Futuristic Darling in EDEN

[Entity.Eclypse]

Herm.

 

[Entity.Eclypse]

• Plot
• Achilles
• Abysra

• Earth 2983
  In the beginning we expected it, they fanned the flames until it had grown into
  a raging and uncontrollable force. Why we didn't prepare to combat it, to suffocate the fire, god doesn't even know. The world isn't sound.
  If anything it's been twisted, morphed, into something it never should've become. Yet here we stand...
  decimated by the judgement passed to us. We fed their desires and now for that...
  We Suffer.
  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
  
  Silence. For eight hundred years the bunker had remained in silence, shut off from the world to keep it's 'contents' safe. The new world had taken it's toll on the exterior of the building, foliage and debris littered the area around it. Whatever supports remained for the unit had been buried, sunken into the fertile soil below. Ashes and deep, inhuman, markings had turned the fabricated white into multiple shades of brown and gray. No light came from the building, it seemed to have died along with most of humanity. The inside however had another story to tell, beyond the tightly sealed entrance rested a corridor. There was nothing beyond this however, strictly a widened tube hallway. The building within had been kept pristine, save for a few hundred years of dust being compiled upon every nook and cranny of the building.
  
  The left wall held lockers, each numbered off to represent what rested on the other side of it. Cryopods, Thirteen to be exact, most of which held the few survivors of the old generation. A singular click was heard before red-lights tore through the darkness, despite being dim they showcased everything the room had become. The pods themselves had begun to thaw, the icy layer that coated the interior swiftly began to melt away. Soon appearing nowhere except the edges of the glass, this was accompanied by a loud hiss signalling from all pods. The dust outside had become disturbed and flew into the air, a vent began to whirl at this and had started cleansing the air and filtering the dust outside. A few lights activated from the exterior of the building, as the last remaining power with the contraption went to use.
  
  Almost as if it were on a timer, each locker had come to life, the pin-pads
  illuminating a brilliant blue as they came to life. "Cryopods 1103X through 1115N shutting down. Error." The voice spoke before crackling off into silence, the years of dormancy likely wearing on it's systems. The dust had quickly been cleansed from the air as the pods would then awaken it's inhabitants.
  
  Awakening: QizPizza Yennie Mena Maki CerpinTaxt Nadja Kramer Radio_Rat66.6 Wandering Grim Hollow Hououin Kyouma
  In The World: Crimrose OddLung GhastlySquash Petroshka
  ​
• Achilles​

  Cold.... Why was it so cold? He knew they had been put into the cryopods and all but it felt unnaturally cold all of a sudden, maybe he just didn't realize how cold it was going to be when they were first put into the chambers. Now however, he was completely aware of the situation. Inhaling had startled him slightly as the cold air filled his lungs, though he merely shivered at the feeling of ice practically churning through his veins. The red light shone through the thick glass before him, so without further questioning he reached over and pressed the manual release button within the pod. The locks had been undone beforehand and without a moments hesitation the glass window slid upwards and disappeared into a space above. A thin mist exited with the raising sheet, and without further adieu Achilles exited the pod.
  
  Looking around he noticed that the others seemed to be 'thawing out' as well, yet he happened to be the first one out. "It's quiet..." He spoke softly before moving to open the locker in front of his pod. The key-pad letting off small electronic beeps as each number of his passcode were entered in, at the end a single yet bold metallic click sounded off. The key-pad disappeared and a green light appeared above the handle, opening the door he began to collect the items within. The items contained in these lockers varied from person to person, but there was a similarity in all of them. Ignoring his personal possessions for now the male removed a sling pack from the locker, this was the basic things that the SEEDs were provided if they were in an undesirable location. The bag contained basic medical supplies, two bottles of filtered water, a weeks worth of rations, a flare gun with three shots, and finally a fire-starting kit.
  
  He wasted no time in putting it on, and grabbing his glasses from within the small containment unit. He didn't bother taking them out of the case since he didn't really need them, honestly they just looked nice and he wanted them and as such he got them. They were placed within a side-pocket of his bag before the locker was shut and he turned to the other cryopods, "Looks like we're needed again." A small smile claimed his facial features at the idea of such, though upon further inspection he noticed a few of the cryopods were empty. He could've sworn Monica was in one of them, for now he didn't let that idea disturb him and instead prompted to move down towards the exit and see what was going on.
  Interactions: N/A
  Mentions: GhastlySquash
  
• ⏃⏚⊬⌇⍀⏃​

  Crumbling supports gave way as concrete chunks rained down to the space below. The desolate silence had quickly been interrupted as the a group of flying creatures screeched away, each taking to the sky swift as their wings could manage. One had been unlucky however, it's wing was trapped beneath the fallen rubble. It's voice was shrill as its struggled escape worked to no prevail, Another form moved within the darkness. This one was larger and quicker, in a matter of moments it had come upon the small flying creature and tore it from the stone. A singular wing remained in it's place as warm blood hit the ground in a slow drip. Abysra had made short work when it came to killing the creature, attempting to be somewhat merciful to the unlucky one, she made short work of the snack before leaving the remainder of the corpse behind. The small scavengers ensure that it was handled hastily.
  
