Lyminal Free by C91Industries

Chapter I - Outsider

C91Industries/Lyminal Free/1_1

Fenk stared into the interrogation room at the girl who almost took his life. He picked at his cheek stitches, playing with the little wires embedded into his skin, then he started picking at the one running along his abdomen. It was a bad habit he’d been abusing all day. The other cuts along his chest, arms and waist were pretty deep but surprisingly didn't require stitching. He rubbed his lower right rib; touching it sent pangs of torture through his torso. If the fight from before went on any longer, he’d likely have a lot worse than just a cracked rib.

Fenk was currently a bandaged, bruised, bloodied mess for the most part -- left to ruminate over what ungodly circumstances could lead to someone calling for his assassination. Outside of trespassing into illegal spaces or raking up some forbidden knowledge he wasn’t meant to see... he couldn't fathom why someone would do this. Fenk knew maybe a few people who wanted him dead, but he never knew anyone who wanted him actually dead.

She sat in the corner, docile and yet attentive, staring intently into nothingness with her hands on her knees. Her brow was furrowed, angst stricken across her features like she’d been grounded. She’d been like that since yesterday. Her face was drained of emotion -- no regret whatsoever about her deed, except for maybe not finishing the job. It was an unnerving sight. Once in a while, her tail would swish a bit on the bed, slowly and deliberately like everything else. Not once the entire time he stood in the hall did she look at him, move around or even flinch.

To Fenk, it looked like she was waiting on something, or someone.

Up to her neck, the monkey’s entire body was covered in some kind of black, skin tight suit. It looked as though it was a thin membrane of sorts. Perfectly painted to her every muscle and bone, it didn’t miss a single part of her anatomy to exploit as though it was grafted onto her body. The material was also highlighted, and trimmed in silver-colored designs, somewhat in the image of a hi-tech diving suit. Beneath the room’s lighting, the material revealed excessive amounts of gloss and shininess, as if it’d been oiled up just before he arrived.

Fenk had trouble rationalizing what was going on with her actual body. Her ashen-colored fur and skin, along with her jet black ponytail, contained at least a moderate amount of shininess as well. Cold, cyan eyes with weakly emphasized pupils and black eyeliner made up the only discernible features above the nose and mouth… or lack thereof. Save for a faint outline of where it once was, the monkey assassin was completely mouthless and noseless.

The mute monkey girl sat in isolation, quiet and intensely anxious, staring off into nothingness with a look of perpetual fury.

Fenk sighed, briefly running his hand against his matted hair. “Okay… someone’s gotta do this…” He took a deep breath and exhaled, pushing out as much anxiety as he could. Holding a bag in his hand, he approached the door to the janky interrogation room and proceeded to unlock it.

“I’m coming in. Don’t try and murder me again, please.”

The door flung open and he walked inside, his free hand trailing near the grip of his gun. Whether or not she heard what he said was unclear. Remaining still on the bed, the monkey kept staring forward. Either way, Fenk was satisfied she wasn’t going to fight him again… hopefully. As he locked the door behind himself, everything became silent.

“Don’t mind if I come in, do you?”

No response.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.” He pointed at her, wagging a finger at her one of her limbs. “Is your arm okay?”

Silence.

“Any other injuries? Any pain anywhere? Nothing?”

She didn’t so much as look at him.

“Look, if something’s really hurting you, it’s a good idea to let us know. Nobody here wants you to suffer.”

Her gaze was still locked on the wall across the room.

I really don’t know what I’m doing, am I? He thought to himself, frowning.

“Alright, whatever you want then.” Fenk dragged a chair from the other side of the room and brought it close to the bed, keeping himself just beyond arm’s reach. “We’re just gonna talk for a couple of minutes today. Since you’re being shy, I won’t ask you to tell me anything unless you’re comfortable with it. Got it?”

Not even a nod, or a shake of her head.

“Okay... First thing’s first: we’re definitely not sending you off to the embassy or anywhere away from homebase. Judging by what you do for a living, you… might be facing some prison time if you’re ever caught, and right now, we’d like to just keep you here and ask questions.”

No reaction.

“The second big thing is we want to know why you were sent to kill me. Until we figure that out, you’re not leaving.” He ran a finger across his facial stitches. “This one still hurts, you know.”

His hand pressed against the side of his waist. Fenk grimaced. “So does this one on my waist... might have a broken rib, too.”

