T-01-54
The panting noises were unbearable. The near bald man with grey, asphyxiate-colored skin and snapped neck mumbled disturbing things between each grunt.
"Ends, begins, ends, begins, ends…"
I leant on the guy's shoulders.
"Hey there, handsome. You wear the coolest straight-jacket I've ever seen. What prison presented you with such a nice piece?"
His usually unfocused eyes set on me and he attempted to break open my skull with his own. Despite having a broken neck, he sure had some hidden strength. I mean, how did he even manage to move so freely inside that thing? It was almost as if he was as free as any man.
Flirting does not seem to get to him. Despite being the first human-shaped abnormality who also know language, there is something that sets him apart from your normal human. For one, his size. He's huge. I am as tall as his torso. If we removed his straitjacket, his snapped neck would touch the ceiling.
I made the mistake to imagine what it would look like. What a nightmare-inducing vision. I checked on him once again. Forsaken Murderer remained in his grunting state, not bothering to kill me as long as I didn't get closer.
I am no flirting master, but I at least had the confidence I could steal a blush from someone if I settled my mind into it. I'll correct this guy's profile. Attachment Work proficiency is common at best.
Ding! A neutral yellow face shone on the window.
"That will be everything from me, Forsaken Murderer. The new guys from the Information Team will handle your works from now on. Be nice to them, okay?"
The continuity of his grunts was his answer. Did he not get tired from such a distressing state? Just looking at him was enough to extenuate me.
Yawning, I exited the containment unit. An employee wearing a blue armband greeted me. They had long blue spinning locks of hair. His relaxed eyes made me feel like they didn't take their job seriously, but if they were able to keep such a demeanor inside L Corp, they may do just fine.
"Hey. You done with inspection?"
"Inspection? I was just ordered to fill this abno's information profile before any new accidents could happen."
"Haha, you sure have it tough. Captain of the Control Team and Inspector of new abnormalities."
"I just have a high survival rate. I will eventually die. When that happens, you may become my substitute, Charlie."
"That would suck. Don't die, okay?"
"Yes, yes. I will do my best. My Sephirah wouldn't have it any other way. Hey. Here."
"What is this?"
"Paste them on this wall. Those are my notes on Forsaken Murderer.
Do not attempt Repression Work on this guy. He will fight back.
Do not fail your work.
"Aren't these a little…?"
"Obvious? Sure are. The number of abnormalities we will have to manage will only grow from now on, so I'm doing this for the future."
"You always think three steps ahead."
"You exaggerate. In five days' time you will be just as experienced as I am, Charlie. Your job until then is making sure you don't die."
The manager is probably out of lob points, so we couldn't afford new losses. Aside from the clerks, there were a sad total of four employees inside the facility. Me and Ek, from the Control Team, and Charlie and Trey, from Information Team.
I laid out the ground work for them, so things would be easier to manage despite the lack of personnel.
"Quit the chat. If you are done here, go back to your team, employee [Confidential ID]. Malkuth requested your presence."
Each team enjoyed the presence of a Sephirah. Below the Control Department, the Information Department had The Viper. His body was composed of dark purple rectangular chassis, composed by two squares, with a single digital glowing purple eye in the lower part, in a square cavity on the right at the front of his body. His Sephirah name is at top front part. Its metallic body is covered in dark wraps.
He actually reminded me of Forsaken Murderer. What compulsion did those wraps contain? It would be rude to ask, so I just shrugged and waved my hand at them. Punishing Bird had found its way to that level in order to beat me some more. Oh, how utterly cute! I could only imagine what it had to look like when the bird punched the required numbers on the elevator to come meet me!
"As for you, the manager wants Trey to work on T-01-54. Remind them to follow the rules."
"Yes, sir. What will the manager have me do?"
"He wants you to work with One Sin. They don't have enough personnel up there."
After separating from my Sephirah and [DATA EXPUNGED], I went back to our purple Main Room. The Information Team was tasked to check every document inside the facility and expunge as much data as we were ordered to. Our first task was to find employees 00102 through 00106 and erase their names from the records. This was mostly a legal concern. If it became know the high mortality rate of employees, nobody would accept working for the Wing. As expected, they were desperate for new recruits.
