“How the hell did you make it back here?” Gabriel asked, narrowing his eyes at me.
I found his expression to be quite irritating. Of course, it probably had to do with the fact that we had to get rid of them as soon as possible. The rogue Faulties were minutes away from getting slaughtered out there.
“We flew,” I replied bluntly, then motioned for them to walk away. “We’re busy. Let’s talk later.”
That didn’t work. Raziel took a step forward, clearly suspicious of our presence here. And they definitely weren’t the type of Perfects we could just brush off with a vague, two-worded explanation. My blood was racing, my reflexes sharp and ready to take them on, if needed.
“What’s going on in there?” Raziel asked, then froze at the sight of Araquiel in the laboratory. “You! You’re alive! Araquiel! Brother!”
Deena muttered a string of foul words, then grabbed Raziel by his tunic’s collar and dragged him into the room. Uriel was quick to grip Gabriel’s throat and pull him in, as well, away from the main corridor—where other Perfects and Faulties were still buzzing.
The fight broke out between the seven of us. I threw the first punch at Raziel, taking advantage of his initial moment of confusion. The hit managed to break his jaw. I felt his bone crack under my knuckles.
Deena and Angelica handled Gabriel, but it didn’t look easy. He was a fearsome warrior, to say the least. The only advantage we had was that we’d fought together before, even if only in training. We had some knowledge of their weak points, based on what we’d noticed in the video files of our memories.
The sense of urgency blew through me like a shot of adrenaline. Just in time, too, as I had the sense to duck and avoid a deep facial cut from Raziel’s extended claws. Uriel rammed his fists into his lower back, bruising the kidneys.
I let my claws out and slashed at Raziel, drawing blood and ripping his tunic off. It was a combined effort to disable both him and Gabriel as quickly and as quietly as possible, so we could set the last charge.
Raziel was faster, though, and managed to sneak an arm out. His claws sliced through my side and cut off the strap I’d used to keep the last brick-sized charge on my body. It fell on the ground with a thump. I caught a glimpse of Araquiel sliding down to grab it, just as Raziel turned around to quickly deal with Uriel.
This was my only opening. Raziel was a worthy opponent, to say the least.
“You traitors! You’re working with the outsiders, aren’t you?!” Raziel shouted, and punched Uriel multiple times.
I snuck up on him and snatched the long knife from his belt. He heard the screech of the blade leaving its sheath, but he didn’t have time to react. I grabbed him by the hair and cut his head off in one decisive hit.
“Raziel! No!” Gabriel gasped.
Uriel snarled from both pain and fury, then darted toward Gabriel. He drove his clawed hands into his stomach. Gabriel stilled, his eyes wide from the shock. His lips parted. A quiet second later, blood gushed out.
Deena took his short sword and decapitated him. She and Angelica then dragged the bodies out of sight, while Uriel caught his breath, staring at his shaky hands. He seemed disgusted by his own actions.
“I killed my brothers,” he muttered.
“They’ll be back,” Araquiel replied, emerging from behind a tall metallic cabinet. “We’re done here.”
“Are we good to go?” I asked. “Thanks, by the way.”
“Don’t mention it,” Araquiel said, then looked at Uriel. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. We’ll kill a lot more of our people in the hours to come. We all know what we have to do now.”
“Yes. No, I get it. It’s just… I didn’t think it would feel this way,” Uriel said, struggling to come to terms with what he’d done.
I gave him a firm pat on the back. “We have to do what we have to do, Brother. The fate of the world depends on us, and there is so much of it that we won’t get to see, if we fail.”
“We’re ready, by the way,” Araquiel interjected. “All the charges are set and connected. We need to make them go boom.”
Angelica and Deena came back to the center of the laboratory. I could still see Gabriel’s and Raziel’s legs under one of the tables, but it didn’t really matter at this point. We just didn’t want them to stand out.
“We’ve got to get out of here first,” Angelica said.
“Right,” I replied, then fumbled through my tunic pocket for my invisibility spell ration. We’d all been given ten of these algae-based pouches to chew on, for quick consumption and activation.
Araquiel found his and popped it in his mouth. We looked at one another as we chewed, listening to the noises coming from outside. Someone was barking orders, directing the guards to the southwest gate.
“It’s getting hot out there,” Araquiel said as he vanished.
I couldn’t help but smile. “Then let’s make it hot in here, too.”
“You two are stooges.” Deena chuckled, then pointed toward the door as she became invisible. “We’re going north. Those charges will go last in the chain reaction.”
I nodded and put my red lens on. Through it, I could see the four Perfects I knew I’d have a good future with, if we succeeded in this mission. I wanted all the pain and misery to end for those most affected by Ta’Zan’s actions. But I also yearned to go out there and explore the many and diverse planets that the universe had to offer.
As we ran out of the laboratory, I thought of the four still-developing Perfects we’d left in the artificial wombs. They were still innocent. They didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. They didn’t deserve this.
“Hold on!” I breathed, then ran back into the room, dodging potential hostiles left and right.
I entered the lab again and stopped in front of one of the artificial wombs, checking its cables and wiring. How could I disconnect them, and what would that do to the creatures inside?
Uriel squeezed my shoulder, startling me. “They’re premature, Brother.”
He’d come back to stop me, but I couldn’t find it in me to leave them here, so vulnerable. Their minds had yet to be tarnished by Ta’Zan. Maybe there was still hope for them. I ripped one of the oxygen cables first. The hiss echoed through the room, and Uriel muttered a curse and went over to the second womb. One cable at a time, he disconnected it.
I did the same, smiling and thankful that he was here with me. Soon enough, Angelica and Deena joined us, while Araquiel kept watch by the door.
“There isn’t much we can do,” I whispered, “but we can at least wake them up and tell them to get out of here. Morfuris…”
Turning myself visible, I ripped through the artificial membrane. Amniotic liquid spilled out. The Perfect, a young female with medium-length black hair and pale, almost iridescent skin, was free. But her eyes were still closed. In a moment of instant clarity, upon measuring her from head to toe, I pulled my knife out and cut the umbilical cord.
