Unknown date
Unknown objective
Agent Aurora location: Unknown location
The sun shines above the ocean. Dawn looked around on her hill, under a large tree. It was already in the afternoon. A warm breeze hit her cheek and hair.
Arnaud calmly walked up to her, up the hill and sat next to her. He observed the nature with her.
“Life’s peaceful here. No worries, no regrets… Too good to be true…” Dawn mumbled.
“You’ve always been pessimistic,” Arnaud replied comically. Dawn grinned.
“I’d wish we had a better life, without suffering or pain…”
“We’ll get through it, keep believing…”
Dawn abruptly woke up, breathing quickly. She looked around her and saw she was in a stone cell.
How long, was it… I-I, remember, someone behind me, then nothing. Ashh my head hurts… Dawn carefully stood up. She woke up on a dirty mattress in a corner. Next to her was a little rusty chair and a bucket. Ugh, gross…
Some light came from outside, inside her cell through the rifts between the stones, enough to make everything visible. She looked at herself. She kept her dark tank top and WSC pants.
In front of her was a rusty cell door. She approached it and tried to look in the hall.
Looks like, a castle or something… A keep? A dungeon? Doesn’t matter, it’s the NWO…
Dawn looked to her left. A part of the wall was broken and repaired with metal bars. She saw another cell, identical to hers.
I, gotta find a way out. She thought, grabbing the bars. Find Arnaud too, if he’s here… Gosh this is all my fault…
Dawn wanted to sit on the chair, but it broke. Ugh, how lovely… Dawn inspected the broken chair. She took the broken chair’s legs and hid it under her mattress.
Noise suddenly came from the hall. A door closed and Dawn heard two voices. She then heard the door of the cell next to her open. Dawn looked through the bars and her eyes widened.
Arnaud… She thought. The guards dropped him on the ground, unconscious. He was stripped of his armour too and had a black eye and a bloody nose. Dawn looked down. All my fault…
“Hey schau, sie ist wach!” A NWO guard noticed, approaching Dawn’s cell door.
“Bringen wir sie doch jetzt zu Isermann,” the other replied.
One guard opened the door and walked in. Dawn took a step back. The guard raised his rifle and hit Dawn in her face.
“It is all my fault… If only I didn’t—”
“Sssh,” Arnaud said, “don’t forget to breath… Count to four, inhale, count to four, exhale. It saved me… Will it save you?”
Dawn opened her eyes to the cold feeling of water over her. She got blinded by a spotlight in front of her. A silhouette appeared in it. It held a bucket.
“Are you alright? Ah, gut, I thought I had lost you,” a voice with a German accent said.
Dawn’s eyes adapted to the environment. She was attached to a chair in the middle of a white room. It looked like a lab. She then glared at the person. Seth, Isermann… She thought.
“Ja… You are a better sample already…” Isermann mumbled. He turned around to a little table. “People like you are rare, and precious for our experiments…”
“I’ve heard a lot about you, agent, Aurora. What is your real name?” He added.
Dawn glared at him. “You couldn’t find that information about me?”
Isermann turned around and looked at Dawn. He grinned. “The WSC is very careful with its employees… No, we don’t spend our time on figuring out the identity of all of you…”
“And they also locate their employees quickly. They are probably on their way already!” Dawn snapped back. Isermann shrugged, then grinned evilly.
He turned around and took a tablet, holding it in front of Dawn. He showed a picture of a woman, dead, with Dawn’s clothings on. Dawn’s eyes widened.
“Your little carnage in Guangdong, made us take some, decisions… The Chinese security systems have caught you on camera several times. A spy? A terrorist? It doesn’t matter, as the authorities found you in a hangar, dead… You are dead, to the world.”
Dawn felt uncomfortable. She stared a corner of the table.
“You killed an innocent person… You will regret this!”
Isermann chuckled a bit and walked back to the table. He sighed, while taking a syringe. “You aren’t in a position to talk like that.”
Dawn closed her eyes for a moment. Stay calm now. Count to four, inhale, count to four, exhale.
“Are you, going to torture me? What is this place even?”
“Today, it’s just a lab…” Isermann filled the syringe with a liquid, stored in a jar on the table.
“Is that—”
“Projekt 12B, ja! We found the stolen documents on you. You had time to read them?”
