"296," Harpostia sat by the innocent girl on one of the white benches in an open-space room, on a particular day. It was much more relaxed for everyone; the atmosphere was lighter and there weren't as many experiments to be conducted on the day. "I've always wondered how you placed so much trust in Dr. Exor. Why so?"

"He saved my life," 296 responded, her eyes twinkling.

"Aha, yes," Harpostia gave a half-hearted laugh and shook her head. Of course you think this way. "How should I say this? He doesn't do those experiments for..." Harpostia's mouth kept moving as she spoke. Then, she let out a small gasp. My tongue has run away from me!

"Excuse me?" 296 cocked her head and raised an eyebrow, quite confused.

Harpostia smiled flatly and widened her eyes to the ground, grunting lowly in the closed cave of a mouth. "Ahem. What I meant to say is that that man you admire isn't the great one that you think of."

"You're referring to Dr. Sir Exor? That's ridiculous. Harpostia–he saved me and everyone else. And anyways, that that man you are referring to must be someone else." 296 folded her hands and swung her legs happily, as she felt that she had defended her Sir Exor well.

"No, 296, listen to me—"

"Harpostia, I appreciate your concern, but you're helping Dr. Sir Exor out, right?" 296's short blue strands swayed as she stared at Harpostia coldly. "And it's not good to talk behind our Sir's back, so if you are to say anything more that could possibly stain him, then this is the end of our discussion."

296 stood up and faced her for a split moment before sighing. "I will be off now. See you later, Harpostia."

Harpostia watched helplessly as 296 walked away.

#

And so Harpostia had set out to warn 296 again. Reminding her–or trying to–over and over with her words cut off everytime in such places.

And again.

And again.

Curses! She could never truly say how she was feeling. She felt much like Harpocrates, like a person devoted to silence. Or rather, it was Harpocrates who was silencing her. Shh.

What am I saying? Or thinking? There was no time for mind-written metaphors.

So Harpostia set out to warn her again on another day, after an experiment 296 had part in, containing only water and plants from the plant room.

"296," Harpostia bit the insides of her mouth. "May I talk to you again?"

"If it's about Dr. Sir Exor, then I'd prefer you not talk at all." 296 narrowed her eyes and placed a finger to her own lips. 291 sat beside her, silently sighing.

"Dr. Sir Exor, he..." Her voice trailed off again. Harposita slapped her own forehead. Curses, curses, curses!

"Do you know what she wants to say?" 296 turned to her brunette friend. But she just shook her head. "Though, I think I know. Frankly, Harpostia, it's quite irritating to hear you talk behind Dr. Sir Exor's back."

Now it was 291's turn to grunt. Silently.

291 stood up from the bench in the open room and walked away.

"291! Where are you going!"

Her steps flew farther and farther, ignoring her friend's calls.

296 let out a small sigh. Oh, I didn't mean to upset her. I should go apologize—

Harpostia grabbed her by the arm.

"Wait, 296, if you must know—"

"What do you want, Harpostia?!" 296 hissed. "I told you, if you want to say anything about Dr. Sir Exor, save it."

"No, well... That's not what..." Harpostia stuttered.

296 stared at her, still gripped on by the maiden.

Harpostia took a long breath. And stared right back.

"Look, listen to me. 296, I don't care if you are so devoted to Dr. Exor. He is...an angel. He is not the one you think of him as. He—"

The door nearby opened. A man in green hair and a white robe walked right out, his hand rested on it as he pushed.

His smile instantly faded into a bitter scowl.

"You have something to say, Harpostia?"

296 and Harpostia turned. 296 let out a smile, much different from the maiden's increasingly pale face.

"You aren't so ignorant to try, are you?" He stepped closer to the pair.

Harpostia let go of 296's arm.

"Even with it, I didn't think you would still turn to such hopeless stubbornness." He turned his head down to glare.

Harpostia stared down.

"But I think my patience has thinned with you long enough."

Dr. Sir Exor glanced up to 296.

"How long has she been like this?"

"A while, actually." 296 sighed. "She kept telling me that you were not a good person. That you lie about certain things. Hide certain things. A sinner–that's what you told me they were called. But I know better than that."

Dr. Sir Exor cracked a weak smile, and he said, "Well, I guess that's not the same as Harpostia here, is it?"

"No, it's not."

Harpostia's eyes darted left and right as she lifted her head to face 296 and Dr. Exor.

Dr. Exor merely smiled at her. 296's head tilted at his words.

"Well, come then. I will take you outside."

#

296 walked down the hallways, the white light glowing on her from the Youmlay berries above. This was her entire world, the Institute of Lab and Research. The world in Dr. Sir Exor's care, guided by lighttime and darktime.

