Featuring:

 Jisu_The_Neera - Ju'Ya
 joezill - Vers’Slayns
 scytail - Cassa’ra Myrna

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below :)

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Chapter 2:

There was something familiar in Pedro's walk and expression as he left the Lounge. Charlie instinctively recognized Pedro's sluggish posture. He was spectating his own reactions when Slakine returned home. Pedro's look, that glint, a perfect reminder. Charlie noticed the Brazilian’s attempts to walk the corridors without a trace, with silence in his footsteps.

"Hey Pedro, how ya holdin’ up?" Charlie asked tenderly, catching Pedro off guard and causing him to freeze, allowing Charlie to catch up.

"W-What does it matter? Can you, just, leave me alone?" he requested, refusing to turn around to greet Charlie. For Pedro, Charlie was an invader that triggered his defensive instincts.

"I cannot do that. I cannot. Doing so contradicts my nature," Charlie's voice softened, overshadowing the sound of his own footsteps. "Now, talk to me."

"Why?"

"Because, you need it. I saw Igvins and how he…"

"Ever asked a wasp why it stung you?" Pedro interrupted with a mutter, raising an idle hand to scratch his nails down his arm. A technique to calm his stressed mind that dwelled on its own internal panic.

Charlie shook his head, facing the back of Pedro's head in confusion. Taking Charlie's silence as validation, he continued.

"No, we don't. We focus on the wound," Pedro spoke as he returned to his dreaded march to the dorms, giving one last command to Charlie. "So, let me heal. Alone".

As Pedro retreated away, he bit his lower lip as the boy's fingernails started to turn his skin red. A temporary mark of three lines from his index, ring, and middle finger were tattooed on the flesh.

"Pedro, listen. No one has to heal alone. You do not need to be afraid," Charlie said softly to him, like a close friend.

"I have every reason to!" Pedro projected back with a clenched fist by his waist, something Charlie caught instantly and which caused him to stop. "They are all the same. High and mighty because evolution favoured them. Favoured those stompers," he slurred.

"Those stompers helped with ending the Invasion. We won against the rynar because of…"

"You won. I lost." Pedro's whisper was consumed with heartache and ended with a defeated tone. It left Charlie silent for a moment.

"Umm Pedro, I think you should talk to Vers’Slayns. He seemed willing to help you…"

"Us. That offer was to you as well. I suggest you take it," Pedro scolded back, twirling around to lock Charlie in the eyes as if he were ready to snap.

Charlie raised an eyebrow; he sighed and adapted his facial expression to a smile. Wearing a veil of calm had become routine to Charlie. Deceit was the most efficient option for those around. It didn't stop his mind from returning to his brother, however.

"I will take his offer when I need it. Until then, I am well," he said with sincerity.

He replied with no pauses, no hesitation, nor alteration in tone of voice to conceal the truth. Practice makes perfect, it seems. Or maybe Charlie was beginning to believe this delusion. A dangerous move that would lead to his eventual checkmate.

"I told myself that once, to my jahkatian parents. You cannot fool yourself for long, Charlie. This reality you've created will soon crumble." Pedro's voice softened mid-sentence to match his calming posture. "Did you do this when learning about your human family?"

Then, Charlie looked at Pedro coldly.

"What…did you say? Repeat."

Charlie's eyes narrowed in a cold stare. It left Pedro speechless.

"Y'all gonna git-r-done or what! We gotta prepare for the simulation," Lyla called out, interrupting the pair who retreated from their sparring looks. Both boys averted their attention to watch Lyla lead the humans down the corridor.

Down the hall, Lyla placed her palms upon her waist, above her leather belt. Then, she stared.

"What y'all doin? Hope ya'll ain't up to any funny business," her firm voice called across the hallway to Charlie and Pedro, ending their standoff.

The pair looked to one another to show the effects of their last comments. They agreed on one thing; this was not over. Not even under Lyla's accord, but a temporary truce was perhaps in order. A deal they agreed with a nod as Charlie spoke first

"No, Lyla."

"Umm, n-no, Lyla."

Their joint reply had Lyla remove her grip on her waist and continue strolling down the hallway.

---

On the other side of camp, a wall of screens displayed the hallways and inter-size rooms. These monitors were the singular source of light in the windowless room. It provided enough glow to light up Vers’Slayns orange scales, whilst his eyes narrowed on 'Camera #03', designated as 'Human Dorms'. Below the display was an array of folders spread out from left to right, arranged in species order. Profiles.

