Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride.
A/N: Like I said in the summary, I realized that the first version wasn't that great... So I tried a rewrite - also like I said in the summary. Please no flames this time, as it is already written. Some constructive criticism, but don't kill me. And I know the story is short, as are some chapters - so don't review to tell me that.
Chapter 1
I looked around the room, checking to see if everyone was gone. They were – good. I closed my eyes and concentrated, picturing the act taking place. When I opened them again, I saw that it had worked. More like didn't see, because I had turned invisible.
My name is Ava, I'm a human-avian hybrid at the University at Arkansas. I have red-brown hair, blue eyes, and red-brown wings. I'm a sort of prisoner, along with all the other experiments here. But let me give you a story about my beginnings.
Three years ago, when I was twelve, I was your average everyday kid. No wings. My mother worked as a geneticist, and my father was an accountant. I had one very young brother – my mom had a hard time conceiving.
She had been really happy when she found out she was pregnant with me, but unfortunately so was someone else. The head of the place where my mom worked; the Institute for Higher Living in New York. My mom tried to keep it secret for as long as she could, but eventually the pregnancy showed.
Her boss noticed and asked if she would like to have my DNA altered for the good of science. Yuh-huh. When did "for the good of science" involve torturing people? She said no and asked for pregnancy leave so I wouldn't be exposed to any dangerous experiments or toxic chemicals. It was granted, but of course the guy didn't listen about the "leave my baby alone" part. He contacted my mom's doctor and ordered him to combine avian DNA with my DNA in such a way that the genes would be dormant until they were needed.
"So let it be written, so let it be done." Little quote from The Ten Commandments – the movie.
So for twelve years I grew up healthy and normal, in a healthy and normal environment. A few months into the school year, I was kidnapped. I had been waiting at the bus stop for a few minutes, and was suddenly pulled backwards into an alley by some kind of wolf-man. It was a terrifying experience. I was tied up and gagged; then thrown into the back of a van. I eventually fell asleep. When I woke up, I wasn't in New Jersey anymore. And it wasn't exactly a great Arkansas welcome either.
Meanwhile, they'd also rounded up my parents and little brother, tied them up in the living room, and blown up the house. So you can imagine how I felt when I got that news.
My old life was dead and over from that moment, and Karen O'Grady, who I used to be, was gone with it. I'm not Karen, I thought at the time. I'm Ava. I'm a bird in a cage. Because I'd heard about what they were going to do to me.