I'm back!

Yes, I am going to do more than two chapters this time. I really like how this story is going to end... But I don't know how to get to the ending yet...

/Sweat drop/

Anyway, I'd like to thank Gojira4Life for giving me one of his creatures to work with, along with the title for this fic. Solana is copyrighted to him. If you want to use her, ask Gojira4life. Only my original creatures and Omega belong to me. I don't know who the others belong to. Probably someone in Japan.

Also, I'd like to thank LittleYoukai on DeviantArt dot com... For showing me that certain changes to your life don't signal the end of the world. Trust me, go and have a look at his work... His Psychic warriors and Powers artwork is very impressive...

By the way, does anybody know the name of that scientist who made those dragon creatures? I kinda need him...

Italics mean either telepathy or "translated speech".

STAR STAR STAR STAR

Murky water filled what little vision he had and needles pierced every square inch of flesh, setting his veins ablaze. The pain was unbelievable, and yet not totally crippling. He could adapt.

He had been doing so ever since his "Birth". But just as he got used to one set of sedatives, they pumped him with all brand new ones, ensuring his dormancy, his suppression.

For what seemed like years, he lay there, suspended in the strange, milky substance, even though it was probably days, or even hours. And all the while, he was dimly aware of the figures just beyond the glass. Dim shapes, fleeting and shadowy. Occasionally, one of them would press themselves to the glass, offering him a brief look at his captors, a brief snatch of conversation seeping through the glass in between sedative doses. Apparently, they were all very proud of their "Omega" as they stared at him.

Staring with their cold, calculating eyes...

"Omega..."

Their voices swirled around in his mind, taunting him.

"Omeeeega..."

Scrapping his claws down the glass, he tried anything to escape the taunting eyes...

"Omega!"

--

With a jolt, Omega sat up and flailed for a moment before clutching onto the branch he was sitting on. Giving out a sigh of relief, he stretched his arms and looked down below.

Omega! Get off your lazy tail!

A sing-song voice wound its way back to a large nine-tailed fox, circling the base of the tree that Omega used as a perch. The fur coating the fox was a deep orange, trailing away to a lighter shade as it made its way along her body. Every one of her nine tails was tipped with a black spot, possibly a relation to her flame type's powers. Occasionally, Medal would swear blind that flames coated the tips sometimes, but they were stubbornly un-lit whenever anybody else from H.E.A.T. was nearby.

Not for the first time, Mendel assumed that everybody was out to make him look ridiculous.

Her eyes were a startling mixture of deep crimson and cool ocean blue. Sometimes they shifted colours, blue and red swirling around each other, ensnaring any who looked within. She said that it was quite useful for getting past those military checkpoints at the Cream Puff factories... A statement that completely baffled anyone she told. After all, how could she have even tasted cream puffs before?

Yes, Solana was definitely one of the more mysterious inhabitants on Monster Isle...

"Hey Solana... Would you mind telling me why you got me up so damn early?" Flicking one of her tails, pointing to the ripe fruit that covered the branch he slept upon, Omega rolled his eyes and gently picked some of the curious cherry/orange like fruits, using his claws to sever the stems and dropped a few into Solana's waiting mouth.

You should try some of these...

Chuckling, he pushed his arm into the little hollow that held any items he didn't want falling off while he slept, emerging with his watch and silver chains.

"Oh man... Monique's gonna kill me..." Throwing on a pair of boxers and the rest of his jewellery, he leapt off the branch, wings unfolding, catching a slight updraft of warm tropical air.

Down below, Solana scratched at the tree, trying to shake lose some more of the fruit, muttering to herself.

Oh yes, thank you very much... Don't worry; I'll get my own breakfast...

--

Only from above could you truly see the scale of the island. Most of the passive, vegetarian Evolutions stayed on the West coast, while the carnivorous stayed on the East. It wasn't as if the Carnivores tried to eat the Herbivores, it was simply the fact that the herbivores had a hard time when they saw a creature quite similar to them devoured before their eyes. King Cobra was currently sliding along with the newest 'Boosted' Evolution, helping her to adjust to her new home. Here and there, he could catch sight of one of Star's tunnels, the Star-Nosed mole crawling through most of the island. Over on the South coast, the human settlement coated the tip of a small peninsula, a large docking area capable of supporting even a large scale military transport, which it frequently did when dropping off or picking up Evolutions. Currently, the H.E.A.T. team were in dock, assisting with the re-habilitation of Slither.

