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Chapter 4 :The Uncontrolled variable

LC looked at the time on his phone. It was 10:30pm. He removed the bandages and walked to the medical cabinet and got the drug he needed to bring her out of her medically induced coma and some medical adhesive tape.

LC taped the speaker of the 'remote' to one of Jana's ears and began preparing the syringe. After drawing in the right amount of the drug into the syringe and making sure there were no air bubbles in either the syringe or the needle, he injected the drug into Jana's arm.

Jana slowly regained consciousness and groaned as she tried to sit up. She became more alert when she realised that she was tied down to a medical bed, and her eyes widened with horror when she realised that she was not only naked but some kind of...creature. She looked more muscular now. Her once grey and white fur was now a dark brown colour. She looked like a Hyena. Jana felt sick in the stomach, and instinctively knew (or assumed) that her fur had not been dyed. 'I am not a Wolf anymore! I...I'm a Hyena!' thought the terrified Hybrid. She tried to open her mouth to scream, but some kind of leather restraint stoped her from opening her mouth very far. As soon as it became obvious that she was going to scream LC activated the 'remote'. It emitted a bizarre noise and Jana was instantly asleep.

LC smiled. Experiment 261 was a complete success! And the 'remote' that he had made with plans purchased from that crazy hacker was worth every Rand he payed for it.LC could not help but wonder 'how did that Chameleon_get hold of the plans for this? She didn't seem to know anything about electronics or circuits...so it's unlikely she designed it. Perhaps she stole the design from someone else?'_ The Doberman dismissed the thought and placed the 'remote' down next to Jana. He had more urgent matters to attend to. 'I need to contact Cor, and I need to do something about her memory, and I need to dress her' though LC. He started to walk away from the sleeping Hyena but stopped abruptly mid stride. 'I am a geneticist...wiping someone's memory is beneath me.'

LC snorted. "I will just hire someone to do it. And I know just the right person. But first, call Cor."

LC activated the crypto mode on his phone and called Cornelius. The Raccoon soon answered. Cornelius had been hard at work, busily typing on his computer, making changes to some document that LC couldn't really see.Cornelius saved the changes he had made, and picked up his phone. He could tell by the distinctive ringtone that LC was the caller, and that the call was encrypted.

Cornelius stretched as he answered the phone. "Hi LC. I haven't heard from you in a while. Since this is an encrypted message, I assume it's to do with your project."

LC nodded and asked "Are you secure and encrypted at your end?"

Cornelius's reply was short. "Yes. If anyone calls me with crypto mode my phone automatically activates crypto on mine."

The Doberman relaxed slightly. He was clearly nervous and would have preferred to be talking to Cornelius face to face. No electronic communications were truly secure. "The project is virtually finished. Only some...very minor things need to be done. Everything will be ready in two or three days".

Cornelius smiled. "Excellent! Excellent!"

LC rubbed his eyes. He was tired after working nonstop over the last twenty four hours. "I am going to go home and get some sleep. I will make the last modifications when I get back."

Cornelius said his goodbyes and ended the call. 'If the changes are so minor, then I might bring the unveiling forwards. How much harm could it do?' thought the excited Raccoon. He began making plans to go and see Experiment 261 for himself once LC was no longer there. That damn Doberman seemed as cantankerous as ever. It would be best to simply avoid him until he had got some sleep.

Unaware of Cornelius's plans, LC contactedElizabeth Carter. She wasan ocelot,and was originally from the England. She was had originally trained in medicine before becoming a fulltime hacker working for GeneTech after they had offered her much better pay to work as a hacker testing the security of GeneTech's system. He also remembered her working on developing memory erasure technologies. Best of all, was a natural follower, and did what she was told without asking questions, which suited LC. But he did not want to risk simply asking her to wipe the test subject's memory. He needed a convincing lie. He drafted and redrafted his message, and once satisfied with it he sent it to Elizabeth.

It took several moments for Elizabeth to reply. Her price was a lot lower that LC thought it would be -a mere thirty five thousand Rand plus expenses. LC shrugged and transferred the money to the ocelots account. A moment later LC got a message from Elizabeth.

