North, Then West

The young girl was brought into the large lab-like room. It smelled so strongly of chemicals it burned the sensitive nose of the child. The lights were so bright they were blinding. Made especially worse for the girl who spends her time in the dimly lit cage room. Four bodies stood in that room, waiting for her.

They strapped her to one of the tables, then strapped three more to the other three tables. Each child is five years old and has yet to be in this room till now. They were strapped down with thick leather belts that prevented them from moving so much as half an inch. It hurt badly, causing bruises to start to form under the straps.

Once they had the last child strapped down the Techs got right to work. They started with the last one they strapped down and would work their way down. The girl couldn’t see anything from where she was. Her head was strapped down so tightly she couldn’t turn it. She could only look up at the blinding bright lights.

She heard their movements, then silence for nearly a minute. One said something that didn’t make sense to the uneducated child. Though she didn’t have time to dwell on her curiosity as the sound of a saw turned on. It was quickly followed by screams of pain from the child at the end of the line. Screams that continued even after the saw turned off. It was followed by a sickening pop, then a thud.

The children all started crying in fear. It wasn’t long before they moved on to the next one. Then the next one. Each one having a saw turned on, followed by screams of agony like none other. Then there were the same sick pops followed by a thud.

They made it down the line to the girl. She froze in fear, crying sounds stopped though the tears still fell. Each one had blood on them, dripping down their cold metal bodies. One brought a syringe to the girl and stuck it in her left shoulder, then her arm, injecting something into her body. Had she been able to, she would have noticed her arm was paralized.

Once the syringe was unstuck a bloody hand held tool was brought to her arm. She saw the saw of the blade through the corner of her eye. She felt it touch her arm as the blood dripped off it. Her heart spiked the split second before it was turned on.

Nineteen people were in Commander Jessie’s office this morning. This many people along with the rather large table made the room very crowded and cramped. Chriso was pressed against the only exposed piece of wall for being the tallest. He could only just see over the heads of the two in front of him. One being Star, whose shoulders he had wrapped his arm around, and the other was J7. 

Aeon hung from a bar on the ceiling, left arm keeping her suspended above the table while she had her legs tucked in. This way she was not touching the table or moving its pisces on the map. Everyone else was crowded around the table and pressed into shelves. They had to take great care not to step on each other's feet. With this many people in a poorly vented room the heat was starting to build up.

“Jessie.” Aeon said from the ceiling. Jessie turned her head to look up at the slightly larger woman. “You need a bigger room if you’re going to host this many guests regularly.”

“It’s not ideal, Aeon, but I had no choice.” Jessie sighed, pressed between her Second in Command; Rockella, and the Captain of the Elite Platoon; John. “This is by far the most secure room.”

“Commander Jessie.” Steve piped up from where he was pressed against the front wall. She turned her attention to him, silently giving him permission to speak. “Why can’t we do this in the Intelligence Room? Surely there is far more room in that room.”

“This is far too important to risk a spy seeing.” She explained to the young male. “We’ve had enough of our plans being ruined and advantages being lost by one who would rather work for the Aliana and betray their own species. So we are having this meeting here.”

“Ah! Okay, that makes sense.” Steve nodded, understanding as they had to deal with a spy once in the Training Center. It nearly shut down the Center and would have caused massive havick had they  not cought the species traitor in time.

“First of all, to start I would like to inform everyone that we’ve recently gotten in contact with one of our Sister Rebellions; Euro Rebellion.” Jessie started, getting surprised looks from everyone in the room. Communication with a Sister Rebellion is rare, difficult, and very dangerous. Which is why they hadn’t heard from this particular one in nearly three years. “Through them we have received amazing news. The location of the Core has been found here on Earth.”

Shocked gasps were heard from everyone in the room, save for the confused two new recruits. The Core is the massive super computer that controls the entirety of the Techs. Both Earth based Techs and the Aliana Techs are under its command, though it is not the same as the command of a leader. Rather than telling them what to do, the Core keeps the machines running in the Tech part of them. Little tiny chips run in each piece of machinery in every Tech, even the parts in the Partials, and are controlled by the Core. It can shut down selected Techs or all of them. 

Supposedly it was made as a fail safe hundreds of years ago by the Aliana. Way back when they first started their Techmorphasis projects. It was meant to shut down Techs that strayed a little too far from what we call humanity. Lot of good that did.

