Helick Armstrung let out a groan as his mind slowly stirred to lucidity. As he opened his eyes, Helick recognized his immediate vicinity by the appearance of the ceiling alone. A multitude of specialized mechanical equipment hung from the ceiling like limp arms, waiting to come to life. Throughout the compact room were a mass of cables sprawled across the ceiling like black tendrils. Some of it came loose, hanging from the ceiling like loose appendages.

This… this is Dr. Nequiv’s personal lab. I have been saved, Helick realized.

“How reckless of you Helick. To allow yourself to take such a degrading blow to your artfully crafted body…” Dr. Nequiv reprimanded the Captain who lay indisposed on the operating table without turning away from his work.

Helick closed his eyes in shame. “My apologies Doctor. It was a spur of the moment decision, I’m sure I could have avoided such an injury if I was given more time... but alas, having a prolonged fight with an Altered is never a good idea. I was reckless. Too eager. And for that, I recognize as incompetence on my part and will take into deep reflection for the future.”

Armstrung then examined his body. His chest was partially exposed, revealing the intricate inner circuitry of his body and an angry congregation of cables that were jammed into his new artificial heart.

“Your heart was perforated. It would have been more effort to repair it than to build a new one,” Dr. Nequiv motioned to the side, his back still facing the Captain.

Sitting on a metal platter next to Armstrung, was his old heart. An ugly mass of torn fibers and soiled synthetic material gave way to a gaping elliptical hole that stretched from one end to the other like a tunnel.

“Your neural circuitry around your chest cavity also had to be replaced before I installed your new heart,” the doctor informed Helick without a hint of emotion in his words, almost as if he was forecasting the weather.

“Thank you for saving me doctor,” Helick said, his voice stern and sincere as he tried his best to bow while laying sprawled on his back.

“Please, just refer to me as Nequiv. How many times have I told you to do so?” Dr. Nequiv grumbled in a rebukeful tone.

“The Armstrung family will remember this debt to you, Nequiv. I will make sure of it. Our house will continue to be in your favor for centuries to come. Say the word, and my family will be at your service in your time of need.”

Nequiv nodded, pleased by Helick Armstrung’s words of extended allegiance.

“Now, how did you manage to take such a dangerous blow?” Nequiv asked suddenly, finally showing some interest in their conversation.

“I was brash and foolish, I must admit. The Altered girl was proving to be a nuisance. Too quick and spry. I don't think I could have caught her if she chose to flee. And so, I made a rather dangerous maneuver. But… It had worked out in the end.”

Helick closed his eyes as he remembered the Altered girl that he had fought with.

“What is your name?” Captain Armstrung had asked proudly, as he paced around the Altered girl, measuring her up.

“Euna,” she had answered softly in a dainty and sonorous voice that was almost otherworldly.

Euna. That was her name, Armstrung acknowledged as he lifted his hand wearily to his chest and carressed his new artificial heart. A formidable foe indeed.

The Altered girl was strange. Quite unlike any of the Altered he had seen before. When Helick had first received the alert, a blinking notification that displayed, ‘Protocol Twenty-seven’, which summarily meant that an intruder had infiltrated the Carrier, Helick had thought it impossible.

That an Altered, the massive abominations that he was currently watching on the Combat Display Interface, managed to get past five of the remaining Carrier ships and avoid all of their sensors without getting shot down and not to mention, enter the interior of their ship without tripping any of their entry alarms?

No living being could enter an Augmented Carrier without the mutual acknowledgement between the Neural Firmware installed on the neural circuitry that every Augmented soldier possessed, and the ship’s neural network.

But when Helick had found the Augmented soldier who was responsible for the broadcast of Protocol Twenty-Seven, he quickly came to a plausible hypothesis. Code-7H14093Q8G3H had been compromised by the enemy and had been forcibly used as a crucial tool to infiltrate their impregnable ship, the Abjurer. But Code-7H14093Q8G3H had ,through his valiant efforts despite his crippling injuries , managed to warn them of this impending crisis. Helick had listened to the crippled soldier describing the Altered girl and felt relief wash over him as he listened to the ramblings of the half-lucid soldier. There was only one on-board, and it was very possible that it was a Nascent Altered. Just imagining what kind of mayhem a Nascent Altered could still unleash within the confines of this ship frightened Helick, but audacity was the defining characteristic of the Armstrung Family. Where soldiers would tremble and cower in their spots, Helick would be steadfast and unrelenting. He would engage the Altered alone if he had to. But this was a invaluable opportunity. This was a chance for Helick to reap glory and greatness for his name and bring immense clout to his family. Helick, the Augmented Captain who halted an enemy infiltration and averted potential disaster for the Abjurer and even the entire Augmented fleet, for the Abjurer was the ship which General Corax was currently on-board.

