⭐️Chapter 24: But Why?
Bird couldn't take it.
She'd thought she finally escaped this nightmare and the people in it...but it was only for a short while. Now that she had friends who had shown her what freedom truly was like, she wasn't sure she could ever turn back to this place...and yet here she was. Maybe she deserved it, she thought. After all, she'd probably rudely interrupted their lives without considering how they might feel. But she hadn't done anything to hurt them, right? So surely they weren't mad at her, and maybe she didn't deserve this?
Oh who was she kidding, she couldn't tell.
A scientist came in with a needle, and Bird tensed up at it. Ugh, what were they injecting her with now? Of course, she'd survived numerous shots before, but they were always scary in the sense that she'd never know what it truly was. There wasn't really anything she could do about it either, even screaming wouldn't do anything. As she felt the sharp pain for just a brief second, she sighed.
When would this torment be over? Would she ever get a say, would she ever be free again? Her mind wasn't clouded as she thought about this, but she was prepared to have everything plummet into unconsciousness at any second. In the meantime, Bird looked over at the computer on the table and saw that the injection had seemingly been for something called "Bird Flu". Was this because of what she was? She didn't know, but she didn't care, even after the scientist left with the computer and released her from her restraints.
Bird was out of those metal bars, sure, but she didn't feel like getting up. What was the point, anymore? This room had no vents or windows or holes to squeeze into. She couldn't find any cracks in the walls, secret places behind things, nothing. It was all hopeless, anyway. There was definitely no way out.
For sure.
No way.
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Fang was walking down the halls with the rest of the Crashers, watching them all talk amongst themselves without including him. He didn't care too much, but it made him feel like he'd missed out on some event or inside joke thing and now he was just an underdog. He'd tolerated this stuff for at least a year, and never really stated his opinion on it. Even if he wanted to, what good would it do?
Sure, he'd chimed in with the others adding on, but he still felt lesser. He needed to be more intimidating, make his presence known and all that. However, Fang was snapped out of his thoughts as he heard someone talking and everyone stopped walking.
"Look guys, isn't that the room Hunter said that puny little girl was staying in?" Spyke asked.
It was indeed, the room that held that girl. The one who cheated in the turf match. The one the group disliked because electricity stacked on top of boiling ink was definitely considered unfair (even though the group didn't care if THEY had the unfair advantage). She might've been banned from turf wars, but Ryn sure wasn't.
"Heh, do you think we should do something with her?" Thrash grinned.
"Yo, I'd LOVE to," Thorne replied with a sinister smile.
"Didn't Hunter say there were scientists already doing things to her, though? Let's not interfere with that," Fang interjected.
"Oh yeah, true. Maybe there's something else and we can come back later," Spyke said.
"Right, Hunter said somethin' about trust..." Thrash muttered.
"It's fine anyways. No big deal," Thorne replied.
Fang sighed and stared down at the floor. The other three started up another conversation, which he could hear pretty clearly.
"Man, I'd love to see what she'd do if she had her powers taken away, though!" Spyke said.
"You think she'd cry?" Thorne asked.
"I dunno, she seemed pretty surprised when she saw she had 'em. She might not react at all," Thrash shrugged.
"Right, but electricity IS pretty darn strong if used right," Spyke said.
"Oh man, I kinda want electric powers now!" Thorne exclaimed.
That reminded Fang. Why did they hate the girl...Bird, was it? So much? They didn't think about...manipulating her? Persuading her? After all, a friend's betrayal usually hit hard on the opposing team...
"Hey guys, what if we made her join our team?" Fang asked. "We could surprise the Infernos or something."
No response.
Fang looked up to see that the other three Crashers had already started walking off without him. Wow. Amazing. But...maybe this was his chance to do something while they weren't around. Surely they didn't REALLY need him, right? After all, he was just a replacement for that other person who was with the Crashers years ago.
Fang looked around his surroundings before walking down to the door of the room. The window area was covered by something, so he couldn't see inside. But that still didn't stop him from thinking anyway. That girl was just a kid. She didn't deserve this.
But Fang wasn't sure. The Wave Crashers were ruthless and strong, tackling down anything that got in their way. If someone had a problem, who cared? They were mowed down with everyone else. The Wave Crashers weren't supposed to care about others or whatever conditions they had....
But he did.
Fang...empathized with some of the people they ran into. Sometimes their opponents would have their reasons for putting up a fight. Maybe it was because he was a newer member and he hadn't formed that "tough exterior" the others had. Fang sighed as he stopped by the room containing Bird.
He was going to regret this, but in the end, what did it matter if his teammates got mad at him? They usually blamed him for things on a regular basis, anyway. He kept a journal of it. The others most likely didn't care, and only cared for riches, popularity, and power. He...he didn't know what he truly wanted.
This was going to be the second time he'd freed someone and questioned where he really stood. When he freed the Infernos from their prison cell after Corrin had put up and argument against him, Fang almost felt like he could turn to their side...but not fully. There was still something about the Infernos that he was bothered by, something that wouldn't let him join their group. Maybe it was because Wave Crashers meant power, and to leave that was to become weaker. He didn't know for sure.
As he grabbed the doorknob and jostled it, he found it to be locked. Looking to the side of him, he could see a number panel. Good thing he'd overheard those codes from earlier. He put in the numbers and tried the door again, jumping in surprise a little when the door actually opened. Fang made his way in and immediately saw the girl sitting on a table in front of him. Man, this room was smaller than he'd thought it would be.
Bird perked up at the sight of him. She recognized him from the turf wars, but what was he doing here? Oh cod, was he here to test on her too?! Maybe escort her someplace?? She didn't know, but she couldn't really tell either. Fang could see she was trying to process what was going on, so he gave her a short explanation.
"You're free now. Don't ask questions, and thank me later or whatever. Or don't. Just...get out of here."
Bird finally managed to snap out of it and put pieces together, but...something still felt strange about this. Off, to say the least.
"Why are you doing this? Aren't you...my friends' enemies? Don't you hate them? Me? Something??"
Fang didn't know how to answer, and just pointed to the door. Bird got away from the table and walked over, but she gave the short giant squid a look.
"You're...serious?"
"Mhm."
"You're not coming with?"
"I'll...um. Make sure you get extra time."
Bird could only nod in amazement at this guy's change of heart. She thought he'd hated her and everything, since that whole bully group seemed bent on threatening the whole friend group. But now...this. She might as well go before he decided to take this back.
"Thanks. For everything," Bird said as she walked past him.
"....right."
Fang watched as she bolted down the halls in the opposite direction the Wave Crashers had gone. He sighed as he closed the door behind him and looked back, only to see that she was gone entirely. He sighed as he mumbled to himself.
"After all..."
He turned around and started to walk back to catch up with the other Crashers.
"I also know what it's like to be a caged bird."