Arc 1: Genesis
As screams echoed in the tower, the only thing Harry could do was to stare at his own bloodstained hands and think to himself, Dad would hate me.
It all began that morning.
The sun was bright. No clouds in sight.
"So, it was you at the museum the other day? And no, Jason, Cronus is NOT a cool codename", said Harry on the phone as he lazily swiveled in his oversized chair.
At just 15, Harry looked more like the class president than the CEO of a multi-million dollar company. He had round glasses and black hair. And wore his signature black three piece suit on a white shirt.
He was sitting in a large, empty office on the top floor of his building.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Come in," said Harry.
His secretary John entered the office.
He looked like a humanoid llama.
He was an Anian.
Anians are another sentient species like humans that look like different animals in human form.
They are a rare species but commonly found on the continent of Aniscus (Pronounced as anish-scus) far West side of the Earth.
"Sir?" said John.
"I'll have to talk to you later, Jason," Harry said on the phone. "I gotta deal with these idiots right now," he whispered, cutting the call.
"What is it this time, John?" he rolled his eyes.
"He's not leaving, Sir. He says he wants the serum. But I keep telling him that his money isn't enough."
"Ugh, fine. Tell him I'm coming," Harry got off his chair and went to the waiting room at the base of his building.
"Didn't my men tell you to get lost?" Harry asked tauntingly.
"Cut the crap and get on with it! You know what I am here for!" barked Ben, a scruffy gym-built man who towered over others at 6'4". He wore old and smelly clothes, and looked like he hadn't taken a shower for weeks.
"Don't make a scene here, and I'm not selling it to random hobos with no cash."
"Watch your tone, kid! And I got money."
"You know what, since you're that desperate, I'll accept your offer. But this'll only happen once. You pay full next time. Now follow me quietly."
They took some stairs down the basement.
He closed the door behind them, and barricaded it.
Harry turned on a dim, blue light which revealed what looked like a dirty chemistry lab.
Ben frowned, "What the hell is this?"
"If you don't like it, you're welcome to leave," answered Harry in a belittling way. "But this is what illegal drug labs look like."
"Who the hell do you think you're talking to, you little punk? You think you can talk to me that way? I know people. And if I tell them, then these people will slaughter your entire family overnight," he said, grabbing Harry by the collar.
"Big talk for someone that can't function without needles. And by the way, I don't even have a family."
Harry turned to the lab table and began preparing the serum. But due to his rush, he didn't follow the usual process.
Weird, he thought. It's usually blue instead of gray, but this jerk won't know the difference anyways.
He strapped Ben to a wooden chair, filled up four syringes and injected them one by one in his arms.
Ben screamed.
It wasn't like the usual groans of Harry's clients. It was brutal.
This seemed unusual for a man like this.
Something had gone wrong.
He was in excruciating pain.
"Sto-Stop it! Stop it, damn you!" he screamed.
Harry shoved a red vial down his throat.
"This is a neutralizer. It should stop your pain. You wanted steroids and you got them. Now be a big boy and stop screaming," Harry patted his back.
He started screaming louder.
Something is wrong. This isn't normal, Harry panicked.
What do I do now! My staff is gonna hear this and find out, He broke a sweat.
The employees of Harry Co on the floors above could hear the screams now. So did Francis Beckman, the head of security.
So he, along with the rest of the security personnel reached the basement, but to their surprise, the door was barricaded.
They shot down the door and made their way in.
Francis had seen horrors in his life.
He had fought a war 30 years ago.
The kind of war that leaves your hands shaking long after it ends.
But even that hadn't prepared him for what he saw in the basement.
He froze in fear.
Him and the other guards saw Ben strapped to a chair. Growing.
His muscles were growing grotesquely, his bones were cracking and stretching and worst of all, his face was changing.
The combination of the faulty steroid serum and the neutralizer produced a reaction that nobody quite understood.
Ben's body doubled in size. The leather straps snapped. His tank top ripped. Fur burst through his skin.
His body was morphing.
His hands and feet morphed into claws. His face elongated into a muzzle. His teeth sharpened. His height grew past 12 feet.
This isn't normal, It's a scientific breakthrough! thought Harry. He's changed species! From Homo Sapien to Anio Sapien, he's an Anian now. And not just any Anian, but a monstrously huge one at that!
"You are a true Beast", whispered Harry as he felt proud.
"Open fire!" commanded Francis to the rest of his men. "We have to kill this damn monster."
They started firing but it was in vain.
Instead, it aggravated the Beast.
He tore through them one by one, brutalizing them all.
Harry watched, frozen in fear as he realized the mistake he made. He had given power to the wrong person.
"Hey, punk! This drug is better than I thought! I finally have what I always wanted, and that was to be the strongest. Stronger than anyone else. And for that, I won't kill you," said the Beast in his now deepened voice.
"This one is specially for you, Harry Hex," He picked up a guard and ripped him apart.
Tears came to Harry's eyes.
What the hell have I done!? I'm a disgrace to society. He's gonna kill everyone now, he started bawling his eyes out.
The Beast then tore through floors, and people alike.
Killing every one he saw.
The Beast climbed to the top of the H-Tower, where a huge white "H" was mounted.
He climbed it and howled, letting the world know he exists.
Going through his mind were memories of his childhood.
Memories of his drunk father who used to beat him.
Memories of his school where he was always bullied.
Memories of how the world ignored him.
He was always the weak one.
The one to be picked on.
He always just wanted to be seen and heard.
He was now a monster, but one nobody could ignore.
As screams echoed in the tower, the only thing Harry could do was to stare at his bloodstained hands and think to himself, Dad would hate me.
The events that took place that day shook the world to its core.
What followed next,
was a massacre.