No response.

It was midnight and the mall in Osaka was completely dead. Fenk questioned if there were more than thirty people in the entire complex at all, but that didn’t matter right now. Grabbing his stomach, he carried himself into the food court, following signs until he managed to find a deep hallway leading into a bathroom. He was certain the mall had closed up and he should’ve been gone by now, but he didn’t care. Blasting into the bathroom door, Fenk just barely made it to the toilet and vomited straight into the bowl.

As he continued emptying his horrible feted chunks, he tried to remember what the hell he ate.
The pizza? The deep fried pickles? The beer? Western food was so incompatible with his body, it wasn’t even funny. It tasted so good and yet it was so bad.

If only vomiting out incompatible human waste whilst following abhorrent diarrhea was Fenk’s only problem that night. Two entities stood out in front of the mall, cloaked in darkness. The taller of the two raised up their phone: a tracking device revealed the exact location of Fenk, tucked away into the mall in front of them. The more lithe of the duo got a good look at the tracking device herself. Lowering the phone, they both stared at each other wordlessly.

Fenk hunched himself over the sink, scooping up the cold water flowing from the tap as he washed his roughened features. It was an attempt at sobering himself too from his sickness, so maybe next time he’d think twice over eating western food. Heaving lasted for a few more moments following a cold splash of water. Maybe he wasn’t that attentive tonight or else he would’ve noticed the lithe-figured monkey in a full-body catsuit off to the wayside, hiding against the stall next to him. Blades accompanied each hand.

“I want to make something clear in case it’s not already obvious: you’re not in any danger whatsoever. I’m not going to hurt you, nor will anybody else in this whole compound. If I have any reason to keep you in the shit shack, it’s so you won’t harm anyone. Understand?”

No response, again.

Fenk sighed to himself, shaking his head then and there. “I realize the second I look away or ignore you, you’ll jump up and try to kill me… I don’t know why, honestly. I don’t know what I did to you or anyone else to warrant that.”

Could she even speak?

“Hold on a second, I got something...”

As Fenk reached down rifling through his bag, the girl very briefly turned her head and saw a pen sticking out of his pocket. Curling her hands, she leaned forward and steadied her weight. If she leaped quickly enough, she could snatch it, and possibly shove it into his temples or his neck. It was... possible, but there was a chance it could end in another disaster -- and probably an even worse one if she ended up in prison.

Much like Fenk, she too received some medical attention. Bruises were laden across her face and chest, slightly swollen and tender to any form of touch. Bandages were visible under the black, stretchy material covering her torso and legs. She pulled back into her stiffened position and flattened out her hands, resting them again on her thighs. It wasn’t worth it... not right now, anyway.

Fenk landed a solid punch into the would-be assassin’s face, propelling her backwards. Her hand-like feet grasped the top of a urinal before completely making contact with the floor. She quickly flung herself back up, both knives in hand.

Fenk’s arms were up and close to his face. Blood dribbled down his cheek and covered his arms almost entirely. The cuts were deep, and the pain was searing. He had to make absolutely sure she wouldn’t get him cornered or else he was dead, and he knew she knew that, too. He brought a stout kick down on her chest, catching her off guard the moment she got up, and once again pushing her back. Keeping the assassin off her feet was his only strategy.

WIth the assassin pinned up against the bathroom stall, Fenk spun and whipped around his other leg. Kicking the monkey again, even harder this time, she burst through the door and fell into the stall.

The fighter pulled back, resting only momentarily, huffing and heaving. It was far from surprising she was only stunned for a second, rearing back up to her feet again. And the moment she was up, she charged. Rushing the male, she began swatting her knifes in a figure-eight as she progressed closer, like a front-facing woodchipper. He had absolutely no means of fighting back without getting stabbed, or getting more than a few painful lacerations. With only seconds left to fend for himself, he gazed around the room.

There had to be something he could use, anything at all...

Dashing over to the sink while leaving himself exposed, Fenk ripped off the hand dryer from the wall. Thankfully, it wasn’t bolted down in any way. The moment he whipped the machine around, he felt the knives graze and grind over the plastic, swiftly cutting it to pieces. Ducking purely out of instinct and avoiding a possibly fatal swipe to the head, Fenk punted the girl’s ribcage with the hand dryer. In retaliation, she came down with her free hand, swiping down against Fenk’s arm as she landed another painful gash. At this rate, he was gonna expire from bleeding long before he died to anything immediately fatal.

