"How many people have you killed?" I asked Delta.
He looked out the window of the office, and I knew that I'd taken him by surprise. I resisted the urge to smile at his confusion. It's not often that I got to surprise my mentor.
Delta was a tall man, athletic but not especially muscular. He was Hispanic, with narrow, brown eyes and short, dark hair gelled back in a flawless fashion. Though nearly forty, he still moved with the speed of a young man. With his polo, khakis, oxford shoes, and white lab coat, he looked like your average college science professor, perhaps the one that the female students all had a secret crush on.
He paused before answering, fixing his sleeves and checking his watch as he considered my question.
"Sixteen." He replied abruptly, going over to the coffee pot in the corner of the office. "Sixteen assassinations. Two men tried to attack me in prison, I suppose I'd better count them too, as both died from their injuries. Eighteen test subjects. Then there's the people in Blestemat, but then again, those were accidental. Let's say thirty-six."
I nodded in response.
"How do you feel about that?" Delta asked, looking up from his new cup of coffee.
"It's...interesting." I replied.
"Does that scare you?"
"No."
"Liar." He sat back down at his desk.
I stared at him.
"Your fingers." He said. "You're scared."
I realized that for the last several seconds I'd been drumming my fingers on the top of the desk. He knew me too well.
"You're going to be an assassin someday too, Katana." Delta said gently. "Death shouldn't scare you."
"I'm not scared."
"Of course you are. You're twelve years old, still a child, no matter how much the people here try to pretend otherwise."
A buzzer on his desk sounded and he sighed, leaning back in his chair.
"She's here." He said.
A moment later the door opened and his wife, Jinx, entered. She was undeniably beautiful, slightly heavyset, but it only served to accentuate her beauty. Her heels were of nearly ankle breaking height and matched perfectly with her dark blue dress. With her fair skin, bleached blonde curls, and wide gray eyes, she looked like a middle aged actress on a break from Hollywood.
I knew better. Mrs. Cross made Delta seem downright warm and friendly in comparison.
"Must you spend all your time with this child?" She asked in her heavily accented voice.
"She's going to be their leader, you know." Delta replied, standing. "She needs to be as prepared as possible for what lies ahead. Did you find any?"
"Always so impatient." She batted her long lashes at him. "I've been gone nearly a month, and I barely get a hello."
"I'm sure you found some better company than I while you were away, Sasha."
She moved to slap him, but he caught her hand.
"Don't." He said, letting her go. He looked at me apologetically. "I was just about to tell Katana about Project Paragon."
Her pretty face twisted in a frown. "Why should she know?"
"She is going to be part of it."
"And? She's a test subject. Or have you forgotten?"
"Of course not." Delta replied.
"Xavier is beginning to have his doubts about whether you should have been put in charge of this project."
"You would know how he feels, of course." I muttered.
Jinx turned on me, slamming her purse into the side of my head. I fell out of my chair, getting up instantly and backing away before she could hit me again. Though everyone on the island of Theta Sigma knew that Delta's failing marriage was the partial result of Jinx's attraction to Mr. Cane, few were stupid enough to talk about it.
"Don't forget who you're talking to, child." She hissed at me.
"Peace, Sasha." Delta said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You didn't mean anything by that comment, right, Katana?"
I nodded, rubbing my stinging cheek.
"I want an apology." Jinx said.
I looked at Delta, who nodded.
"I'm sorry." I muttered.
Jinx didn't appear convinced as to my sincerity, but let me off the hook. She turned back to Delta. "My love, come see what wonderful gifts I'd found us."
Delta offered me a hand and pulled me to my feet. "Come on, Katana. It's time you met your subordinates."
We left the office and walked down a pure white, curving hall. It led around the edge of a giant biosphere, the roof translucent to allow sunlight inside. Still, the children that wandered around the trees and little living quarters looked sallow and sickly. One of them lay beside the pond in the center of the dome. It was hard to tell if it was simply sleeping or dead. I looked away quickly. That was one of the first things you learned on Theta Sigma: there was no time to care for others. If you tried, you died. That was the way of things.
We stopped outside of a glass holding cell. Inside are around twenty girls, all around twelve years old, some glaring at us resentfully, the rest sobbing quietly.
"None will be missed?" Delta asked.
"Of course not." Jinx replied. "Some are homeless. Some runaways. A few foster children. All healthy and strong. Not like the clones we have in there." She nodded towards the biosphere.
"Alright." Delta looked at the small group of scientists in lab coats who awaited instructions. "Pair them with a Clone. Make sure the Clones know that they are not to be harmed. Katana, make sure they understand what they have to do."
"Yes, Delta." I replied, already moving back towards the biosphere.