“In German? Easy indeed…” Isermann grinned after hitting the syringe with his finger.
“As I said earlier, we need ‘strong’ samples to test it on. I will explain what 12B is, as I do with all my samples…”
Lovely… Might be the end for you, or not right away…
“12B was developed to amplify the cognition, the usage of the human mind. Unfortunately not everything went as planned at first, as patients started to feel symptoms of fatigue, panic-attacks, anxiety, hallucinations which resulted in the suicide of all previous samples.
“The worst part is that their cognition didn’t increase! My superiors threatened to abandon the project, but I didn’t stop! Normally, with this version, 12B-C, your cognition will increase, but we haven’t yet found a way to decrease the side effects. If this works, the project will live on! If it is successful, I will let you live!”
“I’d prefer to die of insanity than rot in a medieval dungeon! I would probably kill myself, as your other patients, so what a worthless deal is that!?” Dawn snapped back.
“You have a very stubborn nature, frau Aurora. But that was a requirement…”
Dawn looked to her feet, then back up. Isermann had the syringe ready. He slowly walked to her left.Dawn looked away and started breathing in patterns. She felt a pain in her shoulder. The injection was done.
Dawn felt her heartbeat go up, but tried to control herself.
“D-did you, inject, Arn— agent Eiffel with i-it?”
Isermann grinned while putting the syringe down. “Your friend wasn’t fit for the experiment. He was a waste of the product, as he would’ve died very soon. But you could certainly hold it out a week or two…”
Dawn’s face started sweating. Her vision blurred, and her lights went out again.
Dawn looked Arnaud in the eyes, then back down.
“You’re strong. You will overcome it! Stop worrying so much…”
Dawn sighed and felt another breeze. “I can’t be the first one to… It’s just not possible…”
“Hey, you’re not alone in this. I’m here too.”
“I’m here too.”
Dawn woke up again in her cell. She slowly got up and looked around. Same place… That means—
“Dawn!” A familiar voice said from behind her.
Arnaud stood behind the bars, awake now. He smiled a bit. Dawn approached him.
“I was getting worried. You—”
“How long, was I asleep?” Dawn interrupted.
Arnaud shrugged. “I-I, I don’t remember… But it felt like an eternity…”
Dawn sighed and rubbed her left shoulder. Arnaud’s eyes widened. “D-did he—”
Dawn simply nodded. “No time to explain it all, we must escape this place.”
“But how? We’re stuck in here, and don’t even know where we are!”
“Schweigen, Gefangene!” A guard shouted, hitting Arnaud’s cell door. He looked down for a moment.
Should be somewhere in Europe… Not too important really…
Dawn closed in on Arnaud and started whispering. “I will distract the guards, you hit him through the opening here, then I jump on him.”
“Yes, but hit him with what?” Dawn turned around and looked under her mattress. She took a plank from her chair and subtly gave it to Arnaud.
“Aim for his head, I do the rest…”
Dawn inhaled a good time and approached the cell door.
“Hey! I’m hungry! I want to eat!” Dawn yelled while hitting the cell door. The guard turned to her.
“Ich sagte Schweigen!” The guard replied, approaching the door.
“I won’t stop until I get food!” Dawn yelled again. The guard looked very irritated and unlocked the door.
“Ich werde dir eine kleine Lektion erteilen!”
Dawn walked back. The guard approached her. It’s then that Arnaud stuck his arms through the bars and hit the guard on his head, making him drop his weapon, but not go unconscious.
Shit… Dawn rushed forward and tried to pick up the weapon, but got hit by the guard. Dawn fell to the ground, but could push the rifle away. She crawled back.
“Dawn!” Arnaud shouted in panic.
The guard got on her and started strangling her.
“Ich werde deinen Kopf abreißen, Schlampe!”
It perhaps is better to leave this world, on this moment…
Dawn tried to pull the guard’s arms off. Suddenly, she felt a loud beep in her ears. And then, her vision turned colourless.
W-what is this? Is this what, death looks like? Dawn then noticed white light coming from her left. She moved her eyes, and saw the bucket, glowing. The beep increased in volume.
Dawn’s eyes widened. She grabbed the bucket, and hit the guard with it. He stopped the strangling and fell to the ground. Dawn got up and hit him again, and again.