Capitalizing on the opportunity at hand, and seeing she was reeling and stunned, Fenk raised the improvised weapon above his head. Gritting his teeth, he brought down his dryer-turned-weapon upon her skull with a loud THUNK that reverberated throughout the washroom. The assassin, thankfully, wasn’t as resilient this time, and collapsed to the floor.

Fenk heaved and gasped, looking down at the woman who would’ve been his killer, then back to the hand dryer. Blessing the machine, and going so far as to give it an enthusiastic peck in sheer joy, he then promptly tossed it to the side. Collecting the girl’s knives, he quickly stuffed them into his pockets.

“Guess it’s time to phone in a- BOOF!”

Like some kind of Fenk-seeking missile, she flew through the air and planted her heel into his eye socket as he tried to regain his balance. Fenk quickly learned that falling to the floor could spell certain doom as he stumbled about, trying to wretch himself free. Keeping on his feet was going to be paramount until either side gave. The woman, however, continued a barrage of kicks, moving straight into the wall as Fenk ducked and swiped around as much as possible. Putting both his arms up, Fenk caught a leg in the process of going for his face and smirked. He had no clue that it was a bad idea, and the girl reacted swiftly.

Sensing that her foot was caught, and held in his grasp, the girl flipped the rest of her body into the air. Breaking from from his grasp, and managing to make Fenk stumble a couple steps back, she landed yet another kick to his head. Jesus Christ, this was worse than being stabbed.

“Stop trying to- GUF!”

She smacked his head, followed with pushing him into the wall. One more thud to the noggin sent Fenk to the floor, his eyes now level to the assassin’s legs. Getting down to her knees, she wrapped her hands around Fenk’s neck and squeezed. The look she gave him was intense, yet weary. She, too, was looking spent from the fight.

The bathroom started to grow red and blurry for Fenk as he was being strangled. He hacked and coughed briefly, then the struggling began. The blood vanishing from his head sent pins and needles in, making him feel uncomfortably prickly inside his skull. It took Fenk a few seconds to realize what was going on, what with the strangling, the small hands around his neck, and the blood vessels in his head constricting. Not to mention the fact that he was struggling to breathe.

It was hard to remember why he was fighting at this point with all the trauma he’d just steeled through. Several kicks to the head, along with falling against the floor and walls, left him questioning his grip on reality. Maybe he got so sick that he was hallucinating all of this. Maybe he was having a waking dream along the side of the toilet as he struggled not to drown in his own vomit. He preferred that thought over the alternative -- the reality of the situation that he was indeed being strangled to the last inches of his life until he expired.

Out of annoyance, as opposed to fear from having his life being strangled out of him, he grunted, and pressed his hands against the monkey’s skull. Snaking his fingers to get a good grip, he made an attempt at shoving his thumbs into her eyes. He sputtered again, seeing nothing but red. In turn, she’d grabbed at his wrists.

Fenk repeated himself, his own stare becoming harder, matching that of the assassin. “Stop… trying t-to… kill... me! For fuck’s sakes!”

Still grabbing at Fenk’s wrists, she attempted to roll on her back and throw his weight, but he wasn’t having it. A firm headbutt ruined the monkey-assassin’s plan. Suddenly, she wasn’t as resilient this time, and was flung down onto the floor with Fenk. Mustering up just enough energy to get back on his legs and wobbling slightly, Fenk tucked his arm in, elbow outstretched, clasped his fist and proceeded to body slam the girl in the chest. He repeated the gesture a few more times for good measure.

Sitting against the wall, Fenk observed the blood running all over his arms. Not only did he see it on every inch of his skin and clothing, but he felt it all over his face too. It even felt swollen in some areas. At some point, she got him really deep in the waist. Something about his lower right rib didn’t feel too right.

He had enough time to look back at his would-be assassin, lying mostly unconscious and out of energy.

White-faced, full-body latex, knives… no mouth? What the hell is going on?

Pulling out his phone, Fenk got in contact with Homebase. But that was when he heard another noise outside the bathroom...

Fenk pulled out a pad of paper, then removed the pen from his pocket. “So, I couldn’t help but notice you’re, uh… verbally challenged,” he chuckled awkwardly. “I wanted to make sure you had a means of communicating with us so you wouldn’t struggle.”

