Red-Haired Raven

Chapter 3:Declan

Footsteps echo, the ground flooded with water as people ran away from the collapsed water tower. The remnants of the hold fell under a metallic claw that struck the ground, crushing the few remains left. "Hold steady! We mustn't let them breach!" One isotope screamed, as a sudden dent appeared on the War Machine, causing it to collapse down upon them. Minutes seemed to pass, when a girl abruptly emerged from its side, a mace in hand. Others had been injured or killed, but some sent the enemies back, securing another victory for the Isotopes.

From the monitor in the Control room, they cheered instantly. Even in her chambers she heard their rants and cheering. She heard herself sighing with dismay, she wasn't fairly surprised. In fact, she was becoming tired of hearing the overly successful campaigns sometimes, but that didn't stop the commanders. She had stored the crystal-like orb in her hands with her aura skills, creating a soft illusionistic view, surprising even Vanessa from its aesthetic value. She couldn't stop staring in wonder. This was one of the fewest improvements she made while using her powers, soon she'd probably create illusions using both a little of her mental abilities and aura detection, into creating a more successful manipulation.

But that was a hopeful wish she'd have to pursue, for when an isotope was created, it was strictly forbidden to gain other varieties of power, For there always needed to be a balance of power for each individual, too much and the isotope became too evil, too little….

Then they'd be useless…..

However, of course, there had been a report of one who could "Borrow" powers from others, but for a limited amount of time. She was Xaina-033, "The queen of thieves." You get what it means, although her side effects could disable the victims. They weren't hurt…much.

It was around 2073, the winter snow had slowly faded, revealing mush grounds across the base. Young generation two's had been slowly dreading this day, the fascination of snow was amusing. But they were also piqued to begin training again. There was of course a brief week of new info. The halogens were acting up, the jvstice were retreating from locations in Canada, Europe, Australia. Commanding units were to maintain alert, While generals and isotopes were given days in between for training.

Everyone was on full alert, to a point where they were bringing in more generals from the islands near Europe. The Scientists even created more generation two's, even starting the ridiculous theory of creating Gen 3.

Vanessa grumbled, thinking of Dramatic Ian protesting about developing more improved weapons for Generation One. "To establish us as still the better, than the rest." He exclaimed they were having lunch with others. Some had agreed upon his request, creating a mini riot. When they reached the research labs the scientists turned them away. Vanessa had to admit she enjoyed watching the sadness erupt on his face, and glad the scientists kicked his ass, for she would've been glad to have done it herself.

She found herself thinking from time to time about her past. Who she'd been, why her parents left her here, and who were they? She even found herself hating what they did, leaving her vulnerable and alone… Or if they didn't know she was there.

"Darling, come here please?" He stared at her, waiting for a response. All he could see was a young girl of 16, his daughter stare back with a spacious look in her eyes.

The man became instantly annoyed, she was being a little disobedient now and then. But for her to misbehave right now just made him angry. He walked up to her sitting form, stared her down, and watched quietly as the empty glance changed into the same old question again, the one that always had her look sad.

"Why was I adopted?" She asked.

He only smiled, "My child, I am your father, whether biologically or not. There was no mistaking that when I adopted you, for I fell in love with your innocence. The beautiful woman I knew you'd become."

"Who am I though? Surely I had another name? Why won't you tell me? I have a right-"

"That right, I'm afraid is not of your worth yet Vanessa. You are one of the known rare. You have exceptional potential that even we still need to learn about."

"But that's not…"

"What? Fair? Open your eyes child, know that I'm simply trying to protect you. If you knew how good you have it right now, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Clear your mind young Red-raven, forget about your past and go forth into the program I have prepared for you…I did create you, and I could destroy you so easily, Do you understand?" He shouted, glaring at her.

"….yes"

"Yes?"

"..I understand, Father Mendoza..." she stated, turning sharply around, heading back into her chambers.

The memory had been abrupt, but that was enough to have her fuming. It took her two minutes exact, but she managed to relax her clenched fists, her ragged breathing calmed, almost becoming instantly quiet.

Damn you old man, why? What exactly were you trying to hide from me? Is there more to me than I know? She questioned. A flashing screen out the corner of her eye caught her in midthought; she noticed it was a brief message.

*General-0444, Please report to the hangar with the others for immediate briefing.. The new recruits have just arrived.* -Lieutenant-0212.