“Aargh! Bastard! BASTARD!!” Dawn yelled, hitting him one last time. The guard was no more. Dawn dropped the bucket and fell on her knees. She stared at her hands. Colours slowly returned.
What, is this… I-is this th-the, effects of 12B? Dawn inhaled and closed her eyes. Can’t figure it out now, you must escape.
“Dawn! A-are you okay?” Arnaud asked from his cell. Dawn snapped out of her trance, snatched the key of the guard and ran in the stone hall to liberate Arnaud.
“Finally!” Arnaud rushed out for a hug. He had a stiffened Dawn in his arms before she could react. But Dawn relaxed a bit and closed her eyes.
Calm down, it’s just him…
Arnaud then realised his action and awkwardly released Dawn. “I eh, sor—”
“We must leave immediately, let’s go.”
The duo walked down the hall and arrived at a stairway that they followed up. Dawn pushed carefully against a wooden door on top. She saw no enemies and walked outside.
The two arrived in the ruins of a castle’s courtyard. They walked a bit, but noticed another guard walk around. Dawn pushed Arnaud and herself against a nearby, still-standing wall. She looked in front of her now. The ruins were half in a mountain.
Dawn peeked behind the wall and saw a large door. She turned back to Arnaud. “Exit guarded by two guys. At least two others walking around.”
“Won’t be easy…”
Dawn wanted to peek again, but the same loud beep reappeared in her head, making her kneel to the ground.
“Dawn! Dawn! What’s going on!” Arnaud whispered.
Dawn didn’t hear him and saw her vision turn colourless again. She then noticed a different door in the mountain, glowing white.
We can’t leave without, dealing, with Isermann… Dawn breathed slowly, and her vision returned to normal. She saw a worried Arnaud next to her.
“I need to kill Isermann. You go clear the exit out…” Dawn passed Arnaud the guard’s assault rifle.
“D-Dawn…” Arnaud stuttered. Dawn looked at him. “I, don’t know if I’m capable… I’ll find a way to screw it up! I’m not, worthy of being a secret operator…”
Dawn looked to her sides, then back to her colleague. She sighed. “It’s, not the best moment to go emotional, and I’m not the best at this… but I can assure you, what you say isn’t, entirely true…”
Arnaud stared at Dawn. “If we make it out, will you explain what is happening to you?”
Dawn didn’t completely understand, but agreed with a nod. She turned around and sneaked to the other door, passing it after.
She arrived in another dark stairway and followed it down. The stone walls of the ruined castle turned to metal. Must be, the lab part here…
Armed with the leg of her chair, she wandered in a gloomy hall.
“Help me!”
Dawn looked around. Her heartbeat went up a notch. Where is it—
“Help me! Please!” The voice repeated. Dawn looked behind her, but nothing.
She walked forward and approached a door on the left.
“Help me! I’m here! Please, be quick!”
Dawn started breathing heavier. She reached for the handle and pulled it down. She entered a dark room.
“Where are y—”
“genau hier!” A voice said to her right. Dawn felt a pain in her arm and started losing her balance, before falling to the ground again, but not unconscious now.
She felt weak. The lights went on and Dawn saw a pair of boots in front of her. She tried to move her eyes up, and noticed, the Arzt.
Isermann pulled Dawn up and placed her on a chair. He stood in front of her.
“I see 12B led you to mich. That means it worked!” Isermann exclaimed, switching the syringe in his hand with another one on a nearby table. Dawn couldn’t reply.
I feel, weak. Almost, too weak, to, think… Wh-what, is he, planning? What, was th-that, voice?
“Unfortunately the first side effects showed up. Have you heard the beep too? You probably did! And the colour loss? Sure thing!”
Dawn tried to mumble something, but couldn’t. Isermann smirked and approached her. He then planted another syringe in Dawn’s arm and started extracting blood. Dawn pinched her eyes and tried to breathe normally.
Isermann filled the syringe and looked satisfied. He placed it back on the table and turned to Dawn.
“When I said I would let you survive if 12B was successful, I’m sorry to tell you that, won’t be the case… With a sample of your blood, we can continue our works! See how the injection interacts, with your body! You seem to handle the injection well, all other test-subjects suicided themselves within the hour of the shot!”
Dawn felt her heartbeat go up more. She felt her energy flow back from the stress, but still not enough to move fast enough. She stared at the Arzt.
