Chapter 1: Surreal Beginnings

"So, the only two subjects who are setting off red flags are numbers 6 and 18?" Said the tall one.

The short one replies, "Yes, but for very opposite reasons."

"How can you measure how opposite something is?"

"I was being facetious. You know for fun."

"Well it is not 'fun' having super-expensive test subjects backfire on you before you have completed the preliminary tests. So please be serious with me." Said the tall one sternly.

"Continuing on, number 6 is showing too many signs that she is developing a conscious."

"How many times must I insist upon you to call them 'it' not he or she!" The tall one replied, trying to conceal his disdain.

"Yes, yes, 'it' is showing signs."

"And number 18?"

"Well it is having problems understanding any basic studies of techmaturgy." The short one said in a disappointed tone.

"As in, it is a moron?"

"No, it just doesn't choose to learn and even when it does things right it will just destroy it and find it humorous."

"We want them to enjoy destruction though. Or did you forget?"

"I know that, but what kind of destruction can it do if it cannot take proper care of or even reassemble the devices it uses to do so?"

The tall one rubbed his right index finger and thumb in a pinching movement on the bottom of his chin for some time contemplating these results. "It would seem you have messed up any chance of bettering number 18."

"What!? You think my 18 is the lost cause? Not your sweet little number 6? Thinking it shouldn't hurt the unarmed prisoners we order it to fight." The short one yelled. "I bet if the Department Head came down here right now he would strip you of your position and mix you in with the prisoners to make-up for the embarrassment number 6 would be in the final prelims."

"A subject that cannot fully function in the field would die or be captured immediately. Can you even fathom the havoc that would come as whiplash if number 18 was captured and tortured to expose it is from Zaun!?"

"It would be a laughing stock if number 6 was sent out with a conscious and a 'good heart' only to have it wind up betraying all of us to our enemies by thinking it is doing wrong with us. We cannot afford them being so self-aware of the horror we need them to cause on others. It is better that we 'flush' it now!"

The tall one again pondered in the same way as before while the short one stood hands at hips and tapping his left foot repeatedly and looking at the tall one angrily. Then the tall one raised his right index finger up alone and said, "Aha! We know only one of this pair is allowed to continue and because there is no obvious winner we should decide which one can prove it can learn to shed its disadvantage. We can't send out no one the Department Head would think both of us are disappointing failures."

"Ah." Said the short one. "A wager again is it? Well it has been a while. Let's do it."

"The usual cost?"

"No. Double!"

"Haha. Very well then. You may go first." Said the tall one with an evil grin.

All this time numbers 6 and 18 were standing there keeping up with every word. Both wore the standard red jumpsuits and their hair was cut to a military grade. Number 6 had pink hair and number 18 had blue hair (typical weird hair colors of the test subjects). Number 18 was a little younger and shorter than number 6. The two of them had always worked well together and never showed any signs of becoming nemeses. They almost seemed to care for one another like sisters but they promised each other long ago to never let the White-coats know this. So they acted like good subjects when they were being watched. Problem was that outside of bath time they were always watched. The two knew each other by their Roman numeral name tags. Number 6 was VI and number 18 was XVIIJ. So 18 called 6 V-I in secret and number 6 called 18 X-V-I-I-J in return, or X-J for short. They didn't have any understanding of Morse code or anything of the sort but they choose their own noises so they could speak in private.

VI tapped her right foot three times fast, 'What is happening?' XVIIJ replied using her left foot with a thud a tap and another thud, 'I don't know.' The language was very simple. Mostly small talk, but every once and a while one would create an idea for a new word or phrase and they would memorize it together at bath time. They spent all their time away from being watched keeping up on the private talking so they could talk whenever they want. Besides the way the tests pinned them against each other they had a deep connection of what can only be described as family love with one another. Not the kind where you want to hit your sibling for spilling soda on your game console, but the kind where you can know you are wanted and loved as equally as you give out. In a way they were both failing the prelims. Thankfully they enjoyed destruction almost as much as they loved each other so the flaws they had never showed in the tests. The problem with this test was that they both began to suspect individually that the other would soon be taken from them. It made them both scared and they both were finding it hard to hide that fear from the White-coats. Who thought the two subjects were scared of this wager they were about to begin.

The short one approached VI. "Alright then." Turning to face the tall one he asked, "Anything goes?"

Happily the tall one replied, "Anything goes."

The short one snickered and faced VI again. "Number 6, do you know you must be able to resist pain to pass the program?"

VI replied, "Sir, yes sir!" yelling like a soldier as they always were expected to.

The short one reached into his coat pocket and retrieved a portable electronic device that looked like a wand. "Do you know what I am holding?"

VI saw the device and knew it well. It was a prodding wand designed much like a soldering iron. It is put at a low setting to give a flash of heat to the back of a test subject's head to get them to continue a test. It hurts but never burns the skin. Today VI feared that might not be the case.

