Unseen Circumstance

<Chapter 7 - Unseen Circumstance>

Focus Aizza:

"Aizza dear, you must pay attention to your studies with the professor -CHZZZT-! Are you listening to me!? 

Hmph! How'd I get stuck with such a charming but daft -REZZZZT-! 

I'll have to have a word with -KRTZZZSSST- about sending all her craz-… her 'unique' children to me."

Aizza, unable to truly focus on the words of the diaphanous voice, looked up. The voice's owner was a towering woman dressed formally in a black and white suit. The translucent world became strangely fuzzy when she tried to focus on her face. It brought sparks to her mind, trying to ignite the memory of who this woman was, but her attempts only brought pain.

She tried to look away. The blurry exclusion before her only brought pain, but her body refused to listen. Her desperate pleas to forget were ignored.

While the unrecognizable woman scolded her about her short attention span and mischievous behavior, Aizza was overwhelmed by the inconsistent senses she felt. Her body wasn't truly there, yet she felt pressure. She couldn't really see, yet she wasn't imagining the scene, the woman. She couldn't hear her own thoughts, yet the pain made them clear.

It was then she realized she couldn't breathe. Her lungs began to beg for air. 

Why couldn't she breathe?

Where was she?

Who was the strange woman, and why was she ignoring her?

Stuck sitting on the floor watching the faceless woman nag, ignorant of her fading consciousness, she slowly drowned in her mind as reality began to dissipate.

^*someone…

help…

me…*^

- - - - - -

-GASP-

Awakening from the nightmare, Aizza desperately choked in heavy breaths.

Recovering from the following coughing fit, she felt a chill sensation run throughout her entire backside, from her legs to her neck. Her face radiated a warm aching. Her eyes began to focus, but the bright light shining onto her caused the momentary blindness to linger.

Trying to lift her arms to block the harsh light and failing, it was apparent something was keeping her bound to the cold surface she was on.

Adapting to the light, she could make out the tight, mechanical metal rings around her wrists and ankles, allowing no wiggle room. She tried once more to move her limbs with great effort, finding they wouldn't budge.

Anxiety began to build at her core.

Looking down, one of the few unrestrained motions she could perform, she realized she was lying naked on what seemed to be an operating table. A lamp hooked off the side of the table's end, rounding above her head and directing its light at her.

Her long, snowy hair was pulled back and let loose to flow off the end of the table so she wasn't lying on top of any strands.

The room had a chemically sterile smell. To either side of her were carts with stacked metal trays that contained sharp instruments of all sorts. To her left, a mechanical door with a small glass window that seemed to lead to a hallway barred any exit. Cabinets of bottles and tools lined the plainly decorated walls. A few screens on a portable stand were also set aside and turned off.

The room was left barren otherwise.

Anxiety turned into fear.

^*What's going on? Why am I strapped down? 

Shin?...!

Shin!*^

Recollecting before she was strapped down, the memories of Shin being squeezed and pierced by a blade were fresh in her mind.

Tears formed in her eyes, leading to either side as her red rested on the flat table.

^*It's my fault. I couldn't help in any way. I was in the way.

What was I supposed to do…

What am I supposed to do now?

I don't want to... 

Be alone. 

I'm scared.*^

Aizza's mood plummeted. The familiar and ever-present fear of loneliness began to overtake her. Though she couldn't remember the cause of her fear, the very idea was enough to shake her soul.

Interrupting her panic, a set of voices crept closer and became audible. The echoes came through muffled due to the shut door, but after focusing, Aizza was able to make out the words.

"-and 8 both died. Ferrious-B227 seemed to slow the heart more than we anticipated. The lack of blood flow eventually killed the subjects.-"

The monotone voice stated what seemed to be a report to Aizza, its contents unpleasant.

"-We knew the acetylcholine contents within Ferrious-B227 were high. The lack of adrenal glands in the subject meant that norepinephrine was barely present, unable to counteract the hormones effectively. Lowing the acetylcholine in the solution would leave the base unstable, but I can't produce any other solutions while still achieving stable results."

"Yes-yes. I get it. I was there with you.

Haaaa, another dead end sucks still. I was really rootin' for this to work. Had a bet with the janitor, looks like I'll be out of quite a few credits.

Speaking of, I heard 'Resolve' was captured, now subject 17. 

Little hard to believe he can recover so quickly. I would sure love that ability after a night of drinks haha!"

The voices drew nearer, slowly becoming clearer.

"Indeed, his vitality will be beneficial to the tests conducted for Ferrious-B227, as well as Asphodate-4-C63. Both studies will be streamlined at this rate."

"Bah! As if that woman would share him! She won't even consider us for a moment!

It's still great news though. I'm sure that His Grace will be pleased. 

Maybe our workload will be cleared up a bit, eh?"

