.The Hand of Fate
CHAPTER ONE
One month later, on the outside world.
Frank Detorri waited patiently in the parking lot of his daughter's school. He was warming up the car for one of the school's finalists in the county chess championship.
A young girl walked out of the school with her backpack, a jacket, and a smile. This was Shane, Frank's daughter, and she was very happy to be one of the ten finalists.
Shane climbed in on the passenger side of the car. "Thanks for watching me play, Dad," she said happily. "I can't believe I'm one of the finalists!"
Frank nodded. "I'm very proud of you," he said with pride, "but don't forget where we have to be today."
Shane sighed in disappointment. Today was one of her bi-annual check-ups with her doctor, Dr. Thomas. As much as she didn't like the check-up in itself, she absolutely hated the possibility of a shot.
Frank saw this out of the corner of his eye. "I know you don't want to go," he reassured her, "but it'll probably do your body some good."
Shane nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right," she said, encouraged. "I just hope I don't get another shot." She inhaled deeply, trying to get rid of the anxiety she had built up earlier. "I'm so worried."
Inside Shane's body, there was more activity going on than one would expect. Her body was home to thousands, millions, and billions of tiny cells and organisms. It's hard to imagine any of them having "lives" and personalities, like we do.
Guess what?
Yes, it's hard to imagine, but inside Shane's body is a huge metropolis of tissue and fluids. In fact, her body IS a metropolis, with the cells, germs, and other organisms as its citizens.
Down in the bone marrow of Shane's left humerus (upper arm bone, FYI), a small shop window lit as it's newest item appeared inside. This was a small bookstore, and its newest item was an exciting book: "Voyage of the Pawn Treader, Volume IV."
Moments later, a young blood cell could be seen running down the street. Her bright orange shirt, dark blue jeans, and ponytail were easily recognized by the residents of the neighborhood. Gasping for breath, she came to an abrupt halt when she saw the new book in the shop window.
The girl's eyes widened and a smile crossed her face. "'Voyage of the Pawn Treader, Volume IV,'" she read the title aloud. "It's finally here- the second to last installment of the series!"
The blood cell raced inside the bookstore and was back outside in seconds, her eyes glued to the pages. She loved reading, especially if the main character was Shane (in case you haven't guessed yet, the "Pawn Treader" series is about Shane's chess competitions).
The girl kept walking for a while until she ran into someone. She was so concentrated on her book that she never bothered to look.
The young blood cell looked up from her book to find another blood cell her age. This cell was male, though, and he was a little tall for his age. He wore dark, baggy clothes and a backwards cap. "Yo, Aimee," he greeted his friend. "What's that you're reading?"
"Hi, Terence," Aimee replied. "This is volume four of the 'Pawn Treader' series."
Terence snorted. He wasn't much of a reader; he was more of an adventurer. "Come on," he whined. "Let's go play Atom Ball."
"Sure," Aimee agreed, closing her book. "Let me just go home and get my electron mitt."
Terence nodded as Aimee began to run home.
Frank and Shane waited patiently in the doctor's office. They had been waiting for Dr. Thomas for nearly ten minutes, and while Shane had been skimming the small articles in the "National Photographic" magazines, Frank was half-asleep in his seat.
Suddenly, the door opened to reveal a tall, middle-aged man with a long, white lab coat. "Good afternoon, Shane," he greeted his patient. "Remember me? Your old pal, Dr. Morrison."
Shane was a little confused. "Where's Dr. Thomas?" she asked.
Dr. Morrison chuckled. "Would you believe that today is his day off?" he said with a laugh. "Apparently, it's also the golf courses half-off week!"
Frank awoke in the middle of the conversation. "W-w- what's going on?" he questioned. "Where's Dr. Thomas?"
"He's actually at the hospital across town," Dr. Morrison clarified. "Some pediatric emergency."
Not being the brightest crayon in the box, Frank must have misunderstood him. "Oh, I hope his pediatrick heals well." He replied.
Dr. Morrison broke out in laughter. "That's why I like you so much, Frank!" he complimented, patting Frank on the back. "You always were a card!"
Frank gave Dr. Morrison a small grin and sat back down.
Sighing, Dr. Morrison began explaining in a more serious tone. "Now, I know that there's been some type of bug going around in the schools," he informed them, "so I'd like to take a sample of Shane's blood and test it for the virus."
Frank was in a small predicament. On one hand, he wanted the best for his daughter; on the other hand, he knew how much Shane hated needles. "Do you want to do this, honey?" he asked her.
Shane swallowed hard and nodded. True, she hated needles, but she knew that this was for the best.
Dr. Morrison nodded. "I'll be right back soon." With that, he casually walked out the door.
Frank yawned sleepily. Now I can get back to my nap, he thought.
