Of Metis and Men – Ch. 6
Two and a half years later found Olivia running through the woods, topside of her home, quickly. She panted and had a stitch in her side but still she ran for all she was worth. Her hand tightly gripped a small piece of paper, and she knew she had mere minutes to make it back into the building. With her heart pounding and time ticking away, she opted to make a risky move and shifted mid-stride. The small wolf bound quickly towards the building and she shifted quickly back to girl form and slid under the door as it ground down into its locked position. She grinned as the felt very much like Indiana Jones, minus the hat, and pushed herself back onto her feet. The race didn't stop there, nor did Olivia; she ran quietly through the corridors, slid a pass key through the lock and as the door opened pressed herself through the space as it opened. Janus looked at her as she walked into his office and put the piece of paper on his desk.
"Four minutes faster than last time, you are getting better." He said with a smile, reading over the note.
Olivia flopped into a chair; reverted back to Crinos with a suppressed groaned and nodded while she caught her breath. She was settling into her chair when she caught the look Janus was giving her, with a silent grumble she shifted back to the much hated homid form. It was no use arguing, she knew that because Janus had told her time and again that she would have to get used to being in homid form for long stretches of time. No matter how often she did it, she still could not get used to being in that weak and useless form. Even when it was only sitting still in a chair, it felt to her like minutes stretched into hours. She privately continued to think that the form was only good for using a PDA, computer and jump rope. Other than that it was a weak and too breakable form.
"How many more of these trials do I have to do?" she asked, once she had caught her breath. "Shouldn't I be out in the world stealing things and so on and so forth?"
"I'm not sure, but with the progress you are making I'm sure they will only get harder." Janus said and then grinned at her "Stealing? Bah, give us some credit Olivia! You know you love a challenge, not to mention you are one of the few elite who get this fabulous training adventure."
"Oh yes, being picked to be a spy is so fabulous!" She grinned at him "Somehow I think intensive training would not quite be described as fabulous."
"You love it." He said winking "It forces you to think on the move and makes you adapt. Face it; you were getting bored because you are smart."
"True." She admitted "But I don't get to see my friends as often as I like."
"Well that was rather for your safety." Janus said softly.
Olivia nodded, remembering well why she needed that safety. It had started with a bizarre change in her living environment, one that they facilitators didn't even see coming. For some reason things had gone down hill quickly after everyone had changed and moved room assignments. Odd behavior had almost become the norm; the children would become aggressive over the smallest of infractions. More fights and outbreaks had happened than ever before. It seemed that no matter what the staff tried, someone was up in arms about something nearly every day. For almost two years the staff had tried differing methods of control but slowly each one failed, it was never said but Olivia felt that there was something very wrong and that somehow it had been caused by the facility they lived in and not some anomaly from being Metis.
Erica and her pack had by default become the Alpha pack of their age group. No one had contested this, fearing retaliation and so the rest fell into line, with Olivia and her dormer mates being the Omegas. Not really caring who pretended to be in charge, Olivia spent just as much if not more time with her computers. She and Justin were becoming quite a good team for fixing broken things, so they were normally left alone , not to mention having Brynne as a body guard was a good deterrent as well. All in all, her dorm just wanted to be left to their own devices.
Olivia had been working on a new attachment for her PDA when Brynne lumbered up to her. She quickly began tapping away on the keyboard Olivia had made for her. Over the years the girls' arthritis in her jaw was so bad that it actually caused her jaw to break when trying to speak, so Olivia taught her how to use the keyboard to speak instead. And Brynne always had a lot to say to her, being able to communicate without pain was a great relief, so she often spent time by Olivia's workbench and chatted with her. As if all of the chaos of the other children wasn't bad enough, it seemed that Brynne was able to hear the thoughts of others. Of course Olivia tried to remain neutral but when Brynne confronted her with her own thoughts of skepticism, she quickly believed and was comforted to know that the girl was mature enough to forgive her thoughts she never said.