“You were, a very interesting specimen, frau Aurora,” Isermann mumbled. From a drawer, he took a pistol, “but we have no space to keep you, alive…”
Isermann loaded his pistol and aimed at Dawn. Her breathing and heartbeat went faster. She started sweating.
“You were of great use, and your body will be used well after I finished this. Any, last words?” Isermann grinned.
Dawn tried to mumble something. Isermann grinned a bit. “I forgot you can’t talk now, hehe. Well, auf, wiedersehen…”
Isermann wanted to shoot—
“Nonnn!” Arnaud yelled, arriving in the doorway. He ran to Isermann and pushed him to the ground.
“Aaargh! Runter von mir, du Froschfresser!”
Dawn looked at the two fight. She bit her lip really hard and pushed herself off the chair. She crawled to a table and tried to pull her up.
Isermann hit Arnaud in the face and grabbed his pistol behind him. He pointed at Arnaud, but he pushed the weapon up and didn’t release the grip.
Dawn looked on the table, completely exhausted. She saw a surgical knife and reached for it.
“I should have killed you immediately!” Isermann shouted. He started pressing the trigger of the gun, shooting Arnaud’s hand twice.
“Arhhh!!” He yelled of pain, but didn’t release the grip. Isermann hit him in the face another time, and Arnaud ceded.
“Stirb jetzt!!” Isermann pointed his gun at Arnaud’s head, but then Dawn appeared behind him and planted the knife in his back.
“Raagh!!” The Arzt dropped his weapon of pain. Arnaud glared again and gave him a kick.
Isermann fell next to Dawn and evilly glared one last time.
“You, aren’t strong enough… to live, with 12B!” He mumbled.
Dawn approached his face. “Strong enough, to kill your other friends…”
“Fick dich!” Isermann shouted.
Dawn planted her knife right in his neck. She leaned against the table and looked at the dying body.
Your life was a plague for the world. Your madness is over now, your heritage destroyed. Only me… I’m your only experiment still alive, for who knows how long…
Dawn stared in front of her. She felt exhausted again. Then, something from the right approached her.
She looked, and saw a dark silhouette approach. It had red eyes. Dawn’s heartbeat panicked, and she tried to crawl away.
“You will join him sooooon!” It roared. Dawn covered her eyes with her arm.
“Dawn! You’re not okay! What’s going on? Please tell me!” Arnaud said in panic too.
Dawn carefully looked over. She saw her colleague reaching out to her. Wh-what was that…
“Dawn…” Arnaud insisted.
“We… We gotta leave first… Arnaud your hand!” Dawn pointed at it. There were two wounds next to his thumb.
Arnaud looked around and found a bandage in a drawer, before quickly applying it on his hand.
“We must take care of you first! They injected all sorts of stuff in you! You can’t even stand!” Arnaud was worrying more.
“Of course, I can stand…” Dawn tried to push herself up with one arm on the table, but Arnaud had to catch her on time. He put an arm around his neck.
Dawn quickly grabbed the syringe with her blood from the table, before the duo walked out.
“Why, didn’t you come with the, rifle?” Dawn asked.
“Used up the ammo… And I didn’t have time to grab another weapon, as I heard strange noises coming your way. I got worried…”
“You… You heard them too?” Dawn softly asked.
“Wh-what?”
“The, voices…” Arnaud was a bit lost. He was more focussing on his wounded hand that started to hurt, now that the adrenaline vanished.
The two entered another room in the hall. There was a table in the middle and lockers in the back. Arnaud helped Dawn sit on the table.
“Let me see what’s in these lockers…” Arnaud opened one, and his eyes widened too. “Our equipment! They brought our equipment! The radios! Still working, Dawn! Dawn? Dawn!”
Arnaud’s teammate fell unconscious on the table. He ran to her and looked. He put his fingers on her neck.
“Still a heartbeat… Aoush, my hand, merde!”
He ran back to take a radio.
“Hello, HQ, do you copy? Eiffel speaking! Hello? Gadget à la con!” Arnaud ran outside for a better signal.
I’ve never felt this tired before. Maybe I’m feeling what dead people feel. Eternal, tiredness…
I, gotta wake up… This work, can’t be left half-done.190Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP0iX3YKvuP
