[Memories Loading..]
A five-year-old girl seems worried. She's in a dark, gloomy room. She's trembling, softly speaking.
"Nice, are they gonna hurt us?"
There's someone else with her – a seven-year-old boy. He's concerned about her. His face is bathed with cold sweat. He holds her tight in his arms, as they sit on the cold floor. Their clothes are soiled and they look pale. His shaking voice pierces through the eerie silence occupying the room, as he responds to her queries, like a mother cheering up her child.
"Don't worry, Fionna. Everything will be alright, okay!"
[Blip.. blip..]
There's a sound from the floor — like a liquid dripping. It's rhythmic — maybe the roof is damp? The boy attempts to warm the young girl, with his entire body.
"It's cold here, isn't it, Fionna?"
"But don't worry, big bro will take good care of you."
The boy speaks out with a warm tone, though his teeth are chattering, and his voice is quivering.
Suddenly, a door slides open at their front, accompanied by a fuming hiss. Three men in white walk in from the blinding light pouring into the gloomy room from behind the door. They seem to be researchers.
Among the three, one is slim; one is skin and bones, anxiously fidgeting. He seems a little older than the other two. The last is huge with a belly protruding beneath his white lab coat. He is rowdy, uttering careless words, making a show of an entrance.
"Hello! Your best friends are back. Did you miss us?"
Nonchalant in his stance, he opens his hairy arms while speaking. In his eyes, an expression of malice resides, supported by a stretched grin on his bearded face.
"Tsk! Rowdy as always"
The older researcher exclaims, fixing his medical goggles at his temples.
"Silence, you two! Let's be quick."
The two researchers fall quiet under the imposing tone of the slim researcher. His voice sounds mature — heavy with echoes amplified due to the hollow room's nature.
The chamber is finally revealed: a complete cube, painted in a dull grey color. Nothing occupies it except a table, streaked with blood-red fluid draining down its side.
Without warning, the slim researcher grabs the young girl's left arm. He yanks her away from the boy, who struggles desperately — despite his frail condition — to hold her back.
The frightened girl cries out, wincing in pain as she resists the researcher's grip, clinging to the boy's right arm.
"No! Let go.. Nice, help me!"
Tears stream down her cheeks as she squeezes her eyes shut.
Traumatized, Nice's eyes widen, pupils constricted. Rage and fear surge through him as he grips Fionna's arm with both hands.
"Hey, let go of her! She hasn't done anything wrong!"
The careless researcher reacts violently, delivering a heavy kick straight into the boy's abdomen.
"Quit whining, already!"
His tone grows harsher as the blow lands.
"Just shut up!"
[Oompf!]
Nice spits blood, choking briefly. Pain overwhelms him as he collapses onto the cold floor — yet he refuses to release Fionna's arm.
The oldest researcher stands off to the side, hands trembling at shoulder height as he witnesses the scene from a distance. The careless researcher continues stomping on the boy's upper body, each strike forcing a sharp breath from Nice's lungs.
"See, the more you insist, the longer it will hurt.."
His face, slowly revealed by shifting light, twists into a horrifying smile stretching in a grotesque 'V' from ear to ear.
".. and you know we don't like hurting you, right?"
Teeth clenched, Nice endures the beating. Rage fades into despair as tears well in his eyes.
"Please, let her go!"
[Sobbing]
Behind the scenes, Fionna's cries resonate.
Nice's grip weakens under the relentless assault. His bruised body lies limp on the floor while the careless researcher continues. Suddenly, Nice surges with desperate strength, flailing wildly as the researchers try to restrain him, their oversized hands pressing down on his small shoulders. His face is pale, marred with bruises, tears, and mucus. His eyes remain wide — pupils dilated, revealing a hollow emptiness.
A strange smile creeps onto his lips.
"I know, take me instead! Yes, take me!"
Fionna's fading screams deepen the despair carved into his face.
"Argh! You can't do that, bastards!"
His arms were twisted behind his back by the two researchers.
Annoyed by the insult, the hairy researcher lifts his knee and slams a brutal kick on Nice's ear.
"Argh! Shut up, damn brat!"
[Thud!]
Blood seeps through Nice's nostrils and ears. His hearing distorts — voices become muffled as consciousness slips away. The panicking older researcher stutters in anxiety,
"You.. you meathead! What have you done?!"
With discomfort in his tone, the aggressive researcher explains himself.
"I.. I couldn't have known he'd succumb.."
