Ayla Kayama's Story

Special Projects Lab A-3



Six long months had gone by since Tim, The red switch made his deal with the emperor. Six long, grueling, and painful months as he was transformed into his new identity.

"Neural patterns have stabilized..." A technician called out, while Dr. Plishkin, and Grand Confessor Kesslee were standing, watching a display.

Dr. Hetyri was standing over the large immersion tank, going over some readings while he inspected the woman within. The entire procedure had gone off without a hitch, the neural patterns were intact, but the genetic material had been sufficiently altered, and while in her suspended state, she received several enhancements.

Mantrid's eyes slowly went down the list, her skeleton had been reinforced with a ceramic-carbon composite material, making the bones nearly unbreakable, the nerves were enhanced with superconducting dendritic enhancements, which meant that her reactions would be instantaneous, the blood was augmented with nanites and special carriers, which meant it bled a bright red, and efficiently carried oxygen throughout the body; this was so the enhanced musculature could sustain nominal functionality during combat stress.

Vision and hearing were enhanced, by a wide margin, it was sharp, clear, she could spot, and hear a pin drop from a mile away with the naked eyes.

Mantrid slowly licked his lips, he was proud of his creation.

"She's perfect..." He said, flipping a lever causing the liquid to begin draining.

"She's an excellent specimen, strong genetics, she's taken to the enhancements quite well, but she won't know her own strength, she will be like a baby! Oh how marvelous!" Plishkin called out, tapping on the glass.

The tank had completely drained, and a simple jolt would awaken the new and improved Red, and her new identity.

"Rubrum in morte." Kesslee called out, the Red Death, a fitting name.

She would awaken within a tank, the entire body screaming as if it were on fire, every muscle spasmed, every joint ached, everything felt alien, foreign, as the brain tried to make sense of the new inputs it was receiving.

If she tried to sit up, the enhanced muscles spasmed, likely sending her tumbling forward, the tile gave way like brittle clay to her fingers if she grasped them, the body was jerky, quick; but the pain was quickly subsiding.

However if she tried to grab something for support, she would find the material giving away like paper under her grasp, while Mantrid looked on, visibly impressed.

"She's a success, Mr. Kesslee." He said, leaning over to take some readings.

---

Have you ever felt pain?
I mean truly felt it?
Every nueron in your body burning. All you know, all you feel. Pain.
I have." -.Ayla Kayama

---

A convulsion, a jerk, that's what started it. Ayla's body shot forward as she coughed, violently sputtering fluid. She couldn't even process the information her eyes sent her brain, it was too sharp, too clear, and too bright. It just added to the blaring pain. All the while an endless cascade of intense sound pounded on her ears, her own heartbeat thudded like a Smith's hammer.

Nothing made sense, she couldn't fight through the agony long enough to think.

She shrieked.

Not just a high pitched howl, or a pained yell, but a primal, ear-shattering bellow. A threshold of Human Endurance not meant to be past, had been broken, and the sound she made was a horrifying sound. Never meant to be heard . It lasted but a moment, but it was the kind of inhumane sound that those who hear it, would hear it again.

Any quiet night, just ever-so lightly above the background noise, would Ayla's screech forever echo for those who created it.

The force of the shriek sent her hoarse, and she began to convulse for a few seconds. Once she laid still, her breathing seemed to slow. More silence came, then a faint groan. The worst seemed to be over, and Ayla's healing factor was no doubtably why. Her eyes slowly crept open, and this time, though blurry, she could see.

A rhasping heave rattled from her chest as she attempt to speak. Words felt alien in her mouth, but then again her mouth itself felt alien. The first few attempts at speech resulted in fits of coughing up Immersion fluid. Each time she coughed her fists banged against the side of the tubes, denting, and eventually splintering them without realizing.

With great effort she choked out a single, garbled sentence.

Kesslee slowly handed her a plush white towel, the soft fabric could easily tear under her immense strength. He knew this would just be the beginning, every enhancement had been meticulously planned, from the super-strength, to the neural-synaptic link fitted at the base of her skull, which would facilitate the seamless piloting of things like combat skins, and power armor.

"They say one never truly knows themselves..." Mantrid said, circling the tank, seeing the woman crush metal under her hands. "Until their freedom has been taken away.." He said, checking her pupils with an LED light. "She's slowly coming too, your mind is adjusting to the new body." He said, pushing some hair back.

"You must train your new body; tell me. Can you stand?"

Kesslee circled them like a vulture. "You'll soon learn, that your newfound freedom will come at a price"

If she tried to stand, she would find the feat effortless, but unsteady as the muscles continued to twitch.

Slowly, Kesslee approached, grasping a pair of hexagonal dogtags, bearing the crest of the Aschen Empire, he held them out to Ayla, dropping them into her hand if she took them.

"Lieutenant Kayama; allow me to formally welcome you into the Adepts of War." The Grand Confessor said coldly. "From now on you will know only servitude to the Empire; you will heed your every command, and most importantly; you will protect your brothers in arms.

"We have given you more power than Lochlyn could ever dream of bestowing upon you, you will be a minister of death praying for war." Kesslee explained. "Now tell me, are you ready to take the first steps into a new life?"

