Trial 139C

:D I’m happy so many people were worried about Bentley after the sink incident, but it’s really okay. Despite the pointy, sharp teeth Evander can cover them for bjs. More or less. :P

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~ Power ~

LUFDOR INSTITUTE BOMBSHELL

The words scrolled across the bottom of the TV screen, black on a red banner.

Bombshell? Was it about the trials?

Bentley watched each commercial, tense and impatient. Finally, the coverage came back on:

‘Five separate facilities located in northern BC and the Yukon, found only after the activity at Pickford institute was exposed following the earthquake.’
‘Over 130 different living trials found.’
‘...DNA combined with over 8 different species.’
‘52 arrests made so far...’

The reporter listed off different companies and research facilities that contributed to the Lufdor program including several government and university departments.

Pictures of laboratories and several blurred images of trials were shown. There was also footage of the damaged Pickford facility, and death toll from the earthquake. 5 personnel dead and one trial fatality.

He barely took his eyes off the coverage when Evander came home, dropping a plastic bag of fish on the table.

The trial came up behind Bentley and tugged the bandana gag down.

Bentley twisted his head, working his jaw briefly. “The power’s back on.”

“So I saw. It’s on on the whole block.” Evander pulled the knots on the cord free, checking each of Bentley’s wrists for damage before letting him go.

“You should see this.” Bentley turned back to the TV, “It’s all about the Lufdor Institute.”

A shadow fell over Evander’s face. He reached around Bentley and turned it off. “I know as much about that place as I need to.”

“But, once the authorities found out about what was going on there, they traced the same organization back to five more locations. They’ve discovered more trials like y –”

“The power’s back on.” Evander interrupted him. “Why don’t you make yourself some real food, or take a shower – the water heater should be working again.”

“Are you kidding?”

The trial gave him a look that was clearly not kidding around.

“Evander, we should see what happened – ”

The trial snapped his teeth with a small snarl.

Bentley shot him a long, measured look. It quickly became clear the trial was not going to back down. Bentley huffed, taking the high road. “Fine. I wanted to take a shower anyways. You’re being an ass though, for the record.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bentley was rinsing the shampoo out of his hair when the shower curtain pulled back and a very naked 139C stepped in with him. “C! Get out! I’m almost done.”

The trial’s slightly-too-wide-to-be-human mouth, curved into a smug smile. “No, you’re not. You’re just starting.”

Bentley tried to twist out of reach as the trial grabbed for him, “Evander!”

“Bentley.” There was a dark promise in that one word.

Bentley remember how much it had affected the trial when he had just been a little wet from the sponge bath, now he was soaked, with fresh water running over his whole body.

The brunette found himself pressed to the tiled wall, Evander’s body blocking him in, warm water streaming over both of them. “You have no idea how many nights I fantasized about this. Your warm body, slippery and wet and at my mercy.”

The trial’s gill slits flared slightly as the water ran over them.

“Evander –” Bentley’s voice came out thin, somewhere between begging and reprimanding.

Hands stroked over Bentley’s chest and down over his jutting hipbones and the runway of flat skin created between them. “Evander, what?” 193C prompted, head dropping forward to watch Bentley’s prick respond readily to the touches, blood pumping to cause it to stiffen and rise up as it seeking out those hands. “Hmm? Evander, what?”

“Evander, please...”

“That’s right, Bentley.” The trial’s breath was hot against his ear. “Just let go and give yourself to me.”

An embarrassing whimper was dragged from Bentley’s throat. He lifted his arms, winding them over Evander’s smooth, muscle-hard shoulders. Large hands grabbed Bentley’s hips pulling him forward into Evander’s body with an ‘umpft’. He felt the trial’s hard silk and steel erection against his stomach and bucked his hips, pressing his own hardness into Evander. The combination of firm skin and slick water was incredible.

