A Companion for Life (Part 2)
#6 of Companion
A Companion for Life Part 2
"Sam!" Jet cried out as he leapt across the newly formed gap. He landed on the other side with ease and growled viciously; showing off his fangs. The sight was intimidating to the boys as Jet slowly started to approach them. Keith took a deep gulp. "What's wrong with you guys? It's just a little mutt; get rid of it!" He blindly reached behind him and pulled one of the boys in front of him. The boy fumbled a bit from the unexpected pull but managed to get his footing back, but now he was directly between Jet and the other boys.
The boy looked back at Keith and the other boys and then to Jet who was now fifteen feet away. The boy knew he would get punished by Keith if he didn't do what he wanted. He took a deep breath and walked towards Jet. His action made Jet stop and scowled at him. Wanting to make it quick the boy readied his right leg to kick Jet off the side of the cliff. His leg drew back, Jet leapt at his chest. The sound of bones shattering could be heard all the way where Keith and the others were. The sound was quickly followed by the sight of the boy flying straight pass them and over the edge off the cliff. Jet's impact with the boy shattered the kid's ribs, probably killing him almost instantly. The boys were now terrified as Jet resumed approaching them. Keith slowly started to back up as the other boys just stood still in terror. When he was behind all of them he started running. The other boys immediately took suit and started to follow, but they were slow to start with needing to turn around and the narrow walk way.
Jet's ears straightened when he noticed that the boys were trying to run away. He immediate dashed forward rammed himself against a boy who was next to another one. He impacted him in the side of the chest, crushing the boy's lung and sending both him and the other boy off the side of the cliff. Jet watched as one boy started to scream while the other couldn't draw enough breath to. Jet looked back at the trail and saw the other three boys running a short distance away from him. Jet growled and took chase.
Keith's second-in-command, Ray, had barely avoided being caught in the impact with the other boy. He started to panic when he quickly glanced behind him and saw Jet starting to catch up to him. Ray was one of the better runners and was able to quickly approach the other boy who was ahead of him. He was becoming hysterical when he realized the boy was running slower than him. He could see Jet getting closer and closer and so he decided to cut off the other boy right before there was a turn in the path. The action caused the other boy to lose his footing; Ray could hear the loud thump from when the kid landed on the ground, only seconds later to turn into screams. "That thing stopped to take out on of us..." A devious smile formed on his face. "If I can catch up to Keith I can use him as a distraction so I can get away." His smile widened even more when he realized he had almost caught up with Keith.
Jet forced the body of the kid he just killed off the side of the cliff. His muzzle was covered with blood now as he continued his pursuit on the last two boys.
"Keith!" Ray shouted out as he approached Keith. He looked back and saw Jet was closing in again. "What are we going to do?"
"I don't know!" Keith said frantically. He didn't dare look behind him to see how close that monster was. Ray, however, kept looking behind himself periodically so he could time when to use Keith.
"He's getting closer..." Ray said frantically, but with a smile on his face, when he looked behind himself and saw Jet only twenty feet behind them. Keith's breathing hastened even more as he saw another sharp turn on the path. Keith slowed down slightly to turn the corner, and Ray was only just turning his head. He didn't have enough time to stop himself and ran off the side of the cliff. He managed to quickly grab onto the edge of the cliff with his left hand and quickly grabbed hold with his other hand. "Keith! Help me!"
Keith didn't even look back and just continued to run, his face showing fear and relief.
"Keith!" Ray shouted as he tried to pull himself back onto the path. He soon felt a sharp pain from his right hand. He looked up and saw Jet staring down at him, his claws dug into Ray's right hand. "Help me!" was all Ray could shout out before Jet dugs his claws into Ray's left hand, causing him to lose his grip and plummet downwards.
Jet watched the boy scream as while falling. The kid tried to grab onto anything extruding from the cliff, but his hands couldn't grab onto anything anymore, and eventually he ran out of things to grab. Jet saw the last boy in the distance. A slight smile formed on his muzzle as he took off.
"Sure am glad the cliff was there" Keith huffed. "Otherwise I would have had to use Ray as bait. Keith wasn't sure how much longer he could keep running, however, and his breathing was starting to become heavy. "What am I going to do?..." Keith knew Ray had only given him a few seconds, and knew that Jet was quickly catching up. A glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes when he could see Roger running in the distance, his hands still clutching his crotch. Keith could see in the distance that he wasn't far from the end of the mountain path. "If I can make it there I can elude that thing... and Roger's just the distraction... Roger!" Keith tried to call out his name, but he was too winded to make anything other than a rasping sound. He tried to call out his name over and over again with no luck. "Rog-" Keith was cut off as he was pushed down to the ground. Before he could recover himself he felt sharp claws digging into his back.
"Get off of me!" Keith screamed in pain as he tried to shake Jet off of him. His back felt like it was being stabbed over and over again. Eventually he managed to roll over onto his back. There was a moment of silence as Keith breathed heavily staring up at the sky. His vision was soon obstructed by a pair of black eyes that looked straight into his. Keith's eyes widened as the two stared at each other for several seconds. Keith blinked and opened his eyes to see Jet's teeth wrapped around his neck. Before he could do anything Jet bit down and tore out his throat. Keith tried to gasp for air but the more he tried the more his lungs filled with blood until he went silent.
Jet let out a loud howl towards the sky before nudging the body off the cliff. Jet's nose twitched and sniffed the air, smelling another boy who he saw try to hurt Sam. He was ready to take chase, but his stood still. His stiff ears started to twitch and his eyes started to return to their normal form. His head quickly looked back from the direction he came. "Sam..." He dashed off the way he came.
Sam's eyes slowly opened to the sight of endless rows of trees and the sound of their leaves rustling in the gentle cool breeze. He tried to collect himself, but as his senses started coming back he felt a sharp jolt of pain shoot through his body. Every part of his body was in pain; in left arm in particular felt the worse since it was sandwiched between him and the ground. His nerves were overloading with pain and he wanted to end it fast. With a painful grunt he managed to roll his body to the right so that he was on his back and his arms and legs were spread out. The pain was a bit more bearable to him now, but it was still too much for him. He could feel himself starting to slip back into unconsciousness. The only positive thing he gained from this is that his senses started to fade; he could soon no longer feel the pain he felt just a few seconds ago. "Tyler... looks I won't be around when you wake up..." Sam closed his eyes.
"Sam!" Sam could barely hear his name being called. "Sam!" The voice kept repeating his name, each time it become quieter as he slowly drifted into completely unconsciousness. He could no longer hear the voice, but oddly enough his sense of touch came back to him as he felt a soothing warmth course through his body before he felt a sharp pain on his back. "Please hold on, Sam..." Those were the last words that echoed through his mind.
Arthur's eyes started to sting; he'd been sitting for quite a while in the hospital waiting in the company of other waiting nervously for some news. He wanted to rest his eyes, wanted to close them if only for a few minutes, but the anxiety that filled his body wouldn't allow him. He could only wait for a resolution from the doctor considering Sam.
Outside day turned to dusk and eventually night. The waiting room was filled with a handful of visitors that slowly started to decrease as the hours passed. All of them were family members of all of the three boys who had been sent to the emergency room along with Sam. Arthur felt jealousy that they were being allowed to see their children while he had to just sit down and let his mind run in circles. It didn't help that it also caused him to worry. What if something went wrong?
Arthur looked at his watch. It was a quarter past nine. He had been waiting in that room for over five hours while all of the others had already left. They already got to see the one they wanted; the last of them left two hours ago; two hours and no news from the Doctor.
