Waking up in pain, a slow groan echoed through the small closed room. Teeth clenched, the young girl was drawn from the sweet release of sleep, her body forcing her to tend to her injuries. Groaning, she scratched at her itchy shoulder with her only intact hand.
Eyes hazy from sleep, she struggled to open them. Rolling over in place, a piercing pain shot up through her legs like her nerves were on fire. Her brain freezing, it took her a few seconds to realize she felt her legs. Sitting up rapidly, her eyes shot open fully.
Gasping violently, her gaze flickered around the dimly lit room, taking in all the details before drifting down to her legs. The room in question was a sparsely decorated concrete box; inside, a single metal cot was the only thing that decorated the deteriorating space.
Looking down, clunky and rusted metal legs dug deep into the flesh around her hips. The metal was lined with a thin layer of skin that was warm to the touch and slightly swollen. Wincing in disgust, she tried to move away from the foreign objects attached to her body, two hands pushing her back against the cold concrete wall.
Startled, she noticed the sudden emergence of a second arm. Pulling away, the connected limb flailed and followed behind her, acting like her own arm. Pushing up against the corner, she desperately scratched at the foreign limb, wincing when a sharp, foreign pain travelled to her mind.
Breathing deeply, she stared at the strange limb in a mix of fear and curiosity, her mind shifting through a million thoughts per minute. Finally, she remembered the immeasurable pain she was subjected to before she blacked out.
Gasping, she finally started to calm down as she tentatively waved the new arm around, a slow, quiet whirring forming a regular sound that accompanied her every movement. Resting the arm in front of her, she began fiddling with the sealed casing. Finding a release point, she pried it open, revealing the parts within.
Flexing her mechanical hand, small lights flickered along the inside as mechanical parts seamlessly slid back and forth with the movement of her fingers. Tentatively reaching out, she slowly grabbed hold of the bed's leg and carefully squeezed it. Latching around the hollow metal, the hand slowly closed, the metal not slowing it in the slightest as it gradually bent and creaked.
Snapping shut fully, the hand entirely crushed the metal leg, squeezing it into a deformed mass. Releasing her grip, she flexed the hand slightly, bringing it up to her face to properly check it for damage.
It flexed perfectly with barely any lag between her mind and the action. In addition, she saw no visible dents or damage. Smiling, she laughed giddily, only wincing once the healing flesh got caught on her torn shirt.
Moving her gaze down toward her legs, she tentatively flexed her ankle. The feet consisted of only three large toes that spread wide and looked like they could easily support her. Breathing in deeply, she tentatively reached out toward the bed. Grabbing hold of it, she slowly moved her new legs.
Flexing and whirring, the legs lagged slightly but moved as she willed. Bringing them underneath her, she slowly moved her weight onto them, rising on shaky legs. Suddenly, a sharp whirring echoed into the room as the thick door slid open. Behind it, a mechanical frame whirred as it stepped inside.
Shivering in fear, dread ran down Evie's spine as she looked upon the robot that had strapped her to a metal bench to be tortured by a faulty machine. Whimpering in fear, she scampered toward the bed, squeezing herself under the hard metal frame, her mechanical limbs whirring as she fled in fear.
Cowering from the light, she tucked herself into the corner as the heavy metal footsteps drew closer. Step by step, the ancient robot approached her hiding place. Stopping by the edge of the bed, the robot paused before slowly the metal frame rose, causing light to spill down on her.
Whimpering, she clamped her eyes shut and waited for the robot to act. Standing above her, the robot idly observed her. Scanning her briefly with its malfunctioning sensors, it noted the small traces of blood leaking around the prosthetics.
Approaching the cowering child, Baymax grabbed a tattered cloth from a nook in his arm. Tentatively reaching toward her, he lightly dabbed her wounds. Tensing, Evie flinched away from the metallic touch, her body shivering in fright.
"Miss, I recommend not moving. You may aggravate your wounds." Shivering, Evie ignored the robot and continued to shut out reality. Waiting patiently, the robot continued to monitor her, taking a few minutes to assess her. The robot's medical programs collated enough data to properly diagnose her.
Bending down to get closer to his patient, Baymax pointed a finger into the sky while tilting his head. "I've completed my diagnosis. In addition to major bodily trauma, you also have a severe case of trauma. I shall leave you be for now."
Getting up, Baymax gently lowered the bed into place before turning to leave the room. Under the bed, Evie's shivers slowly calmed down as her mind gradually recovered. Wiping her tears, she slowly peeked out from under the bed, looking both ways. She tentatively crawled out when she saw the robot wasn't around.
Crawling over to the wall, she slowly moved her new legs under her. Pushing down against the ground, she gradually rose higher into the air. Wobbling, she grabbed the edge of the bed to stabilize herself. Breathing deeply, she wobbled gently as the mechanical legs whirred and clicked.
Twisting her torso, one of her new legs scraped forward a few millimetres. Focusing intently on the mechanical limbs, her left leg jerked forward a small bit. Tripping, she tumbled and crashed against the bed. Wincing, she didn't let it deter her and slowly got back on her feet.
Bracing herself more this time, she stabilized her stance and tried to move her feet. Twitching, her leg moved forward, and she wobbled slightly. Stabilizing herself, she slowly tried to move the other leg forward. Lifting off the ground, the leg bent before extending forward.
Falling forward, she caught herself on the new leg. Pulling her other leg forward, it lifted easier than the last and moved ahead. Completing another step, she started to get into a rhythm—one leg in front of the other—as she slowly began walking forward.
Smiling widely, she tried to walk faster. Her legs got caught in the process, sending her tumbling forward. Raising her hands, she braced for impact as the floor rushed toward her face. Crashing into the ground, her metal arm absorbed the impact easily, but the force travelled up into her injured shoulder, causing her to wince.
