Veil of Secrets

Year m113, x116

In The Facility

As the room held its breath, an air of suspense enveloped it, the only sound being the gentle ticking of an antique clock. Zhiroki, Ramune, and Horatio exchanged knowing glances, each lost in their thoughts, cradled by the plush couch in a cocoon of uncertainty.

Zhiroki observes Illios and Albedo with keen interest as they address the unfolding issues. Illios, a touch concerned yet handling the tasks meticulously, and Shilona attentively monitors Alithini and C’s vitals. Elena waits patiently on Ramune’s desk. Simultaneously, Alithini and C explore the chambers of the Earthling subject, determined to rectify the previously encountered problem.

In the chamber,

Alithini: "Mr. C, how many years have you been in Mr. Hristos's service?"

C, slightly perplexed, replied, "Around 7 years, I suppose. But let's not dwell on that; just focus on resolving this before our subjects awaken."

Alithini: "First, we need to locate the damaged parts. With no light, the task becomes challenging. Illios, can you illuminate this space?"

Illios, responding through the earpiece, said, "Let me check. There's only one functioning light; make the most of it. Mr. C, please hold the torch while we work."

Alithini, still on the earpiece, added, "While you're at it, find the optimal route to reach the damaged areas and guide us flawlessly."

Illios: "Roger that. Albedo, lend me a hand; I'm having trouble pinpointing the damaged areas."

While the young protagonists navigate the mysteries of the facility, Hristos and Calloway observe from their car. Calloway, wearing an expression of irritation, inquires, "What's your play here? Share your secrets. You always manipulate things behind the scenes.

Hristos, smirking while monitoring via phone, responded, 'Ah, my dear friend, do you recall 15 years ago when Lorelei was pregnant with Nikolai's child? They approached me, desperate to save their unborn child from certain death during birth.'

Calloway, intrigued, replied, 'I remember. What about it?'

Hristos continued, 'That child was Alithini. I made a few genetic tweaks, collaborating with Seraphima, rendering his body subtly different from regular humans on the inside.'

Calloway's interest piqued, 'But he doesn't exhibit any abnormalities?

Hristos: "Ah, it seems we've arrived at the facility."

Calloway: "Oi, don’t dodge the question."

Hristos, impatiently: " Answers will be revealed in due time."

Hristos and Calloway stealthily enter the facility, their presence unbeknownst to anyone, heading straight for the control room. Upon entering, a collective sigh of relief washes over Zhiroki and Ramune.

Horatio, gently: "Welcome back, sir."

Zhiroki, puzzled: "Took you long enough. Now, if you don’t mind explaining…"

Albedo: "I'd love to hear your side, but time is short. The gases Mr. Ramune used are about to lose their effects. Please, get Alithini out of there."

Calloway: "No need to fret; the gas has another 30 minutes in it. Step aside; we'll handle the rest."

Hristos, smirking: "Hold on, Calloway. Let them take charge. Besides, I don't think they trust us just yet."

Illios, irritation etched on his face: "Yeah, how could we? You forced us to deal with something you don’t want to dirty your hands with."

Hristos, seriously: "Hey, hey, that’s disrespectful. Those aren’t mere test subjects…"

While words are exchanged, Alithini, on the other hand, skillfully locates and repairs the damage with C's assistance. Alithini, relieved, speaks through the earpiece, "Guys, I've got it sorted.

Illios, his voice crackling over the earpiece, urged, 'Okay, now get yourself out of there.'

Hristos, suddenly with tension etched on his face as he monitored the chamber's footage, declared urgently, 'If you don’t trust me, fine. At least let me help restore power to the emergency systems. Calloway, move quickly; time is slipping away!'

Illios, his curiosity piqued, asked in suspense, 'What do you mean, we're out of time?'

Hristos responded, 'Look closely at the camera feed. The subjects have awakened. If they fully regain consciousness, extracting your friends will be challenging. Hurry!'

