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No Chance

Chapter 19

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Courtney wasn't sure exactly how long she'd slept but she figured it was well after two AM when she'd finally fallen asleep and it was nearly ten in the morning by the time she got back to her room. Sleeping on a tiled floor was not usually one of her prime choices for a mattress but Fred had provided her a warm and yielding surface to lean against and she was surprised at how restful it had turned out to be. Despite her predicament she found herself smiling when she closed her door and sat down on her bed.

It had been quite awhile since her thoughts had drifted back to the old auto shop her dad had owned but the time she spent with Fred in the mechanics bay had put it prominently on her mind. She couldn't count the many hours she spent after school learning the tricks of the trade from her father and it was obvious even then that he great joy in seeing her do so well. He'd said time and time again that he wanted her to get a good education but she always knew that what he didn't say was that he loved the idea of passing the shop to her when he retired; he never got that chance.

An accident at the shop and a delay in paramedic response led to him bleeding out when he was in his early forties; Courtney had only just graduated high school. While it was true that it was over a half decade since he'd been taken from her, the recollection of all of the memories brought the hurt back. It was a good kind of hurt, and the occasional tear made rubbing the work grime off of her fingers easier. Sometimes she was kept so busy that she forgot how much she missed him, but there was a warm recollection in the pain of how much he meant to her.

She didn't know how life would have changed for her if her father had still been alive; perhaps her family would still have the auto shop rather than selling it to help Courtney go through college. It was possible that she could have been working there with her dad rather than going on to become a business analyst. That thought made her take a deep breath; she hadn't been into work in weeks, so there was a good chance that she didn't actually have a job any longer. Regardless of that errant thought, her mind stayed on her dad. He'd never met Daryl; she smiled bitter sweetly thinking that her father probably wouldn't have gotten along with her fiancé.

Then again, if Fred and her father really WERE that much alike then he probably would have done just fine with Daryl. Her mom and dad were the progressive sort and, just like her mom, she knew her dad wouldn't have had any problems with her falling in love with a black man, but the issue that stuck in her mind was the fact that Daryl was NOT mechanically inclined and her dad had a habit of saying that every man needed to know his way around tools. Of course, her father never seemed to have a problem with one of his best friends who was an accountant (and helped him with his books every year come tax time).

It was all just conjecture, of course, but if her dad and Fred did have as much in common as she felt they did then she would have liked to have thought that her dad and Daryl would have gotten along well. What it all came down to, she supposed, was the fact that even though she was stuck in the installation with the FDA agents, she liked them. She liked them all-- even Fred. Not just the FDA agents, in fact; she liked Abe, the well-meaning intern and she also liked the dog-turned-person, Rex. It certainly wasn't a traditional group by any means, but it was her group, and she knew that she could have had it much, much worse.

Her thoughts kept her company as she made her way back to Daryl's office and the shower that waited her. After having slept the morning away next to Fred she had a certain inescapable scent to her. Although actually 'smelling like bear' wasn't as horrible as sounded it was still a distinct odor and not one she'd like to have lingering in her nose all day. Humming pleasantly to herself as she showered, Courtney took the time to reflect on the ursine who had kept her company through the night.

Unlike the other Agents, Fred walked on all fours and didn't have the dexterous hand-paws of the other members of the group. David said that Fred had been subjected to the brunt of the mutagenic gas that had affected everyone and so it only made sense that he was the most changed; she knew next to nothing about the scene of it all but it made enough sense to her. Unlike the others, Fred's vocal chords had changed enough that he wasn't able to sound out many human words with his muzzle and tongue-- mostly just vowels which, toward the end of their night got them both laughing at the absurdity of a big bear trying to say "Please pass the mustard.". It was good that Fred was able to laugh about it by that time.

The one thing that did provide some saving grace, however, was that Fred was still able to speak the strange unified language that they all seemed to share. Even Courtney, who had not been present during the initial event had somehow picked it up second-hand from her 'interaction' with Daryl. The word 'interaction' had been David's suggestion, which made her feel just a little more ill-at-ease. Perhaps it should have made her feel better, but the thought of David considering alternative terms of usage about what they all knew she and Daryl had done-- it was enough to--

No, she reasoned, turning to face the warm stream of water cascading down on her, she wasn't going to think about that. She would finish her shower, and maintain a positive outlook. She wasn't about to let anything get her down, especially not some silly prudish notion that she had to completely hide the sex lives of two consenting adults. She immediately moved onto her next thought: even when she hadn't shared their language they all understood her.

