CE 63
Sarik walked into the facility beside the woman whom William had appointed over him. He did so silently, more interested in identifying the things that he passed than where he was going. They eventually arrived at a large room filled with dozens of children his age and younger and several adults that looked like doctors.
Upon entering, he noticed the children were being herded into a line leading out of a doorway where they stripped their clothes and walked through.
"Please get into the line and do what you're told," the lady told Sarik.
"What am I going to do?" Sarik asked innocently.
The woman smiled warmly.
"You're just going to get a check-up," she replied.
"Okay," Sarik remarked before he got into the line.
As Sarik joined the shortening line, the woman moved to the back of the room, watching Sarik intently as he moved along.
When he arrived at the doorway, the bored medical assistant stopped him.
"Please take all of your clothes off," he ordered Sarik in a monotone voice.
"Why?" asked Sarik. "I thought I'm just getting a check-up."
"It's a special check-up," he replied coldly. "Now take your clothes off."
Sarik quickly stripped his clothing, not knowing what to think.
When he stepped through the doorway, he entered into a short, wide corridor with benches lining the walls. He noticed the boy in front of him find a place on a relatively empty bench, so Sarik sat down next to him.
Sarik observed his surroundings, somewhat puzzled. Every so often, a child would be taken by a medical assistant and lead him into an open room with no wall towards the corridor where they were made to sit on a stool and remain still as the doctors examined them and put their observations into a computer.
Sarik waited for what felt like hours before a nurse came to get him. By then, there were only a few other children sitting around, and no one new had joined them for a while.
Sarik was escorted a room further up the corridor. This one was different, as it had four full walls and a number of machines making noises that unsettled him. At the back of the room, the wall was dominated by a large, opaque window with a door located next to it.
Sarik was instructed to sit on a stool in the center of the machinery. When he did, two men dressed in white coats strolled through the door and walked up to examine him.
"A good subject," the older one remarked.
"Maybe in appearance, but we have to test him to make sure," remarked the younger looking one.
The older man moved closer to Sarik, pulling out an electronic stethoscope as he did.
"I'm going to check your heart and breathing," he told Sarik. "Please sit still."
After the older doctor checked Sarik's pulse and breathing, the younger doctor wrapped something around his arm. After a few seconds, it tightened, causing Sarik pain. He tensed up like he always did when something hurt.
A beeping sound came from the younger doctor's handheld computer, which he was using to read Sarik's blood pressure.
"Don't force it!" he yelled, obviously less tolerant than his older colleague.
"Sorry," Sarik said with a slight whine in his voice.
After the doctors finished their manual testing, they walked over to the corner of the room and talked for a few moments. When they walked back over to Sarik, they both seemed happy.
"Alright, we're going to draw some blood now," the older doctor softly informed Sarik.
There was a ringing sound from the older doctor's pocket, from which he pulled out a small headpiece.
"Yes?" he asked as he attached it to his ear as he walked towards the corner of the room.
He paused for a moment.
"Thank you," the older man courtesied before removing the device.
"Apparently, we already have a sample of his blood," he informed his colleague. "They just sent us the relevant info."
"Saves us the time," remarked the young doctor.
He looked over at Sarik.
"Sit completely still if you know what's good for you," he told Sarik threateningly.
Sarik sat as still as his little eight year old body could.
* * *
After half an hour of various tests and scans by the room's machinery, Sarik was given a set of uncomfortable green colored hospital clothes to dress in and sent away to another part of the facility.
After Sarik had left, William met with the two doctors in the observation room to discuss Sarik's situation.
"He's a Coordinator!" the younger doctor yelled fanatically after a moment of discussion. "We should have him killed!"
"Calm yourself, Doctor Smith," suggested the older doctor. "However, Mister Ostheim, I hate Coordinators as much as the next man around here. Care to explain this?"
"I would prefer not to," William answered.
"We need to know what's going on if we're to work around this," the older doctor informed William.
"Let's just say that he's the result of a failed attempt to cure the Coordinator problem," William told him.
"What 'attempt'?" the older doctor asked.
Reluctantly and as unrevealing as possible, William explained to the doctor about the anti-Coordinator drug he had worked with during Sarik's Coordinator modification and the apparently failed attempts that resulted from later uses.
"Director Hellice, we have to tell our superiors!" Smith exclaimed. "They have the right to know."
"Unfortunately, you are right," he agreed. "William, this is not the way we should be going about things. We will speak well on your behalf in this manner, but the organization must know of these circumstances. We need the Head Director's personal authorization before doing anything of the sort that you are proposing."
"I'm sorry, but I don't have the time to take any chances in this matter," William replied threateningly. "Please reconsider."
Director Hellice thought it over for a short moment.
"I'm sorry William, but I am obligated to report this to my superiors," he replied.
"Then I will be replacing you," William said darkly.
Both Hellice's and Smith's eyes widened as William quickly pulled an automatic pistol from inside his suit and put a three round burst into each of their chests.
Smith fell to the ground, dying instantly. Hellice fell holding on to life, if barely.
William slowly and dramatically walked over to the dying doctor, then bent down so that he could whisper into his ear.
"I have a lot of respect for your work," William told him spitefully. "We could have gone a long way together."
William then stood up and put a bullet between Hellice's eyes.
* * *
Sarik left the way he came and found that same woman waiting for him.
"Ready to eat?" she asked him enthusiastically.
"Sure," Sarik replied unconvincingly, concentrating more on his growing fear of the unknown than on his hunger.
The woman lead him through a maze of hallways that lead to various parts of the facility. As they traveled, Sarik could hear the sounds of children talking and yelling. It grew louder and louder until eventually, they came to a large, open door that lead to the facility's cafeteria. Inside, there were hundreds children bustling about, getting in line with their large trays to receive dinner. Standing around among them were several men armed with assault rifles, some of them more concerned with the tempting smell of food than watching over their charges.
Sarik, under the instruction of the woman leading him around, stepped into line with the other children. After twenty minutes of waiting, he received a small meal that was inadequate for anyone of any age.
Sarik looked for a place to sit, but all of the tables he could immediately see were full. As he moved down the rows, he spied a table in the back of the room occupied by a single girl with long, golden blond hair who appeared to be more interested in poking at her food than eating it.
Sarik sat down in the seat across from hers. She lifted her head up to look at him for a few seconds, then went back to staring and poking at her food.
Sarik figured she was shy, so he went about to eating his food. After a few bites, he found he also was too anxious to eat.
What am I doing here? Sarik wondered fearfully. What is going on? Am I in trouble?
After several minutes of thought, Sarik grew bored, and as a result, regained his boldness.
"My name's Sarik," he said to the girl, introducing himself. "What's yours?"
Again, she looked up at him, albeit a little longer this time, then back at her food. He managed to get a good look at her eyes, which were a dark purple in color.
"Can you talk?" Sarik asked in a slightly sarcastic tone.
The girl mumbled something that Sarik couldn't understand over the crowd.
"What did you say?" he asked.
"My name is Stella," she repeated softly, peeking up shyly.