"Home at last," Arnold nearly sighed as they entered the home that would now be far more empty and quiet than it had been when they left for the islands. Two of his children did not return with them, a fact that irritated him to no end, but to keep peace he had finally let it drop during the flight back to Colorado.
"Get your butt up those stairs and get some sleep young man," Raquel said with more of a tone of empathy than any thing else, "we have an appointment to keep in the morning."
"Yes ma'am," Paul responded halfheartedly.
As the last remaining child of the moose parents climbed the stairs to the second floor he stopped suddenly sniffing the somewhat stale air before he looked at his mother and said, "is it just me or does it smell a little... strange in here?"
"Lord, did those girls leave a mess in the kitchen or forget to take out the trash before they left?" the moose matron asked as a sly grin spread across her muzzle.
"It wouldn't surprise me if they did, and to spite me on top of it," Arnold nearly growled in response. "You go ahead and get him settled for the night, I'll see what kind of a mess they left behind."
As Raquel started up the stairs she heard the odd tone in her husband's voice as he asked, "you cleaned the house before we left right?"
"Go on to your room and get ready for bed Paul," the moose woman said exasperatedly as she turned and walked back down the stairs. "Yes Arnold, the kids and I went over the house top to bottom before we left, why?"
"Then I will assume that is the first 'calling card' those girls left behind," the big moose said, pointing to the large mirror on the wall of the living room.
Looking closely at the reflective glass, leaning to the side for a better view Raquel could make out what appeared to be a double crescent shaped imprint on the mirror, a thin line like marking running down the middle of the space between them. "Is that..." she began to ask.
"It sure looks like an ass print to me," Arnold replied shaking his head slowly. "I'll assume it wasn't Daisy's, because of the size."
As the adults walked into the dining room Raquel snickered softly.
"Why the hell are there paw prints on the walls?" Arnold asked wide eyed.
"Paw prints? I'm more concerned on what the hell that streak is across the table," Raquel said in reply pointing to the glass topped dining table.
"Ummmmm... Mom, I think you need to come up stairs," they heard Paul say from the stairs leading to the second floor.
As the moose matron joined her son she saw an odd, nearly lustful look on his face, only a moment later the strong, nearly overpowering scent of recent sexual activity filling her nostrils. Arnold Daniels came along side her, shaking his head to clear the fog that clouded is thoughts as the girl mixed scents made even his knees a little weak. "Jesus Christ, did they fuck like rabbits the entire time, damn they could have at least opened a win..." the moose mans voice trailed off. Arnold had walked to the door of his daughters former bedroom, throwing it open and entering as he had been speaking. "Mother of God, what the fuck did they do in here?"
As Raquel pushed past her stunned imobile husband she had to clamp a paw over her muzzle to stifle the laughter that threatened to erupt from her as she gaed at her daughters bed. In the rumpled sheets and darker, still damp stains left behind by the girls obvious lovemaking, she could see what clearly appeared to be the outline of the small mouse girl that Daisy had fallen for
===============================
Thursday July 21, 2013 8:20 am Tennyson Center
Raquel Daniels led her youngest son Paul into the waiting room, “sit there while I let them know we're here Paul.”
The youngest member of the Daniels family complied silently, staring at the floor at his hooves as he waited.
“May I help you?” the receptionist, a mid forties looking badger woman asked as the moose mother stepped up to the window..
“Yes, Raquel and Paul Daniels, we have an eight thirty appointment with Doctor Cartwright,” the moose matron replied.
“Ah yes, the new admission, I'll let him know you have arrived, please be seated and I'll call you shortly,” the woman said as she looked out to the boy seated in the lobby.
“Thank you,” Raquel answered politely.
Within a few minutes the moose pair were escorted into the office of the head administrator of the facility. Doctor Eugene Cartwright was a fifty something Aardvark, his black hair graying at the temples giving him an air of intelligence and thoughtfulness as he spoke. “Mrs. Daniels, and this fine young man is Paul I would assume,” he said as the pair entered.
The younger moose simply nodded his reply as he sat in the chair next to his mother in front of the large, darkly colored oak desk.
As the older Aardvark regarded the youth before him the boy seemed distant, disconnected and more apathetic than he had expected. The reports he had gathered on the boys past deeds had indicated that while his intentions seemed to be progressively more focused and malevolent, the reasoning behind his actions was chaotic and seemingly haphazard. One thing that had stood out the most was his choice of targets. The targets of his actions had no rhyme or reason that could be seen, but in nearly all instances the target of the boys intended retaliation had been the same, his slightly older twin brother.