She and Fred had discussed that exact issue during their welding work. Everyone who spoke English maintained that linguistic skill and, even though Rex had to receive some additional training from Abe, even the Dog had a rudimentary understanding of communication (further facilitated by their "universal mutation language", as Fred put it). Oddly enough, Fred had also pointed out, was that he had lost his knowledge of Yiddish. It seemed like a strange language to know but he explained that he grew up in 'Jewish New York', and he'd taken to it well enough. He'd been able to get by, but, as he sat there in thought, chewing on his tongue, the most he could remember was a few select words.

It was a strange thing to consider, especially when he went further in his "tales of the weirdness" and explained that there was a doctor in the installation who only spoke German; apparently a few employees of the lab were able to help in translating. That scientist was turned into a full-on black bear-- oddly enough, none of the agents spoke German but all of them could understand him in the universal language they all shared. He could understand them back, of course, even though he didn't speak English.

Her mind continued to wander as she finished her shower. She was not usually one to spend a long time bathing-- at least, not unless it was a proper bath. Regardless, something about the quick pace that everything seemed to be moving lent itself nicely to a lengthy shower since it helped her think. Her brain jumped from one thought to another; not only did she want to make sense of everything for herself but she'd been told that her primary purpose was to be an outside perspective that could help connect the dots for the agents and she really did want to be of use to the investigation-- especially when the end result would involve her getting her fiancé freed from the self-imposed exile.

She spent the time earnestly trying to put everything she knew into orderly mental notes but she really didn't have a mind for it. Courtney took a moment to wonder if she'd be able to translate what she knew into the odd universal-speak they all understood; would it help her discover an answer if she tried it in another language? In the end, no, she realized, it didn't make that much of a difference, but it did press her thoughts back to that strange phenomenon-- one that she had not shared with the residents of the facility until she had been intimate with Daryl. That one thought led to others.

Unlike the others, Courtney did not have first-hand contact with whatever the mutagenic serum had been. As such, it didn't seem to change her body, rather, it only affected some small part of her mind, allowing her to understand what she hadn't before. "But what does it mean?"

Speaking the question aloud didn't really help her come up with an answer, but it created just enough noise beyond the sound of the shower for her to realize that something was going on outside in Daryl's office. She quickly turned off the water and listened, waiting until the sound of a knocking at the office door came anew. She called out in response. "Just a minute!"

Wrapping a towel around herself, Courtney exited the bathroom and grabbed a second towel for her hair. She quickly made her way to the door leading out of the office and cracked it open; David awaited her beyond. He quickly shifted his stance so that he was looking down the hall rather than at her, ears lowering slightly as he accounted for himself. "I apologize, Ms. Porter. I hadn't realized you were indisposed."

Embarrassment was a new look for David and, in Courtney's mind, it didn't suit him. She knew he was into mind-games and wondered if his apology was just another one of those. Regardless, she tried to be civil, blocking the majority of her body with the door despite him turning away. "I'm surprised you couldn't hear the water running. What can I do for you, David?"

He recovered quickly, ears returning to their prior perkiness and his tail swaying out behind him even as he maintained his gaze on a distant point. "I came to check on you. Based on Daryl's schedule you and I have some time together and I was hoping that I could impose upon you and possibly pick your brain."

The thought of being useful had been on her mind all morning and the reaffirmation of her importance to the investigation finally managed to dispel the dark cloud that David's unexpected appearance had created. She loosened her hold on the door. "Oh, right. Okay. I'm almost done... come on in and wait a minute-- I'm going to finish drying off."

The Ferret offered a needle-toothed smile, returning his gaze toward her, but respectfully not in her exact direction. "Wonderful. I aim to show you around the installation and get some outside perspective from someone who is looking on it with fresh eyes."