Illios and Albedo step back, allowing Hristos and Calloway to take over. Meanwhile, inside the chamber, Alithini and C navigate through the darkness, urgency in every move.

Alithini, his voice tinged with fear, whispered, 'Mr. C, I think the subjects are awake...'

Guard C assured, 'Stick close; we're almost out. The boss is here too.'

Summoning his courage, Alithini presses on with C. Yet, their escape takes a perilous turn when one of the test subjects fully regains consciousness. It spots C and Alithini escaping. trapped for years and enraged by the feeling of despair, its hands transform into razor-sharp carbon crystals. Muscles bulging, it sprints towards Alithini with the bloodlust of a killer.

As this heart-pounding moment unfolds, Hristos and the team race against time to implement emergency supports. Hristos, reacting to the imminent danger on the footage, swiftly removes it from the main screen, skillfully encrypting it. A knowing glance passes between him and Calloway, who remains silent, recognizing the gravity of the situation.

In the heart-stopping moment, the awakened subject darts towards Alithini, swiftly slashing his right leg with razor-sharp hands. The cut, though not severing the leg, is deep; fragments of bones visible through the wound. Alithini's scream is muffled by C, who acts with lightning reflexes, guiding them both toward the elusive exit. Meanwhile, Hristos, aided by Calloway, successfully restores power to the emergency system.

As the suspenseful scene unfolds, an autonomous bot, dormant until now, spontaneously reactivates with calculated precision. The reanimated bot swiftly intervenes, executing a surprise attack on the subject. A syringe filled with a potent anesthetic pierces the veins in its neck, rendering the threat incapacitated.

As Hristos attempts to secure the chamber, preparing emergency bots to contain the subjects, a chilling realization strikes him—Alithini is injured. Without hesitation, he cuts the feed from the chamber, concealing the turmoil unfolding within. Without hesitation, he cuts the feed from the chamber, concealing the turmoil unfolding within. A mysterious smirk passes between Hristos and Calloway, their eyes holding unspoken secrets. The suspense builds, setting the stage for a riveting turn of events in this unfolding drama.

Calloway, with a sense of relief, declares, "The emergency systems are online, and the bots are back in operation. Soon, everything will go back to normal."

Shilona, her expressions marked with worry, interjects, "Mr. Hristos, it seems Alithini is in danger. His vitals are abnormal."

Hristos responds, "I don’t think so. They are not on any camera feeds, which means they have exited the chamber and are in the hallway to this room. Also, the emergency system is online, and the bots are doing their jobs perfectly. Most of the subjects are captured and taken to their respective places."

Shilona persists, "Something's off. His heart rate is racing, and there's an odd vulnerability to it. It's like he's in the middle of something extraordinary, possibly wounded. There's a touch of fragility to those beats that's hard to ignore. My guess is he's got himself a deep cut in his right leg, and now he's bleeding badly.”

Hristos, speaking to himself, thinks, (I knew she was talented, but figuring out that Alithini is wounded with just those stats! Seraphima really did give birth to an extraordinary child. Good thing I tweaked with her results at the academy; otherwise, who knows who would’ve tried to recruit her for their dirty works. Gotta contain her here. Otherwise, it will be difficult to keep watch on her.)

Shilona presses further, "What’s wrong? Why are you zoning out?" In her mind, she thinks, "He knows something happened in there. Gotta press him further."

Hristos deflects, "Nothing. My guess is he is scared. Don’t worry; C is there with him. He is a skilled fighter; you are worrying for no reason. When humans are scared, their heart rate act abnormal like this."

Shilona expresses concern, "Yes, I know that, but this is absurd. How can a person’s heart rate be 200!"

Hristos offers an explanation, "Maybe the device is malfunctioning. After all, these devices have been lying around for quite some time." In his mind, he wonders, "Why is C taking this long? I hid these matters from him, but he should be unfazed. Looks like he has lost his cool after all. A knows about these matters; maybe I will send him there to calm the situation here."

