Readers may find the jump between now and the first chapter a little difficult but bear with me because this is really how Rose experienced it.
Ch.2 Discovered
My eyes fluttered a little as I awoke. Everywhere ached, it seems that last night was harder on me than I had thought. Where was I?
I must have stumbled into a cave last night. The flash flood last night was treacherous. I was surprised to have found this cave in the first place. I ran through them for a bit until I found an open and lighter place to sleep. I was lying on my side mostly facing down. I still had by backpack with me but my kill was gone.
The room was surprisingly light, I must have been outside. I tried to get up, I couldn't. My body was completely worn out. I closed my eyes again.
After a few minutes I heard footsteps. I was too exhausted to analyze them. It must have been about three people, people? I let out a quiet moan, my leg started cramping but I still couldn't move. I must have been running for hours, all the hills were too slippery to climb. When they got closer I heard a separate set of footsteps quicken to a run. The other two quickened as well after a few moments. "Jamie, what is it?" a woman's voice called.
"There's a girl over there Mel" He said as he got closer. I heard him approach me and then I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. The other two people had reached me now. I could feel the heat from their bodies hovering over me. The boy called Jamie shook me a little, I didn't respond. I was still completely wiped out. "Wanda, there is something wrong with her" His voice started to get very worried. I let out a moan to tell him that I was alive.
"She is breathing. I think she stumbled in here after that storm last night, it was dreadful" Another female voice called, obviously the other person.
The boy turned my over so I was on my back now. He touched my silver, oval-shaped locket and I knew what he was looking at. He was looking at the picture of a rose on it as well as my first name at the top of the locket and last on the bottom."Rose" He spoke clearly and softly now. His voice was so familiar in a way. It sounded like a song even though his voice was strong and boyish. My eyes fluttered a little at the sound of my name in his voice but otherwise stayed closed. "Rose" he whispered. The soothing, soft voice was all it took to open my eyes
I slowly opened my eyes and looked into an Angel's face, Jamie's face. His eyes were lush and green, something I had never seen in my entire life. His face was soft and caring. He was smiling now, a beautiful smile. It was full of warmth and happiness. He looked around my age maybe a little younger for a boy. He was still definitely bigger than me. I smiled a little but then my eyelids felt ten times heavier and I drifted into sleep.
***
I was drifting back to consciousness very slowly, carefully leaving my eyes closed. I listened to the conversations that the people thought I didn't hear.
"How long has she been asleep?" Jamie's familiar voice asked.
"Since you left, I told you we would call you if she awoke" A man's voice answered.
"What is she?" Melanie's voice asked, full of curiosity and discomfort.
"I don't know" Jamie answered. "Her eyes definitely had a glow to them but she doesn't have a single scar on her. I'm surprised she was able to get through the caves in such a short amount of time" He continued.
"Do you think we should wake her up now?"Wanda's voice asked.
"I think we should, we need to let her know what is going on before we take the soul out of her, if she has one." The Man's voice answered. I could sense a sharp, metal tool nearby me.
I flashed my eyes open and tried very hard to get off of the bed I was on. They were not going to do anything. I must have been in a makeshift hospital room.
I found myself tied to the cot I was on with tight ropes. Everybody turned to look at me from above. I looked at a woman, a few years older than me with blond hair, her eyes lit up by a soul. I wasn't having any of this. I tried sitting up again and this time I had gone into defense mode. I made a few growls and hisses like a cat. I ripped the rope on my right hand with my sharp teeth. I did my ankles and other hand with my sharp nails. "Jared, stop her!" Melanie called.
The man called Jared grabbed me from the back and pinned my arms behind me as I headed to the door. Ha, ha, ha, he thought he pinned me. I paused and looked from the corner of my eye at the man behind me. I made a low hissing sound and continued walking toward the door, dragging Jared behind me. This was all too easy. Several people gasped loudly at my strength and power.
"No! Jamie, don't!" Both Melanie and Wanda yelled. Jamie ignored this; he put himself in the doorway of the exit with his arms spread wide. That is when I stopped.
I looked into his lush green eyes; His face was beautiful. He was a little bit taller than me and he had dark hair. Even though he was stressed and he was just a boy I thought he looked like an angel. Then he gasped after I started looking at him.
I knew what he was seeing. He was watching my eyes fade with the white light that looked exactly like the light coming from a soul. This only happened when I felt comforted and safe; it came from a strange mixture of the different animal DNA in me.
It was strange that I found this boy comforting. I had only known him for what? Less than an hour? Even then I never really talked to him. I felt this odd, dormant sensation coming from me. It was like…like I was human again.
