Chapter 6
February 26, 2010
Subject 018 landed with a hard thud, as he was thrown into his cage. 018 struggled to stay awake, as the pain climbed. The men in white coats watched and wrote things down on the flat metal machines, as he laid there in pain. If he thought it'd do any good, he would have whined, whimpered. Anything. But time had shown him that complaining only brought pain. So he laid there. In silence.
Time became immeasurable. Became fluid. It could have been an hour, a day, a month. He didn't know.
All he knew was that, one second he was experiencing unprecedented amounts of pain. Slipping in and out of consciousness. And then the next, he was fully awake, feeling better and stronger than he ever did before.
"Need to get out." 018 thought to himself.
Remaining lying in the cage that had become his, 018 waited for a white coat to come and open his cage door, and take some samples.
Before the door was even half way open, 018 came bursting out of it. Running before his paws even hit the tiled floor.
Using his enhanced sense of smell, he navigated his way down hallways. Staying one step ahead of the agents that had been put on alert of his escape, by the white coat.
When he made it to the main door, he came bursting out, like a bat out of hell.
He ran past agents and nets alike, and then to the gate. And squeezed through just as the gate closed.
018 ran south through the forest, as he left the base behind. As the sun went down, it began to snow, so he took shelter in a cave.
018 fell asleep that night, to the sound of the wind whistling through the mouth of the cave.
!
"Hey, kid."
A voice cut through 018 consciousness.
"Kid."
018 jerked awake, and leaped to his feet. He growled as he looked around.
"Easy there pup."
018 swiveled around to face the voice. There a few feet away, sat a raven.
"Who are you?" 018 growled.
"Cawrl. My name is Cawrl." The raven said. "What's your name kid?"
"...018." He said hesitantly.
"No, I mean your name." Cawrl explained. "Like Luna or Max."
"018 is my name. It's the only one I've ever had."
Cawrl paused for a moment, "... So what are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be with your human family?"
018 growled, "They are NOT my family! And I'm NOT going back!"
"Woah, easy. I was only asking." Cawrl said, "It's just, most dogs I see, have a human family."
"Well, I don't." 018 replied, "What are you doing in here, anyway?"
"Same as you, I guess." Cawrl shrugged. "Waiting out the storm."
Cawrl hopped a little closer to the large dog. "You okay pup?"
"Well…, it's just…" 018 slowly said, "it's just that…, okay so the humans that I'm running from, are bad people. They kept me and a lot of other animals in cages. They would train us for something, and then hit us if we did something that they didn't like, or even just to make them laugh.
"They would poke us with these really small metal sticks that would put something inside of us that burned. It hurt so much. Then they would just stand there and watch." Once 018 got started, it was like he couldn't stop. He ended us telling Cawrl the Raven a lot of what goes on in his prison. Crying as he got all of those painful memories off of his chest.
The two of them ended up talking for what felt like hours, trading stories. After they both stopped talking, the two of them sat as they watched the snow outside of the cave.
"I can't stay here." 018 said, "They put this small piece of metal in me, that I overheard them say that they could use to follow me anywhere."
"Where is it?" Cawrl asked.
"In the back of my neck. Why?"
"I can try to get it out for you," Cawrl said. 018 shifted away a little. "Hear me out. I get it out, and then when the storm slows down, you can go in one direction and I can take the piece of metal the other way."
"I don't know. I just met you." 018 said hesitantly.
"How about, you think about it. And you can tell me what you decide tomorrow morning." Cawrl compromised.
"I'll think about it." 018 said.
Then the two settled in for a long storm. Cawrl shared some of the food that he found with 018. As the storm went on, and the sun went down, Cawrl told his new young friend a story that his mom used to tell him and his siblings.
As Cawrl ended his story, he looked over at the pup that he found, where he lay, sleeping. If he could smile, Cawrl would have. He couldn't explain it, but as soon as he saw the pup that morning he felt protective towards the kid. It only grew as the young, but rather large dog told him his story.
As Cawrl fell asleep that night, he thought to himself, "I hope the kid lets me help him. He seems like a good boy"
!
The next morning, it was still snowing. Not as heavy as the day before, but still snowing.
Two hours after they woke up, 018 approached Cawrl, "Alright. Let's do it. Please, get it out of me."
Cawrl nodded. Happy that the pup agreed to let him help.
Once the kid was lying down, and had a stick in his mouth to bite down on, Cawrl hopped up on his back.
"Now, I'm sorry, but this is going to hurt." Cawrl said. "Ready?"
018 nodded. Cawrl then started to gently prod the back of 018's neck with his beak, waiting for the dog's signal that he was in the right spot.
When the pup whined to tell Cawrl that he was in the right spot, Cawrl took his beak and gently dug into his neck. The pup's whines became louder, as Cawrl looked for the piece of metal. After a minute or two of poking around, Cawrl felt something hard and metallic bump into his beak. Quickly grabbing it, Cawrl pulled it out.