Arthur needed something to distract him, even for just a second. He reached into his pocket and pulled his wallet. Out of it he took a photo from three years ago. It was a picture of his two grandsons. He remembers the day this photo was taken. It was the first day of summer vacation for the two of them. Sam was going to be in Middle School and Tyler was going to be going to College. He was in town for his graduation. His parents were so proud that he finished fifth in his class.
Sam was very attached to his brother as shown by how he clung to him in the picture. He looked up to Tyler more than he did his own father. Tyler was even the one who bought Sam an iPod for his tenth birthday. Sam stuck to Tyler like glue that entire summer, knowing that soon he wouldn't be able to see him as often anymore.
He looked at Sam. He wished he could see him smile again. There would be occasions where a slight smile formed on his face, but those were brief and usually only when he found something humorous. But what could he do? After what happened to Tyler, it doesn't surprise him that his personality changed. "It must have been so hard experiencing it right in front of your eyes..."
The metal doors opened and in walked a female doctor. Arthur placed the photo back in his wallet. "Mr. Shepard?"
"Just call me Arthur." He cleared his throat. "Is there a problem with Sam?"
"Well... I'm not sure how to say this but..." Arthur's mouth started to dry. "There's nothing wrong with your grandson.
Arthur sighed with relief. "Please doctor; don't ever make a joke like that again. I thought you were going to say he was dead." Arthur tried to laugh off some of his anxiety.
"I'm afraid this isn't exactly good news Arthur." Arthur's laughing slowed down to heavy breathing. His face showed confusion and worry. "All the doctors that are free have been looking at him and all of them are baffled by what they've found: virtually nothing. There are no broken bones; not even a single fracture. The clothes he was wearing had fresh blood stains on them but there's not a single cut on his body. The only thing we've found on his body was a pair of thick scars on his back. Other than that there's nothing physically wrong with him.
"What's the problem with that? He's fine and that's the only thing that matters to me. So when can I take him home?"
"We're not sure..."
"What's that supposed to mean? You better not be doing anything to my grandson in there!"
"Please, sir!" she said with a bit of fright. "We would never think of doing any type of experiments on a patient. We're not sure when he can be released because he won't wake up."
Something inside Arthur felt like it had shattered; it was the second time he had felt it in his life. "What do you mean 'he won't wake up'?" Arthur swallowed hard.
"Despite there being nothing wrong with his body he won't wake up. It could be shock that induced it but for now we're considering him comatose. We're not sure when he'll wake up, but usually it's only for a few days."
Arthur closed his eyes, his breathing becoming deep. "I hope you're right about that... the last a doctor said that he was wrong." Arthur slowly turned around and walked away with a dead expression on his face.
"I'll contact you if there's any development" The doctor said to him. He only gave a brief nod, not even turning back to look at her.
It was four in the morning and Arthur was tossing and turning in his bed. So many things were passing through his mind. When would Sam wake up? Why didn't he have any wounds even though his clothes clearly showed signs of it? Should he tell his parents? No. That was the one thing he knew he wouldn't do... at least for now. He was praying that Sam wouldn't turn out like Tyler. Arthur shook his head violently trying to push that thought out of his head. Instead he tried to focus on the lesser of the things that was causing him uneasiness; the condition on Sam's body. His mind flashed back to the hours before the hospital.
Arthur was driving home with his intern, Charlie, driving behind him. Arthur decided to take off work early today and had asked Charlie to follow him so he could bring back some documents from Arthur's house back to the lab.
The two cars pulled up in Arthur's driveway. "I've marked down what I want you and the other's to check out." Arthur said as he unlocked the door. "And afterwards see that Adam and Eve receive a special treat." Arthur handed Charlie a fifty dollar bill to use as he saw fit.
"Sam?" Arthur called out as he opened the door. There was no answer. "Sam, are you there?" Arthur went upstairs and opened Sam's door. It was empty and Arthur became disappointed. He had left work early so he could spend some time with Sam. He wondered if Sam had stayed late after school or went over to someone's house. Either way his plans for the evening were most likely ruined.
"Is your grandson here?" Charlie asked as he entered the house and saw Arthur walking back down the stairs.
"No. I hope that he calls my cell phone soon and tells me where he is." Arthur walked into his office and came back out with a stack of papers. He handed them to Charlie. The two walked back outside. "Make sure you complete the first page with Adam and Eve before proceeding with the rest of it, alright."
"Sure thing Arthur." Charlie said as he placed the papers onto the passenger seat of his truck.
"And if the four of you can finish the rest by tomorrow I'll take us all out to eat."
"Please..." Arthur furrowed his eyebrows and looked around.
"I'll be sure to tell them that" Charlie said. "Will it be the usual place? Because you know that-" Charlie was silenced when Arthur raised hand in front of him and said hush.
"Did you hear something?" The two stayed silent.
"Please..." the voice said again.
"There. Did you hear that?"
Charlie nodded his head. He looked past Arthur. "Behind you!" Charlie said with shock. Arthur quickly turned around and his eyes widened. Slowly walking towards them was a black wolf with blood dripping down many parts of its body. "It's a wolf!" Charlie said with amazement.
"Please..."
"That's not a wolf; it's a Doubu!" Arthur said with a bit of excitement at the revelation, but with a bit of worry seeing the condition it was in.
Jet collapsed to his side as his blurry vision saw two figures coming closer to him. Arthur came up to him and kneeled down. "Please... help him."
"Help him? Who?" Arthur asked.
"Please help him... help Sam... Sam." Jet's eyes closed. Arthur's heart started to race. He looked past the Doubu and saw a long trail of blood that seems to lead towards the cliff behind his house. Arthur stood up and followed the blood. His eyes widened when he came to the end.
"Charlie!" Arthur shouted out. Charlie immediately rushed around the corner and saw what Arthur saw. Four boys lied on the ground with their clothes torn and blood stained.
"What the hell!? Did the Doubu do this?"
"What happened isn't the point Charlie!" Arthur shouted as pulled out his cell phone and dialed 911. "Take the Doubu back to the lab and get him fixed up. If it is involved with this we can't have the public getting wind about it or there would be an outrage over the Doubu as a whole! Now go!"
Charlie nodded quickly and carefully picked the Doubu up and placed it in the back of his truck. As his car drove off an operator on the other end of Arthur's cell picked up.
By the time the ambulance arrived he had wiped away the two trails of blood leading from the four boys. He couldn't allow there to be any suspicion as to what might have actually happened.
Arthur's eyes opened and discovered it was daytime. Somehow he had managed to fall asleep. He squinted at the clock on the nightstand next to his bed and saw it was a quarter past ten. "Shit..." Arthur sighed as rolled over on the bed to reach for his cell phone. He dialed Charlie's number.
"Arthur? Are you alright?" Charlie asked immediately when he answered his phone.
"Yes, yes, Charlie; I'm alright. Just tell the other's that I won't be coming in today."
"Don't worry about it. I told the others about Sam and they all agreed you can take off as much time as you want."
"That's nice, but I'm going to need something to distract me sooner or later. I'll be coming in tomorrow."
"I'll tell the others then." Charlie said, motioning to hang up.
"Wait, Charlie. Before you hang up, can you tell me how the Doubu is doing?"
"Julia managed to patch the thing up. Many of its bones are broken and it's lost a lot of blood, but other than that it's stable. She says it'll be a while before it drifts out of unconsciousness, but expects it to make a full recovery within a few months."
"Alright. Give Julia my regards and update me if anything happens with it."
"Will do!" Charlie hung up.
Arthur pulled up Sam's school on his cellphone and pressed the call button. He thought he should inform the school about Sam's condition. To his surprise the secretary on the other side said they already knew about Sam's condition. "What do you mean you already know about it?" The secretary said it was all over the news. Arthur immediately shut his cell phone and turned on the television to the news. Arthur was shocked to see that the media had already caught wind of the story, but not as shocked when he realized the four boys, including Sam, that were in the hospital was only a side story of something much larger.
