The place I woke up in was cold and lonely. My head was throbbing, and pain surged through my wings. I was slowly able to regain my consciousness, and the first thing I noticed was that I was in something very similar to an isolation tank. The walls were made of glass (or plastic, I really didn't care) and the bed I slept on had a Max-shaped crater on it. I'm not that heavy, am I?
I looked through the transparent walls, expecting to see white-coats or tourists looking at me like an exhibit in a museum, but there was no sign of anyone. I began to wonder if I was really in a lab again. I flopped back down onto my lopsided bed. Suddenly, I thought of something that made my stomach turn/
Where the HELL is my flock?
Crap. There were no doors or any exits in the tank, just a radio, and a toilet. I didn't see any other isolation tanks, but my reflection in the glass notified me that I am now in an orange jumpsuit. Not that bad looking.
AGH! Back to the point. I don't have any damn idea as to where I am, or more importantly, where my flock is. I sat on my bed and began to rub my temples. Do any of you know how many times I've been captured and separated? Has anyone recorded the number of kidnappings?
Didn't think so. Because that would probably mean you'd run out of fingers to count on.
I started pounding on the glass, throwing objects, and screaming. Hopefully that would get a whitecoat's attention. It always did! Why wouldn't that work here?
"Whoever the hell is there," I screeched (and I mean screeched), "I want you to let me out!"
"Hello," greeted a robotic, emotionless voice, "and welcome to Aperture Science Laboratories. We hope your stay in the detention center has been a pleasant one."
Oh great. I sighed. Is this like, a female flyboy? Have I ever told you how many times I've run into a robot? Just saying.
"Maximum Ride," the voice said again. "my name is GLaDOS, and I'm honored to have you here for Portal testing. In a moment, a portal will open, step through it to meet your partner in science."
In that instant an orange warp hole appeared through one of the walls in the tank. I looked through it, and it was an opening to another part of the room. I fixed my wings so that they'd fit through the hole. Once through, I automatically scanned the area. The computer lied. No one was there. Just me, bird kid Max. I slowly took a few steps backward before sprinting, looking for an exit. The heel-like attachments I found on my legs helped a lot. But suddenly a jolt ran through my entire body.
"Nice try," GLaDOS giggled. "Just hold on a minute, won't you?"
The tank that I slept in began to move out of the room and a new one took its spot. Sleeping in the tank was a dark-skinned girl, all dressed up in a similar orange jumpsuit. She didn't look like she'd be waking up anytime soon.
"Maximum Ride," went the cold voice again. I glanced up, expecting to find a speaker, or something. Turns out, there's no sort of thing like that. "I understand that you are the leader of a group of similar species. Don't worry about them. They are in saaaafe hands."
The way she said that just made me tense… the veins in my forehead began to twitch. The sound of a robotic arm moving came from behind me. To my surprise, it was a camera. That made it worse. The person keeping me in here was someone I can't fight. Yet.
"Where are they?" I hollered at the camera. "If you lay a hand on them…"
"Do not worry about them. In fact, they could be having cake right now. Wouldn't you like some cake too?"
Suddenly the other girl jumped up and stared at me through the transparent walls. She was saying something to me… whatever it was, I couldn't hear it. I tried to read her lips, but all I could make out from that was "The cake is a lie. The cake is a lie." She just kept repeating that over and over. What was she, crazy?
Well, we're in a lab. Everyone's crazy.
