds.

Slowly, Todd opened the rusting doors, facing the ruins of the lobby room within. A single light was burning out, trying to glow its brightest as it illuminated the dusty moss-colored couches that sat up against each wall. The stench of rot and mold racked his nostrils. The roaches tended to their pocket kingdoms in the corners of the room, and mice scampered across the floor while he headed towards the staircase. He was tempted to ring the rusty copper bell, with a fading sign that had instructions on providing service to the residents. He ignored it and the empty register nearby, keeping his eyes on the plastic stairs.

It had only been a decade since the apartment projects were scrapped. The building was stable, but eerie nonetheless. There was no electricity, no running water. Every white room was completely empty save for some leftover furniture cut into similar shapes and sizes. Some that were down hallways that he passed as he began ascending may have been inhabited, and by what he didn't dare explore.

When he reached the top floor he lightly tapped the door. Just seconds after doing so, it opened slowly with a creak. To what most would have run from in fear, he welcomed with a smile. It was Miss Hyde. She was abnormally tall, with extended limbs to fit. Half of her face and neck had been previously destroyed, and in the place of skin a corpse of a beast was sewn on. A strangely shaped horn flowed from the top of her scalp, twisting and pointing with a sharp arrow-like end. Her left arm had been replaced with the beastly claw, three talons replacing her digits.  Her hair was extensive and unruly, the color of deep maroon wine. The tanned leather trench coat she wore was always stocked with clinking potion bottles, never labeled for her own entertainment.  She looked at him through one emerald eye, glittering with happiness.

"Good evening Todd." Her voice was eloquent with a slight deepness, "It's good to see you survived another week."

"You as well Miss Hyde." He told giving a buck-toothed grin. He removed his hat, waving it in front of his face. "Mind if I come in?"
"You are always welcome here."  

The room was unique, but only in slight degrees from the other complexes. There were faded marks on the walls, staining them with the color of old blood.  The taste of pennies filled his mouth as he entered the room. The same bland furniture was present here as the other apartments, though off-white tarps were thrown over most of the pieces.  The kitchen was clean, though only in the sense that it looked as though it was never used. A television set was placed upon the center of the living room, a hole clearly busted through the glass. The master bedroom was placed next to the bathroom, which had the only evidence of supplies for the two living here. What money they could come across was used to buy cheap antibiotics, scar tissue remover, gauze, splints, and the like. But buying that took away from the funds they had to provide themselves with food, and that was the reason for Todd's involvement.
"Where's Liberty?"

The woman he spoke of was stretched across the couch across from the television. From a distance she would appear to be like any normal adult female, not too busty or too skinny. Her hair was strikingly blonde and cut at her shoulders. She bore earrings in the shapes of scales. Atop the crown of her skull was a thick copper colored band, fused into the bone with holes along its surface to originally insert spikes. Her wrists were fused to similar metal bands with thick chains attached to heavy scales.  
"How long has she been asleep?"

"A while now…I caught her trying to rip her eyes out again." Hyde told as she entered a different room. Soon after followed the sounds of glass crashing, most presumably the woman's way of cleaning. "I went out to get her supplies to help out her eyes if they were bugging her, but she refused."

"Well, I have some food for you guys..." He said, gently hefting the bag from his arms. "A half gallon of milk, a small loaf of bread and a cube of cheese. I know it isn't much but it's all I could grab…"

"Does that mean you're going to go hungry until your next payment?" The voice of Liberty startled the boy, as he quickly spun to spot her head shifting to face him, her eyes covered for now with a white fabric. He took a deep breath and gave her a pitiful look, "Yes, but it's worth it to see that you two get fed. I have a job, I can get money. You two…"

"We wouldn't be able to if we tried. The City's trying to blot us out like last night's hangover." She sneered as she shifted her legs, sitting upright. The clinking of her chains was followed by the thud of the weighty scales. Todd glanced to the items sadly, watching her wrists painfully shift with every movement. "But we can't let you go hungry for our sake."
"It only be for a couple of weeks, I have bottled water back at my tent…"
Liberty did not rebutt his argument. Instead she stood, and went to Hyde's "lab" room where she was busy smashing bottles that she no longer needed. Strange colored liquid coated the walls, some dripped and some lie in puddles. She stood, bending over her table as a vile of potion began to bubble, fire slowly enveloping the container, making the whole room glow with light. Noticing Liberty, she twisted her head and cocked an eyebrow, "Is Todd gone?"

"We're going to use the money we found a few days ago to get him some food for this week."
"Liberty…" Hyde's voice was filled with disapproval.

