And Into the Fire...
Sorry to everyone that it took so long to get this part up. I'm already working on the next segment and will have it up a lot faster than I did this one. Please vote and feel free to leave me comments about this one. I welcome criticism so that I may become a better writer.
Ch. 3
October 30, 2008
Washington DC
Richard Mullens sat in the limousine looking through the files that he was going to present to Don Perkins, the chief of the research department of the Lutrai Corporation. There were a lot of things going through his head at the moment and it was hard to concentrate on organizing each file according to what he knew Perkins would want to see first. Foremost in his mind, he knew that Natalie was going to do something rash in his absence. He brought a hand up to rub his temples, she was an infuriating girl. The only reason he kept her around and put up with her was because she was the daughter of a good friend of his, who was also very stubborn and idealistic. His attention went out the window as they passed the white house. He clicked the intercom to the driver, "How much longer?"
"About fifteen more minutes sir," came the reply. He had plenty of time to get his affairs in order before the grand inquisition from Perkins. The first thing Ron would want to hear about was the only one in his facility to wake up from the coma, Kevin Ross. All of the blood work that came back showed the same thing that all the others did, even those from the other labs. Animal DNA with a slight mix of human. Everything in nature said that something like this shouldn't be possible, yet, here they were.
The limo turned into a large parking lot and Richard adjusted his tie and made sure that his suit was looking it's best. The car came to a stop in front of the entrance to the offices and the driver did his job and went around to open Richards door. After putting all the files back into his briefcase he got out and went inside to talk to his boss.
"Mr. Perkins will see you now Mr. Mullens," said the secretary to the one sitting on a comfortable couch across the room from her desk.
Richard nodded and took a breath as he stood up. The doors to Don's office looked like alot of other things in these corporate offices, expensive. When he walked through, Don was just getting off the phone, "I don't have to reschedule anything to work around your plans. I'm telling you, my flight leaves tomorrow afternoon. Good day."
He hung up the phone and looked up at Richard with a friendly smile, "Richard, so good of you to make it here. I hope your flight went well?"
Richard returned the smile, but he didn't feel any of it, "It was alright Don. How have you been?"
The two shook hands before Don motioned for Richard to have a seat, "Oh, I've been alright. Lots of work going on with all of these animal people. I'm just glad that the government gave us the contract."
Richard nodded in reply and started to pull out the files that he selected to show Don first, "So am I Don. Keeps us in business."
Don chuckled, "Yeah, especially with times going as they are now. Pretty soon -we- won't even be able to afford the gas prices."
Richard was pulled from his thoughts by Don's simple joke, "Heh, tell me about it. Anyways, I brought the current files that I have for the one that has woken up, and all the information on a few of the other casualties."
Perkins smiled again, "Strait to business as always I see. Oh well, I suppose we can exchange pleasantries some other time. Tell me about the one that woke up."
Being one step ahead of him, Richard placed the file on the desk and slid it across to him, "Kevin Ross. Former military, born in Texas, only child. Parents died in a car wreck while he was deployed. To where, we couldn't find out. Top secret. Last report I have shows that he has stopped eating, stopped getting out of the bed, and one of the techs on my staff thinks that he has given up the will to live."
Don listened quietly, nodding occasionally, "I suppose that I don't have to tell you to just put a feeding tube in him and restrain him. Do you have pictures of him and the others?"
Richard bobbed his head and fished out the rest of the files, one of them only pictures of random patients. "Yes. But so far, none of our research shows any progress with a way to reverse the effects. But we have concluded that it is not communicable in any way."
A smile crept over Don's face, this was perfect. He looked through the files, stopping occasionally to take a close look at a few, "That's good. As long as they can't make others change. The government is taking a different stance on this whole matter. From the files that I have sent them they have determined that a cure is impossible, can't cure the healthy. They decided that they want to start integrating these animals into society as soon as possible."
A funny look on came over Richards face, "But we still don't even know if they will adapt to their new way of life. Imagine, going from a free citizen to being bought and sold at will. I know the stance that the government plans to take on the matter, but this is more or less slavery and you know it Don."