On the front of the pad, he quickly wrote ‘for talking’ and turned it for her to see. “At any time, you can use this to talk to me or anyone else around the compound. We have a fair number of services around here, as sparse as it often is.”

He didn’t get a response, but that was par for the course it’d seem.

“It would also help if we knew how you ate and drank since- uh…” He waved a hand around in the air for a few short seconds. Eventually, he motioned towards his own mouth. “You know…”

Silence once more.

Fenk sighed again and frowned at the monkey. “Do you expect to just sit in here and starve? Is that it?”

No response. Again.

Admittedly, Fenk just wanted to know who sent her and why. He couldn’t care any less than he already did about feeding her, or keeping her around for that matter. Going straight to that question was stupid, and he knew that. She acted like he wasn’t there and ignored every single thing he said. It was safe to assume she wouldn’t answer something as monumental as that. Hurling threats would do neither party any good either. Handing her over to the embassy was less than preferred, seeing as he didn’t want his little hidey hole to be given away to the outside world.

All he wanted to know was who sent her after him.

“Well, if you ever change your mind, we have a dispenser in the corner here,” he motioned to what looked like a rectangular bit of metal stuck into the wall. It had a small lever, and a button beside it.

“You can write notes and put them in. We’ll collect them, and read them on the other side,” he explained, not missing a beat. “You can sit here and brood as long as you want while I’m gone, but I think you’ll appreciate being able to ask us for stuff. You can push a little button there too and it lets us know when something’s occupying the tray.”

Not even the slightest motion was witnessed.

“Oh, and one more thing: we still have your phone and weapons confiscated. You won’t be needing those while you’re in here.”

She cocked her head slightly. Fenk almost didn’t catch it, but she quickly turned back again before he got a good look.

“Here, this is all yours.”

Fenk stood up and scooted the chair back behind him. Pen and pad in hand, he placed them on the bed next to the girl, just within reach for her. For the briefest of moments, Fenk was certain she’d try something in an effort to finish the job. Maybe she’d try to punch him or grasp around his neck again, or do some more of her acrobatics. Even as they both still suffered from their injuries inflicted upon one another, it was clear how fast her wounds healed in comparison. She wasn’t normal: to his best knowledge, she received some kind of weird transformation that enhanced her strength, speed and endurance, along with faster healing, but resulted in pale skin and mouthlessness… somehow.

He was aware he wouldn’t be able to withstand an assault like that for a second time… yet, this still was a bit of a trust exercise. Him not being murdered the moment he stepped in was already a good thing. Despite the lack of two-way communication, it was pleasant letting her know that he trusted her enough to get that close -- to provide her a means of communication and letting her know her own well being was being looked after.

Despite all of that… he still didn’t get a response. It really wasn’t a surprise at this point..

Fenk shrugged, and threw his arms up a ways. Half in defeat, half in exasperation. “Well… I tried…”

Backing away from the monkey, his hand went over his gun again. She had some means of a weapon, and he kept his eyes on her as he shuffled back slowly… then turned, and left the room. Standing outside once again, he stared into the room. She was as still as ever, even before he entered the room; motionless, and staring ahead.

Fenk knew he’d have to try again tomorrow. He’d figure something out.

Chapter II - Assassin

C91Industries/Lyminal Free/2_1

Alex mission was a failure. She was caught by the enemy and now somewhere under their captivity. She had no idea what they were going to do with her, nor how long she would stay. The only certainty so far was the fact that Fenk was still alive. That needed to be rectified.

When no one else was around -- or at least, when she sensed no watchful eyes -- she took the time to survey her room. She had a small bed meant for one, a table, a chair, a private bathroom, and a large, one-way mirror stretching across the wall adjacent to the door. She knew it allowed the enemy to see inside, and it prevented her from peering out. The dispenser was closer to the farthest corner, away from the door entirely. She noted the camera in the top corner.

She tried giving some experimental blows to the windows, avoiding putting much of her body into the motions. Some of it was still strained from her fight with her target, and she didn’t have the strength to relentlessly fracture the window. It was more trouble than it was worth. She was almost always being watched, and they’d be quick to react.

Fenk was coming in some time today, that she knew. Perhaps sooner than expected, but she never knew exactly when he’d come. The idleness and lack of activities made it easy to keep track of time, purely out of boredom. She knew would be his second visit, and likely not the last.