The trial wasn’t gentle. He shoved and grasped and scratched. Bentley’s arousal only grew. Everything else fell away until the only thing in Bentley’s world was a fiery, unrelenting need to rut and orgasm. He clutched at Evander, groaning and rocking against him, hips snapping. Evander, for his part, held Bentley up and pushed back, meeting his thrusts. The trial’s head fell back; jaw clenched, tendons in stark relief on his throat, gills still flaring.

Bentley cried out hoarsely, feeling his stomach and balls tighten before his orgasm rushed through his body, cum escaping in almost painfully hard spasms.

The trial growled. His head swung forward, sharp teeth closing around the younger man’s shoulder, locking the lean body against his own hard muscles. Bentley heard his own name, nothing more than a rasping hiss from between the trial’s teeth, right before he felt the splatter of Evander’s seed on his stomach, sticky and hot.

The water slowly washed it away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The hot water eventually ran out. It was probably the only thing that could have stirred them out from under the spray.

Slaked and boneless, Bentley let the trial man handle him out of the shower and he stood on the bathmat, dazed, as Evander toweled him dry. The trial pressed the towel lightly to his shoulder, patting it dry. “I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” Genuinely surprised, Bentley’s eyes snapped to Evander. “That was…yeah. Good.”

“I’m sorry for biting you. I…” Evander’s lip curled a little with self-disgust. “I couldn’t control it.”

Biting…? Bentley craned his head looking down at his own shoulder. There was an open set of bite marks on either side of his shoulder, the marks were red, a few of the teeth imprints pin-pointed with blood. It felt a little hot, raw, but nothing approaching unbearable.

“It’s ok. It doesn’t even hurt.”

The towel twisted as Evander wrung it between his hands, “I hate what they turned me into. I can’t even…be with you, without fucking up. Nothing but a fucking animal.” Evander flung the towel against the wall with a snarl.

Though his instincts were screaming to back away, Bentley instead took a step closer. He reaches out a hand to Evander, laying his palm on the trial’s still-wet pec. “Did you do it to hurt me?”

“No! Of course not!”

“Exactly. You’re not an animal, Evander. Like I said, it’s not even painful.”

Evander didn’t look convinced.

“C. That was…amazing. You made me feel amazing. This,” he gestured to his shoulder and the teeth marks, “is a small price to pay for getting off that hard.”

“You’re crazy.”

“Maybe.” Snatching up the towel, Bentley rubbed it over his hair, leaving it a dishevelled mess. He then handed the towel back to Evander and picked up his clothes. He hopped on one foot, shoving his legs into his jeans and tugging them up. “I’m going to grab something to eat.”

139C’s black eyes followed Bentley’s exit. When the young man was out of sight, Evander brought the towel to his nose, inhaling deeply, drawing Bentley’s scent into his lung. “My crazy human.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What in the world are you doing?”

Bentley jumped guiltily. He had thought the trial was still in the bathroom. He had thought the coast was clear. “Nothin?.” Of course his answer was muffled by the spoon and glob of peanut butter in his mouth.

Evander stared at him, clearly unimpressed.

Taking the spoon from his mouth and running his tongue over his teeth to swallow the evidence, Bentley looked back defensively. “What? I ran out of granola bars. I was hungry.”

The trial’s expression tightened. “I provide you with food.”

“I. Don’t. Like. Fish.” Bentley countered immediately. The conversation wasn’t the first of its kind.

“Just try it.”

“No.”

“Bentley...”

“No.”

“Bentley!”

“No!”

“You’re acting like a two-year-old.”

“Like you’re one to talk.”

The trial glared. “You can’t just starve yourself because you don’t like fish.”

“I’m not starving.”

Evander came closer, pushing in Bentley’s personal space, challenging, “Really? What have you eaten today? Besides straight peanut butter.”

“Hey, don’t knock the p.b. Protein, fat, sugars, and fibre... it’s like a complete meal.”

“Just eat some fish! I’ll even cook it if that’s what bothers you so much.”

“Listen, Evander,” Bentley set his jaw. “I’m not a kid. You can’t tell me what to do, and you can’t bully me into eating something I don’t want to. So, just...stop.” Bentley stood tall, staring right at Evander, looking right into those oil-black eyes.

