Zero slammed the button, and the door slammed shut right as the creature entered the hollow space.

  We took a few cautious steps back as we heard it banging on the door. We could hear short *plinks* on the surrounding walls, as if something was trying to enter them but failing.

  “I think….the veins can’t pierce these walls.”

  “Is it made of a different material?”

  “I don’t know, but I think we’re safe for now.”

  We collapsed on the floor and heaved a sigh of relief.

  “Hey, what was the passcode? How did you know what it was?”

  She waited a couple of seconds to respond before leaning on my back.

  “The passcode was 2515. It was the year my mom died. He’s… still grieving.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  “It’s ok. I was too young to even remember what she looked like. I’ve only seen her in pictures. I was only two years old when my dad and mom left for Laeva to go ‘save the world’ or whatever. But….only my dad came back.”

  We were silent for a moment before she pounded on my back happily. “Enough with the doom and gloom! You already have enough for the two of us anyway!” She said with a chuckle.

  The room was dark, but it was apparent there wasn’t much there. The only thing present in the room was two large panels. The first one had various buttons and data streaming above it. The second panel showed camera footage of all the various rooms in this area. On the far right, we saw the room we were just in, with the creature banging on the door, and its veins trying to penetrate the walls.

  “Even though we’re safe for now, how are we gonna get out? Even if someone comes to save us, they’ll know we were here.”

  “Hmm, I’ve always thought it was strange how they were able to subdue these monsters. Maybe there’s something in here that can do that.”

  We got up and walked over to the panel with the footage. It was labelled as “Incubation Room A” and on the left side of the holographic label were multiple options.

  Incubation Room A

  Lights: Disabled

  G-fluid: Enabled

  Electricity: Enabled

  Data Streaming: Enabled

  Incapacitating Agent: Disabled

  ?

  What stuck out to me was the Incapacitating Agent. There was an option like that for every room with capsules in it. I looked down at the various switches and buttons and saw one labelled “Incapacitating Agent A”. I flipped the switch and looked up at the camera. Gas quickly filled the room as we saw the creature slowly stop banging on the door and fall to the ground. After watching the camera for about 30 seconds, I re-enabled the incapacitating agent and saw the creature lying flat on the ground. Its veins were no longer moving, and it was sprawled on the ground like a corpse.

  “We did it!” Zero said while jumping up and down.

  She quickly stopped as she began holding her shoulder in pain from the dynamic movements.

  “Was this room only hidden so that it could control the function of the rooms?”

  Zero looked around and pointed to the other panel.

  “If this panel was made for the room control, then what’s that one for?”

  We got closer and saw that the holographic images were vital signs. I knew because I had seen them next to my bed for the past two weeks. It was measuring heart rate, brain activity, and other vitals.

  Behind that, there seemed to be a tube shaped capsule that was glowing with red liquid. However, we could only see the glow radiating under its tube-shaped container, and not what was actually inside. It extended from the floor to the ceiling.

  “Was that why this room was hidden? Are they hiding another creature in here?” Zero asked.

  “No…it’s different. None of the other capsules had vital signs attached; this one must be special.”

  “What do you think it is?”

  I looked over to a large red button on the console. It was labelled “Open Containment Level 1.

  “Only one way to find out. We’ve already come this far and been through so much, it’s only right to claim our spoils.”

  “Right. We’re going to learn about everything my dad was hiding. And then we’ll transfer it over to ol’reliable here!” She said, pulling out her flash drive.

  We nodded our heads in unison and pressed the button together.

  The room rang with the sound of compressed air being let loose from the tube opening. The metal parts slowly opened to reveal a large tube with flowing red liquid and multiple smaller tubes attached to all sides. This tube was bigger than all of the capsules we had seen thus far. And slumbering inside was a girl.

  A girl who looked exactly the same as Zero.

  She took a step back in horror upon looking at the capsule.

  “I-Is that me?!”

  The girl was curled up in a ball, but through the red liquid, we saw clear white hair and the same face as Zero. There was no doubt that they had the same face.

  She collapsed on her knees, staring up at the girl, submersed in vibrant red.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “He didn’t…..he wouldn’t!”

  All I could do was merely watch as she connected the pieces in her own puzzle.

  “He knows….he knows I’m going to die. So he’s replacing me?! He’s replacing me with this thing?! And he still won’t let me leave! Why? Why?!” She said as she slammed the ground with her fists.

  “I–”

  *BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

  “There’s no way!” I couldn’t help but shout as the creature started to bang on the doors with even more fervor than before.

  “Didn’t the gas knock it out?!” Zero asked, standing up quickly. “Did it get even stronger?!”

  I ran toward the panel and began typing search words into the software, such as “sedative” and “incapacitate”, but nothing came up. I had no idea how anything worked on this thing, nor could I even begin to gain experience in the moment.

  *BANG*

  It started pounding against the door, leaving visible dents with its strength. It would only be a matter of time before it breaks through.

  “Can you do something?!” Zero yelled frantically.

  “I don’t know!” I said, typing more words into the console, with only useless results popping up. That’s when I remembered what the code word for Zero’s clone was. Containment Level 1. That would imply that there were deeper levels, and it looked like the tube holding the clone went deeper into the floor.

  I typed in Containment Level, and two results popped up. Level 1 and Level 2, along with each’s respective data files. I frantically scrolled through each one until I found a file that just said, “Release”. Unlike Containment Level 1 there was no button, so I clicked the file as I heard the door behind us get broken off its hinges.

