Emerging from the hot, steaming embrace of the shower, I felt all of my muscles and bones finally let go from their tense state after a long trip of walking with heavy loads. I could still smell the mist of water mixed with whatever chemicals they used to sterilize me from whatever potentially harmful substance I could have brought from the surface. Drops of water clung to my scar-ridden body, tracing winding paths down my skin like tiny rivers.
Being able to be completely clotheless in my room was undoubtedly a freeing feeling, being forced to be in a warm, sweat filled, slightly restricting jumpsuit every day would certainly make one feel this way. Right after leaving the shower, I headed straight to the large mirror wall, placing both hands against it as a support as I leaned in. Using the reflection, I checked the surface skin of my face, then my eyes, then the inside of my mouth.
The liberating feeling wasn't the only reason I was stark naked in front of the mirror, although it is a part of it, the main reason was I needed to see every part of me to make sure I was in the clear of any effects. Unlike last time, it was clear what effect the storm had chosen to bestow me. This time however, it could have affected me in some minor way even if I had not encountered the Epoch.
It didn't take long for me to notice something that was off. At first, I took a closer look at my reflection, wiping it to see if it was dust or fog. Once I had confirmed it wasn't, I looked down at my own body and saw the issue. There, on the canvas of my skin, were wrinkles, it was subtle, yet undeniably out of place. They etched across some of my abs and even went over some of the scars I had before, which were healed on the parts where the wrinkles passed through. Not only did those parts of me age, they even instantly healed injuries that would have taken years to dissipate.
Right as I placed my hand on the wrinkles to sense how odd it would feel, all of my surroundings suddenly quaked. It was violent, much more than any natural earthquake. As if reality itself was convulsing, everything was moving so unnaturally that it seemed more similar to hallucinations than it was my surroundings that were being affected. My gut felt like it was twisting, and my body was being pushed down to the ground, yet I braced myself in the same position.
All of it happened simultaneously, but it only lasted a quarter of a second. It was followed up by what I could describe as the sound of sucking something out of a rubber tube. There was silence for a brief moment, which was interrupted by collective cheering so loud that I could hear it all the way inside my room albeit muffled.
.
.
.
Not long after, I was called to follow the amethyst guide line which would lead me to a sector of the lab where I would be briefed in an observation room alongside some others. Despite already settling in to rest in my room, I simply let out a sigh and followed the demands of my employer's clients.
Once I reached the violet sector of the lab, it didn't take long for me to find the room I was needed in as all the doors were labelled in a very intuitive way, all I needed was to find the one that says 'Observation Room 1'.
For a brief moment, I stood still in front of the door, not knowing how they expected me to access the room myself. I soon figured out that they must have granted my courier ID access to it regardless of how strange it is for anyone to give a Clockwork employee that much power. I pulled the card as it stretched out the elastic string that kept it attached to my chest, tapping it on the card reader on the side of the door which made it slide open.
Even with how white and bright the hallways have been, the room inside was dimly lit from the inside. Stepping into the room with the door closing behind me, I noticed the soft, ambient lighting bathed the space in a gentle glow. There was a series of computer screens arranged on the walls, their pale blue light reflecting off the surfaces of the sleek consoles.
Opposite the array of screens was a large window, beyond the glass, I could see an experiment room bathed in bright, clinical light. It housed an imposing machine, its metallic form gleaming under the intense illumination.
Inside the observation room itself, I could see there were about 3 others in this room that came before me. One of them turned as the door closed, revealing that it was Josh. "I was wondering when you were going to show up."
With him acknowledging my entrance, it made the other 2 figures turn their heads to have a look. That was when my eyes locked with hers, realising that one of them was Ash. Once she noticed it was nothing important, she went back to looking through the window of the observation room.
If that was her, then she must have been one of the two couriers who delivered the parts for Cube City, and the woman standing beside him must also be a courier.
While I walked deeper into the room and toward the window, I gave Josh a nod of acknowledgement and voiced out, "They called me right as I was done showering."
Standing in front of the window, I looked through it to see what this room was actually observing. Inside the experiment room, a group of scientists and researchers bustled around the machine, their expressions a mix of excitement and anticipation. I could even see Craig and Jojo in there. Their animated gestures and celebrations bounced against the glass window. This must've been where the cheering I heard came from.
I looked to my right side and saw the face of the raven-haired woman alongside its reflection on the glass. Her expression seemed... cold and unforgiving, completely different from the first time she invited me on her Speedcycle. She stared into the room, blinking every so often without any exchange of words. Does she notice that I'm staring?
The two of us could probably go for longer if it wasn't so abruptly interrupted by me feeling something soft rubbing against my leg. I looked down at my feet to discover a furry feline with mostly dark fur all over it and streaks of purple moving past me as it stroked itself against my leg.
It made its way to Ash's, bunting itself against her legs as if asking for her attention specifically. She crouched down to the level of the cat, stroking its head before asking, "What are you doing here?"
"That's Seraphim, my most trusted assistant." a woman in labcoat enters the room, accrediting the cat while she is at it. "I'm glad to see all 4 of you are here."
As she moved into the room and towards a swivel chair, the cat walked away from us and towards the woman. Right as she takes a seat, the cat jumps onto her lap and folds itself into a loaf shape to rest. "It's Sekiyo, if you were wondering."
