Shooting Star

Chapter 2

Carter slept for seemingly hours, but after a while, her eyes finally rose after a forceful slumber. She was hoping, before she opened her eyes, that what happened at the park with that mysterious woman was a weird nightmare. But the harsh fluorescent light shining in her face and lightly burning her sensitive eyes, the unfamiliar bright white room with turquoise tile floors and matching cabinets and counters, and the fact that she was strapped to an examination table let her know that it was no dream. What happened to her was real.

The cool air of the building hit her cold sweat, forcing her to accept the reality of the situation. She looked at her restraints again, metallic and fused to the table itself, holding down her wrists, ankles, and body, and nearly had a heart attack. Carter examined her surroundings and noticed all the lab equipment, the computer, the paperwork, everything. And above all else, she saw a blue substance in a flask on the table next to her, standing out in comparison to the blindingly white room she was forced to reside in.

She knew where she was, even though she had never been there before. This was the place that the people who heard of the horror stories of Wolverine Army feared almost as much as the camps: the infamous Hyena Labs.

The Hyena Labs were created primarily for experimentation of civilians. The doctors made the flimsy excuse of selecting civilians due to their biological advantages related to the experiment, but most times, there was no such thing. And alongside this, they go out of their way to research– or, more appropriately, stalk– civilians they selected. The reason that woman knew Carter's name was because she had been following her the whole time. She was an easy target. Kind-hearted. Gentle. Vulnerable. Pacifist. Weak. Carter felt sick to her stomach, knowing someone had followed her the whole day and never noticed. That woman was a master of stealth.

Upon hearing the soft sound of footsteps getting closer to the room, Carter panicked. She thrashed around in her restraints for as long as possible, and as hard as she could. But she was too weak to break them on her own. The door opened, but she kept trying. "You know that's not going to work," a feminine voice declared, shutting the door behind her. It was the woman who kidnapped Carter, now wearing a white lab coat that was rather small but still comfortable enough to wear, and black pants. She could see a hint of purple underneath her coat as well. With a clipboard in hand, the doctor walked up to a terrified Carter with not the slightest ounce of sympathy in her eyes. "You've been asleep for quite some time now. When I found you, it was early into the night, but now it's 4 AM."

"4 AM...?" Carter finally replied, albeit sleepily. The drug was still making her drowsy, but she had enough of a conscience to be able to read the black name tag on the doctor's coat. It read "B. Umali" in tiny, italic letters in a Times New Roman font. "Umali...?" Carter repeated aloud, much to the surprise of the doctor. "That's odd. I could have sworn I drugged you enough to make sure you would be too weak to resist, but you're still aware enough to read my name tag..." Regardless of this, Bonnie wrote this on the paper on her clipboard, and replied, "By the way, since we will be seeing each other a lot more from this day forward, you are free to call me Bonnie. Being called 'Doctor Umali' gets very tiring." Bonnie continued writing her notes on the clipboard as she made her way to the computer. "Now, before we begin, I have to add your information to our systems," Bonnie explained as the computer started up.

Dread and anger surged through Carter's barely conscious mind in a way she had never felt before. She knew that none of this was her fault, and yet she still blamed herself. And worse, Carter knew that she was not the only one Bonnie kidnapped and brought here. But even with this fact, Carter tried to plead. "Let me go..." Carter begged. "Please let me go... I have nothing to provide for you! I've done no wrong to you!"

Bonnie only read the details of Carter's personal information entering the system. "Carter Lament. Age 21. Height 161 centimeters. Blood type O+. No physical deformities..." Her words were on deaf ears, so Carter once again tried to struggle her way out. "Goddammit, let me go!" Carter screamed, her voice loud enough to hurt her throat. The doctor sighed before standing up from her chair. "I told you that wouldn't work," Bonnie groaned. "And as I told you in the park, this is not a matter of 'what you did.' The army instructs me to get test subjects, so I do it. But why should I explain something so simple to a lying child?"