When I reached the thick doors on the edge of the dome, a single guard was waiting for me. He opened it without a word, eyes filled with contempt. I ignored him and entered the biosphere.
Under the dome was a jungle, complete with birds and a river which flowed into a miniature lake in the center. Around the lake were small huts made of stone. I entered mine, the one closest to the door, barely stopping to look at the other children. I closed the door behind me, surprised to find a second cot across from mine.
The door opened and Delta entered, carrying a small girl. She was an outsider, not a Clone.. Her copper skin was streaked with tears and dirt. Her black hair was long and covered most of her face except for her scared brown eyes. They regarded me in terror as Delta set her down on the second cot.
"This is Mahlika." Delta said. "She was found in an orphanage in Turkey. She's going to be your new roommate, alright, Katana?"
I nodded.
"There's around twelve new girls. It's going to take some getting used to, I suppose. They're going to be a bit different from what you're used to dealing with. Don't get frustrated if they don't respond as you want them to, they're all very scared and confused." He started for the door. "And Mahlika doesn't speak much English yet."
He left, leaving Mahlika and I alone in the little hut. We regarded each other in silence. I was curious about her. She was the first real child, not a Clone, who I'd ever seen.
"I'm Katana." I said. "You're on the island of Theta Sigma in the Pacific Ocean. You're now part of Project Paragon."
Mahlika didn't respond.
I got up and pulled open the screen which served as the door to the hut's tiny bathroom. I took a plastic cup down and filled it with water from the sink. I held it out to Mahlika, and after a moment she took it.
"Why do you all look alike?" She asked, speaking slowly.
"They're clones." I replied. "Clones of me."
She gave me an uncomprehending look.
"Clones are-" I started to explain.
"I know." She said. "But they're illegal nowadays."
"So is kidnapping children, but the people here don't seem to care."
She nodded, then looked up at me in fear. "Are you going to kill me?"
I shook my head. "No, of course not. Not unless you make me."
Her eyes widened as she got to her feet, ready to run out the still open door.
"It's okay." I said. "There's nowhere to run. You're probably safe. Just stick close to me and the other Clones won't hurt you. I'm their leader, see. I'm the strongest and the best."
She stopped, a hand on the doorframe. "Why are they sick?"
"Delta thinks it's because of a mistake in the cloning process."
"Why are we here?" She asked.
"I don't know." I responded truthfully.
I picked up the wooden staff from where it leaned beside the door. "Let's meet everyone."
"What's that?" Mahlika pointed at the staff.
"It's just a precaution." I put a hand on her frail shoulders and she stiffened. "Listen, Mahlika. If you're going to survive here, you're going to have to fight for your life. Don't worry about anyone else, don't worry about consequences, just fight. The second you stop fighting, you die. Got it?"
She nodded, then followed me out into the center of the huts. I stood still, bare feet sinking into the mossy ground. Mahlika was right behind me. She was trusting. I know it would be a problem. She was weak, and I should have taught her that trust was a weakness. But even though I knew I should have said something, I couldn't bring myself to do it. That was another problem.
"Get out here." I called.
Clones began to come out of the huts and surrounding forest. Some new kids followed them, though most stayed near the huts.
"Now." I repeated. "That means new people too."
More of them came out into the clearing.
"Now-" I began.
A Clone girl charged at me with a scream of rage. I spun the stick, hitting her in the chest hard enough to knock the wind out of her. She got up and staggered away.
"Why did she do that?" Mahlika was all but cowering behind me.
"The Clones are hyper aggressive." I replied, taking in the other Clones. No one else seemed eager to attack me, so I returned my attention to the new girls.
"Where the hell are we?" A girl stepped out of the crowd. She was rather short and stocky, surprisingly muscular for a twelve year old girl. Her skin was a deep brown, along with her hair, which curled around her head in a wild halo.
"The island of Theta Sigma." I replied. "It's one of Master Kontrol's research bases. You're here to become part of Project Paragon."
"Master Kontrol?" The girl was unimpressed and unafraid. "We're test subjects, aren't we? I'm not going to stay here and become a lab rat for some stupid Pharmaceutical company. You all look pretty sickly, I think we can take you on and win."
"Weska, no."
Another girl joined her. She was tall and graceful, with pale skin and long, blonde hair. Her eyes were blue and slightly subdued, though she appeared just as fearless as the other girl, Weska.
"We can't got out of here." She said. "You saw the guards. These kids aren't our enemies. They're like us, trapped. Right?"
"Not exactly." I replied. "I wouldn't leave if I could. It isn't so bad here, I promise. If you're strong, that is."
"And if we aren't?"
