Chapter 1

Where it all started

It has been two years since I accepted this job. I have been trying to figure out how to awaken this fox from her crip sleep but have had no success in finding a way that wouldn't kill her. During my time here I have learned a thing or two about this fox stuck in unwaking sleep. She is a Raseri that much is clear to me now. How they found one in this state is a wonder to me. I have estimated her age to be 26 but it would seem that the Raseri don't age the same as we do so I could be off a bit on that. It took me a couple of months to gain the respect of the other scientist working on this project and the other ones revolving around it. Many of them believed that I slept my way to the top because of how young I am. I had to prove to them that a 18 year old could do just as good as them if not better. It doesn't help that the lead scientist won't stop following me around being a bit of a old creep. I got to talking with the project leed for human argumentation about how I wish I could just plug in to a computer and get smarter to figure this cryo pod out. He chimed in about the project that he is leading and how they have found out that in every human there is a gene that connects us to the Raseri. He told me how he has been testing every employee's blood to see who is the most qualified to be tested on and has only found a handful. I offered him my blood for testing in hopes to see if I could benefit from this as well. A few weeks after I gave him what felt like all my blood I get a email from him telling me that he can make me a serum to unlock some of the Raseri potential. Apparently I have been tapping into some of it already which will make it much easier for me to get some of the benefits.

I am nervous but I have faith in my colleges. I guess it is good that I don't have any family left in case this goes all wrong.

I'm sitting in front of him now, on a examination bed. He is sitting in a rolling chair a clipboard in his hands as he goes over my file again. Finally he looks up at me and smiles.

"After you agreed to let me inject you I did some more testing just to be on the safe side. At least as much as possible. We think that because you are already tapping into the Rasari gene it should go smoothly"

"Is there any side effects that I should be worried about?"

Mike smiled sadly "Well seeing that we have never done this before, I have no idea. We don't even know if this is going to work. We will be monitoring you closely for the first few weeks."

"Oh yeah. Right. Sorry. Will there be any physical changes that I should be looking for?"

"We believe that this will only be a mental change. We have tailored it to your DNA. We are basically amplifying what you are already using."

He rolled over a tray with a Jet Injector on it. My heart started racing, my palms started to sweat. Was I really going to go through with this?

"You can still turn back" he said studying my face intently as he screwed on the disposable tip.

But I shook my head "No, im ready, lets do this"He pressed the tip to my shoulder and I looked away. I heard a puff of air and a slight tinge in my arm.

"Done.. You should feel a change in a couple of days"

A change I did feel. It was slow at first but gradually the answers to formulas and equations came easier. Eventually I didn't even need to write them down. I could solve the hardest problems in my head. I had to be at least twice as smart as before and I was finally able to figure out how to bring the Raseri back from the brink. We were able to remove her from the cry pod but I decided to keep her in a medically induced coma so that we can monitor her vitals. We placed her in the dark, soundproof adjacent room instead of the medical wing. I didn't know what its original use was, nor did I want to keep here there. I wanted her in the ICU but the higher ups don't want any fatalities if she wakes and become violent.

"Something about her brain scans don't sit well with me." I mumble to myself as I read her chart for probably the fifth time today. We have been trying to get her to wake for the last few days. "I can't seem to put my finger on it but it's just not right." I sighed deeply, I might be smarter but the wonders of her body was still daunting. I had so many questions for her. Why was she here? Who was she? Why did she go into cryo? She was not injured as far as we could tell. "I guess we will find out when she wakes up." "Rachel! She is awake!" my colleague yelled excitedly from across the room.

"Good, finally I'm going to go talk to her. Maybe she can shed some light on what really happened here"

"Don't you want me to come with you in there?" he asked looking at me nervously as I readied myself to enter the room."We don't know what will happen. What if she attacks?"

"No. it is less threatening if I go alone. Besides she just woke up from a coma, there is no way she would have much strength left. I will try to be quick, her eyesight probably won't work right, right away anyways. "

"At least take a gun."

I shook my head "I don't like guns, they make me nervous. With her heightened senses she will be able to smell my fear"

"Ok, be careful"

As I enter the room, I squint in the darkness and wait till my eyes adjust. I hope I did not make a mistake coming in here by myself. I don't even have any restraints if I needed to hold her down. She is sitting on the bed with her legs dangling off the edge. She is a fox type Raseri about six feet tall. She has ears the size of solo cups that have white fur on the inside. Her eyes are a deep blue and look kind and inviting.

