THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS

“I’M GOING TO BED. IT’S ALREADY LATE AND I HAVE SO MUCH TO DO TOMORROW.” SHE LEFT SOL AND AX IN THE BASEMENT ALONE WITHOUT ANSWERING THEIR QUESTION.

SHE ENTERED HER ROOM AND LOCKED THE DOOR. SHE TOOK A LONG SHOWER. LATER SHE PUSHED A BUTTON ON HER WRIST BAND AND THE LEFT WALL OF HER ROOM MOVED AND SLID MAKING A WAY TOWARD A NEW SPACE. SHE MOVED INSIDE AND THE WALL SLID BACK TO ITS PLACE. IT WAS A STUDY PLACE WITH SEPERATE COMPUTING EQUIPMENTS AND SEVERAL BOOKS. OLD BOOKS BACK FROM 18TH AND 19TH CENTURY. THESE BOOKS ARE NOW BANNED IN THE COUNTRY. SHE SAT IN THE CHAIR NEXT TO THE TABLE.

“XI...?”

BEEP.

AFTER VOICE RECOGNITIONCOMPLETE THE MACHINES THOSE WERE LOOKING LIKE PROPS WERE GLOWING WITH DIFFERENT SENSORS AND LIGHTS NOW. THEY WERE DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO XI... AI CREATED BY AELLA. XI IS DESIGNED IN SUCH A WAY THAT SHE ONLY FOLLOWES HER COMMAND.

“GOOD EVENING AELLA. HOW ARE YOU...?”, XI REPLIED.

“I’M TIRED.”, SHE SAID CLICKING THE KEYS ON THE KEYBOARD.

“I GUESS YOU HAD A HARD DAY TODAY MA’AM. SHALL I PLAY SOME MUSIC FOR YOU...?”, XI ASKED OPENING MULTIPLE SCREENS BESIDE AELLA IN THE AIR. AELLA TURNED HER CHAIR TOWARD THE SCREENS TO GET A BETTER VIEW.

“SURE. HOW ABOUT THE BETTLES...?”, SHE SAID GOING THROUGH THE SCREENS AND CANCELLING THE UNNECESSARY ONE. XI STARTED HER PLAYLIST WITH “HERE COMES THE SUN” FROM 1969 ALBUM ABBEY ROAD. AELLA ADJUSTED THE VOLUME OF THE MUSIC SO THAT SHE DID NOT GET DISTRACTED...YET HER BODY WAS FOLLOWING EVERY BEAT OF THE SONG. SHE WAS FLOWING WITH THE MELODY.

“START WITH PHYSICAL SCREENING.”, AELLA COMMANDED XI.

“OKAY MA’AM.”, XI PROCESSED THE INPUT AND STARTED WITH THE SCREENING. A SMALL ROBOT WITH NECESSARY EQUIPMENTS MOVED TOWARD AELLA AND CHECKED HER VITAL SIGNS ALONG WITH A BLOOD SAMPLE. LATER AFTER COMPLETING THE SCREENING THE SMALL ROBOT TOOK THE BLOOD SAMPLE TO A DIFFERENT MACHINE AND PROCESSED IT. AFTER COMPLETING THE GIVEN COMMAND IT WENT TO ITS ORIGINAL PLACE AND STAND QUIETLY THERE WHILE AELLA WAS BUSY WITH HER DATA ANALYSIS.

“THE RESULTS FOR PHYSICAL SCREENING ARE HERE.”, XI TOLD AELLA.

“OKAY. TELL ME IF THERE IS ANY ABNORMALITY. AND ADD TO DAILY DATA SHEETS.”, AELLA COMMANDED XI.

“NO ABNORMALITIES FOUND.NORMAL BLOOD SAMPLE RECEIVED.”, XI TOLD AELLA.

“OKAY.”, AELLA SAID MOVING BACK HER CHAIR TO IT’S ORIGINAL POSITION.

“DID YOU GET ANYTHING NEW FROM THOSE CAPTIVES...?”, AELLA ASKED XI. THE SCREEN OF THE COMPUTER SHOWED A VIDEO. THESE WERE THE THREE TRAITORS FROM THE BLAST SITE AT AURTHER’S LAB.

“THEY HAVE TOLD EVERYTHING THAT WE NEED. THEIR INJURIES ARE HEALED TO A RATE OF 75%. REST WILL DEPEND ON THEIR COOPERATION WITH US.”, XI SAID.

“OKAY GOOD.”, AELLA STOOD UP AND MOVED AHEAD TO THE FRONT WALL AND A SCANNER SCANNED HER EYES AND HEART.

A DOOR SLID OPEN GIVING HER ACCESS TO A LIFT. SHE ENTERED THE LIFT AND LOOKED BACK AT HER SCREEN OF COMPUTER.

“LET’S GO DOWN THERE.”

“YES MA’AM.”

XI FOLLOWED COMMAND FOR MINUS 3 AND THE LIFT CLOSED.

“HOW ARE CLONES REACTING TOWARD THE WHOLE SITUATION...? ANY PROBLEMS...?”, AELLA ASKED XI.

“NO MA’AM. THEY ARE REACTING JUST AS WE HAVE PROGRAMMED THEM. NO ANY ABNORMAL BEHAVIOUR IS DETECTED TILL NOW.”

“AND WHAT ABOUT NEXT BATCH OF CLONES WITH INBUILT ASSESSORIES...?”

“THEY ARE AT SECOND LAST STAGE OF COMPLETION. CELLULARIZATION IS COMPLETED. THE DERMIS IS AT A VERSE OF COMPLETION AT 94%. DAY AFTER TOMORROW WE CAN START WITH EPIDERMAL SYNTHESIS.”