There was a pause. Evander’s nostrils twitched. “Is this argument arousing you?”

“What? No!” Wait, maybe… Bentley couldn’t believe Evander’s nose had picked up on that even before he had recognized the signals in his own body. “Uh, no… Just, you’re really close… And…” He trailed off, blushing.

A cocky grin stretched over Evander’s lips. “You’re aroused.”

The shark wasn’t wrong, even though it hadn’t been more than 20 minutes since C had given him that mind-blowing orgasm in the shower. With a small sniff Bentley tested the air. He couldn’t smell anything except a salty-ocean scent from Evander and the bag on the counter containing his morning catch.

Watching Bentley sniff, Evander snorted with a low laugh.

Aware he was being laughed at; Bentley glared and grumbled, “Well, what does it smell like?”

139C breathed in deeply, he leaned close until his broad nose brushed Bentley’s neck. “Like sand and water and the copper-y hint of your blood.”

“Blood?” Bentley swallowed, throat tight.

“Yes, I can smell it, fresh from the bite. You smell like… mine.”

Bentley knew he should be disgusted. But he wasn’t.

“Mmmm…” Evander rumbled, dragging Bentley’s thin cotton tee shirt up over his head, leaving his slender, muscled chest revealed. 139C’s head turned and his nose pressed to the bite mark on the newly bare shoulder. “I want you again, human.”

Bentley shivered, his heart jumping a beat.

“Do you want me, too?” Evander asked/demanded, wanting to hear the words.

Wordlessly, Bentley shook his head, knowing he shouldn’t admit to it.

“Liar.” Evander tasted the bite mark and then leaned up and caught Bentley’s lips in a kiss. The trial then pulled back a fraction, lips brushing lips, and repeated, “Do you want me, too?”

With a moan and sigh, Bentley stopped fighting it. “Yesss…”

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That night, Bentley stared at himself in the mirror over his dresser. He was half dressed in an old pair of plaid pajama bottoms, his tee shirt in his hands.

Evander was waiting for him in the bed, reclining against the head board, watching Bentley from beneath hooded lids.

Bentley touched the marks on his shoulder; they were still red, bruising underneath a little now. And, he couldn’t see it well, but he knew there was another set of marks on the back of his neck from round two.

“Does it hurt?” Evander asked, never taking his eyes off the younger man.

Bentley shook his head, pulling the shirt on and turning back to Evander, “No, it really doesn – Oh shit!”

Evander was immediately alert, sitting up quickly. “What is it?”

“My mom. I forgot I need to call her. The cell phone towers might be working if the power is back on. I can’t believe I forgot; she’ll be worried.”

Shadows passed over Evander’s face. “I don’t want you making calls.”

“Bully for you, C. I’m calling my mom.” Bentley turned out of the bedroom, taking long strides to the kitchen. His phone was still on a dish towel, shoved in the corner of the counter. He started putting the battery back in, fitting the cell back together.

Hands grabbed Bentley around the waist, he exhaled in surprise as Evander grabbed him and pushed him around, picking him right off the ground and sitting him on the counter. “Evander!”

With a snap of his teeth, Evander caged Bentley in with arms braced on the counter. “Call your mother. But remember I am listening to every word.”

Brow furrowing, Bentley gave Evander a wary look. Against all odds, the dried phone turned on when Bentley tried it. He dialed his mom.

“Hello?”

The line was crackling with static, but he recognized that voice without trouble. “Hey, mom.”

“Bentley?! Oh, thank God! Greg! Greg! It’s Bentley!” His mother yelled into the mouth piece, causing Bentley to wince. In the background, he could hear his step-dad run to the phone.

“You didn’t call and we couldn’t reach you. We’ve been watching on TV. I’ve been calling all over.”

“The power’s been out, and the cell towers damaged. I called as soon as I could.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, mom.”

“Are at your apartment?”

“Yes, mom.”