The moment her shaky fingers grasped the towel, they tore through them like wet paper. Her brow furrowed, and a second, much more careful attempt allowed her to take it from Kesslee. It took her a great deal of effort to get it around herself for modesties sake. Something about the way Mantrid looked at her made her uneasy.

A sort of unease she hadn't experienced before.

The light annoyed her, but at the doctor's request she stood. Without thinking she tried to pull herself up by using the side of the tube. Instead she tore it clean off, and stumbled forward. She craned her head down carefully to study the damage she caused. Her mind still couldn't accept her body's newfound strength.

It did however register an extreme dislike of Mantrid.

About then Kesslee circled back, dropping the tags at her so casually. She had to rapidly fumble to catch them, her hands moving so much faster than they should've. It was nearly impossible to control, but she managed.

Every second she could feel it. Her mind adapting, slowly catching up with her body.

As the Grand Confessor spoke she stared at her hands, flexed every muscle she could, shivered, and shook. By the time he asked if she was ready, she was bouncing on her heels.

"Lieutenant Kayama," She croaked. "I like it." Her eyes immediately locked with Kesslee's. "I live to serve, Grand Confessor."

A young technician moved swiftly towards them, handing her a some lcothes, a dark grey BDU outfit with the patch of the Aschen Empire sewn on the left shoulder, and the seal of the Adepts of War on the right.

Mantrid was staring, but not so much in a way that was lustful, but more of a pride in his creation, as much of his work culminated into the creation of this young woman.

Genetic sex changes were nearly routine in the Empire, but to incorporate the extensive enhancements while the changes were underway was practically unheard of.

Ayla would be given an opportunity to dress herself, as Kesslee went over some final notations.

When she had finally dressed herself, Kesslee returned with a book in his hand, and a small velvet jewelry box.

"Raise your right hand, and place your left hand on the book; and repeat after me." Kesslee said calmly.

"I, Ayla Kayama, do avow and affirm, to serve the United Aschen Empire faithfully, to execute the orders given by your superior without hesitation or question in accordance with the chain that binds. I swear to uphold the will of the Emperor, to serve him faithfully...

I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Emperor, and laws of the United Aschen Empire against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United Aschen Empire when so decreed by the Emperor, or when required by law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United Aschen Empire when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so say we all."

Once finished, Kesslee would take the book, and hand it to her. "The book of the word, study it well, our faiths will be important to your integration."

"As of this moment, you are a citizen of the Aschen Empire, entitled to the rights and responsibilities of the same." Kesslee said, as Plishkin nodded approvingly.

"Dr. Plishkin will show you to your quarters, and bring you up to speed on your enhancements.."

The first true, form thought that came to Ayla's mind was that the people who came up with that Aschen immersion process should've been the test subjects for it. After spending a literal three minutes grappling with her uniform as gently as bloody possibly, she decided the people that expected her to function at all already ought to be next.

Everything was daunting.

Her limbs felt like she was piloting a beta-test mech, and a cheaply assembled one at that. Of course, at the same time her body had actually become a tool of utter destruction, which created some unique problems. Like the convulsion from a sneeze resulting in her fist through a few solid inches of concrete. To top it off every time she caught her reflection in a mirror, an intense stabbing throb shot through her head.

Oh yeah, and all the weird memories that keep coming back where she was a man.

Thinking about that was utter agony. Even with her ability to bounce back, she was exhausted by the time she came out.

Damn did a beer sound good for some reason, but was that the Aschen way?

Of course not.

Perhaps quite unsurprisingly the rather long Aschen oath she was greeted with proved difficult. Firstly it was a task to merely place her hand on the book, and not smash straight through it, and the Grand Confessor's hand. Her mind was still foggy, but a half pun about "biting the hand that feeds" made it difficult to keep her expression null. Stumbling blocks aside, the Lieutenant was capable of short sentences well enough, but a long speech was a challenge to keep the tongue untied.

Some Aschen God somewhere, if they had one other than Prince, had to be looking over her shoulder, she thought. She made it through flawlessly, on borrowed grace no doubt.

All of this was okay with her, right until Kesslee handed her the book. She looked down at it with a raised eyebrow. Not out of disrepect, but it was the proper expression to have when something alien is placed in your hands.

"Hrmm. Is it.. Truly nessicary?" She dared to meet the Confessor's gaze. "No disrepect, mind you..." She spoke slowly, considering her words carefully. "The planet I was born on had no Gods, and the glass thing I servered, I did not.. Believe in. Only it's ideals." Ayla turned the book over carefully.

"Not to mention.. I don't think I read Aschen."

"Your body is going through many changes." Dr. Plishkin said, moving towards them. "Your strength is superhuman, so you must learn to temper your muscles." The Dr. Said, reaching out and grasping her wrist. "Your skeleton, in order to endure the enhanced muscle strength, has been reinforced with carbon fibers, and high-strength ceramic, your bones are almost indestructible." He said, swooping around her.

"It's quite marvelous, really." He said.

"We didn't just change your body; we enhanced it. A warrior is only as good as his own body.... your arm, please!" Plishkin said, before he reached out and snatched Ayla's arm, looking it over.

"Observe."