The second voice, more laidback and joyous yet scruffy, mentioned something about a subject. Though vague, the characteristics were hard to miss. 

^*It had to be Shin!*^

The voices had reached the door. Beeps and taps resounded into the stuffy room. Aizza could make out the top of one of the heads of the people entering the room through the clear window on the door.

She remembered the state she was in.

^*N-No! I'm n-not-*^

A pitched sound of affirmation responded to the researchers' efforts to open the door. It slid aside. 

A human woman wearing a ponytail and glasses stood next to a short, stubby Dwarvish man with squared ears and a burly brown beard. They calmly entered the room, giving the space no attention as they continued their conversation.

"So, I hear this girl here was found with the wonder boy. Zeris said some stuff about how she got weird readings from her. 

Or rather, the inability to get any decent ones. 

I say we start with some simple blood tests and find out what race she is first, and work our way from there.

Any thoughts?"

"No. I think that's an appropriate action to begi-"

The monotone woman stopped and stared directly at Aizza. 

^*"N-No! Look away!" *^

Aizza attempted to cover her bareness, her arms unmoving while her elbows strained in the effort.

"What's wrong Shardea?"

Her partner was a bit startled as to why his partner stopped suddenly.

Shardea pointed at the table, her long, neatly trimmed finger hanging in the air aimed at the gray table. 

Her face ghosted at the sight.

"Holy Shit Shardea, where the hell is the little girl?"

^*Are they messing with me? How cruel! 

Shin, I'm so sorry. Please help me! I'll do better!*^

Aizza begged for the only person she knew and trusted as she shriveled in embarrassment and fear.

"T-The restraints are still locked. They are set to the smallest size. C-Could she have slipped out?"

The woman's emotionless voice betrayed her emotions, stuttering from worry.

"Bags! How would I know?! Damn-it Shardea! We were the last ones here! Zeris is gonna blame us!"

"T-The doors were locked when we arrived. She c-couldn't have left. Are we in the wrong room?"

"Damnit, I'm not senile! This is the same room from earlier! 

The door was locked, I'm sure of it! 

Ah!- Did she give us the slip when we entered!? Shit, what do we do Shar?"

Shardea rushed towards the hallway and looked around. The hall was empty and lifeless. Unless the girl had the ability to unlock doors, there was no way to tell where she went.

Walking back into the room, she gave the only response she could think of in the spry of the moment.

"We either find and catch her-"

The typically stale woman gulped.

"Or we make it look like the last group's fault. She won't escape either way, but if the blame is placed on us… Zeris isn't known to be merciful. I can't lose this."

"...A setup? Shardea, that could get us-"

"It's either our jobs or our lives Derwin! If I am thrown out, I know dozens would be delighted to learn I lost my protection. Being raped and then killed would be the best outcome!"

Being more expressive than Derwin had ever seen the diligent and unsociable woman be, he decided to take the bullet with her out of respect. After all, she did have a solid point. 

"Well shit. When you put it like that, it's not like I'm in much of a better situation. 

Alright then, what do we do?"

^*Th-They are serious? They think I'm gone?*^

Glancing down, expecting to see the bright reflection of her skin, instead saw the clean and flush metal table she laid upon.

^*"W-What!" *^

Started by her absence in the world, she blurted out her confusion.

But no sound was made.

^*Huh!?!? Not only am I see-through, but I can't talk either?!*^

Ignorant to the inner bafflement of Aizza's situation, the two 

"We make it look like she broke out."

"That doesn't sound very plausible, Shar. How would a little girl strapped down to a cold table 'break out?' Barring the actual way she did, at least.

But if we are to make it believable, how would we go about doing that?" 

"We will move one of the tool tables closer to the table first. 

Go unlock the restraints quickly, Derwin."

"Hmm, if you say so Shar."

Derwin hobbled over to a display of panels, going to work at the keyboard.

^*I-I'm really invisible? How? 

Wait, they are gonna let me go too? This is my chance!*^

Still weary of her position, she beamed when she realized she could escape.

^*I'll find Shin and help him get away too!*^

Steeling herself, she planned a rescue operation. 

The restraints popped apart, allowing her to move her stiff and sore body once again. 

Softly, Aizza rose to a seated position, and while the two talked, she slid off slowly, avoiding making any noise, assuming that she could. 

"Next, we use the merwick iron and melt the sides of the restraint, making it look like she freed one hand using it and destroying the clamp."

"Ah! I'm catching on now! You truly are brilliant Shardea!"

Shardea blushed from the sudden compliment but quickly refocused on her task. Grabbing the iron, melting the side of one restraint in a way one, and proceeding to the next. She attempted to make it look as if the prisoner had managed to seize the iron and break one of her bindings, giving her leverage to access the rest.