XVIIJ saw the wand in the corner of her eye and cleared her throat and then coughed and then cleared her throat again, 'RUN!'

VI filled her cheeks with air and let out a tight-lipped puff loud enough to be heard doing it, 'No.'

XVIIJ clucked her tongue on the roof of her mouth and the sucked her teeth loudly, 'Please!' She had to blink real quickly to suck a tear back into her eye. XVIIJ wanted to scream out, 'Don't le them do it, I couldn't bear to watch!' but couldn't think of a way to say it in their own language. So she kept her focus clear on the task of remaining unconcerned about her friend.

VI stood firm against her fears and stood firm in place replying, "Sir, I know what that is, sir!"

The short one bent over to get up close into VI's face. "I am turning this up to its maximum heat and I am going to use it on you. If you flinch then you prove you cannot resist pain. Do you understand?"

VI almost let out a gasping cry but instead replied, "Sir, I understand, sir!"

"Then let us begin." He said as he turned it on and twisted the dial to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. "Now hold still." He smiled as he etched the roman numerals V and I into the skin just under her left eye.

VI wanted to scream. She knew it would be a burning pain but she didn't know there would be a sting of pain so extreme it would make her feel like she wanted to die. The White-coat did three quick, dragging strokes as to not permanently damage the skin tissue any more than a mild second degree burn. Every time the wand touched her face she could feel nothing but despair believing that if this one wasn't the last she would surely expose weakness on the next stroke and be 'flushed' away.

A flush is whenever a lab in Zaun decides to get rid of a subject. They get thrown into a square pool of water with nothing to grip so that they might grow tired and drown "peacefully" in the putrid water filled into their tanks for a flush. Typically the beginning of a generation of test subjects is sorted by the pick-of-the-litter and the undesirables are tossed into the pool for the daily flush. The rules of the flush room are that the subject must be put in four hours before a scheduled flush to ensure it works properly. Not just test subjects are flushed. The waste collected from around the labs too: fecal matter; urine; blood; chemicals; etc.; etc. When the flush starts the waste gets pulled through three miles of pipes and is then dumped out into the Zaun harbor.

She proved her worth as a viable test subject and stood firm during all three marks. The tall one came over to see her face. "Hmm, it would seem you have failed at your attempt." Turning slightly to face the short one.

"So I have. I have to say I am impressed, even the most hardened subjects cannot take that abuse so well."

"Get the burn dressings. We wouldn't want your failed attempt to break it causing a time consuming infection."

"Good luck trying something more extreme on the other. I am quite sure it would enjoy the pain. Hehe." The short one said passing the tall one the cold-press and bandages.

"I have a better plan in mind." The tall one finished the dressings and pulled the short one away from the subjects to show him something in private. "You see this?" He whispered. "This is a regular electrical handgun built using fundamental techmaturgy."

"A Zapping Pistol. Really? You want to test its knowledge with such a simple device? Are you trying to lose the bet?"

"I have great confidence number 18 will not figure out how to activate the power supply. I have taken the liberty of putting a new cell into the chamber. Now are you feeling this way to throw me off that my plan might work?"

"No, no that was not what I meant to imply."

"Then may I continue?"

"Very well." Said the short one cheerfully. "I guess we agreed anything goes so it's up to you."

"Alright then." The tall one said as he turned around and strode over to XVIIJ. "Number 18, do you know what I am holding?"

XVIIJ honestly had no feasible memory of the object but guessed in her head that it was a gun. She couldn't just say that she would look foolish. She also feared it was meant to be used on her if she answered wrong. She desperately tried to ask VI for help. Blowing air loudly through her nose was their code, but she couldn't get a response from VI it made her feel betrayed. Little did she know VI was using all her strength to conceal how much pain she just endured and was oblivious to the rest of the world.

XVIIJ replied with her foolish answer, "Sir, it is a weapon, sir."

"Haha." The tall one laughed as he turned to meet the short ones eyes. "You see it doesn't even know what I am holding even though it just broke one…last week you said right?"

"The short one loudly muttered, "Three days ago."

"Three days! Hahaha! I cannot see how much more stupid it could be."

"Alright get on with it I don't have all day."

"Very well." He turned back to XVIIJ. "Number 18, you have fifteen seconds to activate this pistol that I fixed this morning. It might be the very one you broke."

XVIIJ panicked internally, 'fifteen seconds' this couldn't be happening. She knew it wasn't pain like VI endured but she never paid enough attention to her studies to understand how techmaturgy works. She knew deep inside it would be her last moments of life right here and now.

The tall one held it out to her in his left hand and held the wristwatch on his right hand close to his face. "As soon as you grab it your time will begin. Bear in mind the most simple of subjects we have ever put through the tests can do this in less than seven seconds. Number 6 itself has done it in three seconds, I've seen it."

