UTOPIA: Flawless System

The steady beeping of the ECG machine was the only sign that she was still alive.

However, she had shown no signs of waking up.

It was dark...

She felt weightless. Like a ghost. Floating in the void. She looked around, but it was all dark.

Suddenly, a small light appeared in front of her. It felt as if she could touch it. So she reached out her hand— before warmth enveloped her.

She saw a sight.

A woman in her mid-thirties.

There was a young child lying beside her. Perhaps two or three years old. The child looked frail, and was asleep.

Then another girl ran up to the woman, smiling, playful.

She realized it was her. It was a memory. Or rather, one of the pleasant memories she cherished.

"Mom, can you tell me that story again?" The girl asked as she climbed onto the bed before sitting beside the woman, careful to not wake the little girl up.

Ah... The little frail girl...

It was her sister...

"That story again...? Darling you've heard it so many times...!" The woman, or rather, the mother replied, smiling, but not intending to not tell the story.

"I've forgotten." The girl replied bluntly, smiling, before making herself comfortable. "Besides... Rei said she wanted to listen to it too... So I thought I'd listen to it from you again and memorize it!"

"Yeah yeah..." The mother said, slowly shaking her head sideways, laughing softly. "Rei is two years old. You think she'll understand?"

"Fine... It's just me... But I really want to listen to it! I've really forgotten a lot of important parts!"

The mother looked at her and ran her fingers through the girl's hair. She smiled, before looking off elsewhere, before telling the story.

"Long ago... There was a war...

This war killed a lot of people...

There was too much damage, and undoing everything was too difficult...

When the war couldn't determine a winner, the powerful people called it off.

They saw the massive damage, and then decided to rebuild everything from scratch. That was how UTOPIA was built."

She stopped, before looking at the girl, her older daughter, who was listening to it, completely immersed.

"Do you remember what Utopia means?" She asked, smiling a bit.

"A perfect place... Heaven... Isn't that right?" The girl replied.

"Yes... But what those powerful people built wasn't heaven." She said softly, her expression becoming somewhat dark and almost sad.

"They claimed it was heaven, but it was divided. They divided this "Heaven" into three parts... Tier 1, where these powerful people, the Gods of this heaven reside... Tier 2, where the common people live..."

She paused for a moment, before continuing, "And Tier 3, where banished people live. The air here smells like rust, trees can't grow here, the water is polluted... If anything, this is hell."

The girl looked up at her mother and gently tugged at her sleeves, making her look at the girl. The girl wore a concerned expression. Seeing the young girl make a face like that made her force a smile, before she continued,

"Tier 3 is where we live. There are laws... There are eyes everywhere... The "Gods" look down upon us."

She didn't say anything after that, before glancing at the girl. Her concerned expression had given way to confusion.

"Mom... You skipped a lot..." She said.

"Really...? How do you know?" The mother asked, looking at her.

"I remember every word— Owww!" Her words got interrupted as she felt a sharp tug on her cheeks.

"I thought you said you'd forgotten? That's what you said didn't you? Hm?"

"Ow ow ow stop... Okay... I'm sorry... I just wanted to listen to it...!" The girl replied, smiling playfully, unapologetic.

It made the mother pull her hands away, a flush of red blooming on the girl's cheeks as a result of the tug.

"But... These "powerful people" are responsible for Rei's sickness... They're bad...!" The girl said, looking down, angry. "Dad doesn't come home... You're sick too... I don't like it...!" She said, looking up at her.

"You only smile when I'm near you... When you tell me the story... But you always look sad while saying it...!"

The mother looked at her as she vented.

"I wish the powerful people would just disa—" Her words got cut off as the mother pulled her into an embrace. It felt warm... Comforting, and every emotion just melted away.

"Everything will be fine honey... Rei will get well soon. Me and your dad are working on things that'll help her... Dad will come home... I'll get well soon... We'll have dinner together... So don't worry..."

So comforting and warm. So that was the warmth she'd felt when she'd reached out for that light, the only light amidst the darkness.

She hugged her back, nuzzling against her. The sensation felt nice.

Then suddenly, there was a loud sound. Too loud. Then there was light. A strong light. Too strong and blinding. The smell of smoke hit her, making her feel suffocated. Suddenly a strong burning sensation made her cry out and writhe in agony, before everything went dark for a moment.

Flickers of flames drifted in front of her, before she found herself standing in the midst of destruction. There was flame and smoke everywhere. It was a familiar place. It looked like a factory. She looked around, clutching onto the hem of her dress, feeling her pulse race, a sense of foreboding washing over her.

Then she felt something warm on her face. She touched her face, feeling something familiar. When she pulled her hand back, there was blood. Her eyes widened in fear and panic. She tried to take a step, but felt something under her feet. It made her look down... and the sight added to her panic.

