I should have learned to be careful what I wish for.
Chapter Six: The Moral Quandaries of a Pleasant Penitentiary
A couple of days passed without any sight of the dark haired possess-ee, and I couldn’t help but be relieved. The RFQ for the construction replacements were finally filed, and Janix was well into the interview process. Although that mostly just mean Angel’s people were inserting his files into the final hires database, but that was really semantics when you got down to it.
It was kind of mind-boggling, the type of access she had. Then again, as the previous savior of the entire universe, and current demi-pirate, demi-slave liberator, I was glad that she wielded that kind of power. She had saved a lot of lives, that tiny little half-kin, and I was sure she would go on to save more.
Unfortunately, my luck could only last for so long, and the last dinner of the week, I saw Maven waiting for me in the cafeteria. I knew I should be happy. After all, it was about to be the weekend, and I would rather have this mission get to kicking now rather than sit in my bunk for two days with dread lingering over me. But I couldn’t help it. Not knowing if this man was an oblivious victim who had a run in with a body-snatcher or a complicit volunteer was maddening. It was like the ultimate texas hold ‘em and I didn’t know how to play poker.
“Are you waiting here for me?” I murmured, trying to look pleased but a bit embarrassed.
“Only if you happen to be a lovely lady who wants to go for a bit of a walk.”
“Why, I just might feel like stretching my legs. What a lovely coincidence!”
“Lovely is exactly the word I’d use for it.”
Thankfully he didn’t try to offer me his arm in full view of everyone eating. Instead I just walked calmly beside him as I headed out.
I could feel the stares of the rest of my training cluster at my back, but it made me feel more comforted than worried. After I had returned after that first…uh, date, I guess is what you would call it, the entire group had confronted me.
I had expected mostly suspicion and accusations of grabbing for power, but instead they had all been worried about my safety. They asked if I felt coerced or pressured at all, or if my job had been in any way threatened. In all, it was pretty amazing. Everyone in the group was either a different gender or species, and we never even had a full conversation previously, but when they thought I was in trouble they flocked to me like life vests in a storm. It gave me hope, and a surprising amount of strength to keep going. People like them were why I was fighting to make the right decisions in this approaching apocalypse. I think I had forgotten that for a bit with all the explosions, limb tearing and high flying action.
“So, do you have any areas you wanted to see?”
I decided that today I wasn’t going to play it safe. “Well, I would be lying if I didn’t say I wanted to meet the, uh… you know…”
“The subjects who have volunteered themselves for study?”
Volunteer my ass. I knew that any survivor of the plague was Council mandated to be here. Sure, they were paid handsomely for their tenure, but that meant bumpkis until there was a cure and they were free to actually go somewhere and spend said hundreds of thousands of dollars. “Yes please. I’ve never seen an uninfected Kodadt. I hear they used to be quite, quite-”
“Fluffy is the word you’re looking for.”
“Yes, thank you. That.”
“Who am I to deny a lady’s request? This way.”
This time he turned the opposite way of the lift and I found myself walking down a hall I had never bothered to traverse before. I noted the yellow lines painted along of the edge of the floor, which I had learned meant mid-level, non-badge clearance. As a trainee, I technically wasn’t allowed anywhere that wasn’t green clearance. I hoped this guy’s assurance that he was above those restrictions extended to me like he said they would.
We continued to the end of the long corridor, where I we reached an elevator that clearly had a purple line painted in front of it. That meant only badged researchers and other selectively chosen workers were allowed past.
Maven punched the code into the number pad, then slid his badge across the sensor. I expected a machine voice to come through the speaker and ask who the hell I was supposed to be, but instead the elevator doors slid open and we stepped inside.
“I’m not going to have to be jealous, am I?”
“Of what?” I asked innocently, although I really just wanted to roll my eyes.
“Of you paying more attention to the kodadt than to me.”
“That’s a silly complex to have,” I murmured, “you’re not a six-foot kitten that can sing entire arias that can make angels themselves cry.”
“You don’t know that.”
I raised an eyebrow. “I’m on maintenance. If you were, I would have come equipped with the lab issued air purifier for filtering your shed fur from the hall before it could contaminate any possible experiments or samples.”
“I see someone has been paying attention in training.”
“Of course, that’s what I’m here for after all, isn’t it?”
The lift finally stopped and I could cut off the banter. Although it was becoming easier by the second to be Natalie, I was always worried that I was going to say something wrong and tip my hand before I could get any of the information I needed. According to Angel, the nanites were reproducing as expected, but with such a vast, sprawling facility and the top-of-the-line securities, it was going to take several days before they amassed enough to fully integrate into the systems.
“So professional. If half the staff had half your work ethic-”
“This place would not have nearly as illustrious a reputation as it currently boasts.”