“Bentley?!”

“Yes, mom?”

“Quit, ‘yes mom-ing’ me! What’s going on, Bentley?”

“Nothing! I’m okay, really. The apartment’s okay, too.”

“You aren’t hurt?”

“No, no, mom. I was at work when the earthquake happened. I got banged up a little, but, um, nothing bad. I got home that night.”

“What about this Lufdor Institute business.” It was his father’s voice; he must have taken the phone from his mother. “Isn’t that where you worked?!”

“Ah…yeah. I mean I did some cleaning there.”

Evander nudged the brunette’s knees apart, stepping between them.

There was some shuffling before his mother was back on the line. “Did you have contact with those…those things?”

“The trials? Yes, I mean, I saw a few.” Of course, he didn’t mention the fact one currently had his large hands on Bentley’s outer thighs, stroking slowly as he eavesdropped on the conversation.

“Are you coming home?” his mom questioned, clearly fretful.

The webbed fingers on his thighs tightened.

“Ah, no, mom.” Holding the phone in the one hand, Bentley tried to push the trial back a little. It felt like pushing against a concrete wall and about as effective.

“Are you sure everything’s okay, Benny?”

“Yes, mom.”

“Okay. Call me again, soon. You know you can come home whenever you want, too.”

“Yeah, mom. I’ll call.”

“I love you, honey.”

“I love you, too, mom.”

Bentley disconnected the call. He gave a little shout as Evander pulled the phone from his hand. “What…?”

Evander held the cell out of reach. “I’ll let you call your mother again later.”

“You’ll let me?” Bentley scoffed. “Newsflash, I don’t need your permission to call my mother…to call anyone for that matter. Give me the phone back.”

“No. I don’t want you tempted to call others.”

“No have no ri –AH!”

Bentley’s words were caught off with a squawk. In a show of his daunting and inhuman strength, Evander picked Bentley up off the counter tossed him over his shoulder, carrying him back towards the bedroom.

“C! Let me down!” Bentley ordered, twisting and hitting his fists against the trial’s back. “I mean it, Evander!”

The trial’s hand smacked the back of Bentley’s thighs, near his ass. “Bed now, argue tomorrow.”

“I hate you.” Bentley’s hissed in frustration and embarrassment, heat spreading through him from the rough smack.

The trial’s mocking laugh disappeared into the bedroom. “Hate, hmm? That’s not what I scent.”

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“…the two trials were described as canine mixes. A trusted Channel 5 source reported members of the radical new group People Against Adulterated DNA were at the scene of the accident, and may in fact have been responsible for the deaths. This has been is Sara Redsky. Stay turn for more of this exclusive story, next up with News at Noon with…”

Bentley stared at the TV screen growing horror.

Two trials being transported from a northern testing facility to the Pickford building had been killed when the transport vehicle had been rammed off the road. Several members of a newly formed group, the media had coined PAAD (people against adulterated DNA), had driven the truck that hit them. They were a rapidly going extremist group who wanted all trials wiped out because they were not natural. The photogenic and charismatic young leaders of the group had begun rallying support from the moment the story of the trials had broke.

They were preying on people’s fear of the unknown trials. Bentley saw clips of the group talking about how trials were aberrations, inhuman, and better off dead. They showed pictures of hideous, mutated, animal-like corpuses, unlike anything Bentley had ever seen in the institute, and certainly nothing like Evander and the other trials he had encountered. The exploited the ideas of the far religious right, claiming the trials and the technology that created them were against God’s will.

Bentley felt sick to his stomach as he watched. PAAD made radical claims: that the trials were violent and mindless killing animals, that contact with the trials could spread the mutation like a disease turning others into animals, too. As far as Bentley could tell the claims were not backed up with any evidence at all.

Why were these networks even allowing them to speak on the TV?

In less than a week, the group had grown from zero members to hundreds, with thousands of supporters.

Bentley couldn’t understand it. It wasn’t as if it had been the trials’ fault, they were victims here. If anyone should be vilified it was the scientists, like that Doctor William, who had treated the trials inhumanely and the scientists who created them in the first place.