Yesod picked [DATA EXPUNGED]'s notes and removed them from the wall.
"We need to follow the rules to keep casualties to a minimum. Unofficial comments like these are bound to be freely interpreted, which will get people killed. We need to lower our mortality rate for the sake of the branch facilities."
"Not for HQ's sake? What do you mean by that, sir?"
A pretty AI popped out of nowhere.
"I am here to remind you of your duties. O-03-03 is waiting for you, employee 00201."
"Oh, did I stick my nose where it didn't belong? I thought the Information Team would be on top of things unlike the others."
Angela frowned. Yesod crossed his mechanical arms.
"I am the only required AI in this facility. If not for me, you would collapse from the huge amount of workload corresponding to your department. Your Sephirah is right about something. Stick to the rules and everything will flow effortlessly."
Just like that, the AI disappeared. I didn't know W Corp also lent our Wing teleportation services.
"You heard Angela. Go work with One Sin, Charlie."
With that final remark, Yesod went back to retrieve Trey from the grave of documents they were censoring with a black marker.
I believe I am the right person for the job I was assigned. Information Team. I will learn every mystery the Corporation had to offer. Remaining ignorant was not in my nature. However, I will take my time. Unlike the Inspector, if I kept a low profile I would be able to survive long enough. Then, once I get my hands on juicy classified information, I will bail and sell them to the Wing that bids the highest!
However, I wouldn't tell One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds anything about this. My secret plan could not be shared with anyone. I would take it to the grave.
I was in the middle of telling some of my worst –sin-worthy– jokes to the skull when someone knocked on the door.
"This is an emergency, Charlie! When you finish your work, head to the Information Department and follow the trail of brain bits! Forsaken Murderer just breached!"
Each freaking day was worse than the prior. First, I had to learn the managerial procedures of yet another new abnormality. I pass it on to their assigned employees and I try relaxing a little. But then! Everything goes to [profanity]!
I met with Malkuth and Ek at the Control Main Room. She handed us briefcases. Our new EGOs. I wore a dark suit made of Red Eyes and wielded club with similar features. Ek wore a brown plated suit and wielded a long crossed named Penitence. I told to myself things would be different that time.
I glanced at my partner before heading inside the elevator.
"Don't die on me, Ek. If you feel like dying, go heal yourself and return once you feel better."
"Okay, captain! You take care as well. I wouldn't know what to do without you around."
I messed with their short brown hair. I had to look after my junior. Malkuth felt quite pressured to show results. Us dying on her wouldn't help her frail sanity one bit. Angela wanted her to suffer for some reason, but I didn't fancy that idea. She may be an overbearingly passionate and clumsy robot, but she meant well. Her heart was in the right place and I wanted to uphold her ideals.
This is a textual description of the recordings of the incident on the [data irrelevant]. Forsaken Murderer's head had turned into a giant piece of blunt metal, just as he repeatedly feared. He smashed his head against the floor, the walls and the squashed corpses of the unlucky clerks who didn't flee in time. Employee 00202 put up a resistance and hit the abnormality with their baton repeatedly on the back. After gaining his enmity, Forsaken Murderer [too crude] his [important organ], spilling it though the floor and forming a puddle of [red human bits].
Employees [Confidential ID] and 00107 took turns at fighting the abnormality, dodging the strikes that created craters on the metallic floor. Once Forsaken Murderer fell to the ground, employee 00201 showed up, ready to rumble. The Control Team didn't welcome the late newcomer. They had seen how they hid inside the elevator and refused to partake in the fight. After kicking him out from the elevator, the Control Team returned to their department, leaving the task of cleaning the corridors to the coward.
Creak. Water showered my face. The heat made my new injury ache. That silly metal head hit hard. I blocked his strike and my arm paid the price. If not for the regenerator system, my bones would have remained broken for the remainder of the fight.
I seated inside the shower and held my head between my hands. I couldn't shake off the words T-01-54 spoke while fighting. They were the most clear-sounding I have ever listened from him.
"Don't look at me like that. What's really pitiful is people like you dying to the likes of me."
"You don't even have eyes anymore… How can you tell?" I whispered to myself.