Touching down near the keel, he tried to figure out where Monique was and, if possible, avoid her...

"Ahem..."

No such luck.

Twisting his head, he cringed when Monique started to tap her foot, arms crossed, lips turned up slightly in a smirk. Turning round fully, ears flattening, tail coiling round his legs and eyes wide open...

"The, how do you call it, 'Puppy face' will not work Omega..." Hunching down even further, he muttered a quick "Rats" to himself as Monique pulled out a PDA, tapping a few keys.

"However... After yesterday's... Excitement, I suppose it's understandable..."

Omega grinned. Not for the first time, He was glad he was Monique's son. Despite her strict, authoritarian exterior, she was actually quite fun to be around... When you could get her to forget about work.

Monique lead him inside the H.E.A.T.'s resident Monster Island base, waiting for him to pull in his wings and tail before activating the elevator that travelled down into the main living areas. Down here, there was even enough space for Omega to stretch his wings. Over at the meeting table, the rest of the H.E.A.T. team sat nursing coffee, tea and anything else they could rustle up from the make-shift kitchen. The base itself was still under construction mostly, Star digging out most of the chambers and tunnels before humans came along to refine the job.

"'sup Omega..." Randy was hunched over a black coffee, groggy and in desperate need of a caffeine fix. Mendel wasn't much better, even though he had drank less. However, it was Doctor Nick who was completely unaffected, possibly due to his biological link to Godzilla. Currently he was over by the Island's interactive digital map display, examining the moving dots resembling the Islands non-human inhabitants. Godzilla was in the ocean nearby, searching for his own breakfast, while Doctor Nick made do with a small mug of fresh coffee, the sharp smell in the air causing Omega to grimace. He never liked Coffee.

"It seems out new arrival is settling in quite nicely..." Pulling his wings tighter to his back, swinging his tail out of the way, Omega padded over to the map, chuckling when he saw Solana's dot still stubbornly at the "Chorange" tree as Randy called it. For lack of a better tern, the name stuck.

After that, H.E.A.T. swore never to let Randy name anything while drunk again.

Reaching into his own private storage compartment, a still bloody lump of meat was placed in a small heater, the scent of fresh meat almost making him drool. After two years, the team had gotten used to his unusual eating habits, just as he got used to theirs. As he stood by the heater, tail sweeping gently in anticipation, Nick raised his eyebrow at Monique. She gave a semi-shrug and a nod, jerking her thumb towards the rooms only door. After his talk with his son, Godzilla met up with Monique and Nick to discuss his idea... And after coming to an agreement informed the rest of H.E.A.T. who rapidly agreed with them, especially Elsie.

Silently, the team bar Monique slipped out of the room, closing the door behind them with a barely audible click. Omega however could still hear them, along with their 'silent' gestures and grunts.

Monique rubbed her temples. This was not going to be easy. Omega, even though he wanted the same thing, still feared what she had in store. It was going to take all her reasoning skills, as well as a helping hand from his father, to convince him.

Omega was getting worried. And a little angry. He knew that the only time the team deliberately left only Monique and him in a room, that they were going to try something they knew would piss him off.

"Omega... Please, sit down..." Placing his meat on a plate, snatching up a knife and fork, he calmly made his way to the table, face forced into a pleasing smile, if only to make the unpleasantness go away faster.

"Dr. Tautopolis, your father and I have been discussing certain things... Regarding your future..." Still projecting an image of good humour, Omega calmly sliced into the beef and speared it with his fork.

"Oh? And what of it?" Forks had taken him a while to get used to, his unusual facial features often causing him to impale his own palate or tongue, much to the amusement of Randy. With a sigh, Monique thought it would be best to get it over and done with, as soon as possible.

"We're going to send you to a school-" Omega choked, before coughing and the chunk of beef flew past Monique's blank face to hit the wall opposite. Gasping, he thumped his chest a few times, before scooting back from the table, arms raised in a deviant posture.

"Uh-uh, no way, non, never, nope, won't happen, impossible..." Reaching up to her son's arms, she brought them down sharply, holding them in place like she did when they first met.

