14 cycles later…

I lunged forward, a scream escaping my dry lips. My eyes dart side to side, searching for the culprit behind my sudden panic. I try to catch my breath, the frantic inhales and exhales the only sounds in the dark hollow cell. I let out a groan, closing my eyes shut. Another nightmare.

I attempted to move forward, wincing at the sudden pain around my wrists. I looked over my shoulder, seeing the copper, rusted shackles binding me, the short chain extending to its maximum length from the silver concrete wall behind me.

“Stupid piece of magically infused metal.” I muttered, glaring at the contraption with murderous intent.

“If it didn’t nullify my magic, I’d burn it to a crisp.”

 I smirked, a gentle voice echoed in my head.

“I know you would Lily.” I replied.

Lily was the phoenix spirit, whom I’d acquired due to the death of my best friend. It had taken me quite some time to accept her death, naming my newly acquired spirit in her honour after months of grieving.

I scooted backwards, easing the pull of the shackles against my bruised wrists. As much as I wanted to heal these superficial wounds, I didn’t bother. The pain was a reminder that I had survived another day. Frankly, I was way too tired to call upon my angel spirit, Hope, to work her healing mojo on my sore aching body.

I lifted my head up to lean back against the wall, taking a deep breath to calm my racing heart. I could feel the sweat dripping down the side of my face. I opened my blue eyes and stared at the mold filled ceiling. This can’t possibly be healthy to breathe in every day.

I decided to distract myself from waking to another day in this torturous hellhole and the possibly life-threatening mold looming above me.

“Let’s see…my name is Makoto Heart, but I’m referred to as experiment 555. I’m twenty-two cycles. I’ve been stuck in this hellhole for as long as I can recall. I don’t remember anything before I reached six cycles. Doesn’t really bother me…though, I ponder sometimes if I even had a childhood. I have long, brown hair, though it can sometimes change colour depending on my magic usage. My lips are naturally light red; my eyes are a bright turquoise blue. Oh, did I mention they changed colour too? My favourite colour is pink, and I like to swear a lot. Shit is my favourite word….is it weird for a swear word to be my favourite? I wonder if I’m weird…hmm, being weird isn’t bad though. Would I want to be normal? Nah, I would be dead if I was normal…so scratch that…” I ramble on, allowing my head to wobble from side to side.

“What. Are. You. Doing?” A toneless voice asked. My demon spirit, Rose, was always the first to question my sanity. I wondered if she thought I was crazy or simply felt bad for me and our current situation.

“I’m working on my social skills. In the event I finally get out of this hellhole and have no choice but to communicate with intellectual shifters. Oh, how about if I meet a pure human? I wouldn’t want to sound preposterous now, would I?” I explained, feeling a sense of pride.

“At least her rambles keep us entertained…though, I don’t think you should be proud of that.” Hope pointed out, her smooth, melodic voice made my heart calm instantly.

Hope was the calmest spirit I could ever ask for. Her voice was so soothing, each word that flowed out of her sounded like an angelic song. The Starlight gods were lucky if they had a group of angel spirits to sing them to sleep. Hmm, do the gods sleep? I guess they’re gods, they don’t have to…right? I was about to ask when another voice entered my now over crowded head.

“I don’t know. Don’t ask me.”

I pursed my lips out before frowning. I dropped my shoulders, feigning disappointment.

“Aww. C’mon Lexi. Don’t be so mean to your loveable host. I bet you’re curious too.” I replied, a yawn escaping my lips.

“Hmph. Maybe. Whatever.” I grinned, satisfied with her answer.

My dragon, Lexi, wasn’t much for words. I hadn’t discovered her until I was sixteen.

Long story short, I had gotten into a little disagreement with a guard during an expedition.

Our leader, I like to refer to him as “The Owner,” since he has never once told us his actual name, ordered a few guards and myself to deal with a dishonest shifter. Apparently, he hadn’t completed his end of whatever deal he made and the Owner was not impressed.

As we arrived at the village, it didn’t take me long to pinpoint where our target was hiding. The other guards, however, didn’t believe a sixteen-cycles teenager could locate a shifter from such a far radius. I continued to argue my point, not understanding why it seemed out of the ordinary for me to determine where one lousy shifter was hiding, especially when his attempt at hiding seemed weak to me. Every shifter who possessed a fragment of magic carried an aura. Sense the aura, find the person you’re looking for. It was as simple as that.

