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Fecto: Stories Untold

By: Cellidor

Chapter 1: Patrol

Diary Entry, 21st R, 3034

Today will be the third week of my new job at Discovera. To say things have been moving fast is an understatement. I was already thrilled when Walter was able to get me a job there to begin with, especially since I only moved here a month ago, but...

To think they're already moving me up to the upper parts of the lab today...They did so many background and security related checks on me I've lost count of them all. Despite all the checks though it feels like the whole thing pushed through way too quick. It makes me wonder if they actually need security that bad or if they've been...'losing' them.

No, better to not think about that.

I've heard in the news the weather has been going kind of nuts in some other countries too, they're probably just trying to find some kind of...science, to help with it. Big lab needs their secrets kept, even if it's to help the whole globe.

I'm getting ahead of myself. Gotta get ready to meet with the Sec. Lead when I get in.

Maybe I'll even get a chance to see that alien all those tourists were all talking about....

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Even putting on this new security gear, it felt like I was being prepped to go into combat rather than just a security detail. It made sense, I suppose. It'd help if something dangerous got loose, but on top of that I wondered if Lab Discovera was concerned about people breaking in as well?

I couldn't get my heart to stop pounding, this was a very high profile job, even with my experience. I'd never been in a position like this before... and taking a deep breath, I'd head in to meet with the Sec, managing to maintain an air of confidence. It was no different than my previous positions, just more decked out gear, nothing to worry about, surely.

Oh and...and one more new precaution, too, it'd turn out.

As I walked into the security center, the Sec lead turned in his chair to face me. Unlike the cheerful and bright, chipper mood that emanated around the lower tourist sections, back around the restricted areas things were considerably more dour. Even as the Sec addressed me, they kept looking back at the cameras and keeping track of how people were moving, tourist or otherwise.

“You're here. On time, good." He kept looking me over here and there, then back and forth to the screens.

“You're missing a piece. The new deterrent from the labs, guess no one briefed you." He said, gesturing to the side to the table with a number of strange looking... thin plastic headbands?...

“Oh!"

New tech? How lovely. I could only wonder what the purpose they served as I walked on over and picked one of them up.

“Hmm... Headbands?"

Obviously there was more to it than that. I'd turn it over in my hand, examining it from all sides.

...Nope, I had nothing.

“... What are these for?"

Everything else I had on I was at least somewhat familiar with, but this...what could something like this possible 'deter'?

“You're not just working in the upper labs like the others in squad 4." He said, looking once more to the glowing screens “We need more personnel working up around F86, so you're being moved to the inner-lab sections."

He'd nod at the headband I'd picked up.

“They've got a new damper the techs had to cook up. The capsule alone isn't enough anymore to keep people from hearing its voice in their heads, not after the warp field incident. Tourists have to wear them too, they just don't know they're wearing them."

He'd reach by his desk, picking up and showing off a different headband. Not only was it far larger, it looked like....a pair of wings?...ears?...certainly fit the colorful themes of a theme park...and to think no one knew they had them on. They had large fuzzy cups around the sides of the head like ear muffs, probably to play some kind of tour guide audio as they walked.

“Zero tolerance policy for anyone not wearing one either, tourists or otherwise. I don't envy you having to work up there, but you're newer, you got the short end of the stick."

Well, at least he was being honest about it...sounded like there was a lot going on here, even more than I'd thought. My friend Walter got me this job to begin with, and I knew he lead one of the teams that worked on the tech here...thinking about it, that was probably at least part of why I ended up passing through those checks so fast. Maybe I could find some day to prod him for information, but...not today.

Today I'd apparently be working in the -same- room as this alien.

At least, I assumed it would be...they didn't have more than one, did they?

“Well, I did always want to see it up close... Careful what you wish for, huh?" I said with a bit of a laugh.

“Still, clever method to have the masses wear them without realizing it." I could tell by the look the Sec was giving me that he wasn't exactly open to idle chatter now that I'd been briefed. I cleared my throat. “Ah...anyways, I'll be off then...sir."