"Oui, and the French Government has already decided to pay your way and the school had been selected. Its called Imperium Academy, and has an excellent record of achievement, up-to-date equipment and recreational amenities. Now, all we have to do now-" Omega stared at her in disbelief as she walked over to one of the computer terminals set into the wall, already bringing up several pages of information. Weakly raising a clawed finger, he tried to interrupt to no avail.

"Erm..."

"- Is to get some clothes, you can't go in public wearing only underwear... And then we need to decide on what subjects-"

"Excuse me?"

"-You'll be taking, along with various security details, safety checks-"

"Don't I get a say in this?" Monique paused in her lengthy list, looked to the ceiling in thought, before returning his gaze with a quick 'non'. Sighing, Omega struck his meat with his fork, brought the whole lump to his lips and tore a chuck out of it, chewing mournfully.

--

"This is crazy, you know that?" Omega was currently hunched over in one of H.E.A.T.'s large mobile command-centres disguised as a regular van. In the front, Monique grinned and shook her head. They were the only two on board, the rest either having work to do, or were still recovering from the effects of the hangover. Without having to prove herself to anyone, she allowed the mask to slip, just a little.

"It will be good for you... Meet some people your own age, get used to the big bad world..."

"Learn how to dodge torches and pitchforks..." He had long ago gave up on trying to convince Monique to give up on her idea, and instead grumbled about every little thing that came to mind.

"And just how do you suppose to keep me a secret? I mean, a mask wouldn't fit, my tail usually has a life of it's own and don't get me started on the wings..." Gently, Monique turned into a side-street. It had been some time since Monique had been to her home country, much less the capital, and was looking forward to showing her 'Son' some of the sights... Once he was properly attired of course.

The French Government had spent a lot of time to find a way to get round all of Omega's predicted protests... Their first stop was a small tailor, known to be committing Tax-Avoidance. In return for keeping their mouths shut about their newest customer they would "Misplace" the file they had on the shop and even look the other way in future. While Monique didn't agree with letting criminals go like that, she had to admit that it was the perfect way to ensure Omega's secrecy.

"You're going to have to decide on a name..."

Actually, that was the hardest thing for Omega to get used to. An actual name. Even his own 'Father' called him Omega... Leaning back against the cool metallic lab equipment, he felt the van slow and come to a halt, jerking him forward a little. Outside he could pick up the slightly muffled conversation in French between his mother and someone else, probably the owner of the Tailors. Like his mother, he didn't agree with the steps the 'Insurance' men were taking, but he quietly mused to himself that it would be nice to be able to wear something that wasn't boxers... And actually fitted his extra appendages. The van started up again, only this time it was reversing. Monique had probably made her way to a delivery bay, giving Omega access to the shop without having to walk through the busy summer streets. Already he could hear his mother demand that everybody leave, save the manager and one of his best tailors. Nodding to himself, Omega straightened up, stretching his cramped body. It made sense. With only two people knowing about him, it kept the source of any leaks easy to trace and... Punish. Not that Omega approved of that either, but it did make a kind of morbid sense. When the coast was clear, Monique tapped on the door three times, bolts being pulled out of their brackets. Squinting momentarily at the bright noon sunshine, he crept his way to the shadows provided by the shop.

--

"Em... Well now... This is... Unusual..." The tailor and manager simply stared at the... Creature before them. Omega settled for glaring at them, no hint of recognition on his face, just like he and Monique planned.

"Erm... Would madam please position her... Pet?" With a low growl and only slightly accented, Omega spoke in perfect French, folding his arms over his chest, wings tightly pulled against his frame.

"Excuse me? I am nobody's pet... And I do have a name." The young woman blushed before stammering an apology. Walking past her, tail sweeping the dusty floorboards, he leaned against the triple mirrors, ears flicking in annoyance.

"Well? Its bad enough I've been forced here..." Monique covered her mouth as she smiled, shoulders shaking. She and Omega had a similarly twisted sense of humour. Exchanging a look of confusion with her boss, the tailor picked up her tape measure and set to work.

--

"I can't believe... I mean... What business did she have measuring down there?!" Monique couldn't help it. His innocent nature mixed with his scandalised face caused her to burst out laughing, holding on to her sides, tears streaming freely. Looking over the bundles of brown paper-bags, Omega rolled his eyes before ducking as he crept back into the van.