The sting of the scalpel came next, it cut deep, and bright red blood would soon follow; but it was strangely bright, and it was dripping slowly.

If allowed to do this, Ayla would observe the blood clot, and dry in seconds, only to flake off and expose no wounds, roughly a minute had passed, and where Plishkin cut her arm, it had completely healed.

"The front of your ribcage is fused solid, where no movement is required to breathe, you've got a solid plate of bone protecting your heart and lungs, and it has shown a ninety percent ballistics resistance in test subjects."

"You will find the gods helpful in your most dire times, even if they are little more than superstition, sometimes it's the placebo effect that counts." Kesslee said. "You'll come to find that your people are deeply religious."

Another book was presented, this one was an Anquietas to Common textbook.

"Your mind has been enhanced to better store, and process information. Your memories are clearer, but you could always just use your neural synaptic link and take the shortcut."

"And Ayla... consider this; the last planet you were born on was here, that tank? Was your womb." Kesslee added.

Everyone around her was visibly impressed, but the true test would come with her training, and how quickly she could hone the enhancements she had been given.

Being treated like a prized Sow at the County Fair was not something Ayla cared for. In fact from the moment the Doctor grabbed her, and started on like she was a lab rat, it became increasingly difficult not to drive her ceramic fist through his throat. Not that she would, her discipline was far deeper than her intensely private nature.

The Aschen seemed to have forgotten that about her, and so had she until just now.

Nevertheless she was a soldier, and that meant she made no protest when her "creator" took her arm, and sliced it. The new Lieutenant winced as he did so, both eyes jamming shut. It was definitely a pain responce, but not to the little nick that was already healed when her eyes opened, but from the agony of a memory.

This had happened to her before. It was shortly after Lochlyn formed the Kill Switch, deep under Hera Prime in a similar, but more primitive lab.

"Was It more primitive? I can't recall. Everything is.. different now."

She was brought there in part to see if her healing factor could be spliced into humanoids, and also to pick her second in command, The Blue Switch.

Blue.

By now the Doctor was saying something about her ribs, but it wasn't as important as remembering that woman right now.

That vile woman.

Lochlyn had decided her role before Red had even met her, and from the second they locked eyes the entire rest of her existence seemed to be devoted to aggitating him. A sort of dull, seething rage began to fester in her stomach as she remembered Blue taking a scalpel and jamming it into Red's hand.

Her hand, she thought.

Blue had been far from her mind in the mines, but now alarm bells were ringing. Threatening ones. Blue was supposed to free her if the worst happened, and two months was plenty of time for even that moron. She either chose not to, or was dead. Those were the only two options Ayla saw.

Well, that or she was in a volcanic mine of her own.

The thought made her smile, which probably weirded Kesslee out since he as handing her what appeared to be an Aschen dictionary. She regained her composure, and waited for the Doctor to finally shut up. Not that she didn't appreciate his work.

About then manners kicked in, and Ayla genuinely bowed her head to the scientists.

"I am truly greatful to the both of you, for giving me perhaps the most powerful tool a warrior requires." Ugh, had she always sounded so pompous? Either way she turned her attention back to Kesslee, just in time for him to depart a little wisdom from him.

He was turning out to be quite a military mind.

Of course all the expectant eyes on her made Ayla a little comfortable. She felt sort of naked without armour, and still kind of liked a stuffed pig to these people, but. But they had truly given her a new, better self, and the promise of battle.

Looking around she realized that perhaps it might not be so bad to be Aschen. Might even be kind of good.

With that in mind her hand shot to the Grand Confessor's wrist. Unfortunately even her gentlest grip was more or less the literal force of a vice. "I have something I need to share with you, Grand Confessor, in private."

Maybe she really was in a volcanic mine. It was a fairly heartwarming thought at least.

Kesslee didn't seem to flinch, or even show any signs of feeling pain as Ayla's hand grasped his wrist, it felt hard, like some kind of armored gauntlet under the robed sleeve. Indeed the armor of the Confessors was easily concealed, and allowed them to seem tougher than they really were.

Kesslee felt the pressure of her grip through his gauntlet, though, and turned to Ayla, nodding.

"Very well, let me show you to your new quarters."

Kesslee led Ayla through the halls of the lab, through a series of doors, and while they walked she could say what was on her mind.

"What was it you wanted to share with me?" He asked, while they stepped into an elevator, that started it's rapid ascent.

It was a five minute ride within the elevator, plenty of time for them to share any concerns.

Truth be told Ayla was greatful for the walk. She had hoped Kesslee would be willing to talk to her, but mostly she wanted away from all the expectant eyes. Although when she thought about it, she couldn't place why. She had no time to bother though, every second made her look a little more like she was hiding something.

As they walked she decided to be completely up front about Blue. She was Aschen now, she thought, like it not, and it was her duty. Besides, it could get Blue killed, and that was a bonus that left a smile on her strange feeling lips. "My ti-" Ayla let out a gasp as she suddenly tumbled forward. While she could walk fine, and talk fine, the strain of combining the two causes her to lose control of her right leg.

Without thinking she reached out to the walk beside her for something to grip, and found it in the form of her fingers going straight into solid steel wall. She offered Kesslee an embaressed smile, which resmbled a snarl a little more, and jerked her hand free. She stepped tennitively this time as she spoke.