Small talk was nice and all, but it was a serious job, and I tried to adopt an appropriate attitude for whatever job I was doing.

“Who knows, working the inner lab might suit me."

I overheard the Sec say one more thing as I made my way out of the room.

“You might want to consider earplugs for future days, too."

...Earplugs? Well, whatever. Double checking the map I was given (digital, like most things here) and checking the time, I'd feel ready to get this show on the road. I knew where to go, and I knew what I was doing, likely acting as some kind of bouncer for unruly tourists, both protecting the creature and... being prepared to protect against the creature if the need ever arose.

After all, we'd all heard the stories.

I could handle it, a job was a job...and this one happened to pay very well.

As I went through the corridors and up through the elevators, I could feel the sheer focus in the air....everyone I passed by seemed to be on edge, in some way or another. A sort of...tension hanging all around. Was this tied to that 'event' from before that lead to these bands being made? More to the point, it was strange they'd even be allowing people in to see the creature at all...what was the purpose? Was it just commerce or was there something more to it?

Also, what did this creature even look like? Even before now people had apparently never been allowed to bring any kind of cameras or recording devices, so-...

My thoughts were interrupted as I got closer to the lab's upper sections. I wasn't even there yet, but even so I could feel the voice of some sort of announcer echoing in the halls...why was it so loud? To hear it -this- far away? Sounded like it was some woman....giving some information to tourists?

“Agh... what the-... You'd think Earplugs would be on the list of mandatory items..." I'd grumble to myself under my breath.

Not like I needed to mumble, it was so damn loud it was a miracle it didn't deafen the people working here. Either everyone else had earplugs or you'd have to somehow learn to tune it all out.

“Almost makes me feel bad for the alien, heh..."

Of course, that was a stretch. Even if there were no surviving recordings, the devastation it had caused when it arrived back before I'd even been born... who would feel pity for something like that?

Thinking back to the headbands, it made sense now why the tourist's version of the headbands seemed to have built-in ear-muffs...sure it might have some kind of basic radio in it to try and give them information about the tour in other sections, but blocking out this unbearably loud tour guide's voice would no doubt be the primary purpose, outside of whatever sciencey 'dampening' the headband internals had.

It made me wonder, was this loud noise maybe some extra attempt to damper the creature's abilities, or was it just an attempt to ensure tourists never took the headbands off? I sure as hell wouldn't be tempted to with this kind of sound pounding down on me.

As I passed through the next secure door, I'd finally enter the lab...right on time to hear the loud voice echoing in the room 'AND HERE WE ARE!...', A door well beyond some kind of reinforced glass lighting up indicating the next group of tourists was about to show up.

Here I was...and there it was.

Impossible to ignore in a place like this. A giant capsule in the center of a huge room, flanked on all sides by scientists working on different tests, checking screens and readings, the sound of energy thrumming through the place when it wasn't being assaulted by the tour guide's voice. The capsule had a number of extra attachments connected, looking like they'd been added recently and buzzing noisily with electricity. Below that, there in the center of that capsule...sat the alien.

'ID-F86'.

They looked exceptionally tall, more so than the stories had described. Some had said this thing was the size of a person, but this being looked to be almost 11 feet tall, shortened with them sitting where they were. They had an almost humanlike appearance...almost. Bright white fur covering their body, shifting to sharp reds with black tips. Exceptionally long fingers and simply massive ears that at first glance seemed like wings. Two curved horns along the top of its head, a large crest-like mane on its chest...it was leaned back against the glass, both of its eyes wide open but staring ahead at the ground a ways in front of it. It was surreal...how could something look at once so powerful and majestic while also looking so...dejected?

“Woah..."

Looking over the creature was something else... all that power and majesty, yet looking so completely... broken. Was this a result of that 'warp field incident'? Or was this just because of that obnoxious tour guide's voice beating into everyone's ears?

“And speaking of ears, just look at the size of its..." Somehow I doubted this "eternal capsule" (as my brief had called it) stopped noise from coming -in-. Ears like that could hear for miles.