Aizza was already drifting silently to the door, finding a little joy at the fact the scenario they thought occurred happened due to their belief within it.

"Lastly, we leave the iron at the foot of the bed, as a prisoner wouldn't care about putting a tool back after escaping in such a way."

"How do we explain her escaping with the door locked? All the door states are recorded, so we can't fake that they were left open."

While Aizza wanted to finish listening to the woman's setup, she needed to take advantage of the fact that the door the two had come in through was left open.

She walked through the brightly lit metallic hallways, passing door after door. She went to the tips of her feet, peeking into each room, only able to see as high as the empty metal tables. 

They all were carbon copies of the one she was in.

^*Where are you Shin?*^ 

The act of walking was unfamiliar to Aizza in her current state. Unable to see her own feet, each step forward felt uncertain and like a guess. While her sense of space allowed her to generally understand where her hands and legs were, it wasn't entirely enough to stop her from stumbling over herself occasionally. She was at least thankful the hallway was clear, and the floor was level.

She held out her hand in front of herself, and when she met her hands together, the eerie and foreign sensation multiplied. It was as if her mind was trying to figure out who was lying: her sight or her sense of touch?

She locked her arms against her body, trying to ignore her invisibility and reflect on what the researchers had said. Her thoughts were short-lived as she felt her bare skin, verdantly hoping whatever made her concealed lasted long enough.

Straying away from the embarrassment, she remembered the man mentioning Shin was assigned a number. 17.

Looking closer at the imposing doors, she found printed numbers painted on their high centers, just under the windows. They were toned slightly lighter than the insipid gray material they were attached to, making them difficult to notice at first glance. 

Feeling a rush of satisfaction at her discovery, she read the number of the door she stood aligned with. 

<122 >

^*122!?! 

Are there really that many rooms?*^

Glancing up and down the hallway, she concluded that there could only possibly be 40-50 doors within it.

Aizza wandered to the next door, seeing a <121 > adorning it. 

^*Are there really that many rooms?*^

Aizza shook her head. She decided that she'd at least try to make it to the supposed end of the hall. 

Following the direction where the doors were counting down, she rushed as quickly as she could without causing too much noise.

She paid careful attention to each door as she counted down, just in case door '17' randomly appeared, making her job easier.

After a moment, with the hall being at its end, she came to the conclusion that it was an elevator. It was still disorienting for her to recognize certain things while not being able to connect them to a memory that always seemed at the tip of her tongue. Still, she pressed on, figuring there must have been a way to activate it so that she could go down to wherever Shin's room was.

With the only feature available to her, Aizza was about to press the button labeled <Call >, but she quickly halted herself. She figured it wouldn't be good if someone saw an empty elevator open on its own, as if a ghost had taken a ride.

Out of ideas, and with her legs sore from the tight clamps, she sat down and prepared to wait until someone came along to use the elevator or until she came up with a better one. 

Unable to figure out a workaround, she tried to figure out how to enter and leave without brushing against those who entered and exited. She prayed the elevator was roomy enough for her plan. If it were too small, she'd have to risk going alone.

After waiting for what seemed like hours, the hall suddenly became dyed red. The flat lights on the ceiling dimmed, shining the new eerie rays of crimson alongside its fluorescent counterpart.

Expecting some kind of siren, Aizza was instead startled to hear the speakers buzz to life.

"Attention, subject-124 of the third floor has escaped. Subject-124 of the third floor has escaped. Be on the lookout for a seven-to-eight-year-old girl with extensively long white hair and two bright orange horns. Capture immediately on sight. She may have metal instruments on her to use as a weapon, be advised."

The speakers clicked, signaling the end of the alert. 

^*Well, it's not like they can easily find me anyway…*^

Despite trying to remain calm, she felt goosebumps forming on her translucent skin. She had to stay firm. Shin needed her.

Hearing a commotion, Aizza saw the two scientists quickly moving towards her.

She jumped up, almost collapsing from her legs falling asleep, filled with terror that she'd somehow been spotted.

She glanced down, relieved to no end that it couldn't have been the case.

The two arrived, their lab coats flailing from the air around them as they made their way through. 

Out of breath, the dwarf Derwin pushed his wide index finger to the <Call > button. The screen went blueish purple, which was difficult to see against the red lighting.

"Print Recognized, Derwin Perete. Elevator Called. No Current Calls. Arrival Time, Thirty-One Seconds."

The screen read aloud the approval, sounding more lively than Shardea.

"When we meet with Zeris to explain our story, we must get every detail right. Get our story straight. We've one shot at this, we cannot screw up."

"Elevator Arrived. -Ding-"

A chime emanated from a hidden speaker as Derwin echoed his understanding of the severity of their circumstance.

"Com'on Shardea! I know that I can be forgetful at times, but our lives are on the line! I remember the details. Put some more trust in me!"