She had time to mull over the idea of finishing the job, correcting the mistakes of earlier. He’d gotten the upper hand on her before, but now she had the edge. One possibility was for her to hide beneath the covers, feigning that she was at rest… and when he approached, she’d lunge out at him and jam the pen she was given into his windpipe. Pen currently in hand, she rolled it around in her gloved fingers. She studied its sharper end with intent.

“If I fail a single time at trying to kill him while I’m in here, I’ll never get another chance...”

Fear grew in the pit of her stomach, putting her at unease. Alex knew this was a matter of timing. Potentially, she’d have better opportunities in the future than what was currently provided. However, that also meant missing out on potential windows before being sent off to the proper authorities, or just outright being disposed of. With the human, it was clear in both the report and his own spoken word about his aversions with outside world interaction. The longer she waited, the sooner she’d be dead.

She awoke in pain, aching all over. A face full of linoleum was her treat, and a reminder to the events that transpired. Dreamless as her rest was, she wasn’t sure how long she was out for… but it was long enough for the human to leave. She felt her ears ringing; the dryer and the repeated blows from her target left her unable to focus. Up felt like down, sideways felt like up, and down… felt the most normal, her only constant amidst the seemingly spinning world.

Crawling along the tiles with her arms, her slick bodysuit collected unspeakable filth as she crawled her way to the nearby sinks. Managing to drag herself back up onto her feet, she winced, feeling a knot tighten in her head on top of the ringing ears and world spinning. Her entire back and chest ached, freshly bruised and perhaps sporting more than just a busted rib. The consistent pain from her left arm gave the notion of something fractured, nearing the point of breaking outright.

“...”

She grasped the wall and felt along it as she shuffled forward, which was barely an improvement over limping. Her knees and left ankle made any amount of walking torturous. Nowhere in the bathroom could she find her knives, and this was on top of being deeply injured. Her phone seemed to be gone, too, but that was the least of her concerns.

As she neared the bathroom door, a few feet away at best, the sounds of combat met her ears. Blasts of energy, clattering and smashing of shelves, and some light rumbles felt on the floor. Stepping forward slowly, she leaned against the door and pressed it open. Dragging herself down with it and keeping herself aloft -- barely -- from falling by gripping the handle, she huffed. The hall before her seemed far too long, and the sounds of combat were no longer muffled.

“...!!!”

Pulling herself up using the handle, Alex reflexively bent over and grabbed her chest. The handle slipped free from her grip as she kissed the floor for a second time. Adding insult to injury, her legs were almost wedged in the closing door behind her. She was reminded of the profuse sweat and blood that caked her. One eye remained shut as crimson flowed around it anew, coupled with the sweat.

Searing pain shot up from her ankles into her legs, rendering her into a pile of bruises that silently screamed in agony. Grasping her arm in pain, she couldn’t ignore the sounds. The sounds of energy blasts were becoming less frequent, and the vandalization of the food court was becoming apparent. Someone was being used like a ragdoll, and it didn’t sound like their target. Her help was needed. She couldn’t fail. She wasn’t allowed to fail.

Dragging herself forward on her palms and fighting through the pain in her left arm, she snaked her legs loose from the door. Slow and agonizing as it was, she had to get out there. She had to help, even if the hallway dragged on for far too long. Closer and closer… that was all that mattered. She was getting closer to her target, and it didn’t matter if she was ready for a second round.

In the distance, she saw Fenk rolling behind tables and walls, dodging lethal blasts from the mage’s staff. Somehow, after all of that, he managed to preserve himself enough to fight back against her partner. It gave her pause, taking the moment to register the fact he was doing all of this without the assistance of magic, or any other special methods. A few more feet of painful dragging brought Alex closer to the inside of the empty, spacious food court. It was past midnight and nobody was around except the three of them. The mall was all theirs.

All she had to do… was… crawl… a little more…

Keep... moving forward. Find... the objective.

Kill… Fenk...

Alex’s body increasingly ceased to cooperate. Her consciousness slipped regularly, leaving her fading quickly into darkness, and slowly out of it. Opening her eyes, the pain from her arm flared up. The sounds of magic blasting and Fenk yelling had stopped. Using the very last bits of her energy reserves, Alex fought against her weakness and propelled to her feet, limping in the most determined manner possible without falling over. The sight of Fenk standing over Gene, her partner, came into view.