“GOOD.”, AELLA SAID MOVING OUT OF THE LIFT WHEN THE DOOR OPENED.

IT WAS MINUS THREE LEVEL OF HER HOME. IT’S HER SECRET BASE THAT IS NOT KNOWN TO ANYONE. NOT EVEN SOL. THERE WERE LOTS OF PEOPLE MOVING AROUND DOING THEIR WORK.

“GATHER FOR MEETING IN THE HALL.”, XI ANNOUNCED AND EVERYONE STOPPED THEIR WORK AND MOVED TOWARD THE HALL.

AELLA MOVED OUT OF THE LIFT AND MOVED TOWARD THE MEETING HALL. ABOUT TWENTY FEMALE CLONES WERE SITTING ON THE CHAIRS WITH THEIR HEAD DOWN TOWARD THE FLOOD. AELLA MOVED TO THE FRONT AND SAT ON THE CHAIR.

“HOW ARE YOU LADIES...?”, AELLA ASKED THEM.

“NEVER BETTER”, ALL OF THEM LOOKED AT HER IN A SYNC AND REPLIED IN UNISON. AELLA SMILED BACK.

“A7...?”, AELLA ASKED LOOKING AT THEM THE LEFT EYE OF A CLONE SHINE WITH A BLUE LIGHT. SHE LOOKED AT AELLA AND STOOD UP.

“YES AELLA....?”, SHE ASKED.

“YOU DID A VERY GOOD JOB DURING INVESTIGATION YESTERDAY. I SAW YOU ON SCREEN. YOU WERE BRILLIENT.”, AELLA TOLD HER. A7 SMILED AND NODDED.

“CAN I GO OUTSIDE NOW...?”, A7 ASKED AELLA.

“ONLY AFTER GAINING A CHECKUP”, AELLA SAID SMILING AT HER. A7 NODDED AGAIN AND SAT DOWN.

“XI...PREPARE FOR HER IMPLANT AND CHECKUP. SHE WILL BE GOING OUT NEXT TIME.”, AELLA COMMANDED XI.

“OKAY MA’AM.”, XI REPLIED.

“SO WHO WILL BE LEADING TODAY...?”, AELLA ASKED THE CLONES. ANYONE CAN BE PICKED BY HER BUT AELLA NEEDED A VOLUNTER FOR THIS. THAT’S HOW YOU GAIN CONFIDENCE.

A3 WAS LOOKING A BIT LOW TODAY AFTER HER MISTAKE AT WORK WITH THE NEW BATCH OF CLONES.

“HOW ABOUT A3...?”

A3 LOOKED ATA ELLA AND NODDED.

“GO. GET READY.”, AELLA TOLD HER.

SHE LOOKED AT AELLA WITH SURPRISE. AFTER HOW SHE MESSED UP WITH THE NEXT BATCH OF CLONES IT WAS VERY UNLIKE AELLA THAT SHE IS LETTING HER DO THIS. SHE STOOD UP WITH HER BRIGHT EYES AND NODDED AT AELLA.

“OKAY. IT WILL BE LIKE LAST TIME. WE HAVE TO COLLECT EVERY BIT ABOUT THE ACCESS OF THE LAB.”, AELLA TOLD THEM.

EVERYONE WAS LOOKING AT HER LISTENING VERY ATTENTIVELY.

“A5...LET’S GET READY.”, SAYING THIS THE MEETING WAS DISMISSED AND EVERYONE WAS BACK AT THEIR WORK.

AELLA FOLLOWED A5 AND GOT DRESSED WITH HER. HER WHOLE BODY WAS COVERED WITH BLACK CARBON FIBER BODY ARMOR THAT WAS A FULL NEUTRALISING COMPLETE PROTECTIVE SUIT. ALL THREE OF THEM GOT READY AND MET AT THE CORNER OF INVESTIGATION ROOM.

“ARE YOU READY...?”, AELLA ASKED A3.

“YES. I’M.”, SHE REPLIED.

“IT’S TIME.”, A5 SAID LOOKING AT HER WRIST BAND.

“WE CAN DO THIS. LET’S GO.”, AELLA SAID TO BOTH OF THEM.

“FIVE... FOUR... THREE... TWO...”, XI OPENED THE DOOR AT THE END OF COUNTDOWN AND SHUT IT CLOSE AS THREE OF THEM ENTERED.

THE CAPTIVES WERE SITTING ON CHAIRS IN A ROW WITH HANDS TIED. THEIR PROSTHETIC LEGS WERE CLUNCHED TOGETHER WITH A SIMPLE WET ROPE OF JUTE. THE DRIPPING WATER OUT OF ROPE WAS SEEPING INTOTHE LEGS VIA THE PORES ON THE METAL LEGS THAT WAS COVERED WITH ARTIFICIAL SKIN BEFORE THE PRIOR INVESTIGATION.

ALL THREE OF CAPTIVES GOT SCARED AS THEY SAW THREE OF THEM.

“OH NO! PLEAE SPARE US!”, ONE OF THE CAPTIVE CRIED.

A3 SAT ON THE CHAIR IN FRONT OF ALL THE CAPTIVES. A5 STOOD IN HER RIGHT AND AELLA ON THE LEFT SIDE OF HER.

ALL THREE OF THEM WERE LOOKING SCARED AND WERE WHIMPERING...THEY WERE IN PAIN AND THEIR WOUNDS WERE NOT COMPLETELY HEALED. AFTER FEW MOMENTS THERE WAS A COMPLETE SILENCE. AFTER FEW MOMENTS...A3 TOOK OFF HER HEAD COVER FOLLOWED BY MASK.

“AELLA...!” ALL THE CAPTIVES CRIED IN UNISON.

AELLA SMILES IN HER MASK...SMILING AT ALL OF THEM.