Glitch Girl

The girls walked slowly through the forest, Honidesu was able to truly admire the beauty of nature for the first time, because last time she had no time for it, and now, she seemed to have forgotten about everything that was happening to her then... The jacket warmed her body, and next to her walked a funny Zhmak, who was trying to sniff something. They enjoyed the smell of cold, fresh and clean air. The forest was quite quiet, only the wind howled in the bare branches of the trees. Snow covered the ground in a thick layer, in some places gathering in huge snowdrifts. There was something very beautiful and mysterious in the winter forest... When they approached a small snowy clearing, Bonnie heard some noise and stopped her friends. "What is it?" Honi noticed that she was looking somewhere and trying to listen. "Wait... do you hear that?" The noise grew louder, it sounded like the steps of several creatures, Honi became worried. From behind the trees and bushes, mockers appeared. They quickly approached from all sides and soon completely surrounded the girls. Honidesu knew that she and her friends were in danger and that they needed to act quickly if they wanted to stay alive. Zhmak suddenly jumped into Honi's arms. She looked at the cat in surprise, and Bonnie prepared her two axes to defend herself. "Oh no! I'll definitely find my bracelet!" the ginger exclaimed menacingly. The monsters immediately rushed at them, but Bonnie chopped them all with each swing of her ax. Honi held Zhmak in her arms and watched in horror as her friend tried to fight back the sinister mockers. Her heart was beating wildly, she was in a stupor, looking at the monsters. Fear was clouding her judgment and Bonnie couldn't swing her axes for long, so one of the mockers finally threw her aside and came towards her, followed by its pack. "Damn, there are too many of them!" Bonnie exclaimed. The rest of the monsters were lying on the ground, bleeding, with parts of their bodies cut off. Honidesu had to do something. In fear, she threw Zhmak at one of the sinister mockers, who was very close to the ginger. Honi did it much more successfully than last time during the training in the virtual space. The girl felt a pang of guilt for using the cat as a weapon, but she needed to protect herself. Bonnie looked in shock at what Honi did, holding one of her axes to block the mocker's access to her. "W-what are you...?" before the ginger could ask, she noticed that the cat had possessed the monster. The monster lost control of its body and began attacking its allies. It threw another monster away from Bonnie and bit it to death, then fell to the ground. The cat emerged from its body unharmed. Meanwhile, Honi carefully walked a short distance away and picked up the second axe that Bonnie had dropped. She ran towards the nearest monster and swung the axe with all her might. The monster staggered back with a muffled cry of pain. Honi had only just wounded it. Bonnie stood up, took a deep breath, and shouted: "Honidesu, stay behind me! I'll deal with them!" Honi hesitated for a moment before nodding. She was convinced that Bonnie was more experienced in combat and didn't want to get in the way. But she also didn't want to just stand by and watch. With a determined look, standing back to back with Bonnie, she raised her axe and charged at the other monster. Honi screamed and swung the axe, causing a wave of glitches to appear as if her powers were resonating with the axe, causing a bright blue flash that stunned the monster. Her eyes became an amber noise for a few seconds. This time, she was able to cut through the mocker's limb. The monster let out a terrible scream, blood gushed out, it began to convulse and distort, the glitches seemed to devour it, destroying its cells, and then it collapsed to the ground. Honi staggered back. "What was that? Was it because of me?" The girl looked at her hands and the axe. Strange pixels flashed and disappeared, and the textures of her hands and the axe continued to change, changing color and consistency. It was as if the world itself was glitching, and she was just a spectator of this strange phenomenon. The sound of the glitch was like a distorted crackle of electricity. She had never been in a real fight before, and the sudden sense of danger was overwhelming. Zhmak continued to possess the monsters, and Bonnie swung the axe. The ginger began to feel weak, the monsters were wearing her down, so she tried to keep her distance from them. Zhmak also looked a little tired. Honi noticed her friends breathing heavily, she tried to focus on her abilities again and closed her eyes. Her heart filled with determination, and she opened her eyes again, which lit up with an amber