FSE

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Chapter Four

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"Are you sure this is gonna work?"

"You got a better idea?"

Hanai sniffed and resumed her pacing back and forth across the small white room. They had arrived at one of the medical centers that had been marked for them and had managed to get an appointment with one of the doctors Ashley had put on a list. Of course they had to bend the truth a little to get in and Hanai had not been impressed by Ally's acting skills or her fake migrane that apparently "was a family condition." So far they had been sitting here for twenty minutes and it was clearly starting to wear down Hanai's patience.

Ally was about to suggest that she read one of the magazines stacked up and ready to cascade off a table nearby, but then the door opened and an older woman in a simple dress and a long white coat stepped in. Her smile was bright against her dark brown skin and she flipped her curly hair back over her shoulder as she examined the tech pad in her hands.

"I thought the last name Moreaux was familiar. It has been a while hasn't it Allyson? Although to my knowledge 'migranes' have never run in your family. So why don't you tell me why you're really here," the doctor said raising an eyebrow as she gave Ally a firm look.

"Umm, hello. This is my friend Hanai. Hanai this is Rayna Peters. Sorry for lying doctor and you're right we are not here to be seen. Well not for a medical problem at least. We're here because Ashley and Sasha Donovan sent us," Ally explained and immediately the woman's face went pale. Looking over her shoulder at the door she hurried closer and lowered her voice.

"Don't say that so loudly! That name is not one you want people to overhear in a Biotech facility," Rayna urged as Hanai finally stopped her pacing and sat down in one of the empty chairs against the wall. "Why did he send you here? It must be something important," she pressed and Ally pointed to the smart glasses on her face.

"We already found out what Biotech is up to down here from someone else, but the Donovan brothers want proof before they try and do anything else. They also need it to be done by someone who knows the Lower Level well and could get around unnoticed here," Ally explained as Rayna listened. Putting a hand on her hip the woman shook her head at the words.

"I should have known agreeing to this job would get me into trouble one way or another. The Donovan brothers paid off my debts but in exchange I had to work here until the day came when I could repay the favor. Apparently that is today although a little more forewarning would have been appreciated," Rayna sighed heavily as she tapped few buttons on her tech pad.

"Have you been to see anyone else? Any other medical centers besides this one?" she asked glancing up as she worked.

"No, not yet. That a problem?" Hanai asked and the doctor quickly waved that question off.

"No, no, no. That's good. We need as few people involved in this as possible. I don't want to be involved in it myself but a promise is a promise. Especially when the Donovan brothers are involved," Rayna said with an air of distraction as she worked. Finally she finished and turned the display around so they could see it.

"The nearest facility that you'll be able to get into is two tiers down from here and has tight security. I have fake passes and Biotech Genosys uniforms courtesy of Sasha but the security passes haven't been tested in action before. I can slip away from the office and drive you down there. I can get you through the first and second security gates and into the building, but I can't guarantee how much you'll see or how long you'll be able to stay," Rayna explained and motioned for them both to follow her.

"If we get caught then there isn't much we can say to get out of it. So let's hope these passes I had made up work and that both of you are good actors," Rayna said as she opened the door and looked both ways down the hallway.

"Meet me outside around the back parking lot. You'll see a black model Y Ridgeback there. That's my vehicle. Wait there and I'll be out as soon as I can," Rayna explained and hurried them both out of the room.

The receptionists were both busy with other customers so Ally and Hanai managed to slip out without being noticed. They headed around the side of the squat windowless building and over to the fenced in parking lot.

"Pretty sad looking vehicle if you ask me. I guess even Biotech doesn't pay well down here," Hanai observed as she eyed the older model vehicle a bit hesitantly.

"As long as it gets us where we need to go I think I'll live," Ally commented as she looked at her glowing watch display. It was getting pretty late now.

"I'm more worried about getting out of the place we're going to without getting thrown in jail afterwards," Hanai muttered as she sighed and shoved her hands in her pockets.

Indeed a few minutes later Rayna came out of a side door and hurried across the parking lot with a small cooler in her hands. The car beeped and unlocked as she approached it.

"Here hold this for me," Rayna said and Ally quickly took the cooler from her and frowned at the weight. "Those are new injections. Biotech ships them to our facility and then one of our doctors takes them over to the facility," she said as the car doors softly popped open and slid back to let them in.

