Comments: OHMIGOD! I'm actually going to investigate da murders of da peoples! For whatever reasons this chapter is really badly done... I can't get it to work out: but you'll get the point (I hope).
Disclaimer: ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO ME and me alone! Show some respect and
    ask if you're going to use them!

*** CHAPTER 05 : CALLING ***

  Giga tugged at her new uniform as Toki went over the situation. She and he were to investigate ground zero of the explosion at the CRACKED lab. Saka and Daphne were to scan the first murder site in hopes of finding a clue the forensics missed. She scowled, not that they would have missed something... usually the clean up team was very thorough. But what was the use of arguing; they would only think she was bickering because she didn't want to be there.

 Toki turned to Saka who was voicing; very loudly; his opinion of the cat woman. "Look Saka." He said rather calmly despite the twitch just under his left eye. "I need Giga with me. She's the only one who knows the layout of the underground tunnels. Besides, Daphne and you need some time to work out whatever differences you're having..."

 "We hate each other!" Saka shouted back. "I don't really think that's a difference we can work out!"

 Toki's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I suggest you try then Sasuki; or I can find someone more willing to follow an order from their commander." Saka jumped - it obviously wasn't a good day to play annoy the leader.

 "I'll try sir."

 "Good. Mariah; I need you to head on down to the morgue." Mariah's face twisted. "Check out any details on the autopsy, cause of death, any observations made by the doctors and forensics OK?"

 "As clear as crystal sir." She squeaked.

 "Ass-kisser." Saka muttered fumbling for a piece of gum.

 "Bite me." She hissed back. He chomped down on his gum and grinned lop-sidedly while she stood looking flustered and angry.
 Anya; as ever stood silently until she thought she wasn't remembered. "HEY! What about me?!"

 "I was just about to say something Anya." Toki sighed. She blinked and smiled sheepishly. "I need you on the other line pulling up schematics on the building. Giga knows the underground tunnels but not the upper levels. Alternately you've got to find anything on recent events that might tie into all this. The activity level of the Chiharra for one. They haven't always been this 'frisky'."

 "Anything else sir?"

 "One more thing. Put out that goddamn cigarette! This is a non-smoking building!" She immediately put it out and walked to the garbage. When she returned and sat down he turned to everyone else.

 "OK. Let's move out people."

**

 "I hate this place." Giga said looking around at the walls and frowning. "Nothing but bad memories and pain..." She kicked a stone and sighed. "Where are we?"

 "Two floors above the first lab." Toki absently responded. "We'll be there in a few minutes. What do you mean bad memories?"
 She glanced sideways at him as they were walking down the first flight of stairs. Her hand gently glided down the broken railing. Suddenly she wasn't too talkative. "I mean what I said. Nothing good ever came of this place."

 "Actually; CRACKED had helped a lot in the discovery of a lot of information on the Chiharra, and they've created many different viral programs and anti-viral programs, and they've created you. Must be something good here eh?" He grinned. She stared blankly.
 "I don't suppose you know about the test subjects of the medicines, the numerous tests; whether live or dead. I don't suppose you know about any of the methods they used to make those programs... I don't suppose you'd understand just how worthless I am - I was...  to them..." She responded sullenly. "Only problems and errors. At least, that's what I've heard ever since I can remember."
 "How far back do you remember?"

 "Nothing past being in the lab. But it's only logical. I was created there."

 "Ever been outside of it?"

 "Never, aside from my skirmish in the hospital. In fact, I don't think I've ever been anywhere but the twin labs and the tunnels." She indeed was taking in every detail her eyes roaming from wall to wall. "It's strange to think your whole world was only a tiny room and a bunch of tunnels..."
 "I'll bet."

 "So what about you?" She asked, never looking directly at him. "What's your story?"

 "What do you mean?"

 She blushed a bit and turned away. "Well - I mean, you aren't exactly..."

 "Normal?"

 "Well... you're eyes... are strange..."

 "I've had a rough ten years of living." He said wearily and scratched his head. She nodded but didn't pursue the matter, it was obvious he wasn't willing to chat about it.

 "Are we there yet?" She asked instead. He smiled appreciatively.