"She was measuring for your tail-hole Omega..." Turning round sharply, eyes blazing, almost dropping a few of the bundles in his arms, he flicked his tail in annoyed embarrassment.

"My tail was on the other side..."

"Custom underwear Omega... Its all the rage these days..." Hanging up the various shirts, coats and other items, he snorted before shaking his head in disbelief.

"Humans..."

--

The same Black Van transported Omega around various shops, leaving with the best materials for his new school life. At first he thought it was all an elaborate rouse in order to get him something other than underwear to waltz around in, however as the bags pilled higher and higher, he finally realised they were serious about the whole thing.

"Do we have enough yet? My arms are killing me..." Monique smirked to herself as he carefully placed the items into the Van before collapsing beside them. One of his new possessions that he was rather keen on was his laptop. Specially built by the French Secret Service, it was the most advanced piece of hardware to ever be compressed into an A3 sized computer, capable of picking up even the weakest Wi-Fi signals, highly sophisticated firewall system that even impressed Randy, enormous memory and a whole host of other feature that would never find their way into Civilian laptops... Such as radar, Hacking and Decoding programs and many more gadgets that Monique had yet to fill him in on.

"So, have you decided what you're subjects will be?"

--

There was over fifty different courses available, each with several levels of difficulty and required pass marks. English and mathematics were pre-chosen by the school itself, and a week before the beginning of term, he would have to take some tests to determine his level. As for the other eight courses, Omega could choose whatever he liked.

Earlier in the week, Randy had hacked into Omega's computer and filled his hard drive with all sorts of... Disturbing viruses that linked him to even more disturbing websites. Nick practically blew a fuse and even Godzilla wasn't able to calm both his father and son. So, the first course he looked for was some sort of computer class... After all, Revenge was a dish best served cold. He knew he'd never learn enough in the first week after which he expected to be thrown out, but it was a start.

He'd always been interested in music and song, so he quickly filled that in. Thanks to already knowing how to play the guitar, he would automatically be placed in the highest class. Secondly, he glanced over the language sheet and looked up to Monique, who was examining the island's defence system, making a few notes about blind spots, recurring problems with the inhabitants and so on.

"Monique?" She gave him a noncommittal murmur, telling him that she was listening but was still engrossed in her findings.

"How many languages do you know?"

"Why do you ask?" She lifted a walkie talkie to her mouth and asked for someone to remind Solana that, once again, the Army barrack's kitchen was out of bounds.

"Well, whatever you know, I know... Just trying to find something I can learn and not... Well, cheat in I guess."

Monique lowered her clipboard and glanced at her mutant son. For a few seconds, you could see the faintest image of a proud expression before being swallowed by her usual neutral expression.

"Japanese." She said after a while, as Omega dutifully noted it down.

"Japanese? I thought... Well, the whole thing with "Granddad"..." Monique turned back to the security computer, giving the air of indifference as Nick and Elsie walked into the base.

"That was Philippe. Have you completed your choices yet Omega?" He flicked his Amber eyes from Monique to the two scientists in hushed conversation and back again, before sighing inwardly. His mother, while warm and caring when it was just the two of them, really needed to learn how to lower the mask around the other members of H.E.A.T. It was five years since they first met after all.

"No Miss Monique..." He gathered his various sheets before leaving for his usual sleeping tree. Tomorrow they would begin heading back to their original Manhattan headquarters... Back into isolation from the world...

But not for long, he thought to himself as he spread his wings in cooling air, heading inland, the setting sun turning the sea a deep red... Like blood, he thought and in his mind he saw a mob holding guns and nets closing in on him...

--

Omega was hunched over the first of the four tests he needed to complete and send away and already he was stumped by the first question.

iName/i

He had already discussed it with Monique and she had agreed with him on using "Dupris" as a second name. However, the first name was far more difficult.

"Sean? Alex? Ross? Keith?"

"I was always partial to Tommy." Elsie walked into the room, boxes of analysis equipment balanced on her arms, two pieces of delicate equipment threatening to take a fall. In a single bound Omega leapt up out of his chair and caught a microscope and miniature spectroscope that made a bid for freedom in both hands, glancing up to the redhead scientist.

"I thought Randy was helping you move stuff in?" She just scoffed and rolled her eyes before pushing more boxes over the counter to place down the ones in her arms, forcing Omega to grab a tumbling box of test-tubes with barely a tinkle.

