The Manifest // OC Light Novel

Chapter 1 - New Beginnings

The colors were all hazy in my vision as I looked through the semi-translucent glass door responsible for my being locked away inside of a small incubation-like chamber.
I could only watch as the men and women in their lab coats walked around infront of me, pressing buttons and conversing with one another.
Boredom was always taking up my mind in these moments, waiting for the time when that man would come and do his usual tests on me.
Poking me with needles and the like, injecting unknown substances of varying colors into me and observing my reactions which ranged from unfazed to unnatural pained struggling, but everytime this happened, I couldn't do anything to prevent it.
'Useless.' I would think to myself as I was led down the winding white walled corridors, flickering white lights guiding the way until I was placed, once again, into my oh so familiar room I'd come to tolerate since the near eight years I'd been kept here.
The same agenda, day after day after day, never changing.
An early morning with general lessons in all subjects ranging from basic calculations to militaristic protocols which were then followed after by physical and mental training.
I never would have thought I'd get used to whippings and hot irons being pressed onto my back, but there I was, blank faced as yet another strike of the whip tore flesh from my back.

After that training was done, a quick and effective medical treatment and assessment would follow, then a break for lunch full of the healthiest diet based food for this 'growing young boy'. The mush they served would've served better as poison I swear.
Right after lunch with the rest of the 'subjects', we would face one another in mach battles, beating one another to the brink of unconsciousness before moving on to the next.
The first few years that I was in this environment, I had been knocked on my ass and had the wits beat out of me more than a few times, but nowadays, I haven't felt the feeling of being hit in quite some time.
Once that was finished, we would do some more of our 'basic lessons until, at the end of the day, we were placed back into our 'test pods' and subjected to foreign elixirs and substances.

If I had to say one thing that kept me sane throughout these last few years, I would definitely have to say that it was the only other subject that I could even come close to considering a... friend.
Seraphina had appeared first in the HDC around my tenth birthday in this 'laboratory'.
She was a year younger than myself with long locks of wavy blonde falling around well past her shoulders, sometimes she'd even have me tie it into braids for her, but seeing as I'd never done that before, my first few attempts were 'not good'.
With that hair and her creamy completion, accompanied by her bright, sky blue eyes, she was definitely a beauty by my standards. Especially since all the other girls in my 'lab grouping' were typically dirtied up all of the time from their own training.
After a week as bunkmates in the same room, I had learned a few things about her.
One, she was a indeed a year younger than I was, and had apparently been sold off to the HDC by her in-debt parents which was much less uncommon than I'd like to admit.
Rather cruel, but sometimes, parents couldn't help but feel the overwhelming pressure of debt and deadlines. Maybe my own parents were like that, not that I really cared to know that is.
The next thing I had learned was that she hated her hair, I didn't know why until she told me that it reminded her of her mother and father who, as it would seem from her words, shared her blonde-ness.
Fair enough I suppose, but even still, it's definitely better than my own.
Black is such a boring color.
And the last thing I had learned of note, was that she was definitely going to be a pain. She was exceptionally mischievous and particularly enjoyed teasing others.
Much to my own expense, I learned this through several tests of my patience.
Though it was worth it if it meant I could keep seeing her smile...
Those are hard enough to come by here.

________

"Zenji?" The sweet voice sounded out from behind me, realizing I had been zoning off, I turned my eyes behind me.
Seraphina, still in her night-gown, was standing in the doorway to the balcony I had claimed to be my temporary roost.
"What're you doing up so early?" Her head tiled to the side, allowing one of her pink braids to fall from where she had tucked it behind her ear.
"Just couldn't sleep," I shrugged, "Sorry if I woke you."
Turning my gaze back to the steadily lightening sky, the starts slowly winking out at the sunrays emergence, I heard Sera's soft footfalls approaching before she leaned against the balcony railing to my right, looking out into the sky as I had just been.
"Something on your mind?"
I shook my head, "Not really, just thinking about something else."
Feeling her soft gaze on my face, I kept my own forward, locked onto the rising sun slowly appearing over the rooftops of the metropolis we called home.
"You alright?"
"Yeah. I'm good." I answered, not sure if she believed me, almost all of our past memories weren't very good so I didn't blame her for worrying.
After a short silence she sighed and returned her gaze forwards. "If you say so."