She sat there, strapped against a bed as the doctors observed her. She looked like someone who had just seen a ghost. Pale complexion, saggy eyes and dried up tears on her cheek. There wasn't an apparent reason for a person to look like this but there she was the center of attention in the room. 

The smell of pungent chemicals filled the air as her screams echoed in the room. Her contorted expression from the pain wasn't noticed as the nurses running right and left bringing different needles, liquids which were in turn injected into her, paid her no mind.

“It hurts.

“I don’t want any more of this

“Mom, Dad. Please save me.”

Each needle was followed by a sob, a scream occasionally heard down the hallway. The people around her had no hint of emotions on their face as their face masks were on, leaving only their eyes visible.

Suddenly, the door straight ahead from the bed opened, revealing a bulky man dressed in uniform. He was followed in by two persons, dressed in clad black armor, their eyes barely visible through the visors, each carrying two guns, one in arm, the other tucked into their sides. 

The uniformed man surveyed the hall as the majority of the attendees stood in reverence. Seated on one side were individuals ranging from sixteen years old and above. 

“General Enki.”

"Any progress?" 

The physician shook his head, a tinge of disappointment evident in his gaze. The general scanned the room, his gaze settled on the adolescents on the side. His attention then fixated on the young lady at the center, a gesture of disdain evident as he spat on the floor before departing.

“Useless like her father.”

The room in which everyone stood like trees in the forest was now busy once more. Everyone went on with their jobs as the screams continued all over. 

After what seemed to be an hour of excruciating torment, the doors opened again. This time, six of the teenagers walked out. There were ten initially. This had happened countless times, not an unusual occurrence for the doctors, but a first for them.

The first to emerge was a young boy of African origin. With his dark brown skin and stout nature, he looked the most stable among them, having a fairly strong military build. Behind him, was a girl who had snow white hair with eyes like that reflected the whiteness of the moon. Slight electrical buzz could be seen around her hair and on her pupil, not to mention the ivory gown she wore, giving her a fairy-like look.

They waited a while till a young boy came out. He had black hair but what was most striking was his appearance. Unlike the others, he had high cheekbones, downturned eyes, with very thin lips. He had no hair on his body, though you could see he looked Asian. 

“Wait up Fed.”

A voice was heard behind me. It came from a short girl who ran into him, her nose having a shade of red from the impact. She had two pony tails and held on tightly to Fed who had just come out of the room. She bore similar resemblance with the only difference being strange markings on her skin. She had a soft smile as she looked at her brother.

“Seriously, Ami, you can walk on your own. I’m equally tired”

The needles they received varied but they all had red spots on parts of their bodies. 

‘Where are they?”

His voice was strong but yet calm at the same time. They all looked at him and smiled.

‘Still the same as always, Uyi. Loosen up a bit.” They all laughed. 

“You’re one to talk Sara, always spoiling Ami”. 

Fed had a grin on his face looking at his sister who was behind him. 

Sara had kind of a doting behavior on those younger than her. Well, one could say this was her way of coping with this world. 

A boy soon emerged, stretching his limbs as the door slammed shut behind me. He wore glasses, having a rather average figure. His facial expression dimmed as he turned back, a melancholic look in his eyes. They all looked at him then laughed.

“Larry, you should be happy that the universe has given you a chance to exercise your body.”

He looked at Ami with a glare. She quickly rushed behind Sara, peeping out, teasing him by sticking her tongue out. She always behaved like this to Larry, like her own little way of cheering him up. Among them, he had lived the hardest so they felt he deserved stress relief from time to time. And she was just twelve, the youngest in their group.

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“She should be out so-”

He was cut short by the opening of the door. A nurse exited with a girl having pale blue eyes. They paid no mind to her as they followed the nurse, who gestured at them to follow her. She led them onto the hallway with Uyi following closely behind while chatting with Sara and Fed. 

Behind the trio were Larry and Ami. The blue eyed girl trailed further behind with all eyes on her as she passed through the white hallway. 

They were all worn out from the amount of needles they had to take, each having a lengthy eye bag.

The walls were one- way mirrors, the scientists’ gaze however, made her skin tingle even though she couldn’t see them.

The constant stare through the mirrors settled majorly on the blue eyed girl. She had an expressionless face with only the bags under her eye as a hint that she was tired. Trudging forward, she hugged the teddy bear in her hand, burying her face in it as she followed the group further ahead. 

‘Why are they looking at me, I want to leave this place. I don’t care if am weak, I want to leave free from all this” 

A few people could be seen on the hallway, still casting their gazes at her sheepish demeanor. 

She refused to meet the gaze of anyone who looked at her. Most people saw her as an ant, insignificant to them. Others were of disgust.  

Uyi slowed down his pace as the rest went ahead of him with the girl catching up to him. Sara noticed this and smiled faintly. She had no way of approaching her so she had always left it to Uyi.

“It’s—It’s him again… Wha—What does he want this time? 

“He always seems… nice but he will bully me when… he gets the chance” 

Her thoughts flowed a bit slowly, as she trudged on, her eyes gradually closing her as she fell forward. 