After wasting three hours searching aimlessly, I had tolerated enough, my patience withering to nothing. If no one was going to listen to me, I shouldn’t have been dragged here to begin with. I decided to sit at the beginning checkpoint, refusing to use my sense of detection to help such foolish bear shifters. That’s when the argument started, one of the bear shifters threatening to punish me if I didn’t cooperate.

I was rebellious in my teen cycles, so when someone other than the Owner told me to do something, I did the opposite; in this case, I refused. Anyways, the argument escalated, the guard dragged me to a bush and decided he wanted to “teach” me a lesson. Before he could even attempt to touch me, I apparently blacked out.

I don’t remember much after that, everything was a blur. I heard from the other guards that I shifted fully into dragon form. I had to admit, I was impressed, but after hearing what Lexi did, I felt bad for the village.

Lexi had gone on a little rampage, burning anything in sight, which included the whole village. Took the Owner himself to arrive on scene and de-escalate the situation; as in forcing me to calm down with the “obey me” mark.

I glanced down to peer at the small circular symbol located just above my breasts, right in the center. It was a simple circle; inside had the initials BA in cursive. It was what allowed the Owner to have control over all the shifters in the facility. It was kind of like pledging allegiance to your master…by force. No shifter would stay obedient, just to be a test subject every day. I know I wouldn’t.

Either way, two problems were solved that day; Lexi had killed our target and the guard who wanted to teach me a lesson, got his head chopped off. Quite gruesome, though he had it coming.

That was my one and only opportunity outside these walls, but with all the cycles that had passed and our little operation happening in the early hours of the night, it didn’t look any different from the darkness that surrounded the facility every day. I still felt that I hadn’t experienced an ounce of freedom.

My eyes began to close, drowsiness setting in. I prayed it wasn’t daylight yet. Just a few more minutes to rest before the notorious daily routine began. The next moment, I heard a click, followed by a loud creak. I groaned, slamming my head back against the wall. Why did my prayers always get ignored?

“Hey Rose, you think I can induce a concussion in ten seconds?” I asked. I felt her nudge into my mind, an audible sigh followed.

“Please…don’t tell me you’re actually serious? With how clumsy you are, I’m surprised you haven’t fallen to your demise, yet.” She pointed out. Ouch.

“You know, sometimes you're so cruel.” I grumbled the thought. I could feel her concern for my wellbeing.

“It’s your moments of stupidity that worry me. Plus, you seem to forget my demon nature. Cruelty is far from what I’m capable of. I’m simply nice to you. Also, you really need to work on that ‘I love talking out loud’ problem.” She argued. I could picture her rolling her eyes at me.

“I didn’t say that out loud! Plus, it’s hard to practice that when I’m either being shocked multiple times or getting my blood drained out of me like the lovable lab rat I am.” I retorted.

I was labelled as experiment 555 here in the facility. When I was younger, the experiments and trials had been scheduled once a week. As the cycles passed and I got older, they began to increase in frequency, going from once a week to whenever I was conscious. The Owner had changed our trial sessions to daily, stating his plans for us had altered. I didn’t believe his words, my heart telling me there was some underlying motive behind the lies.

The lab sessions were like a blood bank, giving a significant portion of your blood to be tested. It happened so often, I gave up on even asking what vial fifteen was testing. Since shifters had a much faster healing rate, we could recover from the blood loss at a quicker pace. That wasn’t a beneficial trait in this case. It simply contributed to our suffering.

I heard multiple sighs, clearly coming from more than one of my spirits.

“And there she goes, talking out loud again.” Hope sang sweetly.

“She has improved, though. It was worse before.” Lily pointed out.

“Better than her sleep walking.” Lexi stated blankly.

“You know…sometimes I hate all of you. Go away.” I mumbled out loud on purpose, shoving them out of my mind. Enough of “let's talk about Mako’s flaws” for today.

“AND my sleep walking isn’t that bad!” I argued. Of course, I had to have the last word.

Yes, I had a tiny little sleepwalking problem. That’s the main reason why I was chained to the wall every night. Didn’t matter what type of locked room I was in. If my wrists were free, I could free myself easily and go wherever my sleeping consciousness wanted to venture.

It had been a bad habit when I was younger. I’d be in my room when I fell asleep, to waking up in the Owner’s room at daylight. I don’t think he minded much in the beginning, but once Elaine came into the picture, when I was seven-cycles, it was easier to chain me with the magic restricting shackles of death. I could hear a set of footsteps approaching.

