Written for the Super Short contest #1 on Poirot Cafe. Usual legal disclaimers (No profits, not my char, etc.)
Theme: Hope
Word Count: 508
She walked through the laboratory, her domain within the organisation. She's young, probably the youngest to lead a laboratory here, but she's brilliant at controlling and monitoring the lab rats.
She is supposed to be creating life. Extending it, for an eternity. She knows other groups are trying to find mythical gemstones to do the same. She wonders why they would bother. She doesn't mention this in front of superiors though.
She works towards life, in her white lab coat. She finds it stained by death's black touch, as the latest strain of her creation kills her lab rats. She examines the corpses, analysing them to see what happened. She finds traces of the strain easily. She has created death. She burns the corpses.
She is taken to one side. She is told her reports were interesting. She isn't to discard strains that kill. She shall create death as she searches for life.
She accepts her new role. She tests strain after strain, removes corpse after corpse. She reports they leave too many traces.
She walks through her rats again. She expects no change from her usual results. She is surprised as she finds a single rat is alive, if not effectively de-aged. She feels a smile pull at her lips, lasting for all of 3 seconds until her newest lab rat drops a full mug of coffee.
She wishes she could test on those lab rats.
She takes her shrunken rat and examines it. She finds it healthy. She examines the other corpses, and finds no traces. She records her results.
She prepares the strain as pills, small simple capsules, and distributes them to Gin. She is terrified of him. She still tells him to examine whoever they test it on. She tells him she needs that data. She tells Vodka the same.
She fails to be surprised when they ignore her. She visits the test subject's home. She finds it strange. She notes a year's clothing is missing. She remembers the odd result, the single data point. She will make a note of that in the report of the house.
She leaves the house. She meets with her sister. She is told that her sister wants to leave the organisation, after a final robbery.
She worries. She knows people don't leave the organisation. She hopes they will show mercy.
She doesn't sleep. She doesn't write that report. She sees the news report the robbery. She is relieved to see them escape.
She is told her sister died during the robbery.
She breaks.
She stops working.
She demands answers.
She gets nothing. She knows that a robber's death would be reported. She fills in the blanks.
She realises her time is up. She confirms the death of test subject number one, Kudo Shinichi.
She is taken on that night. She doesn't resist. She is locked in a lonely room. She will be tortured. She has seen what they do.
She takes out of her pocket a small pill.
She swallows it.
She swallows hope.
Hope swallows her.