The headline showed that five boys from Sam's school were missing and that a search was being conducted to find any trace of them. "Earlier today we talked to a few students who go to the same Middle School as the five missing boys. Many of them were reluctant to speak about them, but the few who did described them as not being the most liked group of kids because of their actions. We also learned that three of the four boys who are currently in the hospital were connected this group, but when we tried to get an interview with them each of their parents refused. The authorities are asking for information that may lead to finding the five boys."
Arthur shut the television off. He didn't like where all of this was heading. He knew that Sam didn't get along with other students very well, but he couldn't have pissed off a group during his first week of school. Could he?"
Arthur groaned knowing that the future seemed to be getting darker and darker.
The next day Arthur arrived at the lab. Only a few people knew it was actually a lab. Its front was a veterinarian clinic. The staff of scientists was small; five, including himself. There were larger labs located throughout the world with much more scientists, but those labs had far more Doubu. His lab only had two... or maybe it would soon be three. He scanned his card and entered the 'Employee's only' section of the clinic. Things were a lot more sterile and organized in this section.
There were four rooms back here: the testing center, the rec room, the lounge, and the living quarters. The first room on his right was the rec room. It was a large room for the Doubu to exercise and have some fun. He opened the door and saw three figures. Two of them were Adam and Eve, the two Doubu he named since they didn't have one prior to coming here. They were both chasing each other in game similar to tag. Watching over them was Doug. He was the scientists in charge of studying the physiology of the Doubu and testing their physical abilities and their limits. Doug gave Arthur an acknowledging nod.
"Anything new?" Arthur asked as he walked next to Doug.
"They're each beginning to dominate it specific events. Adam is getting slightly faster and his stamina is getting better, and Eve's agility and reaction time is improving."
"So Adam's winning more races, but Eve is having more success in the obstacle course, correct?"
"Right. It would seem that their skills are reflecting the animal they're related to; Adam being canine and Eve being feline. It's just as the previous studies indicate. It would be great if we could get an equine Doubu and a rodent Doubu and see how they compare."
"Well we do have a new Doubu now." Arthur pointed out.
"It's a canine though. I doubt I'll find anything groundbreaking with this one."
"You never know, Doug. At least now you'll be able to compare two canines together."
"We'll have to wait until it fully heals then. I heard from Julia how many broken bones it had. It'll be a miracle if it'll be able to function at 100% after it's fully healed."
"Let's hope for the best then." Arthur smiled. Doug was about to until he noticed Adam and Eve getting too competitive with each other. He walked over to them and got between them.
"There'll be no rough housing with each other, you got that?" Doug said in a stern voice.
The ears of the two Doubu flattened against their heads. In unison they said "We're sorry..." Doug sighed. To cheer them up he started scratching behind their ears. He looked back at Arthur. "Just like cats and dogs." He chuckled. Arthur chuckled back and waved goodbye to him and left the room.
He opened the door across the hall and entered. It was the lounge, the main resting area for the scientists. It had a few vending machines and comfortable couches. There was a television newly equipped with cable and a large bookcase packed with a variety of books. Sitting down on separate couches were his intern, Charlie, and former intern, Cynthia. Cynthia was an intern years before she decided to become a part of permanent staff. She had a Master's Degree in both human and animal psychology and studied the behaviors of the Doubu.
Charlie was the new intern. He was fresh out of college when he joined and is still trying to decide his field for his Master's degree. For now he's an assistant to the other four and is slowly developing a jack-of-all-trades role. Arthur knew he had the potential to excel in all fields if he tried. "What are the two of you talking about?"
Cynthia answered. "Charlie was just telling me about what the two of you found yesterday. You really don't think that Doubu had anything to do with it do you?"
"Cynthia, the two of you should know that Doubu are incapable of harming humans. It's been proven by other scientists."
"That may be, Arthur, but it's my belief that the only research we should trust is our own. All the rest should be used as a reference."
"You would discredit other scientific findings because of your own stubbornness?" Charlie asked Cynthia.
"Not at all. I just don't think we should use their research as the absolute truth. There's still much to learn about the Doubu and I don't want the research of previous scientists to hold me back from finding something completely new."
Arthur smiled. "Learn from her, Charlie. You should never be satisfied by what you have, only by what you find." Cynthia smirked at Charlie. He glared at her. Arthur knew they were about to get into argument regarding the facts and decided to let them be.
He went to the door down the hall and peeked in. The testing center was the most advanced room they had. It was filled with brand new computers and equipment that allowed them to better examine the insides and outsides of the Doubu. One of the scientists was typing away on a computer. It was Julia. She was the oldest scientist next to him. She had a PHD degree in biology, and veterinary medicine. Before she joined his lab she was a vet, and a good one at that. She's even in charge of the vet clinic that fronts the lab, although she only operates when it's a very serious case... like the Doubu that was brought in last night.
"Good morning." Arthur said as he entered the room. Julia turned around and adjusted her glasses.
"Good morning, Arthur!" she stood up and gave him a hug. "How's Sam doing?"
"The doctor said he's in no danger, but she doesn't know when he'll wake up."
"Oh dear... so then it's just like Tyler?" Arthur nodded. "Oh Arthur, I hope it works out alright."
"I do too..." Arthur sighed. "But I would like to thank you for patching up the Doubu yesterday."
"The poor little thing... his body was so beat up. I can't imagine what happened to it."
"Well... when it wakes up we'll have to ask him."
"Arthur he's so young... I doubt he even knows how to talk yet."
Arthur knew in his mind that the Doubu could speak, but didn't know how much it knew. The only words the Doubu kept saying were please, help, and... and Sam. Arthur's eyes widened at the realization. He let go of Julia and rushed out the door.
He went to the room down the hall and opened the living quarters. It was primarily the area the Doubu slept, but there were a few beds for those who wanted to stay the night. There was even a shower for them. There were enough rooms for five Doubu. The first room was labeled 'Adam' the next 'Eve' and the next '?'. The other two were blank. He went to the third door and opened it. Lying on the bed with an IV was the same black Doubu he encountered yesterday. It was bandaged up from head to tail and was breathing slowly. Arthur took a seat next to the bed and stared down at the young Doubu. "Could Sam be the one that awakened you?" He noticed the Doubu's ears involuntarily twitched when he said Sam.
Arthur was really hoping it wasn't the case. He decided to test it. "Sam." The ears twitched again. "Sam." Again they twitched. Arthur decided to make sure his ears weren't just twitching to the sound of his voice. "Can you hear me?" No reaction. My name's Arthur. Still no reaction. I have a grandson named Sam. As soon as Sam came out of his mouth the Doubu's ears twitched. Arthur groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Why did you have to belong to Sam?" Arthur sighed as the Doubu's ears twitched once again.
The days passed as Arthur waited for Sam to wake up. The days soon turned into a week... then two and still no word. He heard that the other three boys had been released no more than a week after being admitted. Arthur's anxiety could no longer be quelled by going to work; it couldn't produce a great enough distraction. He hadn't been going to work for the past four days now and it was really starting to affect him. The other's understood his predicament and didn't mind it, but they didn't realize just everything that was going through his mind.
The next day Arthur was lying in his bed staring at the ceiling fan that kept rotating above him. His eyes kept following one of the blades sending him into a trance-like state. It wasn't until his cellphone rang that he was brought back into reality. He checked the caller ID, it was Charlie. He opened the phone. "Hello?"
"Arthur, listen! Something amazing has just happened. You need to get down here right away!"
"Something amazing? Exactly what is it?"
