Nine: Chapter One



???

Day 01

City Sector 6, The Daniel Collins Museum of Science

Museum life was surprisingly as easy as it looked.

At least, for one person anyway.

Her position was easy - just a projection assistant in the IMAX theater. The screen itself was situated on the ceiling, with the projector immediately below in the podium, and all aorund her were leagues of adults and children from school trips or otherwise.

She was beginning to like it down here as well. A young man - his name had been Greg? George? - has brought her some coffee in the morning and offered to take her out to lunch later. Although she really wanted to, she couldn't. For a few reasons, promises she would always keep even now.

There was also the mission.

After the first group of the day left the theater, leaving a ten minute interval for the film to be switched and the floors to be clean, she stepped into the lounge and checked her pocket for the rectangular lightweight in her pocket. Her boss called it a 'cell phone', but the woman did not understand what jail cells had to do with someones hearing.

The second she turned it on, her boss' voice carried through the holes at the top.

"Hello, A-"

"Boss." He said sharply, loud enough that it seemed to echo around the lounge.

"Okay. Hello, Boss." A sigh on the other end.

"Our next class is coming in." The woman smiled. "I am excited to learn more."

"Fantastic. Is that all you wanted to tell me?" The boss sounded odd. Almost like he was in a huryy to get the job done.

"No." The woman commented curtly. "Our next class has the....the uh-, Fossum." A low chuckle began to resound from the other end of the phone. "And I need to know what I am supposed to do with her."

There was silence on the other end for a while, but the boss' breathing was clear through the phone.

"Pull her aside during the movie." He said. "Bring her into the lounge, say she has a phone call. Her mom works at the station, so hopefully she-"

"The station, sir?"

"The police station. It doesn't matter though, just bring her into the lounge and I will take it from there. Understood?"

"Yes sir." Her voice was beginning to sound gruff - as much as she thanked the boss for taking care of her all these years, being on Earth again was bringing back memories of her old life.

Her old, men hating one.

But she had made a promise to him weeks ago that she would help him take the Fossum, and in return they would never have to speak again if she didn't like.

She could live peacefully in the cosmos for the rest of eternity.

"Wait, Aquila." The boss' voice came back over the phone and she brought it up to her ear. "....Nevermind. Go get her." He hung up too quickly to recieve a goodbye, leaving Aquila alone. Alone to prepare.

She knew of the boss' intentions already, and knew that the girl would no doubt be in trouble by the end of her school trip. While he didn't intend on killing the Fossum, the boss had no idea of the fraility of children these days, as exhibited by her last class in which a child was flicked and promptly burst into tears.

If the Fossum were like that.....what would they have left?

She hid her supplies in her locker near the kitchen area. With a swift knock she managed to break the locker in half and extract the three articles, depositing them neatly on the couch. The boss surely wouldn't mind, especially now that Aquila had gone to all the trouble, yeah?

After having placed the components on the couch, neat and uncreased after a few hours in the locker, she stepped out into the theater, where the other attendant had already begun the movie.

The search for the Fossum was on.