  A red tail moved side to side, wriggling as the girl maneuvered through the ruins once more. She knew this place well and in no time had gotten to a higher level once more, this was where she lived. It wasn't the most 'civil' of things, rather it was something convenient for the girl. "Two fliers and one scurrier." she remarked with a rather satisfied tone. From here she watched the land outside, looking through a gap in the long-since repaired wall. "I wonder if something different will happen today." She sighed while watching a few of the kinder critters consume the grass to the side of the trade path.
  Interactions: N/A
  Mentions: N/A
  

 

[Radio_Rat66.6]

An older android stood in slot in the wall designed just for it. She had a calm expression on her face as though she were sleeping. A thick layer of dust covered her from centuries of dormancy. She had been placed there to lead the humans through the world they awoke in. She would be their guide and protector to ensure the human race once again came out on top of the world. They equipped her with the adequate knowledge to heal and protect them all.
​

Medical Defensive Droid System Model 2198 Reboot
RESTARTING SYSTEMS...
RESTART IN PROGRESS...
TEMPERATURE REGULATOR FAILURE...
UNABLE TO REBOOT PROPERLY...
PREMATURE RESTART...

Sera came to life with a start. Immediately there were warnings and red lights. Her Temperature Regulator failed to reboot, but the other thing that went off was the cryopods. They came to life. The humans were waking up. She looked around for a moment, ignoring the blaring her ear from her warning. Help the humans first, then herself.
The android launched into action, fixing the panels to aid in the awakening of the humans. Coming straight out of it may cause shock to their bodies so they needed to be gradually warmed back up. She typed quickly, setting in place the ventilation system to release warm air in the cryopods. She looked around, making sure that none of the humans got out early. "Attention! Please stay in the cryopods!" She announced to the humans in case any were thinking of coming out. "Only emerge when you have been successfully warmed up!"

Addressing: QizPizza Yennie Maki Mena CerpinTaxt Nadja Kramer Wandering Grim Hollow Hououin Kyouma Entity.Eclypse ​

 

[QizPizza]

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EDEN OS Code by QizPizza (System User: Chang, C.)

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[div class=Receive]Situation Report #001-006

SEED X342-NL

Health: 57%

Name: Cornelius "Corey" Chang
Physical Status: Broken Ribs, Three Cuts, Cryo-Sickness
Location: EDEN Bunker 14 - Cafeteria
Interacting With:
Mentioned:

SEED X412

Health: 30%

Name: Korinthia "KC" Chang
Physical Status: Deep Shoulder Wound, Multiple Bruises
Location: EDEN Bunker 14 - Cafeteria
Interacting With:
Mentioned:

Subject NG-001

Health: 38%

Name: Kenneth "Kenny" Ashikaga
Physical Status: Concussion, Claderol Overdose
Location: EDEN Bunker 14 - Cafeteria
Interacting With:
Mentioned:

Corey was awake. Then he felt the cold and fell asleep. In what felt like a dreamless minute where he was completely numb, he awoke again, feeling the biting cold on his cheeks. What the heck? He just went to sleep. Five more minutes. Wait...no... what's that sound?

As Corey blinked awake, he could hear the klaxon blaring faintly from outside the cryopod. He began to move his arms to open the pod’s emergency release, but he was still too lethargic to do anything. The SEED could only wait as the defrosting process completed and the pod began to hiss open. Immediately, Corey's senses were assaulted by the sudden change in environment. His freezing skin was met with the warm air outside the pod. His ears ringing from the deafening klaxon. His lungs burned as he inhaled oxygen and the liquid in his lungs caused him to begin coughing. His vision was blurry from his lack of glasses and blinded further by the flashing red lights. The kid suddenly felt his gag reflex working, as the bile in his stomach mixed with the fluid he hacked up from his lungs. Corey promptly collapsed to his knees and threw up onto the floor. This was the single worse experience of his life.

As the teenager was suffering, he didn't notice the figure behind approach , grab him by the shoulders and began to pull him back up to his feet. Dazed, Corey couldn't make out the words shouted by the person behind him. Whoever the person was, they sensed Corey's clear agony and began to guy him to a nearby chair. Several minutes later, his view of the world became far more coherent. He was now able to hear the distinctly feminine voice calling out to him.

“Hey, dude, are you okay now? What the hell went wrong with your awakening sequence? You look like crap.”