“No way.” Aeon whispered, eyebrows furrowing together, unbelieving of what she was hearing. “How?”

“So why don’t we storm that place right now? We have the troops to do it, no matter how heavily guarded.” Chriso demanded, ready to tear the Core apart with his own hands.

“Let me correct my statement.” Jessie held up her hand to silence him. “We were given the coordinates for the Core, but they’re in Aliananish. They have no way to translate the coordinates into English, all the Compounds and Facilities over there are too heavily guarded. But we have one here we can use.”

“Testing Facility 01B.” Aeon all but snarled out. Her three friends stiffened at the mention of that wretched place. Tension quickly filled the air, from both Alpha Squad and Squad A1A. They all knew where the current members of Alpha Squad came from.

“Weren’t the computers destroyed in that place?” J7 asked after a long silent moment. He had a hard glare in his blue eyes directed right at his leader.

“The Data on the computers were destroyed, as were many of the computers themselves.” Jessie halfway confirmed before continuing. “We made sure to save a few for when a time presents itself. Now that time has come. We will plug the coordinates into one of their computers and use it to find the location of the Core.”

“How will we stop the computers from sending the ‘Immediate Task’ to the Core and Mains?” Star inquired. It was a hard lesson for the rebellion to learn, but every Aliana computer was widely ‘hooked up’ to the Core. Like multiple screens being connected to the same powerful computer. Anything that happens on any computer is known the second it is happening by those monitoring the Cores input. “We’ve had too many missions fail from information being directly delivered to the hands of the enemy.”

“Indeed we have, Star.” Jessie said solemnly, head hanging for a moment as she remembered all the lives lost from that very thing happening. Far too many for any leader to have to have on their hands. “Luckily, our Chief Engineer Jack had gotten a hold of some Alianian USB things.”

“Uh, not USB, it’s very different.” Jack chimed in from down the table. Jessie looked at him with a raised brow, to which he responded with a shrug. “It’s not.”

“Either way, he was able to merge some of our technology with Alianian technology.” She continued on, face returning to its neutral calm. “Jack, would you care to elaborate?”

“Of course, Commander.” Jack said cheerily as he pulled out a complex device. It was a bit bulky with several wires stringing around it and seemed to be somewhat held together with duct tape. “I was able to open these Information Transferrers and connect them to this small, almost computer-like device that melds our technology with theirs. This device connects to a transportable computer that is used to loop, redirect, temporarily halt, store, or split Alianian information.”

“Can it translate between the two languages?” Aeon asked, taking a great interest in the device.

“Not quite. See, the basics of computers can be simplified into 1s and 0s, even theirs. That’s how I’m able to get ours to communicate with theirs, but that is the limit as of right now.” He explained to her, starting to get excited about his new toy. “Their computers are meant to take orders, not give them. So I make mine order theirs around, and their computers are none the wiser.”

“Why can’t you translate their 1s and 0s to ours if it’s so simple?” Rockella asked, not quite understanding.

“There is such a thing as too simple.” Jack answered, turning to look at her. “I was able to mimic coding I figured to be receiving and exiting, created new coding on this to be compatible, and was able to make it work through trial and error. However, I can not translate to a language based on a handful of Aliananish words I was able to correctly predict based on usage, place, and results. Their language doesn’t even come close to ours. I mean, for all we know they could have three different ways to say him, like German!”

“I’m still not sure if that’s 100 percent right, that book was hard to follow.” Storm commented, arms crossed as she was squeezed between the engineer and the Medical Officer.

“That doesn’t matter.” Jessie waved the straying conversation off, getting everyone back on track. “Jack, does your device work?”

“Field testing has been limited, but all results have been promising.” Jack nodded his head.

“Good.” Jessie said with a gentle sigh of relief. She took the device from the engineer and handed it to Star. “You will be in charge of the device’s safety and will also be the one to use it when at the facility.”

“Yes Ma’am.” Star nodded respectfully as she held it close, unable to put it in her hip bag at the moment.

“So, is that it? The mission that is?” Elexa asked, a little uncertain about the plan. About why they would need to

“No, that’s part 1.” Jessie told her, shaking her head. “Part two comes after you obtain the Core’s current location. If it is close enough you will track it down. If it is too far to get there before they move it we will risk a chance at communication to one of our Sister Rebellions or one of our bases. If the Core is our area the ten of you will find it and destroy it by any means necessary. This is a Restraint Level 0 situation.”