XVIIJ nearly let herself gulp. She looked at VI hoping the White-coats would see her do this as a sign of respect for her record score and hoping even more she would see VI turn and mouth out directions on how to activate the weapon. To no avail. VI still looked too shaken by her recent infliction of pain to help XVIIJ at all.

VI was just now coming back to her senses. Realizing she had been subconsciously holding herself together in the way she had been trained to. After the cold-press was pushed up against her cheek she immediately felt a deep feeling of despair that brought her out of reality and tortured her greatly for what felt like years. When she came to she noticed the tall White-coat was holding a Zapping Pistol out to XVIIJ and looking intently at his watch. She didn't dare look at XVIIJ for fear that any compassion would mess up her friends' chances to prove her own worth. She knew it would be hard on XVIIJ and VI wanted to do nothing more than beg the White-coats not to flush her. She couldn't imagine a life without XVIIJ. How could she it's all she knows. It's where she learned her sense of conscious from. Like watching after a younger sister, holding her when she's sad and giving comfort for when days were just too much. What could she really do now?

XVIIJ quickly grabbed the pistol and immediately started to look it over for a button or a dial, something that can be used to turn on the pistols power supply. She was at seven seconds and she started to really panic. She couldn't think and started smashing it on the ground, almost crying. But she can't cry or she would fail before time ran out. For whatever reason, she suddenly thought to try and open the weapon.

The Zapping Pistol is a glass tube placed on an electric coil pad installed into a handle where the power is stored. The glass tube is a vacuum sealed high-powered light bulb that allows the energy that circulates inside escape through the metal ring at the beginning and end of the weapon to force the electrical charge-shot forward.

XVIIJ tried twisting the circular panel on the back of the tube to try and open it. When she noticed that twisting it counter-clockwise began to loosen up the tube she pulled it all the way out and back. The energy cell activated and the pistol began to charge its first shot.

"Aha!" The short one yelled. "That was no more than thirteen seconds. Or was my count off?"

The tall one sighed, "No, no you guessed right it did it at thirteen seconds."

"Why so disappointed? You made a good attempt. We both knew it was very incompetent with techmaturgy."

"I feel bad that I was so overconfident of its stupidity."

The short one walked casually to XVIIJ and grabbed the pistol from her hands. "Let me take that number 18." He turned to look at the tall one. "This is where it ends no matter what." He grew a big smile on his face.

The tall one looked a little disturbed and then smiled as if he knew what the short one was going to do next. "It seems too early for you to end a bet but I grow tired of these two anyways go ahead." The short one then ordered VI and XVIIJ to stand two paces apart and face one another.

While the White-coats were looking at each other VI quickly mouth, 'I'm sorry!'

XVIIJ mouthed back, 'It's okay! Are you okay?'

Just as the White-coats were turning back to speak with them VI quickly thudded her right foot on the ground, tapped her left foot once and even more quickly thudded her right foot down again, 'I don't know!'

"Alright then number 6 this will be the ultimate test for you to reach your final prelims." The short one said as he approached her. "Do you understand?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

"Good, good. Now, take this pistol." It was still charged and was showing a fully charged shot. "Tell me what you understand of the pistol's lethality?"

VI grabbed a hold of the weapon in the proper fashion. She knew the weapon well, she has put it together before, piece by piece. "Sir, the Mark XI-23B Zapping Pistol is a model of electrical techmaturgical ingenuity. It can be lethal, or rather fatal only with a point blank shot trained on the targets heart. Most effective at the right ventricle, sir!"

"Splendid! Isn't it a perfect student?" The tall one exclaimed.

"Yes it certainly is, but that is not its flaw. Is it number 6?" The short one asked rhetorically.

"I have no flaws, sir!" VI quickly replied.

"We shall see about that. Right now as a matter of fact. Hold the pistol level to number 18s' chest." The short one ordered.

VI complied but felt an unnerving feeling like she was going to be doing more than causing XVIIJ some high-powered electrical pain.

At this point VI and XVIIJ are standing in the middle of the lab facing one another. The tall one is on XVIIJs' left and a little far to that side and behind her facing diagonally across at VI. The short on is behind and to the right of VI with his left hand in his front left pocket and his right hand holding the grip of a tranquilizer weapon holstered at his right hip. The White-coats use these weapons a lot whenever they need to detain or transport the subjects between labs. Right now he had a feeling that VI wouldn't fire where he was planning to order her to, so he wanted to be ready to take her down. The pistol is still lethal at five yards. If she got a good shot off at the tall one or himself then it would be a disaster for the program.

Vi held the weapon firm with both hands trained on XVIIJ with a shot at center-mass. "What are my orders, sir?" She exclaimed fighting back the urge to say her words with a crying tone.