“I'm mostly okay now. Ugh...my head still hurts. Can you find my glasses for me?”

“Sure, sure. What's your number?”

Corey remembered the code number assigned to him by all the EDEN employees. It might as well have been his name for all they cared. He was just a number to them. Another statistic. “X342-NL.”

“What kind of a number is that? Normal SEEDs don't have letters in their names.”

“Well, I'm not normal, am I? What's your number?”

“X412.”

“Another X-series SEED? I thought they were all gone.”

“Well clearly, they haven't, or else the two of us won't be here. Your glasses.”

This was a shocking revelation to say the least. All this time, Corey thought that he was the last of his series and that he was last person alive who knew that particular moral oversight by EDEN. The blurry figure handed Corey his glasses. The SEED gladly put them on and allowed himself to readjust his vision to see who his saviour was. “Thanks, 4…”

Corey was speechless as he looked at the figure in front of him. Standing not even a foot away was a tall Asian girl with hip-length black and ash hair. That was not the part that took him by surprise. What took him by surprise was the skin tight pilot suit she was wearing. Sure, Corey had seen countless female SEEDs in their suits, but there was something about X412 in particular that caught his attention. The synthetic material hugged her figure flawlessly, accentuating every single curve, from her breasts to her hips to her legs. Everything about this girl screamed perfect to him.

“You done staring yet?”

Corey snapped out of his trance and at the girl's eyes, only to be transfixed once again. They were a beautiful golden hue that looked like they could've carried all the warmth in the world, only to be locked behind the glimmer on the surface.

“I know it's been 800 years since you've seen a girl, but seriously, man. If you want to get with me, let's do it after we figure out what the heck is going on.”

Corey shook his head and began to stand up, getting used to putting his weight on his legs once again. He took a few shaky steps with the help of X412 before he could walk on his own. The two SEEDs made their way to the nearest information terminal. Corey was the first to get the console, surprisingly, and punched in his access codes. Thanks to Sal for giving him moderator access to EDEN files. Corey was met with a flashing red notification as soon as he logged in. “Lockdown Protocol initiated: Intruder detected in Block 3. Moderator access required to lift lockdown.”

“An intruder? What the hell? I thought this was supposed to be a secure bunker.”

“It's been 800 years, something obviously happened in the meanwhile. The notification was dated an hour ago, so whoever broken in might still be here.”

“Can you lift the lockdown? I'm going to deal with this intruder.”

X412 went over to the locker next to the cyropod marked with her number. Funny. Her pod was right next to Corey's. Weren't they supposed to be placed in pods according to their numbers? Maybe it has something to do with their special numbers...

“We don't know who or what the intruder is. For all we know, it could be a small Kaiju.”

“Like I give a damn. We're going to investigate it and kill it if needed”

Corey turned around when he heard the distinctly sound of a gun being charged. There X412 was, with a carbine in her hands. Something about that made her even more attractive to Corey. On her back was a small supply pack standard issued to all SEEDs, but where the heck did she get a gun???

“There's still a pistol in my locker. I hope you know how to use it.”

Corey nodded his head and lifted the lockdown for their Block. The klaxon stopped blaring and normal the lights came back on. Whatever got into the bunker, they would have to deal with now.

He then went to his locker to take out his own supply pack and slung it over his shoulder. Groping at the back of his locker Corey discovered that his helmet was somehow packed the locker. He pulled it out spun it around so that he stared straight at the visor. As he did, something metallic fell out and hit the ground by his feet. The teen set the helmet on top of his locker and knelt down to pick up what fell out. It was a necklace with a crucifix and a ring on its chain. Sal's necklace and his sister's gift to him. Korinthia. Corey was determined to find his last remaining family member and get some answers. He took the ring off and slid it onto his right hand, and then put the necklace on. The teen moved on to search his locker further when X412’s called out from outside the room with the cyropods.

“Hey! Are you done jacking off yet, 342? We gotta investigate the intrusion.”

Corey put the helmet on and scrambled to X412’s locker for the handgun and spare magazines. He really hoped he wouldn't have to use it on any human. He also hopes that they wouldn't meet a Kaiju, because he seriously doubted these weapons would be able to harm something like that. The male SEED ran after the girl with gun in hand.

Kenny

Kenny slammed his fists against the metal door as the sirens rang out. He cussed loudly as he began to curl up into ball on the floor. No. No! NO! He wasn't going to be trapped AGAIN! He had gotten out a few years ago, but now, he was trapped again! Was this his fate? To rot in a cage for the rest of his life? Anger surged through him as he got back up. He was going to get out of this room if it was the last thing he did.

