H-108 stared at the ceiling in a daze. She felt her heart pounding in her chest, with each beat pumping blood through her head all the way down to her toes. Each beat brought along with it hope, pulsating an invisible force through her body. With a flushed face, the corners of her lips could not help but to raise.
The flames in her heart had long been extinguished, but Cotton's words had sparked a flame and the fires grew until her whole body was warm with anticipation and hope.
They were coming to save her.
H-108 could not resist chuckling. It was ironic. The villains that she hated so much were freeing her from this hellhole while the heroes she admired didn't even know about her. When she heard of the plan, she giggled hysterically. The warriors of justice were mere pawns on the palms of the enemies they swore to destroy.
{We found the location of the laboratory!} Cotton reported with excitement in her voice. {We're going to save you soon, you'll become a part of our family!}
Family. It was a word that sounded familiar yet foreign to H-108. She too once had a family, a name and a place called home. But she was so very little when she arrived at the laboratory, she didn't have the time or heart to remember her name while fear and pain tormented her.
"It's time for breakfast." There was a knock on the door but the person knocking didn't even wait for her reply before they unlocked it and walked into H-108's cell. A male and female carted a trolley full of food in.
H-108's lips widened into a smile. It was the idiots that leaked the lab's location. "What's for breakfast today?"
"English breakfast."
"Urgh. I don't like beans." Despite her mouth complaining, the brightness of H-108's smile did not diminish in the slightest. It was all just meaningless words. She was grateful for every bite of food she was able to get.
She scurried out of bed and went excitedly to the cart to receive her share. "Hm? One's missing?"
She was always the first to get their meals so whenever the servings changed, she always noticed. Today, there was one less plate.
"H-136 had some complications." The idiots didn't shy away from letting her know. Because, even if she knew, what could she do about it?
H-108 kept her head low as she grabbed her plate and utensils. She sat at the table and waited for the idiots to leave before beginning to move again. Another one of her fellow sufferers had died again. These fiends simply did not care whether or not they'd survive their play at God.
Luckily, she was special. As someone once told her, she should strive to be special enough that it'll be a shame if she died but not so special that she had no opportunities to leave. It took a little experimenting, but H-108 was able to plant herself in that golden centre wherein she could live but not be monitored too heavily. Unfortunately though, her act of saving Cotton had led to security around her to increase.
A week or so later, Cotton's voice rang in her mind again. {The heroes have begun to move. Someone is coming to save you later tonight. When he asks you 'Do you think a hero or a villain has come to visit you', reply with 'it's Cotton telling me to come home', then he'll know who you are.}
H-108 nodded despite knowing that Cotton could not see her. {...What about the others? What's gonna happen to them?}
{That's for the heroes to decide.}
So she was the only one they were going to take. H-108 was fine with that. She wasn't close with the others, heck, she's never even seen them before. Whatever happened to them was none of her concern.
{I'm looking forward to it!}
"It's time for dinner." The idiot knocked on the door and let himself in once more. H-108 sniffed the air but found that dinner didn't really smell like much. She received the plate. It was mashed potatoes, peas and steak. The corners of H-108's mouth raised.
Over at the heroes' side, the scouts had entered the premises of the disguised lab through the delivery truck. Amongst them was the spy that Kin had placed within the ranks of the heroes. The spy pretended to cooperate with the heroes and made up an excuse to go off on his own. Relying on the information that the idiot scientist had given them, he navigated the halls and eventually made it to H-108's cell.
He knocked on the door and waited.
Hearing the knocks and seeing that no one had let themselves into the room, H-108 instantly knew that it wasn't the idiot that had come to collect her plate.
"Come in." She said, for the first time in her life.
The spy swiftly picked the lock and let himself in. His undisguised face showed itself to H-108 as he said the prepared lines. "Do you think a hero or a villain has come to visit you?"
H-108 grinned. "All I know is that Cotton is telling me to come home!"
The spy returned her grin. "Well then, we must swiftly return home, young miss." He elegantly picked up the young child in one arm and activated his ability. His power wrapped around the both of them and instantly, they blended in with the surroundings, becoming invisible.
"How does this ability work?" H-108 curiously inquired.
"A film that bends light wraps around whatever I want and makes it invisible."
"Hmm, that's cool."
The spy walked through the planned escape path while avoiding any hero scouts that he encountered along the way. Time was ticking and he knew that the heroes were going to attack any time now. He didn't want to be discovered in the midst of the chaos.
"Hey, hey, what's your name?"
"My name is Will. What is yours, miss?"
"H-108. But I'm thinking of a new name for myself right now."
"I'm looking forward to when you decide."
"Hehe, I'll be sure to tell you when I do."
"Y'know, Will, you're a spy but you're kinda like a butler."
"I'm honoured that you think of me that way, young miss. However, I must correct you on one thing. I am not a spy. Today's case is just something special for you, young miss. Usually, I'm a phantom thief."
H-108 giggled. "Then am I the treasure you're stealing today?"
"That appears to be the case."
Boom! A loud sound echoed in the laboratory. Will clicked his tongue and hastened his pace. In the distance, H-108 could hear the guards prepping for action and heroes charging into the base.
'Damn it!' Will cursed inside. Ahead of them were a few guards rushing to the cells. Their big, bulky bodies covered half of the narrow corridor and Will wasn't too confident in defeating them without causing a huge commotion.
"I'll handle this, Butler Will." H-108's eyes glowed and she threw something from her closed fist. In an instant, the guards were enclosed in a cloud of an unknown gas and fell to their knees and faces. "It'll only last half a minute. We should quickly leave."
"Is that your ability, young miss?" Will asked, jumping over the sleeping bodies and sprinting ahead.
H-108 chuckled. "Yes and no."
She opened her fist, sitting on her palm were a few peas.