Hanai took the back seat while Ally slid into the passenger side. Rayna sat down in the drivers seat and the doors closed and sealed around them as the vehicle turned on.

Welcome back ma'am. Where would you like to go? The computer voice asked as Rayna pulled up a GPS location and put in the address.

"I've been there before and usually I just drop them off and leave without seeing anything. I've been down to the deeper floors of the facility a couple times, but only with representatives from the Top Level. They wanted to see the results of the new injections themselves and had me administer them. The doctors were selected randomly from a small list. The shots are meant to try and return the people there back to human beings or at least help to restore their human senses, but so far success has been pretty limited," Rayna sat back as seat belts automatically slid in place over them.

"Here are the security passes I was talking about. Apparently they came via a local Otherkin by the name of Rat and it cost me 50,000 credits for each one," Rayna's tone of voice made it clear that she was not very confident about how well they had turned out. Ally nodded and pressed her thumb to one side of the plasti-card and it recorded her fingerprint and the display said "uploading to database."

"I know Rat. His level of work depends on the price you pay. For that kind of money he would go all out. He's a creep and a crook but he takes pride in doing good work. If anything goes wrong here it certainly won't be these passes," Ally said as she twisted around in her seat to show Hanai what to do.

"Ohh, here we go! Who would you like to be? There are several options. One is a Genosys Building Inspector, Genosys Field Inspector, Genosys Private Facilities Monitor..." Hanai read as the same options popped up on Ally's plasti-card display as well. Rayna looked over as the car pulled out of the parking lot and started driving down the road towards the main highway. Once they were suitably on their way, Hanai pulled out the uniforms sitting on the back seat and handed one pair to Ally. Getting changed in the car was not easy but there wasn't anywhere else they could do it without arousing suspicion. At least the vehicle A.I. darkened the windows for them while they fumbled around.

Rayna glanced back at them before saying, YYour friend Rat really did do a good job then. The last one is the one you'll want to pick. It's high enough for the staff to give way to you, but not high enough to arouse suspicion. We just have to be convincing." She chewed on her fingernail nervously and Hanai leaned forward with a smile as she changed into her uniform.

"Don't you worry about that. If there is anything you learn up Top it's how to get what you want."

---

"We weren't... I didn't... we weren't expecting you quite so soon," the building manager was so flustered that Ally actually felt a bit bad for him. Hanai however was in rare form. She was not an arrogant, entitled rich snob in the least but she sure knew how to act like one when the situation called for it as it did right now.

"And I suppose all inspections are announced ahead of time? How do you expect us to fix these people and make Biotech cures better if we wait for everyone to clean things up for us ahead of time! No! We need a real look at how these people are doing. Coming here with a rose colored lens already put over everything is not going to help Biotech make things better now is it?" Hanai ranted and the man shrank down under her verbal assault.

"N-no! I mean yes! I mean... I totally understand your point ma'am. Umm, please follow me this way to the elevators and I'll show you down to the lower levels personally," the man fumbled around in his pockets for a security card as they followed him down the hallway and stopped at the elevator doors.

Ally was holding the cooler full of injections herself and Rayna was beside her silently watching as Hanai took charge. The doctor had indeed gotten them past outside security and some inside security, but when the building manager came down to talk to them Hanai had immediately seized her chance. So far she was doing an amazing job and anyone who wasn't directly involved had scampered off to avoid being the object of her sharp tongue lashing.

The manager swiped his card and the elevator doors opened. Stepping aside he motioned for them to go in.

"Do you need me to accompany you?" he asked and the expression on his face clearly said that he was hoping the answer was no. Hanai dismissed the man with a glance over her shoulder.

"No I believe the good doctor here will be able to guide us from this point. Once the injections are complete we'll be leaving right away and will send you the results later on after we've had time to examine things ourselves," Hanai said and the man bobbed his head and quickly hurried on. No doubt glad to be away from her and the rather strong humiliation she'd just given him. Once the elevators doors were shut, Rayna requested a level and they started the smooth ride down.

"You pulled that off very well I must say. I'm impressed," Rayna said as Ally held up the cooler full of injections.

"Are these actually supposed to do something? Or are they just here for added effect?" Ally asked curiously. This cooler wasn't too heavy, but it wasn't very light either. Rayna hummed and considered the question for a moment.