'Hi LC! It will take me a few days to get to Joburg. I am in PE at the moment, and I will need to fly to Bloem and then to Joburg. I will let you know when I arrive. -Elizabeth'

LC raised an eyebrow. 'I wonder what she is doing in Port Elizabeth...not that it matters. Anyway, that's that sorted.Now all I need to do is dress thegirl and go home and get some sleep' thought LC. The Doberman thought it was a shame that the luminescent panties the former Wolf had been wearing when he collected her had lost their bright glowing letters. But he knew that some direct sunlight would fix that. 'Perhaps I should make some alterations to her brain latter on? Make her unable to refuse to obey orders...make orders change the way her brain processes serotonin. Like a...targeted obsessive compulsive disorder. Now that would be fun!' the thought excited the Doberman, but he really needed to get home and get some sleep before doing further work on her.He dressed her in a plain grey flight suit that he had ordered while watching over Jana when she was in the chamber.'Not the prettiest outfit for her, but it will do' thought the mentally and physically exhausted Doberman.

LC walked to his sports car, and remembered that he left the 'remote' back with the test subject. But he couldn't be bothered with going back and getting it. It was not as though she was going to wake up by herself. He got into his sports car and drove home without giving the remote a second thought. Although he was tired he did not have too much difficulty staying awake in the heavy city traffic where conditions were constantly changing. On the few long straight stretches of road he did have trouble staying awake, but he managed to not fall asleep behind the wheel. In his sleep deprived state he even thought he was driving well, not realizing that his reaction time was almost nonexistent.When he finally arrived home he went straight to his bedroom and collapsed on the bed face down. He whined as he rolled over to get comfortable. As soon as he was comfortable he fell asleep, snoring loudly.

Jana woke up. An unusual noise was ringing in her ear. Her ears flattened as she looked down at her body. She felt sick again when she realised that she looked exactly like she did the last time she was conscious.Her snout wrinkled into a snarl, and she glared at the raccoon that had been next to her a moment ago. He had walked back to a podium and had started to give a speech or something, and had not seen the vicious look in her dilated eyes.

Slowly, she sat up on the medical bed that she was lying on and forced herself to look around. She was on the stage of an auditorium not unlike what one would find at a university. It was a particularly impressive auditorium. The padded red seats looked very comfortable, and there was ample space between the tiered rows of seats. The walls were veneered with a deep red pine, and there was even an upper balcony with additional rows of seats. The roof was covered in large hexagonal shaped panels. They looked like they were purely aesthetic features.The room was filled with well dressed people of various species. In the prominent positions throughout the auditorium were reporters and their camera crews.

Jana hopped off the bed and stood for a moment. She took a closer look at her body. She was larger, more muscular, stronger, and more powerful than before. She felt powerful. And she was going to get answers. She was going to take back the control that her kidnappers and whoever else were responsible for all of this had taken from her. By fair means or foul. 'And the best part is there will be lots of witnesses' though Jana as she started moving towards the Raccoon.

The Raccoon was giving a speech or something. Jana didn't listen to any of it. She didn't care what he was saying, or who he was saying it to. He didn't seem to notice Jana, but his 'sixth sense' seemed to alert him to an impending attack from a predator. He had an uneasy feeling that something was going to attack him from behind. He turned his head and saw the 'chimera' that LC had made. She was slowly walking towards him, but her body language didn't seem all that aggressive. Her ears were erect, and her mouth was closed. But the look in her eyes and the look on her face made it clear that in her eyes he was nothing but prey. He turned his head quickly back and forth between the audience and the thing that he had just woken up. 'What the fuck is going on!?' was all the confused Raccoon could think. He would have used the remote to put her to sleep again, but it was on the bed behind her, and even if he could get to it, the speaker of the remote needed to be next to her ear.

A large Rottweilermoved between Jana and Cornelius. He looked more like a hired thug than a security guard. His face was covered in large scars, and his muscles bulged out from his shirt which was a size or two too small for his frame. The Rottweilermay have looked intimidating, but his tail was halfway between his legs and his ears were flat against his head. He was clearly nervous. He growled as Jana stopped her slow stalk. Jana's eyes narrowed, but she made no noise. The Rottweilertook a small step forwards. His body language became more assertive.The freak before him clearly had no desire to fight.

