Varkas's grudge did not take long to bear the rotten fruit of his heart. The Colonel's order descended directly from the heavens like rain that nourished the blooming flowers of hatred—an order not to sharpen their talents, but to deliver them into a slaughter.
Yet, that hatred could not break the humanity rooted within Unit 009 by the seeds of affection. Nurtured by the bonds of true friendship, they had grown strong roots capable of withstanding any storm or gale orchestrated by PETERUMMAN, especially by Varkas.
Cycle 04:00 flickered to life, but this time, it was different. It no longer roared sharply alongside the deafening sirens. It blinked coldly, as if its mere presence was enough to make them feel the nightmare of their actual reality.
"Nugia, come here!" Zilla commanded. She fitted a 'Second Skin' onto Nugia. By simply placing it on the boy's chest and pressing a button, the 'zip' of the automated uniform conformed to the contours of his body. "A perfect fit, Zilla!" Nugia exclaimed. "That's enough. Keep your mouth shut. If you still have energy, use it to learn how to tie these shoelaces!"
"Come on, Reyna, Amae! Let's head out. Zilla and Nugia are almost ready. Today is the day we are officially inaugurated as soldiers!" Meyra tossed her hair, clutching a Dominator V-1 helmet alongside Reyna and Amae as they stepped out, followed by Zilla and Nugia.
The corridor stretched out in silence. Varkas's shouting seemed to sever their connection to the outside world, forcing them into a haunting stillness within their own minds.
"Unit 009 only, follow me!" Varkas barked.
While other units marched toward the center of Sector 7, Unit 009 walked with Varkas toward the Gaia Paradox Laboratory. Their footsteps were rhythmic, merging with the chilling breeze and their own shadows.
"Where... are we... being taken?" Amae whispered. Zilla and Meyra quickly signaled 'silence' with their hands when Varkas glanced back at them.
At the threshold of the Gaia Paradox Laboratory's steel gates, the air suddenly thickened. It was no longer just oxygen, but sharp chemical vapors entwined with the heavy stench of blood—a symphony of odors that eroded Unit 009's sanity far beyond the physical strain in their muscles. For Amae, the glow of the neon lights inside no longer promised answers to his curiosity; the lab had mutated into a gaping maw of a monster, a slaughterhouse harboring horrors deeper than mere death.
"Welcome, my children! You are far more beautiful than when we first met," Captain Snake's shrill voice broke the room's frost. He stood tall, posing like a maestro against a backdrop of glass vats containing human-monster chimeras. Meyra stared, wide-eyed, at masses of flesh—human faces attached to monstrous bodies.
"Look, they are your friends who have become my masterpieces!" The corners of his lips curled upward, reflecting a desire to dissect them from behind the glasses that shielded his thoughts. Cold sweat drenched Amae's face, a tremor hidden in his knees. They were herded past rows of glass tanks that seemed to whisper in silent groans.
Simultaneously, behind the soundproof walls of the lab—in a room lit only by the blue bias of holographic displays—Colonel Lion stood watching a monitor. It showed Subject Bim X-50 moving in silence, as if assimilated into the darkness of The Hollow Rim. Red dots flickered wildly—the highest-level danger warning. Beside him, Captain Varkas stood rigid. His mechanical hand creaked softly, the sound of clashing metal echoing every time he clenched his fist. "They are about to enter, Colonel!"
Suddenly, the sliding door opened with a peculiar, soft hiss. A tall, gaunt man with skin as pale as a corpse stepped in. Captain Snake, the head of biological research. His movements were serpentine, while his slit-like golden-green eyes gleamed behind thin spectacles.
"Colonel Lion..." Snake called out, his voice dragging coldly as if his tongue were licking every word. "Behold my playground! Do you know how much I've looked forward to making Subject 009 my next work of art?"
Lion didn't even look back. He knew that despite the hierarchy, playing with Snake was like putting his own neck in a noose. "We shall see, Snake. Unit 009 will destroy your subject."
Snake chuckled—a sound like the rattle of a sidewinder.
"Lord Vier needs a proven weapon, not your collection of monsters," Lion replied coldly. "If my executioners can finish off your masterpiece, it means your research is indeed trash."
Snake licked his lips, his eyes glowing yellow like a hungry flame. "Very well. Let us see if Lord Vier's 'favorite weapon' can survive Subject Bim X-50. But remember, my Colonel... if they lose, they belong to me."
In front of the massive gates of The Hollow Rim. It was a graveyard for failed experiments, a labyrinth of iron filled with chemical steam and the pungent smell of rust. There, Unit 009 stood trembling, staring at the gate that looked like the entrance to hell.
The Hollow Rim was no longer a training gym. It was now an execution stage. Inside, Unit 009 stood frozen before the 'Chimera-Graft.' Bim X-50, with a long whip-like tail. Its human face had mutated, leaving only an expression of emptiness with red eyes. On the floor, dried black stains were scattered, drowning their courage.
"Listen! Come out as the victors or become corpses!" Varkas's voice echoed through the speakers, followed by sharp static like a knife scraping metal as the only access point slammed shut.
The stench of fear enveloped them in that high-stakes room. Bim X-50. A body that was once a small child had transformed into a mass of muscle and blue crystals, with hundreds of crystal spikes protruding from its monstrous frame. Bim X-50 greeted Unit 009 with a piercing roar. It was a sound more like a broken machine than a human voice, as if its remaining soul were screaming in agony from behind the crystal layers.