She read the report twice, noting a little discomfort and impatience in its lettering. Typical men, always ready to pound chests with the new arrivals, it was just another unnecessary competition for them.

Turning towards the doors she grimaced, thinking what exactly would happen if indeed there were a pathetic competition, but though, perhaps there could've been those who wouldn't... She kept the thought in mind as she packed up the orb, watching it turn white once more. Walked out the doors of her room and be followed by others into the assigned elevators.

The music was annoying; it had no rights to them. Playing classical music when you're about to be spoken to was a horrible idea. It would merely get stuck in your head. It continued to play as the isotopes made their way into the hangar. The vast room was filled with transport helicopters, and medical trucks. There was weaponry, missiles adorning the walls. Motivational posters showing ridiculous quotes, but Vanessa couldn't blame them. They indeed did help sometimes.

The generals started pouring down the staircases, not even looking but remembering exactly where they needed to go. The lines were all arranged in 4x6, and isotope generals were told to stay standing the whole time. This meeting was indeed very serious, she noted. For they even moved the machine-gun copters that usually rested in the center of the hangar.

She stayed where she was, watching everyone else head to their designated line spots. She groaned when she observed that her spot wasn't taken, it never was. It was just there, waiting for her occupancy. She had no choice but to follow its order, she took the staircases by two, nearing her spot. She looked once again around her, realizing that she was one of the few that still didn't stand still. She wanted to have them, wait. But that wouldn't have been fair.

Just as she got there, the main commanding lieutenant came out of the elevators behind the generals. His complexion looking amongst one of the exhausted few, his hair already gray with pride. He looked like any old grandpa, except this one was always commanding and restraining. Instead of the usual, drool-over-face elder. He stared intently at random individuals, giving them frightening and scared expressions.. It seemed a while before he reached the electronic podium. His voice sounded alert, yet grateful.

"Good evening fellow Generals, tonight we have gathered not to alarm you, but to group you into teams. The isotopean armies are starting to grow rather restless; most are entering battles without strategies against the Jvstice, and the wretched halogens. Commander Reik and i-" Standing next to Commandant Lieutenant Miles, was a younger man, ruby beads of hair shone under the lights. What Vanessa found quite interesting, was that he had a glass eye, and another of hazel gray iris. They almost practically looked the same, so it had an illusion of seeing straight into someone's soul.

She found that rather interesting.

"...Have been discussing this topic on several ocassions, and so we have contacted other sister bases nearby. New Generals have arrived from Ireland, Greenland and Sweden. We still haven't had contact in Rome, or Bordeaux. The situations there are quite unknown. Getting back to the topic at hand, these fellow men have been briefed on the situation, however. We have assigned groups ranking from the top few, to the weak. He paused suddenly, staring at the second line, staring hard at Vanessa and the guy next to her. She was slowly taken aback from this action, but realized the man behind her coughed rather suddenly..

He had been injured in the previous attack near the base, but that battle was briefly won. The Halogens disappeared, everything seemed fine. Only a few had been seriously injured. Isotope-155 was one of them..Now he was falling to his knees, his hands embracing his abdomen in serile pain.

The medics jumped towards him, clearing the few who got in their way. Vanessa knew from experience not to jump in. Some situations had to be solved by themselves..This guy didn't really stand a chance..She felt his dying aura.

She was surprised...what was occuring... it didn't even faze her...

She only stared at Commandant Miles in expectation of his next words..But he only lowered his head in grief. ...Miles knows of events that happen in the future, one of our few mental qualified in doing so. She sighed unexpectedly. The Commandant whispered a soft prayer to himself before he raised his head, Composure still dominant in his features. Vanessa on the other hand, was pushed back into her spot by the other generals. The spot beside her now empty.

She didn't turn to look, the sight would always be engraved in her memory anyways.

Miles led the group in a brief two-minute silence for the comrade. Then directed his hands towards the doors behind the rows, In one brief gesture, mechanical gears opened the closed gates.

Behind them stood 32 Men who looked alert and commanding. In synchronization they all walked in, All were obviously different from their French counterparts.

Vanessa didn't even notice the Commandant introduce them all, she only gazed upon them, her scanning aura only collected pure loyalty, yet intimidation. Other few gave off surprised expressions when their gazes fell on her.

She couldn't blame them, she was but one of the few women who stood on the lines. It seemed this situation was a little sexist.