There was a hush in the room as everyone took in what their leader said. Restraint Level 0 was only used in very desperate, dire, or extremely important situations. During Restraint Level 0 anyone was expendable so long as the goal was completed. Any casualties were acceptable, any kind of death was acceptable. Restraint Level 0 has only been permitted twice before, each time ending in a successful mission that had turned the tides of war and brought them close to victory once, but had many casualties. As a consequence, each leader is allowed to call a Restraint Level 0 only twice in their rule.

It was quiet for a few minutes as everyone absorbed the information. The weight and consideration held in making such a call. Aeon thought back to earlier in her explanation, the prior sentence to exact. It made Aeon stop for a second to count those on Team Blood Moon.

“Jessie.” Aeon called out to her leader. Jessie looked up from the map she was studying to look at one of her finest soldiers. “There are now thirteen members of Team Blood moon. You said ten.”

“John, Ron, Darick will not be joining this mission.” She told her soldier. “They will be on a different one where their leadership skills will be necessary. I will be having many attacks take place just before the attack on the Core to lure as many of the Techs away to give the attacking team a better chance. Instead, you and Victoria will be leading Team Blood Moon.”

“Understood.” Aeon nodded her head, though the smile on her face pulled tight. It’s not that she was bad at leading or didn’t get along with Victoria. She was actually fairly good at it and she and the other woman got along very well. Instead she was coming to some conclusions about the mission.

“For everyone going on the mission, you are to immediately prepare and head out the second you can.” Jessie ordered, voice going firm. “Prepare for long, hard battles and to not come home. Take anything you may need and can carry. Restraint limits are off. If you see anything in the supply drop off area you are free to take it. Officers, prepare for war. Meeting dismissed.”

One by one everyone filled out of the hot, stuffy room. They were all glad to be out, though each wore a grim and/or worried face. The last ones left in the room were Aeon and Jessie, as Aeon had signaled for her friends to leave without her. Jessie stayed as she had noticed Aeon staying. Once the room was emptied the Partial dropped from the ceiling to stand in front of her leader. The look she gave was not accusatory, more like when one comes to an unsettling conclusion, though there was a hard edge to it.

“So, Team Blood Moon has a Restraint Level 0, huh?” Aeon said like a question, though both her and her leader knew it was more of a request to explain. “Something like that, I know you wouldn't just decide it in one or two days. And two new recruits to help fill the ranks, especially now that Captains are needed elsewhere.”

“Though I know you hate to accuse, I don’t care to beat around the bush. Say exactly what is on your mind.” Her Commander said, though her eyes said she knew exactly where the conversation was going. Aeon let out a long sigh before speaking.

“You gave me high quality cannon fodder, didn’t you?” Aeon firmly stated, though there was no trace of accusation. More like she was stating a fact she needed confirmation for. “Those two rookies, Steve and Elexa, you gave them to me so I would have someone I could sacrifice who wouldn’t hinder the mission. You knew beforehand that you would need to call for a Restraint Level 0, that’s why you summoned for new, top notch rookies.”

Commander Jessie was silent for a long time, just thinking. It was quiet for a moment, then she let out a slow sigh. “Part of being a good leader is to love every single one of your soldiers like they are your own. So you don’t make sacrifices at the drop of a hat. But, part of being a leader is having the ability to make the call to make a sacrifice. And when you’re at war, a leader will make more sacrifices then they could ever have imagined. Still, it needs to be done, for the greater good.

“I’m not telling you to put them in harm's way if there is another way. Every sacrifice needs to be thought through, needs to be worth it in the end. I just need you and the others to reach the Core a lot more than them if there is no other way. They will not have the skills to shut it off, not like the rest of you.” She told Aeon, voice holding some regret and remorse, wishing there was another way. “Do you understand?”

The thing was, Aeon did understand. She understood too well why her leader had to make such a call. She also understood how much her leader wished she didn’t have too. It was almost like Aeon with the Tech K9s. There is no regret for the action as it is the right one to do at the time with the knowledge one has. There is, however, regret in the fact that it has to be done.

So Aeon was able to look her leader in the eye with no hatred, anger, or accusation in her. Just sympathy and understanding for the burdens she bore. “Understood. Goodbye, Ma’am.”

“Goodbye, Aeon.”