Helick had commended the limbless soldier who rested on the floor. It was a pitiful sight to behold, but Helick was finding himself grateful that Hiro had brought this creature on board. Then he waited with his squadron of hasitedly recruited soldiers. It wasn’t long before he spotted the Altered girl approaching Hiro.

From there the situation quickly deteriorated into disarray.

Helick could still remember the final moments of his fight with Euna vividly as he rested on Dr. Nequiv’s operating table. He remembered the sensation he felt as Euna’s clawed finger, a curving ivory point, penetrated his artificial heart. It had given him an euphoria he hadn't known before, a rush that pushed him over the edge as he crushed the Altered girl’s lithe and thin body in a crushing embrace. He could still remember the screams as he snapped her spine, echoing in his head even now. Then he felt the Altered girl halt, her thrashing and screaming suddenly ceased. Helick could feel her body slacken, and suddenly the room grew quiet. Only the sound of panting from the handful of soldiers he had left, and the firing of tranquilizer darts flitting through the air could be heard.

“Hold your fire!” Helick roared.

Helick released his hold on the Altered girl and she fell limply onto the floor. It seemed like the tranquilizers had taken effect. The soldiers had fired at least several dozens of them, and some of them had even hit Armstrung himself. He made sure to remember the faces of the incompetent soldiers who couldn't even aim properly at nearly point blank range.

“Sir! Restraints have been applied!”

“Automatic compression engaged, electric field activated!”

The soldiers all stepped away slowly and cautiously from an Altered girl entirely wreathed in winding mesh and wires that glowed with a shimmering blue hue. There was only the hum of an electric field permeating the silence in the room now.

“S-sir you’re hurt!”

“Sir you need to medical attention asap!”

The soldiers watched with their mouths agape as spurts of fluids and discharge erupted from Captain Armstrung’s chest in measured intervals.

“Sir, are you okay?!”

“Captain Armstrung? Can you hear me?”

Helick didn’t respond, but he could hear their voices calling faintly. He was still stunned by the ordeal that had transpired, staring in disbelief at the motionless body wound in synthetic fibre that would expand and compress to accommodate any variable change in size. Helick could feel his mind slowly fall into a tranquil lull, the tranquilizers were quickly shutting down his system, and yet he watched, waiting for the Altered girl to somehow burst out of her containment.

But she didn’t.

I’ve… succeeded. I’ve captured an Altered.

Helick felt joy begin to blossom in his heart, and yet, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was amiss. As the world became a haze, the edges slowly becoming indistinct, he could only wonder what it was that he had heard. He wasn’t sure what, only that there was a vague, indistinct voice, like an echo that he had heard, or more precisely felt when the Altered girl had suddenly slackened in his arms. Something that echoed into his mind like an afterthought. A single spoken word that was incomprehensible to Helick.

He wasn't sure what it was but as darkness permeated his vision, a single word reverberated in the confines of his mind.

‘Finally.’

Helick shuddered, his reverie broken.

“Indeed it did,” Nequiv agreed.

All had turned out well in the end, for the Doctor had been busily working on his new specimen the entire time. Once he had stabilized Captain Armstrung, Dr. Nequiv had wasted no time in taking the Altered girl apart.

“Look at this Helick. Isn't this the most peculiar thing?” Nequiv beckoned with enthusiasm.

Helick pulled himself off the table slowly, his body still connected with dozens of cables. He walked up to the doctor’s side, and together they stood at nearly equal height. Although Helick was much larger in stature, the doctor ‘stood’ with the help of a mechanical contraption which was essentially his lower body. Four elongated, metallic limbs that elevated him to any height that he desired.

“What am I looking at doctor?” Helick asked after giving himself a few long moments to figure out what he was looking at and still coming up with nothing.

“This is an Altered’s chromatin cell.”

“Ah… I see,” Helick nodded as if he understood.

Helick didn’t have a clue of what he was looking at. All he saw was microscopic organisms moving in an erratic pattern.

