Yoooooo I'm so sorry I haven't posted a story on here in literally months. I've been busy with school, which started up in September. Anyway, I know I start a lot of things and don't finish them, and for this story I'll try to update it at least once a week. I think I can do this.

Ya know, it's sorta cute that you guys still read my old stuff. Hah. Cringeworthy.

Anyway.

Hope you guys enjoy this.

A clearing was seen at the end of a thick, foreign forest.

Professor Membrane, as a scientist, was consumed by curiosity and ran towards it. He felt the night air on his skin, which would usually be thrilling and soothing at the same time, but something was terribly wrong with it. It was… too still. Where were the nighttime breezes that made his long coat flap as he ran? Where was the barking of foxes? The hooting of owls?

Instead, there was nothing, as if this were a cold vacuum instead of a forest.

Still, Professor Membrane ran towards the clearing.

Once he got there, he looked around. Something compelled him to explore, but still, a vibe radiated from this strange, vacant area. It was most definitely one of the most unpleasant vibes he had ever experienced. He hated it. Still, he had to keep walking, or else something even worse would happen. He just knew it. It was sickening.

Speeding his jog up to a running speed, he made his way through the treeless zone… before tripping over a large rock.

Professor Membrane yelped in agony. The rock was extremely hard, and quite large as well. Seriously, how'd he miss it? He grabbed his shin, which was bleeding profusely through the torn fabric of his pants leg.

Growling in frustration, the disgruntled professor hoisted himself up.

It was hard, though. He'd really busted up his leg. Warm blood dripped from the wound, streaming down his leg. Every step was agony, but he had to keep walking. There was something important he had to see.

Finally, after what seemed like at least an hour of walking, Professor Membrane squinted at something in the distance. Some kind of… cage or something? He approached it, and recoiled when he got close enough to discover it was something fermenting in a liquid of some kind. The creature was ugly— it looked like some kind of grey, wrinkly embryo. After a while, Professor Membrane gasped when it shifted slightly. It was… alive.

Mustering up courage, Professor Membrane pressed his hand up to the cold glass.

The creature's eyes snapped open. They were completely black in color, like a rodent's. It let out the most ear-piercing screech the professor had ever heard. It swam at his hand with rapid speed, went through the glass effortlessly, and it went up his arm.

A terrible pain wracked not only his arm but his entire body. The professor screamed and fell to the floor, writhing.

"Please…"

Professor Membrane woke with a start. The pain he had felt in his dream wasn't completely gone, but at least it was bearable. Groaning, he turned over and looked at the time. It was six in the morning; time for him to get to work.

He took a shower, got dressed,

And scurried out the door.

All day, something distracted him. The dream he had… it was just so bizarre. Never in his life had he had such a dream. Scientists were still not sure of why dreams happened, and he supposed this was evident. After all, his dream was beyond surreal. The part where the creature had… crawled up his arm or whatever the heck it did. That part was strange. Creepy almost.

Anyway.

He had to focus on what was important, and that was his work. He was handling some vials of actual small pox— a deadly disease that thankfully was wiped from existence many years ago thanks to the great medical advances of the professor's time. He did not want to be the person responsible for bringing back the dead virus.

Just as he was about to touch it, his hand jerked away, and pain, similar to the one that he had experienced in his dream, shot through it. He yelped, cradling his throbbing arm close to his chest. This was odd, to say the least. Could he have somehow damaged a nerve during his dream?

He tried again. Taking a deep breath, he reached for the vial again. The same thing happened, except this time, the pain was worse. He growled. He tried again, and the same thing happened, this time with even worse pain. Again. Again. AGAIN! AGH! AGAIN! He frowned. Perhaps what he had was akin to alien hand syndrome, where someone's hand developed a "mind of its own". This was odd, though. He'd been perfectly fine his whole life. He hadn't done anything to damage his nerves or anything. He just didn't understand. He took a deep breath.

One more time.

Professor Membrane reached for the vile.

This time, his hand flew back, throwing him to the ground with its momentum. He laid there as his whole body writhed, like in his dream. Pain shot through him. It was like someone was riding through him and whipping every pain receptor they could find as hard as they could.

The pain became too much for him, and he passed out.

"Dad," called a voice. Professor Membrane rubbed his eyes. His right arm… the one that was giving him trouble. He… could he move it?

Barely.

"Daaaaad!" the voice came again.

Professor Membrane tried moving the arm again. With a lot of effort, he could move his fingers, but definitely not easily.

"DAD!"

"What?" Professor Membrane answered in a somewhat irritated tone. He opened his eyes to see his son about three inches from his face. Gasping, he sat up quickly, knocking heads with his son. Professor Membrane grimaced.

"Oww…" Dib groaned, rubbing his forehead.

"Sorry."

"It's fine. Are you okay?"

Professor Membrane was about to question Dib until he discovered where he actually was: the hospital. "When did I get here?" Professor Membrane asked, looking around.

"Uhhh… they brought you here about ten minutes ago," Dib mused. "Apparently you passed out. You had a seizure or something. I don't know the full story. Why are you here, Dad?"

Professor Membrane shook his head. "I fainted, I guess. All I remember is being in a lot of pain. Where's your sister?" Professor Membrane looked around until he found Gaz standing in the corner. "Gaz?" Professor Membrane said.

Gaz's eyes widened. "Dad, I don't know what's going on with you," Gaz said. "But whatever it is, it's not good. I don't want… I don't want any part in it."

Professor Membrane stared at his daughter with a confused expression. "What in the world are you talking about?"

Gaz turned to Dib. "Can't you feel it? Dad just radiates negative energy. As soon as I walked in here, I felt like I needed to get outta here… I still do. I don't know what you are, 'Dad'; but you're definitely not completely you."

Professor Membrane stared at his daughter like she had completely lost her mind. "What do you mean? I just fainted. That's all. I—"

Before he could say another word, Gaz was out the door, glancing over her shoulder only briefly.

"Whoa…" Dib said. "What on earth is she going on about?"

Professor Membrane shrugged. "Apparently I emit negative energy or something. I don't even know." Professor Membrane rolled his eyes. He grew silent as a doctor walked in.

"Well, Professor," the doctor said. "There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with you. We've checked all vitals, preformed tons of tests, done scans— everything. We can assure you there is nothing wrong with you."

Professor Membrane looked at the doctor, confused. "If that's the case, then… what's causing me to behave in such an odd way? What caused this seizure-like episode today?"

The doctor simply shrugged. "That's a mystery," she said. "If anything else happens, please inform us immediately."

Professor Membrane got the okay to leave. Although he trusted the doctor, he couldn't shake this feeling that had settled deep in his stomach.

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was horribly, horribly wrong.