Mutation

Chapter 7: The Mutant Army

Hazel

The only thing more awkward right now than entering an unfamiliar building, and you have no idea where to go, is having Leo walking with you, who was acting like a toddler marveling at everything that came into sight. I gradually inched away from him as he continued pestering busy mutants. Leo is naturally an over-friendly person, a quality I don't have much of. He loves meeting new people and talking with them. Well, in my opinion, there's a point where it becomes just plain creepy.

"Uh, Leo?" I said clearly my throat impatiently while Leo socialized with some attractive girls with gills on their faces. (By the way, GROSS.) As soon as I got his attention, I continued, "We're here for a reason, remember? We'll have plenty of time to socialize later." I yanked his arm and pulled him away. Luckily with my wonderful and handy powers, I saw him winking at the girls behind my back. I think he deserved that blood-drawing pinch I gave him at the bend of his arm.

We followed the helpful signs above our heads to guide us to the main conference room. My powers sensed a weird vibe here, but I figured that was just my paranoia talking. Luckily, we managed to find where we were supposed to go when we spotted Maxine and another boy waiting for us. Maxine, of course, flashed a friendly smile at us. The other boy's eyes became fixated on me. Seriously, what was the deal with the staring?

"Hazel, Leo, you made it! And right on time too. My brother Linus and I will escort you two to the meeting. Just follow us." Maxine and Linus gestured for us to follow, and we did so.

Linus stepped back and greeted Leo, bumping their fists together. It reminded me of mine and Leo's handshake, where we would just slap each other on the arm as hard as we could. It sounds harsh, but as you know, that's how Leo and I are together.

"Sup, roomie? And it's definitely a pleasure to meet you, Hazel," Linus says, then grabs my hand and places his lips on my knuckles. A blush rose on my cheeks. Oddly enough, I hated gestures like these from guys. In fact, I never got this type of treatment from a guy. (With the exception of Leo escorting me to the middle school spring formal. Wait, no, that was just awkward.)

"Uh, okay," I said lamely, not really knowing how to respond. Leo snorted rudely, which led to him busting out laughing. Leave it up to Leo to ruin my chances with a somewhat cute guy.

Maxine spun around, putting her finger to her lips, signaling us to be quiet. We approached a tall door, which opened with a fingerprint on a scanner. Inside was Dr. Baker, Sergeant Hammond, some soldiers, and about 15 other mutants. They stared at us as we were ushered to our seats, located at the end of the table. Luckily, Leo and I were by Dr. Baker to ease the confusion. She was sitting at the end seat like she was the president.

"Welcome, Hazel and Leo. Glad you two could come to this important meeting. We have important things to discuss that we think you'd we interested in," Dr. Baker explained, giving us a calm smile. It definitely was overwhelming to be in a room full of people you didn't know, and they were staring at you like you were foreign royalty.

"Please don't tell us anything bad, Doc," Leo pleaded. I couldn't blame him. Bad news wasn't exactly what I wanted to hear right now. I was going to use my powers to read everyone's mind, but I was aware there were other mutants in here watching me.

"Don't worry, Leo. We were just going to announce that we think that you two should join our Mutant Army." Dr. Baker always seemed sure of herself. She was a very wise woman though, so I knew she knew what she was talking about.

"Mutant Army?" I asked, suddenly feeling dumb. I mean, I can't possibly join an army. I can't save and protect people like the US army can. Or at least I've never thought of myself doing a task like that.

"It's not as bad as it sounds." Sergeant Hammond chuckled. "You're mutants, for crying out loud! Do you realize how much of an advantage you have compared to a regular army? You have these powers, so why not use them for a good thing like this?"

Sergeant Hammond had a point. I couldn't help but smile to myself, realizing I had powers to possibly help people. I don't know how Leo would manage with this, but I know we are capable. Maybe it'll help me discover more about myself. Who knows what else I could do with my powers.

"I'll take your smiles as a yes," Dr. Baker said, clapping her hands together. I guess we were soldiers now, even though we didn't answer officially. I mean, did we really have a choice?

"Should they meet some of us? We soldiers need to know each other," Maxine cut in. You could tell Dr. Baker got aggravated easily with know-it-alls like Maxine. And how in the world is an innocent little girl like Maxine a soldier in the Mutant Army? So many things make no sense.

"Excellent idea, Maxine. Lets go down the table, shall we?" Dr. Baker gestured down the table at everyone. "You already know Maxine and Linus, the smartest human being in the world and the human..." She continued going down the table and introduced us to each mutant.

Dana was 17 years old, and was tall, thin, and had jet black hair. She looked almost emo with her nose piercing and many ear piercings. Her power was invisibility. I liked how fierce she looked, but her kindness was showing through the way she interacted with people.

Next was a little girl named Jaz. She was six years old, and had short, curly blonde locks that was pulled into pigtails, and she was pretty adorable. That is, until I saw her powers. I almost choked when the tiny, cute little girl transformed into giant, furry beast. Her fur was the same color as her hair, and she had canine teeth and claws. Basically, the sweet little girl had the ability to turn into a bigger version of a werewolf.

After Jaz transformed back into her little girl body, there was Sonni. He was a 9 year old Indian boy who was born without legs from his mid-thigh down, but miraculously, his legs grew back when his mutation happened. From time to time, he will lose feeling in his legs, but he's mostly stable. This boy has the ability to shape-shift to any animal he can think of. His legs grew back because he inherited lizard-like abilities. I was so amazed by these amazing kids. And there were still more.

I saw many others, and got to know most of them. All of them were so kind, and so...real. These kids were like me and Leo, but with abilities that made them seem not normal. Maybe that's why humans think we're freaks. They just haven't talked to people like us yet. We met kids ranging from ages 3, to even people in their 20's and 30's. No matter the age, their powers just made them stronger.

As we socialized and let the new-found atmosphere sink in, we heard a horn blare. We froze, then saw Sergeant Hammond with a bull-horn, standing next to a frantic Dr. Baker. Something was wrong.

"We have a Code 7, everyone. Report to the elevators!" Sergeant Hammond ordered. The mutants looked frightened as they ran out of the conference room to who knows where. I glanced at Leo nervously, not knowing where to go. Dr. Baker grabbed our arms and pulled us towards the door.

"Dr. Baker, what's going on?" I yelled over the many voices around us. I grabbed Leo's hand so he wouldn't get left behind.

"We have an emergency. We'll tell you once we return from above! You two need to stay here!" She almost screamed, yanking us through the heavy crowd of mutants. You rarely saw Dr. Baker not calm, so this was serious.

"Tell us, Doc!" Leo commanded her. She waited for the crowd to settle before sighing in frustration, giving in.

"Okay, Code 7 means we have a group of Normals around our colony grounds. They must have found our location, and I have a feeling of who they are," she said frantically, all on one breath. We didn't ask any further questions, knowing this wasn't good.