Of Metis and Men- Ch. 1
Olivia paced her cell in certain restlessness, she was not usually an impatient person but today was going to be special she could feel it in the air. Yesterday, Janus had called all the children together and let them know that there would be a special meeting taking place after dinner instead of their regular training but gave no other details and it had been driving her nuts ever since. Olivia had spent the better part of the night trying to figure out what was so special that Janus would break their schedule. Their schedules were not flexible and only something of true importance would cause the schedule to be deviated from. So she knew it was something to be nervous about, in fact Janus acted like he was almost nervous about it. She could tell by how tensely he was holding himself that this was going to be a "big talk" and those weren't usually very good, in fact the last big talk they had was to discuss sexuality and how being Metis did not give them leave to break the litany even if there was no chance of procreation. Olivia was a very good snoop and through her digging she had found out that some of the older Metis in the facility had be caught in a compromising position which led to the huge the talk and from that point on even casual contact was frowned upon. Olivia found it a bit crazy really, every once in a while she would hug a friend, but now she would get a demerit and strong reminder about the litany plus the bonus lecture of the dangers of casual touching. With a disgusted snort she went back over to her computer and tried to go through another on of her online lessons, she was ecstatic to finally be receiving formal educational training, but the "big talk" kept distracting her. Janus was usually very upfront about everything and this quiet change in their established routine was unsettling. Still she couldn't resist the pull of technology and turned her attention back to the new computer lesson at her desk.
Ever since she was young, Olivia had been fascinated with computers, most Glasswalkers were involved with technology but she was more than interested from a young age. She had seen her first computer down in the recreation center at the tender age of five and had been hooked ever since. It was down there more as a lab test, but through many hours of hard work, trial and error she learned, and when it broke she asked for the parts to be left in a work area so she could study it from the inside out. She amazed those who watched her with become more than adept and skilled. Her claws were clumsy, big and sharp but with patience and time she learned to manipulate the tiny mouse and even tinier keyboard. She was stubbornly determined to learn, so with much studying, practice and finesse she was deftly able to manipulate the tiny wires, though being color blind to a small degree meant that she often had to have wires tagged by the attendants, until she learned by sight just where they went and what they affected. Years later she now had surprising accuracy and speed while using her system, and despite her handicaps she had begun to modify bits of the hardware or what ever other parts she could every time she read something new in her computer manuals. She was the little computer guru in the facility, often being consulted when there were basic computer problems and later the more complex issues as soon as it was known that she was adept; she spent all of her free time learning everything about computers from the inside out and had pestered her caregivers so often for more information that they were about to scream, until Janus had given in and requisitioned mass amounts of materials and equipment to keep her busy.
Even better was the invention of online schooling, and as soon as she found out about it, she asked to apply to different courses, only to find out that she was looking at college computer courses and even though those were classes she could handle, she still needed to have a diploma or high school equivalency. She was smart and ahead in her studies but not quite that far, so she asked that her schooling be accelerated. Olivia was not only eager for extra work but anything that gave her an excuse to spend more time on her beloved computer was a bonus. She knew that she was carefully watched every time she logged into class, her comprehension, her participation, her assignments and especially the classes she chose to take. The majority of her classes had mostly to do with computers, but also many in math, she found the sciences to be interesting, but online labs kind of lost something she actually preferred the hands on labs much better. English was her nemesis though, not because she couldn't understand the written form, she had been studying English since she was four; it was she just didn't understand why the humans had to make their language so complex for no good reason. Everything had modifies or articles or some other silly prefix or postfix to justify its use and she didn't understand why anyone bothered. Olivia enjoyed schooling and learning so she often took extra time going through everything in the lessons carefully, mostly because she wanted top grades and then also because her head started to throb after staring at a view screen after long hours, but today the headache was in anticipation of what would happen, and also because her attention kept wandering and she had forgotten to turn on the extra light. Being Metis meant that her vision was really sharp, but for reading tiny characters that were splayed across a brilliantly white sheet of paper she had spent many long hours learning how to figure them out. She used an electronic magnifier and that seemed to help, but more often than not her brain wanted to turn the letters this way and that, making it much more of challenge to understand the information that was given to her. Most pleasure reading material came on tape or disc, so for leisure reading she listened to the tapes and also read along to better familiarize herself with words and their spelling. She did find that reading a regular book was much easier, especially those in large print, so she had spent many after hours reading by the tiny dim pen light she had filched, even though she was supposed to be sleeping. She became aware that her room was monitored when Janus privately gave her a small reading lamp and told her to make sure she was sleeping at least by midnight. From that point on she made sure that no matter how late she stayed up, that she was an active participant in lessons and casual conversation – at least as much as she would normally have been. She was thrilled for the light and not receiving punishment for breaking a rule, but she wasn't sure how she felt about the knowledge that she never would have any true privacy while she lived there. It made her wonder what other monitoring devices there were around, and sadly she couldn't start to investigate what types there were on the internet, else she would questioned on why she needed to know about security devices.