"It's about the Doubu I brought in. It's-"
"Hold on, Charlie, I have another call coming in."
"No wait!" Charlie tried to protest, but it didn't stop Arthur from switching to the other call.
"Hello?"
"Hello Mr. Shepard?"
"Yes?"
"I'm Dr. O'Connor. I was who talked to you that night. I've called to let you know that your grandson just woke up a few minutes ago." Tears formed in Arthur's eyes as a great big smile formed on his face. "If you'd like to come down you might be able to check him out today."
"I'll be right down!" Sam said with excitement. He switched back to Charlie. "Sorry, Charlie. Whatever it is will have to wait; I'm going to go get my grandson!"
"Wait, Arthur, you need to hear this!"
"Later, Charlie!" Arthur said and hung up the phone. He quickly showered and got dressed and hurried to his car. He was tempted to drive over the speed limit, but didn't want to risk getting pulled over and delaying his visit with Sam.
The ride seemed agonizingly long to Arthur, and only when he arrived did he feel relief. Doctor O'Connor was at the front expecting him. She led him down the same hallway he saw those other parents walk down two weeks ago and into a room. When he entered he just stared at Sam, who just looked back at him. There was silence. "Hi grandpa" Sam finally broke the silence. Tears formed in Arthur's eyes again as he rushed over to Sam and gave him a big laughing as he squeezed him harder and harder. "Ouch. Do you want to keep me in the hospital, gramps?" The very idea of that made Arthur release his grip reluctantly.
Arthur wiped the last of his tears from his eyes. "How do you feel?"
"A bit tired." Sam replied.
"That's normal for those who spend a lot of time sleeping" Dr. O'Connor said walking closer to them. "Your muscles haven't been used and your diet is insufficient for normal, everyday activities. A big meal followed by a bit of walking and a good night's rest should get feeling much better."
"Does that mean he can be released now?" Arthur asked with hope.
"Yes, but I need to ask him a few questions before that. The Doctor pulled up a chair next to Sam's bed. "Sam, what's the last thing you remember before waking up?"
Sam thought to himself for a few seconds before responding. "I remember being in great pain." The Doctor started writing what he said down on a notepad. "I could barely move my body. Someone was calling my name... I felt a soothing warmth envelope me... then I felt a jolt of pain coming from my back... and the taste of blood in my mouth." The Doctor continued writing down what he said.
"Anything else?" Sam shook his head. His memory was a bit blurry before then, but he could clearly remember those moments. "Well Sam, do you know that you are completely unharmed?" Sam looked at her with confusion. "Go ahead and look at yourself, move your joints if you want. Sam took up her suggestion and moved his arms and legs. Besides feeling a bit numb from being asleep for so long, he didn't feel any pain like he thought he would. It was the same with both his legs. Sam looked at her with even more confusion. She sighed. "I guess you don't know the reason either. "No problem. We won't pursue the subject any further. If you would follow me Arthur, we can get the paperwork filled out for Sam's release. Arthur quickly followed her.
Sam lied in the bed looking at his arms. He couldn't understand how he could be in so much pain and come out unharmed. As he was trying to comprehend it his memory started to become clear. He could now remember falling from the cliff because of Keith. His eyes glared as he remembered Keith's face as he fell down with the other boys. He wanted to focus on his anger at Keith, but his mind went back to his body and its non-existent wounds. There's no way he could have fallen from that height and come out unscathed. His mind started to ache from trying to figure what was going. He felt like his head was going to explode until a thought that had been distant in his mind before suddenly popped into his mind, and all became calm. "Jet..."
At the doctor's insistence Arthur took Sam to the Golden Corral for an all you can eat buffet. It would allow Sam to eat plenty of food while letting him move his legs. Arthur didn't eat anything other than a salad and a few pieces of bread, he wasn't very hungry and just wanted Sam to recover. Words couldn't describe how happy he was that Sam had actually woken up, and in such a short time compared... compared to Tyler. Thinking of Tyler made him a bit sad, but it couldn't dent the happiness he felt.
Arthur noticed Sam was ordering more and more food each time, especially meat. Even if he had been on an IV for two weeks he knew that he couldn't eat that much and that he would have to put it in a doggy bag. "A doggy bag..." Arthur remembered back to the last time he took Sam here and how he had a lot of leftovers back then as well, and took the leftovers with him. "So you brought that to the Doubu..." Arthur sighed. The problem of Sam waking up was over, but now he had to worry about what to do with the Doubu... Sam's Doubu.
Arthur and Sam were silent during the ride home. When they got back Sam immediately dashed off with the leftovers. Arthur didn't say anything this time; he knew exactly what Sam was planning to do with the food... although he knew he would come back empty handed in a sense. His cellphone started to ring. It was Charlie.
Sam tried not to strain himself as he hurried to the cave. He learned from his grandpa that he had been out for over two weeks. He was worried about Jet and hoped that he had managed to find something to sustain himself while he was gone. His hopes were dashed when he found himself staring into an empty cave. He checked the cave and found nothing. His heart sank. He didn't know if Jet was dead or if he had decided to move on after a while of him not coming. Sam prayed it to be the latter, although it didn't bring much comfort to him. He slowly walked back to the house. To his confusion his grandfather's car was gone. Thankfully the front door was unlocked and thought that his grandfather went off to take care of some errands or something. He placed the leftovers in the fridge and lied down on the couch. He was beginning to feel tired and decided to take a nap.
Arthur quickly swiped his ID and hurried to the living quarters of the lab. He quickly opened the door and the other four scientists looking into the window of the third room. Arthur made his way through them to get a good view. His eyes widened in amazement and shock for two reasons. The first was that the Doubu was awake. The second, more shocking reason was actively moving around the room. Julia herself said it would take months for its wounds to heal. "How is this possible?" Arthur directed his question towards Julia.
"I don't know Arthur! I an X-Ray earlier and found that all of its bones have fully healed."
"But why so fast?" Charlie asked. "There's no research regarding rapid healing amongst the Doubu."
Cynthia smiled. "I think we've stumbled onto something new."
Arthur could see the excited smiles forming on their faces. He knew that each of them were now fully interested in this new Doubu and probably weren't willing to let it go. "Before the four of you get any ideas there's something you need to know." Their gazes briefly focused on him before being drawn back to the Doubu when they heard it speak.
"Sam? Sam? Where's Sam? Where am I? Please... I want to see Sam." The Doubu started to whine. They all looked back at Arthur with the same question in their eyes.
"Yes. I believe my grandson is the one who awakened him... and I think we should let him go back with him."
"Are you crazy!?" Cynthia asked. "This little Doubu has the potential to bring new information to light and you want to let it go? Our lab could become famous and expand with the research we can find."
"I agree." Doug added in. "We've always been getting upgrades to our computers, but never have we gotten any new Doubu. Adam and Eve are providing us with little information that isn't already known to scientists world-wide. We have the potential of making a name for ourselves."
"Now hold on everyone" Julia interjected. "We've never been in this situation before. Adam and Eve were probably conditioned to forget the ones who awakened them before being sent here, but now we have one that's fully aware of its owner and is someone we know. Don't you think we could benefit from studying their interactions together?"
Julia's suggestion brought some comfort to Arthur. It would allow them to study the new Doubu and let the two of them be together. "But what if Sam won't allow us to study him?" Charlie asked. "He'll demand that we let him go."
"Exactly!" Doug said. "We have more potential to learn more by not telling Sam than we do by telling him."
"Once we learn all that we can from studying him by himself, then we'll let him and Sam interact and study it." Cynthia said, attempting to make a compromise.
"But how long will that take?" Julia asked with worry. The longer we prolong this the worse it's going to be when Sam realizes what we've done."
"Then we'll just never tell him."
