Alim's hand tightly closed around the smooth, cool surface of the purple metal pole. As he held on, he could sense the soft metal yielding to the pressure of his grip.
“Strev, please exercise caution and refrain from causing any harm to this test subject. It is important to prioritize their well-being as gaining another will take too much time.” The voice of the elder Vanir echoed in the room.
Alim didn't say anything, his eyes locked on the man before him. He clenched his jaw as he noticed the black hair and eyes, realizing it was another Shadow Race member.
“Does this make it the third one from this race?” Alim asked, hiding his anger.
The elder Vanir looked up from the paper he was reading, “Fourth, the subject that was tested at the battle several months ago was also from this race.”
“Oh, there must be a lot of them then,” Alim said, feeling the indents his hand left in the metal pole.
“It seems that their disregard for danger and overconfidence cloud their judgment. That and their mindset that prioritizes the mission often lead to their early deaths. Creating environments where such incidents occur and remain undiscovered was simple because of these factors.” The elder Vanir said matter-of-factly.
Alim could not help but laugh at the comment, as it was true, and he was no better.
“Now that I've answered your questions, shall we proceed with the issue?” The elder Vanir said impatiently.
“Yes! Right!” Alim screamed in feigned excitement, covering his anger.
Alim relaxed as he stared at the familiar face before him, “Another friend like this. The least I can do is remove the pain like the others.” Alim thought, scared that if he made any sound, this hypersensitive Feyrishian would hear.
As Alim sprang into action, his body tensed up, and he gripped the pole tightly, swinging it with all his might. The satisfying sound of the pole connecting with his opponent's head echoed through the air, followed by the sickening snap as the pole broke in two. The force of the blow sent the opponent hurtling through the air, bouncing several times before coming to a sliding stop on the ground. Its body lay still and lifeless, mangled by the impact of Alim’s swing and the high-speed bounces.
Alim watched emotionlessly as the body bounced and then came to a stop. He clicked his tongue as he saw the state of the body.
“Well done! You have finally managed to preserve a test subject's body successfully.”The elder Vanir said with an emotionless face and a sarcastic hand clap.
The elder Vanir began to poke and prod the lifeless body. “It remains unclear whether the body's natural robustness or modifications made by the Erlminins contributed to this outcome. But at least it remains intact, and no signs of life essence are leaking out. I think we can safely say this was a success.”
Hearing what the elder Vanir had said, Alim began to walk out of the room, hoping to calm himself down after what he had just done.
“Where are you going?” The elder Vanir shouted as he glared at the escaping Alim.
“Leaving. You don’t need me anymore,” Alim did not even give a glance behind him as he left.
The elder Vanir watched Alim leave with a mad glint in his eyes, a sinister smile growing, “Is it not wonderful to watch a fruit ripen right before your very eyes.”
He lightly put his hand over his mouth as drool began to seep out, “Calm breaths… Calm breaths…” he repeated to calm his madness.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
“It is not time,” he licked his lips, “But it is so close.”
Alim silently walked through the halls; all those who passed him ran away with their heads ducked, trying not to fall into his gaze. Alim could only sigh at the reactions of those he once called his ‘comrades’. Much had changed since that battle several months ago, including his standing in Gran’s faction. He was now the assistant commander, a title made just for him. There was a lot of pushback when Gran made that decision, especially from the commander himself, saying that Alim was already suspicious and needed to be dealt with. When both Feyrisians stepped in and vouched for Alim’s character and history, not only Gran and the higher-ups but also Alim were shocked as to why they chose to make such an action. With the sole backing of Gran and the Feyrishians, no one dared to question anything that Alim said, afraid of the beast behind him, and this alone gave rise to the reactions of those around him.
Alim opened the door to his office, closing the door with a stern look before his back laid on the door and slid down. He was tired. No, exhausted to a point he did not know was possible, and for what some war that had nothing to do with him. No, at this point, it did, and not only did it involve him, but so many others. He could not even count the number of test subjects from so many different races he had fought daily since he was tasked with it. How many more test subjects were they hiding, and where were they keeping them?
A knock on the door that Alim was resting on echoed, causing the already upset Alim to become even more frustrated.
“The next subject is ready. Return immediately for testing.”
Alim flung the door open. He tried to scream a curse angrily, but his mouth was covered before he could speak.
“Language is important for image Assistant Commander.” Said the young Vanir, “So please keep that in mind as your image is also the image of myself, and I do like to keep my image pristine.”
Alim shook off the hand, giving the man a sneer.
“Hate us all you want, Shadow Race; just remember that the only thing standing between the extinction of your race and its continuation is me and my silence.” The young Vanir said, returning the sneer and a smirk.
Alim stood rooted, swallowing all his indignation and the words that he wanted to say.
“Now that your tantrum is over, you can follow me like the obedient pet you are. right?”
Alim glared and followed behind, grinding his teeth with every step.
Alim reentered the room he had just left, and silently, a woman stood on the other side of the room. She was covered in bandages and wrapping, and if it weren’t for her figure, Alim would have had difficulty discerning anything about his new opponent.
“What is this one?” Alim asked
“They are from the Eye Race.” The elder Vanir said, reading over his notes.
“I need more than that if you want me to fight this thing,” Alim demanded
“No. If you receive any more information, then I am afraid of you damaging this subject. Getting a subject from this race was very difficult, and I would like to keep it safe.”
“How am I supposed to fight then?”
“You are not fighting this one. This race is not so barbaric.” The elder Vanir said, walking to the Eye Race and slowly removing the bandages from their body.
Alim looked at the strange figure, shocked at the holes where its eyes were supposed to be.
“Why are they called the Eye Ra…” Alim was in the middle of asking when he suddenly saw an eye open on the outstretched palm of this weird race, and then more and more eyes began to open all around their naked body.
Alim grabbed his head, “What is happening?” the world around him spun faster and faster as the eyes on the Eye Race moved around their body like insects.
“It seems like the illusion this test subject created has increased in potency by a large margin after the experiments.” The elder Vanir said, jotting down something on his notes.
“I believe that this is enough data for this subject. You may leave now, Strev. I will have someone retrieve you if I need your service again.” The elder Vanir said, walking out of the room, leaving the woman standing like a doll and Alim squirming on the ground in pain.
“AHHHHHH!” Alim screamed as he gripped his head, his eyes locked on the figure before him, unable to look away from the eyes that were still moving.
“It’s funny to see him in this state.”
“Ager, be kind to this friend. He is a colleague, after all.”
“Irmin, you are too kind and trusting. It is going to cost you one day.”
“Quiet Ager, and just take Strev somewhere far away from this Eye Race subject so he can rest his mind for the next one.”
“What on the list next?”
“I have no idea what they want to test next. There is still a long document of test subjects that need testing of various kinds, and Strev is the only one we have for testing here. That and the decision is up to the pair from the Vanir family and Gran. I’m here for a good time and an excuse to do what I want in my lab without all those stuffy rules that the Elder Council of Alchemists shove down everyone’s throats.”