Preface: Genetics

Genetics is a funny thing to some, but from where I’m standing it isn’t so funny. Science made me; science controlled me for a long time, but not anymore. I’m getting along just as a normal messed-up teen now, but I will never be normal ever.

Urban legend speaks of a Lab in Montana where donors gave their sperm and egg, all in the name of science. Test-tube children were created, that were told to have abilities.

Series M-9, where never meant to be fighters. They where suppose to be able to listen to someone’s voice, and tell if they were lying, where they from, where they had ever been, and who they had talked to, because of the vocal patterns. But they were failures, they only they could do was see music as if it were right in front of them, and create music that could stir the soul.

The M-9 children where young then, they were given to scientist to raise as their own, because they thought we were really no threat.

They thought that we weren’t fighters, but they were wrong, we are fighters and now we’re fighting each other.

Chapter One: I didn’t say anything

My bed shook, if I lived in California still I would have yelled earthquake at the top of my lungs. But luckily this wasn’t California, and therefore not an earthquake. And that shrill annoying voice, the one I knew oh so well, called out my name, as she slapped my hip. “Cyan Faye, get up right now! There is a couple here to see you.” It was Mary, the attendant for the east wing girl’s dormitory at my Camp for Troubled Teens. Joy. “Get up, now!”

I rolled out of bed, landing on my hands and knees. I reached out for my headphones and shoved them in my ears. A.F.I.’s Miss. Murder began to pound though my body. Brilliant red lights shot through my vision, like arrows…I grabbed a pair of jeans off of the floor, and smelled them to make sure they are clean. They were, and I slid them on. I pulled my shirt over my head, making sure my MP3 didn’t get caught. I grabbed a rumpled yellow Blondie shirt off the floor, and threw it over my head, checking it in the mirror to make sure it didn’t look too bad. I untangled the cord for my MP3; shoved it in the front pocket of my jeans and pulled on a pair of black converses, and laced them tight.

I walked over to the dresser, ran a comb though my straight black hair, which had blood red streaks in it. There was just something about watching the shrinks here at camp eye my hair that made it worth keeping it up and sneaking off camp grounds to get the dye.

It takes a good five minutes to put on my eyeliner, because I use four different shades, espresso under tone, kohl berry to darken the under tone, umber on the upper lid, and corners of the eyes, and then finally black on the lids of the eyes to make sure my electric blue eyes… pop, for lack of a better word. I use brown shadow on my eye lids. I dab a light shade of lipstick on my lips to give them some color, but don’t go all out. I saved the bright red lipstick for the days when I thought someone was close to wanting to adopt me. Just the thought of it made me laugh. Who would want to adopt me? I was a genetically engineered teenage girl…I was created in a lab… No one wanted a test-tube baby. (Of course, my record didn’t say that…it just said that family had died in a car crash when I was younger…Nope! Wrong! Na-da! Zip! Zilch! Non!)

I grabbed the black holster bag on the back of my door, swinging the duck taped strap over my shoulder. Time to meet some more people who thought they could fix me, when I wasn’t even broken…joy.

I walked into the lounge, or at least that’s what they call it. All it is, is a small white (Because they wanted everyone to be happy…I think they would have done better with yellow) room with no curtains (So no one could hang themselves), and a few couches that where bought from Salvation Army (Because the funding sucked).

I plopped down on the red couch across from a couple in their late forties. I pulled my headphones out of my ears, but don’t turn the music off. I waited for them to say something, but they don’t. They just look at Mary.

“Cyan this is Jenni and Ted.” Mary said. She turned her eyes to the couple, “This is Cyan Faye, the one we’ve been telling you about.”

I shrugged. I didn’t really care. I’ve had families come and talk to me before, but they’ve never taken me home…Not that I cared much, I just had to make it just until I was eighteen, and then I was free…! They always go for the younger kids. –It’s like the pound, but for kids. All the people go for the puppies, and not the dogs. Sad how life is sometimes, but you get over it or better yet, learn to live with it. Either/or works.

“We’ve heard about your musical talents.” Jenni said. This caught me by surprise, most of the time the fact that I had major musical ability didn’t matter. I didn’t let the surprise show on my face. “We’d love to have you come home with us.”

I allowed a single eyebrow to rise, and I shrugged. Why should I care, it’s not like the musical ability was natural? Nope, the major musical ability was given to me by said Lab. And the only reason I had said major musical ability was because said Lab, like to screw with the DNA given by our Donors when they donate a sperm and egg. Yep, that was me, I didn’t have parents, I had Donors, who I had ever seen before in my life. –All I knew is that I was given the name Cyan Faye, I lost my first family at the age of eleven, and it as all been downhill from there. Oh, and then there is the thing on my back that the Order gave me, right before they killed…I shook my head, we were not thinking about that. Not thinking about that at all.