"Those are actual cures or attempts at them anyway, but they're for an inspection next week so we won't be administering any of them today. However, it would be awfully suspicious if we tried to come in here without them. So if anyone stops us we can prove that those are real at least," she explained as the elevator stopped.

"I'll take it from here. You can start recording now. If we meet anyone from security down here then it's okay to be sympathetic but don't get overly emotional. At least hold it together until we get back outside," Rayna said as the doors slid aside to reveal a softly lit hallway with a simple gray carpet and white walls. Lined up on both sides were metal doors with small glass windows near the top and slots possibly for food near the middle.

Ally tapped her glasses to start recording and saw Hanai do the same as Rayna moved aside and stayed conspicuously out of both of their line of view. Together they walked down the hallway until they came to the first door.

"Are you ready for this?" Rayna asked and Ally nodded and walked over to the first door on the right and peered into the window. Right away she saw what appeared to be a dark brown elk Otherkin huddled in the corner. It was a stag with rather big horns and he was wearing a white shirt and pants over his body.

One of his ears swiveled over towards the door, but he didn't move or look up.

"That's Vincent. He's the one closest to a recovery of any kind. Sometimes he can hold conversations although they can be very limited at times. He's the least violent out of all the ones being held here but he can do serious damage with those horns and hooves when he's having a bad day," Rayna explained as Ally stepped aside to let Hanai look in.

"So he knows what's going on around him? Most times at least? How long has he been down here alone like that?" Hanai asked as she stepped back from the door.

"...at least ten years."

Ally grimaced and forced down the nausea that rose up into her throat. The thought of someone being down here all alone with no family or friends for days, weeks, months, and then years on end was enough to drive a sane person mad. Much less someone who had already lost it.

Stepping back both Ally and Hanai walked down the hallway peering into each room. The former humans inside of them had been transformed into all sorts of different species. Some innocent, some not so much. Hanai got a big scare when a large wolverine slammed up against the door and tried to get at her through the glass. Even though the room was padded the wolverine had still managed to gouge huge chunks out of the walls. Her claws did look big enough to rip the door right off the hinges if she got enough leverage to do so.

Ally got a scare of her own when a mandrill suddenly appeared in the window she was looking through and bared it's huge fangs at her. Fangs that looked more than big enough to take her head off in a single bite. The primate screamed at her and slammed his fists on the door until it shook. Ally quickly hurried along down the hallway. They were almost at the end and it looked like a big circular stair case was coming up.

"There is an elevator and two backup elevators that go to every floor, but there are also old fashioned stairs just in case of an emergency. These lead down to all the floors containing Biotech patients. Those who have become animal hybrids like the ones you've just seen," Rayna explained as Ally and Hanai both walked up to the railing and peered over the side. The staircase went down farther and farther. Circling around until the individual levels all ran together in her sight.

"How... how many floors are there?" Hanai asked breathlessly as she pulled back and looked at the rooms they had just passed.

"There are 20 patients on each floor and 100 floors in this building alone. There are at least 200 other facilities like this in Neo Veisa alone. And each major city around the world has the same amount if not more," Rayna explained and Ally's head swam with the sheer number of it all.

"That means... just in this city alone..." Ally stopped and shook her head. She had to step back when she started getting dizzy from staring down for too long.

"In this city alone there are probably four hundred thousand people locked away and waiting to be treated with more being added every day," Rayna explained simply but Ally could hear the strain underneath her words. It couldn't be easy on her having to work for Biotech knowing this was going on. For all Ally knew the woman had likely been coming here on and off for years already. Her familiarity with some of the people locked away certainly suggested it.

Ashley and Sasha have thought all of this out. They've known for a long time that this was going on, but they had to wait for just the right moment to act and just the right person to come along, Ally considered as another wave of nausea hit her.

Four hundred thousand people? Just in this sprawling mega city alone? How many were there around the world? Millions? A billion? More then that even? The world's population was nearly at 11 billion people right now after all.

"Oh my god... oh my god," Ally doubled over and put her head in her hands as the impact of it all hit her. They had to grab as much footage as possible and get it out of here as soon as possible without being arrested or having their smart glasses confiscated.

She didn't know if Biotech could really be stopped, but she definitely wasn't going to allow them to continue unpunished.