The complete dark of chamber S9-C4 was punctuated by moving platforms and fragile ledges. The many places that hid traps gave no hints as to what they concealed; the only sound was that of high-pitched static. Bright vermillion was the only color our source of light visible. The small splotches of red led to a large white platform, turned a dark blue-grey in the darkness, suspended above everything.
On said platform rested a completely crimson door, dripping with what seemed to be blood. It was a simple metal door, like the rest of the facility, but it was also unusual: it had no wall to be supported by or visible room to lead to. Only five of the sixteen subjects from sector 9 knew what purpose that door served and why it was there. The veterans were being herded, along with the rest of the specimens, to the waiting chamber.
Three armor-clad guards, with their identical red visors, pushed the group in with absolutely no care for their weakened conditions. The waiting room was almost identical to their dorms in size, but there was actually light and there were no beds. It was the first time dorm mates could really get a good look at each other, and it permitted people from different rooms to get acquainted.
Every subject was different, some bearing no resemblance to human beings, others looking completely normal. Loud chatter eventually filled the room, anxiety pouring off of the specimens like waves. In a corner, the five veterans huddled; they spoke in hushed tones, occasionally looking out to the others.
"So, Fox, who's in yours?" A short, completely pink girl asked. Her voice was high-pitched and bubbly, and her over-sized, round blue eyes darted apprehensively around the room.
An average-sized anthropomorphic fox cleared his throat.
"Wolfe is basically like me, except more like a wolf and his fur is purple-grey. Red is the kid with, well, red eyes and glowing hands, while Ivy is the girl with blue speckled skin and the flower on her back"
"We had the winged boy, the red-head and the one with the mechanical throat." Ike's solemn voice was barely a whisper, and his eyes were cast downward at his reconstructed legs.
"Pit, Marth and Roy respectively." Zelda added, pulling up her top a bit. A large, bloody welt now traced across her body, from her belly button to her collarbone.
"Icarus?" Fox asked inquisitively, eyeing the brunet.
"The one and only." Ike growled impatiently. "What about you, Lucario?"
"I know you hate the first test, Ike, but calm down. Acting like this will solve nothing. I hope you haven't gotten too attached to any of them, because as you know, they don't always survive the first night…" The grave voice effectively silenced the moody bluenet.
"The black-haired kid and blonde standing next to each other are brothers, Ness and Lucas. Char is the kid with large orange wings, fangs and animal-like legs."
The blue and black jackal-like creature blinked its narrowed eyes at Puff in an unspoken question.
"I got gorilla-boy and batman. DK and Meta." The pink girl pointed them out in the crowd.
"I hate being tested so early." Fox sighed and passed a furry hand through the orange-brown fur on his head.
"We don't even get to get used to our newest modifications… I'm not even sure what they changed…" Zelda moaned, anxiously playing with the tip of her left ear.
"The first test is usually the simplest." Lucario's voice resonated deep in the veterans' skulls, effectively calming them. "Although the newer ones don't always come back, I've only seen two deaths over the six years I've been here."
Ike let a bitter laugh fill the room.
"I've seen so much more…"
"And they all touch you personally because you get attached to the subjects. You should know not to." Puff retorted, pulling a face.
"What about us, hmm? And talk to Zelda, I'm sure she can tell you a lot about of dorm mates. Especially one of them…" The bluenet turned and disappeared in the throng of other specimens, leaving the blonde-brunette girl to redden slowly at the other veterans' gazes.
"He's right about us." Lucario stated solemnly, walking away.
"Yeah, we do care about each other." Fox had a lazy, crooked smiled and a look of regret in his eyes. "It's inevitable… As much as we try, most if not all of us will die in some way or another. I mean-"
A high pitched ringing stopped all conversation and forced most subjects to the polished floor in agony. As suddenly as the sound started, it stopped, and an unfeeling female voice filled the room.
"This is day one of your true experiments. I understand that not all of you know how to make use of your modifications, or even what they are, but you'll soon find out. In thirty seconds, the floor will give way underneath you. You will land in a dark room, facing a red door. Get inside said door and find your target. Kill the target. This is kill or be killed, and there will be no hesitating in the final room.
"This test will be run everyday and your injuries treated every time. It will not always be the same objective, however; be wary. The purposes of these tests will not be revealed and you will try your best lest you face the consequences."
There was silence for a moment.
"Have fun."
The floor split open in the center. The winged subjects, namely Char, Meta and Pit, had caught themselves and were already flying towards the faint glow of red in the distance. The veterans all landed swiftly, expecting the fall; most new specimens were not as prepared and fell on top of each other in a tangled pile of limbs.