“Is that a yes?” Ted asked, looking up at Mary, who nodded, “We know that it will not be easy at first, but we’re willing to work with you and help you.”

I turned around and gave Mary the ‘What are they talking about’ look.

“Jenni and Ted are Doctors.” Mary said.

“I believe your generation calls us shrinks.” Jenni said smiling broadly.

I set my lips and glared at Mary, “Well?” she asked.

I shrugged. I didn’t really care. I’d be back at the Camp in a few weeks, so it didn’t really matter. It never did, it probably never will. I was willing to bet a good amount of money that the Shrinks wouldn’t last. From the looks of them, I would give them two weeks at the most, and that was only because they where Shrinks. Most families who come and look at me, and then take the chance, and the plunge and bring me home don’t last five days, much less a week. Ah, life.

“Do you need help packing?” Jenni asked. I shook my head no.

I got up off the couch, shoving my headphones back in my ears and walked off down the hall. I looked back and growled in dislike, they where all following me. So not cool. They were intruding on my musical vibes!

I hated when people intruded on my musical vibes!

Dude! Come on! So not cool, man!

I threw open the door to my room, and pulled a black duffle bag out of my closet. I opened up all the zippers. I threw the clothes in my floor in first, and then the clothes in the dresser. I pulled out my sports bag, and packed my running shoes, cleats, shin guards, and soccer ball…not that I played much anymore.

I laid down on the floor, and began pulling guitar cases out from under the bed. Nine in all. One for every year I’d been playing up until five years ago, when my family died. I’d been playing since the age of two…What could I say, being made in a Lab, had it benefits…music being one of them.

I threw my bags over my shoulders, and picked up two guitars. Jenni got two, as did Mary, and Ted picked up the last three. –They led me out of the car to a black SUV.

Oh how stereotypical!

Get a life people!

Ted hopped in the driver’s seat, and Jenni sat in the back with me. “We live out in Green’s Hollow, do you know where that is?” I shook my head no, “It’s about three hours from here. We live in an old ranch house with our three sons.”

Three sons? Damn. I got the bad feeling I was about to walk into a hell house, but hey, who cared, I’ve been in worse situations. And it always worked out in the end.

“Our sons are Owen, who’s nineteen, Shane who sixteen like you, and Duke who is fifteen.” she said, “I know you don’t like to talk, so we made a list of initial questions that we would like you to answer.”

She handed me a list of questions on a clip board and a pen.

Full name: Cyan Elizabeth Faye

Age: Sixteen

Date of Birth: October 31

Favorite Color(s): Black, purple and cream

Favorite Food(s): Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

Can you Drive: Yes

Do you have a car: I wish

The list went on and on, for about ten pages, just simple questions, that would fly by if they came in conversation.

After I finished their questions, I slid my head phones back on and hit the play button. Lillix: Sweet Temptation began to pound though my ears. I beat my head with the moderate bass, One. Two. Three. Get you feet on the Floor! Everybody feel it down to the floor. Alright, alright, get her to the floor! Give into the Sweet! Temptation!

For this music I saw blue squiggles that seemed to be more like snakes. The base pounded in green dots that expanded and unexpanded as the base thumbed. The drumbeat fell in purple rain in my vision.

The trip went very quickly after that. Next thing I knew we were pulling into the long driveway that led to an old farm house. There was a six car garage that Ted pulled into. I looked down the line of cars. I don’t know a lot about cars, but I did know I saw a Volvo, a Ford F-150, a Cruiser, a DMW, and at the very end was a black Jeep.

“Come on.” Jenni said pulling on the sleeve of my Blondie shirt. –I followed her in the house. –I heard shouts coming from some where in the house.

“DUDE! NOT COOL!”

“YES IT WAS! –I WIN, I WIN! WHOOO!”

“DUDE!”

“OOO! I WIN! I WIN! OOO!”

I followed Jenni and Ted to the living room, where four boys were seated on the floor. I picked my way across the crushed soda cans, and scattered pieces of pop corn. I had always been over protective of my black high-tops, but when you don’t talk, you tend to be a bit more careful with your things, because you can’t just open your mouth and say, ‘It’s not my fault, _______ (Insert name of enemy here), pushed me into the mud!’ Life get’s a little harder when you don’t talk, but then again, it also get’s easier. “What is this?” Jenni demanded, “I told you not to make a mess.”

