Thunder roared through the darkened sky. “Say that again, I couldn't hear you.”
“Agent thirteen report back to the base. Now!” the voice bellowed through the black speaker attached to his jeep.
“What? Back to base? I just left left the base.” agent thirteen responded back with one hand holding the talk button and the other one on the steering wheel.
“Agent thirteen......NOW!” the sound of authority blowing the speakers and almost his eardrum.
He pushed the talk button. “Ill be there soon.” He knew only two reasons why they would call him back and that was if a experiment showed results or one escaped.
He returned both hands onto the steering wheel and made a sharp U-turn. The mud splashed and flew everywhere covering the 24 inch wheels with dirt.
The sky was dark until the lightning stuck causing a quick blaze of light. The quick flashes of light were the only way agent 13 could find his way as he raced back to base.
“This is beyond anything we could have hoped for!” the doctor exclaimed
“No this is just the beginning of our hopes. Experiment 13 is the key to everything.” the director said.
The doctor's face turned sturdy. “Sir I will try my best to get results without that operation but if I fail and won't preform it what will happen?” The doctor asked. The hands in his pocket were balled into fist anticipating the directors answer.
“Then you will be dismissed, of course.” the director answered. “Has agent thirteen arrived yet?” He said relaxing the doctor with a small, quick smile.
“I’m here!” Agent thirteen announced as he entered the viewing room. He immediately looked into the room below. The room was large and brightly lit with what looked like destroyed mechanical wolves on the floor. But that wasn't what he was looking at. His full attention was on the infant sitting in the middle of the room. The director suddenly lifted his hand as a signal to the man at the control panel. He pushed some button and a giant metal bear appeared in the room with the infant. The bear looked vicious as it scanned the room for it's prey. It found the baby and slowly started toward it.
Agent 13 instantly crashed into the glass yelling for someone to help the child. “You gotta stop the bear it'll kill the kid.”
The director just laughed. “I'm sure it will kill it.” the director had not one shed of sympathy in his expression. He was always like this with everything he did.
The bear advanced on to the baby menacingly. Agent thirteen yelled for someone to help as he turned to the director but they were of no help. When he turned his head to see the baby, it was gone but in it's place was a bear twice the size of the first. It started destroying the metal bear as if it was a toy.
Agent thirteen, with a confused mind set and an expression to match, turned back to the director. “What happened to the baby?”
“It's right there.” he said while pointing back into the area. Agent thirteen turned his head and in the same spot the bear had been was the baby, it was laughing and clapping it's hands as if it had just finished playing. He couldn't stop looking at the infant. The director placed his hand firmly onto agent thirteen's shoulder. “When I said it would kill it, I meant experiment thirteen as that 'it'”
“Amazined?” the doctor asked.
Agent thirteen just shook his head. “I don't know what to think.” his eyes wide, taking in the child as it stared back up at him.
“Good because this is the thing your gonna be in charge of.” the director said.
“This baby?” Agent thirteen asked.
“No, this thing." he said getting a little angry. Which is the only emotion he seemed to ever feel. "Don't get emotionally attached to it. It's a thing. A tool. And it's also your responsibility take good care of it and teach it to survive.” the director said as he started to walk out stopping at the doorway. “Oh and try not to get killed.”
It had been a year since he's been in charge of that baby. He had no clue how to be in charge of a kid at the age of 22 he was basically a kid himself. They didn't give the baby a name since they didn't want him to get attached to it. But he couldn't go around calling an infant 'it' so he gave her a nickname. “Fox”. A fox was the first thing she transformed into. The director didn't like it at first but he decided it's better to name all thirteen than letting them be 'It 1' and 'It 2'.
He looked down at the little girl standing next to him. Her legs barely able to carry her weight. Her small hand locked on his pinky, the only thing it was big enough to hold. They were outside watching the sunset this was what they did everyday before he had to return her to her room. Room? More like a prison he thought. Thinking of that small room with no windows and power locks. Well at least everyday they could without the lab calling to check her condition and how her power was growing.
“Come on Fox. It's time.” he said to the child. She couldn't really talk but she could understand things. He knew she understood this by the frown that appeared on her face. He moved slowly, conscious that everyone of his steps was 3 of hers. They reached her room. He stopped at her door letting her get settled and ready for bed. When she was in bed he tucked the cover around her body and said goodnight. She reached up and placed her hand on his face which he grabbed hold of in turn before heading out. He had become used to this life as a caretaker for the kid. He even thought of her as part of his family. He thought of her as a daughter. Thats a dangerous thought. He knew exactly what the director would od if he found out. But did he care?
Agent 13 was on his way out of base after a long night of training. He was walking past the lab when he heard the director yelling. He looked through the glass window on the top of the door.
“I don't care. You haven't had any breakthrough's in a year. It's time to get some results.” the director said
“But sir if we use that method the child...it will die.” the head doctor expressed.
