Apocryphal Chapter - A Twist Of Fate
Yuri wasn't scared.
This was not a reflection of the situation she was in, nor of her own bravery. Being locked in the crumbling ruins of her workplace was terrifying, and Yuri wasn't the kind of person who stood strong in the face of such a thing. When the doors had been blocked off and the building had started to collapse, she had been terrified. Who wouldn't have been? Nobody had been told what was going on, not even the upper management. Well, maybe the higher-ups had known. Yuri hadn't seen any of them since the Facility was closed off.
It wasn't her choice to stay here. She had tried to run when the warnings came. And Yuri had almost made it, too. She was so close to the exit, running for the door with every bit of strength she could summon along with a few other coworkers that she couldn't name. Just a few steps from the gate, from freedom, and Yuri… hesitated. There was something there, on the other end of the door. A thing in the shape of a man, with eyes like burning embers. She froze, watching the figure fade from view as her colleagues rushed ahead. Seconds later, the explosives detonated.
A wave of fire flooded the hall, swallowing up those who had gotten close. The heat battered the young woman's face along with a few small pieces of molten shrapnel. Most of the burning fragments flew wide, but a few scored thin marks across Yuri's face. A stray shard struck her eye, piercing the soft surface with an almost contemptuous ease. The pain had been overwhelming, darkness swallowing her before she could even cry out.
Some time later, Yuri had woken up and crawled to the Security Department. The medication left over there hadn't been enough to fix her eye, but she wasn't in danger of dying. She still remembered the cold prickling of the nanomachines flowing in beneath her skin, knitting flesh back together and pushing shrapnel out of her body. There weren't any left now, and somebody had already siphoned most of the Enkephalin before Yuri got to the Department.
She'd been hiding there for… a long time. There was food, at least, and wherever it was being supplied from showed no signs of stopping even after all this time. Yuri wasn't sure exactly how long it had been since she was trapped here. It was impossible to tell how many days, or even weeks, months, or years had passed. Not without any way to see the sun or the sky. Could it have been years? No, that couldn't be right. It had been a long time, long enough for Yuri's terror at her situation to bleed away into a sort of dull, emotionless trance, but years was surely too long…
Right?
There were other people still alive, Yuri could tell. She could hear the shuffling of feet echoing through the halls, the sounds of shoes against metal. But she couldn't summon the courage to leave the Security Department's office. Even if there were people out there, what would she do if she sought them out? The food supplies she'd stumbled upon would only be used up faster with more people, not to mention the chances of one of the Abnormalities stumbling on her would only increase. No, it was better to stay here, to stay safe.
Even if it was cowardly.
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"Hello? Anybody in there?"
The daily malaise was broken as a voice rang out from the other side of the office's door. It was a female voice, a little older than Yuri and completely full of confidence. Whoever was speaking didn't feel a shred of fear or anxiety even locked away as they were. Or… could this be somebody from the outside? Did somebody come to rescue them? No that wasn't very likely. Maybe whoever it was was hoping to raid the Facility? At that point, Yuri couldn't bring herself to care. All that mattered was that somebody was there, looking for people. How long had it been since she had heard another voice?
Without a moment's hesitation, Yuri scrambled for the door. In her haste, she didn't notice her foot catch on the rubble that had been scattered through the chamber long ago. The woman crashed to the ground, and for some reason found that she couldn't get up. Why was that? Her arms wouldn't move, no matter how she tried. A cold, trickling sensation had made its way through her body. As darkness crept into her vision, Yuri could just barely see the door being torn open.
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When Yuri awoke, she found she still couldn't move. She was wrapped in a warm, heavy blanket that held her arms and legs straight. Looking around, she was still in the Security Department office. Although those tables hadn't been there before. And where did the blanket come from? That person Yuri heard must have done this.
Before she could contemplate any further, said person stepped into Yuri's field of view. They were tall, having to duck to pass through the somehow undamaged entrance. Their blood-red hair fell in a messy braid down about halfway to their waist pinned by a small bear head-shaped clip nearly the same color. The other woman wore a dark purple coat over a plain black shirt, walking towards Yuri with the same unshakable confidence that their voice had shown before. They didn't give even a hint of surprise that Yuri was awake, only diverted their course towards the blind girl.
"Who… are you?" Yuri asked, voice hoarse and dry. How long had it been since she spoke to another person?
"You can call me Alex for now. You're lucky I found you, k'now. Enkephalin isn't the sort of drug you want to use for extended periods of time." The woman's voice remained almost casual even in its warning. Enkephalin? Yuri hadn't been using any, not since the Facility was buried. Somebody got to it first, before Yuri reached the office.
As if sensing the girl's silent questions, Alex raised her voice again. "It's in the food rations. Just enough to take the edge off, keep senses sharp but dull the more extreme emotional reactions. It's not enough to cause any significant effects, not unless it's the only thing you're eating. Plus, if I'm correct in that you've been drinking out of that puddle in the corner-" She was right, Yuri had thought it disgusting at first but in the end thirst had won out over disgust- "then you'll also need to deal with all the parasites you've probably picked up."
There were so many questions drifting through Yuri's head, but for some reason the one that found its way to her mouth was "Why can't I move?"
"Didn't want you to fall." Alex answered as she drew a syringe from seemingly nowhere. "That said, you holding still on your own would be helpful."
Yuri didn't have time to respond before the needle slid painlessly into her neck. The room took on a pale, washed-out hue, and she could have sworn the lights turned blue for a moment. But only for a moment, before Alex withdrew the implement and tapped at the bindings around her. The tightness vanished, along with the dull ache that had suffused Yuri's body. Small pains and discomforts that she had never even noticed before faded into nothing as she slowly pushed herself up. Her feet had barely hit the ground before she began to fall again. Fortunately, before she could hit the ground for a second time that day, a hand caught her and pulled her back upright.
"Maybe sit down for a bit. You're not doing great at the moment. There'll be some people outside; I need you to stay with them when you get out. I promise you'll be safe."
Yuri's mind whirled. Get out? How was she going to get out? The facility was buried, there was no way out. But Alex had clearly gotten in somehow. So there must be a way out, then. Was it safe? Probably not, but what other choice did Yuri have? She couldn't just stay here. Not again.
"Are you… going to leave?"
The words had slipped from her mouth before she even realized it. Why? Why did she say that? And yet, Alex didn't seem bothered by Yuri's whining.
"You can follow me if you'd like, if just for a little while. It might be… exciting, though." For the first time, a hint of trepidation crept into the controlled woman's voice. Yuri didn't trust her voice, but gave a quick nod. The sudden, jerky motion made the room tilt slightly, but she did her best not to show it.
"Well, if you're sure." The woman raised a hand, as if brushing up against a curtain. Suddenly, rings of light encircled the two. Symbols spun and flashed as the rings expanded and divided, forming a complex web of golden radiance around Yuri and her new acquaintance. As the light became blinding, Yuri heard one last thing.
"That makes what, twelve? Angela's never gonna let me live this down."
: Why should I get you that when you are gonna abandon it in a week anyway?
: ...
: Fine. But just this once. This is X's money anyway. You better cherish that toy alright?
: Eh? You want to go bike in the park?
: Hm...X asked me to take care of you though...
: Why not?! Sure, we'll go to the park!
: Just remember that we'll return home before dark alright?
: Hm? Oh, you want to do something fun?
: My dear Composer did ask me to take care of you...
: I believe I can spoil you then~
: Are you having fun!?
: So how was it?