"Then you die."
"You're crazy." Weska said. "I said we fight, sis."
"Not yet." The other girl stepped towards me, holding out her hand. "I'm Nikara."
"Katana." I replied. "Welcome."
"What exactly are we doing here, Katana?"
"Preparing to become..." I paused. "Part of some sort of experiment. And then, after that, assassins."
She takes a step back, horrified. "You can't be serious."
"I am." I started back towards my hut, Mahlika following. "I'd stop hesitating to fight, if I were you. Reluctance will get you killed here."
Back in the hut I lay down on the bed, intending to sleep until dinner. Mahlika sat down, but she didn't sleep. She stared at me and I tried to ignore it. After a few minutes I rolled over to look back at her.
"You know." I said. "After you stay here for a while, you're going to realize that you should sleep when you got the chance."
She opened her mouth and then closed it as if trying to find the words. She gave up and shook her head. She lay down and stared up at the ceiling. I regarded her for a few moments, then rolled over. I tried to sleep, but for once I can't. I knew that she wasn't sleeping either. I wanted to say something, but I don't know what. I was fluent in six languages, I'd been through all the college math and science classes that Delta had given me, but I didn't know a thing about people. Sure, I'd sat through endless virtual leadership courses, but those weren't the same.
After an hour a gong sounded. Mahlika shot to her feet, eyes wide as she looked for the source of the noise.
"Food." I explained, picking up my stick.
We joined the group of Clones making their way to the door. The new girls followed, unsure what else to do. At the door a box of instant meals was waiting, along with a guard and a scientist. The scientist handed each person a meal in a box and a half liter of water. After we got our meals Mahlika went towards the two sisters from earlier, who were sitting under a tree.
"Why do you want to sit with them?" I asked.
"They're good people." She replied. "Protected me."
Weska didn't looked happy when I followed Mahlika over to them.
"Who's this, Twenty-three?" She asked.
"She's a friend." Mahlika replied.
"Have a seat, Katana." Nikara indicated the grass beside her.
I sat and we had several moments of awkward silence.
"Why'd you call her Twenty-three?" I asked.
Weska opened her meal. "When we were captured, everyone tried to escape. No one made it past the guards. Except for Mahlika, that was. She made it twenty-three yards before she was captured. Took a guard down in the process."
"She took a guard down?" I was impressed.
"Yeah. Apparently she has some mad hand to hand combat skills."
Mahlika blushed, looking down at her food. Weska frowned at hers.
"What...is this?" She asked.
"Protein paste." I replied, adding water to the powder which was my own food. I stirred it and it turned into a grey mush.
"Is it edible?" Weska asked, horrified.
"Quite. It's very healthy too. Lots of protein."
She took a bite and made a face. "Tastes like mud to me."
"So what's your story?" Nikara asked me. "You don't act like the other Clones."
"They're my Clones." I replied.
"Where are you from?"
I shrugged. "Don't rightly know. The first thing I remember is being taken out of a tank when I was 5 years old. Since then I've been trained as the leader here. I've taken lots of classes-"
"Classes?" Weska frowned. "We take classes?"
"Yes."
"This is a school. Like, a boarding school but worse."
"Sort of, yeah."
"Fantastic." She rolled her eyes.
"Question." Nikara said. "Why clone you?"
"Xavier Cane decided that I would be the template."
"The new Master Kontrol CEO? I've heard he's psycho. Word on the street is that he wants to create a race of perfect humans."
I shrugged. "I've never met him. All I know is that he has several secret compounds like this. Two, counting this one, are for Project Paragon. Jinx is the head of the other one."
"I don't like that woman."
"No one does. She's awful."
"Horrible." Mahlika agreed
Weska nodded toward the outside of the biosphere where several scientists stood, taking notes. "Who are they?"
"Scientists." I replied. "All the ones in white lab coats are scientists. You don't ever see them in here without guards. The guards always wear red. Stay away from them. They're trouble, and they won't hesitate to hurt you. They're really skittish around us."
"Why?" Nikara asked. "It's not like you're going to kill them. That hasn't happened before, has it?"
"Once. Didn't end well for us.
Another gong rang.
"Time to go back to our huts." I said, standing up. "Don't try leaving them until the morning gong. This whole place is covered with infrared cameras. The minute you move, they'll know."
"Wait." Nikara said as I started to walk away. "What do we do here?"
"Go to class. Try not to fall behind the others. Don't make any of the scientists mad."
"And if we do?"
"Pray that Jinx isn't in charge of punishing you."
"Helpful." Weska said. "Any actual advice?"
"Don't swim in the lake." I said. "There's piranhas. Best of luck."