HIVE: Otto's Past 2: Prologue
Ms Loom did not tolerate failure, but one of her most prized staff had failed. Seriously failed. Two months ago, she'd sent Mr Littleton – a scientist – out to a secret facility called HIVE where her son Otto Malpense was being kept. But Otto wasn't any boy, 1.75% of his DNA was Avian. Mr Littleton's job was to spy on him, and bring him back to the School where herself and the scientists were waiting, when his wings had fully grown. They'd grown all right: 13 feet of white feathers, Mr Littleton had said. According to reports, he and the Erasers had captured Otto, and they were flying over Canada when he'd escaped. After that it was unclear, but Ms Loom did know that somehow Otto had single-handedly blown up the helicopter. She turned to the six photos in wooden frames on her desk. Each showed a man of varying appearances. Tucking her straight black hair behind her ears, Ms Loom picked up a photo of an albino. His skin was as pale as chalk, and his hair was spiky. He was smiling good-naturedly at the camera, but his bright blue eyes seemed to glare at her accusingly.
"I'm sorry Leo, but what I did was the best for both of us," she said softly, quite uncharacteristic of her.
Knock knock
"Come in," Mr Loom said tartly, putting the photo back in its place.
"We've found them Ms Loom," the distinct gruff voice of an Eraser said.
The head of the School turned in her swivel chair to face him. All Erasers were half wolf, half human, and they did her dirty work. His red eyes looked down at her respectfully, and his clawed hands were clasped.
"Show one of them to me," Ms Loom ordered, sitting back. She was going to enjoy this. 'Them' were her other six children. Their DNA was 2% Avian, so they were born with wings. Having 0.25% less DNA than his siblings, Otto had grown his wings a few weeks ago.
"Get off me you freaking monster!" a distraught voice said.
There was a grunt as more Erasers appeared in the office doorway, shoving a bound teenage girl in front of Ms Loom. The girl's eyes flashed defiantly as she looked up at the scientist.
"Hello Avian 1," Ms Loom said pleasantly, using the girl's codename. "How nice to see you after all these years. You're fourteen now, aren't you?"
"Yes, mother," the girl spat the last word out with such venom that the Erasers flinched.
But Ms Loom was no coward.
"How did you know that I was your mother?" she asked, curious.
The girl grinned, "Otto told me." Her eyes flicked past Ms Loom to the framed photos. "Which one of them is my father?"
"To answer you question, the guy with blonde hair and green eyes is your father," Ms Loom said casually. "My turn: why were you in contact with your half-brother?"
"Not telling," the girl sneered.
Ms Loom gestured to the nearest Eraser.
He nodded and smiled, sharp teeth glinting in the artificial lights. Bending down over the girl, he clawed her face, leaving ragged welts on her cheeks. The girl refused to cry out, instead gritting her teeth bravely.
"If you don't answer my question, I will send an Eraser to claw the face of Avian 7, known to you as 'Angel.'
The girl gasped, Angel was only six!
"Okay," she said reluctantly, "When Otto escaped from the helicopter he found us, and we discovered that we were all half brothers and sisters. Except Angel and Gazzy," she added, "Because they had the same fathers. We went back up to the helicopter and got Otto's communication device, which he needed to contact HIVE. Then we made the helicopter self destruct."
Ms Loom felt irate, this ignorant little girl had killed half of her staff! But she was very good at controlling her emotions, and her face remained passive.
"I've sent the rest of your Flock to the cage room, you'll be joining them now."
The girl hung her head so her long curly ginger hair fell about her face.
"Why," she said suddenly, just as the Erasers were hauling her to her feet.
Ms Loom was surprised. "Why what?"
"Why do you experiment on us?"
The scientist clicked her pen against the desk, thoughtful. "The same reason I told all your fathers."
"And that was...?" the girl persisted.
"For the benefit of humankind."