"Everyone! Our mission is to defeat it. I'm dividing the group into three!" Zilla shouted quickly, her voice like a hammer shattering their wall of fear.
"Amae with Nugia! You're the frontline! Do not attack recklessly!" Zilla's gaze sharpened, locking onto Bim's movements as it drew closer.
"Meyra and I will be the distractions with long-range attacks. We take the left and right flanks!" She cocked her Stingray-27 tactical pistol. The metallic click was steady.
"And Reyna! You are the key to this formation. Use your 'Silent Banshee-X.' At the right moment, aim for the blue crystal heart in its chest. That is the source of the problem!" Zilla barked.
"Remember, don't die! You are only allowed to die by my hand!" Zilla's final order came as she deployed her plasma shield.
"Understood?!" Zilla roared.
"UNDERSTOOD!" they shouted in unison. The thunder of that cry was like embers igniting their hearts, burning away everything else in that room.
Nugia began to advance steadily. Bim X-50 let out a thunderous roar, sending a gust of foul air that rattled Amae's knees.
"Don't falter! It's just a brainless, stinking monster!" Zilla's voice tried to pierce through Amae's crumbling courage.
Nugia stared coldly at the beast. Bim X-50 charged without a plan, the thud of its footsteps shaking the floor like a rampaging warhorse. A massive arm coated in blue crystals swung rapidly, cutting through the air, ready to crush Nugia who stood firm like a rock in a storm.
"Look ouuuut...!"
BING!
The crystal-clad arm collided with Nugia's twin daggers. Sparks from the impact of metal and crystal were blinding; the weapons in Nugia's hands seemed to "scream" under the immense pressure. Nugia was thrown back, his feet skidding across the metal floor, throwing off sparks, yet he remained standing.
The wind from the impact lashed out, whipping Amae's hair as he remained frozen in paralyzing fear.
"Attack!" Zilla commanded Meyra, who was running in a flanking maneuver.
TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
The flashes of light and the roar of gunfire from their muzzles were like thunder in a downpour. The bullets hammered into Subject X-50's body, drenching its form in hot lead.
Far behind, Reyna remained motionless. She regulated her racing breath, witnessing the life-and-death struggle through the scope of their collective hope. Her index finger trembled over the trigger of the Silent Banshee-X, searching for a gap amidst her friends' wild movements.
Bim X-50 roared again, a high-frequency shriek that swept away what remained of Amae's resolve. The monster's attacks grew frantic. Nugia moved nimbly, shredding the monster's steel-like legs, darting like a shadow beneath the reach of death.
Amae fell to his knees. To him, this fight wasn't a simulation—it was a thick, visceral terror. He saw his friends gambling with their lives while his own body felt like hardening cement. Deep within, Amae screamed, struggling to break the intimidation locking his every nerve.
However, Bim X-50's rage reached its boiling point. Suddenly, a sound erupted from its body. A burst of blue magical energy surged from within, causing the hundreds of crystal spikes embedded in its flesh to vibrate.
Cklarh!
Zilla's eyes widened behind the visor of her Dominator V-1 helmet. "Watch out, dodge Nugia!" she checked her wristband before activating the Iron Shell Wall.
Hundreds of spikes from Subject X-50's body flew like bullets, scattering in every direction. Nugia, being at the closest point, had no time to retreat.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The flashes and the sound of Nugia's daggers parrying every strike with high-level precision. Behind the observation glass, Colonel Lion and Snake were mesmerized by the boy's movements on the monitor.
Meyra and Zilla took cover behind the Iron Shell Wall. Nugia danced across the floor, the onslaught forcing Reyna to leap from her position. She rolled like a tiger and immediately tried to aim again. Dust from the crystals shattered by Nugia's daggers shrouded them, leaving only the massive silhouette of Bim X-50 as it chased Nugia.
Meanwhile, in a corner of the room untouched by the attack, Amae's mind screamed, "Wake up, Amae! Wake up!" But the shadow of death before him was too vast for a boy with a broken spirit to face.
The monster closed in. Zilla saw Nugia was wounded; a crystal spike was embedded in his left thigh. "Everyone! Nugia is hurt, distract it!"
The blue crystal pulsed, seemingly trying to siphon mana from Nugia's bloodstream, spreading a chill that froze his muscles.
"Nugia!" Meyra screamed hoarsely, raining fire down on Bim X-50, trying to draw its gaze.
Tat... Tat... Tat...
At the threshold of The Hollow Rim, the smell of rust and chemical vapor attacked the senses like poison. Bim—Subject X-50—was no longer human. That small body had mutated into a mass of muscle bristling with hundreds of blood-hungry blue crystal spikes.
"Reyna! NOW!" Zilla's scream cut through the thud of Stingray-27 rounds hitting the monster's hardened hide.
Through the lens of the Silent Banshee-X, Reyna's world narrowed. There, at the center of her focus, Nugia's head blocked her line of fire. Her index finger trembled on the cold trigger. The target indicator flickered red—Unstable. A second of hesitation and Bim X-50's crystal fist would crush Nugia. Yet, to miss by a single millimeter meant sending that bullet through her best friend's skull.
Cold sweat ran into her eyes. Between Amae's silent whimpers and the mechanical roar from Bim X-50's throat, Reyna had to choose: become her friend's killer, or watch them all be obliterated in a single strike.