"As I was trying to say," Her left leg wobbled, but she marched on, forcibly matching the Confessor's pace.

"My time in the mines," A slight lilt, a flex of tone. "made my mind narrow," She said, being careful of her choice in words. She didn't want the man to think she was lying.

Although she couldn't picture anyone being dumb enough to lie to someone with the job title "Grand Confessor".

No, she cleared her throat, and spoke with an earnest sense of ergency. A strange tone to her throat. "There was another of my unit sent to Molecay. A woman named Jacqueline, or 'Blue'," she paused, shudder running down her spine. She used the pause to try and scope any reaction from Kesslee.

"Her job was to rescue me, but I swear to you she made no attempt." A subtle change began. The more Ayla spoke, the more animated she became. With each sentence she slowly began weaving in contextual gestures, something Tim never did.

That's when it dawned on her. Even she knew that much psychology. Women, on average "talk" with their hands, men don't. It clicked. Mantrid had said she was altered on a genetic level, and she doubted he lied. He's memories where of a man, and yet she had never been one.

With each second, she could literally feel Tim Yeoman melting away, and Ayla Kayama breath.

Well, she couldn't actually feel herself breath anymore, she thought.

At stopped dead in her tracks. For the back half of the walk to the elevators she had fallen silent, lost in thought.

"Forgive me," she sighed. "At the moment I seen to focus too well, if I get off track, I get very lost in thought." She winced a little. "In sure this seems suspect, but even thought is a challenge."

By now they had reached the elevator, and Ayla paused long enough for them to get in it. As soon as the door shut, she resumed, albiet a bit flustered.

"She is a loathsome woman, and I truly had not given her a single thought until a memory found me." Her skull throbbed at the thought. "She is not a particularly grave threat, she is quite honestly unstable at best, but I felt it my duty to tell you immediately." Kesslee would no doubt notice that as she spoke her voice shifted up a little, and lost its dull edge.

Her brain was now literally wired differently, and between her species healing factor, and the Aschen augments, the more testosterone based aspects of Tim were shedding at lightspeed now.

She decided to take the risk, and look Kesslee in the eye before she gave him the floor. "I would tell you all I can gather from what memories have returned, as is my newfound duty."

"She's in a prison on Tal'dor." Kesslee said matter of factly, without any hesitation, without any accusatory tone in his voice. "She was captured shortly after you were, sedated and transferred to a maximum security facility to face interrogation; she'll ultimately be tried, sentenced, and executed."The Aurora chair extracted a lot more information than you think it did, but she put up a hell of a fight." Kesslee said, moving slowly towards the elevator.

He didn't pay any heed to the fact that she drove her hand through a steel and concrete wall, these enhancements were something she would have to get used too, something she would have to learn to adapt too.

The elevator dinged, two armed guards stood on the other end, offering a brief salute as they passed them, before resuming their normal duties.

The interior of the living section was much different than the prison cells that the former red switch spent the last several weeks in, and it was much more inviting than the cold, sterile environments of the laboratories.

"Here are your living quarters; until you're fully ready to begin your training as an adept." Kesslee said, opening the door with a subtle creak. Inside was a well furnished apartment, warm teak hardwood floors, modern countertops, a fully stocked refrigerator, a full kitchen with island bar, matching teak cabinets, spilling out into an inviting living room with a large flatscreen holographic television, a stocked bookshelf, and a desk with a computer where Ayla could access the Aschen internet, and learn about her new people. The bedroom had a rather comfortable memory foam queen bed, which was plush with comforters, memory foam pillows, and a modern armoire that held her uniforms and work clothes.

"There is a full housekeeping staff who will restock the refrigerator, make the beds, and clean the quarters twice a week, you have a telephone to call in takeout, there's menus, a selection of food from the city, you have a full liquor cabinet, and the computer has access to our civilian data net." Kesslee said, holding his hand out.

"There's an emergency line that has the facility staff on call, Dr. Mantrid included."

"You are restricted to this floor of the facility only, there's a recreation room down the hall, with spa and full gym, there is an outside balcony if you need some fresh air, and down the other hall is a small common room, right now you're the only subject we have, but in time there will be more people for you to interact with."

Taking a breath, Kesslee smiled. "I will return in the morning, and we can begin your training; but for now you need to rest, learn your new body."

With that, Kesslee slowly turned, the sunlight from the setting sun spilling into the apartment and giving his robes a bright indigo glow.

"I will see you in the morning."

For all Ayla cared it could've been her cell back in the Whispering Mountains, it was a space of her own. She politely bowed to Kesslee before he left, offering a soft "Thank you", and clicking the door shut behind him. She fell back against the door as gingerly as she could, fumbling with the lock.

She closed her eyes for a moment, some tension melting from her shoulders.

"Peace at last." She whispered, standing back up. She glanced around, quite pleased with the room, and took a step in..

---

Inhale, no movement in the chest. Esoteric thoughts flow, "Am I even living?" Exhale, step forward, air rushing out past foreign lips, chest still still as a grave. 'I think, therefore I am' turning into cold sweat on hands. Legs buckle, spine locks, stagger after stagger vision blurrs rougher.