The young man grabbed a nearby chair and brought against the solid metal door with clang. He repeated this several more times until the chair was bent beyond recognition. He screamed in frustration as he threw the mangled steel furniture against a table, knocking it over. Damn this door. Damn the siren! Damn this bunmer!!! Kenny went and overturned several more tables in anger. All I want was some medicine! AND WHAT DID I GET? Imprisonment! Why was I born like this? Why can't I control my ANGER???

After several more minutes of this, Kenny had thoroughly exhausted himself as he laid on the floor seething with pure contempt. The cafeteria around him was completely trashed thanks to his efforts. Every single table was either dented or overturned and chairs were scattered around. The half the lights on the ceiling were shattered, leaving the flashing red lights to illuminate Kenny's half of the room. After he rested for a while, he was ready to put his efforts to getting out of the room using more than just pure brute force. As he began to get up, the sirens finally ceased. Wait...who the hell turned off the sirens? Did you mean to say that SOMEONE could've turned them off at anytime and yet, they let me SUFFER? Kenny's anger quickly return as he crawled through the wreckage towards the door.

He waited to see if anyone would come in, and soon enough, there was. The metal door slid open and a girl walked in, carrying a gun. Without even thinking, Kenny drew his knife and pounced on the girl, using his weight to knock her to the ground and drive his knife into her left shoulder from the back. He didn't even hear her screams.

In his blind attack, Kenny didn't notice the guy walking behind her. Several shots rang out, but none of them hit Kenny. This gave him the chance to pull the knife out and lunge for guy with the pistol. Several more shots rang out, all of them missing Kenny once again. Right as the guy in the red helmet was reloading, Kenny slashed his chest with the knife, drawing blood. Their bodies then met and they tumbled to the ground. The two guys struggled for control of the pistol and threw punches at each other. Kenny, being heavier and stronger had a definite advantage over helmet boy, but he underestimated the resilience of the girl he stabbed.

Kenny barely managed to roll away, when the girl began to bring a chair down on top of him. His opponent with the pistol was hit instead with enough force to break his ribs. The sickening crunch of bone snapping only encouraged Kenny to keep on fighting. He was going to win.

With a surge of adrenaline, the scavenger jabbed his knife at the girl. Surprisingly, she was still agile enough to dodge the surprise strike. Anger filled every fiber of his body, as he ditched the knife and tackled the girl. This bitch was going to pay. He threw punch after punch at her for who know how long, until he felt something connect with his head and the world went black.

KC

Her shoulder throbbed and everything else felt the full impact of every single punch. KC wanted to pass out from exhaustion and pain. What kind of monster was this guy? Every hit felt like a hammer. She was so...tired…

“412! 412! Don't die on me!”

KC snapped out of it at the voice of X342 and tried to sit up. She couldn't. She could only open her eyes and look at X342 standing above her, clutching his side. Oh god… She broke his ribs, didn't she? And he still got up?

“Don't worry, pretty boy, I'm not dead yet...but I'm going to be soon if I keep on bleeding. Don't you want to get with me before I die? Unless you're into dead chicks, of course, but then I wouldn't be alive to enjoy it...”

Once again, KC tried to sit up. Her vision spun and a spike of pain came from her shoulder. She cussed as she fell back down, helpless against her body's natural reaction to pain.

“What? Stop joking and turn around, I'm going to suture your cut.”

KC could hear that X342 meant business. He wasn't about to let her die and as far as she knew, he wasn't expecting anything in return. Not that she would mind paying him back for saying her. KC complied with his request and rolled onto her stomach with great effort. She felt X342 take the backpack off and his eyes boring into her as the four nodes on her spine were exposed. The ugliest part of her body by far.

“Ack! No good, I forgot these suits are self sealing. 412, I need you to *cough* takeoffyoursuit *cough*”

What? He wasn't going to comment on the chunks of metal jutting out of her back? He was probably too concerned about her injury to make a comment. But with the response he did give, she managed a grin.

“What's that? Did I hear 'take off your suit’? That's a bit direct…”

“Take this seriously, 412. It's your life on the line.”

“Fine, fine. Just be gentle.”

Corey

412 complied with Corey's request. She rolled onto her right side and began to unzip the front of her suit. Corey averted his eyes as she did so. Her presence and teasing was already too much for him. He didn't need to see her naked on top of that. Thankfully the pain from his broken ribs kept him from conjuring up any dirty thoughts regarding 412.

After a minute of 412 wincing in pain and hopefully not stripping down too much, she called out,

“I'm done. Just hurry up. I'm already feeling light headed.”

Corey opened his eyes slowly to be greeted by the bare back of 412, covered in blood. His immediate focus was dealing with her wound. He pulled out the medical kit from 412’s supply pack and began to clean the wound. The knife wound was incredibly deep, and the moment Corey poured some antiseptic into the cut, 412 screamed. He did his best to ignore her and hold her still as he wiped the blood from her skin.