"That's cruel!" Julia shouted at him.
"What he doesn't know won't hurt him" Doug added in.
Julia was getting angry over her younger colleagues' remarks. "You all forgot the most important thing!" She had caught their attention and made them go silent. "Arthur is in charge of this lab and it is his decision to decide what we do with the new Doubu."
"You can't be serious!" Cynthia said. "Arthur! This is an opportunity of a lifetime! The things we can discover could set each of us for life! Don't tell me you forgot the reason we received all of these upgrades!?"
"Cynthia's right, Arthur." Said Doug. "We received all of this from the National Center of Doubu Research with the expectation of bring something new to the table within three years. If we don't deliver good results they're going to buy this lab out and fire each of us."
"And I need this job to pay off my tuition for college" Charlie added.
All of their arguments weren't making the decision any easier for Arthur. He understood fully what this Doubu could do for his team and the lab, but could he do with the risk of hurting Sam? He could hear the four of them arguing amongst each other, but his mind was blocking out the meaning to their words; to him he just heard a bunch of mumbling.
"Sam! Please Sam, where are you!?" They all stopped talking when the Doubu started to whine again. Julia looked at it with pity while the other three looked at it with worry. They didn't what the little guy to make Arthur feel guilty.
"I..." Arthur gasped. "I need some time to think... none of you will do anything to the new Doubu for the time being." Arthur walked out of the room, the sound of the young Doubu's whines flooded his ears.
When Arthur returned home he was mentally exhausted. He went inside expecting to go to bed, but noticed that Sam was lying on the couch. He cursed himself that he had left Sam alone after getting worked up over Charlie's call. He sat down next to Sam and lightly shook him awake. Sam's eyes opened with a yawn. "Feeling better?" Arthur asked.
"Yeah..." Sam sighed.
"Something on your mind?"
Sam's thought about how Jet was gone because of him being in the hospital for so long. He planned to keep it a secret from his grandfather, but now that Jet was gone he saw no reason to keep it secret. "I'm just bummed out that a little friend of mine is gone."
"Little friend?" Arthur asked with worry.
"Yeah... During my first week of school I found a little wolf pup in a cave on the mountain path and took care of him for bit before I was sent to the hospital. And now I've found that he's gone... Probably for the better."
"Why do you say that?" Arthur asked curiously.
"I mean... he was going to get bigger sooner or later and I wouldn't be able to take care of him as well anymore. He would have wanted to be free too, and I guess it just came sooner than I expected..." Sam sighed. "But I guess that's just how wild animals work... you can't hold them back from wanting to be free... you can't treat them like your own pet. I only hope that he's doing well wherever he is." Sam got off from the couch and stretched his body skyward. "He was a bit of a handful... but he was definitely an affection pup... can't say I won't miss him. I'm going to go to bed."
"Goodnight." Arthur responded as he watched Sam walk up the steps into his room. Sam's words brought some piece of mind to him. He didn't like where this was going though.
The next at his lab he made his decision. His discussion with Sam the night prior made it much easier to decide. Sam thought highly of the Doubu now in their possession, something he hadn't seen in a while. However... he realized that Sam had no idea what Jet actually was. Sam had thought Jet was just an ordinary wolf pup, not realizing it was a Doubu he had hatched himself. His decision was hard, but clear. "The Doubu will stay."
The weekend passed and it was finally time for Sam to head back to school. He wasn't sure what kind of greeting he would get from his classmates, but he knew it couldn't be any worse than what it was before... he was wrong. The first thing he noticed was that every student, not just his classmates, every student was trying to avoid him. He didn't mind not being approached, but what had happened to make the entire school fear him.
Things were much worse in his class. When his classmates saw that he had come back they literally moved their desks away from his, not even minding that some of them were being squished together. The only two who didn't react that way were Ryan and Emily, who actually moved their desks closer to his when he sat down. "Do I really want to know what's going on?" Sam asked unenthusiastically.
"There have been stories circulating about you" said Ryan.
"Wouldn't be the first time" Sam replied as he leaned back in his chair.
"They say you're responsible for the disappearance of Keith and four of his lackeys." said Emily. Sam's eyes widened. He quickly scoped the room and saw no trace of Keith, just a bunch of students looking at him nervously. "They've been missing since the day you and Jeremy went to the hospital." Emily added.
"And they think I did something? I was out for two weeks!"
"We know you didn't have anything to do with it" said Ryan. Jeremy told us what happened after he got out of the hospital. He was completely sure you had fallen with along with him... although by the way you look that seems highly unlikely."
"I don't understand it either" Sam said. "Even the Doctors didn't understand what was going on. What I don't understand even more is why everyone thinks I had something to do with it! When did it start?"
Ryan and Emily looked at each other. "It was right after Will and Richard got out of the hospital." Emily said. Sam recognized the names. It was the two that were sent to fight him on the cliff that day, the two that went down with him and Jeremy.
"We think those two have been spreading the rumor along with Roger" Ryan added in.
"Who's Roger?" Sam asked.
"Another of Keith's guys." Ryan said. According to Jeremy, Keith let him go after you kicked him in the groin..." Ryan shivered at the thought.
"So the remnants of Keith's gang are the ones spreading the rumor?" Ryan and Emily nodded together. "And what about your friend Jeremy? Is he a part of it?"
"Of course not!" Emily said. "Jeremy never wanted to be a part of that gang in the first place. Keith broke his legs to join... and now they've been broken again. He's going to be in a wheel chair for the next few months."
"I'm sorry about that..." Sam looked away. His sympathy was a shock to both Ryan and Emily. Here was this kid who acted like he didn't care about anyone but himself and he was actually feeling sorry for someone. Sam didn't really understand it either; he thought it was just because he felt guilty for coming out of it unharmed instead of ending up like Jeremy. "Do the two of you know where those three go during lunch?"
"Will and Richard usually sit together during lunch" Ryan said.
"And Roger tries to stay close to them" Emily finished.
"Do the two of you know everything about this school or something?" Sam asked.
"We're very perceptive" Ryan said. "We're lucky Keith didn't realize it and try to use it to his advantage..."
"Right. I want the two of you to do me a favor. Convince all three of them to head up to the roof during the lunch period. I want to clear a few things up with them..." Ryan and Emily didn't get a chance to respond as the teacher walked into the classroom. They decided to go along with it.
Hours passed before the lunch bell rang throughout the school. Sam had made his way up to the roof immediately after class was let out, and now he was just waiting for the twins to bring him what he asked for. In his right hand was his iPod... or at least what remained of it. The screen was chipped and there were cracks throughout the entire thing, but it could still play music.
The door opened behind him and up came Emily along with Will and Richard. Sam noticed that they became uneasy immediately when they saw him. If they could try to run they would, but both of them had a broken leg. Will was slightly worse off with having a broken left arm as well. They had no choice to continue onto the roof with Emily behind them.
A few minutes later Ryan led Roger up. When Sam's eyes met his he could see Roger was surprised to see him, but not in a frightened way; anger filled his eyes. He attempted to approach Sam, but Ryan and Emily quickly grabbed his arms and held him back. He shook his body trying to get free. "You don't have to restrain him" Sam said. "If he remembers anything from that day he knows not to pick a fight with me... or maybe you want some more abuse?" He looked at Roger who subconsciously placed his hands in front of his crotch. He stopped struggling and calmed down.
"I have a very simple question for the three of you..." Sam said calmly. "Why the hell are the three of you spreading rumors about me!?" This time his voice was more forceful. It made Will and Richard flinch. "I finally get out of the hospital for what your stupid boss did and come back finding out you've been blaming me for his disappearance!?"
"We didn't do anything!" Richard said.