Heart rushing fast now, too fast to be human, every neuron under fire, lungs heave from emptiness. All hope gone, All goes black..

---

Crash.

Seven steps inside the common room Ayla's body collapsed, and her overworked mind past in to a dreamless sleep. She laid there for a solid two hours, her lungs kicking back in the second she passed out. A cool draft from beneath the door eventually stirred her, and the new Aschen Adept rose to her feet slowly, blinking at the light, mind blank.

She looked around intently, unable to remember anything that happened after Kesslee left. Her trained eye hunted for signs of a scuffle. There were none, just a slight dip in the floor where her dead weight hit. That was good at least, she thought.

But what else? Drugs?

She thought for a minute, bending down to gently scoop her books up. She decided most likely not, they might have sedated her before waking her, but her new system would burn through it, not succumb. A little bit of panic began to well up, but the trained soldier chocked it down this time.

She sluggishly made her way over to a coffee table, tossing her books down and eloping into the couch with a sigh. That was when it hit her.

In the corner, just beside the door, sat a massive, orante, full-body mirror. She had caught her reflection at a glance. Her eyes fell frozen on it, her pale reflection staring back. Gray eyes turned to crystal Blue. Harsh wheathet lines had faded, her shaven head now had long, flowing hair.

She raised a hand up, her index finger tracing the shape of her lips. Even they were different, she thought.

Pain immediately wracked her temples, a sour hiss escaping her throat. It was a mere seconds flash, but for a moment what she saw in the mirror was not an Aschen Adept, but a faceless man in black armour. Tim. Her. Just like before, she remembered. Her mind began to splinter a little, she knew this because she could feel it.

This was bad, but Ayla refused to panic again.

Instead she grit her teeth, and locked her eyes with the woman in the mirror, even if she turned into a man every few seconds. It was all she could do, endure. Ayla didn't know it, but she spent an entire hour just staring in the mirror, fists clenched in pain.

It was difficult for her mind to accept the alterations. It would be one thing if they had out her under the knife like she had expected, but instead they rewired her entirely. It was slow to happen, but eventually Tim's legendary mallebility kicked in, and Ayla began to understand that she was now comprised of both.

A man's history, with a woman's eyes. She could choose to remain as much of Tim as she wished, but she could not simply bury the person she had been.

With this in mind the pain faded, along with Tim's ghost. Tim had died, yes, she told herself, but Ayla had been casted from his mold as he. The mold of an Assassin, and this assassin had sold her skills for a blank slate. A new beginning. It was up her to her to decide how it got filled, and with what

For now though she merely smiled at her reflection before heading off to a well earned shower.

Kesslee and Ayla had been walking through the maze-like cooridors of the Tal'dor prison for what seemed like forever. The screams of those being tortured echoed through the hallways, and the Grand Confessor seemed to bask in delight to their suffering.

"You seem to be getting used to your body, Lieutenant. The Emperor has given you your first assignment, we have a prisoner that we'd like for you to extract some information out of. We've been using the Aurora Chair but have had moderate success." Kesslee said, while their footsteps echoed through the hallway.

A particular woman's screams echoed through the hallway as they neared the room where the Aurora chair was being utilized, Kesslee paused for the briefest of moments, and then he looked to the latched door.

"Are you prepared to cross this threshold, and prove your loyalty to the Empire?"

Kesslee silently awaited Ayla's answer, and then opened the door with a heavy clunk, pushing it slowly to greet Yottskry, and Blue within the Aurora Chair, Yottskry was hunched over her, watching the output of the display screens, he stopped only to acknowledge Kesslee entering.

"Emperor's wish, our command." He saluted briefly.

Kesslee moved slowly towards the chair, inspecting the blue switch like a piece of meat, he simply made a face, before gesturing Ayla to approach.

"She was easily captured through our vastly superior technology." Kesslee said calmly.

"A story I know all to well, Grand Confessor," The woman who strode in behind Kesslee was quite a force to be reckoned with. Her voice was pleasent, but rigid as iron, and she stood nearly 6'2" in her pristine Aschen uniform, and boots. Her crystal eyes swept the room without visible emotion, landing on Blue's with a blank stare.

"After all," she scoffed, "Our technology is oft underestimated by those who do not know their own shortcomings." She clasped her gauntleted hands behind her back, and stood at attention, still surveying her once comrade. Ayla immediately realized she had a rough call to make

Announce herself, or drag it out, play it, and hang Blue with it?

A wicked smile graced her lips. "Hang the bitch."

"I am Lieutenant Ayla Kayama," she spoke now with an Aschen accent, hoping to further deflect her identity. "I am here because you have information our Emperor wants." She strode now to the chair, drinking in the sight of a battered Blue. It was sweet, sweet payback for all the times Blue left him swarmed, gave her away, stabbed her, stalked her. The list went on.

To see the woman who vexed her reduced to a quivering pulp was almost reward enough. Almost.

Locking eyes with her prisoner, she spoke again, slowly. "I will drag every drop of information from your mind, I will burn through every memory, strip every moment, and sear my face into the core of your being. Ayla bent down, her face just out of Blue's reach, flame in her eyes. "I fear you do not understand the situation."