The man behind the desk shrugged, "You may be right, and personally I'm surprised at where the big wigs are taking this. But nothing you or I can say will change it. This decision has been made way over our heads."
Richard tilted his head to the side, "And you're going to let the company name be associated with this?"
Don only laughed at his colleague's surprise, "Of course. This project is going to make us alot of money, and secure future contracts with the government."
The director from Montana just sat there thinking. He knew what was planned for them, but now that he was actually having to take action towards that goal, it was somehow different. After some thought and consideration, he decided that he didn't have much of a choice. He nodded, "Alright. I'll make it happen on my end. But keep in mind that so far only one at my facility has woken up. We will shift our focus on trying to find a way to wake them up."
After saying that Mr. Mullens stood up and showed himself out, a smug smile on the face of his boss. Once the office doors were closed behind him he pulled out his cell phone. Time to try and fix some things before everything went to hell. After a few rings Natalie answered, "Natalie. Change in plans, the wolf is not going to be put down. Yeah, I'm serious. They are all going to remain with us until the political climate settles down. I talked to Mr. Perkins too, we are going to change the policy for those that wake up, you will now be allowed to talk to them and answer any of their questions. Yes...yes, you're welcome. Have any of the others woken up? Really? Well then. I'm flying out today in the company jet, we will discuss the changes in more depth when I get back. Alright, bye."
He hung up the phone. She never asked about if they were still going to be bought and sold. He hoped that question never came up.
November 4, 2008
Lutrai Corporation Research Labs, Montana
Two nights had passed since Natalie came and apologized. Twice more she had come to visit, answering any questions that had plagued his mind in the months of solitude. It was weird hearing about who he was from someone else. From what she could tell him, his name was Kevin Ross, he was single with no living relatives, and he was former military turned security guard at one of the Pantex nuclear power plants. From what he could guess, he was well paid working for the government. The same government that was using him as a guinea pig. The same government that was going to throw him away when he outlived his usefulness. Kevin was sitting on the edge of his bed, panting. He was eating again and doing a little physical training to get his strength back. If they were playing him, he didn't want to disappoint them. He stood up and raised his tired arms over his head, stretching out after his little work out. If today was to be the same as the past few days, Natalie would be showing up soon with his evening meal and a lecture about how he shouldn't push himself so hard after going almost six days without eating. She still couldn't tell him when he was going to be getting out of there. Which made him think that when the time did come, it would be a very hasty exit. Once he was done stretching, he made his way across the short distance to the shower. He took off the scrubs after adjusting the water temperature. The one thing that still troubled his mind was the one thing that Natalie wasn't able to answer. He knew that he should be a little more distressed, or angry, or scared, or anything else about his sudden transformation into a wolf. But he was strangely ok with it. With a sigh he stepped into the shower and started to wash himself.
After his shower he had nothing else to do except wait for Natalie to show up. A few hours rolled by with no sign of anyone. He was starting to feel hungry, and guessed that he had missed his dinner. Kevin lay down on the bed and stared at the ceiling until sleep overtook him.
A few more hours passed before his keen ears detected the door opening. His eyes popped open and he turned his attention to the figure in the doorway. The sight of Natalie was as good of a greeting as he was going to get until he got out of here. "Tonight?" he asked while he sat up.
She could only shake her head, but she did have a smile on her face. That smile seemed to diminish when she knew what she was supposed to tell him, "No, not just yet."
Natalie moved over to his bed, kneeling down and putting a hand on his knee, "Hear me out Kevin. I know you're not going to want to hear this, but things have worked out better than they would if I helped you escape."
He narrowed his eyes down at her and growled, but she spoke over him, "The director comes back tomorrow, and he told me that there were going to be changes in the policy here. We're allowed to talk to all of you now, and you are going to be allowed to leave your room and wander around, as long as you don't become hostile or give them any other reason to confine you."
The wolf looked past her at the open door, thinking about shoving her out of the way and making a run for it. Her voice brought his attention back, "Don't....please Kevin....I know what you're thinking."
The two of them stood up at the same time, but he didn't make any motion that he was going to run. "You said all of you. I take it that others have woken up?"