Only five whole seconds had passed, everybody stared in shock and Jamie's facial feature moved from stress, to surprise and then relaxed. I turned around o look at everybody else. Jared released my hands; obviously he knew that pinning me was way out of his league. I was now completely out of self-defense mode; I was curious. I quickly looked into everybody's eyes as I turned, two of them were souls.
"Who are you people?" I asked, speaking for the first time. Everybody slightly twitched or jumped when I spoke clearly and unthreatened. I was surrounded by two female souls, one woman, five men and Jamie. A man holding a shotgun stepped forward from the crowd.
"I'm Jeb and this is Jamie, Jared, Melanie, Ian, Wanda, Sunny, Kyle and Doc. We are part of the Tuscon colony." He said. "Who might you be?" He asked
I knew he already knew my first name, Jamie would have told him. "Rosalind Terry Anderson" I answered. "My father is a scientist and my mother was a journalist. I am from Tuscan and this is the first time since I changed that I came here, around when they took over. Before you ask, I'm not a soul and I'm not…human" I had to stop from there.
Getting the word 'human' out of my mouth was hard enough, saying that I wasn't one was worse. How I despised that I wasn't human, it made me feel barbaric and a monster, even though it was what I did to survive. However I don't regret changing myself, it was what my father wanted.
Jeb noticed how uncomfortable and annoyed I was getting. "Well, you are welcome to stay with us Rosalind. " He said.
"Call me Rose, and thank you." I said in a sad voice.
"Now have we got any room for Rose anybody?" He asked, nobody in front of him raised their hand.
"It's alright, I can sleep-" I said before I was cut off by Jamie.
"There is a free bed in my room. Remember, the guys moved up north. They'll be back in about a month and by then we'll have mined another room." Jamie said with a smile. Both Wanda and Melanie through him a 'be careful' look but otherwise kept quiet.
"Well that's that, as long as you don't mind Rose." Jeb said. I shook my head.
"Alrighty then, why don't Jamie and Melanie give you a tour of the place while we get you cleaned up and your stomach full." Melanie and Jamie came to me and held my wrist lightly. They pulled me through the caves. They obviously thought I couldn't see well in the dark. It was a few minutes before anybody spoke. It was an uncomfortable silence.
"What are you? I'm not trying to be rude or anything but…" Melanie asked and then trailed of silently. Despite her unfinished sentence, I answered.
"You could say I'm an experiment but otherwise a mutant." They both raised their eyebrows at the term. "My mother died in a car crash when I was twelve. My father as I said was a scientist, he worked in area fifty-one experiment with enhanced human DNA as well as animal DNA." I continued. Both of their jaws were hanging open but then closed them when they saw that I was looking at them. "The souls infiltrated the base to destroy all the equipment as they thought it was barbaric. My father was able to save a prototype of the project he was working on, G.E.H.A. It stands for Genetically Enhanced Humans and Animals. "I paused, thinking of the way my father would come home from work still puzzling and engrossed in his work.
"Must have been some bring-your-daughter-to-work day." Jamie added sarcastically. I giggled at his remark. I wouldn't be allowed into his workplace in my dizziest daydreams.
"When he came home from work that day he started packing essentials in my backpack as well as the G.E.H.A. and his data. Before we could leave the souls were already banging at the door. He instead decided to save me by giving directions on what to do and where to run. I ran for it leaving my father behind for the souls. I did as I was told and injected the serum into my body. The pain was almost…unbearably. I fell asleep and when I woke up, I wasn't human anymore." I stopped there. We had reached the end of the cavern.
"Um, the bathing room is just over there, it's a bit dark and you'll have to mind your step." Melanie said. She pulled out some clothes and a towel that I hadn't noticed her carrying.
The dark was no match for my eyes. I washed myself thoroughly as well as scrubbed my clothes. I hadn't taken a bath in awhile. I usually took one by checking into a motel on the highway every two weeks. It was gross not taking a proper shower and licking yourself like a cat but I hated being in enemy territory.
The clothes were a good fit, probably Wanda's. I made my way out the room and saw that it was only Jamie there. His face was calm but I could see he was slightly excited about something."Where's Melanie?" I asked.
"Oh, she went with Jared to Dinner. We'll catch up with her." He said.
"yeah" I said quietly and then smiling. We continued walking down the cavern.
Being with Jamie and the other humans made me feel different, and yet same somehow. Like I was meant to be here and I had been lost before. I felt like a long dormant part of myself had been awakened again. Like it had been a moonless night and I had only the stars to guide me. For the first time in what seemed eternity, the sun was rising in the east.
I felt…almost…human.