"You're lying!" Sam said. "The two of you have been working together with Roger to-"
"No!" Richard continued. "We don't want anything to do with Roger or with the old gang!" Sam calmed down a bit as he saw a few tears form in his eyes. "We didn't want anything to do with that stupid group in first place!" The tears started rolling down his cheeks.
Will, the tougher of the two continued. "We were both forced to join Keith at the beginning of the year. He threatened us to join until eventually we both gave in. It's how the majority of us became a part of his gang. Only three of us had joined out of free will: Keith, his sidekick Ray, and Roger..." They all looked at Roger. "The enforcer of the group."
"You really don't know when to shut up do you?" Roger snapped at the two of them. "The two of you should feel lucky that you were even considered to be a part of it!"
"We weren't buddies with Keith like Ray was!" Will shouted back at him.
"And we certainly didn't think of him as some stupid celebrity like you did!" Richard added in.
"How could think highly of Keith at all!?" Ryan asked with anger. "He threatened others and even broke their legs if they didn't cooperate with him!"
"You couldn't possibly understand!" Roger said avoiding their gazes.
"Did you know, Roger?" Will asked.
"Know what?" he asked with annoyance.
"When you, Keith, and Ray weren't around we would joke about how much you seemed to admire Keith, almost like you had a crush on him." He and Richard snickered remembering those conversations. Roger, however, wasn't amused. They all had expected Roger to start shouting at them again, but there was only silence. They all looked at him and saw his face was red and his body was slightly shaking. Will and Richard stopped laughing. "It was only a joke... right?"
Roger said nothing and just looked down at the ground.
"No way..." Richard said.
All of them were surprised, to say the least. Sam, however, saw this as an opportunity. "I find it ironic that someone with a secret like yours would spread false rumors about someone else. And I feel it would be poetic justice if I were to spread rumors about your secret; no doubt yours would overshadow mine. It would fix everything for me..."
"No! You can't!" Roger's tough personality from earlier was now gone.
"Why not?" Sam asked. "You so easily spread rumors about me because you were angry with me. Now I'm angry with you and can very well do the same thing." Sam was waiting for Roger to take the bait.
"Please! I'll do anything! Just don't tell anyone!" Sam had him right where he wanted him now.
"I'll make a deal with you..." Sam smirked. You go around telling everyone that the rumor you spread was a lie and the five of us won't tell a soul about your secret."
"How can I trust you?" Roger asked.
"I could care less about you being gay; I'm sure these two feel the same way" he pointed to Ryan and Emily. They shrugged their shoulders, showing that it wasn't anything that interested them. "We really have nothing to gain from revealing your secret. And those two..." He pointed at Will and Richard. He wasn't completely sure if they could be persuaded by words to keep silent.
"We won't say anything as long you promise to stay away from us and never bring up anything about the old group" Will said.
Roger was breathing heavily. He looked unsure. "You can trust us" Sam said looking down at him, trying to calm him down.
"Alright..." Roger's breathing started to go back to normal. He said nothing else as he slowly walked past all of them and down the stairway.
"Glad that's taken care of" Sam sighed as he turned his music back on. He glared at Will and Richard. "You two better keep your word and not say a thing..." The two of them nodded and made their way towards the stairs. Sam went to the ground and lied down on his back. He noticed Ryan and Emily were still there with him. "You two don't have to stay. You can leave if you want."
"But we don't want to" Emily smiled. "We're wondering if we could just stay here with you for a while."
Sam was confused by their insistence to stay, but didn't ask any further. He decided to focus just on the music that played in his ears and closed his eyes. In doing so he didn't notice the two of them lied down next to him in a way that made them form a triangle. Sam cracked open his eyes and saw the two just staring up at the sky. "Alright seriously... why are the two of you making such an effort to spend time with me?"
"Because you remind us of our older brother" Emily smiled.
"Your... older brother?"
"Yeah" Ryan said. "He's graduating high school this year and acts a lot like you."
"And how is that?"
"He acts tough, but is actually a softie on the inside" Emily finished.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam asked surprised. "Don't you remember what I said when I first came here? I've beaten up many kids."
"Yeah, but never once did you ever say you started a fight" Ryan said. Sam was silent. "You come off more as someone who tries to avoid conflict and only fight in self-defense... another thing you have in common with our brother." Ryan smirked at Sam.
Sam chuckled. "The two of you don't know anything about me."
"We'd like to..." Emily said. "If you'd let us be your friends." There was a word Sam never considered calling anyone in almost three years. His attitude had changed when he started Middle School and drove off his friends with his new cold personality. He remembers getting into fights with some of his former friends. Now comes two kids... the only two students at his new school who have even bothered to socialize with him, and now they want to be his friend... Sam was at a loss. He didn't know what to do. One side of him wanted to accept their offer, but another side deep within him told him to continue to be a loner.
"Friends, huh? I guess I could give it a shot..."
Jet walked was walking in circles. He was in an unfamiliar place for the past few days and he was growing more and more restless. The humans hadn't let him out of the room since he woke up, but he knew they had kept coming in. There were times when he could smell something odd seeping into the room. Inhaling it made his body numb and his eyes heavy; he would lose consciousness in less than a minute. When he woke up he noticed the room was clean and his food and water had been replenished. He didn't know why any of this was happening. He didn't want to be here, didn't want eat here, drink here, do anything here; he wanted to get out and be with Sam. He needed to know he was alright... and just to be with him.
He remembered the day he hatched and how he was all alone. He didn't know what to do except howl at the top of his lungs. The next day Sam came to him and took care of him. Jet was hoping that doing the same thing that he did back then would bring Sam to him again. Jet howled as loud as he could as many times as he could before he started to get exhausted. He would go to sleep hoping that Sam would be there when he woke up. Jet waited anxiously for Sam the next day, but he never came. Jet didn't understand. He tried the next night... and the next night... and the night after that. He kept howling with the hope that it would reunite him with Sam... what else could he do?
It didn't take long before Jet's constant howling got the attention of Arthur. He had been talking to Adam and Eve one morning and noticed that they looked a bit tired. They told him that the new Doubu would wake them up or keep them awake every night. "Why do you think he keeps howling?" Arthur asked the two of them.
"He's crying out to the one who he's bonded to" Adam talked slowly, making sure he said everything right. "He's like us when we were younger."
"The two of you cried out like him?" Arthur asked.
"Yes." Eve said. "We would cry out every night like the little one, but after many days we stopped."
"You say this has been going on for a couple of weeks now though... why is he continuing to do so?"
"There's something different about that one... his scent is odd... it smells faintly human." Arthur's eyes blinked at the statement. He wondered what that meant.
"Either he has bonded with a human in a way we have not... or he is completely different from us" Adam scratched his ear. "However... we know the bond will be cut if the two stay away from each other for too long. It may just take some time with him."
Arthur thought to himself for a moment. He wondered if the new Doubu would behave just like Adam and Eve if the bond between him and Sam was cut. It would certainly make it a lot easier for all of them to work with the Doubu instead of putting it to sleep. Could he do it though? Separating it from Sam was one thing, but to make him forget about him completely? "Thank you" Arthur smiled at the two of them and scratched their heads. Why don't you two take a nap." He left the room as the two of them lied down on the ground.
Arthur decided he was going try to communicate with the pup. He hoped he could kill two birds with one stone. He went home first and took care of a few things around the house; the laundry being one of them. He waited until Sam was asleep before he left the house with a small cardboard box in tow.
In the parking lot of the lab he could hear the howling of the Doubu. He was glad the lab was so far from residential areas otherwise they'd be contacting the police, and they'd want to investigate the place. Arthur dreaded the thought of what might happen if anyone knew what was really here. He unlocked the front doors and swiped his card at the lab entrance. He walked down the hall to the living quarters. The howls got louder and louder the closer he got. He opened the door and walked past the first two doors. Inside he could see both Adam and Eve with their eyes barely open, trying to get some sleep. He hoped this would work.