“Concussion in five seconds.” I whispered as I mentally prepared myself. Rose came back, her voice irritated.

“It won't work for Starlight’s sake! Don’t you try it. None of us want to deal with that split personality of yours today.” Her voice was firm and commanding.

Oh, right. Guess she had a point. No triggering my split personality with a head injury, darn it.

My split personality was completely different than having my spirits. Spirits simply had the ability to take control of your body with the host’s permission. My split, however, was her own entity. If she was summoned, I would be asleep, giving her full control to rain havoc as she pleased.

You guys are no fun. I straightened my back as I crossed my legs.

“555, are you talking to yourself again? Honestly, I don’t see what the boss sees in you.”

A voice emerged from the darkness, a shadow appearing in front of the cell bars.

Within seconds, the guard became visible, his large plump figure coming into view as the dim dungeon lights flashed on.

All the guards were shifters with bear spirits. I didn’t know what made them more special than the vast selection of potential shifters who could take the role of guarding us, but the Owner had specifically chosen their race. Maybe they were easier to control?

The guard looks like the other guards: tall, ugly and round bellied. Bear shifters weren’t all round bellied. With a fast metabolism and strength, their usual body characteristic was big, built, bulky and ripped, at least that’s what I’d learned from research in the facility’s library. I guess with all the alcoholic drinks they indulged in daily, I wasn’t really surprised they had beer bellies. Alcohol was one of the few rewards they received for “appropriate” guarding. Appropriate included beating and raping if necessary.

He had dull, brown eyes, dark tanned skin and you could practically see his hairy chest through his thin uniform shirt. It clearly didn’t fit his large, broad chest, but I guess he thought it made him look attractive.

His eyes raked over my body, his lips forming a smirk. I rolled my eyes. Savage beast acts like he has never seen breasts before.

 I was wearing a simple brown dress, long enough to cover my round butt, but not doing much justice to cover my big breasts. I was skinny but I had been blessed with the big chest, nice buttock combo.

“Oh please, you love me.” I replied, putting on my best fake smile, batting my eyes innocently. It was his turn to roll his eyes.

“Let’s get this over with, little fox. Make sure you eat your breakfast this time. You and I both know how upset the Owner gets when you don’t eat.” He stated, unlocking the gate, sliding it open.

“I don’t see the point. I’m just going to vomit it out later. Such a waste of food.” I mumbled, shaking my head.

“Well, I like my head attached to my body, my eyes safely in my sockets, and my penis attached to my groin. So, just follow the rules and eat. I don’t want to experience anything the previous guards received for disobeying his orders.” He argued back, approaching me with the keys to the annoying shackles.

How could I possibly forget? The rule of thumb was still the same, even after fourteen cycles. Do what you’re told and nothing bad will happen to you. The simple reminder was enough to send shivers down my spine.

He grabbed my wrists, yanking me up. I hissed from the onset of pain as I wobbled to my feet. He must have noticed me grimacing cause he let go, giving me a moment to stabilize myself. I rubbed at my wrists, assessing them quickly. Ugh, these are pretty bad. I made my way out of the cell, the guard right behind me.

“I’ll tell the healers to make you an ointment for those wrists. Should have changed your chains a while ago.” He muttered.

“HAH.” I laughed out loud by accident. Did he feel sorry for me? Doubtful.

“Aww, aren’t you consider –” My words were cut short as a loud crashing sound echoed through the facility, the ground shook as small amounts of dust fell from the ceiling.

“What the fuck was that?” I yelled. Another blast erupted, causing the walls to shake again. It literally felt like an earthquake. I leaned against the wall as I tried to keep upright.

“Harold! Come in. What’s going on up there?” The bear shifter screamed into his communication device as he grabbed the wall opposite of me, struggling to not fall over. The sound of the intercom on the wall came to life.

“INFILTRATION! I REPEAT, INFILTRATION. INTRUDERS SIGHTED, KILL ON SIGHT!” The frantic voice screamed. Intruders? Who in their right mind would break into here? The fortress of death.

“Well, as much as I’d love to stay and chat, I think I’m going to scurry along. See ya.” I stated, making a run for it towards the door. Hell, I wasn’t sticking around for some intruders to kidnap me. I’d had enough torture for one life cycle, thank you very much.

Before I could reach the door, I felt the air knocked out of me as I was slammed to the floor, a heavy weight pinning me to the ground.

“Not so fast, 555. You think I’m going to let you simply escape without having some fun time. If I’m going to die, I might as well be the first to enjoy this luscious body of yours.” The guard sneered as he held my wrists together behind my back.