She turned and left, heading for the room she shared with her squadmates. There she changed her clothing from her comfort clothes to combat wear. Everyone on base had choice in their combat clothes, so long as they were form fitting, can actually be used in a fight, and standard black. Everyone on her squad wore a slightly different style for their specialty. 

For Aeon, as a Jack, her outfit consisted of her tank top, combat style pants that stretched easily, and her combat boots. Star, the fast moving sniper and information holder, she wore a tank top and pants as well, but used steel toed sneakers for their better mobility. She also had an unusual dark brown side pouch she used that was not part of standard ware. Chriso, the heavy hitter and muscle, wears a form fitting t-shirt, pants, and combat boots. J7, the scout and tracker, needs shorts for his running, a tank top, and steel toed sneakers.

Everything everyone wore was comfortable and as protective as they could get. It was all made out of a stretchy, breathable material that took a while to wear down. Winter gear was a bit heavier that had a downy inner layer ment for warmth. All of it was the standard black to help for camouflage in the night during summer, but switched to a grey-white in the winter.

“Aeon.” J7 said as he turned to his temporary Squad Leader. She looked back at him as she pulled up her pants. “What did you and our Commander talk about?”

“I think you already know.” She sighed, buttoning her pants.

“Damn shame.” Chriso shook his head, though his voice also held no anger or hatred for the Commander.

“Yes, indeed.” Aeon chuckled half heartedly. She was brushing her mid back length hair, then she pulled it back into a low twisted bun. She finished by putting her ribbon back in her hair, always held on by her Elite Platoon pin. “Say goodbye to home guys.”

Chriso chuckled softly as he slung his right arm over Star's shoulder. They each looked around the tiny room they’ve shared for years. Crappy, hand drawn pictures dotted the walls. On one side two beds pressed together with lockers on either side. On the other two lockers pressed together while two beds rested against the walls. In the middle of the ceiling, where it had been stuck for the last five years, the hilt of a knife could be seen. One by one they filed out, heading for the Weapons and Supplies.

In the room, not a single locker was locked.

The squad met up with Squad A1A at the supply area. Daleris, the one currently on supply distribution, already knew about the restraint limit being lifted for the team. He handed over any weapons requested of him. All the extra amo the team needed. Spare waists, hip, shoulder, and thigh bags to carry everything, all of it was available to them. They all only took their standard armor, having had years to work out the kinks of fighting in them exactly like this.

“Are you guys not going to put on more?” Steve asked as he walked up to them. He was in full armor, bullet proof vest, shoulder, knee, and elbow pads, and some thick leather gloves. He even had one of the very few visored helmets. It wasn’t something made by the rebellion, but found in the city.

“We’ve spent years like this. Countless missions, from scouting to full on attacks.” Chriso told him with a lopsided grin. He, like the rest of his squad, only sported a bullet proof vest, pads for the knees and elbows, and thick gloves.

“Besides, most of the armor you’re wearing does next to nothing in protection from one of the Aliana’s guns.” J7 grunted as he adjusted the gloves on his hands. “They’re mostly to protect you from the environment. And your own stupidity.”

“Easy, J7, we don’t want to scare him before the mission!” Aeon said in playful concern, her own grin wide. She turned her mischievous look to the rookies. “Wait until we’re halfway there and it’s too late for him to turn back!”

Her joke earned a roar of laughter from the team. Even Steve found enough humor that he laughed, despite being the butt of the joke. Aeon grinned, happy to make them laugh at least once before the seriousness of the mission drove out the desire for fun. Before the dread, anger, and sorrow overshadowed everything else.

“Which vehicle are we taking?” Elexa asked after the laughter had died down.

“We’re not, rookie.” Diego, the bomb expert told her, rolling his eyes.

“They draw in too much attention.” Maria, the sharp shooter, added on. She patted the younger woman's shoulder as she followed her younger brother. “So we walk.”

“So, how far is the facility?” Steve asked, quickly falling in step beside Elexa.

“Testing Facility 01B is about a day and a half out.” Aeon told him as she passed by. She and Victoria took the lead as they walked through the tunnel out of the base. It was a little past midday, so the high sun shone down right on them. “It’s directly west of here.”

“So, why are we going north?” Elexa asked, taking notice of their direction.

“It’s like they tag team with the questions.” Victoria mumbled to herself. Only Aeon heard her, putting a smile on the taller female.