The killer mage was lying in defeat amongst broken glass near a vendor. He was unable to fight back any longer. He was out cold.

The monkey dragged herself towards Fenk. Her eyes never tore off of him, and they bore through him with burning intensity.

Fenk looked back and saw her.

She kept moving. The closer she got, the faster she limped. Pain wouldn’t stop her, nor would Gene’s defeat. Holding her shoulder, she kept besting the torture of her body. Neither the pain nor her injuries would stop her from dragging herself forward.

Fenk turned around, facing her. There was no fear, panic, or intensity from their earlier bout. The frustration, the anger, and then the joy... She saw none of that in him now. He looked exhausted, just as she felt.

The monkey girl slammed against the human. Slowly, she looked up to his face, anger burning from her eyes. She reached up with her hands and snaked them around his neck. She felt his flesh and bone compress beneath her murderous grasp. With all her might, she closed her eyes and squeezed with every bit of energy she had left.

Fenk broke away her hands for a second time. It didn’t feel as strong as it did before, but it was enough to send her reeling. She wobbled backwards, catching her balance on a nearby table.

“...” She stared him down.

He did nothing but stare back.

Alex gave it another shot, expecting to keep at it until either she or her target was dead. Her arms refused to raise or do anything more useful than they already did. Her legs wobbled, reminding her of her failing balance. Tears welled up from the searing pains and aches all over her body, threatening to blur her sight. They couldn’t be wiped away, not in her current state. Something, almost like a light, suddenly burned out on the inside of her.

She dropped to the floor for the third time that night. Her bruised body smacked against the unfriendly, hard surface. She had to kill him. She had to kill him, no matter what.

Her arm slid across the floor, shaking as it grabbed Fenk’s shoe.

Kill him.

She felt him break away, but she reached out anew. She could still sense how close he was.

Kill him.

The monkey assassin, despite all her fury and might exuded that night, failed in her mission. The last vestiges of will and energy left her body as darkness consumed her vision. She was done. It was over.

Alex pulled her suit down a couple of times in the bathroom, checking on her bandages. The one on her back, specifically, no longer felt wet. Peeling it off, she rinsed it down with a provided cloth. Stripping down to her ankles, she finished with cleaning the ones on her knees. They didn’t hurt as much now.

“...!”

She winced as she tried bending over, the sharp twinge of pain from her chest reminding her of the bruises. A hand immediately went over her torso, rubbing and nursing the injuries. The bruises left by the kicks and punches were still discolored. They were quite tender, and they’d take significantly longer to heal than any of the other wounds. Her left arm, she’d been told, was an inch away from being fractured and had to remain in a small cast.

By the time she’d finished nursing and cleaning the bandages (and wounds), the black mesh suit had already cleansed itself and regenerated. The blood and sweat already peeled off, the foul odor of both no longer clinging to her as a result. She was also afforded the chance to shower, so at least she didn’t have to sit in this horrid cage and sleep with all of her physical miseries. The medic even offered her casual clothing -- the kind that was in different pieces and hung loosely from the body -- to which she refused.

At the very least, Alex found her bed to be nice. It was basic, as much as she could guess. Despite how simple it was for a bed, it felt as comfortable as what she normally slept on. Closing her eyes, she welcomed her brief period of respite.

It wasn’t long before she opened her eyes again, sitting up on the bed and curling around her legs. Being in this room makes me feel so… tired, but not enough to sleep. Alex’s body was kept in top physical condition, and she was used to keeping it trained and pushed to perfect shape, so it was uncomfortable to waste so much time on sleep and leisure. Looking at the table next to her, she reached over and grabbed the notebook, the words ‘for talking’ still written hastily in Fenk’s handwriting. She flipped to the first page and read a message: ‘what is your name?’ Her face turned sullen as she read it. The pad couldn’t have been given to her for any other reason.

First, it would start with cute questions, like where he she was born or her favorite color. Then she’d ultimately warm up to the human’s suggestions and begin telling him everything she knew. No longer needed, Alex would be shipped off to the US embassy, the FBI or disposed of discreetly. There was no other outcome she could envision.

She just wanted to leave and go back home.

Lying beneath the covers on the bed, she struggled to calm herself down. Dredging up these thoughts made her far more uncomfortable than she already was, despite the bed. She wasn’t safe here. At any point, she could wake up to find a gun in her face, or a bat coming down on her head. Rubbing her noggin, she still had trouble getting over that hand dryer -- she could only imagine Fenk or one of his cronies going for the kill in the same manner, probably for humiliation or irony.

