AFRAID? Of whom am I afraid?

Not death; for who is he?

The porter of my father's lodge

As much abasheth me.

Of life?

'T were odd I fear a thing

That comprehendeth me

In one or more existences

At Deity's decree.

Of resurrection?

Is the east Afraid to trust the morn

With her fastidious forehead?

As soon impeach my crown!

Our story begins in a city known as Hub City. This is where Elizabeth Garret lived with her mother, father, and soon to be little brother. Mrs. Garret walked up the street, slowly pushing Elizabeth in her stroller. Mr. Garret smiles and takes the stroller from her hands.

"Let me Dear." Mr. Garret says.

Mrs. Garret looks down at her baby girl. "Mark, do you think this is the right thing to do?"

Mr. Garret's eyes glance over the ominous strangers that are lurking in the back shadows of Hub City.

"Martha, I think it's the best thing for her. We chose the wrong place for her to grow, and for Thomas," Mr. Garret nodded to his wife's protruding stomach, "if anything Martha, this will save her."

"I just hope your right Mark." Mrs. Garret sighs. "Experiments always go wrong."

Elizabeth gurgles in her walker. Mr. and Mrs. Garret look down to the end of the street. The lights were still on in the Office. It was surprisingly late, but the Garrets had made a special appointment with the doctors.

As the family walked in, the aroma of disinfectant swarmed in their noses. A woman in a white lab coat walked up to the couple. She looked tired, like she had been up for the past three nights to ready an experiment.

"Mr. and Mrs. Garret? My name is Amelia Mendel and we're ready to start." The woman said.

Mrs. Garret winced. "Mark, are you sure-"

"-Mrs. Garret, if I may," the woman, now known as Amelia Mendel interceded, "the experiment has been tested to six hundred and sixty five other children, all resulting positively. There's nothing to worry about."

Feeling reassured from the doctor, Mr. and Mrs. Garret walked into a patient room and sat the two-year-old Elizabeth on the table. It was cold, so her baby arms pricked with bumps.

"Now, she's going to feel a pinch." Doctor Amelia Mendel informs, then adds, "but that's only temporary."

She wipes a small patch of Elizabeth's arm, who shudders at the intense cold.

Mr. Garret holds onto his wife's hand. "She's alright."

A vile is drawn from a manila folder and the doctor taps it a couple times and then turns to the awaiting three. "Are you ready for your Safe Baby?"

The couple looks at each other and then Mrs. Garret looks away from her husband. "We're ready."

Not all three were. The last one, the one that would be tested on, the experiment. Elizabeth was not ready. However, as the needle came towards her, all Elizabeth could do was watch in horror. Though she did not know it at the moment, that serum would take her through the most troubling road anyone's faced.

Elizabeth started to cry and Mrs. Garret sucked in a ragged breath.

"She's alright." Mr. Garret assures. "Look, Liz is still there."

Elizabeth was there, disturbing the still night with her piercing screams. The shot did more than pinch her flesh; it twisted it and burned it. Little Elizabeth Garret was now Experiment 666 and that was something that no one, not even Mrs. Garret could change now.

Three years later, Elizabeth was confronted by the government, after she had shown positive results from the serum from that dark night. She was assigned a genetically altered companion named Tut, a Great Dane that could talk. Eight years after, she gained an unstoppable power and was moved from her home in Kentucky to a secret location in the North Atlantic Ocean.

†

Liz Garret tossed her suitcase onto her bed. She looked around at her new bedroom.

All that re-decorating for nothing. Liz thought.

"Liz?" Mrs. Garret called. "Liz, are you going to be alright by yourself-"

"-Mom," Liz's dark voice sighed. "Let me remind you Tut's going to be with me."

Liz's mother rolled her eyes. "I'm not talking about your house. Gotham is a cesspool of crime…Gosh I can't believe you're going to school here. I'd always think Harvard or Yale was on your road."

"Mom, honestly. Don't you think I'll be fine?" Liz sighed.

Mrs. Garret nodded. "I guess."

Tut padded into the room. "Please Martha, I'll keep up with her."

"Well alright…I've got to go Liz. Thomas won't like staying with that babysitter for so long." Mrs. Garret patted her daughter's back. "Get to school on time!"

"Mom, please. Wayne Tech is just down the road from here!" Liz complained. "I can handle this!" A little flicker of flame bursts on Liz's shoulder. She was getting annoyed with her mother's constant nagging.

Mrs. Garret frowns. "You can handle it? Are you sure you're not going loose control?"

"Martha, if I may be of assistance. I will make sure personally that Elizabeth takes her medication every night and morning." Tut assured.