She could only nod, "Around 30 more. Reports from other facilities say that they have had a bunch wake up as well. They are going to start classes to help you adjust to your...um...new bodies, and reintegrate into society."
Kevin could only look at her, "What kind of classes are these going to be? I could go back to my old job without a problem."
Natalie looked away, "Because some think there will be a prejudice against all of you. They feel that it is for your protection."
She looked back up at him with a strange look in her eyes. She shook her head slowly and turned away, "Please. They will let you go if you just play along for now. The classes aren't going to be long, and I will try to talk the director into keeping you out of them."
With that she turned and walked out the door, leaving it open. Kevin could only look at her back as she left, thoughts of running still in his head. He walked to the doorway and stuck his head out, seeing one orderly standing beside the door. The orderly looked at the wolf and gave him an innocent smile.
'If snakes could smile,' thought Kevin. He walked out of the room that he had been prisoner in and started in the direction that Natalie went, paying no mind to the burly orderly. He knew that the man was only there to keep him from causing trouble.
The facilities that all of those that were transformed were set up like any hospital, with signs and colored lines on the floor leading to various areas. He walked past a glass wall showing the outside. There were a few people standing inside a heated, open air, smoke shack having a cigarette and talking. He went to the door and pushed it open, getting a blast of cold, winter air. He never put the scrub top back on, but his fur kept him plenty warm despite the layer of snow on the ground. The two that were outside stopped in their conversation and looked over at the newcomer. Surprise was very evident in their faces.
Kevin walked over to them, "Hey. Mind if I bum a smoke? Haven't had one since I got here."
One of them, the male wearing a doctors coat nodded dumbly and reached into his pocket to pull out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, handing them to the wolf.
As Kevin took one out of the pack and lit it he said, "Much abliged. So I guess by the look on your faces that you haven't seen any of us first hand huh."
The doctor shook his head, his colleague staying silent, "No, I only do blood work. I almost didn't believe them when they told me what I was working on."
Kevin nodded and took a drag off of his cigarette, looking at the nurse that was with the doctor, "And what do you do exactly?"
She finally got her wits about her and responded, "Me? I uh...I help in the blood labs."
Kevin blew the smoke out in a much larger cloud than normal because of the temperature. He wasn't standing anywhere near the heater, preferring to be under the moon and stars. The doctor spoke next, "What do....uh....did, you do before this?"
The wolf shrugged, "They tell me that I was a security guard for pantex. Outside of that I don't know much. Can't remember anything before waking up in this damned place."
The two listened, still somewhat not believing what they were seeing and hearing. The conversation dropped off shortly after and the two blood techs went back inside, the nurse casting one last look back at the wolf. Keven didn't go inside immediately, instead he chose to look at the moon. There was something about it that he never fully appreciated, but could now.
January 17, 2009
Lutrai Corporation Research Labs, Montana
The next few months passed by with little changing for Kevin, but the facility was in a state of constant action compared to what it was right after the wolf woke up. More and more of the 'animals' woke up from their coma, some remembering more than others. Some fully remembered their old life and what happened just before they passed out from the strange smoke, others woke up blank slates. This was why there were classes to help them all acclimate to the world. The ones that remembered everything were having the hardest time and their classes were little more than brainwashing. The ones that didn't remember anything were viewed as the easiest to retrain.
The facility staff and Natalie seemed to be taking great care to not let him know just what the classes were or the fact that they were trying to keep him from learning about it. Over the months the wolf had befriended some of the staff, and Natalie would spend every free moment she had talking to him. The lower level staff members and a small few of the higher up's only wanted to keep that knowledge from him because they cared about him after learning that he was truly more than just a strange new animal.
Kevin was on one of his daily walk abouts when he passed by one of the classes for those that had no clue as to what they were or what happened. The orderly had an important phone call so the wolf was on his own for once. He peeked in through the window on the door and watched for a long moment as the 'instructor' explained something. He couldn't hear anything through the sound-proofed door. He reached for the handle and found that it was unlocked, so he quietly opened the door and entered.
"...know what caused this sickness," the instructor said while giving Kevin only a passing glance, "But don't worry, we have determined that it is not contagious and is no longer a threat. You will all be returned to your owners soon."