In the meantime, in the hallway to the control room,

Alithini and C exit the chamber without facing any more obstacles. Alithini sits on one side of the hallway with the help of C. C is a bit confused but keeps his cool. Alithini grunts but holds back a scream.

C, looking worried, says, "Let me apply some antiseptics and bandage the wound."

Alithini, grunting, responds, "No... no need. Just promise me one thing..."

C interrupts, "Hold it right there, young man. You won’t die because of this wound; I will stop the bleeding, and I don’t like drama much..."

Alithini, a bit agitated, grunts, "It’s not what you think. Just promise me you won’t tell anyone what you are about to witness."

C replies, "I can’t. I must report everything to the boss. Plus, he is watching anyway."

Alithini insists, "Look, if you don’t want the others to cause trouble for your boss, just keep quiet about this incident that’s about to happen."

C, with great anticipation, spectates as Alithini’s wound closes up on its own, leaving no sign except for the spilled blood on the floor.

C exclaims, "What the fuck!! How is this possible? How long have you been hiding this secret?"

Alithini calmly states, "It is how it is. Just don’t tell anyone, and could you help me wipe out the evidence?"

C agrees, "Sure."

Alithini and C proceed to wipe out the spilled blood.

Back in the control room,

Hristos and Shilona continue their argument. Suddenly, Elena interrupts them, saying, "Stop. I have something to show you."

Shilona asks, "What is it?"

Elena responds, "Calm down and look."

Elena shows a weird map-type thing.

Shilona says, "What is it?! Don’t interrupt me in the middle of…"

Elena interrupts, "Would it kill you to hear me out?"

Hristos says, "Let her speak first."

Elena continues, "This is the feed from the trackers I slipped on Alithini and Mr.C before they entered the chamber. And my trackers are not broken like theirs. It seems Mr.Hristos is telling the truth."

Shilona asks, "How so?"

Hristos thinks to himself, surprised, "Whoa, this girl. When did she put trackers? I was observing the whole time. Gotta be more cautious from now on."

Elena explains, "My trackers show GPS and some vital reports. According to them, they are fine and have made it to the hallway and are now making their way here. They should be here soon."

Hristos says, "See. I told you the truth."

Shilona, angrily, says, "Fine, I will trust you this time."

Elena, a bit suspicious of Hristos’s actions, pulls Hristos into a corner where no one will eavesdrop, asking some bluff questions. Elena, with seriousness on her face, asks, "Mr.Hristos, you are hiding something, I know that. Your devices aren’t broken; they gave out the correct data at first, then you tweaked with the output, right?"

Hristos, maintaining a serious demeanor, chuckles and remarks, "Well, it seems the veil has been lifted. Yes, you're correct. I did manipulate the stats on the screen, but only to ease Shilona's nerves. Yet, the lingering mystery remains: How did you manage to discreetly slip those trackers onto my watch without catching my notice? And more intriguingly, why did you choose not to unveil my secret?"

Hristos: Mesmerizing. You don’t have to worry about it now; time will reveal the truth. For now, lie low. I assure you won’t be disappointed. And you haven’t answered my question yet: why did you keep this secret from your dear friends?

Elena: Because I know you don’t mean any harm to us. I dug up some information on you last night. Judging by them, if you were to harm us, you would’ve done so yesterday.

Hristos was surprised and smiled enigmatically. "It seems your dear friend has returned from his voyage; you should rejoin them."

Alithini and C returned. They seemed unscathed to the others. Illios and Elena hugged Alithini while Albedo and Shilona observed him closely without giving away their composure.

As the reunited group shared a moment of relief, the joy of Alithini's safe return reflected in the smiles exchanged between Alithini, Illios, and Elena. Unspoken questions lingered in the air, leaving an aura of mystery. Albedo and Shilona, still observant, sensed that more secrets awaited revelation.

To be continued