She stood, turning now to Yottskry. "Turn the chair on again. Run it hard," the woman ordered this as casually as a meal at a restaurant. "I will tell you when she's had enough."

No more tears for her to cry. Her eyes were irritatingly dry. Even if she wanted to say something, she could open her mouth and her mind would give the input commands for speech but no voice came out. Her battle was not external, the war waged within. In her mind a savage and desperate battle was being waged. All over a man who hated her guts.

"He isn't dead..."
"You practically killed him."
"Red can't die..."
"Why couldn't you just listen?"
"He's the embodiment of War..."
"And now he probably doesn't even have a grave."

The noises outside of her mind were but dull sounds. Her eyes were still open, she stared without blinking in the direction the restraints forced her head to look in. Her eyes did not reflect the struggle inside, not that she could hide it, but they were also not the soulless orbs of a broken woman. Blue was still in there, somewhere, and she was kicking.

Perhaps if she were in better condition and if she could actually look, she would have followed the "Lieutenant" with lustful eyes. Blue was always ok with a distraction, even if it that was all it would be. However given the circumstances, Lochlynn himself could have strolled into the room and demanded an explanation from her. Not even his fists would have made her flinch now. Blue had finally felt something that scared her more than his fists or Red's genuine wrath fueled scorn...

The words that came out of her mouth, the annoying buzz of a fly... When she bent down just out of her reach, Blue acknowledged that something had moved and her eyes fixated on it momentarily before deciding it was unimportant and staring past it. Desperately trying to hold on to the image of the invincible Red that she had fallen for...

"He can't be dead...Not him...He'll outlive us all...".

Yottskry briefly looked to Ayla, and then Kesslee, before he nodded to the technician who was manning the chair's control systems. The Technician slid the lever all the way to the right, ramping up the chair's output, digging deeply to extract whatever they could from deep within Blue's subconscious mind.

Kesslee watched in approval, as the woman that was formerly the red switch turned on their former compatriot, carrying out the interrogation without hesitation, without regard, and without remorse.

Perhaps Prince was right.

This woman, she showed promise, perhaps she would become the next black hand.

Those were discussions for another time; Blue wasn't responding to the chair like Kesslee had wanted, but he could tell the battle that raged inside her.

"I want this woman to bend her knee to the Emperor, I want you to break her." Kesslee hissed, while Yottskry stood aside to allow Ayla to work her magic, everyone was visibly impressed as she seemed to dive right in.

with the chair at full power, Yottskry awaited Kesslee, or Ayla to tell the technician to stop, even the Technician was looking at Ayla expectantly, at this rate, the Aurora chair would surely liquefy Blue's brain.

A mere flick of the wrist was all she gave to the technition as sign to stop. Ayla had no intention of killing her former comrade. That was a mercy Blue did not deserve. And she had her orders. A new idea quickly formed as she looked at the haggard wreck in the Aurora Chair.

"Release her," The Lieutenant barked, striding to the other side of the room. "Her mind is too weak for the chair," Ayla spun on her heels. "But that does not mean it will not break." She motioned for the technition to come closer, grabbing his shoulder, and whispering into his ear.

He exited the room without a word.

The Aschen Lieutenant began to pace a circle around the room. "You have given us little, I imagine, outside of a window into your vapid little soul," her tongue clicked. "I have been informed of your unhealthy obession with Mr.Yeoman.." She allowed the sentence to hang for a moment, trying to gauge Blue's reaction as she spoke.

Reguardless, she turned her back to the prisoner, and a smile creased her lips.

"Would you like to see him again, Jacqueline?" Just then the door opened, the tech returning. He handed a holocron to Ayla, and resumed his post. "Because I can make that happen," she held the device up to Blue's glazed eyes. "With a simple press of the button."

The holoscreen flickered to life, displaying a nearly identical room, right down to the Chair, except there were only two people in it. Marlene, and Tim Yeoman. She walked around, himing and hawing, as he say in agony. Marlene whispered something, and Tim's Aurora screen came into focus.

A rapid sequence flashed, Tim's true feelings, Tim's undoctored memories of their time together. It was a montage of pure hatred, and loathing at every turn. A solid twenty, uninterrupted minutes of venom. Ayla sat, unspeaking as she let it play, watching her prisoner's every reaction.

As it unfolded, she began the most devious plan she could think of.

"Is this the man you cling to, Jacqueline? Is this who you idolize?"

At this point, Blue didn't have in her to put up any resistance. The machine freely took from her the memories and thoughts that they worked to obtain. Things as meaningless as her childhood, how she was feared by the other children simply for being the daughter of Mr Nightingale. How she discovered the little friends she had were actually being forced to be her friends. To the few endearing moments she shared with her family, with her father, a time when Jacqueline wasn't some sick twisted monster. Somewhere in there, they saw what changed her but whether that was important enough to note in detail is a matter of opinion.