“First, never directly leave the base out of one direction. Go one way before turning. That way if you are spotted leaving the sheltered area or the Techs catch you they’ll head in the wrong direction.” Aeon started as she signaled for J7 to run ahead. He took off down a side street and was out of ear shot in seconds. “Second, if we head due west exactly where we’re at, we'll walk right into the crop fields of Settlement 4B. There are regular patrols around the settlement due to the sheer size of the crop fields to keep strays or rebels out. Rebels like yours truly.”

“All is secure up ahead. No signs of any Techs of any kind.” J7’s voice came from the ear piece Aeon had on.

“They’ve been quiet these last couple of days. Not even half as many patrols as normal.” Aeon remarked, still looking around. “Keep your eyes peeled.”

“Always.” He said before cutting out.

“Star, scale that building, scope the place out. Take Maria with you.” Victoria ordered as she pointed to a mostly together tall building.

Both females quickly took off, leaving the remaining seven behind. Aeon occasionally looked through her binoculars, keeping an eye on the immediate area. Up ahead J7 ducked in and out of buildings, avoiding debris and other such junk. In the buildings above Star and Maria kept watch on the skies. They kept an eye out for any Tech drop off ships. After nearly five hours the team was reaching the turn point when J7 called back in.

“Hold up, we have at least four techs past the turn. They’re too far up for me to make out what kind.” J7 warned Aeon, who in turn held her arm up for the group to stop. Victoria moved the teammates down while Aeon hid by a car. She looked down the street through her binoculars.

“Copy that, J7. Star, Maria. Do you have a visual?” Aeon asked. She put down the binoculars and squatted down behind the car. She wasn’t able to see anything yet.

“Visual secured.” Star stated.

“We have five Techs. Three Human based, one Aliana, and one Tech K9.” Maria informed them, voice clip and serious. 

Aeon sneered in disgust as she took a peek over the burnt out car. Still, she saw nothing, but lined up the scope of her rifle down the street anyways. The whole time she was sending hand signals to the rest of the team. They readied their weapons, but didn’t move otherwise.

“Which direction are they heading?” Aeon questioned the group.

“Your way. They’re ten yards from the turn.” Star stated. Aeon could hear the sound of her moving. “We have visuals from here as well. My scope is lined up with the Aliana. Maria has the Tech to the northeast.”

“I have the Tech to the southwest.” J7 piped up, voice a ghost of a whisper.

“I see them. I’ll take the K9.” Aeon growled as the form of the Soldier K9 came around the corner. “That leaves one left.”

“Leave that to me.” Star stated, neutral voice almost confident. It brought a smile to Aeon's face to hear that.

“Get ready to fire, on my mark.” Aeon ordered. “...Three, ...two, ...one.”

Four bangs went off simultaneously, quickly followed by a fifth. Mists of blood mixed with oil sprayed the air where Techs had just stood in front of. In less than three seconds all five Techs had gone down. Aeon switched to binoculars to get a better look at the group of fallen Techs as she requested a visual update.

“All Techs accounted for. All five are dead.” Star’s steady said through the comm.

“J7, get a closer look. Star, Maria, get ready to provide back up.” Victoria ordered. She kept an eye on the situation through her scope while Aeon carefully looked over the area.

J7 walked up to the bodies cautiously, having been fooled once before. He walked up to each, slitting their throats to ensure their death. Once he cut all five he raised his hand and flicked it right. Right for all dead targets, left for one or more living targets. He looked down at them one more time before heading back into the protective shadows of the buildings.

Meanwhile, Aeon had already gotten the team moving again. The sun was three hours from setting and she was interested in getting the team to the Safe Point before sunset. It will give the team a chance to rest before the all night journey. Victoria, in agreement with Aeon, was also eager to get the team moving. She sent orders for the two in the towers to keep moving.

Besides, it’s very dangerous to hang around dead Tech bodies. The lack of a signal where one once was will alert the Core and those who run it. So a larger squad will be sent to the area to collect the bodies. It’s often used as a tactic by the Rebellion to ambush large amounts of Techs at once. However, since that’s not the goal at the moment Aeon kept the team moving.

At the turn they were now heading west, out of the city. The buildings were slowly, but steadily becoming smaller and smaller. After an hour past the turn all the buildings were houses, most only one story. The Safe Point is located in one of the second story houses, half a mile from the last house at the very edge of the city. It’s rarely used except in the fall, when crops are brought into the base to be preserved in one of the lower levels.

