The Stench of the harbor fouled the cool air of the night. Painwheel was not entirely enjoying returning to her birthplace. Her mind reminded the hours being strapped to an operating table feeling dozen needles piercing her skin at once overriding her nervous system to bordering complete state of shutdown. She looked at the numerous scars on her arms and legs seeing the deep wounds with faint gray discoloration where one of the two parasites that reside in her moving its way close to her veins. She breathed heavily remembering feeling the two parasites terror away from her very being. Her bones cracked as her hand clenched heavily into a fist rage starting to boil over scanning the numerous warehouses in the area.
"It's not going to be easy is it?" A voice called out to Painwheel making her glance around. Eventually her eyes found themselves trapped inside the gaze of a cracked mirror. Her reflection however was replaced with what could be described as herself before the experiment. The reflection however was deformed in a very strange way, most notably parts of her visage would shimmer with the truth of her appearance faded through briefly. A haunting spectral image only worsened by the shadow that faced directly behind her. "Do you think I'm too late?" Carol seemed to ask herself.
She was unsure if she was supposed to answer, this twisted in and out of body experience bleed through to her. "We know she's down there." Her own raspy voice responded.
"I know what we know." The reflection remarked sighing at the bluntness the monstrous side gave. "Do you think we are too late?" The body turned and faced away from the mirror the reflection still mimicking her.
"I don't know." A concerning remark that Their gut ate at as the two conversed.
"I see." She responded, "and Brain Drain?" The question caused their body to tense in hesitation. It was true her head has been absent of him since they started searching for Yang but if he is in the middle of altering her mental state it would result in nearly a multiple front fight one on the physical plane against Yang and any other of Brain Drain's goons. The other would be against the override password.
"I, I don't know." The raspy voice responded again.
"I understand." The reflection spoke as the murderous aura behind the serine phantom. "I'll hold it off as long as I can."
"This won't be an easy fight." Her raspy voice gave the warning.
"But it is our fight." The phantom rebutted. "She is our friend, hurt her if we must but don't kill h-"
"I KNOW!" Painwheel yelled back annoyed.
"Okay" despite not being physically there she took a step back in the mirror losing her composure. "I'll do what I can if Brain Drain targets us. "Just be careful." Her voice weakened as her image dissipated color returning to the shadow creature that lurked behind her revealing it to be her.
Carol sighed in annoyance before turning her attention to the warehouses below. She launched the massive four-bladed appendage toward the ground scaring off a feral and an individual infected with what looked to be a low-level parasite. Her landing was loud knocking over the oil barrel that had fire to scare away the cold air for a short time now quickly dying that its pit was disturbed. The cold did not phase her, Carol's nerve endings were beyond normal repair now. She glared deeply into the alley seeing the abandoned barrels and pallets leaning on one another slowly passing by the grimy road glass cracking beneath her feet as she stepped a booze bottle was broken here recently. The full moon barely lite the alley as she continued her trek. Passing numerous of the same building time and time again.
She passed by several individuals that if it were anyone else more than likely they would have tried to mug her. They were too afraid to leave the shadows. Not that she cared this allowed her to conserve energy for her true goal. It was going to be a nasty brawl that may do more harm than good. Her head slowly began to have an all too familiar pounding in it.
"Look who decided to return." The all too familiar tone of brain drain slowly entered her head.
"Out of my head." Carol grumbled as she moved closer to the warehouse.
"But we have so much to catch up on." He spoke up again. "I bet you are excited to see my latest creation."
"You Pissed me off once by doing this to me." Carol slowly growled angrily slowly still moving forward. "Now you do it to someone that I was protecting." She was seething her vision slowly turning red. "Mark my words…"
"I'll Pay?" Brain Drain predicted her thoughts much to her chagrin "My monsters are far from a threat to society, everything I have done has been solely for stopping our true menace. Yet you patronize my actions when you fight your orders day in and out. I'll tell you a truth of this world experiment eighty-four. Our world is full of freaks and monsters that deserve death, compared to these real monsters my actions are forgivable in the plan Aeon has given me."
"Your just deserts will be served one day." Carol growled slowly approaching a long-time abandoned warehouse. It's dented loading bay doors slightly ajar and dented from the first time she tried to escape Brain Drain's mental clutches.
"Regardless, welcome home Painwheel." Brain Drain's cordial attitude agitated her as she grabbed the heavy door. It was jammed in place slowly her body rebuilt its strength to throw the door high enough for her to move in.