“The Altered. What makes them so different from us?” Nequiv asked in a tone of a lecturer asking his students a question.

“They are monsters,” Helick replied without even a moment’s thought.

Nequiv sighed, disappointed in Helick’s simple-minded response. It was understandable. The Altered were undoubtedly monsters. Genetic phenomena that defied even logic itself. Perpetually regenerating cells, each individually sentient, allowing controlled growths and complex molecular synthesization. Age, size, mass, molecular structure altered at a whim. They were biologically immortal, unaging. Such bizarre and unexplainable genetic alterations mystified the minds of scientist for centuries. A puzzle that baffled even the greatest minds. Dozens of theories have arisen over the tyranny of the Augmented empire, attempts at solving the mysterious puzzle. The Augmented Archives was infested with theories, most of them dismissed and forgotten with time but some remained. They gained traction, and some even became prolific enough for the High Council to step in and contain. Among the multitude of theories, one conclusion was shared by them all. The Altered were not human. But they must have been at one point, human, just like the Augmented who were for the most part, genetically identical to humanity. The questions that remained elusive however, was when and how?

When did the humans of old unlock the secrets of the human genome? And how did they do it?

Such questions were pondered by Nequiv every night, keeping him awake and sleepless.

“They are abominations in the guise of humans,” Helick continued. “We are, after all, the singular remainder of Humanity. When the Great Collapse--that was foretold six centuries prior--ccurred, we were the ones that emerged supreme. Billions of humans succumbed, unable to survive in a ruined world where the only source of nourishment was your own family.”

Nequiv nodded solemnly as Helick recited the core beliefs and historical foundations of the Augmented Empire.

Helick continued, his chest inflating with fervor, his heart stirring with passion. “But among the dregs and the filth, we endured and we adapted. We mechanized our bodies. We changed the fundamental needs of Humanity, becoming systematic, efficient and at the same time dynamic. We enhanced and conformed our bodies to meet any task or demand.”

Helick took a moment to inhale another breath, then with distant eyes gleaming with pride, he spoke, “ we became Augmented.”

“Yes, yes. Indeed,” Nequiv nodded solemnly, his eyes also glazed over with swelling pride.

Then Helick’s face took on an ugly expression. “But of course, the transition of our race into the Augmented glory that it is today did not come without impediment. There was after all, the Altered Pandemic.”

Nequiv nodded, his eyes gazing at a past faraway.

Not long after the Great Collapse, the Altered had suddenly appeared. According to the Augmented Archives, there was a mythical, individual who was purportedly immortal. Most likely, the first Altered. Nequiv had scoured the Augmented Archives, searching for what clues he could of this particular person who was essentially the first Altered. It was with his appearance, that the Altered Pandemic had followed. Like a disease, there were purportedly sudden and violent cancerous growths, altering the body at the genetic level, transforming those who were afflicted into malformed caricatures of what they once were, bringing agonizing and grotesque deaths to humanity. Among those that survived, arose beings of genetic supremacy.

Nequiv spared a moment to look at the Captain who was now quivering with anger.

Suddenly both Armstrung and Nequiv became aware of a rhythmic electric chime permeating the crisp silence of the lab.

“Is it General Corax? Am I to return to the battlefield?” asked Helick urgently.

“Hold on lad,” Nequiv said still bent over and diligently at work. “Hm, it seems like we have a visitor. Says his code is 7H14093Q8G3H. Know who this is?”

“Ah, yes doctor. It is Hiro,” Helick answered.

“I am Code: 7H14093Q8G3H, Ranking: Officer and Augmentation Tier: 2. Name, Hiro. Now move aside maggots,” Hiro barked at the Augmented soldiers obstructing him to his destination.

When Hiro had--in his frustration and panic-asked Sarah where Euna was, she had simply frowned, answering, “Who’s that?”

It was only after a exhaustive explanation from Hiro that he had managed to get at the core of the apple.

“Oh, the Altered monster? How do you even know its name?” the medic asked, inclining her head.

Hiro let out a breath of frustration, his patience running thin. “Nevermind that, do you know where she is or not?”

Sarah frowned at Hiro’s strange behavior, referring to an Altered monster by name. Seeing Hiro grow increasingly restless, Sarah, the benevolent medic relented.