Most of her fur is a deep burnt orange. She has a white under belly that runs from her lower jaw, between her breasts, which if I would have to guess, are a D cup, between her legs, down the inside of her legs to her knees, and the underside of her big fluffy tail that is almost as long as she is tall. From mid forearm to the tip of her fingers and from mid calf to the end of her toes is dark brown almost black when the light hits her just right. She has black pads on her hands and feet like a dog and claws that could rip you open in no time flat.

I am so ill prepared.

"Who's there? Where am I?" asked Shalamar an a raspy gargled voice

"You are safe. In the lab" I replied

"Why can't I see? What happened?"

"We were hoping you could tell us what happened. We found you in a pod here in this old bunker."

"Pod? Oh the medical sleep chamber? I'm amazed that you were able to wake me without killing me."

"I have been at it for a couple of years " I said watching her closely.

"Is Jenny ok? Did she get out?" she asked looking around like she might be able to locate her.

"I'm sorry this is going to be hard for you."

"What happened to Jenny?! Where is she?! Where is my daughter?!" desperation rising in her voice.

"I don't know. You have been asleep for a long time. We estimate you have been in crio for around 150 years."

"A h-hundred and fiftyy..y..years?" Shalamar stammered.

"That's what we estimate."

I was watching her close. I was afraid of what she might do. There was a lot of rage and grief building up inside of Shalamar and she could explode at any time. I also didn't know how long I have before her sight comes back and she sees that we are not Raseri. If it was in fact humans that were responsible for what happened here she could lose it on us and hurt someone.

In the middle of my thought process I'm snapped back to the task at hand by a blood curtailing scream.

"No, No! Not her too. Not my baby!"

My eyes snap to hers. They are almost glowing red, bloodshot, and filled with hate. Tears are flowing down her face. It feels like she is looking in to my soul.

Oh God! She can see. She can see me! It's like staring down a predator that is planning on eating you. Why didn't I listen? Why didn't I bring someone in here with me?

"Humaaan!" she growled through her teeth. "Humans are responsible for thisss. Humans are the reason my daughter is dead. You humans have taken everything from me. My Daughter, my mate, my people. We tried to help you humans and this is how you repay us? You are all a pest that needs to be exterminated."

I am so scared I think in going to piss myself. In a flash I am pinned against the wall by my throat and my feet are off the ground. Gasping for air I try to talk to calm her down but it just comes out as a gargled mess.

Shalamar inhaled deep next to my face

"You don't smell human or Raseri. What have you done to yourself?"

"C-c-can't b-breathe." I gasped out.

"No matter. You all will die the same. Except you. It will be painful for you. You should have let me die believing my daughter was safe and alive."

There was a sudden sharp pain in my chest. I looked down to see her claws embedded into me between my breast. I look at her in terror, my heart stopped my body went cold.

I was going to die.

She just looks back with a smirk and drags her claws down to my belly button slowly being sure that I felt every tear of my skin ripping me open. I try to screen in pain but my airway is still being crushed by her powerful grip. I look down the best in can and see her hand soaked in my blood. She pulled her claws out of my stommic slowly causing as much damage as she could muster without killing me. The pain was incredible. Just as I thought I would pass out she would allow me to inhale just enough to keep me conscious.

"Rot in hell human filth."

Her grip is getting tighter around my neck, I think I'm going to pass out. She is still staring at me. I guess she wants to watch me die. She wants to see her pray suffer. I'm sorry for what I have done, For the pain I have caused her. I guess death is what I deserve.

Just as I thought I could take no more she releases me and drops me to the floor in to a puddle of my own blood. As I gasp for a breath my chest expands and it hits me again. The pain was like nothing I have ever felt before. I screamed in agony. She followed my scream with a kick to the face breaking my jaw. Unable to move or call for help I lie there waiting for death. The room was getting dark and I was getting cold and then everything faded into darkness.

I woke up in a panic screaming at the top of my lungs. I tried to sit up and was met with crippling pain and someone holding me down.

"Rachel don't move." said the nurse by my side. "You have been through alot. You are all torn up and lost alot of blood. We have done everything we can but we don't know if you are going to make it through the night. You are on a lot if pain killers just so we can talk to you."

"Okay." I said grimacing through the pain that I could still feel "Is there a reason you need me lucid?"

"Yes. We might have a way to save you and need your consent to do so." I heard Mikes voice, soon his face swam into view next to the nurses.

"What is it? And make it quick, your going to lose me soon to this torment."

"Because you reacted well to the mental enhancement, we believe that it is possible to make you full Raseri. Not just a mental difference but a physical one as well. That Raseri that was in the pod has a match to your blood type and we can do a transfusion."

