Leader Of The Trapped Ones - Chapter 3

[Energy overuse.]

[Please intake provisions, for the body to function properly]

[Body will be in low functioning mode until proper energy is made for it to function again]

[Energy level- 1.2%]

My eyes fluttered open. Darkness enveloped me, welcoming me from every side. I tried to sniff the air, for any type of scent, before remembering that I couldn’t as my body was in the low mode.

[Any bionic access has been halted until proper energy is taken]

There had only been four times that my body has been overused. All when I was in the lab. Two for combat reasons and the other for experiments, this was the first time in the new world.

Using most of the energy I had to sit upwards, I looked down at myself. Someone had changed my clothes and tied up my hair. I no longer wore my bloody lab gown but I had now a long white hoodie and black jeans. I was surprised by the fact that the jeans even fit me. My blonde hair was combed and in a ponytail.

Baam!

Suddenly the door of the bedroom swung open. Someone flipped a switch, turning lights in the room on. Standing there was the young woman, one of the people I had saved.

Her eyes widened in surprise, that I thought they would pop out. Scanning her, I saw that she had changed her outfit from the jacket to a long t-shirt. In her hands held a tray with soup.

“One moment please,” She said, flashing a smile at me. She proceeded to lay the tray on the desk next to her before sprinting out of the room. I sat there on the bed in wonder at her actions.

Moments after she rushed out she came back with the two males who I also saved. Both males wore the same clothes that I had seen when I had rescued them. All three of them just stood there awkwardly at the door.

“Em hi, you’re awake, thank you for saving us. You’ve been out cold for a day,” She spoke fast. “I made you soup because you couldn’t eat anything while you were unconscious, but it seems you’re awake so would you like for me to cook you anything.” My stomach growled as an answer to her words.

“Oh,” She giggled. “Then let me go make something,” She turned to walk off before turning back. “I’m such an idiot, I forgot to tell you our names.”

She gestured to herself and the males. “Hi, I’m Rherassa, you can just call me Rassa,” She paused and pointed to the man. “This is Cied, and this little one is Qihn. Please to meet your acquaintance, em” Rassa paused and looking at me for a response.

I titled my head in confusion. ‘What did she want from me?’ I wondered

“Your name,” A soft whisper came from the boy. I raised my brows, so honey-boy could talk. “What is your name?”

My brain short-circuited for a bit. I didn’t have a name, only a number, 785. The lab never gave us name as we were just product to be used and then drained.

“A name is an identity. You can’t have an identity because you are not an individual. Simple as that, you are just No. 785, a product owned by the lab, and made for the lab. Do you understand?” They would ask. But I didn’t understand and neither did Tess. So we both gave each other names.

“We belong to the lab, but we also belong to ourselves,” was what Tess would always say. I never knew where she got her ideas from, maybe she was just like me and had a breakthrough. But we would never know, after all, she is dead.

Snapped myself out of the flashback, I came back to my main problem, my name.

I had a name, I just didn’t remember it. Just like Tess gave me a name, I gave her one too, Tess. Thinking hard I tried to remember mine.

Gradually, the word came to my head. “Onyx,” I uttered.

“What did you say?” Rassa replied. She stepped closer to me. I reacted by which glaring at her. “Oops.” She said taking a step back.

Controlling myself, I repeated, “Onyx, Onyx the Fifth.” I remembered I was the fifth, and Tess was the fourth.

“Wow, isn’t that a pretty name,” Rassa smiled delightfully, “Now Onyx, I’m going to leave and get you something, chewier and more filling than the soup.” She turned and walked away. A hop in each step.

“I’m sorry about her,” A raspy voice said. It was the bat-man, Cied. “Well, I’m going to leave but before I do let me put these on the tray,” He said place down three blue jaded gems on the tray, before turning to leave, and with him the honey boy, Qihn.

“Stop,” I commanded. Qihn halted not moving at all while Cied just turned his head in confusion as to why I was calling him. “What are those?” I said pointing to the gems.

“Zombie cores, the cores from the zombies you killed. I was pretty surprised to find them. Only level two zombies have them and they are pretty strong,” Cied stared at me. “Well maybe for me, that is if I wasn’t injured.” He said pointing to his right leg. “Anyways, I feel like you might have more questions, so you can just ask Qihn here, the boy knows more than me.” He smiled crookedly. He shoved Qihn into my room, and closed the door.

Qihn stood there, his legs shaking and his eyes held fear. I was puzzled, why was he scared. One second he was asking for my name and now he about to wet his pants.

Human interaction is weird.

“Please bring the tray to me,” I said with my best behavior. “I can’t move my body.” Advancing slowly and carefully, after grabbing the tray, Qihn came closer and closer to me. His head was down not daring to look into my eyes. After he placed the tray on my lap, I quickly grabbed his hands. Startled he made the soup spill a bit on my jeans.