FUCK! I tried to fight his strong grip, as I kicked my legs furiously. I tried to call my spirits to my defense and was rewarded with the mark on my chest, the burning sensation stopping my pursuit in summoning my spirits for help.

“For Starlight’s sakes, fuck this stupid piece of shit mark and get the fuck off me!” I screamed as I continued my struggle, which was pointless. I heard him laugh, a loud grumbling sound. Of course, he was enjoying this, sick bastard.

“Don’t worry little fox, you’ll be screaming my name shortly.” He announced.

I could hear him unbuckling his belt and the zzzzzzz of his zipper as he slowly pulled it down. I froze, my heart hammering wildly against my chest, as tears started to form in my eyes.

I wasn’t one to cry, but how could I not? I was now pinned down, about to be raped by the ugliest bear guard I’d knew; the frustration of my four spirits radiated through my mind as they thrashed around, unable to defend me due to the loyalty mark, and right before me was the exit.

Yet again, I was face to face with freedom. I was inches away…but it was too far from my reach. Did the Starlight gods, not care? Why had they never answered me? Was my wish so pathetic? So low in priority, they not once glanced my way. Hadn’t I suffered enough?

I braced myself as the guard forced my legs open with one hand, his other still pinning me down, using his body weight as leverage.

“Don’t worry, it won’t hurt too much.” He mumbled, readying himself.

I squeezed my eyes shut, the tears that formed, flowed down my flushed cheeks.

“Starlight gods, for once…PLEASE listen to my unworthy selfish dark wish...please…if there is any possibility to save me now…anything will do…just don’t let this happen!” I prayed as hard as I could.

This would be my final plea. The gods had allowed Lily to be taken away from me. I had lived a torturous painful life so far. They had never answered my calls before. Why would they now?

The sound of the door slammed against the wall. I felt the guard’s body go rigid against my shivering flesh. I slowly glanced up, opening my tear-filled eyes to the view before me.

Four gorgeous men stood at the entrance way. I felt my jaw go slack at the sight. Not only were they magnificent, I was practically suffocating from the amount of power oozing out of them. I mustered up enough courage to do something I had never done in cycles, ask for help.

“Help.” I croaked, my voice barely audible. I watched as one of the men stepped forward. The one eye catching characteristic was his Tyrian purple eyes, which started to bleed black. OH SHIT, he was a demon shifter!

Within seconds, the weight that confined me in place was lifted. I quickly rolled over, scrambling to my feet, pressing my body against the left wall, turning my attention to the demon shifting newcomer who currently had the bear guard in a neck hold. I felt my eyes grow wide as I watched the bear guard struggle to get out of the demon’s hold.

“We HATE disgusting bastards like you…be gone.” The demon’s voice held no tone, but the power surging from him was undeniable.

Dark flames burst out of thin air, consuming the bear shifter. His cries echoed against the dungeon walls. The acrid smell of burning flesh hit my nose, making me want to vomit. Twenty seconds later, the room fell silent. He was nothing but ash now, floating to the ground.

I felt my jaw drop, as the sudden hold preventing my spirits from taking over disappeared, the burning sensation coming from my chest dimming to nothing. I knew how dangerous dark flames were. Not to mention how bloody hard it was to summon them. I knew from experience and in my current weakened state, I was so screwed.

Oh, hell no. I’m not getting caught up in that. Nope, no dark flames burning me to ash please.

Spinning around, I stride forward in the opposite direction. I could feel the stares at the back of my head, but I didn’t give two flying fucks. I went back to my cell, grabbing my dust filled blanket and huddling in the corner. Might as well ride this invasion out in the comfort of my musty, cramped cell.

“Did she really just go back to her cell?” A voice questioned, with a sound of amusement.

I could hear footsteps approaching as I continued my hiding attempt. I tried to make myself as small as possible as I curled in a ball, tightening the blanket around me.

“You know…we can see you.” A second voice pointed out.

He sounded unamused, probably bored at my failed attempt. Alright, time to wake up now. It’s all just a dream, Lalalalalala.

“Talking out loud.” Rose pointed out.

“Poor girl talks to herself too? I swear this place made her crazy.” A third voice stated, his soothing sound reminded me of Hope. Must be an angel. Only angels sound so…angelic.

“Come out…we won’t hurt you.” I recognized the voice of the demon shifter who annihilated the guard like a pesky ant.