"Why can't you just inject me with the healing properties like you did with the IQ boost? Why do I have to change?

"we have not been able to separate that part from the Raseri gene and don't have time to do it."

"A transfusion won't change me though. Are you people stupid?"

"No it will not change you but if we put you in the pod it will change you, the pod was made to regenerate Rasari genes. Hypothetically it will take the other ones blood and duplicate it thinking you are of her kind. We have a had time to study it better now that the Raseri is out of it. It will repair any sickness and we can modify it to alter your body make up as well. We need to do a full transformation or your wounds will not heal in time."

"I wish I had more time to think about it." I could feel as the painkillers started to ebb away "Oh God!" I groaned, "Fuck I don't care anymore, just make it stop!" I screamed, my hands clenched tight, my stomach lurched as the pain racked my body.

"I will get you prepared. The transformation will be painful but hopefully you will not wake during the process. As we prepare you we are going to try and give you the most painkillers that we can, we are going to put you under now.

I don't know if it was all the drugs they had me on for the pain or if it was my subconscious going crazy during the transformation but I had a dream that felt more like a vision.

It started out with me in a apartment in this bunker on one of the upper levels. It looked familiar like how they looked now but there were no bullet holes and the paint was still new. I was laying in the living room on the couch staring at the ceiling. There is a loud bang and the dust on the exposed "I" beams rains down around me and the whole room shakes. I sit up startled, my heart is racing and adrenaline is pumping through me. I race to the door and open it slowly peeking around the corner to try and see what is going on. I hear gunshots echoing through the concrete halls and the screening of my friends and family. In trying to make sense of what is going on when a strong hand grabs my shoulder and pulls me back in to the apartment. I get turned around and am faced with a fox Raseri. He looks like Shalamar but a lighter orange and is much taller than me. He kneels down to talk to me and that is when I realise that he is not tall I am short.

"Jenny listen to me very closely. You need to go find your mother. Go down to the lab find her and run. The two of you need to run, run and don't come back."

My eyes were filling up with tears so much I could barely see his face. I didn't want to do what he said. I wanted to stay with him.

"Jenny I need you to be strong for your mother. Can you do that for me?"

I nodded yes. I knew that I would be unable to talk without sobbing.

"When I say so start running. Go down the stairs the fastest you can find your mother and run into the woods. You need to find the river to the north and follow it north. I have some human friends that will hide you until it is safe."

I was starting at him trying to memorize his face so I could remember him forever. I had a feeling I would never see him again.

"I will meet up with you as soon as I ca-"

I jumped up on to him and hugged him as tight as I could and started to ball my eyes out.

"I l-l-love you d-dad." I said through my tears.

"I love you to my little princess. Get ready"

I stood behind him waiting for the signal to start running. I didn't see before but he was holding a M4 in his hands. I don't know if there is anything more dangerous than a parent protecting their offspring.

"Go! Go! Go!" he yelled throwing the door open.

I didn't dare look back. I just ran for all I was worth. I got half way down the hall and I heard my father yell.

"Die you fucking monsters!"

Followed by his rifle firing and the screams of his enemies dying. My father is an extent shot.

I get to the stairs and jump down most of them. Trying to be as fast as I can. I finally get down to the level that my mother is on. I pause at the door and try to listen. I don't hear anyone past the door so I open it slowly and walk into my mothers lab.

"Mom! Mom we need to go! Dad sent me to get you! Mooooom!"

I turn the corner and I don't see her. She is not in here. What do I do? I must look harder. I walk past her medical sleep chamber she has been working on and something catches my eye. I turn and look in the pod and there she is. Why!? Why did she do this? Why did she leave me like this. I fell to my knees and started uncontrollable sobbing.

I felt sick to my stomach. What am I going to do? Am I to just leave her here? Dad said to find the river and head north. I have to keep running. Get up Jenny! Lets go! I get myself off the floor and as I do I hear footsteps coming down the stars. There must be at least 5 of them. How did they get past dad? Can't think about that now. I need to hide. The vents in the ceiling! Sorry mom I can't take you with me. I will be back. I jumped on top of the pod and as I pushed off to get to the vent one of humans saw me and fired. Lucky for me he missed and hit the glass on moms pod. Good thing that glass is about an inch thick. Now that I got to the vents they will never find me. I look back at the pod my mother is on and a single teardrop rolls down my cheek. I hope to see you soon I said I'm my head as I turn and run down the vent to safety.