"Subject Primal Z-01 activated. Initiating de-stasis."
The announcement echoed through the colossal laboratory hall, centered around a massive containment chamber.
The sleeping pod hissed open. Dozens of Thelarian scientists formed a perimeter around the core platform. Foggy gas spilled out, and from inside, a female figure emerged.
She emerged—tall, statuesque, completely unclothed. Her eyes flicked down to her own body, examining her hands, her torso, her bare legs and feet. She approached the transparent wall of the chamber, staring into the reflection of her own face.
Electric blue eyes. They shimmered—and shifted color with her focus. Dark brown hair framed her striking features. But her mouth... and jawline—something was wrong about her face.
Then came the scream.
Unholy. Unrestrained. It tore through the lab like a banshee's cry. So loud the systems were forced into emergency override. Speakers muted. Containment protocols activated.
It didn't stop. The woman, who looked in her twenties, punched through glass. It didn't break. The Thelarians were confident it wouldn't. Then electricity crackled around her body. She moved back and speared through the glass, sending splinters into the air.
An electric bolt moved through the lab, splattering humans, aliens and breaking through cyborgs. All the things Thelarians were composed of. Then the lightning bolt lunged toward the observation room where multiple figures watched through the glass, guarded by elite soldiers.
She broke in. The guards straightened their weapons, but the chief scientist, Dr. Zaalthore, forbade them.
"Let her come to me."
She zoomed past the guards, grabbed his neck and smashed him into the wall.
"My face," she growled, voice low and venomous. "What's wrong with my face?"
Zaalthore gasped, struggling to speak.
"It's... something we couldn't cure. A structural failure. Genetic degradation. Not without your cooperation."
"Speak!" She snarled, teeth clenched.
"Your genes lack stability. We needed a test subject… to study. But every time we get close, she breaks out or someone breaks her out."
"What's her name?" She tightened her grip on his neck.
"Her name is Andromeda. Eve Andromeda."