Dr. Molly Chen's Arc

Chapter 2 of 2

Molly wrapped two tentacles around a bolt and twisted. The metal groaned but didn't budge. She added a third tentacle, applying pressure from a different angle. The bolt squeaked, turned half an inch, then another. She unwound it completely and set it aside with her fourth arm while the other three held the metal panel steady. Basic coordination, she told herself. Before she could slice into anything living, she needed to control each limb independently. She spent the next hour disassembling an overturned equipment cart, using her tentacles like separate surgeons working together. By the end, she could hold, twist, and stabilize all at once without thinking about it. Molly stepped outside the wreckage and found a small river flowing through vibrant alien flowers. The water ran clear over smooth stones. She gathered her surgical tools in two tentacles and walked to the riverbank. Each scalpel, clamp, and needle needed to be clean before she practiced any actual procedures. She dipped the instruments into the current and scrubbed them with careful movements. Her tentacles worked in sequence, one washing while another dried with a torn piece of cloth. The flowers gave off a sweet smell that made her nose wrinkle. When the last tool gleamed in the light, she tucked them against her body and headed back inside. Tomorrow she would cut into something. Tomorrow she would find out if her tentacles could do what her hands used to do.