Subject-59

Chapter 1

Upon entering the mess hall I could see the place was crowded with scientists, guards, doctors and a few other specialists who worked here. Across the room I could see jade waving me over to a table where Sarah and Matt were sitting with their food trays.  I waved back in acknowledgment before going to the coffee dispenser and getting a cappuccino. 

Taking the first sip I paused, noticing how it tasted strange and quite bitter. I usually don't do this but I don't really care right now I need my caffeine. So I grabbed a bunch of sugar packets and dumped them in before going over to the table where my friends sat. 

Jade was already sitting with the others, blabbing about how many files she went through yesterday while the others ate. I on the other hand sipped my coffee still painfully aware of the strange aftertaste it left in my mouth. Why is it so bitter today?

"hey at least you get to sit around all day. Do you have any idea what it's like to be standing guard in one spot on your feet for 10 hours?!" Matt juted in on jades rant. "My feet are killing me after yesterday's shift!"

"yeah well I had to take three aspirin this morning for the massive headache those files gave me! I'm pretty sure I killed off half my brain just staring at the computer all day! I'd say try it sometime but I'm not so sure you have any more brain cells left to lose!" jade teased.

Soon enough Jack came over with his food tray and sat down. "Are we arguing over who's job is worse again?"

Matt and jade both started spouting more nonsense over who was right and who was wrong and why. And soon enough Jack also started saying how guards have it worse.

Their conversation was drowned out as I stared at my coffee seeing just how dark it really was. There was no reflection in the dark pool, just darkness almost like I was staring into an abyss… 

'Ava' a familiar voice spoke up in the back of my head and images of the vault door opening flashed before me.

"Ava!" Sarah snapped her fingers in front of my face and I was jolted back to reality. 

"w-what?" 

"Who has it worse? Us or those dimwits?" jade pointed to Jack and Matt who glared back.

I looked between the four of them confused, and lost in this conversation before shaking my head and looking back at my coffee seeing my reflection. "i-...us, I guess…" 

They all seemed to go silent simultaneously while looking at me. As I met their gazes I suddenly felt anxious. 

"Ava are you alright?" Sarah spoke up looking concerned. 

"yeah I think so…"

"you've been zoned out during the entire conversation…" Sarah stated. 

"and she fell asleep at her desk again and wouldn't wake up." jade added. 

"maybe you should go talk to the doctor you seem stressed out…" 

"Maybe the doctor is the issue. I mean they have been spending a lot of time together as of late! with him keeping her up all night she's probably sleep deprived!" jade snickered and my face flushed slightly.

Sarah jabbed her in the side with her elbow earning a distinct 'ow' followed by a pout. "Leave her alone just because she has an actual sex life and someone to go too doesn't mean you should always bug her about it."

Sarah looked at me and smiled sweetly. "I'm sure you could take a day or two off of work to catch up on sleep and destress."

"yeah sleep deprivation can be a big problem in a place like this you've seen how people go crazy down here! We've had to sedate three guars in the past month because they went wild from lack of sleep and the stress!" Matt added, earning a glare from Sarah. 

"not helping!" she scolded.

I was starting to feel overwhelmed not by work but by everyone's concern.

Sighing I got up from my seat at the table. "I'll go back to my room and rest for a bit. Will that make you guys happy?" 

They were all a bit awkward and silent at my question but each one nodded. Resigning myself to my fate, I grabbed my coffee and dumped it on my way out of the cafe, before stuffing my hands in my lab coat pockets.

If anything, the last thing I want to do right now is be stuck in my room. I get anxious being alone and isolated, sleeping isn't much better. 

At least when I'm working it distracts me from the fact im down in this bunker separated from the rest of the world, for three years at that. The isolation and such can do a lot to one's mind. Everyone down here is affected by it. Some people are more easily bothered than others. But we all handle the stress in our own ways. 

Jade is a social butterfly who can't go more than 15 minutes without talking to someone, Jack likes to put himself through physical strain, Sarah is a sugar addict. Matt is a heavy drinker and I'm a workaholic. 

It's a miracle this facility is still functioning. I shook my head just thinking about it.

As I walked down the hall I passed the facility logo on the wall and stared at it.

A.C.O.R.N.

Aviation control and operations relay network.

That's how the public sees us… no one outside knows what our true purpose is. What we really do down here.

Anomaly Containment and Origins Research Network. That's what we really are. A containment facility that focuses on researching things that can't be explained.

Containing strange artifacts and on rare occasions creatures that are found all around the world. This job isn't to be taken lightly, everything is top secret down here and you could be killed for revealing classified information. 

Stopping in my tracks I looked over to see I had unconsciously wandered over to the containment section, and now I stood in front of the vault containing our biggest and most dangerous anomaly yet.

Subject-59.

S-59 for short. 

But the main thing that caught my eye was the fact the blast door was cracked open, which shouldn't even be possible.

With all the crazy incidents that happen around here we have nearly three deaths every two weeks, and s-59 is usually deemed responsible for such deaths. 

And we aren't even a red-class facility. We're yellow, which means although the things we house here are dangerous, they are at least contained easily and don't pose major threats. 

It's strange considering its s-59 has the potential to kill anyone in its vicinity, and it's now forbidden to open its vault. In fact alarms usually would go off if a vault is opened, and a full security team would immediately be alerted to the breach.

I stare at the blast door in front of me and have a weird sense of deja-vu. 

Subject-59 is our main research focus down here but I'm not even sure what S-59 looks like. Stepping closer to the door I reached out to touch it, even going as far as stepping past the danger lines marked on the ground. 

An unsettling feeling creeped up my spine as the hair on the back of my neck stood on end and I froze. I felt Something slide across the back of my neck, and I shuddered.

"You shouldn't be here."