It was a cold sight to behold. The screams of her past echoed deep into her mind. She barely shuttered as she continued to traverse deep into the warehouse the moon no longer providing lamination. She glanced to her left seeing the ruined breaker box, a heavy slash deep into its breakers meaning power for most the place never got replaced from the night she broke free. A surprising thing they did not even bother try to fix despite it being a very much needed asset. She looked toward the blackness of the room. Not a very inviting view. A Light turned on covering several meters of ground. She treaded forward blood slowly entering her mind. If she had a theory, it was just dried old blood.
Her hand reached for the tarp and moved it to see one of Valentine's operating tables a disturbing site despite the area being immaculate. She treaded around the room looking at the operating table completely clean most likely prepped for parasite implant. Her eyes darted left of her landing on another tarp set up as a divider to another area. She approached before ripping the tarp to shreds with the blade. It looked to be living quarters fitted with a TV, bed, a makeshift kitchen and workshop. Most likely this place was one of Valentine's safe houses she moved slowly looking at her materials including a wooden crate that was labeled as experiment M-30W. She never saw them use this method for designating projects.
Groaning got her attention coming from what looked to be another one of the other operating rooms. The same one she was once treated in as her vision revisited the first day she was captured.
One Year Ago
"Hey Carol?" Her focus came back to the individual in front of her. A pale blond girl she recognized as Filia. "Did you even hear me?" She asked again.
She shook her head. "Sorry. A lot has been going on recently?"
Filia raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? Maybe I can help?"
Carol shook her head again "It's nothing big Filia, just rumors that have been going around."
The blonde's face went from causal serious to the strange serious that made her concerned. "Rumors? what rumors? Is it Chelsea again?"
"No, no it's just I heard that there is something wrong with that substitute nurse that has been comes in from time to time." Her tone seemed to be lost in thought.
"Oh, her. I'll admit she makes me a little uneasy. I heard one of our classmates muttered something about insufficient." She whispered close as the tone made her look a little bit concerned about it. "I kind of hope she gets in trouble for something."
"That doubles for me as." Carol admitted.
The rest of the school day went by unamused Filia chose to leave early because she had to feed the dog they had recently adopted. Carol still got a little creeped out by the mutt despite it being cute something felt attached to it much to her grievance.
She mindlessly went about her commute through the city she decided to go into town when she heard there was a sale on a few groceries her parents were needing. She enjoyed moving through the town though she was aware of how dangerous it could be. She often kept pepper spray as a just in case. She looked down at her list and was busy calculating it in her head when she approached the massive department store. Several employees frightened her. There was less parasite infected individuals near Maplecrest, so it was an unsettling thought as she heard many about how dangerous they were. She finally made it to the elevator and managed to get it to herself.
"Finally." She muttered in relief looking at the floor the grocer was on. "Hope I'm not too late." The doors opened two massive individuals easily coming past six foot two. They had several scars on their arms left little doubt that they may have been from the no man's lands.
"Well looks like we have another one." One of them grinned toward their cohort ominous feelings in Carols gut told her what came next."
"She looks about the right size." The other agreed. Carol took several steps back as he grabbed a burlap sack big enough to cover her upper torso. She was blinded only a little light came in. She stayed silent panicking scared thinking this would be the last of her.
She gave up on screaming for help two hours later it was pointless to call for help not destined to arrive. Eventually Carol eventually heard snoring implying that the guard was asleep. She may not last long, but she probably had a better chance out wherever they were than being saved from her kidnappers. She wiggled out of the bag to find herself.
Her surroundings looked to be an old speakeasy of sorts. She moved through the old rooms seeing several other girls of her age though she appeared to still be relatively young by comparison. She treaded lightly not to waken the guard.
A loud crash in a different room however woke him to her attempted escape. He slowly stood up to give chase. "Get back here!" His voice bellowed as he gave chase to Carol who took advantage of his slow realization as to what was going on. She however barged into a new room to trip and fall over what looked to be a child drenched in a blood-stained cloak.
"Sorry, are you okay?" Carol muttered not sure if the kid was still alive. She slowly went and moved the hood to only let out a blood curdling scream seeing what these people had done to the kid's face and arms. The door busted open the same guard from earlier lumbering closer to her a mallet in one of his hands.
Carol kept sliding on her back trying to get what ever distance was away from him as he approached. She was desperate for an escape from this nightmare that many people have warned her about.
"No, there is no way she is compatible choose someone else!" A voice that in the future she slowly would grow to hate. "She is too young there is no way she would survive the treatment." The voice kept moving through the hallway reaching their location. "One Sec." The voice distinctly female spoke before catapulting a syringe into Carol's assailant resulting in him tumbling to the ground. The room was silent outside of the near dead groans of the eyeless child near the center of the room.