"You know you could have asked for a hand..." Waving him off, Elsie walked back onto the HeatSeeker for a few more boxes. Muttering about stubborn humans under his breath, he sat back down and picked up the sheet again. He stared at the page just as the delicate tinkle of expensive objects echoed over headquarters and after a few moments flipped over the page.

"I'll come back to it later..."

Most of the questions on the exams were laughingly easy. Possibly due to my "Brain-Draining", he mused, once again flexing his hand that was unused to such lengthy times spent in such a cramped condition.

"How can you cope with this?" Nick was scribbling in his notebook again, pencil darting over the page, row after row. With barely a pause in his script, he glanced up, saw him rubbing his wrist and looked back down.

"I guess its something you get used to... Like flying hmm?" Omega's ears flattened and his gaze turned back to his test. Someway, somehow, someone always managed to bring that up at least once a week. He was still only learning how to adjust his feathers and tail for direction and instead of turning left over the valley, he turned right... Into a cliff face. The mark and bloody nose didn't even last as long as Randy's teasing, or the humiliation he endured from the flying Evolved creatures that were watching from a suitable distance. The next day, Randy brought popcorn and a video camera.

"Yeah, well... At least I won't have to worry about cliffs..."

"Nah, just those nasty Goblins..." Omega looked up to see randy looking over his shoulder at his test, smirking before pointing out a word.

"Even I know its Heamoiglobins/i... Although, with our line of work, its only a matter of time." Omega gripped his finger, squeezed enough to cut off circulation for an instant and let go, before snatching up the rubber and began to review his answers with a critical eye.

--

Omega was hunched down in the van again, this time dressed in jeans and t-shirt covered by a full body length trench coat, compete with hood. It obscured every non-human part of him, from the ears, to the muzzle to the tail. The thick leather crinkled as he shifted position and he wrinkled his nose. He hated leather... It just felt wrong against his fur, not to mention the stench that humans weren't able to pick up on. He iknew/i what those tanners do to get quality leather...

By his side was a large over the shoulder bag holding his laptop and other easily carried equipment... Such as emergency transmitters, lock picks, signal jammers... Another gift from Monique's employers. On the bench next to him lay his textbooks and a mobile comm. unit he was to install ASAP after initiation. Mendel was in front, snuffling into a tissue with one hand and holding the steering wheel in the other. Elsie brought in a Clam imported from the Caribbean that was 20 larger than others of its kind and, surprise surprise, Mendel was allergic to shellfish.

"So, first day at school... Excited?" Omega Peered out of the slot connecting the Lab to the Driver's cabin and gave him the neutral expression perfected by his mother.

"Ecstatic." He said in a Deadpan voice. Mendel began to reply, but instead sneezed into his tissue again. Omega leaned back into the wall, feeling every pothole they rumbled across, rubbing his eyes. He really didn't want to go through with this... All sorts of things could go wrong. The hood could come off despite the wire frame, his tail could poke out the bottom of the coat despite the belt securing it in place, or perhaps he would growl accidentally if someone smelled wrong. He might even shift to get comfortable and someone would hear his wings rustling together on the leather.

Or maybe he was being pessimistic. There was no guarantee that anything could go wrong on the first day was there?

Yes there was. Sod's law. Randy introduced him to it last night.

Omega narrowed his eyes. Yet another reason to get payback on him... If only someone took a camera with them on that Slither business...

Omega was knocked out of his daydream when the van turned sharply into the school's delivery access area. Once again, he was coming in the back way.

"Well, here you are... Monique and the others are already inside... Er..." Omega began to gather his stuff in his arms, wishing he could use his tail to at least grip the pencil case and tried to shift the bundle into something easier to carry.

"Yeah? What is it?" Mendel sneezed again and took some time blowing his nose afterwards before climbing out the van and round to the back, opening the doors.

"Well, some of us were wondering... What name did you decide on in the end?" Omega grinned as he walked past a stuttering Mendel. He took a lot of time to decide on a name he would be stuck with for the rest of his life. All of the H.E.A.T. members had their own suggestions, apart from Monique who simply gave him a book on 21st century baby names and left him to it. Even his "Father" gave him some advice.

Pulling the hood further over his muzzle, shrouding his face completely in darkness, He took his first step into Imperium Academy...