Jana spoke loudly, but did not truly yell. Her tone was threatening. " Where the hell am I? And what the hell have you done to me?"

Cornelius turned to the audience, who had started to murmur loudly. "The Chimera seems to have a few glitches. But rest assured-"

Jana, unable to contain her rage, began yelling in her native Afrikaans as the stress of the situation and the indignity of being spoken about as though she was a mere object got to her. " I am Jana de la Rey! I was born in Vryburg! I was born a Wolf! I was kidnapped in Johannesburg's Golden Harvest nature trail by two Wolves! I demand to know where the hell I am and what the hell has been done to me!"

The audience began started to stand up as their murmuring gave way to shouting and chaos as most people started moving towards the various exists. Ushers did their best to try and prevent a crowd crush or a stampede, and the reporters tried to explain what was happening to their viewers and their stations, but the noise inside the auditorium was making it difficult at best.

Jana could only just hear the Raccoon as he shouted "Someone remove the Chimera! Get it out of here!"

The Rottweileradvanced towards Jana. She growled at she lunged towards the muscular, tan and black furred Rottweiler. She was prepared to do anything necessary to escape. They would not take her captive this time. She lunged at the canine, preparing not simply to bite him, but to tear a chunk of flesh from his body. She was about the same height as the Rottweiler, who at the upper end of the average height range for a Canidae Major breed, but he was heavier and more muscular. It would be an even fight. The Rottweilermanaged to move back to avoid being bitten, and grabbed Jana around the body with one arm while pinning her head against his chest with the other. There was no technique in the way he grabbed her. It was nothing more than a clashed tangle of stifled movement. While he had managed to immobilize her arms, her legs were still free. He began to move backwards with her. This proved to be more difficult than he thought it would have been. The creature was not cooperating. She dug her claws into the wood on the stage, but one of her feet slipped forwards. This had an unexpected benefit. She was now in a better position to resist being dragged off. She had a stable base. It also gave her the idea to swing her knee into the dog's groin.His grip gave way after that and he crumpled to the floor.

More guards began to come up onto the stage. Before they could get to her Jana jumped off the stage and into the audience near one of the lanes that people had used originally to get to their seats. Now they used them to run away from Jana. Her legs hurt as she landed on the floor, but it only slowed her down for a split second. Half crawling and half running, she moved away from the stage and the guards, ignoring the screams of panic from what remained of the audience. She was soon on her feet and running normally. She leaned forwards, using her tail for balance. It was natural for her, and it allowed her to move as fast as possible. Everyone near her did all they could to get out of her way. The noise from the screaming and shouting was making Jana's ears ring as she ran headlong towards the auditorium's large double doors.Sherammed them with her shoulder to open them, but bounced off. A security guard did the same, but the short male Wolverine fell back unconscious after trying to tackle Jana from behind.

In a panic Jana flung the one of the door open, giggling like only Hyena could. After going through the door as quickly as she could, she suddenly felt like someone was going to attack her from behind. She turned and saw a badger running towards her, and pulled the door closed. Jana did not stay to see if the badger would run into the door as she hopped. She did however hear a satisfying thud behind her as she ran from the pandemonium she has caused. She found herself in a large foyer and in front of several passageways. She didn't know where the passage way led to, but they took her away from the chaos behind her. Without thinking she ran though the middle passageway and into a large reception room. There were several large tables with what was left of the snacks and refreshments the audience had eaten earlier on. Jana would have loved to grab something to eat, but her priority was to run. She skidded to a halt and looked for an exit. _'There!'_thought Jana as she started running once again. She narrowly avoided being tackled by a muscular female Doberman by luck rather than design. As Jana ran she lent forwards to maintain her balance, and by the time she was about to run out of the building's entrance she was running so fast her body was nearly horizontal.