Olivia was one of the few children in the facility who really seemed to cherish her sense of privacy. She was painfully shy, partially because of what and where she was, but also because she was the only girl metis in a wing of five. She was much smaller than the boys, they tended to be eight feet or taller already, while she was a mere six feet. They were a tumble of arms, legs and rushing hormones and blundered their way through the living spaces, classrooms and any other shared areas, while she tended to be a bit daintier. Well as dainty as a werewolf could be, so she got quickly used to making sure that she stayed out of harms way, which lead to often being left out first by need and then it turned into self imposed isolation for her own sake of privacy, which lately she really seemed to need. She knew that every girl about her age would be going through their biological changes, which she secretly thought it was a bunch of crap that she, who would never ever be able to have children, would have to go through the fuss of a woman's menses. It seemed to be yet another punishment given to the Metis.
It was almost as if being Metis regulated her and others of her kind to be damned no matter what. She supposed she was more fortunate than others; at least she was safe, fed and well housed. She lived in a large Glasswalker run research facility, which was underground and completely private; in fact she doubted the outside world even knew they existed. Olivia knew they were a special facility, most other facilities were human run and werewolf infiltrated, but theirs was different out of necessity because of the high number of metis around, it wasn't safe for regular humans to be there. Kin folk were around a plenty, but she could never tell how many since they seemed to come in and out all the time, and for the fact that the facility was huge. She was aware of four levels, but not being privy to much she wasn't able to tell just how big the facility was, for all she really knew it could be a massive underground complex that she had only the barest access to, but she often laughed that thought away as an over stimulated imagination. The first level was always locked and she had never seen a person coming nor going from the tightly sealed doors. The second contained the four dormer wings, classrooms, and cafeteria. The third had a training salle, labs and medical stations. Lastly was the fourth level and her favorite, it was the recreation hall; the sheer size of it was the reason Olivia supposed that the facility was much larger than she was allowed to know. The recreation level was a huge open space where they could run, be loud and do whatever they wanted. There was sports equipment, six small segregated lounges with televisions, supplies for arts and crafts and just about anything you could imagine wanting to play with. The most unique thing about the recreation lounge was that all children from the dormer wings were brought down at once and allowed to completely interact for the time allotted. This also was where Olivia was first introduced to computers, other basic technology and oddly enough the jump rope. She had never been really popular because of her shyness, so tended to stick to solo activities, which seemed fine with the other children. She did have a few friends but they also tended to be the shy and solo type but she did have a few people to talk to.
As a younger, though not too much smaller, child she had labored for hours every day to master jumping rope. She had seen a program on television where it showed them jumping rope and having loads of fun doing it. It never occurred to her that at a metis child it might be impossible. Living in the facility, it wasn't really brought often to the children's attention that they weren't just normal garou children. It wasn't until they were much older that the stigma of metis was labeled on them for their actions. It never occurred to the children that they couldn't do the things they saw, because they were just children, no titles, and no limitations. However Olivia learning to jump rope had been quite the spectacle for almost everyone. Her huge form made it very cumbersome for jumping repeatedly. Not to mention the "jump rope" was more accurately a jumping cable. It was the only thing she could grip with any tension and not break. At first people watched because it was amusing, but the better she got her audience was more amazed than amused. She often heard the hushed whispers about her tenacity and ability even though she was metis. It was really the first time Olivia realized that being metis was going to be a hindrance. If people were impressed that she could jump a rope, then the rest of life as a metis was going to full of challenges.