He unlocked the door of the young Doubu room. The howling immediately stopped.
Jet's ears twitched and he went silent as he heard the clicking of the door. He sniffed the air and could smell hints of Sam. His tail started to wag furiously in anticipation of it being Sam. He readied himself. The first thing he was going to do when he Sam walks is to jump into his arms. The door opened and immediately his ears flattened and his tail stopped wagging as he saw who it actually was.
Arthur turned the lights of the room on and saw a rather sullen look on the pup's face. He closed the door and placed the cardboard box down on the ground. He took a seat on the chair. "Hello there little fellow" he said in a soft tone. "You probably can't understand a word I'm saying but-"
"I can understand you" Jet said.
Arthur was taken aback by the pup's words. Not only did he seem to comprehend what he was saying at such a young age, but he spoke it better than either Adam or Eve. "How is this even possible?" Arthur asked, although more towards himself.
"What?" Jet asked.
"No Doubu has ever been reported as speaking a language so fluently before."
"Doubu?" Jet tilted his head. "Is that what I'm called?"
"Well that's what humans call you."
"Sam calls me Jet..." Jet started to whine.
"Then I'll call you Jet; we all will call you Jet."
"It's not the same as when Sam calls me Jet. Where's Sam?" Tears formed his eyes. "I miss him so much!"
Arthur's heart felt heavy in his chest. "Jet... I'm afraid you won't be able to see Sam for a while."
"Why? Why can't I see him? Is he alright?"
"He's fine, but for now you're stuck here."
"But I don't want to!" Jet let out a loud howl. "I want to get out of here! I want to see Sam!" Jet's legs started to wobble as he started to get exhausted. "Sam..."
"Listen, Jet, I want you and Sam to be together as well, but for the time being you have to stay here."
"For how long?" Jet asked.
"That depends on you. If you're cooperative with us then you'll get out faster. You have to be nice to everyone here and not howl at night anymore."
"Will I get to see Sam then?"
"Yes. Soon. But until then I brought you something." Arthur opened up the cardboard box. He pulled out a large sheet that he had taken from Sam's bed. He placed it on Jet's bed. Jet's ears perked up. He quickly got to his feet and jumped onto the bed. He sniffed the sheet for a few seconds before cuddling into it. Arthur knew Jet could smell Sam from it. He noticed Jet's eyes closing. "Remember: just behave and no howling at night." Jet gave him a slight nod without looking at him. He just continued to breathe in the scent from the sheet and snuggled into it.
Arthur turned off the lights and slowly closed the door behind him. He walked past the first two room and could see Adam and Eve sleeping soundly. He looked back at Jet's room. He really did hope that Jet could Sam again, but he knew it wouldn't be for a long time.
Weeks passed, then months. Jet lived up to his word that he would behave around the other scientists. He no longer needed to be put asleep in order to study him. Arthur asked Jet not to speak to the others, or they might make him stay longer. Of course Jet never said a single word after that, much to the annoyance of Cynthia.
Sam was hanging out more with his new friends as the months passed. At first he just went along with them and observed what they did, but eventually they got him to join in the activities. He was nowhere to having the smile he did three years ago, but at least now he didn't have a depressed look whenever he saw him. June soon came and Sam was done with Middle School. Two and half months later he became a freshman at Creek Meadow High School.
Sam's first week of high school was certainly going a lot smoother than his first week at the middle school did. The rumors had died down after Roger's efforts and the fact that not so long after that day the bodies of the boys were discovered. They had all been found in the forest below the path he used to walk. It was never shown but the news said that their bodies had been disfigured by the local wildlife for the weeks they were down there. There was a memorial held at the middle school for the five boys, but I think that the majority of the students only mourned three of them. Sam certainly did.
He wasn't a pariah anymore, and he didn't brag about his encounters at his old middle school. He was going to try to make this a fresh start for him. Something Ryan and Emily and another insisted upon. Jeremy's legs healed near the end of summer break and he was glad to be able to run around again. He quickly became a part of the activities Ryan and Emily dragged him into: Emily preferred indoor activities such as reading and watching movies while Ryan preferred outdoor activities like catch and riding his bike. Amazingly, they both enjoyed each other's activities as well as their own. Sam's grandfather even bought him a bike to join them.
During lunch one day during school Sam's eyes noticed something. A bunch of students sitting at one table were staring at him, almost glaring. Sam didn't know what their problem was. He didn't let Ryan, Emily, or Jeremy know something was going on.
At the other table a few students were arguing. "How can you just sit and do nothing! The kid is right over there!"
"Shut your mouth, Mark." The leader of the group said. "There's no reason for us to do anything to that kid. He's a freshman, and I believe that group was assigned to your subordinate."
"Did you see the news, Jake!?" "Keith is dead and I know it was because of that kid!"
"I watched it" another students said. "Looked like your guy and his group were too stupid to keep their footing." He chuckled.
"Shut up, Byron! Aren't either of you pissed? Without a freshman division this will all end after my class graduates."
"Then let it" Jake said. "I won't mind if it ends, it does me no good after I graduate."
"I know, seriously" Byron added in.
"Then I demand that we do something now like making that kid pay!"
Jake slammed his fist against the table. "Silence Mark! I am the senior and you are the sophomore! You do not have the right to demand or order anything without my permission! As long as I'm in charge we will do nothing of the sort, and when I graduate all of my power will pass onto Byron."
"And there's no way in hell I'm going to do anything you say either." He smirked at Mark.
"That settles it then" Jake said. "You're just going to have to wait until you're a senior and you're in charge. I just hope your irrational hatred towards that boy will be gone by then.
"Don't count on it!" Mark said as he stormed away from the table.
It was now July and Sam had just finished his sophomore year of high school. The years were surprisingly calm for him. He had expected a lot more trouble in high school, but figured he just sometimes forgot it wasn't like where he used to live. He knew he was supposed to feel glad, but something inside him had been making him feel sad for the past few months. He couldn't think anything that could be making him feel the way he was and so just shrugged it off as hormones.
Arthur noted how much Jet had changed since he first arrived in both size, stature, and personality. Jet had gotten longer... or taller depending on how he walked. Like all Doubu the joints in Jet's arms and legs developed to resemble a human; he could walk on all four or on two legs and switch between the two with ease. When standing Jet was four and a half feet tall, and still growing. This allowed Doug to do more studies on him, much to Arthur's dismay.
Everyone was starting to work harder and conducting more experiments now that they had less than a year before they had to turn in something. I wouldn't have bothered Arthur so much except over the past few months he had noticed something with Jet. The light that used to be in the pup's eyes had dulled. He didn't talk anymore either, even when it was just the two of them; he didn't even say Sam's name anymore. Arthur knew their bond was breaking like Adam and Eve told him. He had tried his best to delay it, but now it looked like it was inevitable.
He could see the frustration in the others. They were all disappointed by the lack of new information they were getting from Jet. Part of it was Arthur's fault with him telling Jet not to speak, and because of it they were starting to think Jet was less intelligent than Adam and Eve.
Arthur knew that wasn't the case. He had spoken to Jet many times over the years, giving him some company, promising each time that it wasn't long before he could see Sam even though he knew each time it was more and more unlikely. He decided to talk to him again tonight once the others were gone.
He opened the door to Jet's room. He was lying on his back in his humanoid form and staring at the ceiling. "Jet?" He gave no response. Arthur took a seat as he always did. "Are you thinking of Sam?"
