By now we'd all broken formation and started chatting, but every eye was still locked on the ground in awe and exhilaration. Even from this height we could make out the ground perfectly, to the point of each individual tree leaf being distinct. We were made in a lab after all, what else would you expect? I couldn't pick out the words of the 24 other kids despite my enhanced hearing, but I think I could make a pretty good guess about what everyone was talking about.
"It's so gorgeous!" exclaimed Asset 4 for about the fortieth time. But I couldn't really blame her. With the white cube that was the Facility far behind us, all we could see in every direction was rich greenery. It was pretty stunning, I had to admit. We had been raised in a windowless basement with top-of-the-line security systems and guard patrols 24/7, so this was our first in-person sight of the outside world.
"It really is," sighed Asset 24. She was a little more distanced from Asset 4 than I was, although we were all pretty spaced out. Our wingspans were all around 16 feet, so of course there wasn't much room for huddling together. Asset 24 was just clinging to the fringes of our conversation, adding comments here and there, but she was a sweet girl who I knew was lonely, so I didn't mind her hanging around.
"I dunno, man, I've seen prettier things. Like y- what's that?" I glanced over to Asset 14 and notice bright red fading from his cheeks. Before I had time to wonder what that was all about, I caught sight of what he is pointing at. My stomach dropped and my wings faltered for a moment. After I took a few seconds to recover, I flashed a hand signal, calling my team to formation. Without turning around I could feel all of them take formation, two diagonal lines with me as the intersecting front point.
"Do you all know what that is?" I shouted over my shoulder. I felt a few of them nodding, all of their adrenaline skyrocketing. Sometimes I hate this physic connection we all seem to share, but in times like this it reminds me that we're all family. The only family any of us have got. "That right there is a lake," I continued. "And you know what that means?" A few kids begin shaking from excitement, and I decided this was enough building up. "Team?!" I called.
Suddenly I heard a buzz of static in my ear. "Asset 1, don't you dare-" Agent Davids began. Of course I'm ignoring him.
"Dive!" I shouted, and as one we flapped once to propel ourselves forward and folded in our wings. We were never allowed to dive in the wind tunnel, and I could see why. This was way too much fun to actually be allowed back in the Facility.
"This does not pertain to the missio-" Agent Davids began again.
"Shut it, old man," I interrupted, so full of adrenaline my already minuscule filter is gone. "This pertains to fun. And think of it this way, we're just adjusting our gills to outside water." We all have wings, gills, enhanced senses, and super strength and agility. Like I said, we were in a lab all our lives for a reason. I heard a snarl from the other end, and the static cut out. I guess Agent Grumpy gave up on us.
"WOO-HOO!" I heard someone shout behind me. As I turn around I noticed that everyone looks somehow... different. Not physically, we aren't that cool, but there'd been a change in their eyes. Everyone's eyes were shining with something you didn't see much in the Facility. Happiness. But I realized it wasn't just that, it ran deeper. Under the pure exhilaration there was something else. For the first time ever, in my squad's eyes I could see hope.
Suddenly my neck was snapped to the side by a harsh smack that left my skin stinging. My limbs went spread-eagle (no pun intended) as I hit the water sideways and did a full underwater cartwheel. My vision went fuzzy for a moment, but after a few frantic shakes it was back to normal. I glanced around through the bubbles and saw the rest of my team shoot through the water with distorted whooshes, all entering much more gracefully than I had. With our super-eyes that could even see in the dark and underwater, I watched a few people, including Asset 24, dive deeper. I almost stopped them before I felt their intense curiosity at what lied below. I left them to explore and headed to the surface with the rest of the group.
We stayed there for quite a while, splashing and floating and chatting and diving. The water did sting in my gills a bit at first, but once I'd adjusted to the non-distilled water it felt much more enjoyable. By the time we left the lake, the sun was going down. We probably would have stayed in even longer if Asset 14 hadn't prompted us to investigate why "the sky is on fire." At his warning-well, more like a shriek- we all bolted out of the water. Half of us shook our wings off and launched into the air, and the rest scrambled up trees. We reached the sky in moments, and everyone in the air sank down to the branches below in awe. We had never even seen a sunset before, only heard it mentioned once or twice. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, the sky painted every hue imaginable by the hands of the sun. But the real show started after the sun went down.
None of us had moved an inch when the first one appeared. A fleck against the dark sky, a grain of sugar dropped on velvet. Before long there was another and another and another until the whole sky was painted with white twinkles. My twisted neck ached as I looked up, but the pain barely registered as I fought back tears of wonder. The only other time we had seen stars was on star charts given to us for navigational purposes. Those papers didn't do this sight justice, it was too gorgeous for words. I heard a sniffle, and looked over to see that Asset 24 was crying. I would have be worried if she didn't have a grin on her face as bright as the stars above us. Past her Asset 4 had silent tears leaving trails down her cheeks and Asset 14 was rubbing his eyes near her. Maybe a little too near, but I let it slide. What can I say, I'm a hopeless romantic.
"A-Asset 1?" whispered Asset 24 once she had somewhat composed herself. "Can we sleep up here?"
"Out of the question!" interrupted Agent Davids, making several of us jump and a few squeak in surprise. "I've allowed you to waste precious mission time on these... these shenanigans, but now you want to sleep on the tops of trees? There is absolutely no cover here, I won't allow it."
"Too bad, so sad, old man," I laughed. "We're in the middle of the woods, it's perfectly fine!"
"But-" he starts, but I interrupted him with a phrase I'm personally rather proud of.
"We're sleeping up here. If that bothers you, then cry yourself a river, build a bridge, and get over it!" With that I set myself horizontally across three branches, closed my eyes, and started mock-snoring.
"Asset 1," said Agent Davids, with the I-would-smack-you-if-I-could tone. "Asset 1!" he shouted, but I only snored louder.
Over the earpiece there was an angry shout, a few words I can't repeat, and a wooden clatter followed by papers fluttering and objects shattering. There was a buzz of static for a few moments before it cut out. Had he... flipped over a table? I smiled with pride and made myself more comfortable on my makeshift bed.
"I'll take first watch," volunteered Asset 4, her dark skin and black uniform blending in with the night. The skin-tight jumpsuits were actually surprisingly comfortable, but then again we hadn't really ever worn anything else.
"I'll take second!" exclaimed Asset 14 a little too quickly. If Asset 4 noticed, she gave no indication. At least, nothing I could pick up on.
"Goodnight everybody," murmured Asset 24. There were a few more scattered " 'night"s as we all gradually drifted off to sleep.
YOU ARE READING
The Indestructibles
Bilim Kurgu*NOTE: This story contains a homosexual relationship* ~~~ "We were made to be untouchable. Now we're dying. And I'm going to find out why." Melody and 24 others were made in a lab to be supersoldiers. Fighting or fleeing, they were built to be perfe...