Now came the sutures. Corey worked quickly and steadily. Years of playing games had finally paid off. The precision and agility of his fingers guided the suture hook through the skin and pulled the wound together. The process might have been quick, but it felt like hours. Still, he could rest easy on the fact that he had just saved a life.

With 412’s life no longer in danger, Corey got a chance to “appreciate” her body, as perverted as it sounds. Her back was mildly scarred and had four metal nodes stick out. Corey reached behind his back and his fingers brushed against his own nodes. Who the heck was this girl, that she would have the same nodes as he did. As his eyes went down her spine, he noticed a tattoo on her lower back. A sure sign of a rebellious nature. As if her demeanor wasn't enough proof of that already.

Suddenly, 412 rolled over and began to sit up with much effort. Corey tried to avert his eyes from the girl in front of him, but the image was already burned into his mind. SEED X412 with only a skimpy black sports bra on, displaying her chest for Corey.

“Even with your helmet on, I can tell you're looking away. Am I that ugly?”

“No, the complete opposite actually…”

“So why not enjoy the view?”

“You're making me uncomfortable 412… Just help me set my ribs back into place.”

“You're no fun.”

Corey laid down himself and unzipped his own suit to reveal his upper body, decorated with three shallow cuts and very bruised and broken ribs. 412 approached him and gingerly probed his ribs, cringing at every touch. Corey could feel that three were broken.

“I'm sorry, man… I didn't mean to hit you.”

“Don't be, it's just an accident. Make it up to me by setting them back in place.”

“Lets start with the cuts first.”

With a soft touch, 412 began to clean the cuts Corey suffered at the hands of their mysterious attacker. Every day of the cotton soaked in antiseptic stung, but the Corey stayed silent. With some antibiotic ointment and some bandages, they were dealt with.

“Thanks, 412…”

“I don't like being called a number, you know. It makes me feel disposable...useless... Call me KC.”

“It’s nice to know your name, KC. I felt weird calling you by a number. I'm Corey, by the way.”

“Nice to meet you officially, Corey. You want to take off that helmet so I can see you pretty face?"

“Didn’t you say I looked like crud earlier?”

“Maybe. But maybe I want to give you a second chancel…”

Corey took off his helmet and locked eyes with KC. He could feel where this was going, and knew that he was going to regret it, but his instincts and desires pushed them aside for the time being.

“What do you know? You're pretty handsome when you're not throwing up onto the floor.”

“You don't look bad yourself either. I'd say you're an 8 out of 10.”

“Just an 8? I'm a 10 at the very least!”

“Keep dreaming.”

KC

Corey sat up so that he was face to face with KC. KC wasn't sure where they could go from here except taking it to the next level. She pulled herself closer to Corey and placed her good hand on top of Corey's. While her mind was swirling with the possibilities of what she could do next, she noticed that Corey was wearing a crucifix. A crazy thought popped into her head. Was this Sal's cross? Her curiosity got the better of her and she asked away, expecting a throw away answer.

“That’s a nice necklace. I know a guy named Sal that wears one just like that.”

KC didn't expect Corey to freeze like he did. The next words that came out of his mouth were uncertain.

“KC, do you have a brother?”

What kind of a question was he asking right now of all times? And why did it sound just like how Sal asked it? KC must have been imagining it, what with him wearing a crucifix just like Sal. She didn't understand why she was so nervous as she answered.

“Yeah...I've been looking for my brother...I don't think you've seen him have you? He was managed by Sal too.”

Corey's face was now pale. Pure shock had overtaken him. A single name came out of his mouth barely louder than a whisper.

“Korinthia.”

Kenny

Kenny's head throbbed as he woke up. Someone had his him over the head. Hard. He stumbled up from his prone position. His hand groped the floor for something he would use as a weapon. For all he knew, those two were still here. As long as the boy and the girl were present, he wouldn't be able to freely search for the medication he needed.

Kenny's hand brushed against cold steel. His snapped to where his hands were. A carbine was lying there on the floor. He picked it up and pulled the magazine out. It was his lucky day. The magazine was full. The scavenger slid it back into carbine’s magwell and pulled the charging handle back. The scrape of metal against metal and the click of the bolt echoed through the room.

The action was met by exclamations of surprise from a male and female voice. Kenny's head swung around to find a guy and a girl, both half undressed. He pointed his gun at them and shouted,

“Get your hands up and tell me who the hell are you.”

The two looked at each other and raised their hands slowly. The female began to yell at her companion, while the male responded calmly.

“You didn't tie him up???”

“I didn't expect him to wake up so quickly. Besides, you were dying. We should try to...”

“Well, now we're both going to die, thanks to…”

“Both of you SHUT the HELL UP!”

Kenny pointed the gun at both of them for emphasis. Their attention was back on Kenny. They were arguing like an old married couple or something.