Up until a certain point, after the betrayal and destruction of her own Family and their legacy, a bored Jacqueline went about doing as she pleased. Killing as she pleased for amusement and toying with anyone and everyone she could. She was a sword swung in all directions, without a purpose or a goal. Varying from extreme boredom and frustration to twisted slaughter fueled joy and bliss. Somehow this wild Jacqueline stumbled upon the concept of Ascendance and proof of mortals who had done just that. It fascinated her, gave her a path to follow. That path caused her to run into and hunt down the one called Lochlynn, she even encountered him. Traded blows with him and became forced to kneel. Knowing Loch, that was merely part of his plan.. Despite her gritting teeth and senseless struggle to continue, his dominance seemed absolute and her resistance futile. It was from here on that Jacqueline was changed into the woman she was, when she became the Blue Switch. All it took was a single phrase, something even her very father had uttered to her once before in a memory....just how long had Loch been watching? Scheming...
"When the stars feel lonely, when they fail and succumb to sorrow, do they dim and fade or shine brighter? You choose, Ms. Nightingale. Dim and fade here...or Ascend into radiance ever lasting."

The answer was obvious. Yet before Loch could make himself her entire world, fate intervened. She met Red and was smitten. Perhaps a pure love, the kind that normal people have, could have been overcome. But what Blue had was not pure love. It was obsession, sick and twisted. It was dark and gritty. Still he could manipulate it. She was addicted to that drug, Red and so he would feed her doses.

On screen came many false memories. Ayla would be able to tell that they were false memories, the events as she recalled them occurred differently entirely or simply Red was never actually there....

The Aschen Lieutenant began to pace a circle around the room. "You have given us little, I imagine, outside of a window into your vapid little soul," her tongue clicked. "I have been informed of your unhealthy obession with Mr.Yeoman.." She allowed the sentence to hang for a moment, trying to gauge Blue's reaction as she spoke

The light in her eyes flickered and momentarily became brighter at the mention of Tim's last name. The aching muscles of her face twitched but ultimately failed to express the emotion the mind had told them to convey.

"Would you like to see him again, Jacqueline?" Just then the door opened, the tech returning. He handed a holocron to Ayla, and resumed his post. "Because I can make that happen," she held the device up to Blue's glazed eyes. "With a simple press of the button."

The holoscreen flickered to life, displaying a nearly identical room, right down to the Chair, except there were only two people in it. Marlene, and Tim Yeoman. She walked around, himing and hawing, as he say in agony. Marlene whispered something, and Tim's Aurora screen came into focus.
A rapid sequence flashed, Tim's true feelings, Tim's undoctored memories of their time together. It was a montage of pure hatred, and loathing at every turn. A solid twenty, uninterrupted minutes of venom. Ayla sat, unspeaking as she let it play, watching her prisoner's every reaction.

This time, Blue reacted. Expecting the viper before her to spit poisonous words at her, to stab her ears with daggers, she gritted her teeth and her face conveyed a deep resentment for the woman that stood before her. It was as if, in that very instant, Ayla became the natural rival of Blue. Yet when the holocron shone brightly and displayed Tim...it took all of her attention away. Like a moth to a flame, she fixated on it very much like a dog whoms master had returned after a long journey.

The torrent of hatred and loathing that it showed her...it didn't shock her...Blue knew that Red despised her..somewhere in her she knew but...the fantasy showed to her. The world she had made for herself, fake though it was blissfully swell. This was a perverse intrusion upon that. A reminder most foul...and it shattered that frail world she made, that Loch used to control her.

Tears could not flow. Her throat would not voice what she felt, it couldn't. But her face...it showed her agony. Her body trembled...her very being trembled... It was something deep, her sorrow, her heart ache. More profound than than a mother weeping for her dead children or a husband for the murder of a spouse. It was the torment of a zealot, whom after devoting their entire life to their God, was told by that very God that their very existence was sin. That their salvation was impossible.

Yet despite this, the most heinous of betrayals was in Jacquelines own heart. It ached. It burned. It tore itself asunder with every venomous word she heard Red utter. As though a hand had gripped it tight and squeezed as if to crush it, that is what she felt and so much more. But still it refused to die. She mouthed the words, though she was desperately trying to audible confess for them all to here.

“Yes that is the man...that is my god. He hates me with all that he is...but I can't help but obsess over him with all that I am...”.

She hung her head low in shame and embraced herself, her naked body still trembling violently.

Yottskry and Kesslee watched the exchange with interest, the technicians had begun taking notes, scratching their notations in Anquietas on paper before Ayla told them to release her from the chair.

Kesslee shrugged, he wanted to see what Ayla was getting at, what she intended to do with this prisoner; it was all a test, he would grant her a degree of freedom, and watch her closely to see if she is stable, a willing servant of the Empire. Kesslee would give Ayla the stage this time, and gave a slight nod to Yottskry, whom began to unfasten the restraints from the Aurora chair, ultimately removing the device over blue's head.

The technicians cleared the room, and Kesslee opted to remain in a dark corner to observe the proceedings.

He watched in silence, to see what would happen next.

He bore a slight smile under the robes, though. He was impressed, this woman had Kianna's finesse, but unlike Kianna, she was displaying remarkable loyalty to the Empire. She could be controlled, and if she broke this blue, and made her bend her knee to the Emperor, then they would have two weapons worth wielding.