" We hope you all can begin your assigned tasks as soon as now the halogens aren't going to just let us barge in on their parade." Miles said, quoting an old saying from the 21st century. Raising his hand in a salute, he was responded with complimentary salutes. The women had their hands closed over their hearts, bowing their head in respect. Even if it seemed essential, paying your respect to the commandant was always different.

After the farewells were concluded, several scientists and Lieutenants headed towards the Generals, each repeating a name and the group members they would be assigned with. Vanessa vaguely noticed the strengths in the groups. The scientists had grouped Veterans with the recruits. Each consisted of mental, physical and Elemental skill.

She found herself walking towards one of the scientists, curiosity led her through the massive crowd that started to gather all around her. Her hand was reaching one of them in question, when a familiar hand clasped hers and pulled her off to the side. Brows raised, she followed the tugging until she felt her body tense from the sudden release of her hand.. huh? She muttured quietly, looking in front of her in sudden alert.

"Well, Well, Well...If it isn't Vanessa!" Someone said behind her, causing her instincts to turn in a high-kick against her target, only to have it abruptly blocked by her blonde-haired male friend. Turning to face him, she could only read the familiar Cockiness it held, followed by laughter. "Nice one there General!" He shouted, turning a few heads in their general direction. A few chuckled, others just turned back to their groups, sensing child's play in the room. Vanessa sneered at him, until he lowered her foot. Straightening herself up she turned to head back to the scientists...

And came face to face with a Ghost.

She instantly felt both her heart and lungs drop in her chest. The face...

Isaac?..She thought sadly, her face must have dropped deep into the depression she felt too long ago. But remembering herself, she composed it.

The complexion was a little rugged tan, if not a little light. So he had to be Irish, About age 25, if not 29. The Black hair and muscular tones to his body and face instantly described him as an experienced Trainee. If not general. But this familiarity reminded her so much of Isaac. The only family she had before he'd died, right in front of her eyes. He couldn't have been saved. Her thoughts turned to perhaps preservation into a Gen 2? She remembered hearing something about it. But wasn't that a rumor? Shaking her head in confusion she realized she was softly gasping and facing his feet, the stranger only gave her a confused glance, briefly letting a little compassion emerge from his person, only to recede into surprise once he saw her full featured face.

"Do you know this Guy Vanessa?"

Turning to face a concerned Ian, Vanessa felt herself stutter, her eyes almost blank..

" General-0125, O'shea Declan. and you Miss?" He said suddenly, causing her to face him again in surprise. His voice had a luke-warm kindness to it.

"...General 0-444, Vanessa.. Listen, I-I'm sorry you just reminded me of, a fellow comrade of mine. Forgive my rude behavior..T-this is no way to be introduced.." She shouted rather quickly. But she felt herself being rewarded with a small smile, his eyes seemed to glow a soft blue-hazel color.

" Please, no apologies. We have merely met.. It was quite astounding though, you seemed so uptight just now. In fact, when I first entered the room with the other recruits. I immediately became aware of your eyes following my fellow comrades in. It wasn't an intrusive stare, but one of curious excitement was it not? Forgive me if it sounds offensive. Besides I think very highly of you, Your skills have been rendered as highly effective in the manipulating department. And Ian here has the ability to Manipulate and create Earth-ridden weapons. am I right? Aye, I don't exactly remember. But I am definitely delighted to be here, and glad to be working with both you and Vanessa." Declan proclaimed, slapping Ian's back in joy, finishing his speech with a teasing wink at her.

Despite her efforts, a small flush of red emerged along the dip of her cheekbones, the mentioning of her name on his lips seemed so natural, it devastated her.

Ian flushed with appreciation, motioning for declan to follow him. Earlier she'd overheard they were going to tour the building with the other recruits. However, the recognition in O'shea's face of Issac was too much for her to bear...

"Excuse me.." she whispered, her voice barely a whisper as she darted past them.

She could only hear their slight protests as she raced up the stairs, heading into the elevator and slammed the elevator door button to close. Pure isolation felt like relief right now...

Issac

Declan

Both almost had the same personality, yet both were so different. Were they related?

Vanessa felt the startling rumble of the elevator ascending, then leaning against the wall she felt her desperate agony rising with the elevator. She couldn't help but feel like a joke, she was a psychologic Isotope, she knew how to deal with these certain situations..But she still suffered her own personal demons. Ones that not only affected her emotions, but her heart as well.