It was as if David were suddenly speaking her language; he was going to give her a proper tour and finally let her in on all of the activities that had been taking place around her without her knowledge! She let the door open the rest of the way as she returned to the bathroom. Leaving the door open a half inch, she called out to him. "Keep talking-- I'm getting dressed."

His next statement caught her off guard. "I'm glad you and Daryl are doing so well."

Courtney paused, having just secured her bra. "What?"

She heard the sound of David moving around the office beyond the door to the bathroom as he spoke. "It looks like you've moved in with him. I think that's fantastic."

Buttoning up her blouse, she moved to the door and peeked out; David was flipping through several folders on Daryl's desk. "We spent last night looking through some of the paperwork... and we didn't 'move in together', as if it's any of your business."

The Ferret laughed, removing his paw from the stack. "It's only my business peripherally, Courtney; I AM the agent in charge, after all."

David was a hard man (Ferret?) to figure out; it was difficult to tell whether he was being funny or serious, but she assumed it was the former. Regardless, she was careful with her words. "Daryl is my fiancé, and I don't want what happened here to change anything."

His response was a perfect non-committal canned retort. "I think that is a perfectly healthy outlook."

With no further hints as to David's mindset, Courtney quickly slipped into a pair of jeans and the slid on her flats. She continued toweling off her hair as she exited the bathroom to join the visiting Ferret in Daryl's office. "As soon as we can figure out how to make him human again we'll be able to get our life together started again. This whole thing may have slowed us down but we'll overcome it... it's just a speed bump in the long run."

David moved to the door leading out to the hallway and offered another unreadable smile. "That is a progressive way to think, Ms. Porter. Given a large enough timeline any obstacle is able to be overcome."

The Ferret's philosophical retort caught Courtney as an odd segue but she was willing to let it slide, acknowledging his gesture as he opened the door. She passed through to the hallway and he followed her out. Further confusing her, David offered her an arm; it was a genteel gesture and one she hardly expected from the impersonal agent but she accepted it nevertheless. Despite the awkwardness of the situation she pressed forward. "So what are we going to see today?"

He glanced sidelong, offering her a wide smile. "The inner workings."

As usual, David chose to be vague and evaded answering her question by answering her question without any helpful information. She pressed the issue. "And what constitutes the inner workings?"

He walked to her right with her right arm tucked into the crook of his left arm. He reached across his body to rest his right paw on her hand. "If you are going to be the lynchpin in our discoveries then you need to see everything... so I am bringing you to see everything, Courtney. No more secrets-- that's what you wanted, right?"

The thought of the curtain being pulled aside so abruptly caught her off guard. It was like David was taking the part of a furry genie and granting her the wish she had held since her arrival. "Y-yes... but--"

He gave her arm a gentle tug and turned down a hallway she had not traversed previously, interrupting her as he did so. "I hear-tell that you've been keeping yourself busy these past few days. Hopefully your interactions with everyone have been more positive than--" For a moment she was worried she'd bring up the incident with the doctor-turned-deer, but, after a slight pause David chose a much more diplomatic angle "--otherwise."

She nodded, watching the facility go by. The hallway David has chosen took them further away from the central 'column' of the building that went deep underground; it was almost like a satellite tunnel one floor below ground level. It looked much more stalwart and had far less lighting. It was only after David came to a stop that she realized she'd missed one of his questions. "Hmm? Sorry?"

The Ferret smiled patiently. "I had asked about your time with Fred. If I recall correctly he had not made the best first impression."

It was Courtney's turn to smile. "Well, we came to an understanding. I spent my time helping him with his project... whatever it is."

Without missing a beat David provided her the answer to her unspoken question. "Reinforcement for the central shaft."

As usual he gave her an answer that didn't actually tell her anything so she followed up with another question. "The central shaft of what? And why?"

David continued walking again, his eyes glinting in the meager emergency lighting that lit their way. "Eventually we are going to have to raise the satellite dish and send out a transmission. The communication hub was damaged in one of the, ah-- after effects of the event that changed us, and the structural stability is in question after a seismic tremor."

Courtney tried to process what she was being told. "So, Fred is putting together some reinforcing braces to make sure that none of the hallways collapse if there's a problem raising the satellite dish?"