This was met with more than a few looks and sighs of relief from the attending class. Kevin on the other hand merely tilted his head to the side as he listened.
"There are still a few tests that we would like to run on each of you to see if there is a possibility of your memories returning to you and to determine if there are any other long term effects," the instructor droned on.
A hand went up in the middle of the class. It belonged to a younger vixen with rust colored fur. She seemed a little timid, and her voice showed it, "Um...sir?
"What is it?" the man at the front of the room asked with a sigh of exasperation. It's not that he was tired of being there or tired of their questions. In fact, he loved his job. But he was playing the role of one that was forced to be pleasant with ones that were now to be considered as property.
The vixen seemed to have lost some nerve, but she went on regardless, "What if our memories never come back?"
"You will have to make new memories," the man said casually before going on to the rest of the group with a stern, challenging look, "Now, if there are no further questions I will..."
"Who's that?" a badger spoke up, pointing at Kevin and cutting the man off.
Taking in a deep breath, the instructor explained, "He is the first one to recover from the sickness, and belongs to Miss Natalie. Do not interrupt me again badger," that last part hinting at some form of punishment.
Kevin had heard enough. He turned and left the classroom, coming face to face with the orderly. "Kevin...please..."
The wolf growled at the orderly, "What!? We're all slaves now!? Is that how it is?!" But he didn't give the orderly a chance to respond. He turned and stormed off towards his room, not wanting to see any of the staff of the facility.
Date - Unquantifiable
Location - Immortal Plane
The two beings gazed down into the floating pool in front of them. The pool showed scenes from a few of the various labs of the corporation heading up the research on the new animals. The one with the white hair smiled, but there was nothing warm in it. "It's begun," he said softly.
The one with the black hair replied, "Our children will do whats right. The war will begin soon after they are released."
The two continued to watch the pool, unaware that they themselves were being watched. In a different realm, a female with silvery blue hair looked into a pool of her own. When she was created, she was confused at first. But then things happened almost as if they were on their own, and she learned of her power. She created her sanctuary and the viewing pool in front of her. The first time she gazed through the pool she saw the white wolf. But now, she watched the two that were like her with calm, calculating anger in her eyes.
Through the pool she saw the one with white hair look up at the second one with a smirk, "The animals that fight will die quickly. The dominating spirit of the humans will destroy any resistance."
"They will either die, or they will return to their servitude. Makes no difference. After this war our children will have learned their lesson," the black haired one replied.
She watched them for a few more minutes, then the view of the pool changed to a city block in New York City. There was a large building under construction with large iron cages being set up inside it's walls. If one didn't know any better, it would look like they were building a jail inside the heart of the city. In a sense, they were.
Ch. 4
January 23, 2009
Kootenai National Forest, Montana
Escape had been the easy part, it was getting in contact with some of the other 'prisoners' that had been difficult. After it became known that Kevin knew what was going on, Natalie and the rest of the staff tried to keep him segregated from the rest of the population. Natalie purposefully didn't keep as close of an eye on the wolf as the others did though. So he was given a little time to make some contacts. All it took then was a collaborated rush of the guards and a break for the exit.
A thick blanket of snow covered the forest in it's silent embrace. The sky was overcast, promising yet another snow storm. Six figures plodded through the snow in a lose formation, huddled into their stolen winter clothing. Half of the group stopped and perked their ears when the wind changed direction.
The one at the head of the column, a white wolf, raised a fist into the air to signal the group to stop. In a hushed voice Kevin said simply, "They're getting close. I can hear their snowmobiles. It's about time we dealt with them."
A few grins and nods of approval greeted the wolf as a reply. He pointed to two of his fellow escapee's, a cat and a squirrel, "You two get up into the trees. When you hear my signal, attack."
They gave a nod and chose a tree on either side of the tracks that they had been leaving. Moments later they were lost from sight. With a nod Kevin waved for the remaining three to follow him. He led them about 30 more meters in the direction that they had been following. "Ok, find a good concealed position to hole up in. Don't shoot until I give the signal," the wolf whispered to them just before the baying of hounds could be heard. The remaining three spread out, disappearing into the cover of the snow.