The house was far from pretty, with a collapsed outside wall in one of the bedrooms. Makes for a good look out point to the southwest. The attic is unattainable due to a partly collapsed roof, but the basement weathered the test of time well. Supplies were kept down there, as well as being the place where soldiers slept. The rest of the house is mostly empty with the windows mostly boarded up. There is enough peeking room through the slits in them. This house, like all other houses near the city, had been thoroughly picked clean for supplies.

Aeon gestured for the group to enter the house quickly, while she kept watch for spies. Once the last one entered, so did she. She firmly closed the door, making sure it was locked and boarded. Being locked and boarded wouldn’t stop a Tech from entering the house, but it would dissuade them if they were only scouting the area. 

“Get comfy, we’ll be here till dark.” Victoria told them as she shrugged off her shoulder bag. She relaxed back on the old, broken couch that was left behind. Or possibly moved here from another house. She closed her eyes, getting a nap before the trek.

“Especially you, rookies.” Maria chuckled, heading for the basement. “The walk we're heading for is going to be a bitch.”

“Is the walk really that long?” Steve asked, turning to look at Aeon. She nodded her head at him, heading for the stairs, closely followed by her squad. “I gotta admit, I didn’t expect so much walking for an Elite team.”

“I would say get used to it, but if we’re successful, you won't have to be fighting for much longer.” Stara snorted, unimpressed. She felt a twinge of jealousy with her own words. Though she’s only been an active soldier for six years longer than the rookies, she started training at fourteen for her position on the Squad A1A. She’s been fighting for over a decade longer than the rookies and felt jealous that they have a chance at being active for only a week. “Lucky you.”

“Oh, um, sorry.” Steve said, not sure what he did to earn her temper. Both rookies looked at each other in discomfort

“Ah, don’t let Stara bother you, but do give her her dues.” Diego chuckled, as he reassured the rookies. He waved his hands at the short haired platinum blond. “You know, she was the rookie before you two.”

“Really?” Elexa asked, curious about her new squadmate. Behind them Stara let out a thch sound as she crossed her arms and leaned against the archway between the livingroom and kitchen.

“Yep, the two of you are the replacements for the members we lost.” He said, voice becoming less amused, more reminiscent. Stara lifted herself off the arch, stepping quietly into the kitchen. “Stara’s field buddy; Kevin, and her mentor; Song Thrush. A long story comes with that name. Stara plays a big part in it. Kevin trained with her, they came from the same Hidden Settlement.”

“Is that why she doesn’t seem to like us?” Steve asked while scratching his arm. He was looking back in the direction Stara left. “Because we replaced people who were important to her?”

“Look kid, when you’re on a team, a squad, like ours, you become close with everyone. We ran together for six years. Before she came Darick was the Squad Leader, Victoria was my squadmate, we had another squadmate named Hiro, and the Captain was a guy named Rizzer.” Diego talked, seemingly more to himself than the rookies. “When Rizzer and Hiro died and the other two rose up the chain of command, Stara and Kevin came in. Needless to say, I wasn’t too happy myself when their replacements seemed to take over the place my friends occupied. What I’m trying to say is that she is still hurt right now, but she’ll warm up to you. And don’t worry, she won't let a small grudge stop her from helping you out of a pickle.”

“I understand.” Elexa nodded her head, looking thoughtful. “It’s hard to accept people, especially ones who were brought in to literally replace the one you loved.”

“Indeed.” Diego nodded his head.

“What else can you tell us about the squad?” Elexa, still interested in learning about her squad.

“Well, I have lots to tell, but not much time.” Diego chuckled, spirits back up. “Lets see, Victoria is a rescued child from one of the Testing Facilities. Testing Facility 03E. She was rescued before being tested on, one of the few to leave such a place with everything still intact. Her time spent in a Testing Facility is one of the reasons why she and Aeon get along so well. They both know what it’s like in a place like that.

“As for Maria and I, both from around here, Settlement 1B. That place is a Human breeding ground to supply Humans to be turned into Techs. Our mother had twins, twice. She hid Maria and I under the floorboards for ten years, but had to give up our twins. Well, as the two of us grew we became harder to hide, harder to feed. So our father took us to look for The New Dawn. Long story short, they found us after we were attacked by the Tech K9 the Settlement sent after us. Our father died from his wounds, my sis and I joined the cause. That's it for beginnings.”