No, stop. I can't just stand around gawking. I had a job to do.

As I saw the latest group of tourists come in, it seemed each of them had their headbands on. Good.

My shift here would be on a split rotation of sorts, split between four different sections of this room. Each section I was set in cycled every half-hour or so.

The first section was the tourist area, either in the main tourist area or in the hallway leading to the lab from the elevator. In either case I'd be checking for headbands and making sure people didn't go past the designated viewing areas. Simple enough.

Section two was around the capsule itself...given the task of literally watching the creature directly, to inform any nearby scientists and security right away in case it did anything suspicious.

Section three would be the quietest. I'd be patrolling the balconies out around the generators and network cables that lined a massive wall out back, checking again for suspicious activity, or anything a technician might need to hear about. That section was the only one where I'd be alone on my routes.

Most concerning was the fourth section...that one was back in the lab again, only I'd be watching over the -scientists-...making sure they kept their bands on and didn't act suspicious...it really drove home how dangerous this thing must truly be.

In either case, during any one shift I'd see my fair share of every part of the lab and the surrounding area...but more importantly, section two would give me a chance to actually look closer at this strange alien creature...but that wasn't for awhile yet.

“How did they even manage to catch this thing...?"

My grandfather of all things was part of the original squad that neutralized it in the first place. I'd never ended up following his footsteps into a military position, security had been the next best thing. Not that you could really tell I wasn't military with the gear they had us in...

I glanced over towards it again, as it sat motionless in the capsule.

“Sheesh, didn't think it was possible to feel bad for something that tried to kill your planet but..."

Perhaps it was just the sad way it just sort of sat there, staring at the floor. Who knew, maybe after a few hours of hearing that tourism tour on loop, I'd be able to emphasize with it on some level.

Through my first run of section four, I saw that every single scientist without fail had ear plugs in, or even wore straight up ear muffs! Even out on section 3 I'd still hear it repeating with every single loop.

The only good part, was whenever it ended. The tour guide made mention of other captured wildlife specimens effected by F86 for people to go and see, ending with a loud 'EXIT IS RIGHT TO YOUR LEFT! HEAD RIGHT ON OUT THIS WAY!'. After that, the silence that followed between that and the next tour was just...deafening. Without ear muffs or plugs, I'd have a temporary ringing in my ears for a few minutes after. Then it'd just be... silence. Silence until the next group anyways.

It just so happened that this silence lined up with the next switch. Time to go watch the specimen directly...my first chance to see it close-up...

Giving the guard I was switching with a nod, I'd head on in to the next section up by the side of F-86's containment. That ringing in my ears was just, awful. I doubted it was going to move much in any case, it hadn't since I'd gotten here, and likely before I got here either. It probably wouldn't even after I left.

Did it even eat? How did it get food? More to the point, but the fact that it seemed intelligent really...seemed unsettling. Not for the sake of it being intelligent, but the idea of keeping something that -was- trapped in a tube like this.

It'd be bad enough in a quiet lab, never mind this nonsense. The dull silence present at least let me hear the sound of the machines up close. The whirring, humming of energy and engines, things working to keep the creature at bay...

I'd see the soft fur along its form briefly shift. Swelling, flattening, changing slightly to the motions as if its fur was as alive as the rest of it. Up this close though, I'd notice... something about its eyes. It wasn't just staring at the ground. No, those eyes kept on shifting slightly, looking slightly up, to the side, down... Strangely, it brought to mind someone having a conversation with themselves. Mulling things over in their head, talking to themselves, that sort of thing.

The frills on the sides of its head twitched now and then, a subtle shifting of its wings...I noticed too that its right hand seemed to keep closing around open air, not in a fist but as if expecting something to be there. This close, I also noted that it had a similar sort of mane between its legs...I mean, it wasn't exactly wearing clothes. Did this thing have a gender at all? It was an alien species, would it do anything of the sort like that in a terrestrial sense? Maybe it was some cosmic being that simply burst forth from some dying star or something for all I knew. These were all just idle thoughts of course, but...even so, considering them added a different sort of beauty to this sad creature in my mind.