"I don't care she is who you want I am not having a doing this to a student. A university student yes, not a high schooler." The voice was angry but clearly not at any individual in the room.
"Hello?" Carol meekly spoke up in fear "Who's there."
The voice sighed as the room fell silent. Carol decided to speak again scared of her situation. "Thanks for saving me." A sharp hit it the back of her head made her lose focus.
"Don't be thanking me." The voice spoke up. It was the substitute nurse that had been at New Meridian High the last few months. "I'm sorry for this." She said as Carol slowly lost consciousness.
The next few months were a blur for her, but she slowly grew to learn who she wanted dead and now had the tools for this action. But she would rather be damned than let Yang suffer her fate. She moved past her old operating room seeing the table where an unconscious Yang had been slowly prepared for the Lab Zero conversion process. She slowly approached as she looked her over calmly anger slowly over taking her.
"It's time to see how well my latest creations fare against you. perhaps failure will prove that you are no longer viable to my mission." Brain Drains voice entered her mind again as she suddenly saw the same red electricity that appears around her whenever the murder install starts up bolting Yang to full consciousness.
"No." Carol muttered seeing what they had done. Yang looked like she had been through very little physically but despite all this her eyes had the eerie glazed look over them. Clouded with limited to no dilation. This was someone who mentally was either a prisoner in her own head or dead. "Yang listen to me. Wake up he wins if he controls you. Get him out of your head." Despite her protest Yang's eyes kept that same dead expression on it slowly she made her way to a table with both her gauntlets on it and a sturdier mask than the leather mask that Carol had strapped to hers. She looked like a slash villain that was missing her murder weapon.
"I must take my leave of you now eighty-four. It has been fun catching up" Brain Drain spoke up seemingly satisfied with his handywork.
Carol went silent. "Brain Drain, you better pray that I never find you. cause if I do." Her own Murder Install began to go into effect. "I'll start with your frontal lobe, YOU BASTARD!" Screaming in absolute rage as she charged right at Yang. The impact it made with her face made her freeze in place. To her own horror, Yang's face did not budge an inch.
Yang however responded by winding her own fist back and sending a heavy left cross square into Carol's chest throwing her back several feet, only being slowed down from her blades. She glanced up seeing just the kind of power she was dealing with against Yang.
"(it's like she's just a husk.)" went through her head as she glanced at the almost unmoving figure. Yang slowly began to tread toward Carol still absent in the eyes the rest was hard to see behind the heavy mask that covered her face. Carol got back up on her legs hunching her back forward a little so the bladed weapon on her back had for elbow room. "Have to break her out of this." she muttered slowly reading for Yang's next attack.
Yang's next strike was an attempt to grab Carol, a crushing attack that if it were not for the metal parasite inside her she probably would have lost her spine. She decided to return the favor as the metal barbs inside her body broke through her skin pushing Yang away with its own impressive force. Yang however still held the blank face. Quickly with a rapid strike Carol recovered jumping into the air with a series of barbed vines appearing from her arms slashing at Yang's mask. She capitalized on the slow reactions to deliver a strong swing kick as the propellered blades swung underneath striking at Yang's thighs. She was close to landing onto the ground when another kick flung Yang skyward a perfect opportunity to dislocate her leg and have a massive metallic spike come vertically at Yang catapulting her high into the air.
Yang caught onto the rafters and climbed up looking down at the former experiment. She cocked one of her gauntlets and aimed downward toward Carol. A tiny grenade flung down throwing carol skyward. She continued this slow calculated assault as she slowly inched high with each explosion. As soon as Carol was close enough, she leaped down foot first into Carol's stomach as the two fell back to the floor of the warehouse. Carol however had different plans, she grabbed Yang with the metallic vines under her skin the entangle Yang midair while readjusting her. The four blades spun rapidly like a Buzzsaw crashing into Yang repeatedly before a final strike launched her back down. The blades kept Carol airborne allowing her to see what the next course of action was. That was when out of the corner of her eye she saw several strange looking things flying toward her.
They appeared to look like tiny rockets shaded blue and where homing right on to her. Carol was not sure what this meant for her, but it was beginning to look like Brain Drain interfering again. The missiles collided with her in the air sending her downward to meet several additional explosions from a few strange looking orbs.
"What?" She asked getting refocused. In front of her she spotted Yang and a blacked-out blotch hidden behind a one of Valentines operating slings. It looked like Nadia as it kept walking toward the curtains. "Fortune? You traitor."