“So be it. Have you forgotten how many have died for this cause, one more infant's death is all we need. With that we'll have her DNA.” the director started yelling as he lost his patience.”Will you do it or not?”
The head doctor paused before he spoke. “No sir. I will not kill another child.” he said bravely.
“Oh..Then your no longer needed. Your dismissed.” the director said while pulling out his pistol and shooting the doctor.
The head doctors body fell limply to the ground, blood spreading in all direction. Everyone around them stopped working to see what had happened. Agent thirteen didn't know what to think at this point.
The next doctor in charge stepped up. “I'll preform the operation sir.”
“Good. Where's Fox?” the director asked to no one in general.
“Agent thirteen should have brought her back to her room by now.”
“Well go pick it up. Oh and clean up this idiot. He's staining my floor.” he said while pointing to the body on the floor. This sprung Agent thirteen into action. He didn't know what he was going to do but he knew whatever it was needed to be done fast. He raced down the hallway.
The director awaited the arrival of Fox. He wanted to see through to this himself. The new head doctor came back running full speed with a look of panic on his face. “Director! Sir, the experiment wasn't in the room.”
“Calm down that just means that Agent thirteen is late in returning it, just find him.”
“That's the real problem. We can't find him either.”
“What? You cant find him? What do you think the scanners are for?”
“Right! I’m on it.” The doctor said as he left for a second time.
The new head doctor returned again. “Sir, we've found him. He was on the edge of the radar, near the forest. Also, someone said they seen him running through the building with Fox in his arms.”
“Agent thirteen what the hell are you doing?" he said to himsellf. "Well don't just stand there. Lets move out and find them.”
They took off in search of them. They found them in a matter of 10 minutes. Agent thirteen had his back toward them and was facing the forest. He turned as they approached, he knew they were coming.
The director stepped up. “Where is experiment 13?”
“I don't know?” he said with a plain, emotionless expression of his face.
“What do you mean you don't know? That's one of your orders. How could you fail that?”
Agent thirteen’s eyes gave away where she had gone as he glanced back towards the forest.
“She escaped from you? Are you that incompetent to fail a second order?”
“No. I let her go.” Agent thirteen announced.
There was silence for awhile as everyone absorbed the words of betrayal Agent thirteen had just spoken. But even more so they feared what the director would do to him.
“So you got emotionally attached to it. You don't follow orders very well. But I cant say that you got too attached considering the fact that you let a 3 year old out into a forest. You should know that she won't survive.”
“Your wrong. Shes two and a half and she will survive because the order to teach her to survive," he rasied his hand to his head in a mocking salute. " Was completed to perfection.”
This infuriated the director. “ Good, then your no longer needed.” he looked at the armed guard. “Kill him.” he said as he walked away heading toward the door but only entering when he heard the gunshot.
Mikael and Saundra Falry were just unpacking there things. They had moved from the city to a cabin in the woods. Mr Falry was a big name scientist who quit when he realized that work was getting in between him and his wife. They were married for a total of 5 years. And had been thinking of having children.
Mr. Falry was a middle aged Italian man. He was tall and had an average builld. Mrs. Falry was an middle aged woman without much height and was thin.
Mr. Falry was in the middle of moving a heavy box when his wife entered the room. She took two steps into the room and stopped to look at her husband. “Mikael? Lets have a baby.”
Crash. Mr. Falry dropped the box to the floor, part of it landing on his feet. “Ahh, look what you made me do.” he stopped and look back at his wife, seeing that she was serious “ We already went through this the doctor said you.......I mean we can't.”
“Well what if we adopt one?” she said with hopeful, serious eyes.
“I don’t know about that. You never really know what kind of child you'll get until it's too late.” he said while picking up the fallen object and placing them in the box. “ Let's just finish this unpacking then we can talk about it later. Ok?”
“Fine.” she said reluctantly as she went to finish the unpacking.
When they finished, it was dark outside and the rain was coming down. They were relaxing on the sofa after a hard day of work. Suddenly they heard a bang. They instantly jumped up. Mr Falry grabbed his shotgun and ran outside with Mrs. Falry close behind with her bow and arrows.
The dark of the night made it hard for them to see. The only light they had was the torch Mrs. Falry had in her hand and the cabin light. The cabin light diminished as they got further from their home.
“Do you see that?” Mr Falry said as he pointed to the ground.
“Yes they look like bear prints.” she said in horror.
“That’s because they are. A bear's close by we got to find it before it comes back.”
Thy knew what they were getting themselves into when they came to live in the woods but to see a bear on the first night was more than they could handle. Mr. Falry advanced at a quick pace following the prints Mrs. Falry followed along with the bow steady in hand. As they walked they noticed the blood on the ground.
“Did the bear get to someone?” Mrs. Falry asked.