Controlling his anxiety by fidgeting with his fingers, he looks down at the boy and mutters,
".. I mean he survived until now, right..?"
The slim researcher exhales sharply and speaks with authority as he walks out, dragging Fionna — still screaming — with him.
"Call in the medics."
The other two researchers exchange glances for a while before turning back to Nice.
Meanwhile Nice — drifting towards unconsciousness — hears the muffled voices, and Fionna's scream fades into isolation.
"Nice.. Nice help me! You promised me, Nice."
Lying motionless, he forces her name out with his final breath.
"Fio..nna..a.."
His eyes close beneath damp strands of hair. The lights dim, dissolving into darkness.
...
Nice falls into a coma, but XN snaps awake.
He jerked upright, gasping as though dragged from underwater. His eyes were wide with terror, heart pounding violently against his chest. Each breath came heavier than the last, choking with dyspnea.
Bracing his right elbow against his knee, he rested his forehead on his clenched fist.
"What was that?"
With a reassuring tone, he gasped out,
"It was.. just a dream."
He leaned back against the counter behind him. Still dazed, he extended his left arm instinctively to steady himself — stopping a fall.
Then he froze.
How did he brace himself with his left arm?
Dread coils in his stomach as he hesitates to look.
"Wait.. it can't be.."
Through his wet hair, an obsidian black thumb presses against the counter. His heart throbbed even faster as the left arm gradually revealed itself — attached to his left shoulder. The arm was filled with runes, tinted with a faded purple.
Stunned, XN touched the limb with his right hand, examining its structure with cold, calculating eyes.
It was the arm from the shelf.
Staring at the shelf — now void of the arm — he wondered.
"How.. how could this be?"
XN knew better than that nothing was random, out of the great walls. His right hand draped his face, as he struggled with an acute migraine forcing him to recall pieces of the dream he had.
"Argh! This expression.. I've seen this before."
Memories rapidly flickered from one scene to the other — replaying his dream. With every sequence, XN had the sensation of missing an essential point at the price of unbearable migraines that intensified in the course of his illumination: First, the distressed Nice warming Fionna; then the rage in his eyes when she's taken away; his desperate face. As Nice's eyes were closing, XN's sight faded into darkness.
Then a last image popped up— the silly smile on Nice's face. With the latter, the pieces of the puzzle fell in place. Bags formed underneath his swollen eyes while his arms fell freely.
A screeching voice mocked in the background.
"0.01% huh? hahahaha.."
In the echoes of the laughter that lingered, an obvious conclusion was triggered.
"So that's what it is. Interesting."
XN had no memory of his earlier life, but the probability was high that the memory was attached to the arm — just like the dream.
Satisfied, he smiled faintly and headed towards the stairs leading to the upper floor — the lab — leaving behind the lower chamber. Its surfaces were now rusted beyond repair. The lights dim, and the purple fluid on the counter outshined the obscurity. Though his steps pounded heavily with the weight of his injured body, his confidence was restored.
He was certain he would 'devour' his former encounter in the lab.
Unfortunately, things didn't go his way. The lab was in ruins and the monster vanished without a trace. Caught between disappointment and reassurance, he laughed recklessly before collapsing to his knees, tears swelling in his right eye as he sobbed.
"I'm still alive. I'm still.. alive. I can't believe it."
The battle was over for the moment, but the ship remained a nest of danger. He knew better that his state wouldn't be of much assistance. He was tired, thirsty and hungry. He had spent nearly twelve hours in the ship and nighttime was the active hour in the wastelands for the 'vampires.' It was evidence that someone would find the ship and XN knew it.
"If someone finds me here, I'll have to survive a second wave. I might not be fit for that right now."
Gradually, XN regained himself and with his situational analysis complete, he spoke calmly, matching his current demeanor,
"It's true. Seen by one means watched by many."
Behind a broken pillar, a silhouette blended with the shadows watching as XN exited the ship through the mighty door.
As soon as he left, it giggled with a feminine tone.
In the corridors, XN walked cautiously, careful to make the least possible sound. Behind one of the large smoked glass windows lay a hall unlike the others — more desks, relatively spacious. The layout made it look like a spaceship cafeteria.
"Maybe I can find something to eat.. and maybe some water."
The door was open. So he walked in and searched the counter and shelf behind, where he found a packet of dried meat. The brand was unknown to him. In the refrigerator, a single bottle of water — once more, the brand was unknown to him. But that wouldn't matter.