“Doctor Nequiv’s lab obviously,” Sarah divulged at last with a puzzled expression, still unsure of why Hiro was so obsessed with this particular Altered monster.

Now, Hiro stood at the entrance of Nequiv’s lab, located near the summit of the gargantuan spire that was the Augmented Carrier.

He stood, glowering at the Augmented soldiers in a narrow, winding, concentric corridor that ran the entire circumference of the ship. An entire floor of the ship dedicated to the needs of one man. The small squadron of Augmented soldiers were standing guard outside a massive sliding door. Hiro was eyeing the whimpering men and women before him, who stammered apologetically and looked to one another for salvation. Only hours ago, Hiro was merely a low ranking grunt, just like the gathering before him. Now Hiro was stepping all over the soldiers. He had wanted to test waters, seeing what kind of clout his new ranking had brought him, and as soon as Hiro had mentioned his tier and ranking, the soldiers had turned stiff and apologetic, quivering nervously in their Augmented limbs.

“I-I’m so sorry Sir,” the soldier at the fore of the group whimpered, “b-but like I said,” he swallowed nervously, wondering which House, this new and unknown personage belonged to. “You need special clearance to enter this lab…”

Hiro had sauntered into the corridor so confidently, and had spoken with such a domineering and imperious tone that the soldiers had assumed Hiro would be on the list of authorized personnel. But when Hiro tapped his wrist against the panel to Nequiv’s lab, an angry buzz had sounded along with the glow of a red light that smothered the narrow corridor in a crimson hue.

“And I’ve already checked the list, your designated code is not on the-”

“Check again!” Hiro commanded.

“B-but Sir, I’ve already checked multiple times and have notified the-”

“Perhaps I should have your eyes replaced with recycled Ocular Aug-Eyes. Or better yet… do you know what an Augmented-Shish Kebab is?” Hiro asked with an arched eyebrow.

The gathering of Augmented soldiers shook their heads nervously, as they observed the unknown ‘high-ranking’ officer before them. His name was Hiro and even though they’ve never heard of such a name before they were slowly, and subtly beginning to believe that maybe there really was an Officer named Hiro. The man before them had a peculiar sort of charisma to him. He stood before them in a uniform that was sullied and torn beyond recognition, as if he had engaged with an Altered in hand-to-hand combat. There were still flecks and splatters of dried fluids here and there, some of it blood and some of it--especially near the nether regions… well, better left unimagined. The sleeves of his uniform were torn off, revealing his Advanced-Grade Augmentation limbs. The profoundly complex and intricate circuitry that ran down his arms in the glow of teal-blue cued the soldiers to the fact that perhaps the man before them was affiliated with the elite Houses. By the end of their observation, the vague awareness of this Officer named Hiro had suddenly turned to concrete belief that he was somehow connected with one of the Great Families.

“Oh no Sir, we have not heard of this… Augmented-Shish Kebab, Sir,” said the soldier at the fore, who then proceeded to give his fellow squadmates behind him, a confident smile, a look that said, I got this.

The soldier at the fore then lowered his head with respect. “Pray tell, what is it?”

Hiro took a moment to gather his thoughts. He hadn't expected his hastedly self-imposed charade to actually work. He had no clue where this was going but he had to keep up the facade. Hiro began explaining. “It is a humiliating ceremonial execution practiced by the Altered to captives of the great Augmented Empire…”

The squadron of gathered soldiers leaned in closer as they watched the Officer before them begin to thrash his arms dramatically, as he explained a purportedly first-hand experience of this horrendous ritual.

A sudden hiss, of depressurizing air filled the narrow, winding corridor and the door to Dr. Nequiv’s lab slid open.

“Greetings Officer Hiro,” a deep, empowering voice boomed over the gathering of Augmented soldiers.

The Augmented soldiers quickly dispersed, returning to their patrol, leaving only two behind who would stand guard outside Dr. Nequiv’s lab.

Hiro glanced up at the towering man who had suddenly made his appearance.

Hiro had almost forgetten his place and immediately stood up straighter, his back stiff and saluted with an arched hand over his forehead. “Greetings Captain!”

Helick Armstrung… Hiro thought. What an imposing figure.

The man who had subdued Euna smiled generously at Hiro. “Ah, no need for formalities Hiro. You have done a great service to the Armstrung family today. Your performance on the battlefield may not have been… stellar, but your loyalty and courage is a refreshing sight to behold.”

