Trapped Within

{Chapter 13}

"But they would start depending on each other-"

"So be it. For the specimens to become strong soldiers, they need to trust each other, so separating them from their father will make them know how things work around here... Loyalty-", pushing himself off the desk, Bishop walked back and forth, passing around the room, "Two things are needed for mutants- anything actually to be loyal...affection...", Bishop stood in front of the bat as he faces contorted into something strange...something dangerous, a knot formed inside his stomach, Dannie no longer felt safe as the froid stood over her, smiling at him"And f̷̜̬͔̩̼͒́̌̌ĕ̷͔͔ȧ̷̪̩̞̣̬̈́ŗ̷̗̓̊̍̀͠...", Dannie pressed his back against the chair as Bishop showed a terrifyingly wide smile, "With those two attributes, mutants will stay loyal, the fear will keep them in their place, however, once in a while, you reward them, that is when you have them...hook line and sinker. Knowing that if they stay in line they'll be safe, they'll live", sitting back in his chair, Bishop laughed at Dannie, loving the absolute fear in the young one's eyes, feeding off the fear. "It's the same method Kraang-kind have been using for eons, so don't be so shocked by that fact, I have even been using it on the two of you since the beginning", he gave Dannie a smug look, twisting the pen that was placed on his fingers in between his fingers.

"Now let's move on to the topic at hand. How is 013-202012 doing with the specimens...", Dannie knew this was coming, turning his gaze away, he so wanted to tell him that nothing happened, to lie about the entire situation, but he couldn't Bishop knew and was testing him, making sure Dannie was hiding nothing, "Yesterday, I left an hour before my shift started, I decided to skip breakfast and when I got there, I noticed when I looked at the eggs-"

"Get to the point", Dannie froze and cleared his throat, fidgeting with his hands underneath his blanket poncho, messing with the loose strings, "Looking at the camera system, Mi-, 013-202012 was seen, bonding with the specimens, making turtle noise, watching them with such intent and fondness. He has been doing that for two weeks, however, yesterday was the first day he actually touched the eggs, nuzzling and cuddling with each one. So far I checked his charts, he hasn't grown enough of a bond to give each one a name-", Dannie's fidgety expression changed to one of curiosity, and interest, his voice more thrilled to talk about the situation, "However, yesterday, I discovered something extraordinary, the bond has grown so much that his body has identified the eggs as his own! Yesterday, I walked close to the egg to see if I would get the same reaction, Mikey got when he touched the egg, but when I tried to touch the eggs to get a reaction, he growled!"

"Growled?"

"Yes!", Dannie chuckled as he stood to his feet, pacing back and forth, "His mind's becoming protective and possessive over the eggs! This mind has gotten to the point where it's considered me a threat!"

"And that's good news?", Bishop leaned on his desk as he watched the bat walk around the room, "It is! What makes this whole situation even better, the eggs recognize Mikey as their parental figure, when he places his hand on the eggs, their hearts spike, and their brain activity showed signs of dopamine flowing inside their brains, it's amazing! Within just two months he's grown a motherly role!"

"Motherly? But the mutant is male, correct?", Dannie nodded his head, trying to find the right words to explain, "For some of the animal kingdom, the mothers are protective of their young, like bears, orangutans, a lot of animals, the fact that we're even getting this is astonishing. All species of turtles do the same thing the moment the turtles lay their eggs, they leave them to fend for themselves, so the fact that 013-202012 is acting protective is super lucky for us!". Bishop held no expression, staring at the mutant in front of him, Dannie didn't know how to react, he didn't look happy or mad he just looked calm. Bishop just crossed his arms, "Have you seen any of this behavior acted out in front of your eyes?"