noise. Instead of relying on her skills, Honidesu instinctively responded to the threat of enemies and spared no effort in battle. As if she was not afraid of anything at all, as if she did not care what would happen to her... It was strange, but at the same time so good... Honi continued to fight the monsters, her attacks were like a hurricane, a whirlwind of powerful and sharp blows. The monsters were helpless against her. Now her fight turned into a bloody dance, it was both beautiful and very scary, like watching a predator tear apart its prey. In the end, all the monsters were defeated, the snow around them looked scarlet. "Wow, Honi, that was really cool!" Bonnie said admiringly. Honi came to her senses and looked at the corpses of the monsters, her hands began to shake a little, she dropped the axe. The girl remembered how she had used her power against the agent just as mercilessly. So many emotions overwhelmed her heart: fear, hatred, shame, guilt... She felt all of this inside herself. "Bonnie, do you think they have a soul?" "These monsters? Pfft, nooo! Definitely not!" Bonnie answered and picked up the lying axe, putting it in the carrier on her back. "And w-what did you feel when you killed one of them for the first time?" "I felt justice!" the ginger said confidently. "So you never regretted what you did?" "I can't feel sorry for these creatures, because they themselves are merciless to people!" "Y-yes, it's just..." "Don't worry, we're doing a good deed by killing them, you shouldn't feel guilty about it." "Maybe you're right..." Honi wanted to add something else, but suddenly changed her mind. The ginger was distracted by the cat, she picked him up and stroked him. "Looks like he has some abilities too! And he has the same yellow eyes as you!" Bonnie noted. The cat happily started purring and wagging his tail. The girls looked at each other and giggled. Honidesu also started stroking the fluffy Zhmak. When she touched the animal's fluffy fur, she felt calmer. "Oh yeah, forgive me, Zhmak, for using you as a weapon..." Honi said guiltily. The cat looked at Honidesu and happily closed his eyes, as if smiling, although he had no mouth, but it was clear that he was fine and not angry. "Well, I guess we should keep looking," Bonnie said, and released Zhmak onto the snowy ground. As they walked, Honi couldn't help but think about their fight with the sinister mockers. She remembered the fear and terror she felt, the way her heart pounded as she fought for her life. And yet, she also remembered the sense of pride and accomplishment she felt afterward. She had managed to save her friends and protect herself. The ginger walked next to her, silent but alert. Honi was sure that they would face more problems and dangers along the way, but with Bonnie by her side, she felt like she could face anything. Honidesu's gaze lingered on her friend, admiring the way her short ginger hair bounced slightly with each step. Her pink eyes were brighter than any sunset. Bonnie noticed Honi looking at her. "What's wrong? Something on my face?" she asked, putting her hands on her cheeks. "No, no! It's okay! I was just thinking..." Honi was embarrassed. "About what?" Bonnie smiled, putting her hands in her pants pockets. "About... I'm just still surprised that you accepted me so quickly, even without knowing me well enough... Why?" "Oh, that... I'm just the kind of person who can't abandon someone in trouble... And you looked like you needed help. You didn't look like a bad person." They reached the place where Honi met Zhmak, where the mocker's body lay covered in snow. "Oh no, that's the place where my hand was scratched..." "Hmm, so we're not that far from the place where I gave you my jacket! Maybe that's where I dropped my bracelet..." After a few minutes of wandering, they stopped at a large spruce. At this time, Zhmak walked nearby and tried to sniff the surroundings. "I'm so tired, is all this searching in vain?" the ginger was upset. "Of course not, we'll definitely find it..." Honi said with hope in her voice. Bonnie looked at Zhmak. He started jumping and wagging his tail. "What's wrong, Zhmak? Did you find something?" the ginger asked. "Let's go after him!" Honi exclaimed. The girls followed the cat and he led them to a small red object that was barely visible in the snow. Bonnie saw it and recognized it right away. "This is my bracelet, we found it!" "Hooray!" Honi was happy for her friend. "Zhmak, you're the best, thank you so much!" Bonnie started to squeeze Zhmak. Honidesu giggled. The ginger looked at her with a grin. "Honi, I want to show you my favorite place in the forest, I think you'll like it!" "O-okay..." Bonnie led Honidesu along, she wanted so much to show her trust in her friend. 

