EARTH 4B

Day 429; 0610 (Morning)

Focus: TL7

As expected, SC4’s threat got across to TL1 and TL3. TL7 on the other hand, simply smiled, as it had nothing to do with him.

Of course, this only increased TL1’s hate for TL7, but TL7 didn’t particularly care.

[Don’t act beyond your means if you cannot accept the consequences.] TL7 mused, while staring TL1 down with eyes full of disdain.

SC4: “Save your petty quibbles for another time, you two.”

SC4 interrupted, rubbing his temples in irritation.

SC4: “TL3. You’re up.”

TL3: “Y-y-yes. S-since Subject 513 is still MIA I-I don’t have any additional information to provide. I-I did, h-however, r-receive communications from the Pre-Alpha team monitoring the Teroseribe family…”

TL3’s voice trailed-off as she sheepishly looked at SC4, wondering if she should continue.

SC4: “Go on.”

Urged SC4, with a small nod.

TL3: “A-although we were left in the dark for quite some time, t-the family of seers have verified that two prominent visions had occurred within the last 350 days. T-the first being a vision of a man fighting-off a horde of enormous arachnids -- w-with the leader of the horde being as large as a multi-story building. T-the seers did not go into much detail regarding the leader’s distinctive features as the family member that witnessed the vision had become too traumatized to faithfully recall the event without screaming out in fear.”

“W-we did h-however, r-receive some information on the person in the vision. A-as we have postulated before, I-I believe that the man in this vision to be Subject 513, b-based on the armor the person wore, t-the weapons used, a-and the environment where the vision took place.”

“T-he second vision was short, o-only showing a flying creature in the form of a c-c-c-cat.”

SC4: “...a cat?”

TL3: “Y-yes, i-it appeared to be similar to the average house cat, b-but with wings of an eagle...a-and size comparable to that of a utility truck...t-the vision was brief and was not in the normal forest setting. T-though, t-there were trees far in the background. S-since the subject was staring at the sky, no distinguishing features could be determined. T-thus, I-I can’t fully conclude that the vision had come from Subject 513. H-however, I am still researching what type of creature it could be…i-it may be a rare type of Chimera."

"W-with that said, i-it appears that Subject 513 often stumbles across new creatures -- l-like the arachnids I had mentioned before -- d-during the seer family’s recent violent and disorienting visions. S-so it is possible the chimeral beast may be linked to Subject 513 in some form.”

SC4: “Interesting...of course, we haven't actually confirmed 513's presence on Halios, however, assuming that the man in these visions is Subject 513, do you believe him to still be alive?”

TL3: “Y-yes. T-the Teroseribe family only receive visions from individuals experiencing extreme fear and duress. I-I believe that, g-given his experiences in the forest, S-subject 513 may have developed some immunity to fear. O-or at least, i-is doing a great job of suppressing it.

TL7: “Or he could have died, or have gone crazy.”

TL7 nonchalantly added.

TL3: “Y-yes. T-those are also valid possibilities...w-with that, I-I conclude my report.”

SC4: “Good, good. For the record…”

Responded SC4, while looking at A4’s direction.

SC4: “The purpose of operation Prodigal Son is to secure the anomalous test subject -- Subject 513 -- for observation if alive....and experimentation if found deceased.”

[So that’s your plan to entrap me.] TL7 contemplated. [Conniving piece of…]

SC4: “Before I start hearing complaints, I’d like to know your progress with...that man, TL7.”

[That man?] TL7 wondered, temporarily forgetting his anger. [Ah, THAT man…]

TL7: “Are you sure?”

SC4: “Whether or not I am, does not matter. However, information gathered on that man should provide the team with some understanding on how to handle...future endeavors.”

Raising a brow, TL7 took a moment to think things through. [Schemer...but I no longer have a choice in the matter now that it’s on-record. Very well, I’ll play your game, SC4.]

TL7: “Bernard Miller. You two are familiar with this name, yes?”

TL7 asked his colleagues, to which TL3 nodded and TL1 scoffed.

TL7: “And you, miss A4. You should have been briefed on this man as part of your assignment, correct?”

He asked the archivist, who nodded approvingly.