Dr. Exor also walked down beside her, no light touching him at all. This place–the Institute of Lab and Research–was hardly a fragment of the universe outside.

And finally, being pushed by Dr. Exor's broad hand was Harpostia. The berries' light traced her cheeks and her eyes, giving a motherly glow. To her, this Institute was simply a prison. Disgusting.

"Harpostia." Dr. Sir Exor finally spoke after a while. "Do you know what happens to those who defy me?"

Harpostia stayed quiet, 296 wavering beside him.

"They lose the most valuable thing ever."

296 tilted her head again. What could it be?

"Their life."

Standing by a gray door near the end of the hallway, Dr. Sir Exor reached for the door and busted it open. A gust of wind blew in–whoosh!–and he pushed Harpostia out with his other hand.

Here, there were open fields and billowing winds, a million green hairs swaying to and fro as light came shining down from a seemingly high (and endless) bright blue ceiling. 296 had never seen the sight before, and Dr. Sir Exor had never told her about the existence of these...well she wasn't even sure of the name! He called it "outside," didn't he?

A word she had never heard before...

Meanwhile, Dr. Sir Exor pushed Harpostia, farther and farther from the Institute and the gray door that he shut with his foot. Bang!

296 followed behind.

"Stop, please!" Harpostia begged, as she continued to get pushed. 296 still watched. Harpostia...her legs turned from a stern young leg of flesh, to crumbly paper. Slowly and slowly, a transformation to withering. Gray and thin and wafer, trembling and fragile. Like paper thinner than the wind. Harpostia let out a cry.

"STOP! PLEASEE!" She slowly fell to her knees, her legs continuing to break. Wither and crumble. The air smelled of smoke as Harpostia's tears bursted. Like a balloon. Her droplets flew to the floor. Ploop, ploop. Rain fell from the clouds of her eyes.

Her stomach ached and squeezed, eyes red and wet, hands trembling and her legs still crumbling downward like a spiral.

Dr. Exor grabbed a knife out of his pockets. Harpostia felt a lump in her throat.

It was like her son.

She was next.

"296, would you come here for a moment?"

296 sauntered to him, hands clasped. Dr. Sir Exor handed the knife to her.

"You see Harpostia over there?" he pointed. "I have taught you that people like her are sinners and deserve no life. Their most valued should be destroyed." 296's head turned to the crumbling woman. Her eyes widened and she bit her lip.

"You know what to do."

296 slowly walked to Harpostia, inching step by step with Dr. Sir Exor following behind. Slowly, on her toes, and her hand shivered. Was it from the billowing wind? Was she nervous? Her chest felt heavy as her stomach felt a pinch from the inside. She wanted to puke. Her throat tightened, like she might throw up. Dr. Sir Exor trusted her to this task, trusted her to everything! It was her purpose, her drive! Everything in her life and purpose was to serve Dr. Sir Exor and support him.

Her blood still rushed though. She still felt her legs shake, though much differently from the crumbling maiden. Inching step by step still...Why am I nervous?

"Please, 296," Harpostia let out a quiet sob. "Please, don't hurt me. Don't kill me. I don't want to die...please! Listen! Dr. Exor has a bullet drive. He won't care about you, he holds nothing but apathy, oh but please don't—"

FWISHING! A sound ripped through the wind and the mind...

And Harpostia's heart.

296 stared down as Harpostia crumbled to the ground. Shatter, in a million pieces she went. Her crumbling body of thin paper and smoke fell like glass, ashes littering the green-haired floor as it blew and traveled away in the wind. The gray smoke blew away too, flying away from the ground.

No traces left behind of Harpostia. A door slam, 296 had no emotions that could be traced on her face, either. Her blue eyes glared emptily to the ground, her lips drawn to a straight line, not pursuing anything except silence and apathy.

Harpostia, she meant nothing to her now. She was merely a sinner and a betrayer of Dr. Sir Exor.

But she still felt her legs shake, and her chest heavy as her stomach twisted. Her eyes felt moist–though 296 convinced herself it was from the wind. The knife stood still in her hand, gripped on tight.

She turned to Dr. Sir Exor and let out a small, fragile smile.

"Well done, 296."

"Thank you." She replied, eyes averting to the bare grass. "What is this place, by the way?"

"This is the outside world of Oceanuris. I didn't think I'd have to show you this place, so I thought you wouldn't need to learn about it. So I left it out."

296 bit her lip as she felt the grip of the knife loosen a little. Just a little.

Lying about certain things.

What else is he not telling me?