I continued to hide beneath the thin blanket, hopeful they would leave me be.

“Oh, don’t mind me. I’m just a bystander. Continue on with your killing spree. I’ll just sit over here in this corner…minding my own business.” I gestured. Yup, my social skills are awesome.

“Too bad you have the tendency to talk to us out loud, ninety-nine percent of the time…like a crazy person.” Rose retorted.

“I didn’t say that out loud this time.” I replied, irritated.

“You announced to your lovely guests over there, that your apparent social skills were awesome.” She argued.

“Yup. We just saved a mentally insane shifter. I don’t even know what I should be more concerned about; her apparent awesome social skills, or the fact she’s hiding under a blanket in a decently lit cell.” The emotionless voice exclaimed. Ugh!!! Why me, why, why, why?

“Just, uh…go away. Leave me and my blanket alone…shoo.” I stated, poking my hand out of my barricade, waving it in a flicking gesture.

A laugh surged through the air, causing me to jump. I peeked out to see the sapphire blue-eyed guy laughing, his large arms wrapped around his waist as he buckled over.

“Did she just SHOO us away!!! I can’t! This is priceless, can we adopt her?” He asked, as he unwrapped his arms to wipe the newly formed tears in his eyes.

I furrowed my brow as I watched them closely. What is with these men?

“If you're going to kill me…don’t laugh at my uniqueness.” I grumbled. I didn’t like when people laughed at me. I didn’t think the situation was funny.

The purple eyed male sighed, lifting his hand to glide through his sleek, jet-black hair as he closed his eyes.

“We aren’t going to kill you. I swear by the Starlight gods. We’re here to rescue you.” He said softly.

I watched as he opened his eyes again, staring intently at me. I felt a surge of pain in my head, causing me to wince. What the fuck? Why…does he look familiar to me? The throbbing continued, but I tried to ignore it.

“Hey, Leonardo, we found her. Make your way back to the ship.” He announced in the small communication device located on his right wrist.

I watched as the third guy stepped forward, his gold eyes catching my attention.

“You're hurt...I think we should get her out of here and back to Minato. Karen can do a scan.” He stated as he turned his attention to the purple eye guy. Clearly, he must be the leader of the group. I watched him nod, his eyes still locked with mine.

Wait…Minato? Where was that? What was that?

“Oh no, I’m not going anywhere with you uh...whoever you people are. The Owner will be here soon enough, he’ll come and wreak havoc and kill all of you. Nope, not going. You guys can go. I don’t want you to get hurt.” I explained, in a matter-of-fact tone. I didn’t know who these strangers were but the thought of the Owner killing them bothered me.

“The Owner? Sorry to state this, blue eyes, but everyone here is dead. Clearly, the boss or this “owner” you speak of is on a business trip.” The fourth guy, who had some gorgeous emerald coloured eyes stated, coldly. Blue-eyes…that’s a first.

It took me a moment to realize my current situation. The Owner was gone, everyone was dead but me. These hot looking strangers ensured they wouldn’t hurt me and transport me to this Minato place.

I stood up, staring at them blankly, the blanket sliding down to the floor. Feelings of relief hit me.

In an instant, I realized I was free. I didn’t know what this group of guy's intentions were, but even for just five bloody minutes, I had finally experienced freedom.

Any normal person would jump up and down with happiness, praising these men repeatedly. But of course, I wasn’t normal, so instead, I laughed. I laughed and laughed, till tears filled my eyes and my chest hurt.

“Great…we broke her.” Green eyes said.

“Shit, I told you I should have handled it. She’s in shock.” Gold eyes pointed out.

“I thought angels weren’t supposed to swear.” Sapphire eyes retorted.

Before I could finish my laughing fit, I felt a wave of dizziness assault my vision. Ugh, not now body. Can’t you function properly for ten minutes.

I tried to fight the spinning sensation, but I was welcomed with dark spots in my peripheral vision. I felt my knees buckle as I fell backwards, a weak moan escaping my lips.

“Shit!” Multiple voices exclaimed in unison.

I braced myself, waiting to hit the cold floor. Instead, I hit something solid and warm. I opened my eyes, barely able to make out the figure above me.

“You're safe, princess. We won't harm you…we’ll take you somewhere safe.”

Princess? Who…?

I felt my eyes become heavier. I tried to fight the exhaustion that attempted to consume me, to stay awake just a little longer, but my body was losing the battle. The last thing I saw before the darkness claimed me was those haunting Tyrian purple eyes.

Safe…