She could exercise no mercy, much like what they’d be planning for her. She could fight her way out once the wounds heal… bide her time, and lure Fenk into a false sense of security perhaps. Yet still, Alex found herself drifting off to sleep anyway, the worries of the world melting away. Soon though, she’d be back to work and her purpose would become clear once more.

KNOCK KNOCK

Two consecutive knocks emitted from the door. It repeated one more time before it got quiet for the moment. Alex covered her face and cringed. No. Please, no.

Fenk’s voice bellowed from outside. “Uh, is this a bad time again?” He looked inside at Alex, her head peeking out from beneath the covers. “I guess it’s always a bad time. Can’t help it.”

He shrugged from behind the door, unseen by the monkey girl. “I’m just here to follow up on a few more questions today.”

Alex stared forward, facing the same direction, and the same wall. It was just like yesterday.

“I promise it won’t be for long. I know you can’t skip out on your daily wall staring.”

His words continued to drone on. She laid bare and still under the sheets, her head fixed and looking dead ahead.

She heard him jangle the lock on the door, opening it, then stepping inside. The monkey’s half-lidded eyes exuded complete disinterest. He did look just a bit better than yesterday, better than she did at any rate. She watched him close the door behind himself.

“Guess we’re doing this song and dance again, right?” He said with a frown, dejected. “Still gonna stare and ignore me while I blab on like an idiot?”

As if she would do anything different.

“Hmm…” A giddiness took hold of Fenk when he spotted the notepad sitting on the table and the pen sitting next to it. “Ooh! You looked at it!”

He almost skipped over to the pad, picking it up and inspecting the front. Flipping to the first page, his excitement quickly drained away. “Aaand you wrote nothing. I don’t know what I was expecting.” He took a moment to collect his feelings.

“But!” He lightly thwacked it in his free hand, turning to the assassin. “You did look at it. I think that’s a pretty good sign of progress. You’re at least warming up a bit to things around here, which brings me to my segue…”

Fenk set the pad back down. “So, leaving you in here all day and all night is a health violation. Isolation does really bad things to people, you know? So, starting tomorrow, we’ll have you hang out in the rec room for about an hour a day so you can get yourself a bit of exercise. We know you’re still suffering from injuries, so we won’t ask you to do anything except walk in there and come back. Also, I don’t know when you’ll decide to stop killing me, so we’ll have to keep you under heavy surveillance.”

Admittedly, Alex thought she would be able to sleep through all of this, or just keep staring away. Instead, a moderate interest developed. The offer being made here was deceptive in a way that preyed on her basic needs.

“Also, just an update: we still have your little mage friend on the other end of the compound,” Fenk added nonchalantly.

Alex’s head cocked. She looked partially closer towards the human.

“It might be worth letting you know that he got hurt a lot worse than either of us,” Fenk idly strode towards Alex. “We’re still plucking a lot of glass out of him, and he’s got several broken bones, plus a ruptured tendon. And of course, he gives us the exact same attitude that you do... Go figure.”

He then frowned again, throwing up his hands. “But hey, if you ever decide to give a damn one day, I think he’d be happy to see you visit.”

“...” Alex squirmed beneath the sheets. She returned back to her almost vacant staring.

“Okay, honestly: how much more proof do you need to know we won’t hurt you? Any sane person would’ve just dumped you two out and made it somebody else’s problem. I have literally no reason to be doing this, at all.” Fenk jabbed his fingers against his chest, emphasizing every word that left his mouth. “You tried to kill me.”

The monkey’s eyes darted a lot more than usual. She caught his face building sweat following a short sigh.

“Still, though… we weren’t gonna leave you two in the mall. And I got a bit more information on your, uh… condition, I suppose we’ll call it. It’s… made me a lot more concerned than I was initially. I don’t know who sent you after me yet or why, but it’s clear they’re extremely dangerous and have no limits.”

Alex didn’t notice the backpack Fenk brought in with him as he slipped it off and set it on the floor. This time, she didn’t bother with planning any surprise moves: trying to kill him in here was always gonna be a bad idea, no matter what. Now that Gene’s life was on the line in the other room, she was risking the mission at his expense. She could no longer just kill Fenk then and there, but now she had to make sure her partner would get out alive as well.