'If I learn how I will be more like a normal child." The younger Olivia had thought. 'Maybe then they will like me more. Maybe they will be able to see past my being metis and see me for just being Olivia."
As she grew older she realized that her thoughts were only a pipe dream. People would only see what she was, they would always give her the stigma that was attached and that others would look down on her for her parent's sin. She had been reciting the litany since she before she could really comprehend it. She understood that her parents had broken the very first rule of Gaia, her being metis was a punishment and so were all of her deformities. Olivia also understood that because she was metis, people very much made her pay for her parents sin time and time again, as if having your parent's dead and growing up without them wasn't punishment enough. At least she had a dossier about them, a few photos and some carefully secreted precious memories that she shared with no one; it was more than many around her had.
What she did not understand is why everyone who kept touting the litany at her, for reasons of their treating her poorly, tended to forget the part of the litany that said
"Treat all with respect for all are of Gaia."
Still she obeyed the rules, her quiet wish of being better liked carefully squirreled away in her mind so that no one would taunt her for it, although she often did wonder about her place in the Cycle and just what she was destined for. As years passed she grew, her body was still more petite than most but her mind was razor sharp, which she kept finally honed, then all at once the stability was pulled from underneath her, in a way she never would have guessed.
At least her life was always on a routine that she could predict, sometimes it was comforting but on certain days, it was excruciating. Her schedule was the same every day – no rest on the weekends, unless there was a special event scheduled. Any time the schedule was deviated off its normal course, chaos ran amok for hours. Her life was arranged thus:
6:30 – 7 This was time to rise, shower, dress and clean your room. Cleanliness was not only encouraged it was absolutely mandatory. Their rooms were inspected regularly. Demerits were given for sloth, and they had each learned early it was just easier to pick up after yourself.
7 – 8 Breakfast was taken with one other group of children. It rotated quarterly for whatever reason Olivia didn't know. She figured it would be nice to actually eat with her friends at every meal but no one really asked her opinion. The came the first of the lab tests to be performed for the day. For Olivia that meant drawing blood only, but she knew it was specific to each child.
8 – 12 This was the start of their academic lessons. They were grouped by dorm and rotated four times to different subjects. Olivia was often ahead of her dorm mates and was pleased that the teachers saw fit to work with her instead of making her wait for the others. This is where her online lessons supplemented what she learned.
12 – 1 Lunch was an event only for their dorm; it was then that dining etiquette was approached, so it wasn't a relaxing meal at all. They were constantly critiqued and corrected while they ate, which jumped all over Olivia's nerves. If nothing else being in a dorm of four boys meant that lunch was a hellish event for her. Even is she was not being corrected, one of them was – constantly. She almost looked forward to the after lunch lab tests, which were also a group effort. Everyone had a round of tests on eyes, ears, lung capacity and each also donated at least two liters of blood.
1- 2 Was the mandatory rest period, and one Olivia cherished. Rest did not have to mean sleeping, it meant resting and after giving blood everyone needed to. She often used the time for pleasure reading. Sometimes she slept, but she often closed her door and entered the world of her imagination. Throwing herself into role of the literary characters, where anything was possible and even the impossible was just a puzzle to be figured out. Her favorite books were the high fantasy genre, but she would read just about anything.
2- 4 Was the physical training portion. They had started off from a young age learning all sorts of martial arts, hand to hand combat, gymnastics and basic weapons. At first the trainings had been approached liked games, but now that they were older, it was very much a high intensity training session. Again, they were grouped with another dorm to learn to fight against a variety of styles. They were warned that if the facility were ever breached they would be expected to stand and fight.
4- 5 After training they had an hour to get ready for dinner, which included mandatory cleaning, though as the children got older most wanted the hot shower to ease the ache of muscle strain and bruises. Olivia had learned that stretching after a hot shower often helped, and spent most of her time practicing yoga in her room. She had had to work with one of the trainers to adapt the yoga moves to style she could do, but it was worth it.