 He glanced over at her as she examined the structures. She's silent and reserved, most likely a product of being a test specimen for so many years. How many? Toki wondered as she stopped for a moment and traced a hand down a wall with a faint frown; an unpleasant memory?

 "Something's been here..." She narrowed her eyes and glanced around. "Sometime ago... not long though, its tracks are still here..."

 "Something viral?"

 "Yeah... and big."

 Toki walked over and looked. "I don't see anything."

 "No you wouldn't." She explained. "I see things differently than you. Instead of the solid structures you see, I can perceive ripples in the reality, spots where something that doesn't belong has been."

 "Viruses can do that?"

 "I make the same patterns and ripples; I don't belong here anymore than they do." She shrugged. "Something that has been manifested into a physical being from a string of coding has no place here."

 "The lab is this way." He tugged at the back of her shirt and pulled her along. She warily followed as she searched for other signs of viruses. they seemed to have swarmed the lab; she was experiencing so many ripples in reality she pleaded to stop so she could ease her stomach for a moment. They paused so she could catch her breath. Toki watched as she leaned against a wall and shut her eyes.

 "How are you feeling?"

 "Sick to my stomach. There's this empty feeling too."

 "Have you eaten today?"

 "Pardon?"

 "Eaten... you know food?"

 She stared blankly.

 "Do you eat?"

 "I think so." She paused. "God! I hate this... all of this!"

 "Well. I think I've got a cracker or something in my jacket." Toki said and stuck a hand in his pocket. It came back out with his wallet and a pack of crushed crackers. "Sorry." He winced and handed them to her. She ripped open the package and took a bite cautiously. After chewing a moment she immediately downed the rest in a few bites.

 "Guess you were hungry." He grinned. Giga smiled sheepishly.

 "Yeah; guess so."

 "Make sure you eat from now on. I can't have my officer's dropping from starvation because they didn't eat the most important meal of the day."

 "Which one's that?" She asked with a puzzled expression. Toki opened his mouth to reply when he noticed the change on her face. They had arrived at the mouth of the open cavern just before the entrance to the second lab. Her face darkened for a moment as if a bad memory overtook her; then a look of panic; then fear... now her face was only one of confusion.

 "What?" He asked looking past her. Nothing seemed too out of place; the lab seemed a bit more crumbled than before but nothing else. "What do you see Giga?"

 "I see a disturbance; a large one... I don't understand it but -" She trailed off walking to a corner of the room and putting out a hand. "I don't know what could make a hole in reality this big. We're dealing with things beyond our control..."

**

 Saka had a sudden urge to run from the glass elevator as the massive doors slid open. He wanted to run screaming, not allow himself to relive his terrible experience with heights that had forever scarred him. However, the annoyingly cutesy high-pitched voice of Daphne beside him made sure he walked on and waited for the doors to seal him in.

 Daphne chattered on and on as they lurched higher and higher. She gave a full overview of the case even though she knew he'd been there and she had not.

Saka gritted his teeth and gripped the hand rail tighter as she prattled on. Finally he snapped.

 "Shut up Daphne!" He growled.

 She glared at him. "I was only being nice..."

 "I don't care... shut up..."

 "But-"

 "Shhh..."

 "I-"

 "SHUT UP DAPHNE!"

 She puckered her lips and then turned away placing her paws behind her back. She'd been offended. Not that Saka cared in the least. The elevator lurched to a halt much to Saka's relief and Daphne immediately bounded out onto the roof. He followed slowly trying to stay clear of the suddenly very active cat.

 She stopped and sniffed the air.

 "Saka-baka..." she began and then giggled at the name.

 "What Daphne?"

 "Something's here. I smell it..."

 "It probably just a waft of the lake from here." He objected but looked around anyway.

 "Yeah maybe..." She stopped then and returned to all fours searching the ground for anything forensics might have missed. After about a half hour of sniffing and searching they came up empty.

 "Dammit; a lost 'cause..." Saka muttered and sat down heavily of the edge of the building not bothering to look down.

 "Saka... I smell it again." Daphne yelled from across the roof. The wind had kicked up and was tossing the short hairs on her head as she turned halfway to him. The look on her face wasn't its usual one. She was frightened. And for some strange reason; that scared him.