Like Shane's body, Frank's was also a buzzing metropolis, teeming with life. To every cell, germ, and organism in his body, THIS was home.
Inside a lymph node somewhere in Frank's body, a white blood cell by the name Osmosis Jones (or Ozzie, as he was usually called) and his cold pill partner Drix had stopped by. For some reason, the chief wanted to talk to them.
"Jones," the chief began to explain, "you know that I never call you in for the routine orders anymore. This situation is serious, and I need you two on the case."
Ozzie crossed his arms in confidence. "Don't you worry, Chief," he reassured his boss. "Whatever you've got for us, Drix and I can handle it!"
"That's good," the chief muttered. "Anyway, there's been an outbreak of kidnappings in the shoulders and upper back. We think that it could be some kind of disease, maybe even a virus. I want you scout the area for a couple of weeks, okay?"
Ozzie and Drix nodded. This didn't seem like a big deal- just track down a kidnapper, that was it. No real experience required. "No problem, Chief!" Ozzie said.
"It could be," the chief warned. "The kidnapper's really tricky. He wears dark clothes to match the alleyways, and some say that he wears sunglasses to hide his eyes. Most of the kidnappings happened during the night, too. This case isn't easy, Jones; that's why I want you two on it."
"Relax, Chief!" Ozzie consoled him. "You couldn't have left this case in better hands."
The chief nodded. "I suppose you're right," he said, shaking hands with the two cops. "Good luck, boys." Ozzie and Drix nodded and left.
Dr. Morrison knocked on the door. "I'm back," he said, trying to make the syringe look unnoticeable. "Are we ready?"
Shane nervously nodded. "Let's just hurry and get this over with." She replied.
Frank patted Shane on the back. "Don't worry, honey," he encouraged her as Dr. Morrison washed a small area on her arm. "Everything will be just fine. You won't feel a thing."
Aimee ran hurriedly down the street, her backpack bouncing behind her. She was usually late for Atom Ball, and she wasn't about to be late again.
When she got there, Aimee noticed something odd: she was the only person on the field. No one else was there. For the first time, she was on schedule and everyone else was late!
Chuckling to herself, Aimee wondered aloud, "Where are they? I'm pretty sure that I was supposed to be here."
Suddenly, a long and shiny tube descended onto the field. Apparently, Aimee had missed an important notice- Shane was getting a blood sample taken!
CHAPTER ONE
One month later, on the outside world.
Frank Detorri waited patiently in the parking lot of his daughter's school. He was warming up the car for one of the school's finalists in the county chess championship.
A young girl walked out of the school with her backpack, a jacket, and a smile. This was Shane, Frank's daughter, and she was very happy to be one of the ten finalists.
Shane climbed in on the passenger side of the car. "Thanks for watching me play, Dad," she said happily. "I can't believe I'm one of the finalists!"
Frank nodded. "I'm very proud of you," he said with pride, "but don't forget where we have to be today."
Shane sighed in disappointment. Today was one of her bi-annual check-ups with her doctor, Dr. Thomas. As much as she didn't like the check-up in itself, she absolutely hated the possibility of a shot.
Frank saw this out of the corner of his eye. "I know you don't want to go," he reassured her, "but it'll probably do your body some good."
Shane nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right," she said, encouraged. "I just hope I don't get another shot." She inhaled deeply, trying to get rid of the anxiety she had built up earlier. "I'm so worried."
Inside Shane's body, there was more activity going on than one would expect. Her body was home to thousands, millions, and billions of tiny cells and organisms. It's hard to imagine any of them having "lives" and personalities, like we do.
Guess what?
Yes, it's hard to imagine, but inside Shane's body is a huge metropolis of tissue and fluids. In fact, her body IS a metropolis, with the cells, germs, and other organisms as its citizens.
Down in the bone marrow of Shane's left humerus (upper arm bone, FYI), a small shop window lit as it's newest item appeared inside. This was a small bookstore, and its newest item was an exciting book: "Voyage of the Pawn Treader, Volume IV."
Moments later, a young blood cell could be seen running down the street. Her bright orange shirt, dark blue jeans, and ponytail were easily recognized by the residents of the neighborhood. Gasping for breath, she came to an abrupt halt when she saw the new book in the shop window.
The girl's eyes widened and a smile crossed her face. "'Voyage of the Pawn Treader, Volume IV,'" she read the title aloud. "It's finally here- the second to last installment of the series!"
The blood cell raced inside the bookstore and was back outside in seconds, her eyes glued to the pages. She loved reading, especially if the main character was Shane (in case you haven't guessed yet, the "Pawn Treader" series is about Shane's chess competitions).
The girl kept walking for a while until she ran into someone. She was so concentrated on her book that she never bothered to look.
