Project Starfall (Completed)

Chapter 28

Three days later Pierce was sitting inside a cozy little house in the middle of nowhere. She was in the living room, sipping a cup of tea sweet with honey. Pierce had fostered a liking for tea after deciding to never drink coffee again.

Gathered around her now were Elliot, Knox, and Madigan. After escaping from the Beta Lab they had all been relocated to a safe house until it was decided how to best protect them from Starfall in the future. The hybrids they had freed were being held at a different location since the majority of them were unstable. They had been in the safe house three days, and Darius had called that morning to let them know he and Terra would be stopping by at noon to discuss several important matters, but didn't give any clue as to what they might be.

"After all we did for them they should be giving us loads of cash among other things," Knox said from where he was sitting on a sofa. "I'm going to ask for a Ferrari."

"They've already done enough for us," Elliot countered. "If it weren't for them we probably wouldn't have even been able to escape from the Alpha Lab."

"I guess that's true," Knox admitted. "I'll just have to steal one."

"You will do no such thing," Pierce huffed. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise. Ever since what had happened at the Beta Lab she'd been quiet, only saying a word or two every once in a while. "I won't have you screwing up your life after earning a clean slate."

"Boss, you're back!" Knox shouted, running over and hugging her. Pierce dropped her tea cup and it smashed against the floor.

"Knox, you idiot," she snarled, staring at the mess of tea and ceramic shards around her feet. "Now I have to clean this up." Pierce slipped out Knox's arms and headed into the kitchen. As she collected a roll of paper towels, she eavesdropped on the others.

"That's the most like herself she's been in days," Madigan said excitedly. "Knox, keep saying stupid things."

"You're in luck. Saying stupid things is my forte," he responded. Pierce imagined the stupid, toothy grin that was certainly on his face.

"It would be nice to have her back to normal," Madigan added quietly. "Somehow she's even scarier now that she isn't threatening to kill us all the time." That made Pierce pause. "Do I really threaten to kill people a lot?" she pondered aloud. "Yeah, I guess I do, don't I?"

"Do you think she'll ever fully recover from this?" Elliot asked.

"Well, Pierce isn't just anybody," Knox said. "This has been hard on her, of course, but she's too strong to let someone like Grey ruin her."

"You're right," Elliot said. There was a smile in his voice.

They all fell silent as Pierce walked back into the room. "Took me a while to find the paper towels," she lied.

"Here, I got it," Knox offered, taking the roll from her. "It was my fault, after all."

"Thanks," Pierce muttered. She walked to the front door and peered through the little eyehole. There were two guards stationed outside, but otherwise no one was around. "Darius and Terra should arrive any minute," she said, walking back into the living room. "Please try to be civil when they do."

"Since when aren't we civil?" Knox asked.

The doorbell rang, and Pierce left him without an answer. Darius and Terra weren't the only ones waiting when she opened the door. The other bird hybrid stood beside them, wings curled at her sides.

"Pierce," Darius greeted her with a wave.

"Darius. Terra." Pierce offered a curt nod. "Why are you here?" she asked the bird girl.

"I wanted to thank you," the girl replied.

"Thank me?" Pierce raised an eyebrow. "For not killing you? Well, consider us even. You saved me from Aurora."

"No." The girl cracked a smile. "I mean for rescuing me and the others. Terra told me you were the one who insisted we be saved."

"I was just doing what any decent person," she shot a look at Terra and Darius, "would do."

"Well, thank you," the girl said. "My name's Mercy, by the way. I'm part sparrow."

"Nice to meet you." Pierce shook the girl's hand. "I've been curious.... How old are you?"

"Fifteen," Mercy answered.

"Really?" Pierce was surprised. That's about Elliot's age. "You're pretty good in combat."

"You think so?" Mercy's eyes lit up. "I mean, I wasn't able to beat you during our first encounter...."

Pierce laughed. "I've had a lot of training." She turned to Darius and Terra. "Follow me. Everyone is in the living room."

"First of all, how is your eye?" Darius asked once they had all taken a seat in the living room.

Pierce self-consciously touched the white bandages covering her right eye. She changed them each day, so had seen the damage Grey had done; Where her eye had been was now a cavity plastered with dried blood. "Thanks to the painkillers you gave me it hasn't hurt too much," Pierce answered quietly, trying to keep the image from her mind.

"Good." Darius smiled, pity in his eyes. "Look, Pierce. We've managed to take several of Project Starfall's scientists into our custody that specialize in the regeneration of body parts. If you would like, they might be able to give you a new eye."

Pierce shook her head. "Sorry, but I will never let them touch me again."

"I understand." Darius nodded. "But if you change your mind, let me know."

"I won't," Pierce said. "But thanks."

"So now what?" Knox asked. "When you promised to protect us if we helped you did that mean keeping us locked up here forever?"

"No. All of you are free to go where you wish," Darius told them. "We will do our best to provide whatever you need." Pierce didn't like the thought of her imperfect little family splitting apart, but knew she couldn't stop them if they wanted to go.

"I have no idea where I'm gonna go," Knox admitted. "I considered living among the sharks, but decided I would get bored without anyone to talk to." It was impossible to tell whether he was joking.

"I'm going to stay with NOVA," Pierce declared. "I want to help them bring a final end to the horrible people who made us go through all of this. Also, the hybrids we rescued from the Beta Lab will need someone to watch over and guide them."

"In that case, I think I'll join you," Knox said. "Some of those hybrids were more animal than human. You'll need all the help you can get."

"I will too," Elliot chimed in.

"I have nowhere better to go," Madigan grumbled.

Pierce tried to hide her excitement, but a smile broke through. "I've been meaning to ask," she said to Elliot. "What was your crime?"

"Crime?" Terra laughed. "Elliot didn't commit any crimes. Does he look like that kind of kid?"

"Wait, you haven't committed any crimes?" Knox asked. "Then how the hell did you end up as one of Project Starfall's experiments?"

Elliot's cheeks reddened. "I wasn't happy at home," he said quietly. "My parents were always arguing, and on top of that I was bored with my life. I wanted something more." He looked down at his feet shamefully. "Somehow they found me and offered me a new, exciting life. I volunteered for the experiments of my own free will."

The room went silent. Finally, Pierce laughed, and everyone stared at her. "Well, you certainly got what you wanted," she said. "I bet you never imagined just how crazy your life would become."

"No, never." Elliot laughed. "But now things are a little calmer, and I want to stick around."

"I'm glad." Pierce smiled. "You still have a lot to learn about flying."