I found myself mumbling idly.

“I guess I was expecting to be awestruck to a degree but this is just..."

Sad. It was sad. the motions it made gave the idea that it was pretty intelligent, at least enough that this place was probably a living hell for it. Even a wild animal would be driven crazy by this sort of thing and the capsule itself didn't even seem big enough for it to stretch out fully. What's more, I could tell by the way its ears curled in whenever the tour voice kicked up that it could definitely hear it in its capsule.

I needed to stop thinking about this.

But how could I? How could I, when my job was to watch it directly? I couldn't be the first person to notice these little movements, to see its obvious intelligence? Surely I wasn't the only one to feel bad for it? Surely!

And yet...maybe no one could do anything about it? Maybe no one cared? Could be they just hated the thing for what it'd done...thought this was a fitting prison?

There was Walter...

Walter was, and always had been a kind, caring individual. Even though he'd lost his father to this creature...but all the same, maybe that was just me being optimistic. I still felt it might be worth talking to him later, maybe finding out more information...and as that thought crossed my mind, it started up again.

"...AND HERE WE ARE!"

It was enough of a start to make one wince when lost in thought like this...and I saw the creature winced just as hard, a clear indication that it could hear the voice as well as I did if not more. I even saw its body change slightly too as a result. The red in its fur deepened, the blacks crawling just a bit further along its body...and I'd see its chest rise up, taking in a breath. Its long, slender hand with those long nails raised, coming to its face and covering its eyes for a moment, eyes that had glowed for a moment before closing. After another few seconds passed, it let out that breath, slowly, carefully....hand lowering back down as the reds and blacks receded to where they were before.

For a first time the creature changed its focus, looking instead up ahead at the next group as they walked into the room. Just...watching them. Watching them point, watching them gaze in awe, talking to each other, impossible to hear through the distance and two layers of glass. Just sort of...staring, eyes half-open.

I wondered if I should be worried by the change in color, but I could see that the guard watching F-86 on the other side of the capsule had seen it too. He hadn't reacted to it at all, so I had to assume this was...something common? Having colours creep along its body, only then having to... What, calm itself down? I questioned what purpose trying to maintain composure would serve it, but... perhaps it would be hurt by a controlled shock or something if it didn't? Or... would it lose some sort of sense of self and be rendered a mindless beast? Anything sentient would be afraid of that. Better trapped as yourself than trapped with your brain gone, right?

Too many questions and not enough answers. I doubted anyone would appreciate me distracting them with queries while they worked, if they could even hear me at all over the announcer.

---

Diary Entry, 21st R, 3034

My first day of working in the upper lab was... Interesting. Stressful. Confusing.

For the first time I got to see the alien, the specimen they labeled 'ID-F86'. While it was as awe inspiring as I'd hoped, it was also rather sad... I can't quite put my finger on why, but I felt so bad for the poor thing being stuck in that capsule, despite all the horrible things it's done... Speaking of, Walter... I need to ask him a few questions about the new tech...

AND BUY SOME DAMN EARPLUGS!!

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Diary Entry, 22nd R, 3034

Ended up messaging Walter in the morning. He actually sounded like he'd like someone to talk to about all of this but can't over text, I figure he's probably going crazy not being allowed to say a word to anyone on the outside. Could have been his ulterior motive to helping me get the job, hah~ That'd be like Walter. He said he'd be free to talk in a few days, told me to come see him after work then? Maybe he wants to go for a drink.

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DAMMIT. I FORGOT ABOUT THE EAR PLUGS. Even tried asking if anyone had spares at work, but anyone I asked either said no or didn't want to chat. Half these people look like they're not getting any sleep. Jeese Walter, what have you gotten yourself into? Either way, ended up spending the latter half of my time off yesterday just trying to find some decent plugs in this city. Never thought a city with so much could make things so hard to find....