  “963! It’s here! It has fresh blood on it, I’ll hold it back! Find a way to stop it!” She yelled as she held her hand out. It reeled from the flowers bursting on its body, and yet it creeped ever closer, screeching all the while. Its veins were still stuck in the wall, most likely due to the hard material, but we had made so much noise that it didn’t need them to find us anymore.

  I clicked “Release” and a warning popped up.

  Please be advised:

  Upon the opening of x_3418_03_anomaly, you must have an accompanying mask and hazmat suit. Proceed?

  I slammed my hand on the confirm button as steam began to shoot out from the capsule. The window holding the clone closed, and the pipe began to rise higher and higher until a new containment cell appeared. The window opened, and I immediately felt a rush of energy. It was so potent that even the creature stopped moving. Inside the containment cell, no longer contained was a levitating crack. It looked as if it were a crack in the world itself, a rift to somewhere else. And from it, red mist immediately started pouring out. The energy rushing out of it empowered me; it made me feel alive. In a trance, I reached out my hand toward it, only for it to be grabbed by Zero.

  “Snap out of it! It’s coming!” Zero yelled, covering her mouth and nose from the mist.

  As the creature barreled toward us, it was like time was moving in slow-motion. I could feel the energy from the rift seeping into my skin, merging with my blood. I felt a chain inside of me snap, as the particles reappeared before me, and without even trying, they swirled around my legs and arms as if it were second nature. I grabbed Zero’s waist and sprinted around the monster, the world moving slowly around me. My head began to hurt, and I could feel blood dripping down my nose. I wasn’t activating this on purpose, so I attempted to relax as a way to turn it off. Almost instantly, reality returned to normal speed, and the monster crashed into the control panel.

  “Wha—?! What happened?!” Zero asked, bewildered. She regained her bearings immediately when she saw where the monster was. “963, I don't know what you did, but do it again to knock that thing into that portal thing!” She yelled, holding her chest.

  The toxic fumes are getting to her. Knocking this thing into the rift might be the only way to beat it, considering we don’t know how to kill it.

  Using the energy from the rift as an anchor, I ran forward and held my hand out, attempting to draw it toward my palm. It quickly poured into my hand, forming a ball of energy that swayed and pulsed as it grew larger and larger. The monster turned, sensing the vibrations in the air and roared as it picked itself up off the control panel.

  “Too late, you abomination. Let us know what you see on the other side!” I screamed, my palm searing with pain.

  I released the energy, and it flew straight into the creature, exploding and knocking it back into the rift. The moment its body touched it, the creature disappeared entirely, as if it were dispersed and teleported.

  “….*Cough!* Close it now!” Zero screamed, heaving on the floor.

  I immediately ran over to the panel and closed the containment cell through the computer. The capsule closed and sunk back into the ground to where it was before.

  The moment it did, both Zero and I collapsed on the ground, heaving a true sigh of relief. But it wasn’t long until we both remembered what we had seen prior to the monster breaking in.

  Experimentation on children. A clone of Zero. A strange rift housing the very same red mist that plagues my homeland. All in the same place. It made us both wonder what was really happening in this strange place. While I was more worried about the rift, what was first and foremost on Zero’s mind was undoubtedly….

  “I…I can’t believe he made a clone of me. He’s killed all those people to create that. Now I know the real reason why the doctors would take a sample of my blood every time. It wasn’t to study it, it was to use it to create this thing! This clone of me! He doesn’t want to lose anyone else, is that it?! So i’m just replaceable?! His own daughter! I…I!” She shouted in disbelief, tears falling down her face.

  “Why, Dad? Why?! Was I not good enough for you?! I’m sorry! I’m sorry….”

  I went over and hugged her again.

  “It’s going to be ok. It’s going to be ok. I swear it.”

  “No.963 ...Am I replaceable? Do I mean nothing?”

  “Never say you’re replaceable again. No matter what anyone says, you do mean something. You’ve made my time here far less of a living hell than it should be. You bring joy and wonder wherever you go, despite going through so much.”

  “Will….will you leave me too?”

  “.....I won’t.”

  She hugged me tighter and cried more than she ever had before. The tears and wails echoed down the empty halls, where no one could hear her cries but me. Every instance of woe, every modicum of despair she let out in that moment. Her emotions reverberated with my very being and shook me to my core. I have never experienced something like this before.

  While I genuinely felt for her, all I was doing was taking actions I thought would make someone feel better in times of strife.

  Physical touch.

  Comforting words.

  When someone feels this way, the most logical way to ease their pain is to act as a pillar of support. They feel like the world is crashing down on them, so you show that you are there for them.

  Emotions are predictable and easy to control and use.

  That’s what I’ve always told myself.

  Yet…..

  Why do her tears fill me with such sadness, even though none of this has happened to me?

  I….don’t understand.

  She released me and looked past me with an expression of sadness and rage. Zero stomped towards the control panel and took out the flash drive she had in her room. She scanned for a port and then inserted the flash drive, beginning to download the data from the software.

  “I…I won’t just sit back and let you do this! Even if I die, I’ll take all of this down with me! So that nothing! NOTHING like this ever happens again!” She yelled, pounding her fist on the keyboard, waiting for it to finish downloading.

  After a couple of minutes, she took the flash drive out and walked towards me, her eyes red from crying.

  “It’ll be ok….right?” She said softly, slightly tugging against my cloak.

  “It’ll be ok. It’ll….be ok.” I responded, unable to meet her eyes.

  Whether those words were meant for her or me... is a question I don’t think I’ll ever be able to answer.