“Well, I think the first thing we should do is to get the young Mr. Paul with an on staff psychologist to get a bit more information about him to see if e can be of any help to him. But you and I need to discuss that more fully Mrs. Daniels, in private I'm afraid,” the Aardvark said as the door to his office opened. “If you would accompany Mr. Turk, he will take you to the day room Paul.”
After the younger moose had been escorted from his office the aardvark turned his attention fully to the boys other. “We'll be testing him to determine the extend of the problem Mrs. Daniels, however that does entail that he be placed in our keeping for a few days prior to observe him and have a better idea of the truthfulness of his answers when the testing is done. We've had instances where the child has been able to fool the examiner quite easily from lack of knowledge of them before hand. So, let's get to the paperwork shall we? The sooner we get started the sooner we can see exactly what we can o for your son.”
============
“Umm, Mr. Turk,” the moose boy said as the pair walked through the security check point, the large metal door with it's narrow reinforced glass window silently swinging closed behind them, the muffled sound of the locks hardened steel bolts sliding into place the only sound behind them.
“Just Turk, Paul. Around here we keep it to first names only. That goes for residents, and staff, as a way to give everyone a certain level of privacy. One of the first rules you'll need to learn is that no one here gives or asks for a last name.”
Paul considered the tall pangolin beside him from the corner of his eye as he spoke, “I see. Turk... you're not taking me on a tour are you?”
“What makes you think that?” the counselor asked.
“Because doctor Cartwright was in a hurry to separate me from my mother after he mentioned me being tested. I assume he means so you can figure out how screwed up I really am. I can see the point of it, but he sent me off with you to go to the day room, not to start the testing. Then your comment a moment ago about the last names and it being one of the rules I need to learn. That door we came through back there is to keep people in, not out, so I'm thinking that I'm staying,” the moose boy said as he worked through the logic of his situation as he turned to look at the man as he finished, catching a momentary upturn of the corner of the pangolin's lip.
“Interesting... very logical thinking. Yes, you are staying, for at least a week until testing is finished and an evaluation has been completed,” Turk said as they continued down the empty hallway.
“Probably for the best,” the moose boy said dejectedly, “being at home right now isn't a good idea.”
“We'll be getting into all that once it's established whether or not we can help you Paul,” Turk said softly, his voice barely louder than the sounds of their paw-falls on the tiled concrete floor. “Until then you should just try to relax and get as comfortable as you can,” he added as he opened a solid looking door into a smaller room. “Someone will be by later to get you and show you the ropes “
====================
“Now, I need you to understand Mrs. Daniels, at this point we're not fully admitting Paul to the facility. This week long lock down is solely for the purpose of isolating him to observe him closely before the evaluation is completed. We make every effort to insure that the youths that need our help don't slip through the cracks, even if it is by their own design to try to do so.” Seeing the look on the moose mothers face the centers administrator added, “as hard as it may be to believe it has happened. In a case such as Paul's it's an even bigger concern. He is a very intelligent young man, from what you've included in the paperwork, the reports from his schools and from other sources indicate that he is quite adept at deceit and manipulation. We want to be as sure as we reasonably can be that our diagnosis is as accurate as possible.”
“I understand that, I know all too well how tricky that boy can be doctor Cartwright. But I assure you that I will do whatever is needed for my son to get the help that he needs. As his mother I feel I am at least partially responsible for his troubles,” the moose matriarch said sadly.
“I would caution you against voicing those feelings to your son Mrs. Daniels. Until we have a better understanding of what his problems are rooted in, it may only serve to reinforce what ever thoughts or feelings about himself and his actions already drive the boys behaviors. That will of course be important only after this first seven days. During that period he will be under complete lock-down and isolation,” the psychologist explained.
“I will keep that in mind doctor, and take it to heart. You will keep me informed as to the progress of your evaluation as well I need to know what could have possibly pushed my son so far so fast,” Raquel stated flatly.
==========
Penalties
Arnold Daniels watched from the window of his home office until his wife's (vehicle) was safely out of sight before he sat down at his desk. Pulling the oddly shaped shard from his shirt pocket he toed the hidden, loose circle of carpeting from it's recess beneath the desk. Slipping the innocuous item, that few if any would consider having any use at all, into the hidden recess and the identically shaped though tiny opening in the floor. The moose man smirked as the hidden panel silently slid to the side, revealing a small panel that contained a numeric keypad. Once the proper sequence was entered the hidden wall safe quietly clicked open.