The elevator door slid agape, giving entry to the three riders.

"I know…

And I do. I trust you and only you in this laboratory."

Derwin's eyes widened, letting out a cough to hide his smile. He was glad he didn't flush as readily as his coworker Shardea. He was surprised how she could say such a cheesy thing without doing so.

^*Gross! You better not do anything weird while I'm here. He's like a third of your height! 

So gross…*^ 

Aizza lamented at her position, not wanting to be a part of the gushy feelings manifesting between the two.

Shivering from the cold breeze that shot out from the elevator, having nothing to aid her against it, she followed the two in and wrapped around them.

^*Woah… I am glad there's plenty of room, but is this really an elevator? There's a couch in here?! Why would they need tables too?*^

Aizza found herself in what she would have considered a break room if she hadn't known better. 

A standard white light lined the room, the alarming red not present in the bewildering elevator. 

With plenty of space to spare, she walked away from the two who stood too close, begging in her mind they would not get any more intimate while she was aboard.

"Requesting floor one."

Shardea recited a command aloud, followed by another -ding- that came from the elevator as the doors shut. Fortunately for Aizza, they decided to remain standing rather than making use of the luxurious seats around.

^*Fine by me, I don't wanna see them get all lovey-dovey on the couch. Gross gross gross! 

I am glad I didn- Uwah!?*^

The room started with a robust shake, startling Aizza from her thoughts. 

The weightlessness she felt told her the elevator was descending into the ground.

^*W-What? Didn't she say 'floor one'???

The first floor is lower? That'll make it so much harder for Shin and me to leave!

Wait, will Shin even be down there?! Do the room numbers count down as well?

And if he is down there, how will we escape?

N-No, it's okay! Shin is smart, he will have an idea. I just have to get to him.*^

Despite their short time together, Aizza had grown attached to the only person she'd really met. Although she genuinely considered him a good person, she was only nine. Alone and scared, she had no real choice but to become attached to the first person who seemed decent.

She knew nothing about him, but just as he decided to take her in, she would place her faith in him. It may have been unreasonable, but she had no other option.

Aizza patiently waited for the elevator to arrive at the bottom as she mulled over everything that could go wrong. A minute passed before the robotic voice of the elevator spoke again.

"Floor Two."

The elevator did not stop, though.

It was ridiculous, as around five to ten minutes had already passed.

^*How far down does this place go! We've been going down for a long time now! Is the lab super secret or something? Why is it so deep?

It's good that I waited for someone instead of trying to go alone. Now that I think about it, my finger would've been denied by the elevator. And I would never have guessed I would have to say what floor I wanted to go to!

Oh no, how will we get out once I get to Shin?

Can he become invisible somehow too? 

No, that's a stupid idea.

How am I even invisible to begin with?

... 

I'm so sick of questions with no answers! 

It's like when I used to study and the teachers ignored me when I wanted to know something because I kept interuptin-!?

Wait, was that a memory of my past? 

I had… Teachers?

Oh, I woke up to a bad dream too! What was it about?

... 

Uwah, I can't remember!*^

"Floor One, Arrival Thirty Seconds."

^*Finally! I'm on my way Shin! Please be alright!*^

"I'll always be on your side, Shardea... 

After we get through this, I-I, uh, have something important to tell you."

Seeing the short man with a full beard say such a revolting thing as he squirmed, Aizza was relieved she would soon be away from the two.

"Y-Yesh?" 

Shaken from both the forwardness of her 'secret' crush and the elevator's sudden stop, she bit her tongue as she responded.

Her face became flushed.

Had it been in another situation, Aizza may have thought it funny, but instead, she scowled. 

A face she learned from Shin.

The doors opened, and Shardea's flushed face was no longer discernible.

She was frustrated about why he would say such a thing when they needed to act seriously.

They walked into the hall, and Aizza softly followed behind them, the elevator doors almost closing on her before she could make it out.

"Alright then Shar, let's go."

Because of his short legs, he struggled to keep up with the long struts of Shardea, who was too shaken to notice her compatriot's problem.

^*They're going to Shin!? 

Did she say 'playing with'?

Why would she be playing games with him? I thought they wanted him for research?*^

Dropping the question, she secretly tailed them down the carbon copy hall, which was also dyed deeply with ripe-cherry red light.

Breathing heavily, one from the exertion of keeping up, and the other from worry, the two stopped at the imposing door. Shardea placed her finger on the scanner panel, entering a password of sorts. 

Aizza slowed to a waddle, not getting too close to the pair in case they accidentally noticed her. She was thankful her loud breaths weren't audible like her footsteps were.

After an eternity, the door unlocked and slid open. The two entered swiftly with Aizza hidden in tow.

^*Shin!*^