Evander’s lack of safety troubled him. What if he ran into these people when he went hunting or what if PAAD tracked him down here?

He glanced over at the trial. C was trying to cook up one of his fish. Bentley knew the crossbreed was going to try and get him eat it, despite the fact he had explained that he didn’t like fish and that was before he had been subjected to seeing Evander munching on them raw – guts and bones and all. Yuck.

He should find it annoying, but he didn’t. The trial was trying to take care of him in his own way. With that in mind, Bentley tried to choke down a bite or two when Evander brought him the fish a few minutes later.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You’ve been watching that for hours.”

The trial was standing by the window, as he spoke he walked over to stand behind Bentley who was on the couch.

Evander was right, he had been watching the TV for the better half of a day. A chard, picked part fish fillet sat on the coffee table along with the peanut butter jar and a spoon.

The violence against the trials appeared to be growing. There were protests and several more attempts by civilians to track down trials and kill them.

Every network was covering the story: the local, national, and America channels.

“Why aren’t you more interested? I mean, it affects you more than it affects me.”

“It doesn’t affect either one of us.” Evander growled.

“But it talking about how the trials are being freed and how the institute is being charged with protecting and rehabilitating the trials instead of studying them. There’s people hurting the trials, tracking them down, killing them! It would be safer at the institute for you.”

“I don’t care. I’m not going back there. You’re not going back there. It doesn’t concern us any longer.”

“This is insane. What’s your plan for the rest of your life? Hiding in my apartment? Making me a prisoner here, too?”

“No. We’ll find a place, somewhere secluded. Somewhere there are no other humans. A cabin or a cottage, by the water. That’s the plan.”

Bentley’s eyes flew wide, he stood from the couch quickly, spinning around and taking a few steps back, putting space between them. “Evander, I’m not going to leave my life and hide in a cabin in the middle of God-knows-where.”

“You’ll change your mind once we move.” Evander growled dismissively.

“People are trying to kill trials. That doesn’t concern you? At least the institute is secure! There are guards to protect –”

“I can protect myself,” Evander interrupted, “And I can protect you. Nothing else is important.”

“Evander...”

The trial snarled and lashed out, he stalked around the room and grabbed the TV knocking it over, screen smashing on the floor. “This conversation is over.”

Like hell it was, Bentley bristled and walked back into the bedroom, slamming the door behind himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bentley angsted over it all afternoon.

Where would Evander be safe? The lies being propagated by PAAD were growing and spreading.

Where would Bentley be safe for that matter? He couldn’t be sure that Evander wouldn’t follow through on his threats and drag Bentley out to the middle of nowhere. Somewhere where Bentley couldn’t escape. Somewhere where he’d never see his friends and family again – never see his mom again.

He would turn Bentley into a prisoner.

He waited until he heard Evander turning on the shower to make the call. Evander may have taken his phone, but the trial apparently didn’t know he could make calls through his laptop.

He logged on and typed the number to the institute, setting up his microphone.

It took him four tries to even get through to an operator, each time he lost a little more nerve.

“Lufdor Industries, how may I direct your call?”

“Umm...it’s Bentley Torres, I work there. I need to talk to Jude Meyer, please.”

“Mr. Meyer is not available at this time. Can I take a message?”

“No, it’s really important, please, I need to talk to him.”

“I’m sorry, but Mr. Meyer is not available. If you don’t wish to leave a message, you’ll just have to call back.”

“No, no, no! Don’t hang up on me! Please, it’s an emergency. Please, just tell him Bentley Torres needs to talk to him.”

The woman on the other end of the line sighed, “Alright, sir, I’ll put you on hold, one moment please.”

He heard a click and then silence. It seemed to take forever, through it was probably not more than 2 or 3 minutes before the voice came back, “Sir?”

“Yes?”

“I’m transferring you to Mr. Meyer now.”

“Thank you!”