As any good friend would, Olivia tried to help Brynne learn to control it, focus it and use it to her advantage. It was nice to know when Erica and her crew were going to try to corner and jump one of them, better even yet to learn what the doctors were thinking. Of course Brynne's new ability was sworn to secrecy amongst the dorm mates and no one ever talked about it unless they had ample white noise cover. As time went on, the ability became stronger and the girl began having more and more trouble turning it on and off. It was literally beginning to drive her crazy to hear all the projected thoughts of those around her, and finally after a particularly bad lunch experience, Olivia convinced her that Janus had to know. Two years later it was a wild thing: sometimes on, sometimes off but always loud and annoying. Drugs helped to keep it under control somewhat but not enough that Brynne wanted to socialize with the other children, so she was granted permission to stay in the dorm except at meals.
Cruelly fate deemed that it would be Olivia, without the power to hear thoughts, was to hear the most damning thing ever. She had been at her bench when she heard the plot. Erica and Matt were in a corner close to her workbench talking in hushed tones. They happened to be arranged so acoustically that the walls were transmitting every word they said to Olivia. They were planning a big break out; they had finally figured out that their group of Metis could easily overpower those guarding them. They planned to bully the others into submission, and beat down those who opposed. Apparently they knew that Olivia had been taken "up and out" and figured that security wasn't as tight as they had been led to believe. Erica outlined the plan in specific detail, Olivia was secretly amazed she was able to put that much thought into anything, and Matt even tried to poke holes in the plan. Once they were certain the plan would work they set a time and date. Olivia gasped lightly because it would be on the next full moon, Erica's peak power time of course. She was quickly snatched up by Erica, who had heard the gasp and not so subtly threatened with her life is she even so much as breathed a word. In fact Erica planned to keep a very close eye on Olivia, even escort her until the time of the escape to make sure nothing was accidentally spilled.
The next few days were uncomfortable for Olivia, she was miserable and when Brynne came by, she knew that her thoughts were screaming but so was her plea for silence. She figured if she could just make it through the next few weeks, things would be fine. She was not stupid enough to announce that she wouldn't go along with the plan; however Olivia had no desire or plans to leave the only home she had ever known. She stayed nice and quiet around Erica. She made sure that she stuck to her normal schedule and tried to be as unthreatening as possible. Two weeks went by without incident and then Fate decided to be not so kind. Olivia was taken out of the dorm and up to the first floor. It was all very hush, hush – which of course means by the time she made it to the elevator everyone knew she had been taken and the look on Erica's face chilled her. To her utter amazement she was taken outside and being outside almost made her forget it, because once she stepped out into the yard she almost overloaded on the new stimuli. She had never been so she looked around in awe at everything; it was the first time she had seen a real spring. All the flowers and trees blooming in full color, the scents, the smells and the pure wonder of it all suddenly made her wonder why they were never allowed to experience this joy. She shifted between forms, enjoying the new experience and would have played longer but Janus called her and motioned her over to him. He took her for a walk along a winding path and into a new building, where they walked into office filled with a group of people she had never met before. It was an official meeting and that made her very nervous.
"Take these, go into the next room and change please." Janus said quietly handing her a small bundle of clothes.
Olivia nodded knowing that he meant for her to shift, thus she was very confused but did as he said returning promptly. Once she was in the room some of the group members walked over to her and began to examine her, or at least that's what she thought they were doing. Some lifted her arms or tilted her face, but most just walked around her. There was a lot of scratching on note pads and heads bent towards each other and muttered. It ended quickly and she was sent into an empty office to wait, which didn't bother her at all since it had a computer. She quickly logged in and spent time finishing the last test she had for her online course, which lasted all of ten minutes so she promptly began browsing for new toys to get. She realized that she was once again being observed when forty minutes went by and no one came to get her. With a mental sigh and shrug, she continued her browsing. Twenty minutes after that she was returned to her level, and quickly gathered up by Brynne and locked away in her dorm.
