Project Divinity

I whimpered, trying my best to comfort my mother. I was used to her breaking down into tears once in a while, but lately she's been doing it a lot more often than normal.

"Mommy, it's going to be okay. Don't lose hope, remember?" I paused, hoping for her tears to stop. "Maybe father will one day let us go outside, if we keep hoping for it, it may just come true!" I continued to reassure her, tears streaming down my face as I did my best to keep my voice from cracking. I didn't want her to feel worse, knowing I was crying too.

My mother was doing her best to calm herself down. I didn't know what else to say. We've been locked up in the same living space we've always been in since I was born. At first my father would let my mother go outside with me when I was a baby, to get some fresh air. But after I turned five years old, things started to go downhill. 

I didn't quite understand at that age, but thinking back on it now he wasn't very kind to us. Mother's excuse was that he was a busy man, being in charge of the Divine Lab. From what she has explained to me, that's where we're living. She says there's many more rooms in the building, sorta like the room we live in now. I've tried to ask her what father does for his job.... But she would never go into detail. She would simply say he's a scientist for the government of our country. I then would go on asking her more simple questions, like what was a government and what country we lived in and such. I guess I could go off track when it came to asking more questions about father.

"... I'm sorry, sweetie. You know I don't like you seeing me like this..." My mother finally spoke up, sadness clear in her voice.

"Mommy, why have you been crying more than normal?" I asked, sadly, quickly wiping away my own tears before she could take notice.

My mother was silent for a moment, as if she was searching for a way to word her explanation. "... Well, I've been trying to talk your father into letting you make a few friends with some of the other children in the Divine Lab. He's being very stubborn on it, and..." She stopped, holding back more tears. "I just want you to have a good life. I don't want you do go through anymore pain." She explained, guilt in her expression.

I frowned, knowing what she was referring to. Father has hit us a couple times in the past. I can't remember if it was my fault, but I do remember my mother taking most of the beatings for me. But I didn't like thinking about that.

"I didn't know there were other kids here..." I mumbled quietly. I guess I never really thought about it.

My mother nodded. "There's a lot of people living here that aren't only scientists like your father." She explained. 

I was confused about that. I didn't quiet understand why there were other people living here if they didn't work here... I figured we lived here because father worked here, but... Maybe they have family working as scientists too? I didn't ask.

That night my mother put me to bed like normal. She laid next to me for a while as I drifted off. I had a feeling that she'd try to contact father again once I fell asleep. That worried me, but everything worries me when it comes to him.

The next morning, I woke up to my mother sitting in the chair across the room, looking out the barred window nearby. At first, I didn't notice anything wrong, she seemed... Peaceful. She was quietly humming a tune to herself while she ran a brush through her long, dark brown hair.

I relaxed at this, climbing out of bed and walking over to her. "Morning, mother!" I smiled as she turned around to look at me. As she did, I felt my blood turn cold, letting out a yelp of surprise and covering my mouth in shock. She had a bandage over her left eye, blood stained the cotton around it.

"Kara, it's alright!" My mother quickly stopped me from panicking.

"What happened to your eye?!" I asked, starting to feel sick.

My mother quickly wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a hug. "It doesn't matter, your father has finally agreed to let you meet some of the other children in the lab." She explained.

It then suddenly hit me. She must of really gone through a beating last night in order to convince father to allow this... Resulting in her eye injury. She did all that for me... I didn't know how to feel.

"B-But, your eye..." I whimpered, trying not to cry.

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that you'll be able to go outside every afternoon to play with some new friends." She reassured me, gently brushing a strand of my brown hair away from my face.

"I'm sorry..." I whimpered again.

"... It's not your fault, sweetie. It's going to be okay." My mother spoke, wiping away my tears.

"... Thank you..." I smiled sadly at her.  She smiled back at me. She genuinely seemed happy, I wish I could be as happy as she was, but I wasn't.

A few days passed since then. Me and my mother waited silently at the locked entrance to our room. "How long do we have to wait...." I whined, feeling bored.

