A brilliant shine enveloped the room as the cube underwent a remarkable transformation, morphing into a small creature with wings, claws, and a slightly hunched back. Its face, now revealed, was etched with annoyance.
Glancing down at its hands, the creature exclaimed in dismay, "What the hell is this?"
A slight frost emanated from the creature's hands, prompting the Director to speculate, "Hmm, perhaps you've lost so much of your power that you can't maintain your original form. Just a guess, though."
Turning to Jade, he inquired, "Jade, can you see what's going on right now? Any way we can change him back to his original state?"
Jade shook her head, her expression serious. "Nothing is coming up from these eyes. I believe he will be stuck like that until something specific happens," she explained. Suddenly, a blue bar appeared, slowly highlighting above the creature's head, displaying "25,000/25,000" as his current energy level—a detail now visible to Jade's unique sight.
"Before, it was impossible to read. So, whatever that is worth," Jade stated, indicating the newfound clarity her eyes provided on the creature's condition.
The director nodded, about to suggest the next steps when suddenly, the red light flashed above their heads again. He sighed, "Four in one day. They really are ramping up their work. I'm not sure how much the machine can handle..."
Jade, puzzled by the abrupt interruption and the fading red light, listened as a voice announced, "Master Gojaro, please report to the debrief room." She then questioned, "This machine, how far can it detect these creatures, and why can't it seem to track Ty's killer?"
The Director, constrained by protocol, replied, "Well, for classified reasons, I can't answer the first question. As for the second, I believe it's because he is another creature altogether, and unless we can collect a blood sample from his kind, we are out of luck detecting him for now."
With a shrug, he added, "But we can't focus on things we can't control. In the meantime, get some sleep. I'll be taking Mr. V with me also for some more questions about that place." He assured her, "I will ensure he goes out with you on your next mission, though. Expect it to be soon. Keep that small blade I gave you close by as well; I promise it will come in extra handy one day."
Yawning lightly, Jade signaled the end of the conversation. "Well, I'm off to get some sleep. I'm thinking tomorrow will end up being a busy day."Rosa nodded, her tone shifting to a more serious note. "Four creatures popping up in one day, I think that might be the worst we've seen in the last few years, at least since I've been here.
I've heard stories that before the machine was finished, they would just have to block off entire areas. It was even a driving force in the development of fast cars."
Jade, her curiosity piqued by this piece of history, responded in astonishment, "Really?! No way, that's true, right?"
"Well, it's just a rumor, of course," Rosa said as she walked up to Jade, placing a hand over her head in a comforting gesture. "Take care of yourself, though. Like I said earlier, I can't lose another friend."
"Have a good night, and then we can talk about fire and boys," Rosa said, waving off Jade before she could add anything more. Jade just nodded, her mind swirling with thoughts. "She's right, though. I can't afford to fall right at the starting line. I don't know how much this is helping, if at all, to get me closer to Ty, but it's better than crying in that apartment, being helpless."
Clutching her fist with determination, Jade headed off to bed. She stretched a bit before lying down, and before she could fully process the entirety of the day, she was whisked away into a dream.
She found herself back on a sandy beach, surrounded by black liquid bubbling from what looked like an intense heat.
"Wh-what is going on?" she murmured, recognizing the surreal landscape.
"This vision again?"
"You, Are, Worthy, Of, Serving, Me..." The voice, bubbling slowly and very low, seemed to emanate from the depths of the black liquid, echoing around her in the dream's eerie silence.