The bright glare of the South African daytime made Jana's eyes sting as she ran outside the building. Squinting and dazed, it took her a moment to recognise where she was. She was in the City Centre of Johannesburg, the old square mile as laid out by the Voortrekkers eight hundred years ago. It looked like it was in the business area, but Jana wasn't sure. She had never been in this part of the old city before. She slowed down to a jog as she got close to the end of the plaza in front of the building she had fled from. She then stopped. There were dozens of police officers, many of them in riot gear. All were dressed in the tactical clothing specially designed for the police. Dark navy blue cargo style pants with several large pockets, shirts that allowed full movement of the arms, black boots made from synthetic materials, and tactical belts and soft body armour.

There were several large groups of people, and judging from the signs they were protestors. Most seemed to be either protesting for or against the liberties and rights of "biological AIs".Jana had never seen protestors like that before, but she had a feeling she knew what they meant by "biological AIs". While she was weighing up her options she was approached by several officers, their handguns drawn. She held her hands up and showed that she was unarmed.

A youngish Dalmatian ordered her to lie down on the ground and to put her hands on the top of her head. Jana meekly complied. She had no desire to be shot. The Dalmatian moved forwards, and his colleagues moved forwards and to the sides so cover him and to ensure he was not in their line of fire. As he handcuffed Jana's hands behind her back, a slightly older female Persian moved forwards and helped to put a muzzle on Jana to ensure that she couldn't bite anyone. The Persian had long white fur, a bushy tail, and a mane unique to her breed which covered her neck, shoulders, and part of her back.

The Dalmatian informed Jana that she was under arrest, but the Persian did what she could to reassure her. "Don't take it the wrong way. We just need to find out what is going on. I am Warrant OfficerTrisha Hendrikse. What's your name?"

Jana whined and giggled. "Jana. Janade la Rey. I...I was born in Vryburg. I am a Wolf...I _was_a Wolf..." Trisha tried to keep her talking, but her efforts were thwarted when a number of people from the building approached the officers, lead by a Raccoon. Their approach was too bold. The officer and her colleaguesknew something was wrong. While the Dalmatian and the Persian helped Jana to her feet and began moving her behind a nearby vehicle for safety, the other officers who had come to help moved to block the groups advance. Their hands were on their holstered pistols.

A mature female Shepherd with medium length black fur gestured with her opened hand. "My friend! Stop there.Stop right there."

Cornelius and several GeneTech security guards stopped abruptly. The Raccoon hesitated for a moment. "Unhand that Chimera! That's the property of GeneTech!"

The Shepherd's eyes narrowed. Her ears were tilted forwards, and her tail was stiff behind her. Despite this, she spoke in a clam voice. "You know this person we have arrested? Can you help us identify her? Speak up!"

Cornelius snarled and shouted "I said give back our Chimera!"

Once again the Shepherdspoke calmly, but this time with a much more authoritative tone. She also curled her lips to show her teeth. "Do you know this person? Can you prove who she is? Speak up!"

Jana heard the Raccoon swearing. He turned saw him storm off, his thuggish security guardsin tow. The Shepherd knew that the inappropriate behaviour from the Raccoon was significant. She did not think about it too much though. She could simply review the footage from her body camera back at the station. During the brief confrontation between the Raccoon, his goons and her colleagues, Trisha and the Dalmatianescorted Jana to a police transport vehicle. They held onto her arms tightly. The Persian briefly wondered whether or not the captive she was escorting was a person, but she quickly brought her mind back onto her immediate task - getting herself and her captive to safety. And the safest place at the moment would be inside one of the APC that the some of the police had arrived in. Fortunately they did not have far to go, and they were soon next to the large armoured vehicle.

The APC had angles surfaces made from black ablative plasteel armour, and had four large airless tires. The honeycomb matrix which gave the tires their support, and which made them impossible to flatten, was visible through their open sides. Smoke and tear gas grenade launchers were on each corner of the vehicles roof. All were controlled from inside the APC. On the top of the transport was a turret witha water cannonand a direct-energy weapon - most likely either a non-lethal 'pain beam' or a less than lethal 'heat beam' as they were commonly called.Jana was led to the back of the transport, which had a square shaped end. The doors swung open and Jana was bundled inside the APC, the Persian right behind her. As soon as they were inside the armoured vehicle the back doors were slammed shut and locked. The vehicle began to move as Jana was taken to the small holding cell near the middle of the tank like transport.