The sickly sweet smell of rot and decay hung heavy in the air, carried through the remnants of a ruined city by cold, howling winds.

  All that filled the silence was the low-pitched, almost anguished groans and cries of the monsters that had replaced the people that once lived in this grand settlement.

  Vaguely humanoid forms; illuminated briefly by the coppery-red light of the moon that managed to break through the toxic clouds above; shambling across the ground aimlessly, too many sets of eyes and teeth teetering and gnashing to-and-fro, as if searching for something incomprehensible to anything but them.

  However, for those that remained, what they were searching for didn't matter. They had enough sense to steer clear all the same.

  Especially when they opted to give chase.

  A shriek, rapidly alternating between too many pitches at once, sounded through a section of the city, indicative of a monster that had caught sight of a meal-to-be.

  Said meal-to-be; short, barely older than eight by his looks; ran as quickly as his legs could take him away from the creature, matted lavender locs of hair sticking to the mixture of sweat and blood across his light brown skin, barely allowing him to see as they plastered themselves over his eyes.

  The thud of footsteps grew louder and heavier. A sign that his assailant was getting closer, picking up speed as the chase dragged on.

  Hearing that, some more vigor managed to seep into his thin, malnourished form, allowing him to dive into a nearby alleyway.

  Unable to halt its motion, the creature flew past the little passage, only giving a moment for the boy to pick a hiding spot before it swung back around, intent on continuing the chase.

  One set of hands latched onto the walls of the alleyway, pulling it along as it blitzed through like a bat out of hell, searching for its prey.

  It has already passed what it had been searching for.

  The boy had managed to find a spot suitable enough to avoid being spotted by the skin of his teeth, nestled between what remained of a pile of corpses that had, miraculously, foregone the process of reanimation.

  Once again, the heavy smell of rot struck him, heavier than ever before with the current proximity.

  His hand shifted ─ only so slightly, still anxious as to the whereabouts of the monstrosity that had lost his trail only moments prior ─ gripping at his stomach.

  As the scent wafted along his senses, a thought raced through his mind ─ a single word, so simple, yet so horrific in what it implored him to do.

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  'Hungry...' He thought. '...Hungry...'

  "C-099."

  His grip on his thin clothed form tightened, stomach growling, and fingers straining against the fabric, as if trying to force the pain of starvation from himself.

  '...Hungry... Hungry... Hungry...!'

  Each repetition of the word only seemed to remind him of what was ailing him most at that moment, his fingers tightening against his stomach, threatening to dig into his flesh, as if ripping his stomach out would solve it. However,

  "C-099!"

  With the sudden call, his eyes shot open ─ when he had even closed them, he wasn't sure ─ golden irises quickly darting around in search of something that was no longer present in his current environment.

  White metal walls, flooring and ceiling, barren of any form of decoration beyond fluorescent lighting ─ too sterile, controlled and minimalistic to compare to even an operating room.

  Still, that seemed like a much preferred sight.

  The boy's breathing, assisted by the respiratory mask strapped to his face, slowed to something less frantic as he floated idly in a vat of liquid.

  Unbidden by the fluid separating them, the voice of the only other person present in the room reached his ears.

  "C-099, the recovery procedure is complete. You're free to exit the chamber and return to your siblings."

  "Ah... Right."

  An alarm sounded, and within moments the contents of the chamber were emptied. Then, the hiss of mechanisms coming undone gave him the go-ahead to push open the door and exit.

  What remained of the rejuvenating fluid seemed to fizzle away as soon as it came into contact with the cool, medicated air in the room, the sheen fading to show the darker skin that lied underneath, more toned and scarred than would be expected from someone his age.

  "Are you experiencing any discomfort?" The attendant asked, no particular worry present in their voice; speaking from procedure rather than genuine concern; as they stood from the setup of monitors and readers at the side of the room.

  The boy quickly shook his head, some stray droplets flying off of his hair. "Nuh-uh. I feel great, thanks!" he cheered, offering a wide smile which exposed an unusually sharp, almost shark-like set of teeth.

  "Off you go, then."

  Monotonous dismissal aside, they offered the boy a gown to cover himself; plain white apart from some grey-black accents along the shoulders, around the sleeves, and down the middle; which he threw on without question, the small square slit in the piece of clothing showing off the designation code tattooed on his bicep.

  With a light tap at the panel beside the door, the magnets holding it closed released, and he happily trotted along down the hallway that was revealed.

  He hummed as he went, gleefully waving at the other uniformed and sometimes masked individuals that he passed, despite the indifferent silence they offered in return.

  It didn't seem to bother him too much, putting no hesitation in the tune playing his head. What did manage to interrupt his jovial train of thought, however, was the light ding that sounded off from the speakers in the hallway.

  "Attention all Sprouts," a soft, almost maternal voice announced ─ a familiar voice which C-099 gave his full attention to. "If you aren't too busy to attend, please make your way to the auditorium for our daily lesson. Today's topic is History, and there will be a small prize in store for whoever answers the most questions in the pop-quiz afterwards! Do hurry along if you want to join~!"

  A light click echoed from the speakers as the announcement concluded, and hearing what was said, more enthusiasm seemed to seep into C-099's expression, if that were even possible.

  With a wide grin on his face, he would happily sprint through the hallway, making his way over to the room to which he and the other residents of the facility had been called.