The scientist took a deep breath. The question she had been anticipating had finally come.
"For the eternal project, we decided to use a modified model from the one you provided us." Silence. From the mounting pressure in the room, she knew that if she didn't explain herself properly, she would undoubtedly end up as a corpse. Without waiting for him to speak, she continued to talk.
"From the threw models I presented earlier, all of them allowed for an artificially accelerated growth, regardless of the model. However, the problem we happened on is that all of them were artificially. There was no problem right now, but problems may arise later on in the future. So we picked 4 out of the 100 subjects you provided, and used the modified model on them instead. I guarantee that they were the ones with the least potential of the whole group!"
The silence continued, but it no longer felt as oppressive as before. Frisk rubbed his temples. These researchers were important, so he couldn't really do anything to them at this moment. He motioned for her to continue.
"Using the modified model, we simulated the Phoenix Rebirth effect on them. There has been no particular changes in them, so we plan to start the large scale application of the technomancer war plan with them. This is so we can detect any issues there before working on the others with more potential." With that said, she began to wait for further input.
"...Fine, do as you wish."
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Midnight woke up and found herself bound and tied to what seemed to be an operating table. She tried to move, but the restraints were too strong for someone like her to break free from. She looked around and saw a girl with fluffy green hair next to her, who seemed to be slightly panicked at the realisation of her current circumstances. She soon broke down into tears, much to Midnight's dismay.
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"What's your name?" Midnight spoke, trying to stop the child from crying, but the child didn't hear her, continuing to cry. Soon, more kids began to cry, making Midnight aware of the other kids she hadn't seen due to being unable to move properly.
Suddenly, she heard the sound of doors opening somewhere, and light poured into the dimly lit room. The person saw the state of the children, and muttered something under his breath. A pink mist began to float through the room, and each time it touched a crying child, they would become silent immediately. When it floated to her, she noticed that it didn't affect her, and instead she felt like she could do it as well.
She didn't get the chance to try it, as the person had walked up to her. Looking down on her, he smiled creepily, pulling out a scapel from somewhere. "Let's begin the operation." With that, he began to cut open her chest.
Across the one-sided window into the room, two employees happened to pass by and witness this scene. They watched as the man skillfully cut open a girl's chest cavity, take out a glowing core and replace it with one he had brought.
"He's very skilled at this." One of the employees remarked.
"He's been doing this for decades, or so I've heard." His companion responded. "It's a pity for the children though, they don't even get sedated during the process."
Noticing her co-worker clenching his hands, she motioned to stop him.
"Don't do anything rash. Remember what happened to the last person who tried helping them?" She glanced at the child being operated on, who had lost consciousness due to the pain. "They'll get their retribution someday, but for now, we have to play our part as employees, just like everyone else. Come on." She pulled his hand and led him out of the room.