"The boy saved us once because we decided to be heroes, Hyde." Liberty crossed her arms with a scowl on her face. "It's our duty to keep him safe, and alive."

The tall woman could not argue against her friend. She was right; they had saved him as a boy during their younger years trying to become heroes against the fading influence of Dr. Hyde. That period of time had been short lived, but what they had started, they would now see through to the end. "Fine, let me finish this and we'll get going."

"Hurry it up."

"Have you seen my hat?"

"It's on the chair where you always leave it."

"You might want to bring a few spikes yourself. If anything, just in case you're pressed against a wall and I can't come save your sorry little ass."

Liberty instantly touched her metal band, looking to the triangle-shaped metal triangles spread across the kitchen sink. She gritted her teeth in grim thought.

The patter of rain spread across the rooftops, mingling with the sounds of the flickering lights below to create an oddly refreshing symphony. Todd did not linger behind the two women, attempting to keep calm. There was a convenience store just a few blocks down they would go to; the sort that didn't question where money came from so long as it would spend. If they could get there, they would allow the boy a week's worth of food if rationed correctly. Perhaps not the most palatable, but it would sustain him for the allotted time.

Within an instant of stepping outside, the trio was soaked by a downpour. The rain still smelled like pennies, even after all these years. Nothing but its chorus filled the atmosphere, pacing them on with an odd harmonic beat.

Feet dragged across the pavement, and startled with the sudden sound of car's steaming engines starting with sparks of electricity in their wheels. The city was not dead even at this hour it seemed, as the clock's hands reached the ungodly hour of midnight. There were people to see, places to be. With the laws still in the process of being renewed, anarchy was fecund and moved swiftly in the cradle of the night. Every time a car neared, the three flinched with fear and shared a feeling of reprieve once it passed them by without a word.

Soon the shine of the store's blinding florescent lights shone upon the reflective pools starting to accumulate on the freshly hardened asphalt. The owner, a tall imposing man with piercing eyes, stood at the counter near his automatic cash register, plucking a sliver of something from between his teeth. His bouncy black hair shifted with every movement. Todd felt his knees buck at just the sight but Liberty nudged him a bit. "He will not harm you, child."

"Even if he did, I'd rip him to bloody shreds." Hyde exposed her three large claws for a brief moment before concealing them. She cleared her throat, "The salesclerk is named Jeremy. He's a bit shady, yes, but helpful to...things like us."

Todd felt pity in his stomach at the word "things". Had they stooped so low as to call themselves that now? The City was truly getting to them, and he prayed to any god that he could think of that they would find a way out soon. He entered the mart, while the two women waited patiently outside.

There was not a word spoken between them in the fifteen minutes he spent browsing the cheapest noodles, bread and drinks he could spot. There were short glances, reaffirming ones that they were okay for the time being. Some were of trivial worry, others were of something deep and warm they felt together at that moment in the somewhat peaceful setting. But all together it was unsettling, having to wait so long for the boy just to escort him back to his tent by the lake; still quite a ways to go.

Todd emerged from the shop with his mostly nonperishable food. What he could eat now, he would try to save for a day or so. He carried the items in his satchel, slinging it across his back. He gave a nod, signaling it was time to leave.

The drudging walk to the edge of the city's wide sea-like lake took longer than the women had wanted. By the time they arrived to it, it was already approaching the hour of 3. Before the sun rose, just as its rays were coming across the horizon was the most dangerous time for creations such as them. Todd wished them well, exchanging embraces with little word shared. "We hope to see you another day." They told, with uncertainty and a hint of fear, turning back to return to their abode.

The apartment was in view, cruelly taunting the two with promises of safety, making them feel like dogs with a piece of freshly cut meat dangling just out of their reach. A howling sound was heard across the pavement, which made the two freeze just as they were arriving on their block. The whistle of a rock being thrown made them flinch, but they moved before it impacted. But hundreds followed, all coming in waves. It was a petty threat, and most they didn't even try to avoid until the clicking of an electric shot gun was heard. Their assailants stepped into the light of the street lamp ahead of them.

They were just normal people, armed with improvised weapons: kitchen knives, bats, the occasional crowbar. Their faces were a mixture of fear and anger. A woman stepped forward, pale white, with rusty brown hair and a face twisted in indignation. It took only a glance at their matching nametags to know who these were.  A few years after Dr. Hyde had been killed, a group of neo-Luddites had managed to snatch the media spotlight by claiming that scientific progress was the real reason the City fell into disrepair.  Under the direction of these low-tech high priests, the Cult of Purification began its mission to rid the city of "monstrosities" from the mad doctor's laboratories.  They believed that the City returned to its agrarian roots and abandoned technology, the Gods of Fortune would return and smile upon the land to return things to the way they once were. To them, creations such as Liberty and Miss Hyde were standing between them and paradise.