“True, I suppose.” He offered his arm to me again, and this time I didn’t hesitate to take it. I couldn’t play too coy -he might lose interest. It was a careful balance of interested enough to be fun, but not so much that it made him think he should make a move. “Just down this hall, through a decontamination chamber, and then we’re in the subject enclosure.”
“Enclosure?” I echoed. “You make them sound like zoo exhibits.”
He laughed at that, and shot me another one of his schmarmy grins. “Sorry, that’s the scientist in me talking. I’m sure once you see their accommodations, you’re actually going to be a little jealous of their set up.”
“Jealousy has never been my thing; I look terrible in green.”
“Really? It’s hard to think you would look terrible in anything.”
“Then you’re just not creative enough.”
“Perhaps not, but that’s not my job around here.”
“No, I suppose not.” Despite my barbs, he seemed to be having a great time. He told me a lengthy story of how the corridor we were strolling down used to be under full military guard and had several bulkheads, some of which were operational and could still be lowered in case of emergency.
“And here, my dear Natalie, is where you step into a room less than a hundred people have ever seen.”
“Quite a streak for drama you have there.”
“All scientists have it,” He answered with a smirk. “We just don’t like to advertise it. People take us less seriously that way.”
“Understandable. I think in all of us, there’s always the little kid who wants to present the best science fair project ever.”
“You think having won every single one of them until I was fifteen would have silenced that little bugger.”
“Of course you did.”
“As much as I love the chatting, we should keep our mouths closed for decontamination. Arms out.”
“I remember the video.”
The door of the closet-like room we were in slid closed with a whoosh, and he pressed the grey button on the side of the wall. Soon the space filled with a blueish gas. I held my breath, even though I knew it wasn’t harmful, but it was a reflex.
It was almost pretty, watching the colored gas swirl thro
ughout the air. It would have been much prettier if it wasn’t a very visible reminder that just beyond the door in front of me were the sole survivors of a genetic holocaust that had cost millions of lives.
The thought made my stomach churn. How far could my enemy go? If this was just his pre-planning for his little apocalyptic gambles, what was the full shebang going to be?
A sucking sound disrupted my mournful contemplation as the overhead vacuums sucked up the colored gas along with any contamination that it had gleaned from our bodies. And then the doors were sliding open and we were in.
At first I saw nothing, just the overly shiny doorway and entry area. But then we stepped past it and my breath was taken away.
It was a massive room, bigger than any football stadium I had ever seen. There was a central corridor through the middle, and then fifteen distinct rooms within. But the quarters… they didn’t have opaque walls like they should have. Instead, they were glass chambers about the size of a standard college room. Inside each cube, I saw identical things. A Bed. A Desk. A small water pit. A toilet. A curtain around it. And a furred subject curled onto a bed.
My god. It was like a prison. A zoo. It was every worst nightmare I had ever had about being trapped in a small place. My hands went to my mouth before I could stop myself, and my stomach hit the floor.
“Hey, are you okay?” Maven asked, sounding both concerned and surprised.
“I… I thought you said they were here voluntarily.”
“They are. What’s wrong?”
“Maven. These are cages. Give them clear walls and fancy beds all you want, but this… this is not what voluntary looks like.”
“What are you even going on about? Everyone here knows that certain experimental protocols must be kept in place to avoid cross contamination, and also contain subjects should they lose their battle to the plague.”
“Cushion it in as many nice words as you want, buddy-o, but this girl’s got your number.”
I nearly jumped out of my skin at the smooth, rhythmic voice. My head snapped to the side, and I saw an empty containment unit.
But Maven seemed more irritated than alarmed. “Anjali, come out from under the bed.”
I heard a sight, and soon claws latched onto the edge of the metal bedframe, pushing until a furry body emerged.
They were adorable. Their fur was deep, deep black with flecks of golden brown throughout. She was much smaller than the seven foot giants I had read about. She was barely even my height. But her proportions spoke of power and grace that I would never be able to obtain.
But it was her eyes that struck me the most. They were a glittering rainbow of color. Just when I thought I had one hue identified, it would shift to another. They almost seemed to glow against her ebony fur and broad, feline nose.
“Why’dya have to go and ruin a girl’s mystique like that for?” She purred. And purred could be the only way to describe how she spoke. It was a sinfully smooth whisper that had a strong hint of danger to it. I wanted to wrap myself up in every world that slid from her feline-like lips and never come out. I guess it was true what they say about accents.
“This is Anjali,” Maven said with a clear kind of exhaustion that came with a whole barrel of backstory. “Anjali, this is Natalie. Be nice.”
“When am I ever not?” She murmured, her eyes roved over me. “You know you’re not the first pretty little thing he’s brought here, right?”
“Anjali! What did I just say?”
“What?” She bared her teeth at me in what I assumed was a grin. “You think you give me these pretty peepers and suddenly I’m forever in your debt? You should know better, sweetheart.”