 "Okay Daphne. Then let's head out before whatever it is gets here. All right?"

 She was already headed to the door. Saka yelped and went after her. They'd just made it there when a blood-chilling scream pierced the air and reverberated off the metal structures of the roof. Daphne clasped her paws over her ears while Saka winced.

 Suddenly, the owner of the scream appeared over the far side of the roof. it seemed to be a Chiharra but this one was more - solid. Not translucent like the others. It floated faster that the others as well. Within a few seconds it had closed the distance between them. Daphne punched at the elevator button but nothing happened.

 "Shit." She swore and dodged the flying tentacle of the Chiharra. Saka rolled the other way and detached his gun from the holster before coming to a halt on the side of the building parallel to Daphne who seemed to have the undivided attention of the virus. He shifted his weight to his other leg and then took off across the roof trying very hard to go unnoticed.

 Daphne on the other hand had no choice, for whatever reason the Chiharra was fixated on her. She tried to move to see where Saka had rolled to but her vision was blocked. Then she did something stupid; she turned her back to the enemy. As soon as she glanced behind her for an escape route the Chiharra let out a mighty scream once more and smacked her across the face and onto her butt. She sat dazed for a moment, her cheek stinging.

 In that moment Saka had hidden himself behind a structure on the opposite side of the virus. He leaped out and let off a round of bullets before rolling to cover again. Daphne scrambled away to where he had hidden himself the first time and sighed in relief. Saka swore from beside her.

 "Daphne... this thing's fast!"

 "I noticed." She winced as an energy beam struck the support structure.

 "Okay, I'll distract it and you get the damn elevator working..."

 "But Saka - "

 "No buts you stupid cat, GO!" And he jumped out from his hiding spot gun blazing. Daphne watched in horror for a moment. He was going to get himself killed! However her feet took her to autopilot and she to jumped out and raced to the elevator control panel. She could hear Saka bouncing away from his attacker and the occasional smack or crunch of something being hit.

 Trying to block out the noises she focused on the panel in front of her. There was no obvious reason why it shouldn't work. Everything in the internal diagnostics checked out... She clawed the face panel off and fiddled with the wiring. There was a rather painful sounding crack and she watched Saka skid across the roof and roll to a dead halt and lay very deadly still.
 The elevator was forgotten.

 Daphne rushed the idle Chiharra and pounced deftly onto its back digging claws into its scales. The creature roared and flung her off. She felt a jolt of electricity course through her body and shut down her systems one by one as she impacted with the floor.
 Her vision blurred and she glanced through slowly falling eyelids at the elevator which had just opened its doors.

 "Aww... that's not fair..." She whined; and dropped into oblivion.
 

**
 
 A large group of press members had gathered around the front steps of the GMPD building and were shouting out questions as lights flashed and whirring noises roared. Mariah squinted and tried to focus on the chief and Akiko who were calmly explaining the situation at the front steps. She herself had just arrived from the rather gruesome trip to the city morgue. It was an experience she hoped to never have again. Picking her way through the crowd she slowly made her way to the front and stood beside the chief trying to count the number of reporters. The chief lifted his hands and shouted for quiet and as usual a full compliance was observed.
 The vultures of the media world waited patiently while the chief sorted out the information with Akiko. The large cat woman stooped as they conversed. Reporters stared at each other and back again as they spoke.

 Finally Akiko stood up and stared at the crowd. They in turn cringed away a bit as she shot them an icy stare.

 "People of the media." She began. "We will answer a total of twenty questions about the situation at the present time. Understood?" The press nodded simultaneously. "Good. Now let's begin."

 Mariah watched as hand after hand shot up and waved within the crowd. Each question was answered briefly but completely by Akiko who had no indications whatsoever of being nervous. She pointed out someone and awaited their inquiry.

 "Does Akiko do this often?" She leaned forward to address the chief.

 "Never." he responded blankly. "This is her first time..."

 Mariah blinked in surprise. The chief turned to her. "Go check in with the rest of your team. I'm sure they need help and Akiko is doing a good job here." She nodded and pushed through the crowd to get to the elevators. Someone grabbed her by the arm before she could make it through however and jerked her around. She grunted and hauled her arm away, staring down the reporter who'd begun to ask questions in rapid-fire succession. She waved him away and continued.
 