Her mother and father lay on the ground, burned to death. The dress her mother wore was charred. The hands that cradled her and comforted her... The body against which she held her close... Was frozen, motionless.

She trembled. Her breaths coming out in short gasps. Her eyes darted around, searching for her sister.

Panicked.

Confused.

Scared.

That's when she felt a tug on the back of her dress. It made her freeze for a moment, before she turned around to find her sister...

Half burned...

Covered in wounds...

Covered in blood...

It made her freeze.

Her breath got caught, and she stumbled back, wanting to scream, but no sound came out. She looked at her sister, who stood in front of her despite those wounds. Her sister reached out one bloody and burned arm towards her, before disappearing.

The entire sight disappeared, leaving her in the abyssal darkness. She hugged herself, crying, feeling scared and lost, before she heard a voice.

A familiar voice.

"He...lp... Me..."

She turned around, then looked around, but there was no one.

She clutched onto her chest, collapsing, before feeling the familiar warmth of her mother...

No... This touch didn't feel like her mother's... It was someone else...

A pale figure gently hugged her, washing away all her grief and anger.

"Help me... Sister..."

The figure said softly, but before she could grab it, it disappeared. Thr voice echoed, before fading away completely.

It was dark.

There was no one.

Someone was calling her... But it wasn't her mother... Or her father... Or that other voice which called her "sister."

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She opened her eyes slowly. A single lightbulb hung from the ceiling, barely illuminating the room.

She blinked once... Twice... Trying to process everything. Her body felt heavy. Her mind was in a haze, but she could remember the bits and pieces of what felt like a dream. The steady beeping sound of the ECG machine drew her attention.

A hospital?

Before she could think of anything else, a middle aged man appeared in her field of vision.

"Thank God you're aware! Your vitals were all messed up!" He said, both excitement and panic in his voice. "Are you feeling alright?!"

She looked up at him, unable to sit up. Something felt off. It wasn't just that her body felt heavy. It felt as if someone had rearranged her insides.

"What... Is this place...?" She asked, her voice hoarse. She realized there were a lot of tubes all over her, and she was covered in band-aids and things that looked like band-aids but probably weren't.

"My lab." The man replied, before taking off the tubes one by one with utmost care. "I thought you wouldn't make it, but damn... You're one strong kid."

He stood up and got a notebook and pen from a nearby desk before standing before her and taking her wrist to check the pulse.

"Let me take a quick look at your vitals..."

"Wouldn't... Make it..." She repeated softly, before her eyes widened and she abruptly tried to sit up, only to end up pulling at the remaining tubes so hard that the things they were attached to fell over.

"Where's mom?! And dad?! And where's Rei?! Are they okay?!" She asked, trying to raise her voice, holding onto the man's coat tightly as she propped herself up.

It was good that she had sat up, but her panic was evident. The ECG machine started to show a heightened pulse. The man immediately held her by her shoulders.

"Take deep breaths kid! Don't panic or else—"

However, before he could finish his words, she felt an intense burning sensation on her face. It made her cry out and try to claw at her face.

Suddenly, she felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. It was if someone had injected her with some really strong sedative. That wasn't the case though. Once she was calm, although forcefully, the scientist sighed softly, looking at her face.

One of the implants he had put on her face had broken apart because of her sudden panicking.

"Seriously... That collar saved you for now... You gotta be calm kid! You were knocked out for almost half a year! Five months three weeks to be precise." He said, mumbling the last part.

She couldn't understand how the collar "saved" her. It was simply an ID tag. Or so her mother had said.

"Those collars have... Uh..." He thought for a moment, to find child-friendly words to describe it. "They help to calm down. Yep." He said. He toned the explanation down a lot.

She looked at the man, unnerved, feeling weird. Her gaze was enough to say what she wanted to voice.

The man was a perceptive person. He ruffled his hair, although it was balding, before looking at her.

"Five months three weeks... A pretty popular factory exploded. I happened to be around there... And that's when I found you..." He said, before looking down. "There were two adults, but they were already..."

His voice hung in the air. It was clear what he wanted to say. She looked down, realizing that her parents were dead. However there was one more person.

She reached out her hand and froze. She hadn't noticed it before, but now that she was looking straight at his face, she saw floating texts and some sort of data in front of her. Then her gaze fell on a mirror in the corner of the room. Her eyes widened as she saw her body wasn't what she used to know. She froze, her heart racing, before she looked back at him.

The man knew that she'd react this way.

He gently placed his hand over her head.

"Take deep breaths... Please don't panic and listen to me carefully."

She barely managed to calm herself down, but her expression said that she wanted to know what had happened to her body.

"Five broken ribs. Your lungs and heart were damaged." He started, pointing at his own chest, keeping eye contact with her. "Your body’s been patched up with tech— like something out of a sci-fi story. It’s what’s keeping you alive." He said, clearly not wanting to dump too much information on her... Or maybe just too lazy to explain.