5 – 6 Dinner was much more somber affair that even lunch. There was no etiquette training, it was show time. They dined formally, with all the formal accoutrements expected, and just to keep them on their toes a special dinner guest could be dining with them any night. It was never announced and sometimes the guest arrived a bit late so they could never tell. More labs followed dinner, Olivia had her standard blood tests, but they also tested something with her muscles, she had not learned much about it because it hurt like the dickens and often she turned her head so she couldn't see the instrument of torture being placed in her arm.
6 – 8 It was back to academic lessons, though these were the creative lessons: arts and music. Olivia loved listening to music but found that she wasn't really good at producing any form of it whether it was signing or instrumental. The arts she wasn't much better at, she did enjoy doing it but didn't create anything special. Computers were her creative outlet and she knew it.
8 – 9 These were the most intensive laboratory sessions they had all day and there was no telling what would be tested. From the inside out there were some many tests that Olivia stopped even trying to figure out what they were for, but they tended to have a horribly invasive nature and were in general uncomfortable.
9 –10 This was recreation period, where they were allowed into the recreation hall to do whatever they wanted. It was their most free period of the day and the most looked forward to time of the day, even above meals.
10 pm was their bed time, technically all lights went out by ten thirty with the theory it should take about a half hour to fall asleep, and it would give them exactly eight hours of sleep. Often Olivia stayed up to read, and did fine on her six or so hours of sleep.
This was the schedule Olivia and the others living in the facility had been following day in and day out since they were four. Every once in a while she wished for more free time, but at this point she doubted she would know what to do with unstructured time. There were so used to it that it never crossed anyone's mind that they might suggest a change now and again as they grew older. It was just the way of life they knew and so they went along with it, no questions asked.
Finally the clock struck read five minutes before six and she hastened to the lessons room, only to find out that they were meeting in the recreation hall. Olivia furrowed a brow; this meant that everyone was being addressed. She quietly entered the hall, and hearing no one call out for her (not that she had expected anyone to, but it would have been nice.) she sat in the furthest and darkest corner she could. She has not wanted to get there early and wait there by herself or worse become a target for someone who was there early and bored, but still it might have been nice to be able to chat to the few people she did like. At six o'clock exactly Janus walked through the doors and they automatically shut and locked with a loud clang and clank, behind him. No late comers would be admitted, then again there were no late comers, all metis had learned from an early age that rules were not to be disobeyed or the consequences could be rather nasty.
"Welcome children." Janus said in the deep rumbling voice. "Please settle down so we may begin."
Olivia had come to be comforted by not only his voice but also by the fact that he called them "children". Janus never made her feel like there was something wrong with her for being a metis, he treated her kindly and she flourished under his attention. She wasn't sure how he treated the others he met with, but she loved him for the normal treatment she got. The others in the facility didn't necessarily treat them badly, but there was a definite air that they were different. The word Metis was used often in conversation, as if that would explain all problems or foibles that the children had. Sometimes it was more spat than said as if a curse that could be transferred. Olivia, however, found Janus to be more careful. It was almost like a form of respect for them and she learned to appreciate it more the older she grew.
"Tonight I am going to discuss your First Change." He said and looked around, not seeing any glimmer of recognition he nodded and launched into his speech. "There comes a time in each Garou's life when they experience their First Change. You will be going through a change too but it is vastly different that what other garou will experience. By virtue of being Metis it will probably be a lot harder than most others experience, but it is the start of a great new chapter in your lives. As you know, as adult we have many forms we can change into: homid, glarbro, crinos, hispo and lupus. We can willing shift into any of the forms we choose, but this ability only comes to us after we undergo our first change. Most garou these days are born in homid form, a few still are born in lupus but as metis born children, you arrived in the crinos form. It is the most dangerous form to both the mother and the child; you have all had Gaia's great fortune to have survived. Your first change will happen when your body has reached the puberty stage and something triggers a strong reaction in you. This trigger can be from either a positive or negative experience, but it will cause you to change. Now that you are all in the first stages of puberty you need to be aware of what will be happening to and around you. In very rare cases some will change in the first stages of puberty, but for most it will take a bit longer."