 "God Almighty!" Anya yelled again as for the third time her call to Saka and Daphne was answered with dead air. "Hundreds of years of technological advances and I can't even get a goddamn busy signal!" She tossed the headset onto the desk and ran a hand through her hair.

 Mariah entered the room looking equally flustered as she parked herself on top of a desk. "Ya'll would not believe the madhouse it is out there. Ah've never seen so many vultures lined up in a row!" Anya sighed. "Akiko's got'em eat'n outta her palm - er - paw; though. She's never done that before."

 "Akiko is perfect for the job. She never gets upset and she thinks everything through. The chief made a good decision..." She slammed a fist down on the desk as again she came up with nothing. "Dammit! Saka and Daphne aren't responding to their comm's."

 "That's bad."

 "Well it isn't good!"

 "What about Toki and Giga?"

 Anya nodded. "They've checked in twice already. There isn't anything to report about that." she looked over at the desk where Mariah had been sitting before putting the headset back on and dialing in a number. "You get any news about the victims?"

 "Yeah. And it all contradicts itself. It's a Chiharra but it ain't. The evidence is there but it isn't... the list goes on..." She lifted herself onto Anya's desktop and stared her straight in the eye. "Now they're saying that if it is a Chiharra that killed those poor people; it's something completely new. And much bigger..."

 "That's bad..." Anya said.

 "Well it ain't good..." Mariah smiled. "Ah need to call Toki."

 "I've got him on the line."

 "Oh good, give it here!"

 "No, I'm talking!"

 "Anya!"

 "NO!"
 

**

 Toki sighed.

 "What?" Giga asked from her position across the room; too far to have been able to hear him. Toki looked up at her startled. She smiled slightly. "I've got good hearing..." She explained meekly.

 "Me too." He said. "They're like sisters... Anya and Mariah are in another fight and when they fight the decibels get higher and higher until I think maybe the glass panels behind them will shatter..." Giga laughed.

 "Let me talk to Mariah and you can finish with Anya 'kay?" He gave her an awkward glance; as if wondering if she could be trusted. "Look," She said pointedly. "Sooner or later I'm going to need to talk to the rest of the team. I'm here right? You can trust me..."

 "Okay..." He resigned. "Anya?"

 "Yessir?"

 "Hand Mariah over to Giga. She'll pick up the info and relay it to me okay?"

 "Yeah, sure sir..." There was a click and then Anya's voice returned.

**
 
 Mariah grumbled. "Ah don't see why Ah've got to talk to her..."

 Anya waved a hand.

 "Giga Prime." A rather melodic voice said from the other end of the speaker. Mariah gulped. "Hello?"

 "Hey ya'll!"

 "Oh, hello." Giga's voice said cheerfully. "Mariah right? Toki said I could get  the details of your report and then tell them to him."

 "Yeah I know."

 A sigh echoed as Giga sat down. "Look, you guys can trust me, I'm not going to run to the enemy and tell them everything!" Mariah made a noise. "Please - give me a chance... I didn't want to be here at first but - but now I think if I'm going to live like a human I'd might as well act like one, and a job seems to be part of it... why is beyond me, all it seems to do is cause stress lines and wrinkles and -"

 "Giga honey." Mariah interrupted. "Ya'll are gonna hafta let me talk if you want to hear about anything..."

 "Sorry, I'm kinda known for rambling when I'm nervous..."

 "S'okay. Anyway I went to the morgue; it turns out that whatever killed those two people IS a Chiharra -"

 "A what?"

 "A Chiharra... the giant bug things floating around the city..." A blank silence... "Nevermind any-"

 "No, what's a Chiharra? It sounds familiar but I can't quite... figure it out."

 "It's well, I guess the best way to describe it a viral entity that has manifested itself into an insect. We've tried to get rid of them but it seems that every time we 'kill' one another comes and revives it. We can't even find a pattern because everyone looks the same."
 "AHA! A dual linkage system! CRACKED was working on a similar synergy process where if one entity in the pair or more is off-lined for whatever reason the other has a special keyword to repair the other. It's a tricky system to bypass. However, if you're like me and you spend a lot of time around this kinda of thing..."