--

The first thing in store for him was a trip to the Head of the School's office. She had already bee informed of her newest pupil's... Uniqueness... But had yet to see it for herself. Monique had already obtained his locker number and combination and had set off to install the comm. unit and her own brand of security devices. Thankfully, Doctor Tautopolous was able to convince her not to include anything dangerous, despite her wishes to place an exploding booby trap if anyone tried to break in.

She was in her late forties, early fifties if Omega was any judge, her blonde hair obviously from a bottle instead of her head. A few missed brown ones hung over her eyes and the look in them was seemingly saying 'Not a word'. Wisely, he decided to keep his muzzle closed.

"Now Mr..?"

"Dupris Mrs Hinnemann." Hinnemann took a great deal effort to shuffle through the papers on her desk, picking out the one she had her hand over since the interview began.

"Ah yes, here we are... It says here that you were home schooled most of your life due to a... Skin Condition..?" She looked at him over her large horn rimmed spectacles, or at least, the parts of him that weren't hidden by the coat. That is it say, the coat.

"Terrible affliction..." He nodded sagely under the hood and decided to drive home the importance of the cover.

"If I go into to direct light, my skin begins to crack and peel... Have you ever watched a vampire movie Mrs Hinnemann? Something similar to that, only with less smoke and flames..." Mrs Hinnemann tapped her nails on the desk, telling him she wasn't fooled, yet understood. Omega had rehearsed his cover story ever since he was enrolled for this school, and Mrs Hinnemann was the only one who would know the truth... Not the whole truth, just a truth. She knew that the H.E.A.T organisation was funding this along with several governments around the world. She also knew that there were to be no dogs, no cats... No animals of any kind near him on the premises. He was also, under no circumstances, to remove his coat for anyone. Not even in life threatening situations. He had even got a permanent note for excusing Physical Fitness. H.E.A.T decided not to insult her intelligence by claiming it as the truth, but refused to disclose any more information. That, they decided, was up to Omega.

Mrs Hinnemann scribbled a note to the heads of the teaching departments and slipped it into her out-tray, replacing the cap on her pen with a dull click.

"Now, Mr Dupris, now that the ink is drying... I wonder if you could satisfy my curiosity?" Omega leaned back in the hard plastic chair, feeling his wings strain, under protest. It would be easier to hide himself if someone, such as the Principal, was able to provide convincing cover stories for certain actions on his part. And truth be told, she did deserve to know what was going on in her own school.

He walked past her and looked out the window onto the campus below, students already milling in. The children of the rich and famous from across the world, with a few geniuses thrown in for good measure. All of them came from a different country, a different religion, a different way of life... But they all had one thing in common.

They were all human.

Closing the blinds over, he returned to his seat, began to sit down, paused, reached over to the door and pulled down the blinds, locking it with the other hand.

Mrs Hinnemann watched patiently as he made sure no one at all could see in before making a pointed look to the clock on her wall. In ten minutes time, both of them had to attend the assembly for new students, Omega in particular, as he was to be placed in a higher class than most newcomers. Apparently, he was to be placed among the "other" sixteen year olds. Still looking everywhere for possible eavesdroppers, he pulled off his glove and laid it on the table in front of her.

Omega was impressed when she didn't at least gasp, although she did inhale sharply through the nose. With slight flex of the wrist, his claws slid out, slowly, for emphasis. He looked up to see Hinnemann looking at him with a blank look and he quickly replaced the glove.

"My face isn't much better if you're wondering." This seemed to knock her out of her daze and she nodded, admitting that, possibly, she didn't want to know.

"I... I believe it is almost time for the Assembly... If you would Mr Dupris?"

--

The new students were standing on the stage, each of them eyeing up the other, wondering about intelligence, courses chosen and, of course, how much the family made per week. Down in the assembly hall, the returning students looked up at the "fresh meat" wondering who to ally themselves with, who to avoid, who to pick on, who was related to who and so on. Very few of them looked at the other students as would-be friends. Already, a fight had broken out due to one child's parent trying to buy up the other child's parent's company.

Omega hung to the side, leaning against the wall out of sight. Some of the first years had already approached him, trying to learn more about him and his strange cloak. He had dealt with them by informing them he had an assassination contract on his head, in which any collateral damage was acceptable. They quickly decided that they could deal with their curiosity a little longer. Sniffing the air, he could pick up the scents of the entire H.E.A.T. team up in the back, mingling with the other "proud" parents. Monique, as usual, was in the back, next to the wall; seeing everything but never being seen.

