It has been a week since the death of ZAC's parents and him being forced to relocate with Twitch. Takeda's men are still out there trying to capture him, and he's desperate for answers and guidance in such a cruel and merciless time in his life. Eve...
Twitch could be dead because of me. That was a fact that I can't get off of my mind. The friend that took me in has a chance of dying because of my actions. Maybe I should've left afterwards... but I couldn't. I had to make it clear. He can't keep me down in the sewers when people I loved were being tortured. Now look what happened..
I-I couldn't think about that anymore. I need to stick with the plan. I closed my left eye and tried to peer out from the zipper. They left the catacombs.. East entrance, and they were moving down to the sump. Through the pipes, I followed the captors. I watched as they went down to the conveyors to the sumps. They shook the bag as if it was their daily luggage. Garbage that they were willing to throw out. How dare they treat my friend like that.. Fists began to clench. Heat began to build up.
"Calm down ZAC," I grumble to myself. "He'll get me to my parents.. and then we'll go home! Like a family! Just.. keep.. waiting..." The urge to catapult myself on their bodies was immense.. Gotta... resist...
I went deeper into Zaun and finally arrived at the Sump level. It was not like the shiny Commercias or the diverse communities he felt proud of defending above.. It was a level of poverty, desperation and greed.. The more I go through the pipes and cracks of this area, the more guilty I feel. People lay on the streets for a home. I see incidents of zaunite blight in every corner. The grey is prevalent around these parts. Sometimes I hear people stealing.. guns firing.. victims screaming.. yet no will hear them.. Not deep down here. I.. I.. had to do something, but not now.. Please not now.. I closed my eyes again. I see Twitch unconscious. He's the only person I'm saving today. I looked through the zipper. A couple of blocks in front of me. I thought I lost them... The screaming continued.
Suddenly, the vibrations of my bloblet stopped. The shaking of the bag stopped. I saw the figures amidst the crowd of despair and blight. Standing in front of what seems to be the back of an alleyway. I immediately signaled the bloblet to hide back in Twitch's pouch. Suddenly, I look back to see a hooded figure in front of him. A tall and lean figure who stared down at his thugs. I couldn't make out any other details. They were just shadows from the cracks in the stone buildings above the street. I close my eyes and try to make out a conversation.
"Do you have what I want?"
"Uh.. not exactly boss.. Uh.. Something happened?"
"...what?"
"I-I mean.. it's not your weapon, but I think I still have something interesting. " Ziiiiiip. "Uh.. See! it's the Plague Rat! I heard he was directly connected to the Zaunite Amorphous Combatant! If that whole 'plague invasion' was any indicator! Maybe he ha-"
"But this isn't what I ask for Sien. I asked for my weapon. Not some oversized abomination from the depths of the sewers."
"But he gotta have info on it right? I-I mean, he came to the exact same tomb!"
No words are spoken. Just the clinging of cogs can be heard.
"Hey! This is only 25% of the deal! D-don't you thing I-" The bag dropped abruptly. The body hit the floor. "Hey! Put me down! I.. I'm sorry!"
"If you wish to make a deal with a chem-baron, you are sorely mistaken, you whelp! You didn't get what I asked for; you didn't get my property and that's final! Be glad I was generous with my offer Sien. Whine again, and I won't be afraid to assassinate you on the spot, understand?"
A brief silence followed.
"Good." A body hit the floor following rapid footsteps that grows fainter and fainter as time goes on. I breathe heavily. The man that killed my parents to have me.. I'm gonna face him.
The bag shook again. I felt light. I'm getting carried again. I returned to my normal view from the crack above and see the shadow carrying the body over his shoulder. I follow the cloaked figure that was apparently my parents' "murderer". Nothing mattered anymore. The screaming and everything, it all droned out in my mind. The man who "killed" my parents, forced me into severe hiding, left me alone with no guidance, and now literally holds the life of my friend in his hands. I contemplate going all in. Slamming my flesh into his body and demanding answers.
Any reasoning that I once had, is now vanquished in the face of hatred. I felt myself climbing onto the top of a building, and readying y arms. I was ready to fly through the air to land on his frail, probably artificial body. Time to end this.. Time to end this!
Suddenly, the moment my legs are about to release, I felt.. a cold hand.. Surrounding me.. I begin to falter, breathing heavily. What.. what was.. I close my eyes and saw him. A dark man with short black hair, looking down at me, smiling. "Well..." he sneered. "Guess Sien finally did bring something of use after all, yet the antenna is still intact. The papers did say they are always connected to each-other. If you're looking at this right now Zaunite Amorphous Combatant, meet me at the abandoned Garrington warehouse of Sector 207Z if you want to save your pathetic friend and your worthless parents. If you don't want to see them tortured even more for information, then I highly suggest you giving yourself up. I think this one will be easy to crack. Until then."
The cold grip tightened, choking me in a flash. My hands immediately went over to my neck. Then.. Splash. The connection was dead. Pain coursed through me, like a heated bomb about to explode through my chest. I cripple on top of the roof, limping and breathing heavily, reaching out for my neck. I slowly turn my head upwards. The cloaked figure disappeared. I lay still as the temporary pain left my body. My only safe chance, gone.
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I'm right. I told the Goopy One so.. Ugh. Something boomed in my head. I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn't. The energy I once had was depleted. I felt as if I was in some.. cold liquid. Some.. nullifying chemical.. What entrapment was this?
"Such a pathetic life form.." a stern voice called out in the darkness. "To think my weapon would be friends with abominations like these. Then again, his parents were friends with worthless commoners in the sump. Look how they turned out..."
I slowly began to open my eyes. Very slightly, I saw myself in some sort of glass container. In front are 2 men, another dumb scientist and another massively augmented brown thug. He had rings and gold everywhere.. All shiny.. Ugh.. And I was in some.. robe..? Around the room are other capsules with bodies and same robes.. I see a sign. "DEEP Containment 258A". Sciency stuff.. That is NEVER good! I needed to get out of here. I was in some torture chamber wasn't I!? I can't rot away here! Fleas! Lice! Roaches! Do your job!
"You sure your gas will work? It would be such a shame if I wasted money on you," one of them said, before I started panicking.
"A-affirmitive! It will work! The test run was successful! Now-"
"No more of your babbling Axon. All I need to know is that he'll be on my turf. With my rules. He's bound to be mine."
Suddenly, the speaker turned on. "Takeda, the Zaunite Amorphous Combatant is here,"
Goopy One? What was he do-
"Wonderful... I'll meet him. Check out my property. Tell the men to get to their stations. If what I heard from my weapon is true, he'll definitely be.. resilient."
The two left the room quickly. Now it was time to escape. I quickly tried to get my fleas and roaches off. They must be alerted of the situation. The Goopy One is in danger. The sewer king is in danger! The kingdom will die without us! Please wake up.. Please get me out!"