Arnold retrieved what he sought from the safe and returned to his desk, spreading the materials before him quickly connecting the external drive to his laptop. Opening the file he need he he began to update his notes and findings...
========================
72213;
The test was successful, although the parameters initially intended for the test became unusable, sufficient information was available at the time to allow for the necessary changes to be made with a minimum of inconvenience as well as the subject remaining unaware of anything being amiss. The subject performed admirably and to the fullest extent of his programming as was possible given the interruption of his task by outside forces. There are addition details that further discussion of may be necessary. AFYEEO55398234492340
Once the entry was completed and the external drive and files returned to their hiding place he composed an email, sending it to the well known, and often used of late internet equivalent of a dead drop. As he was about to shut down the lap top a ringing came from the top right hand drawer of the desk. Retrieving the small, cheap cell phone he read the incoming message...
[Iron curtain; secure line, auth tango-victor-zulu seq. We must talk... NOW!]
“Fuck!” the big moose muttered to the silent walls as he turned off the phone and removed the battery and sim card before dropping it to the floor and smashing it with his hoof.
…...thirty minutes later Arnold Daniels slipped silently into the abandoned warehouse at the edge of the old Prairie Flats industrial district. After making certain there were no indigents in the area he went to the dilapidated space that at one time had housed the company foreman's office. Carefully sliding the desk to reveal the hidden stairway beneath the false section of flooring he descended to the small communications room as the desk returned to it's previous position. With in moments he made the connection and began to speak the ordered verification...
[iron curtain, silver teepee, authorization for communication tango, victor, zulu, eight niner niner six three delta, seven two eight bravo, tango.]
After a few moments that seemed more like an hour a voice came across the small earpiece.
[Report silver teepee, was the test fully successful?]
[Affirmative, test fully successful, subject executed programmed response on target, no memory of training or programming disclosed. Subject fully believes the actions were his own and in full compliance to his own desires.]
[Then the project will move forward, your part in this is now terminated... for now. You know what you have to do now, the subject has to be erased. There can be no traces to the project...]
[The subject can be retrieved with minimal effort, it only takes...]
[You knew the cost up front silver teepee, I warned you myself not to include this subject. But you insisted on it. Now the price must be paid and you have no one to blame but yourself. You knew up front what that price was, get it done silver teepee.]
The line went dead in an instant. Secreting the earpiece and transmitter away again Arnold took the plain manila envelope from it's hiding place and put it in his pocket. He knew from the start it would come to this, but the one he used had offered him the perfect little plaything for this dangerous game from the start. Easy to control and manipulate, even easier to keep watch over as the mental blocks and subliminal orders were programmed into the boys mind to wait for activation. Even that step had been so easy to accomplish, a sight key to trigger the boy into action so easy to hide in plain sight. Now it all had to be undone, erased from the boys memory forever. There was only one drawback, the one thing that could never be erased from the boys mind was the face of the person that had set him onto the path he had unknowingly followed. Once the final trigger was delivered, all traces of the years of slow patient twisting of the boys mind removed in a virtual reboot of his brain the only thing that could trigger his memories to begin to try to rebuild themselves was the face that stared back at him from the dust covered window he stared into now.
As he left the run down ramshackle building he was halted in his tracks, grabbed from behind by a huge pair of striped paws from the shadows.
“Iron Curtain sent me to pick up the package and see it gets... delivered. I assume you have it on you silver teepee, otherwise my orders are clear and unquestionable in the matter,” the big tiger said, no emotion what so ever in his voice as he spoke.
Arnold pulled the envelope from his pocket with two fingers slowly, holding it up for the big cat to take. “Yes,” he answered simply. “Just have it slipped in with the other panels for the Rorschach test, it will trigger him and no one will have a clue why he reacts to it.”
Looking at the envelope the tiger replied, “stroke of genius doc, you're pretty good at thinking this shit up.”