'Erica is looking for you. She thinks you told Janus all about her big plan and she is furious. She and the others have set a trap for you.' Brynne typed out. 'You should stay away from her, all the hate she is thinking is louder than anyone else's thoughts. I really think she wants to hurt you.'
"Thanks for the warning, I will be sure to be around you at all times." Olivia said, her stomach tightening into cold knots.
For the rest of the night she was Brynne's shadow, she tossed and turned that night worrying about how she would be able to stay away from Erica and her vicious pack. She had nightmares about what would happen when she was confronted. The next day solved the problem for her. Even before the morning alarm she was awakened by Janus calling on her room phone.
"You will begin with your special training." He said softly
"What training?" she asked sleepily
"That group you saw yesterday is a on a Glass Walker security council, you will be trained as a special operative." He said a slight catch to his voice.
"A spy?" she said, awake and alert at that particular bit of news "For what, for whom?"
"A good spy doesn't ever want to know those answers." Janus said gravely "It could cost you, your life."
"Don't bother to pack anything except what you cannot live without immediately, your training starts today and I'm not sure how long it will take. You leave after breakfast."
"Where am I going?" she asked
"Close by- I will still be able to see you, but it's another building so you can come and go for training without upsetting the other children." Janus said
"Okay, I will be ready." She said, oddly relieved that Janus would still be close by. "Do I need a coat? Is it chilly out there?"
"No, you will be fine." He chided "Let's get ready shall we?"
Olivia hopped out of bed with a grin, almost tripped herself as she realized she was still holding onto the phone, and grabbed her bathing supplies. She was excited, scared but still excited none the less. She quickly breezed through her bathing and went to breakfast early to eat and get done. She didn't stop and think she just waltzed out of her dorm with her head on the thoughts of her up coming changes and what it all meant. That was when Erica caught her. She was so far into her own mind that when she was grabbed harshly by her hair and yanked back into a corner it caught her off guard and off balance.
"So I hear you went outside." Erica snarled at her. "Apparently being a little sell out and Janus' pet had paid off nicely for you. Did you really think I wouldn't hear about your betrayal?"
"That's not…"Olivia started and was hushed with a huge fist across the mouth.
"That's not what my friends tell me." She spat. "You really are that naive to think that you are the only one who has friends amongst the staff. I think it's time you learned your place."
With no further words, she began to pummel Olivia, with her pack jumping in. Vicious punches, kicks and swipes of claws rained down upon her in a frenzy. The attack was quick, and particularly savage. Though she tried to fight back, her size was a distinct disadvantage. Though she tried there was no way she could fight against five huge Metis, who were hell bent on hurting her. As she felt flesh rip and bones pop she knew that she was going to die. In a panic Olivia focused against the pain for a moment and sent one loud burst of thought.
'BRYNNE!' she screamed as loud as she could in her mind.
It was the last though she had before the world went dark. Images swirled around in her head in a grey mist. Voices all around her but they didn't make sense, faces coming in and out but no one really talking to her. Then the blessed darkness again came and everything went silent.
"Olivia." Janus voice said "Wake up, now."
She cracked an eye open and found the bright light hurt her. She closed her eye again and tried to speak.
"Hurts." She whimpered
"I know but we have to get you up and moving." He said firmly
"What?" she asked
"Erica and her pack." He said flatly "Apparently they were convinced you told of us their secret plan to escape. Brynne told us everything, in fact without your friends you would not be here. She, Justin and Tim kept them off you long enough for the medics to get you away. They are all okay, took a day or so to recover but the rest of the children very much view them as heroes."
"What?" she asked again, but fearing the answer.
"They attacked you, and because of your blood allergy almost killed you. We had to work on you for quite a few days to help you repair the damage. There were times where I feared you wouldn't make it. That pack was quite brutal with you and it will take a bit of work before you feel back up to snuff, though I want you to know that Erica and the boys have since been removed to containment to await their punishment." He said quietly "You have been here for three weeks recovering.