“I'll ask again before I shoot: who are you?”

“I think the better question is: who are…”

“I'm Corey. She's KC. This is our bunker.”

“What? Why are you telling him…”

Kenny fired a shot right past KC’s head. That made her shut up. Thank God. She was really getting on his nerves.

“From now on, only Corey gets to talk. Any words out of your mouth will earn you a bullet, got it, bitch?”

KC stared at him with contempt, but stayed silent.

“Alright, Corey. What hell are you doing in this bunker?”

“We've been here for a hundreds of years.”

“No effing way. This looks like pre-Calamity tech. That's hundreds of years ago. No way a bunker could sustain anyone for that long, even if it's pre-Calamity tech.”

“Cryopods.”

“That's some bull.”

“I can take you to them.”

“No thanks, I'll buy it for now.”

“Any other questions?”

“Where’s the medbay?”

“You don't want to go there.”

“I asked, WHERE IS THE MEDBAY???”

“You'll get killed by the security systems before you even set foot on the floor. I'm glad you only managed to get to the cafeteria. Look, just take some food and get going.”

“NO! I came here for meds, and I WILL GET THEM!!!”

“Sir...please calm down. Just tell me what you need. I can get it for you.”

Kenny was this close from pulled the trigger, but this kid offered to get it from this super dangerous medbay for him. However, Corey could also be trying to trick him.

“Fine. Claderol. I'll give you ten minutes. If you don't come back by then, your girlfriend here will wish she was dead.”

Corey looked like he was thinking for a while before answering.

“It's in the backpack on the floor.”

“Then get it for me. Slowly.”

Kenny backed up and kept carbine's sights on Corey in case he tried to pull a gun on him. Corey crawled to the backpack and began to rummage through its contents. This gave Kenny an opportunity to take a look at the metal spikes protruding from Corey's spine. What the hell? Is this kid a monster? No one in their right mind would take a spinal implant, not even to save their life, much less four.

Corey soon pulled out a small bottle of pills and held it out for Kenny.

“Here you go. Can I ask your name?”

“No. Roll the bottle over.”

The kid complied and sent the bottle rolling towards Kenny until it hit his foot. Kenny bent down to pick it up while keeping an eye on his two hostages. He inspected the label to find that it was what he was looking for. Kenny viciously tore the cap off and dumped half the pills into his mouth.

“Sir! What are you doing??? You're aren't supposed to take that many pills at once.”

“I do as I please! Now get back over to your girlfriend's side.”

Kenny's head began to hurt again. It felt like a thousand burning needles were suddenly stabbed into his skull as vision spun like crazy. All the color were wrong in his vision and the world was now upside-down.

“I really d0n’T tH1nK yUo aR3 0k4y…”

“Wha...why are you so blurrrrrrrrrrrrr…”

Without another word, Kenny dropped to his knees and fell over. All he felt was his head trying to kill to him.

When Kenny woke again, he felt marginally better, but his arms and legs couldn't move. Could this be paralysis? His eyes snapped open to find himself in a chair. His mind began to connect the dots, albiet slowly, due to his splitting headache. He was tied up. By who? The question didn't even need to be asked.

As Kenny's vision readjusted, he found the couple in question in front of him, arguing about something.

“...letting him live? He tried to kill us. TWICE!”

“He looked like he was trying to survive. The look in his eyes was so...primal and...angry. something happened to him.”

“Like that matters! If we let him live, he will try again for all we know. I'm not taking any chances.”

“Or...we could wait until he wakes up and find out why he attacked us.”

“You really are a weak piece of shit! If I'm stuck with you, both of us will die.”

“Language. And I'd rather die loving than live a monster.”

“Don't 'Language’ me, Cornelius! I'll say whatever the fuck I want! You can't do what needs to be done. No wonder the world is like this!”

“KC, calm down. Whether our goal is survival or…”

“Don't fucking lecture me either! You maybe be older, but it doesn't mean you're my fucking dad!”

Kenny groaned, drawing the attention of the two. The girl... KC?...looked pissed off beyond all measure. At Corey or himself, Kenny couldn't tell, but it didn't make much of a difference. In her hand was the carbine Kenny had earlier, or rather, the carbine he took from KC. The scavenger closed his eyes and could only hope that she granted him a quick death instead of torture. He waited for the gun to go off and for all of it to end, but it never came. Instead, he found Corey sitting in a chair in front of him.

“Hey, are you calm now?”

“Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry I flipped out!”

“Real sorry he is.”

“KC. He hasn't gotten a chance to explain himself yet…Sorry, do you have a name?”

“Kenneth Kenji Ashikaga. Please don't kill me!”

Corey placed his hand on Kenny's shoulder as if to reassure him.

“Hey, hey, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk.”

