Waking up to the sound of rushing water confused 636 at first. It was usually silent when she woke but today it was different. She opened her eyes to see light glistening through the water, partially illuminating the cave she slept in. 636 was suddenly so overcome with excitement and anticipation. She had been waiting for this moment almost her whole life.
636 was going to see the sun. Feel its heat on her skin and bathe in it’s light for the very first time.
Jumping off the cold ground, knocking over her bag in the process, 636 ran to the edge of the cave, where the rocks met the water. She gently pushed her hand through the water and opened up a larger gap for the light to pass through.
636 used her power to pull the rest of the water apart, making it float around her but not in a way that prevented her from being blinded by light. It’s warmth surrounded her and she didn’t dare close her eyes. There, high in the sky, was the sun. It shined over the lake, making it sparkle, reflecting more light around her. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
For the first time in so long, 636 genuinely smiled. She smiled until her face hurt. She smiled until she thought she couldn’t smile anymore.
“Morning Sunshine.” 636 whispered to herself, feeling immense glee, joy unlike anything she had ever experienced before. She may have been a stranger to the sun but she welcomed it like she had known it her entire life.
She rushed back into the heart of the cave to get her things and then ran back out into the open air, wanting to get a different view of the greatest thing she had ever seen. She pushed through the water and the forest. The trees slightly obscured her view of the morning star so she ran faster. 636 kept moving until she was at the top of a grassy hill. Being so high up, she felt like she was face to face with the burning ball of light in the sky. She had been waiting years for this but she had always thought it wouldn’t live up to her expectations. She was so glad to be wrong.
636 walked nonstop until hours turned to days and days turned into a week. Every day rising early to watch the sun come up. It had quickly become her favorite sight. After days of travel, her body finally grew tired once her food supply had run out. The brown mush wasn’t much but it had been enough to give her just the right amount of energy to travel through the vast green lands.
She walked as quickly as she could with her exhaustion until she came to a clearing. She basically collapsed on the ground after throwing her bag next to her. The tall grass was soft to the touch and 636 waved her hand through it several times just to make sure it wasn’t a dream.
This was the freedom she had wanted. This is what she fought so hard to achieve. All those years cooped up in a lab, enduring the tests and getting stronger, all of it was for this. So that she could leave and experience true freedom. No limit to where she could go or what she could do. It was exhilarating.
Laying on her back, surrounded by the soft tall grass, she felt at peace. Looking to her right, she saw a small brown animal. It’s fluffy tail waving to and fro as it stared back at her. In it’s tiny hands was an acorn, when 636 reached her hand out to touch the animal, it ran away, dropping the acorn.
While she was disappointed the creature was gone, she gladly picked up the discarded acorn and observed it’s every detail. It’s hard outer shell had many grooves running along the outside and the only imperfection was a small crack on its side. After a few more seconds, she threw the acorn into her pack and pulled out her braided bracelet. Her eyes darted from looking at the bracelet to the green grass around her. 636 started picking blades of grass and braided them to look identical to the hay bracelet.
It had been a long time since she had gotten the chance to make something of her own, and she messed up the grass jewelry several times before she got it right. Wrapping the new piece of creation around her wrist, she realized how fragile it was. The bracelet broke apart and she had to remake it, bigger this time so it wouldn’t fall apart when she tried to fit it on her arm.
The green on her wrist looked foreign against the bandages she still wore. 636 wasn’t quite ready to see her forams bare again and refused to take them off.
636 quickly placed the two bracelets back into her bag and pulled out some water. She knew the small amount of essentials wouldn’t last very long and she would need to find a way to get food within the next couple of days.
Water she could probably get from the nearby lake she had seen earlier but she didn’t know how safe it was to drink. Her body’s modifications would make it easier to survive potential poisoning but that didn’t mean she’d want to go through that.
The period of time her toxin resistance was being tested was one of the worst in the labs. 636 felt sick for even weeks after that had finished testing. Healing a flesh wound was definitely easier for her. As long as there was nothing in the way of the healing process, like a bullet, she’d heal in a few days, max. However, poisons were harder for her body to detect. She didn’t want to think about discomfort she had felt those weeks and pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind, hoping one day she’d forget everything.