Cawrl dropped it on the ground and flew down to the ground.
018 dropped the stick, and looked at the thing that was in his neck.
The two of them stared at it for a moment or two, "What now?" Pup asked.
"Well, when you're ready, you will go one way and I will go the other way." Cawrl said. "Is your neck going to be okay?"
"Uh, yeah." The Kid said, "While I was there, I heard the White Coats say that whatever they put inside of me and all of the others, that it would make us stronger, faster, and we would heal fast."
"Really?" Cawrl asked, tilting his head. "What was it?"
"I don't know. It had something to do with human soldiers being super…? I don't know." Pup shrugged.
"Well, in that case, we should get going."
"Why?"
"The snow will make the tracks that you leave behind go away, before the ones chasing you get here. But you at least should leave while it's still snowing. I'll stay here. And then leave when it stops snowing, and lead them the other way with this metal thing."
Pup thought for a moment, before nodding and standing up. At the mouth of the cave, the kid turned around and said, "Thank you. For being my friend. I've never had one before."
!
March 16, 2010
The Pup walked down the sidewalk, with the late afternoon sun hanging overhead. He passed an alleyway, when a sound ahead spooked him.
He darted to the alley he passed, and ducked inside.
He slowly backed away, as a human girl passed by. When the girl disappeared beyond view, he stepped on a broken glass bottle. He yelped as the pain of the glass shot up his paw and through his leg.
The sound of approaching footsteps caught his attention. Pup looked up and saw the teen aged girl from before, as she slowly stepped closer.
"Hey, boy. You okay?" She asked softly.
Pup growled and then bit the air between them, when she got a little too close.
"Hey, easy. I'm not going to hurt you." She said, holding her hands up in the air.
Pup went to step back, but he yelped when that caused the shard of glass in his paw to go in deeper.
"Easy boy. Easy. Are you hungry?" She said gently.
She reached into her bag and pulled out another, smaller, bag. Out of the smaller bag, she pulled a small clear box. When the box was opened, she pulled out what smelled like food.
She held it out, "Here." When Pup didn't move forward, she brought it back to her. The food was lifted up to her mouth, and she took a small bite out of it. Chewed and then swallowed. She then held it out for him once again.
Once the food was given a thorough sniff, he hesitantly took it out of her hand, and ate it. She knelt there, smiling, as he ate it. Then she took that same clear box and poured some water into it from a clear bottle.
"Thirsty?" She asked, as she slid the box over to him.
Pup gave the box and the liquid inside a good sniff as well. As he began to lap up the water, the girl soothingly said, "Can I look at your paw?"
Pup thought about growling at her again, but something stopped him. There was something about her that was different from the other humans back there. It took him a moment to figure it out, then it hit him. This girl does not have that same feeling around her. There was a kindness in her eyes that he has never seen in another human. And then there was the smell. The others, you could smell the evil on them. But not her. She smelled unlike anything that he has come across before. It was a good smell.
He cautiously limped a step forward, and held up his injured paw. A part of him expected her to suddenly change and hurt him. But she didn't. She just gently took his paw in her hand, turned it slightly to better see the glass that had embedded in his paw.
She winced when she saw it. She then bit her lip as she thought about something. When she came to a decision, she pulled out what he recognized as a cell phone. He had seen other humans use them. The girl tapped on the screen for a minute. Then she put it back in her pocket.
The girl sat down, and poured more water in the box.
She reached her hand forward slowly, stopping just out of reach of his teeth. After he gave her hand a sniff, she began to very slowly extend her hand more towards him. When her hand made contact with the back of his head, he stiffened. Only to slowly relax, as she very gently ran her fingers over his head and down his back.
!
Some time later, Pup had laid down, with his head in her lap as she continued to run her fingers through his fur.
The sound of approaching footsteps had Pup jumping to his feet in a flash as a growl tore through his throat. However, the growl was cut short. He yelped when the pain in his paw spiked.
"Shhh. It's okay, this is my mom." the girl soothed, "It's okay boy."
The girl then turned to this new person, who once he really looked, could see that the two looked a lot alike. The new person looked like an older version of the girl. "Mom," the girl said, "Can you help him?"
The woman slowly approached, and then knelt by the two of them. When the woman tried to touch his paw he growled.
"Easy boy. I'm not going to hurt you." The woman said.
The girl ran her fingers through his fur, to calm him down. After he had stopped growling, he grudgingly let the woman look at his paw.
The woman, like the girl, gently handled his paw.
"So," the girl said, "what do you think?"
"I can't do anything here." The woman replied. "It's too dirty here. He'd have to be looked at in a clean environment. Preferably by a veterinarian. I am a human doctor. Not an animal doctor."
"Mom. I don't think he'd be comfortable going to see a vet. He barely tolerates you. Please Mom?" The girl pleaded with the woman.
The woman sighed, "Alright. Let's see if we can get him in the car, and then we'll take him home."
