Submission (#228) Approved

Circuit (Terra-838) isn’t mine, but I have gotten permission from the owner (all_might_simp is her discord username) to use him in this story.

The rifle cracked; the sound lost in the cacophony of the storm. Their quarry collapsed, it’s impressive build crumbling into a harmless pile. Rain lashed down as they went to recover samples from the beast’s carapace, the day’s work feeling heavy on their shoulders. The beast had seemingly just caught a poor plantem fawn, which had unfortunately already been thoroughly shredded. Dr. Scope expertly extracted stem cells from the target’s bone marrow, filling the vials required for proper analysis. Circuit’s gaze steadily scanned the environment, prepared for any other possible threats in the immediate area. Glass shattered. Circuit snapped around, gun at the ready. An embarrassed Dr. Scope stood frozen over a broken vial. “Whoops”
Circuit buried the plantem as Dr. Scope finished loading the samples on the ship. They boarded Dr. Scope typing in the co-ordinates for The T.E.R.R.A. (Time Experts Retrieving, Researching and Applying) Headquarters while Circuit did a system check on the vessel.
“Clear.”
“We are ready for ST traversal.”
No matter how many times they warped Circuit would never get used to the impossible sensation of being stretched and squashed in all directions as they hurtled through Space-Time. Finally, they slammed to a holt as they hit the landing bay of the T.E.R.R.A. HQ docks, the blast doors of their vessel hissing open. They stepped out onto the cold steel platform, the cargo unloading via the EATS (Easy Access Transport System) ready for analysis in Dr. Scope’s laboratory. They hurried along; Dr. Scope eager to begin evaluation.
“The deoxyribonucleic acid of the subject is incredibly interesting. It seems to be a variation to the Weasewl, most likely sharing an ancestor. Its ribosomes are far more efficient, but it has lower neuroplasticity. Actually, the ribosomes are incredibly impressive, I must compare their effectiveness in the system.” explained Dr. Scope. Circuit beamed at the passion Dr. Scope had for their work. But something picked at Circuit’s mind. He had read about somewhere no one had gone before. “What if we went to The Void Zone?”
Dr. Scope stopped and looked at Circuit, smile wiped from his visor. He started to play with a vial in his hands.
“You’re joking, right?”
“We’d go down in history.”
“History isn’t worth dying for.”
“So you’d rather be forgotten, just another cog in the machine?”
The vial shattered against the sterile tiled floor.
“Do not suggest this again, understood?”
His words hang heavy in the air, battling against Circuit’s curiosity.
Circuit leaned against the wall, a clock ticking the seconds past. Dr. Scope was late again of cou-
“BOO!”
He involuntarily leapt 3 ft in the air, body shuddering. A 6-inch Dr. Scope stood laughing away at his feet. “Thanks for the heart attack!” exclaimed Circuit as he regained composure. “You ready for the days mission? We’re going deep sea, so we’ll have to take the Iron Heart.”
They went through the standard protocol without hinderance.
“Clear.”
“We are ready for ST traversal.”
Then it hit. An impossible, ineffable sound. The growling of the children of the stars, the roar of a shambling mountain. Dr. Scope’s eyes darted, then set on the navigation: Area # 417A6174686F74682 / 04C6F76656372616674. The Void Zone. At the top of their lungs, they bellowed “CIRCUIT!”. The Iron heart’s systems failed, and they went dark. Emergency power activated, the blast door slowly revealing their surroundings. “We have no way back until we find another power source strong enough for ST traversal. We’re going to have to look around.” They stepped out into a derelict bio lab, Dr. Scope taking out a torch. Sterile tiles shimmered in pseudo-light. The air was heavy with the scent of decay, broken incubator vats lie strewn about like discarded relics, their glass surfaces shattered and their contents now a jumble of wires and twisted metal as well as this biomass that look aberrant and despicable, its hue a dark purple. Growths clung to the walls and ceiling; it hung on wires creating this grotesque tentacular form looming above them. As the thin beam of light swept across the room its light came across an anomaly, what looked like a creature of sorts. As they drew closer more of the monstrosity’s features became apparent; its hide has a scaly rubbery sheen, its form irregular blobs but gaunt over a seemingly starved skeleton, its face covered in feeler appendages, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet and long narrow wings. “It seems to have died from malnutrition” noted Dr. Scope, analysing it diligently. “It’s incredible, I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“It’s horrifying.”
A rumble emanated from the room over, shaking the ground and causing chunks to fall from the ceiling. Circuit cautiously probed forward and entered a huge room containing a sinkhole swallowing most of the floor. A sinkhole that contained Abyss. He looked in and darkness stared back. Suddenly, an evil light glared back. And reality shattered.