636 must have laid in the field for hours before she decided it was time to get moving again. She would have to learn how to hunt and make a fire in order to survive. The sooner she learned, the better.
She pulled her pack over her shoulder and started walking through the long grass, mind occupied with trying to figure out some sort of plan. Without the knowledge of how the outside world worked, surviving would be difficult. Starvation would get her long before the monsters did.
Against her better judgment, 636 began to think about how her situation would be different if Dr.Willow was with her. He would probably know all about the creatures 636 had encountered. He would know how to make a fire. He was the type of man that just seemed to know everything. She hadn’t wanted to depend on him when she was in the labs but she had always found herself relying on his help to make things easier.
Now she was all alone.
A distant branch snapping brought 636 out of her head. Someone or something was nearby.
636 set her pack down and removed the chakram strapped to her back. Ready for anything that might attack her again, she tightened her grip. She didn’t want to risk getting caught off guard like how she was that night when she had ran into the ugly bat creature.
Listening in the direction the noise had come from, she heard voices; people speaking. Somehow knowing that the source of the noise was human made her more on edge.
She had two choices. Wait for them to come to her or leave before they get the chance to attack.
On one hand, maybe being around other people would benefit her. On the other, being around others could endanger her life. She hoped that if it ever came down to it she could defend herself, but with little information, she didn’t know what to expect from strangers.
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636 waited.
All the while listening to where everyone was in the forest. Keeping her eyes on where they would emerge. She decided it would be best to keep the chakram in her hand so she could react quickly to any attacks. Using her power was supposed to be a last resort, however, ever time she felt afraid, she’d use it without a second thought.
Eventually, the sound got so close 636 had no doubt in her mind she had been spotted. The way their voices had gotten quieter and their steps lighter. They were already just as weary of her as she was of them.
The clanking of metal meant they were armed, maybe even pointing their guns at her that very moment. She felt eyes watching her and knew they were in the bushes and trees near the field. 636 heard the irrefutable sound of the safety of a gun click off. Now she knew they were aiming their guns at her.
Not wanting to get shot was enough motivation to use her ability to bring the strangers out of hiding and separate them from their guns. There were yells of protest and panic from the men and women as they floated in the air, her light surrounding their forms.
A shot rang out from behind but she stopped the bullet from before it could touch her. 636 turned and crushed the gun that had been used to shoot at her with nothing but a quick way of her hand. More people started running out of the forest and aimed their weapons at her. She was a threat in their eyes. 636 raised them into the air before they had the chance to attack. There were a lot more people than she had originally thought, and she mentally scolded herself for not trying to count heartbeats.
She wasn’t sure that she had gotten all of them. A few started shouting curses at her and others were still screaming in fear. It was becoming too much for her and she instinctively applied more pressure to everyone within her hold, without fully realizing she was doing it.
636 saw a man lift his gun that she hadn’t taken out of his grip and aimed it at her head. She was about to crush him when she heard a loud and deep voice yell out.
“Stand down!” The man pointing his gun immediately did as the voice had commanded and lowered his weapon.
A new figure slowly walked out of the forest, arms raised to show he meant no harm. 636 mentally scolded herself again for not seeing him earlier. She must have been more tired than she had thought. The stranger came closer, making it easier to get a good look at him. His skin was a light brown, matching the short waving hair on the top of his head. A strong jaw complimented his handsome face and his eyes were a deep hazel color that held the confidence of someone in power. He looked to be a few years older than 636, but his age didn’t seem to stop him from rising in whatever ranks these people had. His demeanor was calm and he held eye contact with 636 the whole time he walked towards her.
“Commander Amin!” Someone yelled but he motioned for them to stay quiet.
“We mean you no harm,” he said in a steady and level tone, “Let them go. No one is going to attack you.”
636 listened to his heart the whole time he spoke, monitoring every beat to search for any possible lies. She wouldn’t take any chances. Once 636 decided he was telling the truth, she slowly set everyone back onto the ground. A few tried to grab their weapons but the commander ordered them to stand down again.
“If you had no intention of attacking me, why did you aim your weapons?” 636 asked wearily.
