Project Songbird

Chapter 40

I hear Tyler mumble. His chest vibrates with his deep voice. I can't exactly make out who he is speaking to. I shift a bit, rubbing my eyes so I can see.
I felt groggy. I feel a hand on my head, pushing it back down to where it was resting, "It's alright, go back to sleep."
I grumble. I want to know who is in the room.
"It's just Molly." Tyler whispers.
I yawn and stretch a bit. My back was starting to ache in this crouched position, "...can we lay in bed? My back hurts."
"Of course." He replies.
I feel a different presence move closer to us and I guessed that Molly had joined us to check on Asher. She probably picked him up so Tyler can get up.
"There's a bed right down the hallway." Another voice speaks but I don't recognize it as Molly's voice.
I sit up a bit more, now wide awake.
My eyes adjust to the darkness and I see, "Agent London."
Why did Tyler tell me it was Molly?
I glanced around to see that Molly was indeed in the room, feeding Asher.
"Mr. Wright." London replies.
I stand, my leg and back throbs from the sudden movement, "Did you need something?" I cross my arms. I didn't like that she was here.
"I was just speaking with Mr. Foster," She gestures to Tyler.
"Yeah, but why are you in the nursery?" I tilt my head slightly, swallowing the snarl that was building in my throat.
"I was just doing a check on everyone as it is my job to do." She explains briefly.
"You're a strange being." I tell her, "Taking in a bunch of loose experiments, keeping us confined to a building with the notion of keeping us away from the government. Sure, we needed your help in the beginning, but now it feels like we are being hindered."
"Ethan," Tyler says but I ignore him.
"It is for your safety. The government would not hesitate to shoot you on sight." London replies swiftly.
"Have you ever thought that maybe we don't want your protection? Maybe we want to be free? Maybe we don't want to be trapped in a building while we wait for a case that would drag on for as long as possible. Maybe we want our children to live their lives beyond walls." I counter. I can feel my body shift with the anger that was beginning to stir down in my stomach. My teeth are beginning to sharpen in my mouth.
"I understand that-" She starts.
"Do you?" I interrupt, "Have you ever been strapped down to a metal slab of a table, naked, in a freezing cold room? Have you ever had bright lights shining directly in your face? Have you ever been surrounded by unknown people in strange doctor outfits poking and prodding you? Putting who knows what into your body??" I step forward with each sentence, getting closer and closer to her, "Have you ever been isolated in a room that was designed to make you feel insane while your body undergoes changes that you don't understand??"
"Uh, no-"
"No, of course not." I growl, now almost face to face with her, "So don't you say that you understand. You don't understand. You don't understand the pain and torture we've been through. You don't understand the death we've gone through. And why? All because some idiot wanted power? Some government wanted to make weapons to destroy the world and control it even more? So excuse me if we don't outright trust you. You are merely another corporation. Another building. Another wall. Just another obstacle in our way."
"Ethan," Tyler's hand clasps my shoulder but I don't back down.
"...no, no, you are right. I don't understand any of that. I have never been experimented on nor have I undergone any body changes. But I feel it is my responsibility to help you." London replies.
"Oh yeah? And why is that?" I ask.
"Travis was my father." She spills.
"Excuse me?" Molly asks before I can pull my jaw off the floor.
She nods her head, "He did a lot of important things for the government. He started off helping people, but once the government offered him the position of testing on humans to make new weapons, it seemed that the power to make whatever he wanted went to his head. He started staying later and later and eventually stopped coming home. So yes, it is my responsibility to take you in and care for you."
"To right your father's wrong?" I ask.
"Yes." She answers.
I wasn't sure what to do with the information she spilled. I step back and turn away from her.