TL7: “Good. For his punishment, I had him undergo the same conditions placed on Subject 513 before his force-transfer to Halios, including the exclusion of receiving the SubSplit procedure.”

TL1 frowned upon hearing that a fellow scientist had been subjected to such cruelty, but TL7 ignored her and continued.

TL7: “You are all aware that Subject 513 expired inside his pod before the completion of the mass transit of test subjects to Halios. However, what you may not be aware of is that his pod had automatically switched to stand-by mode before his force-transfer could finish -- essentially halting the procedure. The implications behind this fact is huge."

"It means that Subject 513 was likely sent to Halios naturally. But we have absolutely no proof of this, being that 513 has not been confirmed to be alive, dead, or even on Halios."

"This is where Bernard Miller comes into play. Conveniently speaking, he was the perfect test subject to replicate the faulty procedures Subject 513 underwent."

After briefly shuffling his papers, TL7 continued.

TL7: "The results from replicating the procedures, down to the transfer process, seems to suggest that Subject 513 did indeed transfer to Halios naturally-"

TL1: “Wait-wait-wait! Hold-on! Are you saying that you were able to conduct a natural transfer? How? And why aren’t we doing that instead?”

TL1 cried out, interrupting TL7’s report.

Rolling his eyes, TL7 violently scratched his head, bellowed a sigh, then replied.

TL7: “TL1, did you conveniently forget how you are partially responsible for the archetype system and its success? Are you ignoring how such a system relies on force-transfers and not natural transfers to make proper use of alterations made to the test subjects' brain chemistry?”

TL1: “...”

Calming himself, TL7 took a deep breath, then resumed.

TL7: “Look...I understand the excitement. I really do. But save your questions and comments until I finish. You may not like what I have to say from this point on.”

SC4 couldn’t help but smirk at the sight of TL7’s snark. [Poor girl, he is taking-out his frustrations on you, and not me. Hahahaha.]

Noticing SC4's grin, TL7 delayed his report for a few seconds before continuing.

TL7: “Like Subject 513, when the procedure had 'completed', the only thing that remained of Bernard’s existence was a pile of ash. The significance of this phenomenon is still under study, but it has been linked to numerous cases of abrupt disappearances throughout the world, Japan being a massive outlier for some reason..."

“Later, an Alpha Team located Bernard’s location on Halios after detecting a large spike of Natural Energy surging from the local environment -- a common identifier for newly arriving Travellers. They quickly moved in to intercept the new arrival, but backed off after considering my message of caution.”

“I had the team setup surveillance on Bernard within the densely packed forest where he had arrived. Based on their reports, Bernard seemed distraught and incredibly confused, calling-out to his deceased nephew to...and I quote: ‘stop the charade Joseph! Get me out of here! I swear I’ll never drink with you again!’”

“The anomalous characteristics continued as the team reported Bernard aimlessly wandering around the forest for days without requiring food or water. No apparent adverse effects to his body or constitution had been observed during this time frame."

"On the 15th day of observation, Bernard was attacked by a beast the locals in the area called an Armored Grey Wolf. Luckily, he survived the attack, but received grievous injuries from the encounter. At this point, I suggested that the team postpone any form of intervention and instead, continue observation. Like before, they prioritized caution and decided to follow my suggestion.”

“The day after the attack, Bernard’s mental state seemed to deteriorate. The team reported Bernard undergoing bouts of depression, anger, shouting, and incoherent jabbering. In addition, his injuries, which should have killed him, seemed to have healed to the point where he was able to resume wandering around the forest, albeit at a much slower pace.”

“Three days after the attack, Bernard’s injuries were reported to have completely healed, leaving prominent scars behind. However, the team’s report indicated that his mind had deteriorated even further. The team described him to be crazed, psychotic, and delusional."

"On that same day, Bernard was reported to undergo a transformation of some kind. Dark ichor, pus, blood, and all manner of filth seemed to explode out from his body, as if his body was being squeezed like a sponge by an invisible entity.”

“After this event, Bernard’s body was reported to have changed, becoming more muscular and ‘durable’.

“21 days-in, and Bernard was reported to still not have consumed any form of food nor drank any water. However, his mental faculties seemed to have reverted back to normal.”