…

She cut open? wut and sat up. She recognized the place at first glance. She called this her little prison which she shared with the other five. She was the youngest, having a blank expression on her face as usual. She could hear her name being called.

“Gilly…”

“Gilly…Ar…Yo….”

Unable to hear the voice distinctly, she instinctively looked around.

The room was hexagonal in shape, five sides of the wall having a bunk supporting two beds. Four of those beds laid bare. 

The only person who approached her was Uyi but most of the time,  she was on her own. Each inhabitant was doing their own thing; Sara braiding Ami’s hair, Fed and Uyi were arm wrestling.

Larry, who was the brightest among them, was always reading on the bed that was above Uyi. Gilly being the only one outside Fed that lost a friend. Uyi was the only one who looked at her as she sat on the lower bunk opposite him. The rest never paid attention to her or even attempted to talk to her.

“I guess I blacked out again. How many times has it been this week? I don’t think I can keep this up.”

Uyi looked at her for a while. Fed was also curious, the bad stories spreading about her death ability seems to be false. Although each had their own thoughts, they never openly expressed their view.

“She seems calm about her friend's death. Lora was the only one that spoke to Gilly. I wonder how she will cope onward”

Uyi continued with his chat and game facing Fed once more. Fed was jovial, always making jokes about the training and check-ups they had to go through. His bubbly spirit was one of the few things that made them last this long. 

“I wonder if he has a thing for her”. 

“Hm. I guess we are all around that age so it’s to be expected.”

He looked around observing Sara and Ami who were seated in a corner. Ami did not look so good, her pale expression and frail physique made the others feel she’d be the next to leave.

They always prepared their mind for the worst possible outcome. The world was dark since the Spawn appeared and it had always been a fight for their lives. Even children were not safe and had to be useful to society so as not to be discarded. They were the perfect example of that.

A loud boom was heard which shook the entire place, throwing Larry off the top bunk. An alarm rang, the lights in the room dimming to a sharp red.

This had never happened before.

Ami dived into Sara, burying her face in her stomach. Gilly just looked dazed as if she was detached from the world.

Hurried footsteps could be heard from the hallway, with rumble  thuds following each shot.

A second explosion was followed by a loud thud, seemingly hitting the door separating the room from the hallway. A dark sticky liquid seeped through, passing under the door, the smell was close to the one they had always perceived during their check-ups with the scientists..

“Blo-”

Before Sara could complete her statement, she noticed Ami was visibly shaking in her arms.

The door’s hatch made a clicking sound, opening up and Smoke blew in. When the fog cleared, Enki could be seen Standing with four guards behind him.

Shocked with horror at the arrival of the general, Ami developed tears in her eyes with snort threatening to burst out of her nose. He ignored her gaze, scanning the room till his eyes reflected Gilly, who looked at him expressionlessly like a lifeless statue. 

Cursing under his breath, he glared at her for a moment before turning to the soldiers behind him. 

“Kill all of them, leave her,” he bellowed, pointing at Sara who was a high class subject to them. 

The room was silent as the soldiers stepped forward. They all bowed their heads, their expressions taking a twisted look as they looked at Sara.

Larry had a cold look, biting his lip as he looked at Enki. 

“No!

“You can’t take her.”

Ami looked at Enki as she stood up, tears forming a chain on her cheeks. The soldiers raised their guns pointing at all, except Sara. Ami wiped her eyes, a teary resolve welling up as she stretched her hands forwards, toward Enki and his crew. The marks on her body were released, binding the guards and Enki mid Air.

“You can’t stop the inevitable.”

Enki smiled, knowing their powers as she had been one of his lab rats since birth. He knew she would not be able to keep them for long. At most two minutes and she will die of overload. Surprisingly, she stepped forward, her body emitting steams from the increasing heat. The markings retracted to her companions, surrounding each in a barrier. Enki dusted his body, looking at her as he pulled his pistol from his armpit holster, pointing it to Ami’s forehead.

Behind her, the others were shouting her name, but the binding barrier from the markings on her body was too strong, even restricting sound waves from passing through. From Enki’s perspectives, the idiots looked like mimes trying to scream.

He realized at that moment that Ami was the strongest in the group and had been told only to show a bit of her power. He cursed as he knew she was in the same class as Nicholas who was among the top hundred in the Rankings

The heat in the room gradually rose as Ami, emitting blinding, turned, and a faint smile played across her lips. The light expanded and enveloped the entire room. After a few moments, at the first sign of visibility, everyone noticed that mi, Enki and his crew were gone.

Sara, who could not comprehend what she was seeing, passed out. Fed yelled from his lungs; his anger evident in the scream. The room they were now in was now a crater in the middle of the building. The night sky was now visible as raindrops fell from the sky. Uyi’s fists dripped blood, from his nails digging into his clenched fists’ skin.

He was pissed that he could not protect one of his friends.

Larry on the other hand, was checking on Sara to make sure she was still alive. Apart from Fed, he was the closest to Ami but he couldn’t do a thing. The tears mixed with the rain as they streamed down his face.

Gilly, just escaping her dazed look, stood up, looking at the starry night sky, the rain drops falling on her face. She had longed for this feeling and now, she could sense it.

She was free.