Ayla was quiet thankful for the room being cleared, even if Kesslee stayed, it was enough. The Aschen Lieutenant had been watching the Aurora's monitor closer than anyone, drinking in ever scene frame by frame. It lead her to a startling revelation.

Pity.

As Ayla watched the memories of them together, and of Lochlyn's savagery, a little spark began to burn inside her. It occurred to Ayla, through a flood of her own memories, that she, and Jacqueline were one in the same. Broken, twisted people chewed up by the world, and spit out on the plate of an abusive false-God.

But Tim, and Ayla were strong, they always had been, Blue had not. Not in the same ways.

She kept all emotion devoid from her face as Blue finally spoke, confessing her sick love. She paused the holocron, and paced as Blue was released. As the other Aschen began to empty the room, Ayla caught the Tech by the shoulder, whispering into his ear again.

Once more he merely nodded, and set out.

Taking a deep breath, the newfound Aschen woman nodded to the enshadowed Kesslee, and began I assault once more. But this time she was merely prying, trying to best assess what direction to take. As she stared at the maimed Blue for a moment a sick thought slithered into her mind.

"I could make her my own toy."

An eyebrow raised, and she stepped a little closer to ger former comrade, starting the Holocron back up. The flood of hatred played again, only the sound of Ayla's voice consumed the room.

"So, this man, you say.." The screened flashed to a "sparring" match. Blue pulled her punches against her "love", and in return Red unleashed a truly brutal beating on her. "You call him your God.." She trailed, thinking quickly, and figeting with the holocron.

It cut to Lochlyn, every detail of his being was carefully detailed now. Red had broken past Lochlyn's memory alters, and in this scene the "God" was thrashing Blue within an inch of her life. Surprisingly the scene irked Ayla, Tim had endured much the same, but rarely. The false God he had served now looked like nothing but a bully.

That too they had in common. Both women had been abandoned by him, left to torture. He would not come to save them. Red was strong enough to have seen this past his loyalty. Jacqueline would not

She gauged Blue for a moment, then allowed the footage to continue, again quite gently.

"Would you like to know what I see?" She asked, crouching down in front of Blue, eye to eye. "Pain. Agony. Misery." Ayla was much better than faking emotion than Tim had been, she sounded truly genuine. She wasn't. "I see a broken soul, lost and preyed upon by weak snakes," A soft sort of strength found it's way into her voice as more beatings played.

"I show you this, Jacqueline," she whispered the woman's name like a lover might. "Because it is proof you endured. It is proof that you can be greater." Her slender fingers reached forward, brushing Blue's
face as delicately as a feather. "We Aschen know pain,' she said, a grieved look in her eyes.

"We have endured it since the times of our greatest ancestors.."

About then the interrogation room door swung open, the tech returning with full arms.

Ayla looked Blue in the eyes one last time before getting up, and collecting her requests. A few holocrons, a tube of biogel, and a big, fluffy teal bathrobe. Ayla was digging deep, but she knew if she could press the right buttons Blue would do more than bend her knee to Prince

She'd crawl for Ayla, too. This the Lieutenant had decided.

But how. How? She wasn't sure if she shpuld try to play herself off as Tim, Ascended, or merely an Aschen warrior of no parallel. The fact that she was Red could snap Jacqueline, so she decided to play it safe. She slowly walked back over to Blue, kneeling down beside her.

The holcron still played, now on Tim's memory of a jungle, the same one Blue had seen earlier. Perfect

Ayla moved slowly, examining the gel bottle as she spoke. "You were not always a crass murderer, where you?" Instead of working together, the video showed the two of them having a fierce argument, after which Red stomped off. "You were once a woman, lost, and broken, but a woman none the less."

Right now Ayla felt her best bet was to push every button she could think of. On screen, Tim climbed a tree.

Aylas pulse sped up as she opened the goo, this was by far her crowning preformance. She kneeled down in front of the wounded Switch, her voice again a warm whisper. "Here, let me see what I can do about this," she squeezed some of the biogel onto her fingers, a cold sticky blob, and then reached forward quite gingerly. Her seemingly delicate fingers would be warm against Blue's drained body, nothing but a soft little reminder of human connection, before the sting of the gel.

It took only a moment, and the sound was sealed. The Lieutenant smiled at her prisoner, faking sincerity well.

"Is that better?" She asked, glancing at the holo-screen. Tim had climbed a massive tree, and set up his rifle. The perspective switched to his eyes, barred down a scope. His crosshair wandered.

Knowing this memory Ayla stood and grabbed the robe from the doorknob where she left it, purposely turning her back so Blue could watch in piece.

Slowly Tim scanned the forest until he found their camp. Blue was sitting alone on a fallen log, waiting for him to come back from scouting. His crosshair very meticulously made its way right between her eyes.

There was a soft click as Tim squeezed the trigger, safety still on. "Next time," he grunted. Part of her almost felt sorry. She had never seen how truly weak Blue was in the inside. She shook her head. With that over Ayla used I long legs to stride back to her prisoner, holding out the robe. "Put this on," she chimed, pretending to be oblivious to the holocron.

It was a start, she thought. She couldn't stall anymore, she had to choose, Red2.0, or just Ayla. All she could do now as continue to gauge Blue for the moment.