Subject Alpha: Chapter One

The little girl was whimpering and whining, curled tightly against the back of her cage. Arka could barely see her, hidden as she was behind her wings and tail as Arka lifted the cage out of the truck. The child whined loudly at the movement. "Shh, shh dear, it's okay, you're okay, you're safe, you're okay." The whine died down a little as Akra and Melody carried the cage inside.
Arka knelt down in front of the cage as they set it down, trying to meet her eyes. She wasn't sure who handed her the wire cutters, she didn't really care as she maneuvered them over the lock and- snap. There. The door to the cage swung open, and the tiny girl inside whimpered. "Shh, shh..." Arka soothed gently, reaching in with both arms and carefully pulling her out. The child clung to the mesh of the cage, trying to resist, but let go after a moment, shaking like a leaf. The chain prevented Arka from pulling the girl out fully, and she reached for the wire cutters again. The child let out a keening whine when the wire cutters neared, shaking in terror, eyes widening. "I'm not going to hurt you, calm down, relax." Arka reached past the child, snipping the chain open. The child was tensed, eyes shut tightly. Arka dropped the wire cutters, and pulled the girl the rest of the way out, cradeling her in her arms gently as she stood.
"She's so tiny..." Arka heard Melody whisper breathlessly. Arka nodded wordlessly in agreement. The child -was- tiny. She couldn't weigh more then twenty pounds, and even that was at a stretch. The child herself shook and whimpered, wide, teary, violet eyes scanning everyone, tail wrapped tightly around herself. Terror was written all over her features, though to her credit, she didn't try to get down.
Arka smoothed the girls hair almost instinctively, whispering meaningless words to her. Instinct took over as she remembered long nights of soothing her own daughter this way, after a nightmare, or during a storm. Melody walked over, looking at the girl. "Hello sweety," she smiled brightly at the child, who whined and clung to Arka. "It's okay, sweety. I'm Melody, and the nice lady carrying you is Arka. You're safe now, sweety. Alright?"
Melody shot a sharp look at Jeffrey and the Commander, who hastened to put on the most friendly expressions they could muster. Arka mentally laughed- even they knew not to press their luck when it came to Melody. Slowly, but surely, the tiny child in Arka's arms began to calm, terror turning to curiosity as violet eyes scanned the assorted faces. "She needs a name," Jeffrey commented. At the sound of his voice, the girl let out a loud whine and clung tightly to Arka. "Hey, it's okay sweety, Jeffrey won't hurt you, I promise. Shh, sweety." Once the child had calmed down again, Arka smiled at her. "See? Isn't that better?" Once the child nodded a little, Arka smiled.
"He's right, you do need a name." Arka looked at the others. "What about Greensleaves?" The child let out a whine at the Commander's suggestion. "I don't think she likes it, sir," Arka stated, trying not to grin. "You're right, she doesn't. Soylent?" The child whined again and hid her face. "With all due respect sir, I don't think you should be allowed to name anything. How about Trista?" Melody threw out the suggestion with a bright smile. The girl whined again. "She doesn't like it, Smith. What about Krystal?" At Jeffrey's suggestion, the child's head lifted, and she turned her violet eyes to look at him. He took a step closer, leaning over a little to look her in the eyes. "What? You like that?" The child said nothing, but a faint, hesitant smile spread over her features. "Alright then, Krystal. Hope you can live up to your name, it's a good one." Jeffrey could barely hide his smirk as he straightened, ruffling the fur on the child's- newly christened Krystal- head.
"Hrmph. I think she likes you better then me, Willliams." The commander's voice was gruff, but his expression was playful. "I think she's scared of your ugly mug, Matthews." Arka rolled her eyes at the banter of the two. "Oi! You going to talk all day, or are you going to help me set up a place for Krystal to sleep?" Her comment was met with chuckles from both men. "Right, sorry Johnson. Here, give her to me?"
Ten minutes later, there was a nest of extra pillows, blankets, and sheets made in one of the old dog kennels. The lock had been cut off, the metal walls lined with sheets. Krystal was curled up inside, tail waving contently.
Arka, however, was looking at the kennel in annoyance. "It's still a cage..." She muttered, drawing Melody's attention. "Well, yes, I suppose it is, but she seems happy, isn't that the important bit? You saw how she reacted when we tried to put her in one of the beds." Arka sighed. Yes, she had seen that. The child had completely panicked, clinging to Matthews and whimpering until they took her away from the bed and set up the kennel. Now, however, she had finally fallen asleep. Arka said nothing, simply kneeling down and pulling one of the blankets over the sleeping child. "I suppose, that it will do..."