"You have to be patient, your father is a busy man. When he gets here, remember that I can't come with you, but don't worry because your big brother Justin will be with you as well." She explained, making my eyes light up. I haven't seen Justin since I was seven, it's been three years. I remember he used to play with me all the time... He grew up with me and mother here in our room... But he suddenly was taken by father one day... My mother refuses to talk about it or explain why.

Before I could really react to this, the click of the door unlocking took my attention as I quickly ran to my mothers side, feeling a bit nervous to see father again. He scares me.

My mother gave me a reassuring smile as the door opened, my father standing at the door way with a grumpy look on his face, making me tense up ever so slightly.

"Alright, Kate. I'm holding my end of the deal, don't forget yours when the time comes." My father spoke sternly, glaring at my mother before looking down at me. "Come on now... Let's go."

I was about to follow him however, my mother suddenly grabbed me by the shoulders, stopping me in my tracks. "Where's Justin, you said he'd accompany her." She spoke in a tone that I only hear her use with father. It wasn't a happy tone.

My father grumbled slightly under his breath. "Right, of course...." He muttered, looking back down the hallway he came from. "Justin! Come over here, now!" He ordered in strict voice.

"Yes, father." I heard a familiar voice speak back, it was deeper than I remembered it. I watched as my older brother walked over standing beside my father. I blinked, noticing he was wearing a white lab coat.... However, what really frightened me were the dog ears sticking out of his dark brown hair, resting on top of his head. They almost blended in with his hair color. I looked at my mother curious for her reaction, however, she kept a blank gaze on both Justin and my father. Did she know about this.... What happened to my brother?

My mother suddenly turned me to face her as she keeled down, looking me directly in the eyes. "Remember what I told you if anything bad happens. Your brother will protect you." She whispered, giving me a hug.

"Let's go, I don't have all day!" My father snapped.

My mother pulled away from me giving me a reassuring smile. "Be good." She said, before standing up straight and letting go of my shoulders.

I looked over at Justin, feeling a bit scared and unsure of him. However, he gave me one of his cheesy smiles, letting me know it was okay as he held his hand out to me. I slowly took it, looking back at my mother as he led me out of the room, my father slamming the door soon afterwards. The sound of the many locks clicked as it closed.

My father didn't say anything after that, instantly taking lead of us down the hall, not bothering to greet me. "Follow me." He ordered.

My brother led me after him quickly. I couldn't take my eyes off his pointed dog ears as well as his fluffy long tail hanging out of his jeans behind him. What happened to him?

I wanted to ask him, but the fear of my father snapping at me for speaking kept me silent as they led me down a couple more hallways until we entered a room, my father typing in a code to unlock the door ahead of us "Kara, dear, this will be where you will meet other children. I want you to keep in mind, these children aren't like you. They aren't human, they're like your brother. But no need to worry, they are on strict orders not to harm anyone." My father explained, adjusting his glasses, making me look over at Justin who gave me a reassuring nod. Justin isn't human, anymore? I guess that explains the dog ears and tail...

I paused. "... I-If they're not human, what are they?" I asked.

"Anthro-beings. They are part of my experiment." Father explained, giving me chills. Part of his experiment? Did he do this to Justin?!

I didn't say another word as my father punched in another code to unlock a rather large door. As soon as it clicked open, I felt the cold air hit me. The wind blowing back my hair as I winced slightly at the bright light. My brother tugged on my hand, forcing me to follow him outside, before my eyes could fully adjust. As soon as I could see again, I heard the door slam behind me followed by a click.

"Whoa..." I spoke, seeing how wide open the space was... It looked like a couple of acres, the only thing that proved it wouldn't go on forever was the netted ceiling and the caged walls on either side... I couldn't see the opposite wall from where we were standing though. I wonder how big this place is. There were trees and bushes, some of the area was a bit overgrown, but I kinda liked it that way.

I looked around, I couldn't see any other kids around. Looking up at my brother, I noticed his dog ears wear turning slightly, as if he was listening for something.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

"Follow me." He spoke, leading me deeper into the overgrown area. My brother made sure to go first, pushing through the thickets as I followed quickly behind him until we came into an open area. I could hear voices and laughter up ahead, excitement filling my gaze.