Shaking off her pain, she got her new legs under her and tentatively stood up. Shaking a bit, she stuck her hands out instinctively, trying to flex her toes. Whirring, the mechanical feet spread out to increase her contact with the ground.
Getting her balance, she slowly lowered her arms. Looking down at her metal feet, she curiously tried to flex her toes. Whirring, the mechanical feet gripped into the ground, and she felt the rough texture of the concrete beneath, the cold feeling weird on her new limbs.
Shaking her head, she looked away from the strange limbs and toward the door. Face hardening in resolve, she slowly started moving forward. Step after step, each action was faster and smoother than the last.
Getting up to a good speed, she reached the door. Stopping, she placed both her hands against the wall to stabilize herself, the mechanical hand moving as easily as her own. Eyes tracing over the more advanced prosthesis, she marvelled at the design, far more advanced than anything she had seen her dad make.
Twirling her hand around, she looked it over a bit before regaining her focus. Reaching out for the door, she slowly pulled the handle down as the door cracked open. Peaking her head out, she cautiously looked around.
On the other side of the door, a well-lit room furnished sparsely with metal and plastic furniture appeared mostly empty. Slowly opening the door a bit more, she tentatively stepped out. Leaving the door open behind her, she moved into the room.
Looking to the left, the square room narrowed into a thin corridor that had three shut doors around it. To her right, a single metal door sat shut. Shuffling toward the corridor, her hand wrapped around the first handle. Opening it quickly, she swung the door open and stepped back.
Inside sat a sparsely furnished bathroom with both a porcelain sink and toilet. In the corner, a shower sat within the remains of what was possibly a glass box. Not seeing the robot, she turned around and left the confined room, moving to open the next door.
Inside were the remains of a kitchen—rusty pipes and rotted wood proving what was once in that room. Shutting the door again, she turned to the last one. Opening it, she spotted another metal bed resting in the corner.
Sighing with relief, she slowly shut the door and stepped back into the main room. Walking around a bit, her eyes slowly settled on the last remaining door. Tentatively walking toward it, the door creaked on its hinges as it swung open.
Outside, a long corridor stretched in both directions, flickering lights faintly illuminating the concrete passageway. Stepping back into the room, she grabbed two metal chairs and, propping one in the door, stepped out with the other.
Looking either way, Evie decided to head left first. Walking out of her room, her metal footsteps echoed loudly down the corridor. One foot in front of the other, she progressed along the singular path, a metal door at the end acting as an enticing mystery.
Cracking open the door, light poured out as air rushed in. Holding strong, she kept her grip on the handle and yanked it open fully. Squinting at the intense light, she rubbed her eyes until they adjusted, her mouth dropping open in awe at the room's contents.
Inside, rows upon rows of glass boxes sat in evenly spaced lines, each two meters by three meters. Within sat multiple shelves completely stacked with what appeared to be fully intact books.
Placing her chair in the doorway, Evie made sure she couldn't get shut in before investigating further. Walking between the long rows, she read thousands of labels, each box labelled with its contents and genre.
Reaching the back of the room, she found an old computer fixed to the wall. Getting on her tiptoes, she pressed the power button. Flickering slightly, the lights cut out briefly before coming back on. Inside the computer, a whirring sound started up.
Lighting up, a small symbol spun around on the screen as the corner glitched slightly. Waiting patiently, Evie hummed as the computer booted up. Suddenly, the distant sound of metal feet on concrete caused her to freeze. Spinning slowly, she noticed a shadow being cast over the partially closed door.
Grabbing the edge of the door, it slowly opened to show the menacing face of the friendly medical robot. Sweat pooling along her forehead, she frantically looked around. Noticing the nearby glass boxes, she ran behind one, cutting off her line of sight to the robot.
Standing in the doorway, Baymax looked around for his lost patient. Noticing a few drops of blood on the floor, his mechanical eyes traced out a path, and his head turned to a distant box. Running through his patient profile, he immediately flagged her recently diagnosed trauma. Loading briefly, he ascertained a good approach method.
"Young miss, if you keep moving, your injuries will flare up. Please return to your room. You can access the library later; you need to eat first." Turning on the spot, Baymax left the room, intent on getting his patient the correct nutrition.
Behind the glass box, Evie shivered as her body convulsed from phantom pains, trauma fresh and raw in her mind. Snivelling, she slid down to the ground as she relived the traumatic experience that resulted in her new appendages.
Minutes passed as the young devil sat alone with her thoughts, only drawn from them when a tear landed on her new leg and a spark laced up her body. Yelping in pain, she was jolted back to reality. Flexing her leg, the limb flickered and lagged violently.
Slowly standing, she tried to step, struggling as the limb violently jolted and unbalanced her. Dread running up her spine, she slowly realized there was no one able to repair her leg, leaving her trapped with the malfunctioning prosthetic.
Looking around for a solution, her eyes fell on the label closest to her: 'Robotics.' Looking between it and her leg, she made a choice. Lifting the handle, a white mist escaped the closed room as air was sucked in. Pulling open the door, she stepped inside to check the books.
Eyes flitting up and down the spines of books, she slowly read the labels, settling on one that caught her interest: 'Basics of Robotics.' Grabbing the book, she stepped out of the sealed room and, after closing the door, sat down by the computer and cracked it open.
If there was no one to help her, she would help herself. Eyes drifting up to the door, an image of Baymax flashed through her mind. Shivering in fear, she diverted her focus to the book in her hands.
{A/N: Give stones please, and check out my patreon @patreon.com/TheFudgeNPC}