"Of course, well I'll call you when I get back to Florida." Mrs. Garret scratched Tut's head. "Bye…"

"Bye mom!" Liz hugged her mother's shoulders tight. "Mom you don't have to cry."

Mrs. Garret wiped away salty tears. "I know."

"If you need a mental health day or something, you can send Thomas over here." Liz said.

"Don't worry he'll be on the first flight here." Mrs. Garret joked. "Take your medication!"

"Bye!" Liz shut the door as Mrs. Garret got into the car.

The medication was for Liz's powers, to control them. She has the power to emit fire from her body. Basically she's a pyrokinetic, a fire controller. And more, an unstable pyrokinetic. That's what the medicines for, to control those powers.

"Tut, I don't suppose you'd wanna help me unpack?" Liz asked.

The dog looked at her, annoyed. "Now just because I'm with the government doesn't mean-"

"-Oh Tut that's not what I meant." Liz spat.

"Fine, I'll go run around the neighborhood. You should be in a happier mood. Batman patrols these streets and I remember you had dedicated your room to him." Tut smiled.

"Here dog." Liz shoved a milk bone in Tut's mouth.

Tut winked and walked out of the room.

"I'm gonna take a tour of the school tomorrow." Liz said.

"Uh huh." Tut called. "I'll make sure to guard the house."

"From the Joker right?" Liz winked.

Tut shoved his dog head into the doorway. "Don't even kid about that."

Liz took out her cloths and hung them on the hangers and into the closet they went. Her shoes would now stay stalk still by her bed until the morning would arrive. The kitchen utensils were the next items on the list. Liz took all of the silver wear, plates and bowls as well as the cooking supplies. It was boring, but Liz listened to the television, which wasn't. Every few minutes or so an update on Batman would interrupt a news story. One included a boy named the Blue Beetle that made Liz stop in her tracks. It was disappointing to Liz that it wasn't the same Blue Beetle that had saved her from that fire so many years ago, it was a new one, one of less experience. Liz finished with the kitchen and headed towards the bathroom, where she just dumped all of her products onto the counter top. Tut snorted at this.

"What?" Liz defended.

"It isn't home without a messy bathroom is it?" Tut taunted.

"Isn't it time for your flee bath?" Liz questioned.

Tut's eyes fluxed. "No!"

Liz finished unpacking at dinnertime, which wasn't much of a time at all. Her dinner consisted of Chinese take-out, and Tut's was a nutritional dog meal.

"I swear, that's the most disgusting thing I've ever seen." Liz gagged at Tut's food.

Tut shrugged. "Don't knock until you try it." He pushed the plastic bowl of sludge towards Liz.

Liz winced. "I'll pass." She pushed it back with a slight look of distaste.

"You don't know what you're missing." Tut sighed, pushing his nose around in his food.

"Gross." Liz stated.

"Honestly, I don't understand the eating habits of humans." Tut commented.

Liz frowned. "If anything, you dogs have more of a primitive way of eating than we do."

Tut looked up from his bowl. "Excuse me Madame? Did you play the primitive card with me? You humans are afraid of touching your food unless it has a protruding bone on it!"

Liz dropped her silver wear. "Fine."

"What are you doing?" Tut gasped.

"I'm being advanced." Liz spat. She stuck her hand into the carton of noodles, shoving some in her mouth. She smiled triumphantly. "Now try to be like an underdeveloped human."

Tut made a glance for his paws. "No thumbs."

After dinner, Liz took Tut on a walk of the city. The streets were as crowded as they were in the day, but with different types of people. Instead of the happier side of town, Liz and Tut got the first hand view of what was the routine night for the Caped Crusader himself, Batman of course, Liz's idol. As Liz walked past Wayne Tech, she couldn't help herself but feel a certain, long forgotten giddiness. She was going to go to that school for the outstanding Criminal Justice program the school provided. Nonetheless, Liz had to drag herself home. Tut had gotten cranky. When dogs get old they prefer to go to bed before nine o'clock, thank you very much.

The doorbell rang after Liz showered from their long walk.

"Who could that be?" She asked herself.

Tut made a scrutinizing face. "Well it isn't me."

Liz rolled her eyes. "I think I'd know if it was you or not."

"Is that so?" Tut asked.

"Yeah, if I don't smell some fowl odor, I know it isn't you." Liz winked.

Tut puffed air out of his nose. "Well, if that's how you like it." Tut got up and trotted out of the room, without a sound. "Oh, and you should get the door."

Liz opened the door and a small girl was standing there, smiling at her brightly.