They came to a cliff towering over the forest. A waterfall covered in a layer of bluish-white ice flowed down from it. The sun's rays made the ice sparkle. The cool air was refreshing, and the sounds of the swaying trees in the light wind seemed to create a harmonious melody that lulled the mind. Having found a cozy spot at the foot of the waterfall, the girls shook the snow off a fallen tree and sat down to rest, appreciating the silence of the forest and the beauty of the nature around them. It was an ideal place to relax away from the bustle of the city. Zhmak lay down on Honi's lap. Twenty minutes later, he was already snoring in his sleep. After a while of silence, Bonnie decided to break the silence: "And why are there so many monsters living here... I would like them all to disappear, so that it would always be safe here and I could come here more often," the ginger sighed. "You see, I just really love the forest..." "Yes, it's very nice here," Honi answered, looking at the waterfall. "It's even more beautiful in the spring..." Bonnie looked at her friend, who was petting the sleeping Zhmak. "Listen, Honi..." "Yes?" Honidesu turned her gaze to Bonnie. "Sorry for the abrupt question, but do you have anyone close?" Honi lowered her eyes and looked away, remembering how she pretended to be Henry's daughter and how agents and the police were hunting her now. "No..." she said quietly. "Oh, Honi, I'm sorry!" Bonnie stroked her back and looked down. "I don't have anyone either..." the ginger muttered sadly. The girls fell silent for a while, and only the sound of the wind and Zhmak's snorting could be heard again. Bonnie began fingering the bracelet in her hands and sighed: "You know, this bracelet is very dear to me because my parents gave it to me. It was the only thing I could take with me... When I was seven, monsters attacked our village and we became refugees. We were driving to the city, but in the middle of the road, a sinister mocker attacked us, breaking the window. Dad told mom to run to the city with me quickly, there were only a couple of kilometers left... The monster seriously injured mom and dad, but dad tried to take everything on himself. Mom and I had already reached the city, but... she fell. Her wound was too serious. I was left alone and ended up in an orphanage..." there was pain in her voice. "It's terrible..." Honi said in a sympathetic tone. "Every day I looked at this bracelet and believed that my parents would always remain in my heart. It became my last connection with the past and an important reminder of the love and support they gave me... I know I didn't have a very good childhood when I lived in an orphanage, but... I promised myself that I would do everything possible to rid this world of evil and monsters! And I also want to protect you, Honi!.. Honi? What's wrong?" Bonnie noticed tears in her friend's eyes and became worried. "I... I don't know, I'm sorry! It's just that so much has happened... I can't imagine what would have happened to me if I hadn't met you..." "Hey, Honi, it's okay!" the ginger smiled. "I promise that I will protect you too!" Honi wiped her tears and smiled slightly. "Hee-hee! Anything can happen in life, and sometimes you have to endure it... But it's okay, I'm used to it. Besides..." Bonnie smiled slyly, leaned over a small snowdrift and suddenly threw a snowball at Honi. She was surprised, even Zhmak woke up and wagged his tail. "Hey, what are you doing?" Honidesu asked. Bonnie started laughing, but immediately received an answer in the form of a snowball. Honi chased Bonnie around the tree, Zhmak also chased them, he was the fastest among them. Honi threw snowballs at the ginger and laughed loudly. Bonnie also threw snowballs and giggled. They chased each other around the tree. It looked very funny and cheerful. The friends were so excited that they forgot about sadness. After playing snowballs, the girls decided to go home because they were hungry, not forgetting to take Zhmak with them. They talked on the way: "Hey, Honi, what is your favorite color?" "Hm, probably blue. It is so calm, soothing..." "Okay, I will remember, and mine is green! It evokes positive emotions in me, and it is also associated with nature..." "I wonder what Zhmak's favorite color is?" "Hee