Olivia sat, transfixed as Janus spoke. She had always known that grown garou could shift, but she didn't realize what was involved. As Janus explained the ins and outs he also told them that he was deliberately being vague because each person was different and that the change would be different for each of them. He was trying to give them information without giving them guidelines of what they could experience. She looked carefully over the charts to see what areas would be affected and why. The scientist in Janus refused to let him cover a topic without giving them a major science lesson as well and Olivia was amazed and terrified. She wondered if it would hurt and how they would be able to deal with it, she also wondered how her six foot frame would ever compress down into the itty bitty homid form she was shown.
"Two more things you need to know. First, some of you will under go a big shift in perceived time. After your first change, some of you will retain normal time flow while some of you will begin to age like your lupine cousins. They age and mature faster than we do about four years for every one of ours most of you will however continue to age as you always have." Janus said and then took a deep breath. "The second topic is more difficult to hear. You all currently are aware that all of you have some deformities of one kind or another that are often found among metis, these afflictions were thought to be a curse, but as scientists we know it's just bad genetic splicing. Most of these deformities will carryover when you shift. Since crinos is your breed form, whatever afflictions you have had since birth will follow through to your other forms. Sometimes these afflictions are more serious, some are changed because of the form you take and every once in a small while they can change for the better. I know most of you don't think twice about it, but out in normal garou society others will stare, some will be hostile and you might experience some violence for being only what you are. It is not fair, but it is a by-product of the prejudice in our society. Over the next few years we will be cultivating you to learn to deal with your disabilities and the harshness you will endure. Big changes will be slowly incorporated into your schedules and we wanted to prepare you for them."
Stunned silence filled the room, and as Janus look around, Olivia could almost see him mentally calculating how many extra sedatives would be needed this night. Suddenly the room erupted into questions being asked. Olivia sat quietly digesting all the information, she was afraid of the deformities she would be getting, and did nothing more as the din around her rose in volume. Eventually it reached a deafening clamor and Janus raised a hand.
"Quiet." Janus said softly. "Each of you will be called in for a session over the next few weeks to discuss this more privately. During the meanwhile, if any of you starts to feel oddly, or you do change into either homid or lupus form; please let one of us know right away. You are excused from lessons, and the rest of the night will be recreation."
Cheers erupted as Janus walked away, and Olivia slipped out of the room quietly unnoticed and followed him back to his office, and stood in the open door until he looked up at her.
"Come in." he said with a smile that told her that he had expected her. "What can I do for you?"
"Nothing, I guess." She said folding herself into a sitting position. "It was just a big bombshell of news. So why weren't we warned about this before now? We've been here for years."
"There has been a debate for years, and those of us who thought about telling you from a young age, lost. But the important thing is that you were told before any of you changed. We have not always been so lucky in the past; imagine having dinner and one of your numbers turning into a wolf before your very eyes." Janus said with a gentle chuckle for her. "We will have a session in a few days, primarily so you have some time to think about questions you will have and can ask them. It's a bit much to take in all at once."
Olivia nodded mutely, already the thoughts tumbling and tossing in her head, she opened her mouth to ask a question but Janus placed his hand on hers.
"Go play." Janus chided softly, while he opened the door. "There will be plenty of time to talk about this later."
She smiled at him and walked out, her mind still caught up in big news. She entered the recreation room and grabbed a skipping rope and began to warm up while she jumped rope. She was not graceful to look at but she certainly was good at jumping in her big form, and the best part was she could let her mind blank out and just let her thoughts drift as she jumped. For once she didn't mind being alone, others would have just interrupted her train of thought and she wanted to dwell on the "what ifs?" right now. As thoughts often do hers rambled on flowing from one subject to the next eventually hers drifted towards her latest computer project, trying to make a program platform base that would allow her to interface with the internet through her specially fitted apparatus. She smiled as she realized she had about three blissful hours of freedom, she was finished with her homework so she had plenty of time to herself just to play with her computer.