It was too much to bear, but she needed to resolve them.

Question was how exactly...

The elevator started playing its music through the speakers, as the sudden realization hit her.

Besides from the crappy elevator music, she could hear her pulse slowly decrease into relaxation. Coming to think of it...there was one thing that did separate them..When we were younger the things we commited were of mischiveosity. Minutes before, Declan produced auras of discipline and something else that didn't seem there, but then again maybe it was hidden? He seemed like simply wanting to help others. So different from him, so..Vanessa turned and hid her face in shock as the sudden blush protruded from her cheekbones. The theory stuck with her for now..

The theory that indeed she wasn't going insane.

It was a sweet feeling, this emotion. However, that changed when the elevator doors opened, to find him barging inside the compartment with her. Pressing the button for the doors to close, he turned to see the guard just outside of them. She had a face of shock, wasn't he with Ian? What's he doing here? Her flush turned into rage, glaring at his back. She turned to the elevator controls to see if she'd been hallucinating, but the door control was indeed glowing. "Sorry about that lass, I didn't mean to startle you. Better yet, I want to thank you for opening the doors a second ago there..excuse me for a sec." He turned around to face the door as crude words were exchanged between the barrier, Declan sarcastically boasting about the guard's mother never even finishing him in bed, which brought upon more vicious pounding from the outside of the closed doors.

She only raged further in anger as she absorbed his words. Vanessa couldn't believe this, He had just called her lass. As if they've never met exactly five minutes before this...

So much for her previous theory...

The elevator started another ascend, as Vanessa pounded the emergency stop button, hearing the gears grind in protest. "Declan O'shea, A general such as yourself shouldn't be behaving in this manner, so stop acting so childish!" she shouted, only to have him face her in alarm. She barely managed to hear a grunt emerge from his person as she exposed the hidden blade behind her back at his heart in warning. Declan mistook its notice, assuming a wolf-style martial stance. His gloved hands produced claws that extended from within them, specialized to look like an Alpha's.

"This is unexpected, I must say your not indeed the aviary Red-raven i've heard so much about.." He declared, casually inching close to her.

The action only had her side-stepping, exposing the other blade she had. In the small compartment elevator, there really wasn't much room for error. "I was never a raven, Mendoza only gave me that damn name, knowing I would hate it." She replied, watching his expression change into surprise. "Mendoza huh? THE mendoza who betrayed us, bringing upon the halogens?" he stepped closer, almost blocking her way to flee and trapped her in the corner.

She felt miserable, dropping her guard. "I don't even know, or remember such a name.." She glared, which had him backing away. He walked out of the elevator and onto the roof of the building.

She followed suit and blocked his escape. " Now tell me, why aren't you with General Ian?" She asked again. "That's because he's my Doppelganger..." She heard next to her, turning she saw Declan and Ian next to him, both staring in wonder at the scene before them. Gasping, she turning back and forth between both Declan's. The one, who instantly relaxed his stance, dissolved and slithered back towards the previous Declan becoming vapor and becoming absorbed. Watching with slight awe, Declan stared at the ground for a brief moment before staring in surprise, then pity at Vanessa.

Due to the events, Vanessa simply wanted to sit and rest. But Ian gave her a reassuring pat on her shoulder, his communicator in hand. "I've been looking all over for you Vanessa, I just received news from Commander Reik that we've been promoted to Lieutenants. Hold on, not done..He wants to see us right away, briefing on a special mission for us." He said, smiling like Annie, when she was adopted at the end of that classical film.

Declan smiled and laughed. "Well, looks like we'll have to celebrate this special occasion, later..."Opening the door to the elevator once again as Ian waltzed right on in, caught in his own world. Vanessa still glared and shook her head, barely believing what just happened. She almost practically spilled her guts back there, it was careless..

But a hand appeared before her, in its palm held the words:

"You are who you want to be,

Don't let a name change that."

Surprised, she glanced up and examined his eyes. A small sincere smile escaped his lips, his palm closed into a "I will never share a secret" point on his mouth. She exhaled quietly, watching him follow after Ian and begin chatting up a storm.

'How did he-?' She began, only to shake the thought away. A stinging sensation in her heart caused her to smile for the first time in a while, walking into the elevator with hope, and maybe even admiration for her new comrade...