Fenk pulled out a small glass container containing a blue liquid. It glowed softly as it was swished around. “I guess you know what this is, don’t you?” He moved closer to her, shaking the vial in full view.

She turned her head as her eyes followed the vial. It was hard for Fenk to contain his excitement: as small as it was, he actually managed to get her attention. “Since you wouldn’t tell us yourself, we had to figure out how to feed you and your friend. It didn’t take long - it’s pretty common knowledge.”

Alex couldn’t deny she was getting weak. This would explain the frequent sleeping and low energy, and it wouldn’t be long before she was unable to take care of herself.

“Here…” Fenk, finally daring to crouch right in front of the monkey girl, raised the vial in front of her face. It was made immediately clear this was a mistake.

Alex ripped away her sheets, and much like the Fenk-seeking-missile from the other day, a small but firm fist emerged from the bed and torpedoed straight into the guy’s face. Despite how much effort she put behind it, it turned out to not be really powerful. Her energy reserves were severely down and she wasn’t in the condition to be doing her job properly. Nonetheless, it was just enough to get the picture across.

Fenk stumbled backwards, hugging his nose with his hand. “Nugghhghh!!” He squinted, then turned around, releasing his hands to find a tiny bit of blood. He turned back, staring at Alex who had flipped over and was now lying on her other side.

“Okay, really? Was that actually necessary?” To Fenk, at least it wasn’t a murder attempt, so this was technically an improvement. A painful one, but an improvement.

He huffed, wiping the blood away. “Alright, fine... in case you didn’t figure it out already, we’ve decided to hold onto you both for the indefinite future. We were originally just gonna patch you up, get some answers and kick your asses out, but now…”

Fenk grew uncharacteristically somber. “I’m growing convinced you have no control over anything happening to you. That’ll be another discussion for another day, I think,” he squinted again. His nose had a dull throb to it. “Oww…”

“...” Alex pulled the sheets further over her head, shielding herself from Fenk and the rest of the world. She didn’t need to know his opinions about her or anyone else, and now it was official she was staying for good. It was all to ‘fix’ her, of course. It was getting worse, but now in an entirely different direction.

Both she and Gene were effectively going to be brainwashed to Fenk’s liking and she couldn’t leave until the job was complete. She also wasn’t convinced the mana provided in the vials wasn’t loaded with something. It was just a matter of time now. Assassinating Fenk had effectively been rubbed out as an option.

Fenk, despite the idiotic and unprofessional veneer, was very smart. Smart enough to stop her from killing him -- and good enough as a fighter to hold himself down. Never before had she seen a person get away with surviving her blades. Even the seemingly stupid quirks and behaviors were cleverly crafted.

Backup wasn’t on its way. The base was well-hidden and well-protected. Fenk and his ilk had total control over everything here. Like she already concluded: this mission was a complete failure, and now her life and Gene’s were at risk.

Fenk didn’t say much else before leaving for the day, sniffling back blood as he went through the only entrance and exit to the room. He locked the door behind him, heard with a ‘clunk’ that echoed in the room. She finally pulled the covers completely over her head as he left. It made her feel like a little kid hiding from monsters, but that wasn’t really far from the truth. Alex teared up, covering her face as she let her anxieties pour out and away.

On the other side of the door, Fenk wiped more of the blood on the back of his hand. “Dammit, why did she even do that?” He snorted, gagging a little as the coppery taste went to the back of his throat.

Heading to the adjacent door and leading to the room behind the window, Fenk opened it up and stepped in. It was unlocked, like most doors in the base, save for where they harbored the two assassins. Inside, a gruff looking man stared idly through the window. He looked a bit grungy for attire, but didn’t smell as bad as he looked. He sighed as Fenk entered, shaking his head slowly. “She went beneath the covers as soon as you left, man.”

Motioning towards the room on the other side, Fenk stared at the shape vaguely outlined through the sheets. It twitched every now and again, but it was clear she was making a vain attempt at hiding.

“You think you can fix… whatever the hell they did to her?” The gruff-looking man asked, turning to Fenk, a slight scratchiness to his voice.

Fenk crossed his arms, sniffling back blood again. He sighed airily, giving a forlorn stare at the monkey girl’s outline. “Maybe. We just have to get her to talk to us first. After that, we might be able to get to the bottom of this.”