Chapter Text
"With all due respect ma'am, we need to find and kill her."
As they walked through the desolate hallway of the base, their out-of-synch footsteps echoed, bouncing off the walls like something eerie. The man walked behind the woman; she set the quick pace, deliberately ignoring the man behind her who failed to keep up. Whether it was a quiet acknowledgement of her superiority or his weakened state, he didn't know.
"There is no we. Do not forget your place, 37. As for the subject, her current situation might be more beneficial than you think," she snaps. Her patience was wearing thin with the runt of the litter subordinate that was assigned to her. From his young age to the look in his beady brown eyes, it seemed as if every breath he took irked her. If he was going to last in this place, he would need to get rid of everything that makes him him. Starting, of course, with his attitude.
"My apologies, ma'am," Agent 37 spoke through clenched teeth, failing miserably at hiding his annoyance. He didn't like the air of superiority of the woman held. He was an agent, not someone who should be so easily deduced to a number. He wasn't her. No, it was the girl who should be made to walk behind people, the girl who should be starved and worked beyond reasonable means. Not him.
But for the life of him, he couldn't understand why the woman wouldn't see the situation from his perspective. The girl was dangerous and posed a threat, just by breathing in the same air they did, which, again, should not be allowed. He wouldn't hesitate to end the girl's life if someone, anyone, would just give him the order. He craved those few words strung together into a mission object almost as much as he craved any type of food.
"It would do you well to watch your tone. You are below me, I am not your friend or ally. I am your foe. Here, my word is law and what I say goes. If you don't like it, I could always arrange for you to leave?" Allowing this kind of insubordination never crossed her mind, she thought it unwise for others to see someone get away with it. She was never able to escape the hands of justice from those ranked higher and and she'd rather be a man down than have one causing trouble in the ranks.
At this point, Agent 37 was sure anyone within ten feet could hear the hammering of his heart. The sound felt all consuming, thumping and throbbing throughout his hollow chest. He'd heard the rumors that leaving was near synonymous with death. A death that was by no means quick. A death that he would avoid at all costs, even if it meant leaving the girl alone.
He shook his head subtly. She was in front of him but he knew she had eyes behind, to the side, and on top of her head. She saw all, heard all.
"Get out of my sight, you're assigned to level one work for the rest of the day." As soon as the sentence left her mouth, Agent 37 hastily turned left at the next door in the hall. Thank god he was out of her company, if you could call it that. Though, despite his dismissal, his mind remained on the topic at hand: getting to the control room and doing work the higher ups wouldn't flag as a cause for recalibration. He took a seat in front of the cameras he had grown to despise after too many times of being assigned to watch them for days at a time.
His hands flew across the keyboard, eyes glued to the screen. People will see my way, Agent 37 thought. She needs to die, one way or another.