“I'm not worry about you. I'm worried about your girlfriend!”

“Sister. She's my sister. And I swear I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe. If she wants to kill you, she’ll have to kill me too.”

Sister? Corey said that with a strained voice, but it made sense. Other than married couples, only siblings would argue like that. Something made Kenny think that their relationship wasnt exactly hunky dory. And the way they were undressed earlier made Kenny think that they were something else. MAybe they were like that, the world was filled with all kinds of crazy people after all. Who the heck would know except the two of them? Now's not the time to be asking these questions.

“Anyways, we should formally introduce ourselves too. Cornelius and Korinthia Chang. I go by Corey and she goes by KC.”

“What do you want from me?”

“I want to know why you attacked us and why you broke into this bunker.”

“I came here looking for supplies. I found a broken ventilation shaft and followed it into this room. I...don't think I had much of a reason to attack you...but I remember being really angry.”

“I call bullshit!”

“KC!”

“...”

“Sorry...Can you tell me what made you so angry?”

“I have this...condition where my mind is wired a bit differently, and that makes me... irritable. Plus I have anger management issues to begin with, which makes me...very prone to lashing out.”

“And you need Claderol to suppress your anger.”

“Yeah. If I'm on that, then I'll be mostly fine.”

“So, you good now?”

“I just popped half a month’s dose of that stuff, so it's safe to say I am. Either that, or I might be dead.”

“Yeah….no. I gave you a stomach pump just in case, but we still have plenty of pills.”

“Thank…”

KC interrupted Kenny by kicking his chair over and pointing her gun at him.

“Don't be grateful. We're not giving you anything and we're not letting you go.”

“And what do you want to do with him?”

“Let him rot in a cell. Or better yet, end him right now.”

“No, we let him go with the meds and work out the bigger issues.”

“Like I said, you're too damn soft. You know the saying, 'Give them an inch and they'll take a mile.”'

“I’m not planning on giving him full control of the bunker…”

“You don't have to. If you have the preconceived notion in your mind that he's a decent guy, he'll actually be able to kill you next time and take of the bunker for real.”

“He only slipped up once. Whatever happened to a second chance?”

“Not good enough. I'm not giving him a second chance to kill us.”

“I'M SORRY!!! Please, just let me go. You don't even have to give me the meds! Please! I'm begging you.”

KC looked down on Kenny. He was just praying to whatever god that was out there that she would choose to make it quick. KC held the gun at his head for a few seconds before letting out an exasperated sigh and lowered it. That was...unexpected.

"Are you...not going to kill me?"

"No! I don't know why I can't bring myself to shoot you!"

"I'm just glad you didn't. You don't need this guy's death on your conscience."

Out of the corner of his eye, Kenny saw Corey embrace KC.

"Don't patronize me...and don't touch me!"

"You need some comfort. That's what siblings are for."

"We weren't siblings until an hour ago!"

"We were siblings for over 800 years, we just found out hour ago."

"..."

"Uhm...sorry to break this touching sibling moment, but I'm still tied up..."

"Oh yeah, sorry about that."

Corey immediately went over to Kenny and set the chair back up right with Kenny in it. Corey then cut the zip ties that held Kenny's hands and legs. With his limbs free Kenny went to pick up his where his backpack was haphazardly thrown and shoved a bottle of Claderal into his pocket.

"Th-thank you for letting me go, Corey. KC."

"It's fine, but you are welcome to stay with us..."

"What???"

"You don't want him to kill us? The best option is to keep him in our sights, isn't it?"

"Yeah...but..."

Kenny went wide eyed. No one was ever this nice to him. Sure, KC, didn't particularly trust him, but she was assenting to the plan wasn't she? After a several years of being alone, and having no one to rely on, being a part of a a group again sounded so appealing. He didn't know why, but he suddenly decided to hug the two siblings. Sure, he could've been shot, but he had already placed his trust in KC and Corey. As he wrapped his arms around the siblings, they yelped in surprise. Corey almost immediately reciprocated the hug, but KC was a bit more hesitant. Nonetheless, she went along with it.

"You done yet, man?"

"Let the guy enjoy the moment."

"Fine. But after this, we better go find the other SEEDs."

Kenny finally released the two siblings from the hug. Corey and KC looked at each other uncomfortably in the silence left hanging in the air until Kenny broke it.

"By the way, what are these SEEDs, and what is the whole thing with the bunker? Pre-Calamity stuff is pretty confusing."

"We'll explain as we go look for the others."

[/div][/div]

 

[Wandering Grim Hollow]

Anna Orava​

Cold. That was the first sensation Anna felt through the cloudy darkness. Her whole body felt numb and her eyelids could barely open despite her best attempts to. Her arms felt like they were filled with lead... Or was it ice? They feel so heavy and numb it was like moving her mech's arm via pure mental link. In other words, uncomfortable. As the numbness slowly faded from her body, she became aware of the icy cold air she was breathing in. Her lungs felt like it was full of melting icicles with each breath and only added to her discomfort. Well, at least she can open her eyes now.