"The humans seem to be interacting, thankfully. No surprise Lyla has taken charge given her profile. Tyler and Lisa are exhibiting symptoms of isolationism. Catherine appears most talkative around Kitaru. As for Pedro and Charlie, I am correct. I recommend bringing our meeting forward?"

The arkatian's vertically slitted eyes traced down to the folders with a squint. One by one he re-examined over the human profiles. Basic personality traits, age, and a few lines to tell the tale of their backstory was all they had to go on. Still, such information had caused Vers’Slayns to slump down onto the desk shortly after.

His slumping form was greeted by Cassa’ra placing her palm on his shoulder.

"We cannot. Remember, they have to come to us first. They need time, so let us give them just that," she ordered with a gentle tone, removing her palm off Vers’Slayns’ back. The stern Ra’elees tilted her head down to meet the mesomorph profiles below. "As for the mesomorphs?"

Her question dwindled in Vers’Slayns mind as he leaned back up to his giant stature, stretching his wings out for a moment before returning back to a reclined position.

"There is progress to be made, that much is clear. Despite their reports, the Falashai and kiori have obeyed the distance rule. We are watching the sissach and jahkatian carefully, especially during the simulation. Our AI has already removed size adjustment for phase 1," the arkatian spoke, idly tapping away on the device on his metallic hand.

"Excellent. Has the Dyashi AI handled the software concerns with the memory interface?" Cassa'ra's inquisition had summoned a six foot blue-furred wolf on the table, wearing a shirt and shorts.

"Greetings Cassa’ra and Vers’Slayns! How can I be of help today?" Dyashi asked upwards to the building-sized pair.

"Yes. Have you fixed that system malfunction?"

"Based on my examination, zero malfunctions have been found. Yet, I shall conduct additional searches to be certain," the blue wolf insisted, disappearing moments after and leaving the room quiet for a moment before Cassa’ra broke the silence.

"Until then, the simulation will be same-sized amongst all species. Let us begin, phase 1." Vers’Slayns glanced to Cassa'ra with a smile.

---

As the humans strode to the simulation room in the Northern Quadrant, they walked in rows of two with Layla and Charlie at the front. They were escorted by Lieutenant Zach Tunnings, and the children behind turned to one another with either curiosity or concern. Each of their minds raised questions on what to expect, and Charlie was no exception. Yet, his concern went beyond the hardware of the simulation technology, and instead focused on what to expect from the sissach. A worry that extended to Pedro at the back of the line. Their nerves started to feel the pressure when they noticed the pods around, and Lieutenant Tunnings standing at attention.

"Welcome to Phase 1! Please, I would like to introduce you to our AI, Dyashi." After Lieutanant Tunnings spoke, the blue lupari popped out in the centre of the room. Pedro flinched, nearly losing his footing as the others quietly laughed.

"Oh no, please do not fear, Pedro Silva; we here at Camp Linear want to ensure your safety. Did you know…?" the AI insisted, beaming towards the Brazilian, who refounded his balance.

"Yeah, yeah, enough with the tour guide talk. Just, tell them about the simulation," the soldier sighed, pressing two fingers to rub his upper nose.

"Of course. So, children, when in the simulation, your larger siblings will be closer to your height, ranging from seven to nine feet. When inside, you will be partners with your brothers and sisters, and are free to do as you wish. Of course, no reckless stunts," Dyashi spoke robotically, gesturing a paw over to the pods behind.

"Yes, thank you, Dyashi. Now, each of your senses are connected to your pods to ensure it's more realistic. Equally, with great restraint, it links with your memories to provide an immersive experience that will remind you of home. So, please, go set yourself inside a pod and we will plug you in," the man gestured to the pods, whilst the children walked over.

Charlie walked to stand by his pod, and turned to lie down into it. Leaning back, he looked over to Pedro sympathetically, and mouthed 'you'll be alright, I promise' before closing his eyes. His chest expanded slowly, taking a bite of the air as he exhaled. As the pod closed, sealing him inside like a figurine, he waited.

A wave of white transcended inside his mind, drowning out the room and the world beyond his pod. The blurred sensation was replaced with a strange sensation against his back. What was the pod's seating had become a field of grass, and the glass casing now a clear blue sky. This was it, the simulation father Alex spoke about. Remarkable, Charlie thought in awe.