"Sam?... That name sounds familiar..." Arthur sighed. He couldn't believe the person Jet cried for so many times was now a distant memory in his mind. "I remember watching him fall down the mountain..." Arthur's eyes widened. He saw that Jet was sort of in a trance like state. "I saw the five who were responsible. I got mad... very mad. I wasn't myself... I can't remember clearly. My vision comes back and I find Sam alive, but barely. I went on instinct and pulled him and three others to the top of the mountain."
Arthur stammered from his chair. "That's not possible... there's no way you could have dragged four boys up that height, and with no path either."
Jet was silent for a few seconds. "My memory during that time is also blurry, but it's the last I can remember of a person named Sam."
Arthur was breathing fast. No matter how outrageous Jet's story was he believed him when he said he saved Sam and the other three boys. "If I had known this when..." Arthur felt like he was going to vomit. He had been denying Jet the opportunity to see Sam for all these years when he's the one responsible for him still being alive. Arthur collapsed to his knees. "Oh Jet... I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for what I've done." Jet didn't respond. Arthur took a deep gulp and got to his feet. He needed to do something and fast. "Come with me Jet."
"Yes Arthur" Jet said calmly as he got off the bed and walked to him on two legs. Arthur grabbed his paw and led him down out of the living quarters, down the hall, and to the front door. He checked to make sure no one was around before leading Jet to his car. He buckled him up in the back seat and drove off.
Sam was lying on the couch reading a book while his iPod was charging. He heard the front door open and saw his grandfather enter rather hastily. "Is something wrong gramps?"
"Sam do you remember when you came back from the hospital and told me about Jet?"
"Yeah."
"Well there's something I need to tell you. You asked me a long ago what my job was and all this time I've been avoiding it. I'm a Doubu researcher and I run a lab here in town."
"You mean you study those animals that walk on two legs?"
"Yes."
"Alright, so what's the big deal?"
"Jet is a Doubu and he's the one who saved your life!"
Sam couldn't help but chuckle. "Are you sure you're feeling alright? Jet was just a wolf pup that ran away when I didn't visit him after a while. And you're saying he rescued me?"
"I don't all that happened, but Jet remembers. He told me."
"He told you?" You mean he talks now?" Sam started laughing.
"Oh for heavens..." Arthur was getting annoyed. "If you're not going to listen then let me show you! Jet, please come in."
Sam looked over at the front door and saw a large black wolf with a white spot on its back walk in. "Whoa!" Sam pushed back further into the couch. "Is that really Jet?" Arthur nodded. "Alright so you found Jet, but he's still just a wolf not a-" Arthur signaled Jet who immediately shifted his joints to stand on his hind legs. "...Doubu..." Sam's eyes widened and his mouth was agape after just watching the wolf shift.
"Do you need any more proof?" Arthur asked with a smirk which slowly turned into a frown. "For years he's wanted nothing but to be back with you... and now he's begun to forget you. Please... remind him who you are."
Sam stood up slowly and cautiously approached Jet. He didn't care how calm his grandfather was; this was the first time he'd been close to something like this. He got closer to Jet looked at his eyes. They were the same dark blue ones he remembered seeing when he first found him. "Jet?" Sam said softly. Jet's ears twitched when Sam said his name. Involuntarily tears began to form in Jet's eyes. Sam knew that it really was the pup from the cave. He didn't think, he got closer to Jet and wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close. For seconds the two remained motionless.
"Sam?" Jet asked softly. His arms started to reach around Sam.
"It's me Jet." Sam couldn't explain why tears were forming in his eyes. He didn't care.
Jet closed his eyes and buried his face into Sam's chest. Sam could immediately feel his shirt getting drenched from all of Jet's tears. "I... missed you... so much!" Jet's words came out in gasps. His arms finally wrapped themselves around Sam's waist. "Sam!" Jet let it all out. He continued to say Sam's name. Sam tried to calm him by rubbing his back. He looked at his grandfather but didn't know whether to look at him with gratitude for bringing him back, or with disgust for having put him through so much for so long.
"Sam... I" Arthur tried to apologize but Sam just shook his head slowly telling him this wasn't the time to discuss it. Sam continued to try to calm Jet down. He decided it would be best if he left them alone. He went outside and took a seat on the ground. He didn't know what to do. Sam was most likely furious at him for keeping Jet locked up for so long, and now his team was going to be furious with him for going behind their backs and releasing Jet. He needed to come up with something. Minutes passed and nothing came to him. His mind was too restless for him to stay in one place; he decided to take a walk.
The moon was bright enough to illuminate his way along the mountain path. He knew it was crazy to walk on it at night, that he might fall, but did he even care? Eventually he could see the section of the path that had collapsed all those years ago. He knew he couldn't go any further and was fixing to turn back until he noticed a hole in the side of the mountain. He remembered Sam mentioned a cave when he talked about Jet, but this was the first time he'd ever seen it.
The moonlight was shining through the cave, completely illuminating it. The walls were rough and everything was dark in color. Arthur smiled finally being able to see where Sam and Jet first met. Then something caught his attention in the corner of his eye. Something white was shining in the back of the cave. Arthur approached it and removed the rubble that was in front of it. His eyes widened.
"What's the meaning of this Arthur!?" Doug shouted. "Where's Jet?"
"I let him go" Arthur answered nonchalantly.
"You what!?" Cynthia gasped. "Do you realize how much time we have until the deadline? We might not have been getting the data we wanted but we sure won't get anything from it now!"
"Arthur..." Julia started. "What are we going to do know? "We've been short one hand since Charlie left to pursue his Master's Degree and now we only have Adam and Eve again."
"I guess we'll have to trade up..." his words confused them. "But first I want you all to put on some gloves. They didn't understand where he was going with this but followed his order. "Last night I found something that may be the answer we've been looking for." He reached below him and gently put a cardboard box on the table. He opened it and took out something wrapped in a shirt of his. He carefully undid the knot holding the shirt together and let the fabric slowly drop to the side.
Everyone was speechless. Their eyes were filled with amazement and excitement. There on the table laid a white Doubu egg with a single black spot on it. "No lab has ever gotten an egg to study before" said Arthur. Let's see what we can find." He smiled at his team.
Five months later it was close to Christmas. All of them were working hard examining every possible detail about the egg. Charlie was also visiting while he was on Christmas break. Like the others were months ago he was amazed with egg that sat in a case in the middle of the testing center. The others were too busy examining their computer monitors to realize what Charlie was doing. He tried reaching out to touch it with ungloved hands, but didn't realize there was a very thin protective glass surface surrounding it. He pressed into it without realizing it and sent tipped the egg over the edge. A loud crack filled the room and their attention immediately went to Charlie and the now missing egg.
They panicked and ran to see if the egg was alright. Charlie, meanwhile, was slowly backing up in order to avoid any verbal abuse from them. He heard nothing though as he got closer and closer to the door. He looked down and could see them all staring at something with amazement.
"Arthur..." Julia started. "A Doubu hatched from an egg not touched by a human!"
"More like it was forcefully cracked open, but it's alive nonetheless." Cynthia added in.
"This alone could save our lab" Doug smiled.
They all continued to look down at the young white Doubu that was shaking on the ground with its eyes closed. It eventually was able to sit on its hind legs and steady itself. The four of them were fascinated.
"Do you hear something?" Cynthia asked. They all went silent. "It sounds like growling..." They all looked back at the little Doubu. Its eyes opened wide and glared at the four of them with eyes completely black.
Uh oh...
School has been keeping me from writing this chapter, but I finally finished!
So how do you like this chapter? Comment what you like/didn't like so I'll know what to work on for the next chapter.
I hope there aren't too many errors. I skimmed over it and caught a few but there still may be have been some hiding. Hopefully it doesn't affect the mood of the story.