1.5.4 : Tales of Winter Blunder

Again, as the emotions faded, I sifted through the memories, finding the next one that was important enough to the way of things that my Mistress would need them. Though all of the memories in the folder had been deemed important at the time, I am disappointed by what I find. Most of it is nonsensical, rubbish, trite...why have I stored this? My Mistress does not need to know of my struggles. Just of the outcome. Frantically, I am looking for the needed one, the one I marked so that in this situation, I could find it easily. "Aha!" The utterance crosses my lips without permission, but the success is welcome. I slide my claw across the seal absently, releasing the memory from the captivity I imposed on it at the time.

The winter flurries about us, its possession strong and rich with my fear.

I was being hunted.

This memory was not to show my Mistress my struggles. It was only for the purpose of the information I had gathered on that trip through the frozen winter streets. When I had tried to slice just the information into a folder, it had crumbled to pieces. So I had to keep adding more and more to it until this was included. Only memories with strong emotions attached could be archived properly and expected to last more than a year. Even those with the proper utilities for preserving smaller memories preferred strongly emotional things.

Hunted I was, and as the fear catches in my chest, I stumble. The hands that have been outstretched have me. Acting on the instinct that has preserved me thus far, I twist, buying momentary freedom and a hard hit to the head. I lay silent as if unconscious, knowing better than to struggle. Now, in my silence, I may learn what I would not have by fighting. Though my fear has a bit of say on that as well; I am all but paralyzed by it now, as I am roughly bagged and carried. But this crony of the Council has failed to realize that not all Misshapen are as human as they seem, and is foolishly proud of his capture.

He yammers away on his lenses, his booming voice clear as day, though the information he is receiving is a mystery to me; that has long been something inaudible to those around, transmitted directly into the brain. "Right. Edge of town to CERA's facilities, right?" It takes all that I am not to panic at that. CERA is the thinnest of front for a Misshapen torture center, calling itself a research facility. I can not betray that I am aware though; certain death lay down that path. "Beast tried to run, but I nabbed it easy. Without this'un broadcasting, the others should fall soon, and Shaen oughtn't be able to remember prop', right?"

The human knew! Which means the Council knows...and for this fool to be blurting it out without a hint of secrecy to his tone could mean something disastrous. I can feel my sibs gathering, but I warn them off. These words are enough to warrant my escape. The rest of the research would have to be done with more preparation, and could not be gathered if I were to die.

I had sealed the memory at this moment, knowing my escape was apparent, and the details were unimportant. Yet the simple truth remained that they knew about us in a way they hadn't before. "I have not found the source of that information leak Mistress." I say softly, while I tremble through the rest of the records for the last piece of her absence worth mentioning.