"I guess it's ride or die."
At the right end of the counter, an old book was laid. XN glanced at its brown leather cover for a while from the corners of his eyes before reaching for it with his right arm.
"It seems to be a journal."
On the first page, he softly read the boldly written name — triggering an image from his memory.
"Eres! Could this belong to him?"
Caught by the haste of the potential danger, he took the journal along with the foodstuffs, and walked away.
Finally out of the massive metallic labyrinth, XN had to face the wastelands anew. The temperatures at night were at extreme poles. The air was more humid and he could hear sounds approaching the ship from his Southwest.
"Guess I was right. I'm glad I went north, though."
His sight completed his speech as he stared at his left hand.
Scavengers migrated from West to East, following the traces of the inconsistent humidity. Alert, once more, he traveled south towards his container.
If the sun wasn't a challenge at night, the wind was more turbulent. Tornadoes and tempests were frequent, and in areas where they passed through, a blinding environment of dust impregnated with ferrous substances flooded. A situation XN was now confronted with.
Poor visibility was not the only issue. The ferrous particles had an unhealthy effect on the scavengers, which could be concerning in the long run. Afraid he might not be immune, XN shielded his airways with his damaged Anti-Radiation Cloak — his ARC.
The deeper he went south, the stronger the winds became.
"If this is what I think, then.."
At every step, the wind wiped out his footprints instantly. It became obvious to him that a whirlwind headed south.
".. what do I do now?"
In his thoughts, the vibration of the sandy ground progressively magnified. He could feel the waves climbing his knees, paralyzing him.
"No. I got it all wrong.."
His face was slightly twisted, hit by the particles which became violently excited with the approaching reality– the whirlwind wasn't heading south.
".. it's heading towards me!"
With each distance covered, closing up with XN who stayed frozen in the danger, the concerns amplified. The wind was more violent and nature bent to its command, urging the climate to obey. Storms crowned the growing whirlwind and lightning split the sky. Rapidly, the dust cloud eclipsed the stars.
Under the pressure, XN clenched his teeth, with his jaws tightly locked and his voice intonated in compressed frustration,
"A tempest.. that's my supper?! Seriously!"
At the moment, all he could think of was how to flee. His cold sweat was instantly carried away by the turbulent wind — his hair, bending to the spiral orientation of the wind.
"Damn it! Not again! It feels just like.."
In his headspace, he realized the recurrent pattern of frustration and confessed the way he felt at the moment was similar to what he felt.
".. in the lab"
A deep voice doubled his conclusion.
XN heard it. It was loud and clear enough to be real, yet so intimate that it felt internalized. His eyes widened once more.
"I am quite disappointed. All that big talk and that's it?"
The deep voice pinched into a high pitch, mockingly conveying XN from his mind.
"What.. what are you?"
XN was frustrated. Was someone watching him from the spinning sands— or was it from within? He anxiously moved his head and eyes, hoping to identify the intruder.
"Does it matter more than your survival?"
The voice mocked XN who clenched his hands into fists.
"C'mon, don't be mad. I'm just being realistic. Besides, you already know the answer to your question."
The mocking high-pitched voice incrementally returned to a deep voice, imposing its aura which gradually escaped from XN's left arm — dark obsidian with weakly pulsing purple lights. The arm seemed to be bathed in a galaxy-dark shadow, almost like black matter, and fine lines stretched from the shadow as waves. The deep voice spoke again,
"Open your eyes, reality is often vetted in lies."
In the momentum, the moment was not ideal to settle conflicts. Rapidly, XN began to sympathize with the voice.
"What do you mean?"
Trying to process the information, he focused even deeper through the tempest. His eyes began to glimmer with purple lights. His focus intensified and the constricted vessels became visible on his temples, and down his left eye. As though every fibre of his face gathered to assist his eyes.
With a blink of the eye, the tint of the atmosphere was filled with purple, the winds were dark and white, and far behind the monochromatic chaos, a long silhouette gradually differentiated into individual bodies — all moving behind the monochromatic winds. In their red hue, XN could observe their hearts pounding behind ferrous particles rapidly floating past his sight, leaving monochromatic traces of the wind.
As the shapes gradually took form, XN's left eye gradually imbued with the shadow-like aura. His brows pinched his forehead, as he remained calm in his analysis. With his breath accompanying his words, a second intonation deepened his statement in synergy,
"I see it."