Lady Liberty was on their "most-wanted" list. Because she was the first, they thought others would be drawn to her death as if she was a martyr for some unworthy cause. But she was not looking for such fame, and knew nothing of the sort would come if she were to perish.

She started to prepare her wrists, feeling the weight shift. "We've dealt with you clowns before. Just put the gun down before anyone gets hurt."

"You will call me Officer Kitt, you horrid freak of nature!" The woman responded, acid concocting in her words. Her face was red, her fingers trembling on the trigger as she pointed directly at Miss Hyde, "Otherwise your mutant girlfriend here gets it, you queer bastards."

Hyde started to reach inside her coat, but Liberty shook her head as she took a step forward to address the crowd. "Even if you did want to engage in a fight with us, what would it accomplish?"

"We'd be getting rid of two of you bastards!" A voice in the crowd shouted.
"Yeah! We've killed of lots of things like you.  The only good mutant is a dead mutant, right!?"
"No mercy!" "Justice!" "Bring back the old ways!"

The voices started to become a jumbled chorus, turning into rioting chants and howls. Miss Hyde caught the leader trying to press her finger on the trigger and acted at lightning speed. As the buckshot filled the dawn skies, the crowd of about twenty or so armed people started to rush in towards the two. There was no clear way of escape. They would have to fight their way through.

Lady Liberty swung her scales, wincing when she managed to contact flesh. Hyde wore an expression of sadism mixed with curiosity as she picked up one of the attackers and threw him screaming and skidding onto the street.  A vicious headbutt from Liberty put down the demogauge, and she crushed the barrell of the shotgun underfoot as Hyde began swiping at the masses trying to retrieve it.  Liberty's attention was swayed and soon a knife was plunged into her shoulder. She cried out, her arm falling instantly to the side. She grasped it, blood leaking between her fingers.

Miss Hyde's hair stood on end with fury, her teeth clenching.  The half-beast woman reached into her trench coat and drew out an unlabeled bottle. She lifted it to the farthest reach above her head, and with every ounce of strength in her body smashed its glass across the attacker's head. At first she appeared fine, only having a few deep wounds as her head bounced back from impact. But soon a fizzing sound was heard and the woman began to scream with incredible pain. Slowly her skin began to melt away, exposing her flesh. The cult watched the scene draw out, the sickly plopping of whole skin sections starting to fill the area as their breath was caught in the moment. Neither of the women stayed to watch the horrid spectacle, escaping as they were distracted.

"I told you taking along some science would come in handy." Miss Hyde told her with a bit of triumph in her voice. Liberty gave a smirk back, trying not to show her misery. She was unable to cry, so there was little point in frowning.  By the time the pair had finally reached the upper floors of their building, Hyde had to carry her friend up the last few flights of stairs to prevent serious blood loss. She placed her on the couch, cringing when she heard Liberty hiss. She rushed into the bathroom, grabbing a handful of pills from Dr. Hyde's earlier days. She filled a small glass with the milk Todd had given them earlier, taking them to the now upright Liberty. Hyde didn't force her to stay down, just plopped next to her and gently handed her the milk and pills. She downed them quickly.  Color began to return to her face and hands; even after all these years, Hyde Pharmaceuticals never failed.  She reached for the bandana around her eyes but stopped when she felt Miss Hyde's arms drape around her. "They were right before, you know. I could have stopped him."

"They told you that months ago, and yet here you are dwelling on that same thought."
Liberty let her arms flop, not making any effort to grasp her back. Hyde pressed her face to the metal band, "Don't listen to them."

The blonde pressed the edge of her wrists to her eyes with a weeping appearance, "We have to get out of this damn city…"

"I know. I have felt…I have known that we need to leave."

"But how? There is no place for us!" She held Hyde's jacket in a vice grip, "We were born to die here, Hyde!"

Hyde simply threw her hand out and smacked Liberty hard across the cheek, "You're giving up too easily. You've lived this long. You won't die just yet, not after everything you've done."

Liberty felt the warmth on her cheek from the impact and gave a low, exhausted sigh, "You're right." She felt her forehead and listened to her chains clink, "After tomorrow, we leave here. I don't care where we go, but we can't be here any longer. It's driving us mad..."

Miss Hyde said little else, opting instead to hold her friend until they were both asleep.