Eventually, the preliminaries were over with and the first years were divided between their teachers, leaving Omega out of sight in the back of the stage. Mrs Hinnemann rose and gestured for the standing children to return to their seats and for the parents to return to their waiting, most of them now looking at their watches and reaching for their mobile phones.

"And now students, an important announcement. As no doubt the new students can tell you, they are not the only one arriving this year. This student is... Different, but I hope you are all mature enough to see past that..." Omega ran a critical eye over his coat once more. If so much as a tuft of fur was showing when he went out there, then he could kiss school life goodbye...

And for a brief moment, he thought to himself 'Silver Lining...'

"...Been forced to stay out of any strong light due to the extreme photosensitivity of his skin. As such, he cannot remove the coat he wears. Please, welcome our new student. Mr David Dupris!" Over in the back, Monique spluttered and leaned back in shock. Her father was called David. He had died years ago, in the secret service, on related issues with the Godzilla case... He knew all that...Omega took a deep breath, pulled his hood further over his head and walked out, in front of humans for the first time in his life. The muttering started immediately as the first foot stepped out, covered in black leather. Even the specially made shoes were covered in the stuff. From within the hood, he could just see the students staring at him, sizing him up, like a butcher with a slab of meat. Taking a deep breath and a panicked swallow, he nodded to Mrs Hinnemann as she stepped out of the way of the microphone, leaving him to address the school in person. He could just see Elsie's red hair and no more above the crowd and on the edge of his senses, his father's comforting presence.

Shit, he thought, he must be really close for me to pick him up over this...

Now he could see Monique clearly. She was standing in front of the crowd, eyes locking on to Om- to David's. For a second, her face was completely unreadable. And then, the barest hints of a smile, and a nod.

Suddenly filled with more confidence, he cleared his throat and raised the microphone a little before closing his eyes, thinking that if he couldn't see them, then they couldn't see him.

"Thank you Mrs Hinnemann. As the Principal told you, I am severely allergic to light. Any kind of light can peel strips of skin of my body, hence my... Attire." The scents of hundreds of humans wafted in through his nostrils, sharp and swift. Already, he could tell who was who. The bullies already made their mark by beating up the others, traces of blood on the wind. The populars were coated in make up and perfumes, while the sporty types were tinged with sweat. Opening his eyes, he saw a building full of them...

'Oh god, this isn't gonna work... Someone's gonna find out!'

"It is designed to save my life... I can't remove it unless I am in a completely light-less zone. It have felt the sun on my arms before... Doctors told me I was lucky to keep it. But, I made sure that that won't ruin my life. And I hope, one day, I'll be able to stand here without it. Thank you."

--

"That was horrible... Now I know why you don't like going to those robotics gatherings Mendel..." David grabbed his bag from Monique and scanned his new combination lock before tearing it up and scattering the pieces in a few bins.

"You did well. You kept calm and made all relevant points. Good." And with that, Monique headed back to the van. Elsie, catching the downfallen look on David's face grabbed his shoulder.

"Ah, don't worry about French Fry... She's never been a parent before remember?" David squeezed her hand softly before fishing out his timetable, looking for his first class. The others told him that one of Monique's "Insurance Men" friends would come to pick him up after the school day ended. Nodding, he grabbed Nick's arm on the way past, pulling him into the side, whispering under his breath.

"Not that I don't appreciate it, but why is dad so close to a Human City? I know he hates it..." Nick gave him one of his half smiles, shook his shoulder and pointed out to the harbour, where a faint ripple sped under the water.

"He just wanted to make sure you were okay. Now go, before you miss your first class."

As David went to find his locker, Nick turned his gaze to the Harbour in the distance. Feeling his mind settle in that familiar linking sensation, he felt Godzilla's mind well up beneath his own.

Don't worry, he'll be fine... He could feel Godzilla's doubt over the link as he left the school and climbed into the back seat of the car.

He'd better be. You know I won't hold back should anything happen to him. Nick looked back at the government building and shivered as his imagination created an image of his son tearing into it, searching for the one who dared to hurt his child so...

Lets hope it never comes to that...