Three weeks? Olivia's eyes snapped open at that. She wondered just what had been done to her. She closed her eyes again and focused on slowly shifted into lupine form, into Hispo, homid and back to Crinos. Her body ached but it was a dull pain, obviously she had been unconscious for the worst of it. She felt her face, gingerly with her claws. Tufts of fur were missing around her eyes and nose. Her mouth seemed overly chapped and the top of her head was missing more fur. She sighed and shifted into homid again.
"Can I have a mirror please?" she asked, surprised to find her voice so scratchy. "What happened to my throat?"
"Matt was trying to remove your means of speech." Janus said handing her a mirror. "It caused you to swallow blood and made your throat swell."
She looked herself over carefully. In girl form she still showed a bit of bruising around her face and a thin line showed where cruel claws had ripped into her throat. Her eyes were puffy and her lips pressed thin from the stress. She shifted back into her natural form and looked again, the damage was still there and she began to cry. Fat tear drops falling onto the mirror that had fallen into her lap.
"How soon can I start training?" she asked, almost smiling at the shock on Janus' face.
"Dear, you have suffered serous injuries. I think it better that you heal first." Janus said, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"NO." Olivia was surprised at how loud and vehement her voice sounded even to her. "I want to start as soon as I am able. I need to be out of here."
Janus looked at her and then nodded in agreement. He patted her lightly, shut off the lights and exited the room. Olivia lay back and cried a while longer. Despite everything else she could not believe that Erica would actually try to kill her. They were supposed to be family of sorts. She snorted at that, really they were just the grouped freaks. Her thoughts spiraled down that dark path until the door creaked. Brynne, Tim and Justin stood in the door until she waved them in.
"Thanks." She said to Brynne
'I couldn't let them kill you, besides you would have done the same.' Brynne typed 'I am glad to finally see you awake and better.'
"Are you okay Olivia?" Justin lisped "We were worried for a while."
"Yea, just sore and disillusioned." She said, then smiled softly at them "But I am very glad to see my friends."
"Erica and her pack got taken off for punishment." Tim said, smiling just a bit "I hope they get whipped real good."
"So what's new?" Olivia said, quickly moving off the topic of Erica.
Justin and Brynne quickly filled her in about the new steps taken to ensure that no more attacks like that would happen. Tim rapidly bullet pointed all the new rules that had happened and how the other kids were taking her attack. On the good side, everything was much more relaxed since the Alpha group had been removed, and there was even talk about an outdoor facility for them to utilize. It was fascinating to hear but having company wore her out quickly and she fell asleep even while Justin rambled on. She awoke sometime in the night, sweating and terrified. She forced her hands to release the blankets. In shock she looked down and saw that they were actually hands. In her terror she shifted to girl form.
'That's gonna suck in a fight.' She thought with a yawn and turned over to get more sleep before the biggest change in her life.
Olivia blinked and pulled herself back into the present. There was a new group of Glass Walker scientists to impress and she planned to do the best she could. There wasn't a time while she was recovering that she hadn't pushed harder and worked longer to never be in a weak position again. She refused to be caught off guard and worked very hard to become damn good at what she was learning. It was only three months after her attack and while she worked hard there was still some fear and frustration holding her back.
At her request she had been taught how to use a rope dart. Something that combined her love of jumping rope, some martial arts and a way to make sure her attackers couldn't get close to her. She had seen it on some cable television documentary and decided that it was the perfect weapon for her to learn. After the first week, her arms, legs and torso were so bruised from her own clumsy attempts, Janus almost had her switched to another weapon, but Olivia refused and continued to work with it until she became good. Now at three months later she was more than proficient, learning much more quickly than anyone would have given her credit for – but Olivia reasoned that she had been in training ever since she decided that she wanted to jump rope. The rope dart had become and extension of her and lately she went no where without it. The fluidity of the motion was like a dance to her and she spent her free time trying to create moves that she could use while shifting. She was given plenty of time to practice, which was new to her since she had been living a planned life for as long as she could remember. In the new training building Olivia was encountering things she never thought she would.