The Ferret nodded, stopping at a set of double doors. He reached out and pressed a button with a "^" on it. "That is the idea, yes."

Remembering something Fred mentioned about the metal they'd been welding, she addressed it. "So that's Plan C, huh?"

Fred had never fully explained why he called in Plan C, but it suddenly began to make more sense, especially not explaining it to her; he seemed to be the kind of guy (Bear?) who wouldn't want her to worry about specifics due to possible dangers. She often thought the stupid masculinity of trying to protect someone by keeping them in the dark was a stupid plan but she was kept from traveling that track of logic by David's confusion. "Plan C?"

The genuine nature of the Ferret's surprise caught Courtney off guard and made her pause, even as the double doors in front of her opened and she saw the unmistakable inside of an elevator. She followed David into it before she elaborated. "Fred said that we were working on some components for a 'Plan C', but he didn't bother explaining Plan A or B or C... how many contingency plans have you guys prepared exactly?"

Her question was half joke and half serious but David's answer was all business. "Two. We have a Plan A and a Plan B."

Courtney was honestly surprised at the Ferret's matter-of-fact response, not just because it wasn't a half-answer, but also because it didn't coincide with what she'd heard from Fred. "So... what's with Plan C then?"

David's smile appeared a second later as he spoke. "I suppose that's just Fred taking the initiative. He's good at that."

They fell silent for the short elevator ride and, when the doors opened, Courtney was surprised to see light streaming in through windows; they were in an above-ground portion of the installation. she had never been in an aboveground part of the base. "Where are we?"

Her companion's smile returned full force as he pulled a key card out of the pouch he wore. "We're heading to the communication center. I want you familiar with it."

She continued after him despite almost missing a step. "Me? Why?"

Rather than provide her an answer, David chose a different topic for conversation. "I'm very glad to hear you're getting along well with Fred, Courtney. Daryl was the obvious attachment, Abe and Rex are hard not to like, but knowing that you could find common ground with Fred gives me even more faith that I was right."

She was about to ask for him to clarify what he meant when they stopped at a door; David slid the key card and the door opened. Although she only caught a quick glimpse of the key card but it was enough to recognize the picture. "You got that from one of those men."

Courtney didn't have to elaborate for him; she realized the Ferret knew what she was talking about and he turned to regard her, his face unreadable. "It's not good to dwell on that unpleasantness, Courtney. Just be thankful we have access to the tools we need to finish our task."

"So those men had access to this base? How long did it take for you to figure out what--"

David continued through the door, taking her with him. "We've been here for quite some time, Courtney; I've had plenty of time to figure things out."

The statement almost sounded condescending and she couldn't help herself when it came to being defensive. "Well... that's my job, right? We should compare notes because I'm supposed to be able to help figure things out."

Rather than chastising or chiding her, David did the one thing that she never expected he'd do in a million years: he began explaining everything. The information came so quickly that she had trouble keeping up with it as he started to elaborate on what had happened to the agents, the specific affect of the mutagenic agent, and how it not only spread throughout the base but how it affected their bodies.

The Ferret opened another door and stepped aside, gesturing her through. "So, you see, the mutagenic serum was actually nothing more than a protein bath for a selectively altered retrovirus that changed the base genetic structure of those it infected."

Courtney continued on ahead with David following after. She moved slowly, practically in a trance with the news she'd been learning. "So we've learned that it isn't some chemical reaction or gene-therapy kind of thing..."

David laughed, easily keeping pace. "Actually, the use of retroviruses has been long prescribed as an effective form of gene therapy for a number of disorders... this was just a way for Division Six to use it to alter the human genome for a different purpose."

Slowing, Courtney turned to regard her guide. "Why would Division Six do something like this though? I mean, what do they have to gain by turning people into animals?"

The Ferret shrugged. "Perhaps it isn't so much a matter of turning people into something as it is making people not human... it is hard to say, isn't it? But our purpose here is not to guess at motives, rather, we are attempting to create a cure, isn't that right?"

He did have a point, but the faint smirk on his muzzle as he stepped past her gave her a feeling that there was something she was missing. Courtney followed after him into a room as he opened it with his key card. "So a cure is possible? We'll be able to find a way to get everyone back to being human?"