“No, dear.” he responded with a small smirk.
“How can you be sure.” She asked
“We are the only ones around for miles so I'm pretty sure it didn't.” he said, chuckling a little while he talked. She in turn, hit him on the head playfully.
They continued following the prints till they spotted a cave. The prints led directly inside. They could see the shadow of the bear for a second and then the next it was gone.
“I'm going in” Mr Falry said bravely even though he was fearful. He always wanted a bear skin rug and right now the want of the rug outweighed the fear and he rushed forward. Mrs. Falry followed not wanting to leave her husband alone.
They entered the small damp cave. It was darker inside than it was out. Mr. Falry took the lamp from his wife and positioned it so they could see where the bear was. But what they saw instead shocked them. There was a toddler no more then 3 years old on the ground. They rushed to her forgetting about the danger of the bear. She was bleeding in her left arm. They wasted no time in running her back to the house.
Once home they cleaned and covered her wound. The child had not awoken yet so they let her sleep in the guest bedroom. And they retired themselves for the night.
Mikael and Sarah Falry awoke and immediately went to check on the unknown girl in the guest room. The opened the door and she was still asleep. Mr. Falry went to check on the wound In the girl's arm. He was careful not to wake the child as he removed the bandages. His expression turned sour. Mrs Falry immediately became worried. “What's wrong dear?”
“Well remember when I said that this was a claw mark, most likely from the bear?”
“Yes.” she said not knowing what he was going to say.
“Well these are bullet wounds, The bullet grazed and cut her arm.” he said while examining the wound.
“Are you certain?” she asked not wanting to believe it.
Mr Falry said nothing but gave her a look saying you know I'm always certain. This made her accepted what he was saying. “Why would a 3 year old have a bullet wound?”
“I don't know but there's some crazy people out there. Let's go downstairs and wait until she wakes up.”
They exited the room and headed downstairs.
Fox awoke to the sound of a door closing. She opened her eyes and got startled by the unfamiliar place she was in. She sat up quickly then regretted it as the pain in her arm continued. The sun was shining in from the window, warming her body. Fox got out of bed and went to the window. She was curious about everything out there since she never seen it besides from outside the base. A bird flew up and landed on the window ledge. Fox got out of her bed to get a closer look at it.
The window was left open by the Falry's because of the heat and they had forgotten to close it back. She reached for the bird which in turn flew to the branch just far enough away that she wouldn't be able to reach it. But that didn't stop her from trying she reached forward. She scanned the room and found a small foot stool. She dragged the stool across the room making a low scratching sound.
She climbed the chair which was leaning in front of the window. Once on top reaching for the bird. She hadn't seen one so close before and it made her want to touch it. The bird was just out of reach but she kept stretching. Suddenly she was off her feet the stool had fallen with a loud bang and she was hurdling towards the ground. Fear did not come for her as she kept starring at the bird the whole way down.
Mrs. Falry was in the process of washing dishes when she heard the bang. She yelled to her husband in the living room. “Did you hear that noise?”
He turned his head in her direction. “No, did you hear something?”
“Never mind” she dismissed it but soon she started to get worried. There was only 3 of them in the house and the noise sounded as if it came from upstairs. She had reached her limit. She dropped the pan she had been washing down into the sink, making a low banging noise, and she raced upstairs. She had to find out the source of that noise. Unlocking and throwing open the door she almost stumbled into the room. The room was empty but she hadn't had to check around to find that out the window was open and the stool was on the ground 15 feet from where she had left it last. The source of the noise. Bubbles grew in her stomach, she was getting terrified as each step brought her closer to the window. Reaching the window Mrs Falry peered down the 2 story window and onto the ground below.
The bloody body she had thought she would see and hoped she wouldn't was not there. She gave a small sigh of relief at least she knew the girl hadn't died but what she did know now was that the girl was hurt and needed her help. She rushed back down stairs and out the front door, passing her husband.
The sun was bright and the wind was blowing it was a beautiful day outside. But the condition of the weather was the last thing on Mrs Falry's mind as she raced to the left side of the house. But The child was nowhere in sight. She looked up to the window she had fallen from and seen the slightest bit of movement on the roof. She raced to the shed and got the ladder. Placing the ladder on the roof she started up it but she wasn't going slow she was rushing. Each step meaning that she would get closer to finding the girl.
Emerging to the top of the roof feet still on the ladder she was starring at the girl. The sunlight blazed her long hair, that was normally too long for a toddler to have, The sunlight made the blonde hair blaze as if her hair were another star and they were challenging each other to shine brighter. On her face was a smile as she starred at Mrs Falry. Mrs Falry stretched out her hand in order to grab her but the toddler grabbed her fingers.
“Hey little one whats your name?” Mrs Falry asked not really expecting an answer.
The little girl just starred at her with bright eyes before answering. “Fox”.