"You know the way to cause a fatal shot, so do it to Number 18. Now!"

VI could feel herself get wide eyed as she saw XVIIJ do the same. 'No, no!' she thought to herself, 'I can't! Please be joking and tell me something else, please!'

But VI knew it was a direct order and there was nothing she could do but obey. She leveled the weapon at XVIIJs' right ventricle and began to squeeze the trigger.

A red ring started to form on the skin around XVIIJs' eyes and VI could see she wanted to cry. But VI wanted to cry too. XVIIJ saw the same red ring around Vis' eyes. If it wasn't for the White-coats, if they were in bath time, they would be crying and screaming their last goodbyes to one another.

Neither one could muster up enough strength to make one of their private noises to say anything, nor did they dare mouth out a single word. VI hoped desperately XVIIJ wouldn't die but she knew it was no use. Her friend/sister would surely be killed.

VI thought quickly and said, "Sir, can your repeat that sir?"

The short one almost jumped the gun on bringing her down at her first word but instead he relaxed his grip on the tranquilizer and repeated his order much more clearly and slowly, "Cause a fatal shot to Numb-," he was suddenly caught off as the electrical weapon made a discharge noise and sent a shot straight at the heart of the tall one. Or at least where he had just been standing before he purposely fell to the floor. "You arrogant little bitch!" The short one exclaimed. "How dare you try that on a superior!?" And with that he pulled out the tranquilizer and shot VI in the back of the neck just as she was charging the next shot.

XVIIJ was stunned and couldn't move an inch. Not for fear of the short ones' wrath but because she couldn't believe her friend/sister just did that for her. She watched in silence as VI collapsed to the floor, clutching the pistol tight in her right hand.

The tall one walked fast to her body and dislodged the pistol from her grip kicking her in the gut as he got it from her. "Dammit we should just kill it now!" He yelled as he trained the weapon at her head.

"No it will be knocked out when it is put in the pool for the next flush. It will die soon anyways."

The tall one relaxed and said, "Well I guess this means you won, we said double the usual bet right?"

"Yes, so I am sure you can pay up now."

"Of course" The tall one said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the payment to hand it to the short one. "Two gold coins as per double the usual."

The economic system that existed in Zaun and most of Valoran was gold, silver and copper and gold coins were whole parts of a credit. To give perspective to you readers in reality it was like two U.S. Dollars.

Either as an insult to their subjects or as a way of expressing how tight-pursed they were they still gave a clear expression that they cared little of the lives of VI and XVIIJ pr any of the other subjects. That would be the case to the girls if they understood the currency that was used in Valoran.

XVIIJ remained still thinking about what she just saw VI do. 'Why V-I? Why did you do that, now their going to flush you.' She wanted to cry, and beg, and scream for the White-coats to let VI stay with her. To let them both excel in the program. But somehow she knew they would never let both of them go on to the final prelims. So she settled on giving her fallen sister her gratitude. 'Thank you V-I, I will never forget you.'

"Oh shit!" The tall one burst out saying. "We have exceeded the deadline for the flush today! It starts in ten minutes!"

A great sense of joy suddenly overtook XVIIJ and she almost let out a smile. 'V-I can be with me one more day. Maybe we could find a way out during our sleep time.' Regardless of the plans she couldn't see working out, for an escape, she was still feeling happy and full of hope for VI.

"No need to worry." Said the short one. "It will be unconscious when it gets thrown into the pool and it will quickly drown without a hitch. Now we have to go quickly or we will get caught doing it by the Flush Department, they come in five minutes before the flush to do final checks on bodies."

Just like that XVIIJ was left alone, in the same position showing nothing on her face and feeling horrible on the inside. She wanted to scream out, 'Let me say goodbye!' but she knew someone could walk in and witness her outburst so she remained still. She couldn't see anyway around being the one to move on and to do so alone. 'I promise that I will never let my sister's sacrifice go to waste. I will survive all tests from here on out. For you V-I, for you.'

The incompetent White-coats got lost as they usually did and barely got VI into the pool before the flush process began. They couldn't stay and check to make sure she submerges because every second in that room put them at risk of being caught. As the flush began VI started to go under and the flush began to carry up speed for the expulsion into the harbor.

Today was a not-important-flush kind of day. So the Flush department, having not seen a single body in the pool, decided to do the quick half-mile flush into the bay instead of the normal three miles flush that ensures that living subjects in the pool have enough time to drown. Like a last bit of insurance. Just because they didn't see the need to do a full flush.

So when VI was flushed out the pipeline onto the shallow beach of rocks in the Zaun harbor she had spent only enough time in there to ingest a few gallons of water. She still was put at risk for drowning after all. She laid there half submerged in the putrid water. Looking "peaceful" like a body fresh from the morgue. And then she vomited.