For once in her life, she had privacy. She had her own small apartment, instead of a dorm. She was even cooking her own meals, granted it had taken time to learn how to cook for her allergies so she wasn't inadvertently aggravating them. She had been given a personal assistant for the first two months to come in each day and teach her how to function in the real world unattended. Things that Olivia had taken for granted such as laundry, cooking and house cleaning were addressed. Years of living with a regimented schedule made it much easier for her to adapt, but she was finding her time used up by the end of each day. She still continued on with her schooling and of course practice replaced much of her day.
Olivia still fought daily with the notion that she was going to have to live her life in a shifted form. Despite what others thought, Crinos was her natural and very normal form. She hated the homid form and all the weakness it represented. Even worse was learning that every time she frenzied she was stuck in the blasted form with no way to do anything about it until she calmed down. She finally broached the subject with Janus, and to her amazement he was very calm while he explained it to her.
"Olivia, you are used to Crinos and so are all of our Kinfolk and Garou, but in the human world they have never seen us or have at least convinced themselves that it was a joke or dream." Janus said softly "We are very much hidden, hence the rule about not breaking the Veil. Whether you believe it or not, you are considered to be very attractive in the human world."
"Sure, pretty there and just a freak in ours." Olivia scoffed.
Janus said nothing, but smiled at her and patted her little human hand. Olivia unfolded herself from the chair and walked towards her apartment. She was still getting used to the whole idea that she didn't look like a freak to outside people. The Garou and Kinfolk at her home had always given her a bit better treatment but Olivia had always figured that it was because she was polite but now she had to wonder if it were based purely on her looks. Changing her destination mid-stride, she turned and went to the practice room. She unwound her rope from her waist and began to warm up.
She gripped the rope tightly in her hand and began to swing it around her body. She was working very hard at an attack that would still protect her from glancing blows. The rope looped around and she rhythmically jumped over it, almost without thought. She began to swing it up and over her in an elliptical pattern. As she jumped through she worked on keeping control of the rope tension as she shifted to Crinos and back. She worked at slashing out with claws and bullet until she could easily get between rope swings without cutting it. She worked until a fine sheen coated her body, moving in and around the obstacle course she had devised. She was completely unaware, this time that she was being watched. A group of Glass Walkers watched her on a screen as she went through her self-created workout. The skills she showed in this private routine were much more advanced than the training they had created and most were surprised. Janus was not, instead he watched her with tight lipped concern.
"She is ready." a petite woman said softly.
"I don't agree." Janus said "She is still leaning to function in a human world."
"No better training than hands on." The woman responded looking at him "It's time for you to stop protecting. Cut the cord as it were."
Janus could say nothing to that, and turned to watch Olivia again, even he was impressed with the lengths she made herself go through. Being Garou gave her the agility and strength but it was her determination that made her as good and as deadly as she was. He doubted that Olivia even really understood what would happen if she were to fight the way she practiced. The only fight she had ever been in had been the unfair match against Erica and her pack, and it was obvious that she didn't ever consider that fighting against other types of people might require differing techniques.
"Give her another two weeks; I want her to understand that she must use more than one fighting style." Janus said calmly.
"Two weeks is all you can have. On day fifteen I want her in Detroit ready to go." The woman said. "Make sure she is prepared to take on an assignment immediately."
Janus nodded, hoping that he was portraying a calm he did not feel. How was he supposed to get her ready for the real world in less than two weeks? Olivia finally stopped, exhausted. She got a drink of water and then forced herself to go through one of the fighting exercises that Janus had prepared for her. She looked up into the corner of the room, one tile in particular holding her gaze even though it was no different than the others. Janus met her gaze and smiled at her, hoping that she would be ready for what she would have to do.