"Preparing dramatic reveal protocol." An electric speaker came from behind the curtain as a hand reached out and grabbed the side of the curtain. The hand instead of claws was a blue metallic hand that slowly moved to show the rest of her. It looked just like Ms. Fortune to a disturbing T, the biggest exception was the heavy amount of sheet metal that was clearly armor for the individual. Her head had several ventilation shafts of it shaped like exclamation points with two glowing eyes. It was clearly a machine, one designed to imitate Ms. Fortune.
"What?" Carol demanded an answer as she looked at the machine slowly approaching standing right beside Yang.
"Greetings." Voice was direct and did not coat anything in a malicious tone. "I am Brain Drain's greatest creation, M-30W, Authorized name: Robo-Fortune."
"Now Brain Drain is imitating her." She grumbled in annoyance seeing the odds slowly not working into her favor.
"Apologies, experiment eighty-four. But you are officially outdated. Prepare for termination." The Robot did not mince words. A detail that began to show the truer nature of Brain Drains twisted mind at work. It slowly removed its head floating in space until a new head took its mantle at the machine's neck. Carol's brow furrowed ready for a much more vexing fight.
The Robot launched the old robotic head right at Carol not a second to soon as Yang finally seemed to snap out of the slow start up time and began to move much faster at her. Carol's only option was to shield from the blast as well as Yang's onslaught with a fan shield from her blades until a more efficient strategy could come to her mind. The blast pushed her several inches discoloring the blades of one side. She opened them quickly to see Yang's fist breach the narrow opening and collide clean with her face knocking carol to the ground. Carol glared looking back up at Yang. Quickly she jumped onto her hands and feet as the four blades spun underneath her tripping Yang. This advantage did not last long though as the Robot moved in and struck with a piston like attack pushing Carol back. This machine was going to be a threat no way around it. Yang slowly recovered from the fall and looked back at Carol with a solid right hook into her abdomen causing her to fall onto her knee.
In a dire attempt to break out of her situation the blades swept forward each of them slashing into Yang's guarded arm. Even if it did not draw blood her arm was going to cracks in her bones making for an easier time breaking them. What mattered more so whoever was the gauntlets range capabilities were jammed meaning that they could no longer launch grenades. May not have been as dangerous as Yang's Ember Celica that she left at the safehouse Filia found for them, but it was a lethal weapon none the less. Yang backed away for a second to see the damage she did to her weapons leaving her open. An opportunity that Carol took advantage of as she aimed her blades at the second gauntlet. The blade barley missed the gauntlet because of a robotic limb slamming into Carol's side throwing her into one of Valentine's operating rooms.
Carol grabbed hold the operating table trying to get a baring of her surroundings. The fight was not going to plan, and it was likely to get worse. She struggled to get up onto her limbs being driven out of sheer rage at this point.
"(Focus.)" she glared angrily at her situation. "(if one of them falls I can handle the other one.)" she heard footsteps approaching quickly she ready for an attack that never came. Instead a gray canister went flying through the curtain colliding next to a fuel container. The explosion catapulted her into another chamber. Inside, the mysterious Robo-Fortune stood in place ready to catch her. She could feel the machine's grasp tightening on her neck in few seconds it would be chocking her slowly. In a last-ditch effort, the blades slammed into Robo-Fortune's robotic head causing a few seconds of system disruption. In another attempt the blades latched onto the rooms operating table lifting it into the air and dropping it on Robo-Fortune to pin her for the time being.
She took a second to catch her breath only for her to hear another grenade come flying into the room in collided with an IB the shockwave throwing her into Valentine's private chambers luckily it seemed the sofa had broken her landing allowing her to roll into a more defendable position. A peak into her surroundings resulted her being narrowly clipped by a flying surgeon table. She couldn't believe that it looked like a dire situation with her on the ropes. Robo-Fortune entered the room scanning for her, it seemed she was targeting her with Skullgirl Blood sensors, more than likely research from her own experiment. She would probably find the idea funny if it was not for her situation looking as bleak as it is. Carol hastily moved toward the next curtain only to find herself inside her own laboratory. She used the blades to toss a canister that looked to have dried blood skyward crashing into the next room another explosion hit and glass shrapnel into her chamber. Luckily her blades shielded her vital areas.
"You cannot escape." The robot stated again it seemed like the blast had blinded her for now. "For now, it is a game of cat and rodent." It caused Carol to roll her eyes at the thought.
It took a few moments of silence till the shadows got too close to the curtain. Carol saw this as her opportunity. She flung the blades fast enough to saw through Another of Robo-Fortunes head and this time some of the machine's torso. It left her open however as another powerful hook swung downward slamming into the top of Carol's skull. She fell hard into the ground as Yang picked her up one changed the still lifeless eyes gaze fixed on her.
