42 Suffering . . (2/2)

Blood splattered on my face as the cylinder made its way inside my arm. It churned away at my muscles and bones, making its path towards the center of my body.

I definitely cried, and it was barely m.u.f.fled from the cloth. Even so, the tears that left my eyes were pouring out endlessly. The coppery taste of blood somehow made in contact with my tongue, which I realized it to come from my bleeding cavity.

Just under less than twenty seconds, I was already begging for the pain to stop. The cylinder finally reached the outer layer of my heart and stopped. From there, I could feel its metal body dissolving, where a bunch of very thin wires pierced through every fiber of my being.

It lasted less than two seconds, and yet I could still feel the lasting effect of the burning pain inside me.

”Did it worked?” asked Miranda.

”Perhaps so. I mean, she's still alive. There's never been a living human being that was alive after being injected with a second Aegis,” said Alicia.

”But that one guy you put it was one of the first to become an Aegis User, right? Poor him,” said Bart.

”Still, to find a matching Aegis is hard enough, what more can be said to find a secondary Aegis suitable for that same person,” said Relly.

Alexander turned towards them. ”That Aegis created by Alicia, is a modified version, isn't it? So, that kind of restriction does not apply to her.”

Alicia shrugged. ”Yeah. This version I created does not have the regeneration chemicals inside it. So, that's a minus. But if it worked in the end, that's more than good enough.”

I found myself taking as much air as I could into my lungs. Slowly, but longer each time. The pain subconsciously pulsated in my every muscle. However, it was not as painful as before. It was bogged down quite a bit, of which I appreciated.

”You have integrated a control function inside that Aegis, right?” asked Relly to Alicia.

”Ah, yes. I'll give it to you then.” She held out her hand and a small metal cube appeared out of it. ”I kept it in my crystal.”

”I see.” Relly took it and raised the cube above his head while squinting. ”It's a full voice recognition command control.”

”Indeed. This way, we can be sure Ava will always do what we wanted her to do.” Bart gazed downwards. ”Dammit, if my Aegis can control another Aegis User, we wouldn't have to spend too much time on creating that new Aegis.”

”It is what it is, whether you like it or not,” muttered Relly, the metal cube was put inside his pocket.

Alicia pointed at me. ”How about you try using that controller, Relly? I've yet to see if it works or not.”

Relly pulled out the metal cube and raised it near his face. ”How long the new Aegis crystal would manifest inside her?”

Alicia touched her chin. ”I think... it's the same as the rest of us. Could be about a day or two.”

”I see.” Relly focused back to me, that time, prepared to voice out his command. ”I command you, Ava, to break the shackles binding you.”

My body jolted in an instant, with my arms repeatedly tugging at the shackles as hard as it could. The force and momentum of it amazed me. I never knew I was that strong.

The shackles and chains clanked loudly against each other, refusing to let go of me.

”How do I tell her to stop?” asked Relly.

”Once a command has been issued to her, the new Aegis would certainly control Ava to execute it and cannot be stopped,” said Alicia when she faced Relly. ”That is, until you commanded her to stop.” She gestured to Relly for him to try it out.

My heart thumping hard.

To have my body moved against my will was unusual. And at the same time, it was quite frightening. That cube he had in his hands could command anything of me, even if it was something I would not do in my entire life.

”Ava, stop!” shouted Relly.

My arms stopped moving and I gasped for air.

”This should be enough for today. We'll continue the test again tomorrow,” said Relly sharply.

”Eh? But I haven't asked her yet about Hughes,” retorted Miranda.

”That will be next time, Miranda. Have you forgotten about the meeting? His Supremacy surely awaits us right now,” said Relly as he took a quick glance at his golden watch.

”Ugh, but it's not like it takes a lot of time for me to use my Aegis on her,” said Miranda as she stormed out of the room using the narrow pathway.

Soon, they all left me one by one. The little girl turned to face me with a confused expression. ”Mommy doesn't love you, I a.s.sume?” she said. Her turquoise eyes gleamed.

”Sweety, let's go,” called Alicia at the pathway's entrance.

The girl walked briskly towards her and the green crystals covered the pathway, leaving silence to embrace me.

I could only wish that Hope was not hurt anymore.

Seeing him being treated like that was very painful, for me, and for him.

”Please be safe,” I muttered. It was strange that I prioritized Hope's safety rather than myself. Then again, he had a chance to escape one way or another, while I was clearly unable to break free.

With the metal shackles binding me to that room for who knows how long.

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