Ivy whipped a vine at a newly materialized platform and started the test, while Zelda teleported into the black with a bright flash of orange magic. Fox got on all fours and bounded off in the general direction of the doors. Roy and Red both ran in opposite directions, while Ike, DK and Marth followed Fox; Ness and Lucas were more prudent and lit up their path with a crude spark of PSI energy. Soon Wolfe, Lucario and Puff were stealthily following the faint glow that came from the door.
Roy pelted under hanging traps and leapt over pit traps with ease; soon he began to gain confidence. His stride was even and paced. Suddenly, a spiked wall dressed itself in front of him, making the redhead slide to an abrupt stop. The teen snapped his fingers in frustration, trying to find a way around it, and instead let out a yelp of surprise: a tiny flame had formed on top of his index finger.
It was quite strange, as not only was the flame floating; Roy could not feel its warmth. He made a closed fist, and then opened his hand quickly, earning a burst of fire. He did this again at the wall, the blast starting to heat the metal. Soon the spikes closest to where he was blasting were melted goop and a hole was forming. The hint of a shaky smiled formed on the corner of the pale boy's lips as he slipped through said hole and resumed running.
Not too far from the redhead raced Ike, his steps surprisingly light. A look of apprehension and hesitation seemed to be permanently inked onto his strong features, though he kept running. A sudden, faint scream from his in front of him caught his attention, causing him to speed up.
A gasping figure lay in the dark, blood seeping from its frail body. The subject had been struck in the side by a large weight swinging downward, and Ike could see some broken ribs poking at the skin. As he came closer, he recognized the younger face immediately, even though it was dark.
"Please help me…" Roy whispered, trying to sit up and strike a flame.
Ike didn't hesitate. The test was do or die, every man for himself, and helping another had gotten him in trouble before. But this was Roy, one of the subjects he felt the need to protect, even though he had never directly spoken to him.
"It looks really bad. I'd try to find Zelda or Lucario but that would be near impossible, so I'll stay with you. I don't want to kill anybody anyway."
The bluenet helped the shorter teen sit up.
High above the pair Pit flew, his still-bloody wings spread gloriously. A quick glance downward revealed him in the lead, though it also brought upon him a vicious wave of nausea. Flying came pretty easy for the young brunet, though his terrible vertigo was definitely not helping; he was thankful that Meta and Char had gotten into an aerial fight and crash landed somewhere, leaving him the only subject to be suspended high above.
An almost indiscernible whir caused the boy to press his palms to his ears in pain. A survey of the chamber below him revealed Marth bolting past everybody else, his lips pressed together and vocal chords thrumming in a low hum. The bluenet looked to be the size of a small animal, and the sheer height sent wave after wave of nausea crashing over Pit.
The brunet's mind went foggy with fear and irrational panic; he stopped flapping his wings and plummeted towards the platform beneath him, landing with a loud thump. When the boy raised his head, the movement causing him only slight pain, he noticed the beautiful vermilion color of the door in front of him. In one swift movement, the winged subject was on his feet and through the door into a claustrophobic black room.
In the corner, chained to the wall by her ankle was a blonde girl. Realization hit Pit like a wall.
"Samus, you're the target?" The boy asked, kneeling in front of the beautiful young woman. All she could do was nod her head, obviously distraught at the fact that one of her dorm mates had made it in first.
"Is there any way you'll make it out alive?"
"Only if you kill someone else." She whispered, looking down at her feet. "But it'd be better if you killed me."
Pit backed away, shocked at the weakness of the formerly strong girl.
"I couldn't kill you."
"Why? I've never showed kindness to you. You know nothing about me! You shouldn't care!" Samus snapped with a sudden change in temper.
"I still think I know you from somewhere. And I've overheard you and Ike's conversations while I was pretending to be unconscious… You have an important role to play in all of this. I will find out what."
With that, the boy positioned himself in front of the now closed door, waiting for the next specimen to walk in. It didn't take long for DK, the ape-man, to burst in and receive a well-placed kick in the stomach; it didn't affect him at all, and Pit knew he couldn't kill him.
"Samus! Are there any weapons in here?"
"Heads up."
The rusted knife landed in between him and DK. For a moment no one moved.
"So you're who I have to kill?" His gruff voice was directed at Samus, who responded with a nod. "Well then. Move out of my way."
DK reached for the blade, but Pit was faster. Before any more words could be uttered, the knife was buried to the hilt in the man's stomach.
All sounds seemed to cease, as if they were all aware of the slow, painful death of the subject. A slow crackling sound was heard before the cold voice of the Director punctuated the chamber.
"Congratulations to anyone who is still alive. You've officially survived the first test."
AN: I don't have much to say in this chapter, except for the usual thanks to my reviewers :) You guys make my world go round!
I'm currently working on a Christmas oneshot, so it should be up within the week. Do me a favor and read it when I post it, please.
One more thing: have you guys noticed that all of the chapter titles are song titles yet?