Chapter 1: Here

7 Days Until Naomi is Back

     We talk for hours. I tell Beta and Zero everything that has happened to me from the moment we parted.
     Well, not quite. I leave out the parts where Naomi foot-fucked me. So actually I leave out quite a bit.
     They tell me how they ran. Circling back through Haven, they gathered up the two women, Ashley, the young victim, and Deborah. Without Beta there, they probably would have been too fearful to run with men. But she convinced them. A few people came with them, those that had never touched the women and who had even dared speak up for them. Stephan, Jeff, and Derek. The nine of them got away through the vents with the sounds of slaughter echoing behind them. 
     When they got outside, they followed a trail of Eric's arrows in reverse, leading away from the place. They didn't get far though. A chauffeur on her smoke break found them in the back alley. They thought they were dead, but the woman gathered them up and eventually took them to Miranda's store, which was nearby. Then they thought they were going to be put on display with the others, but Miranda took them home instead. Finders keepers, she said.
     They had been here, ever since, with all the luxuries of a house of their own. It seems strange to me. Somehow bleak and plastic, surreal. Living in a dollhouse diorama. But being able to turn my own lights on and off feels strangely empowering. There's a bathroom and even a mini gym. And did I mention clothes? I noticed everyone else wearing them, but it takes me some time to realize that I'm still naked. They provide me some ill-fitting clothes. When I put them on I'm conscious of them against my skin. 
     That's when I realize I've never worn clothes before, at least not in memory. Not since waking up in that lab with Keyla. Every so often I'm struck by how naturally I can do something, like slip into clothes, when for all I know I've never done it before. Certain phrases or simile I find rolling off my tongue likewise strike me occasionally, like a scent that brings emotion from some memory you can't quite grasp. 
     Miranda comes by later and checks up on me. She seems pleased that I already have friends here. I still can't believe it. I keep thinking I'm going to wake up any second and be back at Naomi's, or worse, in some crack in the wall, alone.

CHAPTER TWO: I Know Who You Are

       That afternoon I sit with Beta and Zero at a picnic table, swapping stories, when I notice a short black man with a shaved head approaching us. He’s wearing a polo shirt and jeans.

       "Hey brother," the man says, extending a hand. "I don't think we've ever properly met. I'm Derek."

     "Hi," I say, shaking his hand. "I'm Al-"

     "Oh, I know who you are, Alpha," he says, cracking a big toothy grin. "You're the man that single-handedly destroyed Haven."

     I freeze, suddenly wary, but he just laughs.

     "Oh, don't worry brother. That was some good work. I was there." His grin fades instantly. "Those guys were... twisted. They deserved everything that happened to them." Then as quickly as it left, his smile pops back again. "You're kind of a legend," he says. He spreads his hands in the air in front of him. "'Alpha: The... Immortal... Avenger!'" He chuckles. "Anyway, I'll let you guys catch up. See you around, brother."

     As he leaves, I give Beta a questioning look.

     "Derek... he's solid," she says. Her voice sounds somber and she stares at the ground, obviously reliving something that happened.

     "What happened?" I ask. "Who is he?"

     "When the other eight of us ran back, two of the other men followed us. That's when Derek showed up. At first I thought he was one of them, but... when Zero turned to fight them off and buy us time, Derek... "

     "Derek stopped them?" I say.

     Zero says, "He killed them. Bashed their brains out with a nail, like a club. I could have taken them, but, whatever." He shrugs.

     "Oh, shut the fuck up Zero," Beta says. "But yeah. He literally bashed their brains out," Beta says. "It was... gross. But then he just gives us the biggest grin. There's like, blood on his face and shit, and I'm trying not to throw up because there little chunks of brain falling off his nail-club thing, and he's just looking at us like... like a dog with a bone, so happy to see us. Yeah. He's a good guy though."

     "Sounds like it."