“On the 22nd day he met another Armored Grey Wolf. This time he was able to injure the wolf causing it to flee with one less leg. In exchange, he accrued substantial injuries from the fight. That night, no reports regarding fits of crying or screaming were made."

"The following day, Bernard was found inspecting his own body, which had become emaciated for reasons unknown.”

“At this point, I quickly ordered the Alpha Team observing Bernard to enact intervention protocols, not because of the drastic changes to Bernard’s body, but because a pack of Armored Grey Wolves had started settling near his position."

"That ends our covert observation of Bernard. Currently, he is contained in an undisclosed location while under a medically induced coma and guarded by veteran Pre-Alpha Team members.”

Pausing to gather his thoughts, TL7 shuffled his notes around, then continued.

TL7: “Bernard’s condition is still being studied, however, enough information had been gathered through our observations of Bernard to infer a few things regarding Subject 513.”

“First. Like Bernard, it is highly likely that 513 is capable of healing life-threatening injuries without the aid of another party. This would explain how he might be able to survive such treacherous lands. Second. there is a chance that he undergoes some form of transformation after being 'healed'. "

"The extent of this transformation is unknown, as is the number of times it can occur. The mechanism by which it triggers is also unknown, though it is likely tied to the severity of injuries sustained and the rate of regeneration the body undergoes. I will disclose such information when I gather more relevant data.”

“For now, that is all for my report.”

SC4: “...hmm…”

Scratching his well-manicured beard, SC4 pondered aloud.

SC4: “This transformation...it is described eerily similar to an Awakening. Do you know if there is a correlation?”

Asked SC4, looking somewhat concerned.

TL7: “Not yet.”

Promptly replied TL7.

Before SC4 could ask a follow-up question, TL1 cut-in.

TL1: “Your report mentioned Bernard experiencing psychotic episodes. If we are to believe that Bernard is an analogue to Subject 513, should we be wary of his mental acuity?

TL7: “That is something we should have considered from the start. The same should be true with the rest of the test subjects that have been altered for your archetype program.”

TL1: “...”

Unable to refute him, TL1 pursed her lips and tightly clenched her fist.

SC4: “TL7…”

SC4 hesitated.

Shaking his head, he quickly switched topics.

SC4: “Ahem. Now that everyone has concluded their findings...Numbers Report! Starting from TL1, please tell me the number of active scientists and test subjects currently on your team.”

TL1: “...there have been no personnel changes. I don’t understand...”

TL1 replied, confused by the order.

SC4: “Numbers, TL1.”

SC4 commanded, raising his voice.

TL1: “Five researchers, five test subjects.”

SC4: “TL3?”

TL3: “F-five researchers, f-four test subjects.”

TL7: “Four researchers, four test subjects.”

SC4: “Good, good.”

SC4 admitted, satisfied by the group’s answers.

The team leaders were still confused by the abrupt change in pace, but quickly overcame the incongruity.

After a short break, the rest of the meeting resumed without much incident, aside from some mild bickering between TL1 and TL7.

◊◊◊◊◊◊

Day 429; 0643 (Morning)

Focus: SC4

SC4 slouched in his chair as he watched the last team leader exit his office. Looking-up at the ceiling, he blew-out a lengthy sigh, then closed his eyes to meditate.

A4: “Was all of that necessary?”

SC4: I’m not sure what you mean.”

Replied SC4, his eyes still closed as he leaned further back into his mesh work chair.

A4: “You didn’t have to do that you know.”

SC4: “Again, I have no clue what you’re talking about.”

A4: “It’s your reputation on the line, not mine. Feel free to do what you want, I won’t stop you. But let me warn you. The next time you decide to covertly inform your team of missing personnel and test subjects...well, let’s hope there isn’t a next time.”

A4 warned SC4, as she made her way towards the door.

Grinning, SC4 responded.

SC4: “I don’t take kindly to threats. Besides, I told them absolutely nothing of the sort. This is fact. Even you can attest to that.”

Turning around, A4 stared at SC4's grinning face and made one last remark before heading out the door.

A4: “That wasn’t a threat, that was a glimpse at inevitability.”

SC4 playfully waved 'farewell' as A4 shut the door behind her.

[Good riddance, louse.] SC4 thought to himself.

---Chapter End