"Yang, look." Carol grabbed her mask and took it off. She was not sure if this was going to work but it was all or nothing situation. The face remained unchanged as Carol felt more air trying to leave her mouth. "I'm, I- I'm Sorry." She let out before her vison slowly began to fade to black. Her last-minute ditch attempt looked to have been in vain.
"Thirty-six E, Twenty-Five, Forty." An unexpectedly familiar yet cold feminine voice could be heard somewhere inside the warehouse. Inside Painwheel's head, her vison was starting to become overly focused. "Painwheel, save your friend." The familiar voice caused Carol to slowly reawaken her mind adamantly clear on what had to be done.
Carol's head slowly reared her head back as much as she could with Yang's hand latched to her neck. The blades roped around the backside of Yang and forced the two with immeasurable strength to collide the twos head. The head but easily fractured both individuals but neither felt it. Yang's grip dropped her grip as the two faced each other head on. Carol delivered another powerful punch this time into Yang's gut causing her to hurdle forward it seemed her gag reflex had kicked in from that hit. Carol took continual advantage and sent another strong strike into Yang's face. The impact was strong enough to result in a cracked mask. Yang's eyes however showed strange fluctuations in them dancing between purple and red. She charged forward at Carol. Not much she could do before feeling her natural defense reaction throwing her blades in the way.
The impact was beyond expected results as Yang's fist shattered one of Carol's blades, a massive amount of sharp hardened pain traveled through Carol's body. She let loose a strong shriek of genuine pain. The blade's shards fell too the ground in a complete mess. As recompensed Carol growled angrily grabbing one of the Shards followed by yanking Yang by the scarf down to her.
"You broke me, I'll break you!" Carol's other hand then quickly grabbed Yang by her long hand Causing confusion for the first time in Yang's eyes. Her hand with the remains of her blade the quickly cut clear through removing enough hair to make just barely past shoulder length.
Yang's eyes went from the dead purple irises to eyes showing pure blood red covered in rage. The original Yang was fighting Brain Drain's override. All Carol had to do was wait for it to consumer her a then tire her out, a dangerous gambit. Yang's Berserker state had activated, and Carol was going to have to endure all of it.
The first powerful strike came downward right into Carol's Left arm. She felt the entire force resulting in the should to be come dislodged. Carol responded simply by shoulder bashing Yang away to give her time to shove it back into place. It was far from over as Robo-Fortune appeared from behind attempting to finish Carol only for a series of syringes to land into Robo-Fortune as well as what looked to be a bottle with a burning cloth inside. The blast pushed the robot into a ranged only situation. Carol paid little mind to the machine most likely the machine was just combat support. She charged into Yang's personal rampage grabbing her and launching her into a series of medical machines. Yang slowly stood up and dashed at Carol slamming her fist firmly into her nose. Carol returned the favor with another headbutt and the backside of her still functioning blades ramming her several times.
It did little to deter Yang however as she caught one of the blades and began to spin rapidly in circles before throwing carol into a canister filled with an unknown liquid. She shook off her confusion as Yang loaded another one of her grenades to fire at her. When it was launched in its arch Carol caught the explosive mid flight and threw into more of the strange machinery that littered the hideout. The explosion was much larger than before as the ground slowly started to light on fire. The strange liquid appeared to be flammable most likely alcohol. Carol retreated to high ground feeling her feet burn on the metallic operating table. Yang however stood up onto a different table loading another shot.
A support pillar quickly gave way from the burning building as the robotic imitation made a hasty retreat. The roof slowly decayed landing on Yang. Carol quickly Jumped onto several different parts in the burning building. Another canister erupted bring down a massive chunk of the warehouse on top of them. Carol's back blades catching the brunt of it two of them receiving nasty nicks int the blade. Yang looked to still be awake as she reached to throw another fist into Carol's face only to slowly give into the exhaustion.
"I'll get you out of here." She muttered in concern quickly carrying her to safety as the building crumbled. She bashed open the front door to see the clean air of the night become a welcoming sight to her as she turned to look at the nearly unconscious Yang.
"Carol?" She let out weakly in a dazed state of confusion. She fully took in her face now seeing the black eye and the bloodied nose. "what happened."
Carol simply grinned as she looked down at her leather mask. Drenched in her blood and then to Yang who had several scratches over her body and heavy bruises on her face. Her golden hair was now shorter and had a few red strands in it. It appears both looked like that had the match of their life.
"You're safe now." She managed to get out before collapsing from pure exhaustion from the rescue mission turned fight for your life scenario match. Sirens where the last thing they could hear in the distance as again white High heels covered Carol's vison once again before passing out.