Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2020 4:12:34 GMT -8
She had been gone from the Southern Islands for far too long, but it had been a necessary diversion. The world had changed in the last thirty years, and the changes in some cases were so subtle that it required a close-up view of the culture and its people in order to grasp the full brunt of those changes. Last she went to sleep, many of the secretive Tuffle bunkers held hundreds of Saiyan captives.
Not only that but she and her team were making strides in their research. Sometimes being a willing guinea pig had its advantages—for every new modification made to her body, it required more than a week of recovery time as the scar tissue sought to heal around the newly implanted mechanical devices. There was more to the process than that: there needed to be an allotted period of time to allow her body to adjust to the new additions.
This was more taxing than she realized it would be, even with the aid of medicinal injections meant to speed up the synthesizing process and aid in her body's natural healing. Such changes caused a ripple effect within the body, and even her superior Tuffle genetics suffered certain averse effects to these new changes that were occurring within her. There might also be a mental toll, but it took far more time to discern that. This is what made travel so important. It not only gave her body and mind time to heal, but helped her adjust to their situation.
The rugged Jeep bumped along the dirt road. Every time they hit a small rock or pothole, the resulting force tossed her a couple of inches into the air before letting her crash back down onto the seat. It jarred her from her half-sleep state, and Tangerine let out a sigh of heavy annoyance.
"How much longer until we get to where we need to be?"
"Not sure, Major." Cherry sat in the passenger seat, bent over her laptop, fingers tapping away as usual. Her hair was even redder than Tanga's, pinned up in a hairstyle that reminded the scientist more of a 1920's housewife. "We've been driving, what... three hours?"
"Three hours, eleven minutes, and forty-six seconds to be precise," said Pit. He steered the Jeep along with expert ease, brow knit in fierce concentration. It would seem the simple task of driving took all of his attention. "Sorry about the rough mode of transport, ma'am. I contacted the Director, but he didn't deem use of military vehicles necessary in this instance."
"Yeah, yeah... more bureaucratic nonsense. I get it. You're not to blame."
It seemed the deeper the ties of a secret organization, the more bureaucratic red tape she got entangled with. Didn't they understand the nature of scientific progress? She needed the freedom to test any hypothesis and conduct any experiment. This meant she needed to be able to act with pure immunity without having to answer to a slew of secretive officials who were more interested in money and secrecy than results. She was a woman of results. She was a visionary, seeking to pioneer a bio-engineering path the likes of which the world had never borne witness to before.
Tangerine closed her eyes, letting out a sigh. She stretched across the back seat of the Jeep in a languid manner, and had forgone the restrictive white lab coats her assistants Cherry and Pit wore in favor of plainclothes. Her white cotton T-shirt stretched taut as it strained to contain her powerful physique, the Capsule Corp logo emblazoned across her chest more for irony's sake. It showcased her grand confidence that even bearing the logo of their greatest intellectual rivals, she would not be outclassed.
She yawned, patting a hand to her mouth. "Wake me up when we get to the boat, will you? I need a nap."
"Of course, ma'am," said Pit.
She dreamed of Bunker 4-19. A recurring nightmare that continued to plague her. That blaring alarm that jarred her awake from fitful sleep. The mass confusion and hysteria that followed. The muted sounds of chaos and fighting beyond the thick steel walls of her bedchamber. The sinister snarls on the faces of those two Saiyans as they shut the door—the only escape route to freedom—and beat her within an inch of her life. An inch of her life... an ambitious life, but one that could only have gone so far. Perhaps she ought to thank those Saiyans.
The metal hull of the boat shuddered beneath her feet as it sped them toward the island that housed their hidden bunker. Tangerine stood at the brow of the ship, watching their boat slice through clear waters. She folded her arms over her chest, trying to suppress a shudder. Every bunker filled her with a sense of unease. She scoffed and turned from the brow. When would she rid herself of such weakness? Body modification made her stronger, yet no matter how many layers she shed, she couldn't shake that old fear.
The fear that there was a Saiyan out there who could topple everything she had worked for up to this point. Everything she strove to achieve within her lifetime. That even her own bunker would be infiltrated by these guerrilla terrorists.
Not if she could help it.
She retreated down into the lower level of the boat where Cherry and Pit sat typing on laptops as they analyzed data.
"When am I due for another upgrade?"
They paused, glancing up at her.
"Upgrade?" Cherry glanced at Pit. She seemed unsure. "You've only been awakened from cryostasis for roughly a week. You're not scheduled for another major body modification for another thirty years."
"Your body wouldn't be able to handle the strain of another major modification—"
"I don't want to hear excuses." Her cold tone stopped Pit short in his discourse. "I only want results. From now on... no more cryostasis. We'll find a way to extend my life and move up the modification schedule. No more waiting, understand?"
The assistants glanced at each other. Tangerine flopped onto the sofa between them. She threw a muscled arm around both their necks, letting out a hearty laugh—her first genuine laugh since waking.
"I know, I know, we need more specimens for genetic samples. Don't worry about that... leave that part to me."
(1,064 words)