Dr. Sylvester, also known as Doc Chop, gazed upon Boston Harbor. Soon his cybernetic research would be taken to the next level, and he hoped that his daughter’s new playmate would fill in those gaps. A wave of exhilaration overcame him. The anticipation was almost too much to bear, but he contained himself. He knew that looking at his watch would not change anything, but he looked anyway. Nikolai was late and his daughter, Anya, was nowhere to be found. He chided himself for giving her too much control of his research.
I must be getting soft.
Moments later, he directed his attention to the whining sound that could only be a boat motor. He accessed his enhanced eye and increased magnification by over 200%. Anya stood as a man steered the boat toward shore. Sylvester strode down the pier toward the dock slip. He could sense something was off. Anya’s posture was rigid, and her eyes were downcast. Nikolai was a shadowy figure, impossible to read. Sylvester was a master of body language, but he couldn’t discern Nikolai’s intentions.
“Good afternoon, Doctor,” Nikolai said, greeting him with a grin.
“Spare me the pleasantries, Nikolai,” Sylvester replied with a scowl. “What is the meaning of this delay?”
Nikolai shrugged nonchalantly. “I had some business to attend to. You know how it is.”
Dr. Sylvester felt the anger boiling inside him. Nikolai was testing his patience on purpose. “I know exactly how it is, Nikolai. And I’m growing tired of your games. You promised me results, and I haven’t seen a single one.”
Nikolai’s grin turned into a smirk. “Results take time, Doctor. You can’t rush perfection.”
Sylvester was about to retort when Anya interrupted, her voice tense with urgency. “Father, I need to speak to you. It’s important.”
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Sylvester turned to her, his anger momentarily forgotten. “What is it, Anya? Is everything all right?”
Anya hesitated, glancing at Nikolai before answering. “It’s about Meeka. I... I think Nikolai had something to do with her disappearance.”
Sylvester’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of Meeka’s name.
“What do you mean? You ended poor Meeka, my dear.”
“It’s her head. I think he has stolen it.”
Doc Chop remembered that day well. Moments after Anya decapitated Meeka, her head had gotten lost in the crowd. That was, until the EMP went off. Then it was sheer pandemonium.
He narrowed his eyes at Nikolai, who seemed unfazed by the accusation.
“What do you know about Meeka, Nikolai?” Sylvester asked, his voice dangerously low.
Nikolai chuckled, his eyes glinting with amusement. “Meeka? I don’t know anything about her. Maybe her head just ran away with the cow that went over the moon,” Nikolai said, chuckling.
Sylvester could feel the rage building inside him. He knew Nikolai was lying, but he didn’t have any proof. He turned to Anya, who looked at him expectantly.
“Father, I saw her head in a jar. We were coming back from dinner, and there it was.”
“She doesn’t know what she saw. I have many jars in my lab. Do you want to see what I can do or not?”
Sylvester nodded, his mind already working on a plan. He couldn’t let Nikolai get away with whatever he had done to Meeka. He would play along for now.
“Anya, I need you to assist with Nikolai’s experiments,” Sylvester said, his voice firm.
Anya gave her father a quizzical look.
“You will be his assistant, and you will report back to me when everything is ready.”
Nikolai raised an eyebrow, but his smirk remained in place. “Are you sure about that, Doctor? Anya doesn’t strike me as the type who can handle the kind of experiments I have in mind.”
Sylvester narrowed his eyes at Nikolai. “My daughter is more capable than you give her credit for.”
Anya looked at her father with a mixture of surprise and gratitude. “Thank you, Father. I won’t let you down.”
Nikolai shrugged, his smirk still present. “Suit yourself. I’ll need both of you in my lab tomorrow at noon. Don’t be late.”
With that, Nikolai turned and walked away, disappearing into the shadows of the pier. Sylvester watched him go, his mind already working on a plan. Anya would assist Nikolai and report back to Dr. Sylvester. He would then figure out how much skill Nikolai really had. Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day.