hee, unfortunately, he will not be able to say anything, he's just a cat!" "That's true... But look at him, he is so strange, square, purring and wag wag his tail!" Honidesu carried Zhmak in her arms, who was indeed purring and wagging his tail. "Hee hee, wag wag his tail! Sounds funny!" As soon as they entered the city, closing the passage behind them, Honi noticed a policeman patrolling the street. The policeman looked serious, but he wasn't looking at the girls yet. He was just talking to someone on the radio. Honidesu was worried because she didn't want to be noticed. Bonnie looked questioningly at Honi, who froze, looking at the patrolman. "What's wrong, Honi, are you in trouble with the police?" the ginger asked playfully. In response, Honidesu looked away, as if trying to pretend that the policeman wasn't there at all, but she couldn't help but look at him again. Her heart was pounding in her chest, she was full of fear and anxiety. "N-no, of course not!" she said in a trembling voice and grabbed Bonnie's hand. "Hey, what's the matter?" "Let's just go home quickly! I had a really cool idea!" Bonnie didn't have time to answer anything, as Honidesu quickly ran into the entrance. She was still holding Zhmak tightly with one hand and the ginger's hand with the other. The girls headed to the elevator. In the elevator, Honi pressed the button for the 7th floor, they almost reached the desired place, but the elevator suddenly stopped abruptly and the lights went out. "Oh, damn! The lights went out..." Bonnie was upset. "Oh no, how could this happen, no-no-no!" "Don't panic, everything will be fine!" The ginger felt for her phone in her pocket and turned on the flashlight. At this time, Honidesu was holding Zhmak in her hands and trying to calm down. "Honi, you have some cool abilities, right?" "Probably..." "Maybe you could try to teleport us somehow, I don't know..." Bonnie said uncertainly. "Teleport? No, I can't do that!" Honi answered in amazement. "But I can try to go through the wall, I remember that last time I somehow managed it..." The girl took Bonnie's hand again, holding Zhmak tightly in the other, and tried to focus on her glitchy abilities. Honi stepped forward and tried to go through the closed elevator doors, but instead crashed. "Ouch!" "Are you okay?" "Yeah, I have to try again!" But again a failure, this time the girl's leg was stuck inside and outside at the same time. She felt a strong pressure, but the glitches protected her leg from damage. "Damn, it hurts a lot..." "Oh no, Honi!" "Don't worry, I can do it!" Honidesu hissed and carefully pulled her leg back. "Be careful..." Honi tried to focus on her abilities again. She clearly imagined herself walking through the elevator doors. The girl was determined to get outside, she didn't want to hit the metal again or get stuck in it. She quickly stepped into the door and found herself on the other side with her friends. "Wow, I can't imagine what I would do without you, if I were stuck in the elevator alone! This is incredible!" "Okay, let's go to your place quickly," Honi pulled the ginger after her, hoping that no one heard them. "Wait, maybe I don't need to open the door anymore? We can always do this!" Bonnie giggled. "Oh no! It's too risky..." "Hee-hee, I was just kidding!" The girls entered the house and took off their shoes. Zhmak immediately ran to the couch and happily jumped on it, lay down and began to wag his tail. Bonnie sat down next to Honi and leaned against the back of the couch. "Well, we don't have any light, but I think we can find something in the refrigerator. So, what was that idea you had when you suddenly dragged me home?" Honidesu winced and tried to think of something she could offer Bonnie. The first thing that came to her mind was cooking. "Yeah, that... I just wanted to try cooking, but the power went out, so nothing will work," she giggled nervously. "Oh, yeah. Well, it'll work next time, but now I'll try to find something simple!" Bonnie went into the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with two yogurts. Honidesu put the cat on the couch and took the yogurt. Zhmak happily wagged his tail and rubbed against the girls' legs while they enjoyed dessert together. After a snack, Bonnie decided to suggest something to do: "Since there is no light yet, I think we can play a game, what do you think?" "What do you want to play?" "Hee, how about "truth or dare"?" "We can try..." Honi answered hesitantly. "Okay, then I'll start, truth or dare?" Honi hesitated for a moment. "T-truth." "What was your first impression of me?" "I thought you were very brave and kind. You didn't look scared when we fought the monsters..." Honi was embarrassed. "Hee hee, thank you, Honi! But to be honest, I was afraid..." "Huh?" "I was afraid of failing, afraid that I wouldn't be able to protect you, that you and Zhmak would be attacked and killed by monsters. To be honest, I've been without parents and friends almost my whole life... but now I have you!" "Oh, good, I'm glad you're doing well now..." "My turn, I choose a dare!" Honi looked at what was in Bonnie's room and noticed a toy car on the nightstand, she immediately came up with a task: "Call the auto parts store and ask them for a part for your toy car!" Bonnie smiled and took her phone, she found the number of the auto parts store and called, turning on the speakerphone: "Hello, tell me, do you have a pair of wheels with a diameter of one centimeter?" The man on the other end of the line hesitated and asked: "One centimeter? What kind of car is that?" "I don't know, it says "Hot race"!" ""Hot race"?" the man laughed, "I'm afraid we don't sell parts for toy cars." The man hung up. Bonnie looked smugly at Honidesu. "I did it! Your turn, truth or dare?" the ginger giggled. "Dare!" "Pretend a dog is barking at a passerby from the window!" "What?" "Go ahead, it'll be fun!" Bonnie laughed and ran to the window. "Okay..." Honi stood up and walked over to the window that her friend had opened. She looked out the window and, fortunately, only one teenager was passing by. The girl covered the black stripes on her cheeks with her fingers so that she wouldn't be recognized, just in case, and barked loudly: "Woof, r-r-r, woof-woof!" The boy stopped and looked at her for a moment, confused, and then ran away. The ginger laughed at this ridiculous situation. Honi felt a little embarrassed, but she was glad that she did it and had fun with Bonnie. The girls returned to the couch and continued the game. "Truth or dare?" "Truth!" "Have you ever lied?" Honi asked awkwardly. "Um, yes, I have! Everyone lies if there is a reason for it!" the ginger giggled. "I once lied to the caretaker that I was allergic to carrots, hee hee! I just didn't like that they put them in food... Truth or dare?" "Truth." "Where are you from?" Honi thought for a moment, but didn't know what to answer. "I uh..." Honidesu met Bonnie yesterday, but for some reason she was sure that she could trust her already. However, she was still scared, she didn't know how the ginger might react. "You have such cool abilities, did you escape from some secret lab where you were forcibly held?" Bonnie continued asking excitedly. "Well... not quite, but almost. It's really hard for me to answer that question..." Honi scratched her head. "Oh, I understand, it must have been hard for you..." "But you're right about me running away..." "Are they chasing you?" Honidesu sighed, folded her arms and nodded. "Wow! Don't be afraid, they won't take you!" "I shouldn't go into the city, it's dangerous for me to be there..." "What about going to the police? Of course, I don't know the whole situation, but I think that this could solve the problem..." "No!" Honi panicked. "Why?" "I can't go to the police! I was created only for a special purpose..." Bonnie was confused. "Wait... what are you trying to say?" "You see... I'm not quite human." "You're not human? What? What are you then? An alien?" Honidesu shook her head, slightly amused by the ginger's question, but then exhaled: "No, I'm not an alien. I was created artificially..." Bonnie looked at her, stunned. "I don't understand... Are you a robot?" "No! It's a very long story..." Honidesu sighed and looked away. "Tell me!" "Do you promise you won't be angry?" "I will never be angry, I need to know everything about you!" "Okay..." Honi would have to tell about it sooner or later anyway. Bonnie shared her apartment with her, and the girl even learned about her friend's difficult past, so she felt that she shouldn't hide her story either.