The girl grabbed the woman's hand and squeezed it gently, "Thank you."
!
It took the two of them more than half an hour to get him in the car. The woman drove the car, while the girl sat in the back with him. Running her fingers through his fur and gently scratching behind his ears.
Pup was on edge the entire time that the woman, he learned her name is Marie, and the girl's name is Lexi, were tending to his paw.
After they were done removing the glass and closing the wound, they bathed and brushed him, and then wrapped a cloth around his paw. Over the course of a couple of weeks, they slowly let him see more and more of what they called a house.
One of the things that whatever the White Coats gave him, also allowed him to see color. Marie and Lexi both looked very much alike. Both had red hair, Lexi's hair was like that red liquid that he had seen other humans drink at very nice buildings where they sit and food is brought to them. While Marie's hair was like the color of blood. Both had green eyes, like the grass in summer time. However, Lexi's skin was slightly darker than Marie's. While Marie's skin was very light. Both had little brown dots on their arms and faces.
But, the thing that Pup noticed about them the most, is their smell. Both smelled nothing like the humans back there. Both had a kindness and gentleness about them. And still there was that one smell that he just could not identify. It was everywhere he went inside this small building that they lived in.
The entire time that he was there, he stayed close to Lexi as much as he could. Then for five days of the week, Lexi went somewhere. She said it was something called school. Whatever that is. Has something to do with books, and lots and lots of paper.
One day Lexi was working on these papers, and not giving any attention to him, when he had enough. So he got up, and quietly walked over to the table that she was sitting at. And when she wasn't looking, scooped up a stack of papers into his mouth. And began to rip and tear them up.
Lexi looked over at the sound, "No! Give those back!" she yelled.
Lexi wrestled them from him, "No! Bad Charlie!"
"Charlie huh?" Marie asked as she came and stood in the entrance to the room where they eat.
"Uh, Yeah. I figured that, since he doesn't have a collar and he's not tagged, that we could keep him." Lexi said. "Please?"
Marie stood there and looked at Lexi for a moment. Then she sighed, "Alright. You can keep him." Lexi grinned. But Marie wasn't finished. "But," she said, "you have to feed him, walk him, brush him, and take care of him. He is your responsibility."
"Okay! Yes! I promise! Thank you!" Lexi grinned the entire time she said this, then she jumped up from her chair, ran and hugged Marie. "Thank you so much Mom! I love you!"
Marie laughed, "You're very much welcome, Lexi."
Lexi turned around, smiling happily. "So, what do you say boy. Want to stay?"
Pup thought about it for a moment. Thought about the dangers involved, if he stayed. Thought about, how if he stayed, and they found out about where he came from, that they just might send him back. They might not think that he is worth it. Then he thought about the warmth and the comfort that he received, for the first time in his life. He thought about all the head scratches and belly rubs and the cuddles that he's gotten. Thought about Lexi, and the smile on her face right at that moment. About the warmth and something else in her eyes.
How could someone say no to all of that?
!
As the days turned into weeks, and the newly named Charlie had to watch as Lexi left for what felt like weeks at a time, Pup fell into a depression. While Lexi was gone, Charlie refused to eat, or sleep, or even acknowledge the other people in the house. Oh but he watched.
Lexi's father and brother, whose names are Thomas and Andrew, who they sometimes called Andy. Unlike Lexi and her mother, they had dark skin. Dark curly hair, large lips, and wide noses. But the brother, unlike the father, had the same green eyes as Lexi and her mother.
Pup, stayed away from Thomas at first. As the uniform that he wore put him on edge. It reminded him of the men and women back at the base, who also wore uniforms.
Like the father, the mother also put him on edge. She wore the same kind of coat as the White Coats.
Needless to say, they all saw the effect Lexi's absence had on him.
One day, about two weeks after they rescued Charlie, Lexi approached her parents.
"Hey, Mom, Dad?" she said. "Can I talk to you too for a second?"
"Sure sweetie."
"What is it?"
"I know that you two and Andy have noticed how Charlie reacts when I have to go to school." Lexi took a deep breath, "I want to get him certified as a service dog. Cause, then he'd be allowed to go to school and work with me."
Marie and Thomas looked at each other. Pup, who was listening to the whole thing, was desperately hoping that they would agree to it. Charlie wanted to stay with Lexi.
When they turned their attention back to the two of them, and looked at them some more, Thomas finally said, "Alright. It sounds like a great idea."
!
After two whole months of training, going to get a letter from a doctor about Lexi's anxiety, and then waiting to get the letter in the mail, stating that Charlie was officially a service dog, Charlie was chomping at the bit.
When it finally came, and not only the letter, but the vest, declaring to the whole world that he was now allowed to go with Lexi. Wherever she goes, he goes. And Charlie couldn't be happier.
It was soon after that, that he finally realized what that smell was, coming from Lexi, her family and their house. That smell, was home.