As Layla reached the headquarters, the familiar sight of the towering structure brought a fleeting sense of relief.
She swiftly powered down her mecha, the hiss of hydraulics filling the air as the cockpit opened.
Without wasting a second, she rushed to the open hand of her mecha, where Tomi lay unconscious.
Her fingers flew to the control panel on the side of her white and black helmet, and with a quick press of a button, the helmet split open, revealing her anxious face.
"Doctor Gina! This survivor is running an unusual fever," Layla called out urgently, her voice echoing off the sterile walls of the medical bay.
She carefully lifted Tomi, his body limp and burning with fever, and positioned him on her back as she hurried toward the hospital rooms.
"Slow down, missy… Let me take a look at him," Dr. Gina said, her voice calm yet firm as she turned away from the holographic screen floating beside her.
Her experienced eyes narrowed as she watched Layla gently lower Tomi onto a bed next to her chair.
Layla, breathing heavily, stepped back to give Gina space.
The doctor leaned over Tomi, her hands moving deftly as she examined him, her face illuminated by the soft glow of medical data streaming from the monitors above.
"Tell me everything," Gina said, her tone leaving no room for hesitation.
Meanwhile, Tomi was trapped in a horrific nightmare, his mind replaying the terror he'd endured.
"Let me go!" he screamed, tears streaming down his face as he struggled against the five men restraining him.
Each man gripped his limbs with brutal force, while another pinned his head down. Their faces were obscured by black masks, their expressions hidden, but their grip was merciless.
Suddenly, a doctor stepped forward, a syringe glinting ominously in the harsh light. Tomi's eyes widened in panic as the needle plunged into his arm.
He screamed, the sound raw and desperate, as the serum burned through his veins, a cold dread seizing his heart.
He thrashed violently, cursing them all in his mind, vowing revenge even as his strength waned.
Then, faintly, through the haze of his nightmare, he heard a voice—a woman's voice, gentle but firm, cutting through the darkness like a beacon.
"Hey, kiddo. Wake up, it's all a dream," Gina's voice echoed, piercing through the layers of his unconscious mind.
Tomi jolted awake, his chest heaving as he sucked in air, his eyes darting around the room.
The ceiling above him was stark white, the lights painfully bright, and for a moment, he panicked. The light was too similar to the one in the laboratory—the place of his nightmares. He bolted upright, fear twisting his insides, his pulse racing.
"Calm down, you're safe," Gina's voice came again, soothing and steady, grounding him back to reality.
Tomi's gaze shifted towards the source of the soothing voice.
He saw a woman with pale skin and black hair tied back in a low ponytail, her appearance calm and composed.
She wore a doctor's uniform, her glasses perched on the bridge of her nose as she adjusted them, her attention fixed on a computer screen. Her purple pupils met his with an unreadable expression.
"Who is she?" Tomi wondered, his eyes searching her face as he tried to shake off the remnants of his nightmare.
"It seems you were having a traumatic nightmare," Gina said, her voice steady and clinical.
She gestured towards a holographic image of Tomi's brain, which floated beside her. "Your brain activity was erratic, and your body language indicated severe distress."
The room fell into a heavy silence, the only sound the faint hum of the computer. Tomi stared at her with a mixture of fear and confusion, his trauma still fresh and vivid.
Just then, the door slid open, and a familiar voice cut through the silence. "Dr. Gina, is he awake?"
Tomi's heart skipped a beat as he recognized the voice.
He turned to see Layla standing in the doorway, her brown skin and height silhouetted against the bright corridor lights. She wore a black and white AI robotic Mecha pilot suit, her golden pupils wide with shock as they locked onto him.
"That voice…" Tomi thought,
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Layla shouted, her voice a mixture of concern and frustration as she saw Tomi attempting to stand despite his near-fatal fever.
"Sit down and rest," she ordered, rushing over to him with urgency.
Her hands reached out to steady him, her expression tight with worry.
Tomi recoiled, a sinister glint in his eyes as he glared at her.
"Get away from me," he growled, taking a step back and away from her grasp.
Layla's face hardened, her tone icy.
"Not until you're in that seat!" She moved swiftly, her movements precise as she grabbed Tomi's arm, guiding him towards the bed with determined strength.
As Layla wrestled him onto the bed, Dr. Gina watched with a faint, amused smile playing at the corners of her lips. She observed Tomi's futile struggle against Layla's firm grip.
"Give up, kiddo," Gina called out softly, her voice almost melodic in contrast to the tense scene. "You're not going to free yourself."
"Now sit there and rest," Layla ordered, her eyes wide with a mix of frustration and concern.
Her tone brooked no argument as she guided Tomi to the bed, her displeasure evident.
Tomi, seething with anger, shot her a defiant look.
"Who does she think she is?" he muttered, his voice tinged with bitterness. As Layla turned and walked out, she slammed the door behind her, the sound reverberating through the room.
Dr. Gina, unperturbed, turned her attention back to the holographic system displaying Tomi's scan.
"Our youngest F2," she said, her focus shifting as she examined the data. "And also, like you, a survivor of the S-3 test."
Gina's eyes narrowed as she studied the chip data from Tomi's brain scan.
"His chip is different from hers," she thought, scrutinizing the details on the display.
Her eyes widened in sudden realization. "S-1!" she gasped, her shock evident as she read the designation on the chip.
Turning her gaze to Tomi, who had quickly fallen into a deep sleep, Gina couldn't help but be impressed.
"That was quick," she remarked, observing his peaceful slumber.
She tapped her watch, activating a hologram of an elderly man in a uniform.
"Gina reporting," she announced.
"Sir, we have the right one," Gina said with a satisfied smirk, her eyes gleaming with the excitement of her discovery.