The young blood cell looked up from her book to find another blood cell her age. This cell was male, though, and he was a little tall for his age. He wore dark, baggy clothes and a backwards cap. "Yo, Aimee," he greeted his friend. "What's that you're reading?"
"Hi, Terence," Aimee replied. "This is volume four of the 'Pawn Treader' series."
Terence snorted. He wasn't much of a reader; he was more of an adventurer. "Come on," he whined. "Let's go play Atom Ball."
"Sure," Aimee agreed, closing her book. "Let me just go home and get my electron mitt."
Terence nodded as Aimee began to run home.
Frank and Shane waited patiently in the doctor's office. They had been waiting for Dr. Thomas for nearly ten minutes, and while Shane had been skimming the small articles in the "National Photographic" magazines, Frank was half-asleep in his seat.
Suddenly, the door opened to reveal a tall, middle-aged man with a long, white lab coat. "Good afternoon, Shane," he greeted his patient. "Remember me? Your old pal, Dr. Morrison."
Shane was a little confused. "Where's Dr. Thomas?" she asked.
Dr. Morrison chuckled. "Would you believe that today is his day off?" he said with a laugh. "Apparently, it's also the golf courses half-off week!"
Frank awoke in the middle of the conversation. "W-w- what's going on?" he questioned. "Where's Dr. Thomas?"
"He's actually at the hospital across town," Dr. Morrison clarified. "Some pediatric emergency."
Not being the brightest crayon in the box, Frank must have misunderstood him. "Oh, I hope his pediatrick heals well." He replied.
Dr. Morrison broke out in laughter. "That's why I like you so much, Frank!" he complimented, patting Frank on the back. "You always were a card!"
Frank gave Dr. Morrison a small grin and sat back down.
Sighing, Dr. Morrison began explaining in a more serious tone. "Now, I know that there's been some type of bug going around in the schools," he informed them, "so I'd like to take a sample of Shane's blood and test it for the virus."
Frank was in a small predicament. On one hand, he wanted the best for his daughter; on the other hand, he knew how much Shane hated needles. "Do you want to do this, honey?" he asked her.
Shane swallowed hard and nodded. True, she hated needles, but she knew that this was for the best.
Dr. Morrison nodded. "I'll be right back soon." With that, he casually walked out the door.
Frank yawned sleepily. Now I can get back to my nap, he thought.
Like Shane's body, Frank's was also a buzzing metropolis, teeming with life. To every cell, germ, and organism in his body, THIS was home.
Inside a lymph node somewhere in Frank's body, a white blood cell by the name Osmosis Jones (or Ozzie, as he was usually called) and his cold pill partner Drix had stopped by. For some reason, the chief wanted to talk to them.
"Jones," the chief began to explain, "you know that I never call you in for the routine orders anymore. This situation is serious, and I need you two on the case."
Ozzie crossed his arms in confidence. "Don't you worry, Chief," he reassured his boss. "Whatever you've got for us, Drix and I can handle it!"
"That's good," the chief muttered. "Anyway, there's been an outbreak of kidnappings in the shoulders and upper back. We think that it could be some kind of disease, maybe even a virus. I want you scout the area for a couple of weeks, okay?"
Ozzie and Drix nodded. This didn't seem like a big deal- just track down a kidnapper, that was it. No real experience required. "No problem, Chief!" Ozzie said.
"It could be," the chief warned. "The kidnapper's really tricky. He wears dark clothes to match the alleyways, and some say that he wears sunglasses to hide his eyes. Most of the kidnappings happened during the night, too. This case isn't easy, Jones; that's why I want you two on it."
"Relax, Chief!" Ozzie consoled him. "You couldn't have left this case in better hands."
The chief nodded. "I suppose you're right," he said, shaking hands with the two cops. "Good luck, boys." Ozzie and Drix nodded and left.
Dr. Morrison knocked on the door. "I'm back," he said, trying to make the syringe look unnoticeable. "Are we ready?"
Shane nervously nodded. "Let's just hurry and get this over with." She replied.
Frank patted Shane on the back. "Don't worry, honey," he encouraged her as Dr. Morrison washed a small area on her arm. "Everything will be just fine. You won't feel a thing."
Aimee ran hurriedly down the street, her backpack bouncing behind her. She was usually late for Atom Ball, and she wasn't about to be late again.
When she got there, Aimee noticed something odd: she was the only person on the field. No one else was there. For the first time, she was on schedule and everyone else was late!
Chuckling to herself, Aimee wondered aloud, "Where are they? I'm pretty sure that I was supposed to be here."
Suddenly, a long and shiny tube descended onto the field. Apparently, Aimee had missed an important notice- Shane was getting a blood sample taken!