Whether You Should Live or Die

The only answer to Taru's desperate pleading was the quietly echoing steps of Raimond's shoes as they faded beyond the door and down the hall. He didn't turn to see the way she clung to the bars, her earthen-brown eyes widened in terror, and her hoarse voice offering promises she couldn't keep, despite her frantic desire to do so. The young woman was right, after all; he'd seen this scene, and heard these cries before, from countless others.

Some cursed him, some begged, some wept. Others were too feral to even comprehend their predicament. He'd never stopped to listen though. Raimond couldn't afford to, not when the fate of humanity itself depended on his work. And not when his own life continued to hang in the balance, now no closer to a cure than it had been years ago when they'd first captured the girl. He merely kept his chin up, and his feet moving, despite how very heavy they felt toda.

This would have been the end of the shifter's story, just another lost soul quietly snuffed out to make room for a new subject. For better or worse though, Brent still saw a value in the girl that Todd did not, and his mind swam with both questions and possibilities as he stared down at the frail creature before him. She had nodded, and the corner of his mouth twitched, as if attempting and then abandoning a smile. "Good."

Carissa idly shuffled a handful of glass tubes on her cart, her attention more for Brent than it was for her work. It seemed this equipment wouldn't be needed after all, much to the woman's disappointment. "So... what exactly do you want me to do?"

Cold blue eyes lifted to the small woman, "Sanitize the room, then take the day off. I'll handle the paper work and lab reports." The tone he used was no different than if he were instructing Carissa on a routine order, but there was an unspoken threat levied in there that needed no harsh words or scowling expression.

Like Taru, Carissa nodded her understanding. "Alright, no questions." Vaguely flippant response aside, the lab tech set down the vials and moved to unlock Taru's cell.

Brent took a single step back, now looking down at the shifter he towered above, "You're going to walk quietly with me, head down." A broad hand reached in through the opened door, and landed firmly for the girl's thin shoulder, "No fuss, no talking to anyone. Say a word, and you'll be sent to the Galeswood Facility. Where the real monsters are kept." Fingers curled against flesh now, applying a less than gentle grip as he aimed to pull Taru from her confinement, and to his side.