“What about the Partials?” Steve asked, head looking up to the second floor where they had walked up to. “What can you tell us about them? What’s their stories?”

“Would love to say, but if you want the story about those four, you should ask Aeon. Though I doubt she will give you the in-depth one.” He told the younger male.

While Elexa continued to question her squadmate about her other squadmates, Steve took Diego's advice. He headed up the stairs to the second floor in search of the friendliest Partial. When he reached the top step he looked up and down the hall. To the right J7 sat on the ledge of a boarded up window. The redhead glanced over at him before looking back out the crack in the boards.

“Uh, where's Aeon?” Steve asked, voice unsure. He wasn’t particularly comfortable around the prickly Partial. J7 had already expressed disdain for the male rookie.

“Down the hall to your left, only door on the left.” Was J7’s clipped response that left no room for chatter.

“Thanks.” Steve said, waving a hand in the other males direction. His head was still turned, so he didn’t see it. He only heard the retreating footsteps of the rookie.

Steve walked down the hall, coming to a stop in front of a door with peeling white paint. He debated knocking for a moment, then decided to just enter. He slowly opened the door so as to not scare the elder soldier. The evening light casted little light in the room, but the silhouette of the Partial was clear. He quietly stepped in the broken room. He looked at the Elite, wondering how to make his presence known.

While he internally debated, a part of his mind brought up a question he had been thinking about for the last several days. Partials and Techs can normally be spotted by the metal all over their bodies. From armor covering non replaceable vulnerable parts to entire limbs having been replaced. The Partials of Squad Alpha, however, show no signs of Techmorphasis. And while it is possible for their internal organs to have been replaced first, a whole squad is never made out of those who only got their insiders replaced.

So his question is ‘what part of them is not human?’.

“Having trouble figuring it out?” Aeon spoke up, not having turned around from looking out the giant hole.

Steve jumped in surprise as he didn’t know she already knew he was in there. Then his warm ivory skin flushed red in embarrassment, making his face nearly the same color as a tomato. This impressive soldier had caught him staring at her while he was under the impression she didn’t know he was there.

“I’m sorry!” He squeaked out, flustered, as he stumbled back. His back hit the door, reminding him there is nowhere to retreat. “I didn’t mean to offend you. I was just curious.”

“Calm down, I’m not gonna bite. Hehehe.” She chuckled as she turned around to look at him. A big grin had split across her face, calming the rookie down. His blush faded a little, calmer now that he knows she won’t kill him. “I’m used to all the stairs by now, it’d be weird if I wasn’t. So, I take it that you're interested?”

“Oh, yeah, um, I mean, everyone has a story, and Diego was just telling us about Squad A1A.” He said, still a little nervous, but quickly getting over it. “He said that if I wanted to know yours and your friends, I should ask you. And I want to know why you guys look different from other Partials.” 

“Well, good thing those go hand in hand then.” She chuckled again, though there was less enthusiasm. “The short of it is that my squad and I all came from the Testing Facility; 01B.”

“Wait, you guys are from the very Facility we’re heading to now?” Steve asked, concerned and confused that Jessie would send her soldiers back to a place where they would obviously have terrible memories of. Especially ones she was clearly close too.

“Yep, spent six years in there along with Chriso and Star. J7 was in there the longest of eight years.” She said, turning to look out the window again. “There were a little two hundred of us in there at the time of the rescue. The rescue party only saved forty two. With in the first week thirty five died from either mechanical vital part failure, such extreme body stress that caused heart attacks and organ failure, or, or… suicide.” The last word left her lips as hardly more than a breath as she relieved that terrible week. She pushed the memories far back, where they have been all these years. “At the end of the first week there were only seven of us left.”

“... What happened to the other three?” Steve hesitated to ask.

“47B, 159B, and 312B all trained with us, my friends and I. From the time we were twelve and mimicking the trainers, to the time we were fourteen and actual trainees. The seven of us were together, fighting the war to avenge all the children we watched die in that Hellhole. For all the ones who died right after our rescue. And all those who won’t be rescued. We trained hard for four years, the seven of us making it to graduation.”

“Then what happened?” He asked, face a mix of concern and sympathy.