Hiro nearly choked. Loyalty and courage? That couldn’t have been further from the truth. Hiro was a coward through and through.

“Why thank you, Sir. It was nothing,” Hiro said, his tone in equal measure gratified and reserved. “Your words are too generous.”

Captain Armstrung smiled at the young soldier’s humble display. “You can refer to me as Helick, Hiro.”

“Yes Si- Erm, I mean Helick.”

“I see that you have recovered. I presume you have already become sufficiently acclimated to your new Aug-Limbs?” Captain Armstrung enquired offhandedly as his eyes roamed up and down the young soldier before him, measuring him up in new light now that he was equipped with Advanced-Grade Augmentation Limbs.

“Yes, these Aug-Limbs are proving to be quite the work of art,” Hiro remarked as he clenched and unclenched his fist in a exhibitory manner. “What about your wounds Helick?”

Helick motioned to his body, fully uniformed, and unfaltering. “Fully recovered.”

Soon Hiro found himself looking at another mechanical door, which slid open as they approached. A smaller more compact compartment within the lab itself. Inside, Hiro found himself in a room of blinding lights and the smell of burnt skin. Several paces in and Hiro was halfway through the room. He could see a man at the other end of the room who must have been Dr. Nequiv. He was a small man, mostly because he only had half of his body. Starting from below his waist, he was entirely machine.

Nequiv was bent over, his arms inserted into two large sleeves that traveled inwards into a control module, not unlike the control interface of a Vessel. Via the control modules, Nequiv was manipulating four different mechanical arms, all of which in simultaneous operation.

As Hiro approached with Helick next to him, he could already hear the older man, mumbling to himself in ecstasy.

“How fascinating.”

Hiro caught a glimpse of plumes of thin trailing smoke coming off of flesh.

“Remarkable.”

Armstrung cleared his throat and spoke up. “Hiro meet, Doctor Nequiv. The one and only. The highly esteemed Aug-Smith whose contributions led to everything that we are today. Your limbs, mine, and even the Vessels, all of which were in part, engineered, and refined to the perfection that it is by this very man,” Helick motioned to the man who seemed too occupied with his work to even turn around.

Hiro could suddenly feel his blood run cold.

“And Nequiv, this is the man who brought us the very specimen that you are working on right now.”

Hiro was suddenly speechless, clenching his Augmented fists so tightly he could feel the synthetic fibres go taunt from the strain and the physical exertion that was being outputted. It was all he could do to not fall on his knees and begin hurling his stomach fluids. Hiro watched as Nequiv began cutting through a milky white, and supple thigh, exposing the bone and muscle underneath. Then he moved on to another part of the leg near the feet where there was thick sinewy hide that gave way to protruding ivory armor which extended into clawed toes. A prehensile arm held the leg securely in place as another mechanical arm drooped low, and suddenly igniting the flesh. A fine, pinpoint laser ran its course down the calf, exposing more of the raw and supple flesh beneath.

“It has been so long since I’ve laid my rusty hands on a nascent Altered. Unlike a fully matured Altered, who can often atrophy their cells at will or even subconsciously, this one cannot. And thus… makes for a very, very productive dissection,” Nequiv commented sternly.

Behind the glass wall, on a raised and elaborate operating platform, was the desecrated corpse of Euna. Systematically dissected, limb from limb, organ by organ, everything extracted and arranged in its own orderly manner. Hiro didn’t even know what he was looking at anymore. All he could see was blood, flesh and Euna…

The image of an otherworldly beauty, with mesmerizing, violet eyes that stunned Hiro everytime he met eyes with her. Her long silky, dark violet hair, that cascaded around her elegant nape and the swell of her pale, supple chest. All of Euna, everything that he could remember of her, all reduced to orderly, dissected chunks of flesh.

“This… this is indeed a rare specimen. Though she is Nascent- No, not quite it seems. Perhaps… she was on the verge of maturation?” the Doctor mused to no one in particular as he extracted what appeared to be ovaries and set it aside.

Hiro felt his heart lurch up in his throat. Unable to breathe, let alone speak, he found himself staring at Euna’s remains, unable to peel his eyes away.

What have I done? Hiro lamented in anguish.

“Well done Hiro. I am very pleased with your involvement in the capture of this Altered specimen,” Nequiv said with warm gratitude, then added for emphasis, “You… You have done well, indeed.”