David shook his head as he moved to a single keyboard resting on a metal desk in front of a wall mounted monitor. "No, Ms. Porter. The change introduced to our DNA was done at the base protein level and is quite permanent."

The matter-of-fact shattering of her dreams after such optimistic words left her stumbling over her words, and what finally broke her numbness was the thought of that doctor after he was mauled by Fred and shot by David. "But... when that deer died, he--"

The Ferret looked back and smiled at her even as his dexterous paws rapidly worked the keys on the keyboard in front of him. "Death is a cure for life, Courtney-- I would hardly consider it a suitable prescription to do away with the effects of a virus. We may be animals, but we are hardly beasts, now are we?"

She wasn't done arguing, barely even taking note that David had successfully logged in. "But if it's permanent then he shouldn't have turned back to human."

David's attention went back to the monitor and he took a seat in the chair situated at the desk. "The alteration is powered by the body's metabolic systems, which is why all of the animal-human hybrids have a higher body temperature than humans themselves; the added energy means body temperatures run high as homeostasis takes the increased need into account."

She had trouble continuing the argument, pulling at any hints or loose threads she could find. "What about me then? If it was a virus I should have caught it, right? Why aren't I an animal? If I have the virus then I should be changed more than just understanding everyone now. How could I be--"

The Ferret rotated in his chair as a schematic of some sort appeared on the monitor along with what looked like some kind of magnified view of something that reminded Courtney of an alien space ship. David elaborated. "The viral count required to make a complete change in the body is incredibly high and, while it is acclimated to the environment found within the body it has a very short life once the change has taken place; the new form's immune system identifies it as a foreign agent and destroys it within a matter of days, which was the key Division Six needed to assure that its continued existence wouldn't result in uncontrolled cancerous growth."

She hung off of every word she said, stepping closer to him as she stared at the monitor as it slowly scrolled through various pictures of what she could only assume were early test subjects; what she saw made her stomach churn. "Oh my god..."

David nodded calmly. "Indeed... early experiments were catastrophic failures."

Looking away after one particularly graphic photo of what appeared to be a woman with one human head and two different breeds of dog heads, something caught her attention. "But... that doesn't answer how I could be affected if the virus doesn't live that long. It was weeks before I got here and you said it was only days after the--"

The Ferret pressed a button on his keyboard and Courtney's eyes were once again glued to the monitor as she saw what had to have been security camera footage from Daryl's office; she felt her face flush immediately when she realized it was a still frame of her with her fiancé. "Viruses can remain within the testicles for quite some time after being cleansed from elsewhere in the body. The Ebola virus, for example can last more than a year and a half since the immune system doesn't function in the male reproductive system the same as elsewhere."

She was struck dumb, not just by what she saw, but what she was learning. It took a moment to overcome the embarrassment, and longer to recover from the surprise. When she finally did speak her voice was full of indignation and reproach. "So... what was I? A final test of your hypothesis? Did Daryl know about--"

David shook his head calmly. "No, Courtney... Daryl didn't know a thing about this, and still does not, I suspect."

She realized in that moment that he didn't bother contradicting her accusation. "But you did? You knew?"

The Ferret leaned back in his seat casually, slowly rotating to face her. "Of course. You were the final component in the trial run of the mass mutation. We had to be certain the--"

She took a step back. "Trial run? Mass Mutation? We? You mean the Federal Drug Admi--"

David slowly stood up. "No, Ms. Porter. We, as in Division Six."

It took a moment for Courtney to take in what it was she was hearing but, as she took stock of the key card, the fact that David had no trouble accessing the computer, and how knowledgeable the Ferret was about so many things he shouldn't have known it all sunk in. A side door opened, pulling her attention away from David and she froze in place when she saw the man who had tried to kidnap her at her car. The name suddenly came back to her. "Thomas Grant."

The man offered a non-committal smile. "Please remain calm. I assure you that you are in no danger, Ms. Porter."

Remaining calm was not one of the primary activities going through her mind; the first and foremost however was to challenge David. "Now I know why you turned into a Ferret, David-- you're a weasel."

David's smile seemed almost genuine.