“Sit, ” I commanded patting the empty space on the side of the bed. He quickly sat down without any struggles, at least not in his body response, however, I could see him fighting my order in his expressions. “Why are you forced to obey me?” I got straight to the topic. “Only the rotten ones, I mean zombies, can hear my commands.”

“I-I don’t know,” He stuttered. “I-I ate a zombie gem once and now I’m like this. Everything you say, I can’t stop my body from doing. Every time I go out with Rassa and Cied, Zombies find us faster. Please don’t tell Cied and Rassa. If they knew I ate a zombie core they will kill me.” Qihn cried.

“Why?” I inquired tilting my head.

“Its c-common knowledge that to intake a zombie core you have to absorb it by meditating instead. If you eat a zombie core it like another way of becoming a z-zombie tho there is a five percent chance in which the person does not become a zombie but an esper. It is faster but riskiest ways of becoming an esper. ”

“An esper?” I inquired.

“You know the s-superheroes with the mystical powers who can kill level two and up zombies, I mean are you not one?” He questioned, staring into my eyes before shyly turning away. “Wow, different colors,” He mumbled before continuing on” Now the problem is the fact that I might become a zombie any day and I don’t know what to do.” He cried, placing his head on my shoulder. “I don’t even know why I’m telling you all this but your my last hope, your an esper, someone who knows more about this than me. Please, I want to live, I will do anything.” He sobbed.

“Anything?” I could feel a smirk rise up on my lips. Finally, honey boy was to going be mine.

“Anything.” He replied.

“Then become mine and I will save you,” I smirked. Qihn shoots up from my shoulder, eyes widened and both his neck and ears red.

“I-I didn’t think you were that type of person but I-I,” He mumbled.

Cutting him off, I tilted my head in bewilderment to what the boy was thinking about. “I want the information that you have and when you become an esper or whatever, I want your strength, I want you to belong to me only.”

“Oh, em, ah” Qihn fumbled with his words. A knock then came on the door and in came Rassa with a giant platter of food that I had never seen in my life. I looked at Raasa who was looking at Qihn, multiple emotions flashed through her face before it went back to her normal smile. Annoyance, malice, and jealousy happened to be the ones I perceived.

Seems I have to watch out for her more, she seems sly. Honey-boy won’t safe near her.

“Oh, Qihn, you seem to be already very friendly with Onyx.” She commented. Qihn shivered at her words. “Anyways we should leave Onyx to rest, after all, we wouldn’t want to disturb her when she is still so injured right.” Her smile widened as she approached me, more carefully this time.

Placing the food on the end of the bed, she winked playfully at me before leaving the room, Qihn in tow.

The minute after they left, I devoured down the food. I was hungry. I started with rice, then moved on to the fruits, and finally the soup from before.

“Cold,” I thought. Patting my stomach, I checked in with my body system.

[Energy level is 30% full, scanning]

[Healing injuries….. 25% left. Restarting bionic access and allowing passage to the system’s information. 25% left, enough for No. 785 to fight twenty battles.]

I felt my sense of scent come back. Sniffing my hoodie, I smiled. Qihn had rubbed his honey smell on my hoodie. The smell felt warm. Burying myself in the hoodie, I continued with the scan.

[Scanning area around No. 785….]

[Energy gems found, processing…]

[System advice, ‘consume energy gems for 15% refill’]

I raised my eyebrows, this has never happened before. “System advice?” I hesitated. “Hmm.” I stared down at the blue gems. Scooping them up in my hands, I rolled them around my palms. Gently place them in my tongue, I swallowed it.

I could feel a sudden influx of energy enter me. The energy that entered felt unreal. It felt beautiful, exotic, and complex like I was in a blanket of honey wrapped up in a warmth that I had never had.

And I wanted more.

Licking my lips, I smiled softly. I laid back on the bed, I had to settle down. Aside from fighting, this was something else that made my blood rise. Closing my eyes, I organized the new knowledge I had learned.

“These energy gems taste good,” I concluded.

I waited until I knew that the three people were asleep before stepping out of the bed. It was time to hunt. The room had one window and one door. The door was a no-no but the window.

I grinned. The window was perfect.

I stepped to the window and looked out, wondering if how high the building was. My eyes were already well-adjusted to the darkness so I could see the ground.

“Not high at all,” I deemed. The room seemed to be on the third floor. “Not a very long jump from here to there.”

I took on the last sniff of the room, to make sure I knew the scent of this place before I left.

Dangling both legs out, I pushed myself off the ledge and fell. A second before my back touched the ground, I pulled both knees up to my chin.

“Ouch, that hurts,” I groaned. Picking myself, I stretched my back, try to smooth out the pain in my back. Looking around the area, I wondered where I should go.

“System scan the area,” I said.

[Scanning area…. behind No. 785 are humans. Scanning further….]

[Several zombies seven miles ahead]

My toothy grin came back. Putting some power into my feet, I propelled myself forward.