The click of weapons being cocked was drowned out by the tracking dogs, at least they would put up a fight. The hounds drew closer, leading the hunters toward their quarry. A few agonizingly long minutes passed before ten men were in view. Kevin continued to wait, watching the distance shrink.
'Just a few more....' the wolf thought to himself, 'Now...' and he leapt to his feet, taking off at a dead run through the snow.
He looked over his shoulder when the dogs went crazy and the men shouted upon seeing him. A cool smirk spread on the lips of the decoy as the hunters unknowingly passed his firing line.
"NOW!" Kevin yelled as he dove for the ground.
Barely a second later the air filled with mixed pistol and rifle fire, bullets ripping into the men and their dogs from different angles. The few that survived the initial fire dove for cover, frantically looking for the hidden marksmen.
Steam rose from the bloody wounds of the dead and dying as more bullets flew through the air when the hunters started to return fire, aiming where they hoped their attackers were. One by one, they were cut down until there was silence.
January 26, 2009
Kootenai National Forest, Montana
In the days after the quick shootout the group settled into a routine, moving during the day and keeping holed up during the night. They heard search helicopters in the distance every day and a few times at night. Little was said between them all aside from the brief commands that Kevin would give. No one challenged him since his ideas all seemed the most sound. Besides, so far he had kept them all alive and with food in their bellies.
On that Monday, the helicopters came in low and fast through the early morning dusting of snow. The squirrel had been on watch when the sound of their rotors drifted on the wind. After waking everyone up, the squirrel scooted up a nearby tree to try and get a visual.
"Everyone get low and keep quiet," the wolf ordered as they waited for the helicopters to to pass.
The feline dug himself into a bush and silently cocked his pistol, "We could get a lot farther with one of those choppers," he whispers to the rest.
Kevin looked over towards the bush the cat was in, "Hold your fire Brandon, we're not looking for another firefight."
For some reason, the choppers slowed down once they got closer to the group. Kevin looked up at them, a mounting sense of fear building. These weren't your average search helicopters. Last he knew, your average search 'copter didn't come equipped with machine guns. Just as the crew chief of the lead bird cocked the 240b, the wolf yelled, "GET DOWN!"
Machine gun fire instantly lit up their entire area, with more joining in once the others got into position over the treetops. A cry of pain pulled Kevin's attention to his right just in time to see the squirrel fall through the branches and land in a motionless lump.
With a shout of anger, Kevin raised his rifle towards the nearest helicopter and fired. Seconds later more gunfire joined in the commotion as the escapee's lined their sights up on their attackers. But, as each one revealed their position, they were cut down from the combined fire of the four birds.
The silence after the short, but devastating, attack was deafening. A groan of pain pulled Kevin back to reality, only to be reminded of the pain wracking his own body. Choking it down, he turned and crawled towards the source, a mouse that had tagged along.
The mouse was in bad shape, and could barely be heard over the sound of the choppers that were still hovering overhead, "Ya...gotta...end this...Kevin. Save....us..." He coughed a few times, blood coming up and staining the gray fur around his mouth.
"I'll try...come on...stay with me..." Kevin started, but the mouses eyes glazed over.
The wolf pounded the snow with a fist, "You bastards..." When he looked up he could see a small team moving towards him, their weapons beaded on the only one of them still alive.
"Don't shoot that one. We still need him," a voice called from the back of the team, "Get him on the chopper and see to his wounds."
"Yes sir," one of the members replied before he picked the wolf up behind his arms to drag him to the chopper. When Kevin looked up, he watched the rest of the team shoot the bodies of his newfound friends just to ensure they were dead.
A low growl built up in the Kevin's throat and he turned to snarl at the nearest one he could see, which happened to be the medic that was looking over his wounds.
The medic only gave him a pleasant smile, "Don't worry Kevin, you'll be alright soon enough," and began to strap him into a stretcher. "We'll get you back to Natalie and everything'll be alright," the medic said before putting a needle into the wolves arm, injecting a sedative.
The growl quickly lost it's intensity as the drugs took hold, dropping him into a deep, dreamless sleep.