While Aether was busy 'Seducing' Xara... Meanwhile, back at the research tower, where Aqualina and Celestia were still trapped in an unknown and eerie place,
"Y-You think you can get away with th—"
Chuck!
A thin, gleaming blue blade sliced clean through her throat, cutting off her words before she could finish her threat. A sickening gurgle escaped her lips as her eyes widened in horror, her body collapsing onto the blood-soaked floor before she even realized she was dead.
Chuccllkkk!
Aqualina withdrew her weapon, watching with an indifferent gaze as crimson pooled beneath the lifeless bodies of the lab workers. Their once pristine white coats were now drenched in red, a stark contrast to the cold sterility of the facility.
"Princess, everyone is dead," Celestia reported as she stepped forward, wiping her bloodied hands on her torn sleeve. She had just finished her own share of the slaughter.
Aqualina's expression remained unreadable as she surveyed the corpses of the so-called scientists. These people... they had treated innocent lives like mere test subjects as if they were nothing more than expendable lab rats.
Taking a slow, measured breath, Aqualina finally turned her gaze toward the few remaining people in the room—the ones who had been used for experiments. Their bodies trembled, fear etched into their hollow eyes as they huddled together, unsure whether they had been saved or if they were merely next in line to die.
Aqualina's sharp, piercing gaze softened slightly as she took a step toward them... The thin sword in her hand shimmered briefly before dispersing into glowing particles... She crouched down,
"Don't be afraid," her voice was gentle, "You're safe now. I came here to rescue you."
The group flinched at first, as if expecting another strike, but then realization dawned upon them. Their tear-filled eyes widened in shock before their emotions finally broke free,
"P-Please... help us!"
"I—I can't take this pain anymore... It hurts so much!"
"T-Thank you... Thank you! Haaa—!!"
They cried out, their voices trembling between relief and disbelief. Some clung to each other, while others dropped to their knees, sobbing in pure exhaustion.
Aqualina smiled softly before she stood up, turning toward Celestia. "Take them to the top of the tower as well as children... Get them out of this hellhole."
Celestia hesitated for a moment, "Princess, what about you?"
"There's something I need to find before I leave," she said, her voice calm but firm. "I need to know exactly what they were doing here... and more importantly, I need proof. That injection they used on the subjects—it's the key to everything."
Celestia's lips parted as if she wanted to protest, but she sighed before, "Understood." Without another word, she turned, guiding the survivors toward the top.
As the sounds of their footsteps faded, Aqualina shifted her gaze toward a darkened corner of the room.
Her voice, low and emotionless,
"You do understand why I let you live, don't you?"
Tank!
A metal shelf in the corner trembled before crashing to the ground, revealing a cowering man in his thirties. His breath hitched as he looked up at Aqualina, his entire body trembling in sheer terror.
"Tell me everything you know," she said coldly, taking a slow step forward. "And if you're honest... I might just be merciful enough to let you live." Her voice was eerily calm, but there was something in her tone that sent a chill down the man's spine.
His eyes widened in desperate hope. "R-Really?" He swallowed hard, his throat bobbing as he dared to believe her offer.
Aqualina gave a small nod. "Of course. But if you lie..." She lifted her hand, and in an instant, a thin blue sword materialized in her grip, "Your death will be far worse than the others."
The man flinched violently, "I-I swear! I'll tell you everything! Please... I-I have a family! I can't die here!" His voice cracked as he pleaded, his teary eyes darting around as if searching for an escape that didn't exist.
"Then speak,"
The moment she dismissed her sword, the man exhaled sharply, his entire body sagging with momentary relief. He took a few deep breaths before finally spilling everything he knew.
In simple terms, their job was to administer the injections and observe how the test subjects reacted. The ones who successfully stabilized and adapted to their "new evolution" were sent to an unknown location. As for those who failed... they were disposed of.
But not in the way one would expect.
They were fed to the children.
Aqualina's brows furrowed deeply, her stomach twisting with disgust. "Huh? That's it?" she asked, her tone filled with disbelief. "That's all you know?"
"P-Please believe me!" The man fell to his knees, his hands clasped together in desperation. "No one here knows the bigger picture! We—we were just following orders! Our only job was to inject the blood and document the effects. That's it! We weren't told anything else! Please, please, I'm begging you... don't kill me!" His voice cracked in sheer terror when he saw Aqualina summon her weapon again.
Aqualina's sharp gaze bore into him, analyzing every flicker of emotion on his face. After a tense moment, she let out a slow breath.
He wasn't lying.
"So you're telling me," she said slowly, "that you don't even know what kind of injection you were giving people? You have no idea what it was turning them into?"
The man shook his head violently, nodding up and down like a frantic woodpecker.
Aqualina narrowed her eyes, a contemplative expression crossing her face. Then, after a moment of silence, she spoke again.
"You said that the successful subjects were sent somewhere," she muttered. "Where? And what exactly happens to them after that?"
The man shook his head frantically, "I don't know... I really don't know. Once the test subjects left, we never saw them again. They were just... gone."
Aqualina's frown deepened... Something about this didn't sit right.