The man turned his attention back to 636. “You were trespassing into our territory, we had to be cautious. Rest assured we did not actually have the intention of harming you unless you attacked first.”
“I doubt you could.” She said, eyeing the men and women around her.
“Yes I can see you are more than capable of defending yourself.” He smiled and then his face contorted in confusion. “How exactly is it that you can do… whatever that was?” He was oddly calm for someone who hadn’t seen someone like her.
636 debated telling the stranger anything about what she really was and just shrugged in response. The man didn’t take offense to her absence of an answer like she had suspected he would do, instead he just ordered his subordinates to get off the ground and continue patrol. A few stayed nearby, keeping their guns close to their chests, watching 636.
“Do you normally try to kill everyone you see?” The commander asked curiously.
“Only the ones with guns.” 636 resonded, holding up the crushed weapon used to fire at her.
“I’m sorry,” the commander said with an amused smirk, “For frightening you.”
“You didn’t frighten me.” 636 said defensively but he seemed to doubt it heavily.
“I think we got off on the wrong foot. My name’s Zaiden. Zaiden Amin.” He held out his hand for her and she got a bit of deja vu. She stared at his outstretched arm and raised her brows.
“I thought they called you Commander Amin.”
Zaiden didn’t retract his hand as he looked at her, clearly amused. “They did, but since you're not one of my men I don’t see why you’d call me that. It’s just Zaiden to you.” He smiled again. He seemed to do that a lot.
636 finally took hold of his outstretched hand. “I’m 636.” she whispered and watched for his reaction to the number.
Zaiden stared at her for a few moments, still holding her hand. A million thoughts seemed to cross his mind. 636 watched as his brows creased, deep in thought. A look of confusion covered his face before realization hit him.
“You're from the labs.” He said, astonished.
He removed his hand from hers, which suddenly made it feel colder. Zaiden paced back and forth for a while and 636 contemplated leaving.
“You escaped the labs.” He suddenly said, impressed.
“How do you know that?”
“Everyone has heard stories about the labs,” he said, “most think they’re just rumors but you’re proof they’re real. It explains why you can do what you can do.”
636 suddenly felt uncomfortable as his face showed a look of sadness. “I’m sorry.” Zaiden apologized, giving her a solemn expression. “No one should have to go through that. I can understand why you were quick to attack us, believe me. We’re a bunch of strangers with guns. Frankly, I would have attacked us too, though I have to ask you to refrain from killing anyone.” Zaiden took a step back from her and ordered his people to gather back up.
“You can stay with us if you want.” Zaiden said after a long pause, “That bag doesn’t look like it has room for enough supplies to keep you, you know, alive.”
636 looked at the bag in question. Finding food would be a problem for her, so would cooking it. The group would provide a higher chance of survival but she was still unsure if she could trust them. Zaiden hadn’t lied to her but that didn’t mean the others wouldn’t try to kill her first chance they got.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
A brief look of disappointment crossed his face as he looked at his soldiers, as if sensing the reason she didn’t want to join him.
“If you change your mind, we’ll be staying on the other side of the hill,” he pointed to the area behind him, “We’ll be there for two more days before we head back to base.”
636 didn’t know how to respond so she remained quiet and watched as the soldiers followed a blonde man over the hill. Zaiden Amin looked at her hesitantly, waiting for an answer, but eventually left through the forest with the rest of the group. 636 watched them until she could no longer see anyone. She listened for heartbeats around her just in case someone stayed behind to ambush her, but heard none. After a few moments of standing still she finally put the chak on her back and walked away in the opposite direction the strangers went.
She explored the forest for the rest of the day, her mind pledged with the decision she had before her. Looking into her small pack, she knew she didn’t have long before she’d need to start hunting for food. She had to think about the future.
Eventually the sun started to set and 636 watched the star fall under the horizon as she stood atop of a tall rock. A bit of sadness overtook her but she was comforted by the knowledge it would return tomorrow.
636 laid down against a large tree, surrounded by the fireflies she had seen a few nights ago. It was colder than it was before and 636 struggled to fall asleep. Her clothes were not made for the cold. They left her arms bare from the shoulders down. She hugged her bag to her chest and rested her head on the tree. One thought went through her head over and over. Could she trust a stranger?