She let out a sigh, "I was hoping to keep this information from you all but it goes deeper than you think it does."
"What does that mean??" Felix asks.
We had awakened the other leaders and now we're all stuffed into a smaller room with very sleepy people.
"Take your wife for example." London plops down a file in front of Felix. He stares at it for a second and then goes back to her. She nods for him to open it. He flips open the file.
There is a picture of a young woman.
She's gorgeous.
She had long dark hair, and rounded brown eyes. Her face is smooth but just a little sharp in her cheeks and jaw. One would believe her to be a model just off her looks. The picture seemed to be some kind of mugshot, it cut off just below her collar bone.
"Maria..." He whispers. He leans over and begins to scan whatever the document states. From the faster shifting in his eyes, whatever he was reading seemed to make him upset. He stands abruptly and slams his hand over the file, crumbling the paper, "What the fuck is this nonsense!?" Spit flings from his mouth, teeth sharp, and pointy ears flat back against his head in pure rage.
"I told you, it's deeper than you think." London repeats herself.
"That's bullshit!" He snaps, "That my lovely Maria was hand selected to fall in love with me!?"
What?
"She was." London nods, "Studied for years to make sure she was the perfect candidate for you specifically. Actually originally she was your test dummy, you were supposed to kill her."
"To kill my Maria?" He seethes.
"Yes, to kill her." She answers him, "Each one of you were supposed to get a person that was going to be a test dummy to see how well your destruction could truly be."
Felix turns around and kicks his chair across the room. It crashes against the wall. He takes a few steps away and you could see the anger and panic building from how rapidly he was breathing.
Oh, God, is he going to faint again?
I stand to make my way over to him, "Felix?"
He doesn't even blink to acknowledge me. He has one hand placed upon his chest and the other rest lower on his abdomen. He's hunched over as he gasps for breath.
"Felix!" I grab at his arm to snap him out of his state. I feel the jolt that goes through his body and he suddenly goes still. He stands straight up and takes in a very deep breath through his nose.
"A test dummy, huh?" His voice holds no emotion. His hands fall to his sides.
"That's all she was? A test dummy?" The anger was slowly pooling in his eyes.
"I'm sorry that you ever had to find out this way Mr. Werner, but it's the painful truth." London speaks softly, trying to defuse his anger. He jerks around to face her, "You're sorry!" Spit again flies from his mouth, "Is that supposed to be magic words that makes everything better!!"
"Of course not!" She defends, "I'm sorry that this ever happened to you-"
"She was ripped away from me!! Screaming and crying in pain and you're sorry!?!" He roars. "Not only that you stole my wife from me, but you took my child as well!!! I spent years stewing in lies!!!"
"You have every right to be angry-" London can barely get out her words before Felix interrupts her again, "Anger doesn't even begin to explain my feelings!!" His balls his hands into fists.
"I don't know what to tell you. My father should have never taken your lives and used you all as guinea pigs. I was merely a child when this all happened and I can only, now, start to make what he did right." She keeps her voice low. She almost looked on the verge of tears. "I know that sorry cannot fix what has been done to you. It can't bring back those you've lost. But it's all I can offer with my protection."
Felix huffs heavily, his breathing is becoming shallow again. He folds his arms, digging his nails into his skin.
"Wait, so were we monitored as well??" Jack's voice rips the tension apart.
London takes her eyes off Felix and looks at Jack, "Yes." She tossed down some more files, "You were all hand picked."
I lean over to the table and grab the file with my name on it. I nibble my lip as I open it. In the corner is my mugshot.
I must be fifteen in this picture.
Underneath it is papers of stuff.
It has my name, my weight, my height, my eye color, my hair color, my nationality. It kept going; into even more personal information.
"He made me an orphan specifically for this!?" Jack hollers.
I start to get nervous the further I read down the pages.
"Felix, let's calm down." Tyler speaks up and I look up from the papers. Felix was absolutely pale in the face. His arms were bleeding from how deep he dug his nails. He seemed to be staring off into the distance. His breathing was extremely shallow.
"Felix...?" I ask cautiously.
Tyler stands from his seat, "Think it through Felix, don't do it."
Jack stands as well, "Fe?"
Felix didn't acknowledge anyone.
His whole body was ridged. His mouth just barely opens, "...fair..."
I could only make out one word from his sudden mumbling.
In a blink of an eye, both Tyler and Felix launched forward! Felix reaches for London and Tyler reaches to get Felix.
Tyler's longer reach just grasps Felix as his hand grabs London's shirt. His grasp is so tight his knuckles turn white instantly. London jolts backwards at the speed of both men.
"Tyler," Felix huffs, "Let go."
"I can't do that Felix." Tyler replies, "Let go before you do something regrettable."
His hand starts to shake.
Tears begin to slip down the right side of his face. Black tears.
Jack moves over to London and tries to pry her loose, "Felix, please let go. It's not her fault this happened."
"J-jack..." Felix stammers.
Jack moves forward to Felix and pulls him into a tight hug, "I know it hurts, but please rethink your decision."
Jack steps back and looks at Felix with a hopefully look. Tyler slowly loosens his grip and Felix shifts backwards, his hand slowly letting go of London's shirt.
He was still shaking.
He takes a few steps back and then turns back to the far wall. He crouches, gripping at his head. His wings sprout from his back and he jerks up suddenly!
I have to cover my ears from the sheer volume of his yowl. Before anyone could jump in the way, Felix lunges across the room and grabs London. With a couple of pumps of his wings, they crash through the wall!!
"FELIX!! STOP!" Jack yells, taking off after them.