Red Road

Chapter Three

Sunday, April 18, **18

    “Bring her in, S-10-02”. These projects needed to come to a close quickly. This one’s Voice should be intact. We can’t afford another incident like last time..

    I shudder at the thought. The door opened, and Cadence stepped in, the crazed girl in tow. I was confident in this one. The Voice had done a phenomenal job. I’ve heard so much about it’s effects on this girl. Based on the reports, she had been mumbling nursery rhymes and muttering about puppets all the way here. I chuckled, seeing her expression. I had looked up her file. She had been successfully erased, and had even left willingly. We just had to wait for her to reach the meeting point. I was surprised at how she’d made it there, though. Completely alone, and on foot no less!

    This little experiment of mine was going surprisingly well.

    “Good evening, sir. I’ve got our Inferior here. I assume we need to do a full inspection?” Cadence had a smug look on his face as he nudged the girl forward. I had seen the enraged expression that flashed across her face for a moment after being called an Inferior. Good. We needed emotionally strong subjects. I look her up and down. She seemed fit enough to begin training soon. I nodded to Cadence, signaling my approval. The girl glares at me, and I hold back a chuckle. She seems so bloodthirsty.. Nothing a little reprogramming couldn't fix. 

Monday, April 19, **18

~~

    Trust your instincts, Fern. I handle those now. Accessing your subconscious was extreme, yes, but it’s the only way to help you. You’ll figure the rest out later. For now… Follow their orders and cooperate.

    I’ve never let you down before, have I?

~~

    I paid no attention to this Cadence person. His name was familiar, but I had more important things to focus on. As we were walking to our undefined destination, I was reminded of my life back there, when I worked, when everything was repetitive and monotonous... When nothing really mattered.

    I thought about those odd feelings in the back of my mind that had saved my life. Maybe I have a superpower. I smile to myself. I had avoided being blown up, and stabbed, and probably many other things before then. I didn’t really care about the past now, although it did give me useful information about the present. Maybe I could use my power to climb up the ranks… 

    And show that stupid boss how much of an Inferior I really am.

    That really pissed me off. I know now that “Inferior” is a title, but it’s still a shitty one. How dare they call this snobby Cadence guy a “Superior” when I’m clearly so much smarter than him?! Not to mention his overconfidence, dear god. He has to be the most annoying asshole I’ve ever had the displeasure to know. I hate it. He treats me like a tool, like I’m expendable. He better not dare try and stop what I’ve started… It wouldn't help his case much.

    I hold back a giggle as he’s reprimanded by a higher-up for something I wasn’t paying attention to. He isn't all that high and mighty… Doesn’t he see? This facility thinks of him as he thinks of me. Just a tool. Just something that they can be careless about, something they’ll use and discard like nothing ever happened. Like it never even mattered.

He’ll figure it out eventually. Unless he’s just an idiot, which I wouldn’t argue against. Honestly…

I don't even know what to think of this place, these people. What I do  know, though?

I’m going to destroy it all.

Friday, April 23, **18

~~

Yes. She’s handled this well. I would expect nothing less of her. At first I was hesitant, but now it’s all falling into place. Fern has understood me well. She may not even know I’m here, honestly. Whether she does or not, though, is none of my concern.

My only concern is the completion of our mission.

Now, You’ve been training for four days straight. They haven’t heard a single complaint come from you. Good. Cooperate for now. The fun comes soon, trust me. You’ll learn so much more about this place than I could ever communicate to you. I trust that you’ll let us work together, as we are meant to. Think of it like a puppet show. The puppetmaster and their puppet. The show cannot go on if either is missing. 

Except you, Fern, are not quite like the puppet in many cases. 

Example?

    I cannot replace you.

~~