There was a double click and then a gruff, “Hello?”

“Jude, it’s Bentley Torres, there’s something I needed to talk to you about – “

“Now is not a good time, Bentley, in case it had escaped your attention, because you’ve been living under a rock for the past week, we’re having a little bit of a crisis down here.”

“It’s very important.”

There was an impatient sigh, “You have 30 seconds.”

“Is it true the facility is being shut down, the trials have been rescued?”

“I wouldn’t use the word rescued, Bentley, more like released. Once the institute’s secret was out, there was too much public outcry to even consider continuing the program.”

“Are they being treated well?”

“Like kings, they’ve arrest most of the scientists who ran this freak show and replaced them with these bleeding-heart government specialists who bow down to the trials like they’re the second coming. They’re not even locked up anymore. They’re walking around free in the building with the full humans.”

“They’re not in danger? I heard on the news some people wanted to hurt them.”

“Not here. The government has hired extra guards and even brought in some military teams. They are the most well-guarded sons of bitches in the country. What’s this about, Bentley?”

“One of the trials...he sort of followed me home.”

“The shark? 139C? That’s where he is? Jesus! Are you alright? We’ve been looking everywhere…”

“Yes, I’m fine. He saved my life...”

“Tell me where you are, right now, Bentley!”

“Promise me he won’t be hurt or be locked up again.”

“Bentley! You’re in real danger. Trials may act like people, Bentley, but they’re …unpredictable. If he hasn’t hurt you yet...You’re putting yourself and others at risk!”

“Just, promise me, Jude. Promise me he won’t be hurt or locked up.”

“I promise you that it’s safe here for the trials.” Jude’s voice was strained, but solemn.

Bentley took a deep breath and then gave his address and disconnected the call. He had done the right thing. For himself and for Evander. He knew that.

So why did he feel like shit?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bentley knew it wouldn’t take long for people to get to his apartment from the institute (it was only a few kilometres away after all), but he was shocked when there was a loud pounded on the door only 15 minutes later.

Bentley was in the living room, close to the door. Evander came out of the bathroom, clearly surprised by the noise.

“OPEN UP!” A voice boomed through the door.

Evander covered the distance between them in three steps. He grabbed Bentley protectively, pushing him away from the door.

Bentley had no time to say anything.

There was a pounding on the door again. Evander moved to the window, looking out. He cursed loudly, “Fuck, there are cars and men outside.”

Bentley peeked out. There were several black cars and men in guard uniforms with weapons drawn. Bentley felt like he was going to throw up. This isn’t how he wanted things to go down.

Something heavy slammed into the door and splintered the frame, the door hung drunkenly open. Several men entered the apartment, Bentley recognized only one: Jude Meyer, wearing a Kevlar vest and full uniform.

Everything seemed to happen at once then.

They had guns drawn.

Evander pushed Bentley behind his back, shielding him.

Bentley struggled to push around him, holding up his hands, yelling to Jude, “Stop, you said you wouldn’t hurt him!”

It took only an instant for Evander to process Bentley’s words and put the pieces together. He turned to Bentley, eyes hard with betrayal.

“Bentley, get away from him!” Jude yelled.

The order spurred Evander into action. He grabbed Bentley tighter, pulling him back to his chest. “Mine!” he shouted, with his serrated teeth bared.

Weapons raised.

“Evander, don’t do this.” Bentley pleaded, voice low. “They’re here to help. Everything’s going to be alright...”

There was a crack and Evander staggered slightly, his hold tightening painfully. Bentley looked back at him. A small black tranq dart was sticking above his gills.

“No!” Bentley yelled hoarsely.

Evander growled and snapped, eyes becoming unfocused. In seconds, his hold on Bentley relaxed and he staggered to his knees. Bentley tried to hold him up, but the trial’s body was too big, too heavy. Several guards rushed forward, pushing Bentley out of the way, securing Evander with plastic cuffs and rope.

The last thing 139C saw as he went under was Bentley being pulled into Jude Meyer’s uniformed arms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~