“Too damn good at it, all of it. This time... I let it cost me more than I want ed to give up,” the moose man said as he puled free of he tigers grasp, walking away into the darkness to wait for the final strokes of destruction. He had let his arrogance push him too far this time, and he had offered up the very thing he should have held most dear and precious in his heart. Over the years he had let the relationships with them slowly decay and die. It was better that way he kept telling himself, let them drift away from him emotionally. It was what had to be done to protect the project. The oldest boys new girlfriend was the perfect target for the final trial, the best chance to test the slow, painstaking work that had gone into programming his younger brother. The trigger was delivered hidden in the label on a bottle of personal lubricant, the boy unaware that hidden in the innocuous printing was a command that would change his life forever. The test went flawlessly, the timing of the return of the older boy perfect, the resulting reaction exactly what had been expected. Then the complications began to fall like rain. The older boy didn't buckle, didn't quietly surrender to his will No instead he had done the last thing Arnold had expected from one he thought himself firmly in control of. The boy defied him, refused to abort the unintentionally created life the girl now carried in her womb. While he struggled to maintain as much order and control as he could in the chaos, his hermaphrodite daughter became involved with someone, he had thought it would remove the girl from the equation, it did not. The small kangaroo mouse the girl fell in love with became involved as well, further complicating matters as it snowballed out of control and threatened to consume them all. Yet even the severity of the mouse girls actions, clearly a small measure of revenge extracted for the years of abuse the girl had suffered at the paws of countless others had not broken the boys programming. At last he had the opportunity to remove the boy from the coming storm, to isolate him while he attempted damage control... too little too late. As the vacation gone horribly wrong came to a close the first of the blows that would shatter his family began to fall. His oldest son went to the one person from Winter Creek that would have the means to truly remove him from the danger posed to the boy by those he answered to. As soon as he learned of the Bernese boys involvement he had researched the boys background. This one young man was more of an enigma then the moose man had thought. The boy had connections that went far beyond what anyone would consider of someone that young. This Jameson boy had the means, the resources and the connections to insure that his son, and the young lady the moose boys life had become entangled with, would remain safe and free from the very furs his father had become involved with to further his own goals. His son, and by proxy his grandchild, would remain protected. He only needed to continue to remain arrogant and set on the course he had led them to believe he was set upon. It was the least he could do for the boy after putting him, the panda girl, and their unborn child in such unspeakable danger. In truthfulness the boys actions were less of a surprise than he had led them to believe. Though he was unsure if he would ever have the chance to tell the boy to his face, he was immensely proud of his son for his stand. Then there was the entire situation with Daisy... nothing had broadsided him more than how quickly and completely the herm girl had fallen for the tiny mouse. The involvement of the mouse and her adoptive liger mother had nearly brought the entire situation to ruin. Still... it had resulted in the best test of the boys resistance to his programming being discovered. Arnold had wanted to intervene more forcefully, but the liger's involvement had prevented it, she was a loose cannon and more of a danger than all of the others. He let things progress as they would, hoping against hope to salvage his family... somehow.
When Raquel was called away suddenly he followed her, thinking it a stroke of luck to discover that the fragile mouse girl had been left alone. His intentions were to frighten the girl enough that she would fear Daisy and send her away, thus ending the involvement of the liger and closing that front. He had grievously underestimated the bond between the two mismatched girls. The attack by Daisy was unforeseen, it sent him reeling for an answer to the complication it presented. Until the liger arrived, though the woman's admission that she wanted to end him was expected, the fact that what stayed her paw was a plea from the very daughter he had brought such turmoil into her life was not. He now almost wished the girl had let her, it would save him from the shame and regret that would follow him from here forward. He had let himself be seduced, all for the sake of furthering his own agenda. Until it became twisted and perverted by the wishes of the shadowy group that had been so eager to back his insidious idea to build upon the less than successful methods of MKUltra. They had so willingly offered more than he could imagine to back and support his insane ideas. Paid for much of his college education, set him up in a practice that gave him unfettered access to the very types of broken, damaged youths that were the perfect subjects for his methods.
How had he let things get so undeniably out of paw, how had he let his intentions become so twisted and convoluted? The results of years worth of work were so very far from what he had set out to do. What he had begun as a method of behavior modification, a way to help those youths that were broken, shattered by the things that had happened to them in their short, sometimes torturous lives cope and live a more normal life had become something hideous and deformed. Even he had been led astray without realizing it until it was too late. His work convoluted and warped into creating the ultimate spy. One that could be programmed to gather information and pass it along yet remain virtually undetectable , who would suspect a broken child of being a involved in such activities after all?
