All it knows is this relentless hunger. It can't remember the last time it ate, but its stomach is telling it that it never has. It paces back and forth in its cage, its flat nostrils flaring. It knows that food is out there, it just needs to find it.
***
Violetta can't help but stare at the screen in fascination. The creature prowls around its metal cage like a cat, stopping every so often to look at the camera. Every time it does, she feels like it's looking into her very soul.
"Violetta. You're needed in interrogation." A voice crackles over the intercom.
For a moment she's tempted to ignore it. They don't have to know that she's in here, watching the specimen. But, if she doesn't, she'll never get trusted with her own mission.
Then she could see the creature in action.
With a sigh she stands up with a stretch, pushing her chair back underneath the table. The creature pauses to look at the camera once more, and it sends a shiver down her spine.
Does it really know what she's doing?
Pushing that thought aside she exits the dull grey room into the hallway. Here things are a bit brighter, the walls have been adorned with colourful paintings. Some depict the creature hunting in a forest, while others have it feeding on some poor soul. It makes her want to see the creature again.
Underneath one of the paintings is the creature's name - wendigo.
She could stand here all day if they'd let her, admiring the way that the wendigo kills.
Later. First let's see what they want.
No-one apart from the higher-ups know people's names. When on a mission however you can choose to share it. She's not sure if she will yet.
Once she gets past the colourful paintings, she picks the first door on the left. Inside are two men and one woman.
Am I interrogating all of them?
It's then she notices the small silver knives dangling around their necks. They weren't prisoners, they were her own people.
"Please, sit down." The woman motions with a fake smile.
They're all seated at one end of the table with a single chair on the other end. As she sits down, she can't help but feel like she'll be the one who is interrogated.
"Why am I here?" She asks calmly.
One of the men, who's short with a thick black beard, is the next one to speak. "You have been chosen for a mission."
Her heart races in excitement. "When?"
The bearded man smiles. "Three months from now. We've managed to get you a job at a university in Plymouth. Librarian."
"A University?" She repeats. "That's... That's a large hunting ground."
"Indeed. But as you know we like to test our children in different ways."
Violetta had always hated to be called a child. She's almost thirty. But that's what everyone is called around here. The Children of Purgatory. The name meant more to her father than her, but God knows where he is now. On some grand mission probably.
"Is it just me?"
"No, you and one other," The bearded man leans his hands on the table. "We expect great things from you."
Her heart swells. "I won't let you down, I promise."
"Good. Because the person you're working with hasn't been fully initiated yet."
Her heart plummets. "What?"
"We picked him up when retrieving this wendigo. Apparently, it was his father. He seems desperate to protect it."
She can't believe what she's hearing. She had to wait years for her first mission and this guy gets one without even joining properly? Her hands ball into fists under the table.
What makes him so special?
***
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