Undergoing Us

Prologue 2 - Stella

ALL AGENTS REPORT TO THE LIVING

ALL AGENTS REPORT TO THE LIVING

LBI55236's CHAMBER HAS BROKEN

LBI55236's CHAMBER HAS BROKEN

   It seems as if the communicator has gone on a rampage. Every scientist frantically sprints toward the living zone. White coats fly in the wind, their buttons holding on by a strand of cotton. It is the day of an awakening, and LBI55236 has decided to make it hers. However, she has made the day quite strenuous as unfortunately, this is not how anything was supposed to occur. Today was for LBI55345, but that chamber has been put on hold, as LBI55236 has chosen to live.

   Stella's boots have folded men upon men. She has made armies crumble before her very eyes. Her voice has become the symbol of destruction, right behind her own bloodied hands. She is the definition of war, and now she is to care for someone before turning 20? How irresponsible of the head instructor. How reckless of LBI55236.

   She had dropped everything when she heard of the LBI chamber number. Her heart took a dip — the first in forever. She grabbed ahold of her jacket and ran faster than any of the scientists around her, arriving in the living zone quicker than she had expected. She had no time to think, even if her mind could muster a thought. Her feet brought her through the hallways of white coats and steel walls. Eventually, her sweaty body stood before a scientist who refused to let her in the chamber room, afraid of LBI55236. "Let her in!" a distraught, masculine, voice from inside screamed. Things were going terribly wrong.

   When Stella entered, her mind went blank from the horrifying image. LBI55236 was bloodied, her body covered in shards of glass and her demeanor carried fear. Her skin was bare but covered in blue liquid that glowed. The blanket of distraught that was so undesirably washed over Stella only lasted a second before she acted. Sprinting past numerous scientists, she neared her understudy. She had put her leather jacket on before entering the room, which helped to protect herself from numerous shards of glass when she grabbed ahold of LBI55236. Warmth invaded her hands through the thick, cold, and ridged skin of the incubated angel. She wriggled in her hands not a second longer as she felt Stella's warmth too. She felt the warmth of her living companion who had been bonded by genetic formality. She felt safe in the muscular arms of the warrior. She felt comfortable in the hands of a monster.

   Stella stood, her eyes now filled with anger. Her ferocity was not toward the breathing being in her hands, but toward the scientists who she had now realized were holding tranquilizing weapons. "Drop them," she demanded, causing trembling horror in the room. Every scientist fumbled with the safety before dropping the weapons at their feet. Stella's guard had not dropped yet when she heard footsteps near her. Scarred hands covered the face of the being, to protect it. She felt she could take the life of every single person in the room without any defense if it meant protecting her incubated companion. What a strange feeling she felt.

   The scientist who had screamed before neared Stella weaponless, "She needs care." The man sensed a sort of distrust from Stella as she was supposed to be LBI55236's caretaker, and not the man. "It is only to make sure she has matured well. Her chamber did break after all," he smiled gently. Stella nodded hesitantly, letting him lead the way while she held the now-asleep girl in her hands.

—

   By noon the entirety of The Steel knew of the actions taken by their destroyer of colonies. Curiosity bloomed in every section of the bunker from numerous rumors. It was natural for incubated beings to be cared for by their genetic partner, but not to this extent. Typically the caretaker would leave the scientist to do the work, and then teach the incubated person of their ways before letting them go on their own. The strangest was this was especially put in effect when the chamber had broken, but Stella Gannon had not stuck to such a formality. Stella Gannon had not left the room in which her partner was resting for hours. Her head lay on the gray sheets of the hospital bed while her thoughts floated around the room. They danced and fought and subsided all over the sanitized room. Her hands followed suite as her right wrung her left until it turned white from the squeezing pressure. She was scared and she was fighting herself to find out why.

A bang, bang, bang came softly at the door. Well it occurred quite loudly, and Stella knew but she had no time to acknowledge the person behind the door. Even if she had not a single minute to acknowledge any other thought, the door had opened anyway. "Alright, she is to—" the Doctor nearly dropped his clipboard at the sight his eyes laid upon "—Stella?" Stella had been so caught up in her mind that she didn't notice where she stood. Her hands cupped the soft flesh of LBI's ears. Her body stood between the doctor and the bed. The elongated side table had been flipped over as a shield.

When did I...? Stella's head started racing faster. "I'll leave you to work, Doctor," she swiftly grabbed her coat, tossing it across her shoulder before nearing the door where the man stood.

He blocked the exit, "I understand, but before you leave, wouldn't you like to know her name?" Stella nodded. She supposed it would be helpful since she was to train the girl. "Tyler, Tyler Lee is her given name. She was born the same city as you, a year after your birth. What a beautiful coincidence?"

Stella's body froze, her flesh felt cold. Bile creeped to the top of her esophagus. Her head spun, and her vision blurred. She was going to die. Slamming the doctor into the door frame, she squeezed past on the other side, sprinting toward the nearest bathroom.

As the warrior bent over the toilet throwing up her cafeteria food, she remember again that it was not a beautiful coincidence. In fact it was an ugly, hardly good looking, painful coincidence. And she was going to have to face the truth of the coincidence quite faster than she had expected.