There was something different about the girl. For one thing, she was crooked. One leg was longer than the other was. Her eyes were different as well, one was blue and one green. Her light chocolate hair was tied back into two clumsy hair bands. She stuck out her grimy hand and smiled.

"Hi." She exclaimed. "I'm Mary, Mary Truman. Did you just move here? I can show you around if you want. Do you have a dog? I saw you coming out of your car this morning. You had a lot of stuff to unload. How did you get all of that in there? One time, my mom and I made cookies and we put eighty into one whole container that was only supposed to fit twelve. I think that's why all the cookies morphed into some melty lump…"

"Uh, hi kid. What was that first question?" Liz inquired.

"Did-you-just-move-here?" Mary emphasized. "Jeeze you should be able to follow me, it's not like I'm a rocket mouth or anything."

"Well, I just moved here this morning." Liz answered.

Mary walked into the apartment. "From where?"

"Florida." Liz stated.

Mary nodded. "Did you always live there? Or did you move like I did? You know I moved five times before my mom and dad and I settled in the apartment we own now. My mom always bought new furniture-"

"-I lived in a couple of other places." Liz said.

Mary's head bounced. "Like where? Oohh did you live in Alaska? Did you know Alaska's the coldest state. Well, that's according to Jim, this kid in my class. He eats boogers-"

"-I lived in a lot of places." Liz reported. "What are you doing here kid?"

"Making conversation. You know, my mom says that making conversation is good for new people. It helps them get into their comfort zone." Mary informed.

"Is that so?" Liz questioned, suppressing a chuckle. "Why don't you go talk with your mom?"

Mary cleared her throat. "I'm not allowed to walk that far. My dad says I'm only allowed to walk from home to school and back. That's it."

"Oh." Liz murmured. "Did your mom and dad separate?" Separate was the kid version of the d word, divorce.

The little girl shook her head. "No."

"Then what-"

"-She's sick." Mary muttered. "She has to get some blood work done to her bones to make her strong again. The doctor gave her medicine that made her hair fall out. She had real long hair. Once when we just moved to Gotham, my mom wasn't able to cut her hair, and it grew all the way down to her ass."

So the kid's mom has Leukemia. Liz thought to herself.

"Oh." Liz repeated. Her throat started to itch. She cleared it and looked up at Mary. "Do you get to visit her a lot?"

"Not really. I've gotta help my dad with our house so when my mom comes home it'll be spotless. My dad says that he wants to paint the kitchen her favorite color, a light green." Mary said.

"Well, if you guys need anything, I'd be glad to help out." Liz smiled. Her shoulder started to burn her pajama top. Liz was getting upset.

Mary's mouth dropped open. "Holy smokes…Literally! I think your shirt's burning."

"Crap." Liz muttered.

"What, is your shirt some heater?" Mary questioned. "Cuz, if it is that would be pretty cool. I'd like a heating shirt, so during winter I wouldn't get cold and I could warm my-"

"-Mary, this isn't a heating shirt. They've never been made." Liz sighed. "It's me."

"So you're burning your…WOW!" Mary exclaimed. "Teach me how!"

"It's a bit more complicated than that." Liz sighed.

Tut walked in with Liz's bottle of medicine. "Time to take your…Oh no."

"Tut, what'd you do!" Liz yelled. "You're not supposed to…"

Mary got up from the chair she had sat in and put her hand on Liz's arm. "I won't tell anyone. If you want, I'll tell you a secret of mine."

"No, it's alright kid." Liz mothered. "Can I trust you to not tell anyone?"

"You can count on me!" Mary declared.

"Good. I didn't want to use the Brain Wiper." Liz lied.

Mary's eyes grew wide. "What' the-the Brain Wiper?"

"It's this machine that I was given to wipe people's memories of me doing any sort of fire. So they won't tell anyone." Liz fibbed again. "It's very painful."

"Oh." Mary nodded. "Don't worry. I guess I should go now shouldn't I?"

"I guess you should. Tell your father that I'll be glad to help with anything." Liz stated.

"O'course. Oh, an' I won't tell anyone 'bout yer doggie too." Mary winked.

Liz nodded. "Thanks kid." She followed Mary to the door and shut it behind her.

"Not only have you blown both of our covers in less than two minutes, but you scorched your shirt." Tut complained.

"Oh can it you dog!" Liz spat. "At least she won't tell anyone."

"How do you know she won't tell anyone?" Tut complained.

"She seems like a decent kid." Liz confessed.

Tut shrugged. "Take your medicine."

Liz grimaced as she took out a capsule from the bottle Tut brought in for her.

"Next time a little less slobber, deal?" Liz complained.

†