 "Yeah, what about you?"

 "Well. You'd have it figured out... I don't yet though..."

 "Thanks... Anyway I might as well tell ya'll about the recent murders." Mariah continued, finding it easier to talk to someone who actually understood her and wasn't bitter because of her intelligence. Now, what was she saying? "Uh, it seems that whatever mutations the Chiharra have undergone has affected their entire DNA. These new forms are violent and unreasonable. And still unable to be destroyed."

 "But still the same species."

 "Exactly! The murders all seem to be connected though. Everyone killed had something to do with CRACKED in some way. OH! And the biggest detail is the Chiharra left us a clue to who's controlling them."

 "What, did the virus have a dog collar or something?" Giga snickered.

 "Dog?"

 "Never mind... what was the clue?"

 "Well the thing is we can't make it out. But there was a string of data left at the scene with the numbers 641381 in it, not in that order we think it's a cryptogram or something."

 "641381..." She repeated and jotted it on the wall. "Okay. We'll figure it out... want me to throw you back over to Toki now?"
 "Yeah..." she sounded reluctant. "Yeah, I'd better talk to him about it. Nice working with you Giga Prime."

 Giga smiled widely, if Mariah could have seen it she would have smiled too. Toki was still involved in his conversation so she took a moment to look around. The ripples were closing slowly; now they were no more than faint lines, like a healing scar. She turned and followed her own path into the room. Tucking a stray hair behind her ear she approached a glass operating panel and fiddled with it until the greeting screen flickered dimly on the surface. Her entire memory, everything she knew was stored here... would a former life be here too?

 She tried to reason with herself, you were not born; you were created in this lab. You are just a pawn in someone's experiment in playing God. Why would you have a former life? And yet... could you have once been a real person, flesh, blood, and tears? Not something to put away when they're done playing? She was afraid to find out - carefully she shut off the monitor.

 "Giga." Toki called standing up and straightening his jacket. "Ready to go?"

 She turned and looked around. "Go? Where?"

 "Back to HQ. Saka and Daphne haven't checked in yet. I want to head back to make sure they're OK."

 "Oh, all right... Let's go!" She bounced past him and skipped up the stairs. Toki sighed at her change in mood. He walked slowly and watched her wait with extraordinary patience for him to reach her.

 "Homeward bound." He stated, a shadow crossed her face.
 "For some!"
 

****

 When they arrived back at HQ, Toki and Giga were greeted by Mariah and Anya who relayed the news at the same time - which would have been fine if it hadn't been different articles. Toki held up a hand and silenced them, only one thing was important.

 "Are they?"

 "No..." Anya said. "No news for 4 hours now. Sir, should we go out?"

 Toki's eyebrows rose. "No! You are a tactical officer and will remain here! Mariah of course will assist you. Giga and I will go back out and try to find out where they went."

 Giga interrupted. "I don't think we'll have to go." She lifted her hand and pointed to the figures of Saka and Daphne who were making their way slowly down the aisle of cubicles. "They've been fighting."

 "Actually, we've been getting our butts kicked." Daphne said and sat down Saka stood and swayed a bit. "We met up with a particularly violent Chiharra, knocked us out cold for a couple of hours at least. That's why we haven't checked in."

 "Probably explains the dead air too..." Mariah said
.
  Anya raised a hand. "I didn't think these things were particularly violent." She stated.

 "This one was making way for a new custom then." Saka said, rolling his shoulder. "But it was different somehow... almost solid where the others are transparent."

 Mariah and Giga looked at each other purposefully.

 "The contradicting evidence..."

 "The ripples in space..."

 The group stared.

 "I saw ripples from something really big down in the lab. It might've been what destroyed it..."

 "I've gotten news that a new breed of Chiharra are floating around..."

 "So, what we have is violent breed of virus that leaves trails only one person can see?" Saka asked after a moment of pondering. "Guess that means you do have a purpose Prime."

 "Fancy that..." She mused sitting down and crossing her legs in the lotus position.

 "Well its settled." Toki announced looking over the rag-tag team. "We'll have to search for and destroy the threat!"

 "Can I sleep first?" Saka whined.

 
*** END FILE ***