Moving with swift precision, she suddenly grabbed the man's throat, her fingers tightening around his neck like a steel vice, "Mind telling me why the hell you're feeding dead bodies to the children?"
The man's face contorted with horror, his eyes widening as pure terror took hold of him. He gasped, his body shuddering as he choked on his own breath. He tried to speak, but the pressure on his windpipe only allowed him to stammer.
"P-Pleas—cough, cough... I—I just don't know..." He gagged, his hands clawing weakly at Aqualina's grip. "They... they told us it was only f-food... that we should feed them... o-otherwise... cough, cough—"
"Otherwise?"
The man's lips trembled as another fit of coughs wracked his body. Finally, he managed to croak out the words, "Cough... T-They won't grow up like other children..."
Thud!
Aqualina let go of him, watching as he crumpled to the ground, clutching at his throat while he coughed violently.
"What do you mean by that?" she demanded, her gaze sharp as a blade. "What happens if they don't eat?"
The man coughed a few more times before managing to get his breath back. "P-Please, I swear, I don't know... None of us do! We just followed orders! We did what they told us, nothing more! Please believe me... I'm telling the truth..." His voice cracked.
Aqualina stared at him blankly. This was the same man who had stood by and watched innocent people suffer, who had treated them like mere experiments. And now, he begged for his own life.
"They? Who are 'they'?" she asked coldly.
The man flinched, his entire body tensing before he slowly shook his head. "I... I don't know," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "That's what my seniors used to say... but we never knew who they were. They always wore hooded cloaks, covering their faces and bodies. No one ever saw them clearly."
Aqualina gritted her teeth.
Nothing.
No useful information.
She was about to end his miserable life when her gaze caught something on the floor—a shattered injection vial, its contents smeared across the tiles.
"I need that injection and any related documents. Hand them over. Now."
The man swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing as he hesitated. Then, as if a sudden hope reignited in him, he asked cautiously, "O-Once I give them to you... you'll let me go, right?"
Aqualina nodded.
Relief flooded the man's face, and he scrambled to his feet, moving hastily. His hands fumbled through the mess of scattered files and overturned cabinets until he finally retrieved a white suitcase, secured with a metal lock.
"Key?" Aqualina asked flatly.
The man hurriedly searched a nearby corpse before snatching a small key from its pocket. With shaking hands, he handed it to her.
Aqualina raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised. He was doing everything she asked without resistance.
"Hmm... Why do I feel like you're planning something?" she muttered.
The man let out a nervous chuckle, sweat beading on his forehead. "I-I swear, I'm not planning anything!" He forced a shaky smile as he fumbled with the lock, finally opening the suitcase and flipping it open to show her its contents.
Inside, a neat stack of documents sat alongside dozens of syringes filled with an ominous-looking liquid.
Aqualina's eyes widened slightly, "That many?" she muttered.
The man let out an awkward laugh, "That's just today's quota..."
Aqualina's stomach twisted. Her expression turned pale as she immediately snapped the suitcase shut. This was worse than she thought. She needed to get this information to the other Chosen Ones. They needed to know what was going on here.
And as for the man…
She looked at him with an unreadable expression... She wasn't sure if he was still useful... or just another loose end.
The man, sensing the shift in her demeanour, swallowed nervously. "Y-You promised you wouldn't kill me... right?" His voice wavered, fear creeping into his tone as he instinctively took a step back.
Then—
TRRRRRR!!
The entire tower trembled violently... The ground beneath them quaked, sending a shockwave through the facility. The walls groaned, and loose debris rained down from the ceiling, making both of them stumble.
Aqualina's head snapped upward, her brows furrowing. "What the hell was that?" She could feel it—something massive was coming from above.
Her expression hardened. "Celestia..." she muttered under her breath, preparing to move when—
TRR-TRRR-TRRRR-TRRRRR-TRRRRRRRR!!!
The ceiling above them shattered.
BOOOOOMMM!!!
A deafening explosion rocked the floor as debris and blood sprayed everywhere. Aqualina was flung backwards from the sheer force of impact, hitting the wall hard. Dust filled the air, obscuring her vision, and as it finally settled...
A deep, menacing voice echoed,
"There you are..."
Aqualina's eyes narrowed as she lifted her gaze.
A hulking figure stood before her, its form massive—nearly twice the height of a normal being, its bulky, muscle-bound body wrapped in a thick, tattered hooded cloak.
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One of its enormous hands was gripping the throat of an innocent test subject, the poor soul dangling helplessly, their legs kicking weakly.... And wrapped around its thick, trunk-like neck—Celestia.
Her arms were locked around it in a desperate struggle, her body trembling as she tried to snap its neck with all the strength she could muster.
And at its feet...
The man who had just handed Aqualina the suitcase—the one who had begged for his life—was nothing more than a broken, bloodied pulp. His body had been utterly crushed, as if he had been stepped on like an insect.
Aqualina exhaled sharply, shaking off the dust from her body.
"Well," she muttered with a casual shrug, glancing at the remains of the man. "I didn't kill him."
Her gaze then shifted toward the towering, hooded figure standing before her.
Her grip on her sword tightened.
"But I guess I'll be killing you."