He had done as he was told in the end, completing the test with Paul as proof of concept. His portion was done and the time for reprisal was at paw. He must pay the price for his arrogance, for his willingness to be used as a tool for others to follow their own twisted agenda. There was nothing to be done but wait for the eventual destruction of the remainder of his family. Ralph had bolted, finding his own way to do what he knew he had to do as a man. The Jameson boy had the resources and means to protect his eldest son. The young man had made it clear he would do just that at any cost through his actions. Arnold felt certain the Bernese boy would do exactly that.
Daisy had chosen the girl she had fallen in love with and ran as well. It pained his heart, but they would be safe from the ones that he had let take control of him. He couldn't imagine even the ones he was now in fear of having a chance against the liger and her group of military vets.
Paul, the one of his children he owed a great debt to for the things he had done would be safe soon. As soon as the visual trigger was delivered to initiate the mental reboot the boys mind would erase the portion of his memory that had remained blocked and locked away from his son leaving him with no memory what so ever of the things his father had programmed him to do. All that was left was to wait for Raquel to get enough of his necessary smoke screen to be driven from him as well. Any other way would draw the suspicion of those he was now trying to protect them from.
As he pulled into the drive of the house that had become the Daniels family home he wondered if he could ever set things right and have a chance at reclaiming the family he had destroyed.
================================
The sly grin on the weasels muzzle faded as he stepped into the darkened room to make his report to his superior.
“I've heard from silver teepee sir,” he began.
“As I am aware whiskers, Hammer has been shadowing him since his return from that little vacation of his. He has his orders and the Muninn protocol has been ordered. Hammer will now provide over-watch on test subject Bravo until e are either assured he is harmless, or has been suitably neutralized. I want you to contact ogre and thumper, I want them on that moose like his own fur. Their orders are simple, observe but do not interact. They are to report to ou and only you. If he hoes anything, at all, that will endanger himself, subject Bravo , the project, or us I want him eliminated immediately.”
“I'll handle it right away sir,” Victor replied, turning as if to leave the room.
“There is another matter that must be dealt with, I want the watchers put on alert, there have been confirmed reports that silver teepees family are being watched, that fucking meddling bear and his sloth lackey ere spotted following the other boy in Hawaii. There are unconfirmed reports that the impala and binterong may also be involved somehow. I want some answers to who these furs are and what their interests in the moose family are, and I want them now whiskers.”
“Yes sir, is there anything else?” Victor asked as his eyes darted around the darkened room.
“Not at this time, now get to it and get me those answers!”
What remains of the once happy Daniels family has returned home. The moose and mouse girls left a few little surprises for them, which Arnold finds less than amusing.
Paul is signed into the Tennyson Center to begin the process of obtaining the help and counselling the young moose boy needs to get his life on track. Unknown to him he is doomed to a different fate. His father has secrets that have had an impact on the young boys life that he can't even imagine....
Okay... now I want to kill Arnold, very slowly and painfully. And what I want to do to him is nothing compared to what I would do to the jerks he has been working for.
Okay... now I want to kill Arnold, very slowly and painfully. And what I want to do to him is nothin
Same here. If you have sold your soul to the devil. You do not involve your family too!! If he truly wants redemption he needs to confess all his crimes and try to take them shadowy fuckers down as well. Or put a bullet in his brain and leave his reasons why so them evil bastards get what they deserve.
And boy did Comenthor do a serious plot twist to this story.
Same here. If you have sold your soul to the devil. You do not involve your family too!! If he truly
Another example how the desire to do a good thing can lead one astray. And of how the original intention can be and often is twisted by those that are willing to back the idea for their own nefarious uses.
Another example how the desire to do a good thing can lead one astray. And of how the original inten
I do like how he actually trusts the liger to keep Daisy safe.
And before all of you hate Arnold too much, think about what Susan did when helping Lilliana with Cecily's adoption.
read around page 6...
Some times some people do get to a point when they do things that they don't like, or even make choices without understanding the full outcome. Sure He did bad things to his son, but he's not the only one, Paul was just test subject Bravo...
I do like how he actually trusts the liger to keep Daisy safe. And before all of you hate Arnold t
Is it a matter of trust out right? Or a matter of anywhere but near me is safer? Some of both maybe? Though I think the moose herm is still in for some rough times with that oddball group she's gotten herself tangled up with.....
Is it a matter of trust out right? Or a matter of anywhere but near me is safer? Some of both maybe?