Sitting up, Charlie noticed they were joined by their siblings, who stood at a fraction of their size. Except, his eyelids closed in as he squinted to a strange figure on the left side. Raising a hand to block the sun, he noticed Ju'ya. The eight-foot white-furred tiger was a spectator, watching the larger siblings approach.

"TYLER!!!" Minkea called out, getting on all fours as she bolted over and tackled the Australian on the spot. Her dark brown tail wrapped around him like a furry serpent as the Kiori secured her treasure.

"Minkea! Maaaayt, watcha doin'!" Tyler protested, before the squirrel's tail had secured him in its grip.

Catherine fared no better than Tyler as Kitaru lifted her up, pressing the girl into a hug. There was no rejection, nor push back, just two sisters locked in warm embrace as they smiled. Unlike the others, Layla rushed to hug the tordenchi, whose paws trembled, struggling to fully extend around her. Only Charlie and Pedro were left as they looked to their siblings leaning against the tree, an unnerving sight to say the least.

"S-Should we…" Pedro whispered to Charlie, only to be cut off by a familiar snicker growing louder in the distance. He gulped, adjusting his head with a painful slowness to see Igvins parting away from Slakine and towards the pair.

"Pedro, hurry up. I want to spend some time with you," the jahkatian squawked, wrapping his golden talons around the boy's arm as he was pulled away. Even at a tenth of his size, Igvins’ sheer muscles alone still gave an advantage over his sibling.

"O-Okay, Igvins, I am c-coming. I will see you later, Charlie," Pedro muttered weakly as Igvins sniped at him, whilst the jahkatian smirked at Slakine. The sissach’s eyes traced the pair as they walked across the grass, until he squinted towards Pedro.

Charlie tried to reach for Pedro, uncaring for the towering gryphon in front. He stopped as the sissach looked at him, freezing the boy on the spot. Slakine gave a mumbled growl to Igvins, stealing his attention.

"Slakine recommends Igvins to stop. Igvins should ask him to come with you. Understand?" Slakine hissed to Igvins coldly, his yellow eyes firing towards the gryphon’s.

"Oh, come on, Igvins, I am just having some quality time with my brother," he replied, releasing his grip on Pedro. "Why don't you go have some fun with yours?"

"He has nothing to do with it as far as Slakine is concerned," Slakine's tongue slithered out in a hiss, moving away from the tree and to Igvins.

"You did not say that on day one, remember?" Igvins challenged, raising a brow.

"Slakine will repeat. It has nothing to do with the human." The sissach's authoritative voice was louder than before. Instinctively, Charlie and Pedro retreated back from the two predators.

"I think it does. If you don't say it, I will," the gryphon insisted, extending his snow-white wings a few meters above Slakine.

"Slakine will not ask…"

"Excuse me!" Ju'ya's voice stole the pair's attention, both turning to the muscular woman. "Both of you will cease, now," she ordered.

"Slakine understands," the sissach hissed with a nod, looking up to Igvins, who walked back to the tree.

"Good. As for you, Igvins…" The tiger replied calmly, watching the jahkatian march to the tree and extend his talons to pierce the wood.

Despite being left silent at the set of claw marks on the tree bark, she attended to Charlie and Pedro, the latter of whom was the first to be greeted by Ju’ya’s motherly nature. The Brazilian's eyes were fixated on the four lines of exposed tree bark. Charlie, on the other hand, ran up to Slakine, who stood motionless.

"Slakine! Slakine, that was so kind of you…"

The sissach's head refused to turn and address the human, but rather faced the scenery the simulation concocted.

"Slakine is no monster, understand. I am well versed in the difference between right and wrong. Now, go," the lizard huffed, crossing his arms as the breeze whistled past.

"I know, but…"

"Slakine recalls what Charlie said, associating Slakine with a rynar," the sissach growled at Charlie, tensing his upper ligaments.

"I am sorry. But, I have to know, would Slakine protect Charlie?" He asked gingerly, hearing his own heartbeat pound against his eardrum.

"In a dangerous situation, yes. Yet, Slakine would not see a brother in danger, just a stranger who needed help," the sissach hissed, starting to walk away from Charlie.

Charlie was left alone, forced to hear the sounds of laughter from behind. Isolated.