“Sorry mom.” A boy with shaggy blond hair said glancing quickly over at his mom. He did a double take and stared at me.

He reached out blindly and hit another boy in the ribs. “Hey! Shane!”

The boy beside him jumped and said, “What was that for?” This boy had black hair, I suspected it was dyed. He looked at me, and then punched the other boy, but he didn’t need to be punched because he was already staring at me.

“Everyone this is Cyan Faye, the one we’ve been telling you about.” Jenni said. “Boys why don’t you help her take her things up stairs, and introduce yourselves.”

They shrugged, hopped up, and took my bags and guitars up the stairs. I followed behind them at a distance, not really sure what to expect.

They opened the door for me at the end of the hall, and walked in. I looked around the room. It wasn’t much. The walls where white, all the wood in the room, including the floor, was done in a rusty oak stain, the bed frame was iron, and stuck up at interesting angles… it looked rather old, really, but a bed was bed was a bed.

“Right.” The boy with black hair setting down my guitars on the bed, and turning around to look at me, “I’m Owen.”

“Shane.” The blond boy said raising his hand.

“Duke.” The shortest of the lot said. He had hair a few shades darker than Shane.

“Sabe, I’m Owens’s friend.” Sabe’s hair was cut just below his ears, parted on the side, but his bangs where dyed blond. He looked like, or at least his hair, the guitarist from the A.F.I, Miss Murder music video.

I nodded a greeting shifting my weight as they stared at me. I was starting to get really uncomfortable, and I got jumpy when I was uncomfortable, which made me a little knife happy, and I could feel the cool metal of the knife against my back, in it’s custom made sheath.

“You play?” Owen asked at last, drawing my thoughts away from the knife.

I nodded my head yes. Of course I played, did he think that I keep guitars just for show. What fun would that be? I’ll tell you, none! It wouldn’t be any fun, and a complete waste of good space.

“Hey, maybe you can play with us.” Sabe said, “We’re looking for a new guitarist.”

“Dude! No way! She’s a girl!” Owen said elbowing him in the ribs.

I frowned, set my jaw, and growled. I ran my eyes over him, causing him to shift positions. “Why are you looking at us like that?”

“Because.” I said causing them all to jump, “I have never met a man so arrogant.”

“I thought you didn’t talk.” Duke said.

It’s not that I didn’t talk…I just didn’t talk a lot. See, what happened was, one of the couples who’d come to talk to me, took me back to their house for a weekend, but I didn’t a say a word the whole time so I got this reputation of not talking…Oh, well, if it kept people away from me so be it….But still, I wasn’t quiet all the time.

I blink innocently and looked surprised. This Sabe character with the hot hair must have picked up on what I was trying to do because he said “She didn’t say anything.” Nice, the man knew how to cover for a girl. I would not forget this; he could turn out to be very useful.

“Yes she did.” Shane said, “She said Because…”

“She didn’t say anything.” Sabe said, “I think you need to see a doctor. Maybe you should go and talk to you father.”

“No, she…” Owen began.

I felt the muscles in my jaw jump. I spotted a white board on the far wall, and stalked over to it. I pulled the cap off the black marker with my teeth and began to write quickly. I didn’t say anything you dicks. – Thank you Sabe.

“You’re welcome.” Sabe said.

I swiped my hand across the board clearing it and began to write again, Now, I’ve been living off food that tastes like dog crap for the past few years, do you have something edible I can eat, or are you going to stand there and make complete asses out of yourselves.

“Hey you can’t treat us like that.” Duke said. “You don’t even really live here.”

I do now.

“There’s food downstairs.” Own said, “Come on.”

He and Sabe led me down stairs into the kitchen. “Okay.” Sabe said, “So let’s talk about the little stunt you pulled in the room.”

I looked at him frowning, and then shrugged. Owen put a bag of popcorn in the microwave. The popcorn began popping loudly covering the silence. I shoved my hand phones headphones over my ears, hit the play button and grabbed the bag of popcorn out of the microwave just as it beeped. Over my music I could hear both of the boys yelling at me, as I vaulted up the stairs, and locked the door to my room.

So Sabe was willing to cover my ass, that was good to know. The boys I could work around, it was the shrinks that I knew I was going to have trouble with. Damn, why did it have to be shrinks… why not head doctors, or even feet doctors? Why shrinks, what the hell I had done in a past life…wait, was there such a thing as a past life?

I shook my head, “Yeah fucking right.” I snarled at my face in the mirror. Genetically made girls did not have past lives! All I knew is that I was from the M-9 series, I was made in a Lab, I was one hell of a fighter, and no one and I mean no one could ever see my back. Ever!