“Alright, we’re done here.” He grabbed my wrist and went to haul me out, which I was not down with in a dozen or so different ways.
“Wait!” I blurted. He looked back at me, surprised, and I could tell that he was very much not feeling me right now. “I… I want to see the other ones. Are they all like this?”
“Oh no,” Anjali murmured. “There is no one like me. Although many have tried.” Those rainbow eyes glanced to me once more. “You don’t smell quite like you should, my dear.” She approached the glass, and the breath from her nose fogged the surface before dissipating entirely. “Be careful of men in white coats. They always have such pretty promises, but their arms are so sterile.”
Her words cut through me and I stored them in the back of my head for later. But I knew I couldn’t let Maven think that I had let them get to me. “You’re funny.” I murmured. “But it was lovely to meet you, Anjali.”
“Ah yes, everyone does love a good visit to your local animal exhibit.”
I didn’t have time to say anything else, because Maven was pulling me towards the other rooms. It seemed almost all of them were asleep -which made sense considering that they were largely nocturnal- except for one other.
They were the quintessential towering being that I had expected. Mahogany fur, with a large mane that had several braids and charms woven into it. Their eyes were a piercing green, and they watched me as we approached.
“Good morning, Usha.” Maven said, having seemed to recover his cool and back to his charming, tour guide self. “This is Natalie.”
The giant nodded, his ears flattening towards his head in response.
“Forgive him for his succinctness,” Maven continued. “Usha was born without the ability to speak and has refused all of our offers to provide him with artificial anatomy to rectify the problem.”
“That’s because it’s not a problem,” Anjali called from across the room. “And he can communicate just fine. You scientists just don’t want to slow down enough to learn anything but your own language.”
Although their alien faces were so strange to me, I could easily make out the smirk on Usha’s massive face. I think I would like this guy, if we got to hang out more. But since I was on one side of the glass, and he was on the other, I doubt he would ever be able to see me in any sort of positive light. I was just another captor, after all.
“Thank you,” I murmured, voice barely above a whisper as I turned to Maven. “But I’ve had enough. Perhaps we can go get something to eat?”
“I understand. It’s certainly frightening, isn’t it? To know how much potential danger in this room.”
“Yes.” I answered weakly. But, while I agreed that the room terrified me to the core, it wasn’t due to the infected subjects within. No, my terror was laced tightly to how easily the Council had waved their citizen’s rights away in the face of danger. These subjects didn’t need to live like prisoners, trapped in glass cages. They could roam free in their own stations. How could the Council justify these people surviving so much, the impossible even, just to end up confined for years in a transparent pen?
No one answered me, as was often the case with these kinds of questions. But deep in my gut, I had a feeling that this wasn’t right. This wasn’t leading us towards the correct side of the Great Choice.
And I had to fix that.
Maven was so distracted with explaining to me how the kodadt were really just fluffballs and that I didn’t have to worry, that I seized the moment. Slipping a nano-generator from my pocket, I flicked it to the far side of the room.
I heard a low rumble behind me, and when I glanced over my shoulder, I saw Anjali staring intently where the little metal thing had landed. Belatedly, I realized in my righteous fury, I had revealed myself to a complete stranger who had no reason not to notify Maven and everyone else of the very suspicious thing that I had just done.
But instead of all that, those rainbow eyes flicked to me, and she nodded slowly.
It seemed I had an ally here, in the room full of prisoners in everything but name.
Good. I had a feeling I would need as many as I could get.
Maven kept up his banter the entire walk back. It wasn’t until the fourth hallway that I realized we hadn’t returned to the cafeteria as usual, but were headed back towards that restauran
t he favored. I forced myself to get back to reality and be present instead of letting my mind remain trapped back with those glass enclosures. I couldn’t just let a possibly possessed people pull me around all willy nilly.
“Oh, I didn’t know we were coming here,” I murmured.
But Maven only shrugged. “I figured we were both hungry, and we had earned as much. Why? I hope I’m not impeding on any plans.”
“No, of course not.”
“Good,” He said, pulling out my chair for me yet again. “I see that you chose to be more comfortable today. I’m glad.”
I was still trying to pull my thoughts from the maelstrom it had worked itself into. “What do you mean.” He made a gesture, in my general direction, and it took every iota of my self-control not to sigh. “Oh, you mean the binder.”
“Yes, that.” He looked so pleased, so clever on that other side of the table, but I mostly wanted to slap him. “I mean, I understand why you wear it. I imagine it’s difficult for a woman with your figure to be taken seriously. Leering eyes and all that.”
But there was only so far I could lie. I knew I should just bat my eyes, blush, and mumble that I needed to lose some weight, but I was so uninterested in that. “And what figure is that, exactly?”
“You know.”
I tilted my head to the side and gave him the biggest doe eye I could. “No I don’t. What do you mean?”
The Rescue (Alternate Dimensions Book 3) Page 6