"One of your eyes was beyond repair, so I replaced it with a... New one... And a better one at that... Must've scared you though... The AR display..." He said, laughing softly, trying to put her mind at ease. "It's nothing to be scared of though..."

"Also..." He pointed at her arms, and then her legs, before continuing, "Your limbs were in bad shape. I fixed them, but it'll take a while for your body to adapt to them."

He paused for a moment, looking at the implant on her face that was broken after she panicked.

"I'll need to fix those..." He muttered to himself, in a voice so low so that only he could hear.

She looked up at him, speechless. That much wounded? She was almost half dead. She wanted to thank him for saving her, before a sudden realization hit her. She took a deep breath to not panic again. The burning sensation had given her some additional trauma it seemed.

"Y-You... You said you found only me... And two adults... There... There was supposed to be another young girl...! Where's she...?!"

The man looked at her, confused.

"There was no one else there... You were the only one I found..." He replied, his expression serious. He wasn't lying. Or so it seemed.

"N-No way... Rei.. She was..."

"Maybe someone else found her first?" He said, looking at her.

It could be. There was a possibility of that happening. She looked down, dejected, scared. What if someone hadn't found her? What if she was buried in the rubble? There were too many possibilities.

"For your information, they didn't find anyone under the rubble."

She looked up at him, her eyes lighting up for a moment. Then there was a high possibility that she was alive.

She placed her hopes on the possibility and calmed down. That entire day, she and the man talked a lot. He told her how frustrated he was when you couldn't find a single decent hospital. He told her his name and why he was there.

She told him about herself as well.

"Seriously...!!! I knew that Tier 3 was bad, but I had no idea that it was this bad!!!" He said, his voice raised and filled with annoyance.

In response, she could only smile a bit... After all, it was always like that in Tier 3.

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The next few months were weirdly peaceful. He took care of her, fed her. He even changed the older implants with newer and better ones. When she asked where he found those expensive looking things, he simply replied:

"I have my ways. It's a secret."

So the mystery of the new parts didn't disappear. She never pried him. He became like a second father to her. She liked it. He'd return home after work too. She'd have a hearty dinner ready.

"I didn't know a kid your age could cook..." He said, looking at the food. It looked edible.

"You need to be capable of doing everything here by yourself down here... Isn't that obvious...?" She said, serving him the food. "Besides, cooking is basic survival skill."

"Then I'll dig in! Bon appetit!"

The moment both of them took the first bite, the man froze, before glancing at her. She glanced up at him, before looking back down.

It was, in fact, barely edible.

Her recovery was somewhat slower than what he had anticipated. However, by the end of the first year, she was well accustomed to her modified body. She jumped around to show around her mobility, but ended up breaking things. Whenever that happened, the man would just sigh and smile, before the two of them cleaned up all mess.

The man trained her in self defense, saying that even with implants and all, Tier 3 was a dangerous place for a girl her age. He told her how to utilize her cybernetic eye, and her support systems.

He'd say, "Hold up... Let me see if everything's working fine..." before and after the training sessions, so that she could move normally, and be at ease with her augmented body.

Apparently he had done a lot for her. She was so badly injured that he had made implants, inserted support systems, a stabilization system and everything.

When he'd tried to explain the utility of every part, Kei had ran away, saying "I'm not a machine!!!"

For a couple of hours, she didn't return. It was past midnight when she returned. The moment she walked in, the man rushed towards her and held her tightly.

"Don't you dare leave like that again!!!" He said, his voice raised. He was angry but... There was a hint of concern in voice and the way he looked at her, scanning her from head to toe.

"You could've—" He paused upon seeing her look up at him unblinking. "What are you looking at?! I'm scolding you!"

A soft laugh escaped her lips, before she hugged him, trembling slightly.

It felt so familiar... So home-like...

After that incident, instead of theoretically explaining things, he just made her fight with dummies. They'd get damaged, but he always got them repaired. The daily practice made her adapt to the mechanical parts of her body quickly.

When she was finally able to move completely fine, her cybernetic eye and implants working as well, the man looked at her proudly.

One day, while he was making her go through the "mandatory maintenance" of the parts, she couldn't help but ask him...

"Say... Why did you help me...? I mean... Here in Tier 3 people are..."

"Selfish?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"Well... I'm..." He paused for a moment, searching for the right words, before continuing, "You reminded me of my daughter."

"Daughter huh..." She repeated softly, looking down, biting her lips softly, hesitating for a moment, before saying, "Lucky her to have a father like you..." She said, before looking back up at him, smiling.

The next moment, she felt his hand on her head, gentle for a moment, before he aggressively rubbed her head.

"Wh-What are you—?!" She protested.