What greeted her was a thick, slightly frosty, glass barrier before her. Blinking a few times to clear her vision, she reached out to numbly touch the glass. Through her numb fingertips, she felt more cold, this time in the form of frost buildup. Straining her foggy memories, she seemed to remember something about frost buildup within the cryopods but nothing seemed to come to mind. At the moment anyway. That was when she can barely hear a muffled voice.

"Warning: System Alert. Error: 9v55tl2. Initiating emergency wakeup for Crypod 1109X. Administering adrenali-ksst!" The muffled voice went away in a sudden burst of static. Before Anna could question or even process the message, a needle was stuck into her thigh and seemed to trigger something. Now being fully aware of her situation, Anna is starting to feel one emotion. Panic.

"W-What is going on?! W-Where am I?!" Anna's voice croaked as she began to thrash about in her cryopod, her head felt like it was going to burst and she was starting to see flashes of... something. People in uniform. Large shadowy creatures looming overhead. Mechs being crushed by the large creatures. Each image only flashing for a split second before Anna's eyes and it only added to the splitting headache she was having. The pain she felt was unlike anything she remembered. A searing pain like a hot knife being repeatedly shoved into her brain. She wanted to get out. Nothing else mattered. In her desperation she began to beat on the glass barrier with her fists and feet. Be it luck or some other force, she triggered the emergency latch and the she came stumbling out of the pod as the lid slid open.

"It hurts....! It hurts....!" Anna gasped as she collapsed on her knees, her vision began to blur as she desperately looked around for help. In her blurry vision, she managed to make out 2 vaguely humanoid figures before her. Before she could feel any hope that they could help, a small voice at the back of her head whispered, "They're going to hurt us... C'mon! Take them out and let's get outta here!"

"I don't... Argh! Stop throbbing you stupid lump of jelly!!" Anna gasped as she attempted to steady herself. The voice could be right... What if the cryopods were triggered by an external hostile? Taking no chances, Anna fought through the pain and tried to focus. Could she even fight? Maybe she can catch them by surprise. Taking on a sloppy combat stance, she forced herself to focus on the closer target. Through the pain and still foggy memories, she managed to recall one of her instructor's advice. 'A sudden shout can do wonders for morale and can startle targets.'

Locking her blurry gaze on the closest person, her eyes filled with killing intent, she let out a barely decent shout before lunging towards her target. Next thing she knew, she blacked out and barely felt it when she ended up faceplanting onto the floor.

Radio_Rat66.6 Entity.Eclypse

 

[Mena]

Minty

The bitterness of the cold was what Minty had first awoken to, every inch of her felt like she was dipped into the south pole ocean. This wasn't anywhere near the dream she had just witnessed where she was on the beach eating candy. It was an endless feeling that she couldn't escape from, she could barely move as is. "Ngh..." Minty gave up trying to move around, so instead the small girl decided to relax for a bit before she could warm up enough. Adrenaline deployment unstable. Opting to opening up the kyropod instead. The machine announced inside the pod, something was wrong with the medicine administration it seemed.

She could feel the machine slowly roar to life as the lid began to slowly peel back the glass top. Minty slowly closed and opened her eyes, adjusting to the red glow coming from the lights. Moving her arm slowly to the edge of the container, she slowly pushed herself up and used the rest of her body to support herself. Glancing around the corridor, she still felt cold but not as cold when she first had woken up. Swinging her body over the edge, her arms slowly lowered her until her feet touched the baren floor.

Carefully the female held onto the outside of the pod as she started to distance herself away from the edge. Minty's legs felt completely like jelly, it was tough to even move around due to them being half-asleep. The girl noticed that other people were already awake, she figured she could at least try to get their attention at least. "A-Ah...hello everyone. What time is it?" Minty's voice was soft as she spoke up towards them, slowly making her way towards them. She figured that she could at least make it to them while her legs were still trying to warm themselves and get blood circulating in her feet.

Unfortunately for the young girl her feet couldn't quite find grip she needed to secure herself on the floor and down she went. Minty's legs gave way and she just buckled, hitting the floor quite hard. She was too focused on her fall that she had pulled herself away from the attention of the others, though she could've sworn she heard yelling coming from their direction. "Oh, oww stupid pod! I hope you die in a thousand pits of hell." Minty let out a number of curses in her japanese tongue as she pulled herself up from her fallen state, instead just sitting up on the floor. Her face was completely flushed with embarassment.

Mentions: Entity.Eclypse Radio_Rat66.6 Wandering Grim Hollow