INIZIO

XXXIV | THIRTY-FOUR

Too many files. There was no way to narrow it down before she was discovered. She needed more time. Giselle scowled at the barely lit screen of her laptop. The small battery percentage threatened to empty once more.

Not even after charging it after a good five hours did the thing fill up, but it also drained in less than thirty minutes. No wonder they threw it out. Giselle thought bitterly. She spared a glance at the bright white scenery and shivered at the sight of the sky, which resembled a blind eye.

Pulling the neck of her sweater higher, she huddled herself in between the covers of her plushy bed. Well, she thought, at least they've been kind enough to provide me a decent place to sleep.

And she had heard the rumors. The other products were speaking loads. The news of her presence back at the base had many products surprised, none knew that two successful products had managed to escape. After all, all these youthful faces she saw were new, none being like the ones she left behind; those were long gone.

She felt a sense of sadness wash over her. Catching her reflection on her laptop screen, she scowled at the sight. Her oval brown eyes glared back at her, her brown hair a mangled mess peaking in between the pillows and covers. She was now closer to reaching adulthood, and if she had once felt closer to stopping this mess, the massive amounts of children, of young preteens that now slept in the rooms above her own, made her feel hopeless.

Her eyes continued to glare at her until an idea formed in her head. Giselle stood abruptly and stormed into the small bathroom. Taking her locks in between her hands, she used her star blades to cut her hair short. Heart thrumming hard within her, she stared at the long locks with sadness as she stuffed them into the small bin under the sink.

She then took in her new reflection. Her hair was haphazardly cut, some waves pointing upward, while others pointed to the south, east, and west. She smiled. There it was, she still managed to look like a young girl when her hair was short. The problem would be the rest of her.

Her body was far from resembling the body of a twelve-year-old, or even a fourteen-year-old, and fourteen was the largest any kid would be here unless of course, they managed to survive the last experimental phases.

She was also exceptionally built, her body being too hard and toned to even appear human, which would be a problem. But she had already cut her hair, so she would make it work. Those locks had taken long to grow, and her mother used to love them, so she was going to make it worth it.

"We'll make this worth it," she repeated. Giselle then pulled on a worn-out sweater, the kind she was sure that the orphans on the lower levels wore and tugged at it to make herself seem as homely as the kids above her.

Taking in the empty silvery hallways, she made her way down the corridor, until she reached the hidden and forgotten door. The one that had helped Vadim and herself escape the heavily guarded Potestan base. Smiling to herself, she unlocked the door and slipped inside, making sure to cover her face with her worn-out sweater.

Taking the stairs slowly and quietly, Giselle kept herself alert to any suspicious noise that might bring her trouble. Yet like five years ago, nothing and no one seemed to be aware of her presence. As she made her way up, the soft murmuring of children was heard, and it wasn't until she heard a group of kids howling, did she realize she had finally reached the floor she was looking for.

Allowing herself to take a deep breath, she finally emerged and was welcomed with the gory smell of rotten food, as well as the sickly acrid smell of vomit. Giselle's own stomach revolted at the smell of it all.

"At least I know now nothing has changed," she muttered to herself. There she was, right behind a bathroom stall. Just like five years ago. And the bathroom was not a pretty sight. It had never been, it was simply a large concrete room made and personalized for both genders, most sinks never functioned properly, and the toilets were rarely cleaned.

Eyeing around, she caught sight of a small girl, no older than ten, sitting on the floor with her arms wrapped around her waist, and her arms bruised up and splotchy. A lump formed in Giselle's throat, as she quickly averted her eyes.

"Varvara! Okhranniki ishchut tebya!" A little girl exclaimed, falling next to her friend and trying to pull her up but to no avail. The little girl, Varvara, was far too weak, the chemicals injected into her finally taking a toll on her little body.

"YA bol'she ne mogu, Oliva. YA ne mogu. Mne zhal," The little one replied, eyes squeezed shut.

"No! No! Varvara! You can't leave me now! We are about to pass on to phase five! Varvara! Varvara! You promised Varvara!" She was wailing now, and shaking the little body, "you promised to come back home with me! To the Union!"

Giselle knew the little girl wouldn't wake up. The tracker in her wrist would alert the guards of her decease, and they would take care of her soon enough. Coming out of where she hid, she towered over Olivia and gently tugged at her arm.

"Ne trogay menya!" she screeched, pulling away from Giselle's touch.

Giselle rose her hands. "YA ne prichinyu tebe vreda, lyubimyy," she whispered back.

"Love?" Olivia turned her tear-stained cheeks up to Giselle. "You aren't a guard."

"I'm not," Giselle reaffirmed.

"You're an upper grad. What are you doing here?"

Giselle frowned. "Upper grad? What does that mean?"

"You look older, I guess you're a level fourteen?" she sniffled. "Do you guys also die?" she squeaked, eyes filling with tears again.

Giselle's jaw tensed. "It doesn't get better if that's what you're asking. It'll get worse, as a matter of fact. But don't worry," she offered a small smile.

Oliva rolled her eyes and threw her raven black hair over her shoulder, hugging Varvara's motionless pale body closer to her. "Why? Because of the arrival of the missing product? I am tired of hearing all those stupid rumors. Every product is abuzz and excited because of the genes of the missing product."

Giselle frowned again. "Genes?"

Olvia stared at her in puzzlement. "You must be a secluded upper grad. Everyone knows what they are planning to do."

The small tracker on the wrist of Varvara began to emit a cyan light. A sign that the guards would be there soon.

"I don't know much about the plan," Giselle admitted, "And I would like to know more, but if we don't leave now, the guards will catch us."

"I am not leaving Varvara," Olivia stated boldly.

Giselle shook her head in disbelief. "They will terminate you if you stay! It'll be seen as a sign of rebellion!"

"I don't care," Olvia replied. "She is worth dying for."

The words slapped Giselle hard. Her mind reeled back to the day she had found Vadim half-conscious in the shower rooms, and how another product had urged Giselle to leave him, instead of dying with him.

He is worth dying for.

Giselle bit her lower lip hard. "Ok, ok, if that makes you feel better," she eyed the hidden corner of the door, and was about to turn and leave, but in the last second, she bent down and hugged both little ones. Placing a tender kiss on the head of Olivia, she took her face in her hands and whispered, "I'll make them remember your names."

And she fled the bathroom stalls, just as the doors swung open and guards spilled in.