Sakura`s Past 2

Sakura's pulse quickened, her heart thudding in her ears. She had heard the stories. The experiments, the tests, the ones who didn't survive. She didn't want to be one of them. She couldn't be.

But the moment the needle pierced her skin, a wave of coldness washed over her, and her body seized. Pain shot through her veins, a deep, unrelenting ache that made her vision blur and her breath catch in her throat. It felt as though her very bones were being pulled apart, as though her insides were being ripped to pieces.

She screamed, her hands clawing at the restraints that held her in place. But the pain only intensified, every nerve in her body alight with agony. She thought she might die, right there on the sterile table, under the watchful eyes of the guards and scientists who were no more than spectators to her suffering.

And then, as suddenly as it had come, the pain subsided. Her body collapsed, trembling, weak. Her mind felt foggy, distant. The world around her seemed to blur, the edges of her vision darkening.

"Subject 47 has reacted to the serum," one of the scientists observed, his voice detached, almost bored. "Interesting."

Sakura didn't hear the rest. Her head was swimming, her thoughts fragmented. She could barely keep her eyes open as she was unceremoniously lifted from the table and dragged back to her cell.

The guard threw her back into the cramped, dimly lit room, and she stumbled to the floor, barely managing to keep herself upright. The door slammed shut behind her, the sound like a final judgment.

But through the haze of pain, through the fog clouding her mind, she saw her—Aiko. She was still there, sitting in the corner of the cell, her dark eyes watching Sakura with a knowing look.

"How are you holding up?" Aiko asked quietly.

Sakura swallowed hard, her throat dry, her body aching in ways she couldn't describe. "I don't know how much longer I can take this," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "It's too much. I feel like I'm breaking."

Aiko said nothing at first, her gaze shifting to the floor as though deep in thought. Finally, she spoke, her voice low but steady. "You can survive this. You have to."

Sakura wanted to believe her. She wanted to find hope, even if it was just a spark in the dark. But the reality of their situation was suffocating. They were nothing more than experiments. Nothing more than numbers on a clipboard. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't escape that truth.

"They can't break us," Aiko said, almost as if to herself. "We won't let them."

Sakura looked at her, meeting her gaze for the first time since their conversation began. There was something in Aiko's eyes—something fierce, something determined. It was a fire that Sakura hadn't seen in herself in a long time.

And in that moment, Sakura made a decision. She would survive. No matter what they did to her, no matter how much pain they inflicted, she would keep fighting

During one of the experiments, Aiko managed to overpower a guard, stealing his keycard and unlocking the doors. The infected, kept in containment cells, spilled into the facility, their shrieks echoing through the halls.

"Run!" Aiko shouted, grabbing Sakura's hand.

They sprinted through the chaos, the alarms blaring as soldiers and scientists scrambled to contain the outbreak. The infected tore through the facility, their glowing forms a blur of violence. The air was thick with panic, the sound of boots slamming against the cold tile floors, screams of terror, and the sickening crackle of flesh being torn apart. The acrid scent of blood mingled with the sterile tang of the facility as they weaved through the madness.

"This way!" Aiko yelled, pulling Sakura down a narrow hallway.

But the parasites were everywhere. They cornered the girls, their glowing eyes locked on their prey, their grotesque forms twitching with hunger. The facility's emergency lighting flickered erratically, casting brief shadows over the bloodstained walls.

Sakura's heart pounded in her chest as she turned to Aiko, her breaths shallow and desperate. "What now? How are we—"

"Sakura, go!" Aiko said, shoving her toward an open door. "I'll hold them off!"

"No! I'm not leaving you!" Sakura cried, tears streaming down her face. Her voice cracked with desperation.

Aiko smiled, her voice soft but firm. "You have to. Remember your mom. Don't make the same mistake twice."

Sakura hesitated, her heart breaking as she looked back at her friend. But then, the memory of her mother's final words echoed in her mind. Go, Sakura. Go.

With one last glance, she turned and ran, her legs carrying her down the hall even as the screams of Aiko echoed behind her. The sound of violence, of the infected tearing into her friend, lingered in her mind, but she kept running. She couldn't stop. She wouldn't stop.

The world outside the facility was a blur of ruins. What was once a thriving city had been reduced to ashes, the remnants of the outbreak still lingering in the air. Sakura stumbled through the broken streets, her breath ragged, her heart thundering in her chest. She didn't know how long she had been running, but the feeling of terror clung to her like a second skin.

Three days later, Jin found Sakura wandering the ruins, her body battered but alive. He brought her to the headquarters, where she collapsed into a chair, her hands trembling as she recounted what had happened. Her words were broken, fragmented, as she spoke of Aiko, of the chaos, of the horrors inside the facility.

When Jin returned from scouting the place, his expression was grim. "We found Aiko," he said quietly.

Sakura's heart sank. The words hit her like a blow to the stomach.

The parasites had torn her apart. Their frustration at being unable to infect her had turned into brutal violence. Her organs had been removed, her body left hanging from the ceiling like a macabre trophy, her lifeless eyes staring into nothing.

Sakura fell to her knees, her screams of grief echoing through the facility, tearing through the walls of the small room like a physical force. Tears blurred her vision as she thought of Aiko—her brave, strong friend, who had fought so hard to survive. It wasn't supposed to end like this.

That night, Sakura stood on the roof of the headquarters, the cool air biting at her skin. The city sprawled out before her, desolate and broken. Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides, her body trembling with fury.

"I'll kill them all," she whispered, her voice trembling with rage. "Every last one of them."