"Kei..." He began, looking straight into her eyes. "You don't need to worry. I'll be here you know?"

She looked at him, feeling a warm sensation in her chest. She'd lost everything... But this man... He was providing her with so much love and care. He wouldn't lay a finger on her, would scold her occassionally... Just like her own parents.

"But you must remember one thing..." He said, before kneeling in front of her and gently holding her shoulders as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"You're unique... And that makes you different from the rest..."

"Yeah... I know..." She replied, stretching her right arm sideways. It made a soft whirring sound as she moved it. "I'm not a human anymore—"

"No." The man interrupted her. "You're human."

He gently took her hand, before speaking continuing...

"Listen Kei... The reason you're unique and different is because your body has been augmented... But you must realize that it's to keep you alive...! So you must never feel that you're not human!" He said, before giving her a reassuring smile.

"You're more human than most people."

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Two and a half years.

Everything was peaceful, and almost perfect, despite the hardships in Tier 3.

It changed one day.

She woke up late that day.

The lab felt too quiet.

She climbed down her bed, rubbing her eye, and going to the dining room. The man's coat lay draped over a chair.

"Strange..." She thought, walking up to the table. "He said he'd be home today..."

She spotted a cup of coffee. It was half full. Was he in such a hurry to go somewhere that he couldn't even finish his coffee?

She also noticed breakfast.

It was usually her who prepared breakfast. Her eyes narrowed slightly. He didn't even bother to wake her up. He always woke her up before leaving, and made sure she was never half asleep. Tier 3 was that bad and lawless of a place after all.

She glanced around. He hadn't left any note. At first she thought that maybe he got some serious work and that he'd return by night. However, she felt uneasy. That was a human sensation, and she couldn't deny it.

There was one room which he never used. It was always locked. She hesitated, before breaking the lock open and going in. She needed to shake off the uneasy feeling. The room was awfully dark, and she fumbled on the walls for a moment before turning on the light.

It was one cluttered room.

A desktop, a massive number of books on heavy topics, files, papers scattered all over the study table and floor. She took the papers in her hand, wanting to clean up the mess. She kept the picked up papers and kept them aside, before spotting a file half buried under a pile of papers. The name on it caught her eye.

Subject: KEI

She froze for a moment, before opening it. It must be a medical record of her. He was the taking care of her after all. However, it was no simple medical record, but a thorough record on her.

Pictures of her, and her sister, her parents... Everything was there. The last record was done last night.

Subject's condition: Stable

Able to move and fight

Cybernetic eye working at 70% efficiency

A small note was attached on its side, saying, "She wouldn't take off that junk for an earring..."

She looked at it blankly, her other hand unconsciously reaching out to touch the small metal earring on her left ear. It was a treasure. Her sister had made it for her. However it was only one piece of the pair. The other piece was worn by her sister.

The files were sufficient proof to get to a conclusion. The man who saved her, she didn't know if he was good or bad... But he had saved her...

It was evident that he saw her as some subject...

The final log entry was enough to make her realize that he'd never return again.

That night was the last time she cried.

She cried until her throat hurt and her eyes were red. Tears blurred her vision as they stained her cheeks before falling on the floor. Her hands clutched onto the file...

That file was a reminder that her saviour, the man she had considered close enough within that short time was gone...

And he probably saw her as a test subject...

The very thought of it made her grit her teeth, trying not to cry anymore. She took a deep breath and tried to compose herself.

"Don't cry... It won't help..." She mumbled softly, before standing up, holding the file in one hand.

"I won't cry again..." She said to herself, looking at the desk with papers and files strewn all over it, and then to the file in her hand. Her words hung in the air, fragile and vulnerable... But unyielding...

Her purpose was to find her sister. If possible, she'd track the man down too... But her sister came first. She swore to find her.

She came out from that room and looked at the empty place. The place where she'd spent over two years with that man...

The ache she felt in her heart was sure to not go away anytime soon. Instead of feeling upset or breaking down, she just bit her lips softly, deciding to turn that pain into fuel.

Fuel that would make her search for her sister without giving up.

"I'll find you... No matter what..." She said softly, promising to herself that she'd do it.

She touched her earring, before her fingers moved down to touch the collar.

"I'll find both of you..." She mumbled softly, before walking out. There were questions that demanded answers, and she needed information.

As usual, it was a mix of grey and red clouds, overcast. It was always ominous. However the environment was something she didn't care about anymore. The clouds cleared the slightest bit, revealing one single flicker of light from the tallest tower of Tier 1.

She reached out her hand and grabbed that light, before the clouds hid it again.

All answers were right up there.

In Tier 1.

"I'm coming... Rei..."

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Hello! Heya! Umi here! I've been publishing on Wattpad, but I'm a bit slow and new to writing novels! There might be typos so please don't mind them and leave them in the comments T^T

Your support will be appreciated!