“Restriction Level 0. It was our very first mission, they never made it to the end. We lost so many during that time, including our previous Commander; James.” She told him, turning back around. Her Amber eyes were glossy from unshed tears. “I watched each one of them die, and I killed the Tech that killed them. My team and I made it through to the end of that long battle. Once there were nearly four hundred of us. Now there are only four of us.”

“Are there any Techs or escaped Partials from that facility out there?” Steve asked, hoping that there could be more.

“No, not from there.” She shook her head. She looked directly at the other soldier. “The thing about that Testing Facility is that it’s purpose was to find a way to make Techparts be able to grow with the person and be hidden. To make a perfect human replica so they could spy on humans and infiltrate the Rebellions. It would also allow them to begin the process of Techmorphasis a lot earlier, to create soldiers faster. That’s why it was so important for the New Dawn to destroy that place and all its information.”

“Is that why you guys look different? From the other Partials, I mean.” He said, blushing again in embarrassment.

“Yep. You can’t tell our differences because we were meant to look like normal humans. The seven of us are the only known successful test subjects that the Aliana will never know.” She chucked, happy mood slowly coming back. “So, wanna know what each of us have? Or can you guess now that you know the past?”

“Oh, uh well, I can try.” He said, rubbing the back of his neck. Aeon leaned against the wall, arms crossed, but an encouraging smile on her face. “Well, uh, Star is kind of obvious, she has something with her mind altered. She doesn’t express any emotions.”

“But she can feel them.” Aeon said, voice almost insisting.

“Okay, I guess.” He nodded, not finding a reason to argue. “For J7, I noticed a limp, so I’m guessing one of his legs. And Chriso is hard to figure out, same as you. He’s very rigid, even when relaxed. So, his shoulder?”

“Hehehe hahaha!” Aeon laughed, loving the conversation. “Well, you were half right with J7, but completely missed the mark with Chriso.”

“Oh? How wrong was I?” Steve asked, cheeks taking on a red tint once again.

“Well, you were mostly correct with Star. She had brain enhancements that hinder her ability to express emotion. She also has eye enhancements that kind of make her beautiful green eyes look dead.” Aeon started, voice taking on some sadness for her friends. “J7 has both his legs replaced, including the hip bone. He can run damn near forever because of it.

“Chriso has three things replaced. His right arm, his lungs, and his spine. All making him one of the strongest Partials who has the least likely odds of becoming injured or tired. He can carry great weight for far distances.” She finished, obviously proud of her friends if her tone and stance was anything to go by. “Now, there are three things wrong with me. One is internal, so you can’t tell, but I want you to try to guess my two outer ones. Take a minute to think about it.” She stood up straight so he could get a good look.

“Okay.” He said, taking a good long look at her.

He would look from one side to the other. His eyes darted all over her body, trying to find a difference. But she looked the same all over. She looked exactly like a normal human. If she hadn’t been introduced as a Partial he never would have guessed on his own. There are no physical clues to help him.

He was about to give up when a thought came to him. There are no physical clues, no verbal clues, or visual clues. But there was a behavioral clue. Aeon had shown she is right handed the whole time he’s known her. Only two and a half days, but still long enough to know which hand is dominant for any human. However, last night, when he was on the treadmill and she was throwing stuff on, she almost exclusively used her left hand. And the more he thought about the more he realised she used her left hand for anything heavy.

“Your left hand. It’s replaced, isn’t it?” He said suddenly, eyes going wide with realization.

“Close, the whole arm.” She said, holding up said arm like it’s a prize. “Now, can you guess the other one?”

“I’m going to be honest, I only figured out the first one from behavior. You're right handed, but use your left arm for heavy lifting or hitting.” He explained when she gave him a confused look.

“Good detective work, Steve.” She praised, pleased by the display of intelligence. “My other two replaced organs are my left eye and my heart.”

“Wait, aren't both of those impossible to replace on a human?” Steve asked, completely shocked. His eyes were wide and mouth was slightly agape. He couldn’t stop looking at her left eye, an eye that was just as amber and lively as the other.

“Technically, yes now that the information was destroyed.” She nodded her head. “I was the first one to receive the heart replacement, back when I was six, and the twentieth one to receive the eye replacement when I was nine. I’m the first one to have it successfully replaced and have complete vision in.”

“You can see out of it?” He asked, awestruck.

“Crystal clear.” She joked with a laugh. She then pushed him in the direction of the door. “Now, storytime is over, get ready to move. We have a long way to go.”