"Hey, Justin's here!" I heard a young male voice snap, it sounded almost nervous.

"Cleo, get down from the tree, quick!" A young girl whispered loudly.

I poked my head out from behind my brother, who let out a sigh at the group of children standing in front of him.

One girl, with black hair and purple eyes was up in a tree, struggling to climb down.

"Cleo, what did I tell you about climbing trees?" Justin spoke sternly, making me look at him in surprise. He almost sounds like father with that tone... I didn't like it.

The girl named Cleo, who was still struggling to get down yelped. "I didn't climb it, I swear. Fang put me up here!" She quickly stated.

"What! I did not!" A boy with grey hair and blue eyes snapped. I noticed he was sitting away from the group, poking the ground with a stick. The one thing I was amazed by was his black feathery wings. 

Cleo was about to say something, opening her mouth, only to slip and fall, letting out a scream of surprise. I watched as the other girl in the group, who also had a pair of blue, feathery wings, quickly run over to her falling friend and catching her just in time. The two falling over from the impact, silent for a moment, before bursting out into fits of laughter.

Justin let out an annoyed sigh. "And that's exactly why you're not allow to climb trees!" He huffed.

One of the boys that was standing beside the tree rolled his eyes at my brothers comment. He had a grumpy look on his face, as well as a pair of bright orange wings. His hair was dark brown, the tips were colored red, just like his eyes. 

The boy next to him noticed his eye roll, nudging him slightly as if to warn him to stop. He has turquoise hair and blue eyes, as well as a pair of strange looking wings on his back.

"Sorry, Justin..." The girl with the blue wings and navy blue hair spoke, her eyes landing on me. 

I tensed up a bit, hiding behind my brother again. It seemed as if the group didn't notice me at first and I was okay with that, but now... I suddenly feel nervous.

"Who's that?" I heard her ask.

Justin turned, gently grabbing me by the shoulders and leading me to stand in front of him. "This is Kara, she's my little sister. She's going to be coming here every afternoon up until dinner time, each day. I expect you all to treat her nicely." Justin explained, introducing me.

The group of children looked at me in surprise, making me tense up even more as I waved at them shyly.

"Oh, cool! She's a human!" The girl named Cleo quickly spoke up, running over to me and my brother.

I didn't know how to react to that. Up until today, I thought that being human was the normal thing. So all I could really do was smile shyly at her. I wasn't sure what to say.

"Hey, no need to be shy! I don't bite!" Cleo grinned as the rest of the kids started to gather around Justin and I.

"Nice to meet you, Kara. My name's Soraya." The girl with the blue wings smiled at me.

"H-Hello."I waved again.

"Hi, I'm Fang." The boy with the grey hair said, with a sheepish grin.

"Hi, Fang." I smiled.

"... My name's Zero." The boy with the bright orange wings spoke up.

"And I'm Caleb. Nice to meet you!" The final boy with the turquoise hair smiled.

"Hi, Zero and Caleb." I giggled.

After that, Justin stayed a bit longer as I got used to the group of kids. I never really got around to asking him what exactly happened to him and why he was no longer human... But part of me was afraid to ask.

"Alright, well, I've got to go back for a bit. I'll come pick you up around dinner time with father." Justin said to me, giving me a head pat before he made his way back inside. 

I watched as he disappeared into the Lab, the door closing behind him. I was lost in thought for a minute, until I heard Fang speak up. "Hey, do you like tag?" He asked.

"What's that?" I replied. I have heard of it, but I've never heard the rules.

The group gasped at that, clearly surprised by my answer.

"Kara, you don't know tag?!" Cleo said in surprise.

"We got to teach her!" Zero grinned.

"It's pretty simple though..." Caleb raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, but, Caleb... She doesn't know how WE play tag." Soraya pointed out.

"Will you just tell me how to play already?" I laughed, watching as the group got excited.

I guess having new friends isn't so bad... Even if they aren't human, they don't seem dangerous. That being said, I couldn't help but worry for my mother... I hope she'll be okay on her own.