All Six of them sat together—Joon-Seok and Haewon side by side, Ji-ho standing near the window, and Choon-Hee perched tensely on the arm of a chair.
Chang-min and Chul-jun lingered to the side, subtly standoffish toward Joon-Seok and Ji-ho, but softer around Haewon.
The group had been like this for hours, waiting.
Haewon's fingers trembled as she set down her untouched cup of tea.
"She's been out for so long," she whispered, glancing over at the pod where Loadon stood guard.
"She'll wake when her system stabilizes," Joon-Seok said quietly, his hands clasped tight in worry.
HISSS!
Everyone fell into collective silence.
'Is she awaking?'
'What should we say to her?'
'Is she going to talk to us?'
They all had thoughts swirling in their minds, sharing anxious glances.
The silence stretched—until a faint beeping broke through.
They turned fully toward the source. The medical pod beside the couch released a soft pulse of vapor.
The lights along its frame flickered blue.
The guardian had been standing watch for hours, alloy surface glinting in the warm light.
The others subconsciously held their breath as the pod's seals unlocked with a click.
"She's waking," Loadon announced, moving toward the pod, voice low but steady.
Her eyelashes flickered. Her body shook slightly, as if surfacing from a horror dream.
Everyone rushed forward, ready to assist.
"What's going on?!" Haewon cried, panic and authority mixing as she looked at Joon-Seok.
"I… I don't know—" he admitted, helpless. Iseul's case was special, unique to her. They couldn't intervene much, even if they wanted to.
When the liquid finally parted—Iseul jerked violently.
GASP!
She jerked again.
Chul-jun, Choon-Hee, Haewon, and Chang-min all moved to surround the pod but were blocked by the guardian mech.
"Hey! Loadon, now is not the time for this! We are just trying to help! Move!" Chul-jun warned, stopping short.
Loadon ignored him, straightening.
"All creator vitals are nominal. The healing was a success. No need to worry. She is just coming back and a bit disoriented."
Choon-Hee exchanged a glance with Haewon, seeking support and comfort.
Chul-jun stepped back, unwilling to confront the strange mech.
Only Chang-min's eyes lingered, sharp and accusatory toward Joon-Seok, whose head hung meekly.
"Shit! What's happening to her!? I thought she was fine!"
Chang-min snapped, grabbing Joon-Seok roughly by the collar.
"You said she would be fine! Does that look fine to you?!"
Before Joon-Seok could reply, a unique pressure began to build.
Iseul blinked rapidly, her violet irises adjusting to the light.
Her chest felt tight, a subtle burn in her lungs—her gift had been feeding voraciously while she slept.
Everyone froze, turning back toward the pod.
Iseul's chest tightened again, but this time the breathlessness carried a curious undertone—a surge of power threading through her.
Iseul lifted straight up defensively.
It was… different.
Newly violet iridescent eyes opened fully, shimmering brightly.
"!—"
"Oh, rusting gears!" Chul-jun winched in surprise. "Those are definitely new!"
"Little Iseul your eyes are purple!" Chang-min held his face in distress as he paced the floor.
Joon-Seok felt unease ripple through him.
Ji-ho who was near off to the side of him looked around sensing the comostia energy repulsion towards Iseul's aura.
His instincts screamed to pull everyone back, though he knew Iseul would never intentionally harm them.
The others, oblivious, moved closer, chatting excitedly.
Choon-Hee exhaled in relief, a crooked smile appearing.
"Welcome back. Guess you needed more than beauty sleep, huh?"
Haewon moved forward, tears pricking her eyes, wanting to brush the damp strands from Iseul's face.
But still gave her a little space.
"Hey love, how are you feeling? You're safe, sweetheart," she said, voice trembling as much as her hands.
Iseul was lost, confused, panicked; her breath came shallow and erratic.
'Who's there? What's happened?'
She heard voices, but could not make them out clearly.
Her gift, usually quiet and obedient, now hummed with hyper awareness.
The energy inside her pulsed like a heartbeat, warm, playful, and unmistakably sentient.
Her aura burst into the air, and the surrounding Comostia energy quivered agitated with tension.
Being a little bit more sensitive than the others as being a higher rank Ji-ho and Joon-seok both moved at the same time, sensing their gift flinching away when sensing Isuel and her aura.
Choon-Hee, Haewon, Chang-min, and the others closest to the pod were yanked back.
Joon-Seok and Ji-ho moved at the same time, pulling them safely away from Iseul.
Iseul's gift flared, manifesting a chain with three daggers at the end.
SWISH!
CHING!
One dagger missed narrowly, striking near the floor.
While the other ones hit the shield that Ji-ho and Joon-seok had activated.
Everyone froze, terrified—except Loadon and Gullius.
"What the hell was that?!" Choon-Hee exploded, disbelief breaking through.
"Did she really just try to attack us?" Chang-min asked, stunned.
"!—She totally did!"
Chul-jun gasped out in disbelief and shock wiping the cold sweat that appeared on his forehead.
The other three were just as speechless and were unsure of how to feel.
'Just what is going on with her?'
They all backed away, some more giving her some space just in case she decides to swing another attack.
"Sigh"
Hearing the sigh Loadon looked over at the Butler mech with questioning in his eyes.
"It seems I will have to spend another day missing my soap operas to clean up the mess inside the villa again."
Gillius muttered under his breath with his hands on his hips.
"???"
Loadon wasn't sure exactly what the strange bulter was talking about.
Then he decided to ignore him and turned his attention back to his Creator.
Iseul's mind raced.
She remembered only the mutant animal stampede at the scrapyard, then nothing.
"I can hear you now," her gift whispered—not in sound, but in thought, vibrating through the very marrow of her bones.
"Huh?"
She froze not fully processing what just happened.
'What was the voice just now?'
'Was it her gift to communicate with her?'
'Could gifts do that?'
Iseul felt her gift hum with excitement as if agreeing.
Panic surged—fight or flight engaged.
Her damp black hair clung to her face; her skin was pale and luminous.