Fiction Friday (Well, I Started It On Friday, Anyway)

The prompt this week: A new government R&D facility is built on a decommissioned prison site.

They might as well have spray painted it neon orange and put a big flashing sign outside that said "Top Secret Research Going On Here." That was my first thought as I drove up the gate on my first day of my new let's-hope-it's-really-better-than-the-last-one job. My fifth job this year. I was fairly certain that leaving another job was going to render my resume something that was used in business classes across the country as an A+ example of how not to succeed. Honestly, I was kind of surprised that it hadn't done that two jobs ago.

The guard carefully checked my two picture IDs against his list before handing me a visitor badge with terse instructions that it was to be visible above the waist at all times then waved me through to the next set of gates. The second guard was considerably friendlier and I had the errant thought that they probably used the first guard as a scare tactic for those who thought it'd be cool to come visit the new prison.

That's how the structure was billed - the New Prison. There were even prisoners in residence. I'd learned that much on my tour during the fifth interview. I wasn't clear exactly why they were there, but I hoped that maybe today would help in that regard. Or at least that I'd get a clear answer to one question. We'd have to see - government folks weren't exactly known for being forthcoming, especially not those in this agency. They were so paranoid they told me it would be better if I didn't even think the initials of the agency that I worked for..just in case. I rolled my eyes as I remembered that sage advice and pulled into a parking spot.

Walking across the small lot toward the concrete bunker that held the next security check, I glanced out at the fenced in recreation area for prisoners. There was gleaming razor wire curling across the top and sharp, barbed spears pointing out the other direction, in case someone managed to get through the wire, I guessed. Rumors circulated that the barren area between there and the road was planted with mines but I didn't know if that was true. Shuddering slightly I hoped I'd never have the opportunity to find out, that just seemed...cruel. Even if the prisoners here were the worst of the worst. Again, I was relying on rumors, but a few hints here and there in the papers and whispered discussions that you overhear at any government facility, and it seemed as if those felons convicted of particularly gruesome murders had all be transferred to the "New Prison". Opening the door, I shuddered. I tried to blame it on the blast of air conditioning that greeted me, but I knew it was thoughts of the cold blooded men and women who lived here as smokescreen for the facility in which I now worked.

Again the guard checked my IDs and then gestured for me to sit in a yellow plastic chair. After a little fiddling with the backdrop behind me, he tapped the webcam situated on the monitor in front of me, "Look here, please."

I mustered a smile, trying to strike a balance between professional and casual. The mouse clicked and the guard fiddled with something on his screen. I craned my neck to try and see how the photo had turned out, but before I could sneak a peak, a laminated card was shooting out of a desktop printer. He deftly punched a hole in the top and threaded the card onto a lanyard, "This will give you access to where you're meant to be. It will also allow us to find you at any time as needed. Please keep it on your person, in sight above the waist, at all times. Do not ever, for any reason, allow it out of your personal control."

With a nod I took the badge and slipped it over my head, pausing to unclip the visitor badge. The guard took it and gestured to the small door opposite his station, "That's the elevator to the research areas. You'll need your badge and the pin you were given when you were hired." He gestured to the larger electronically locked doorway, "That's to the prison area. Your badge is not programmed for access."

I nodded again and approached the elevator, swiping my card across the barely visible reader. Another seamless panel slid open revealing a pin pad. Hesitating a moment I concentrated then punched the code that had been drilled into my memory. After a pause just long enough for me to begin to wonder if I had messed something up, the door slid open. I stepped into the elevator and pressed the only button on the panel.

I was almost sure it was a figment of my imagination, but the elevator seemed to get darker as it descended. I stopped counting when I reached 72 and felt my heart rate begin to increase. How deep was I going? Just as my palms started to sweat, the elevator slowed to a stop and the door slid silently open. I wished heartily for the cheerful ding that most often accompanied such a thing, but there was no noise. Stepping nervously out into the empty lobby I looked around. The door slid shut behind me, causing me to jump. I shut my eyes and forced several deep breaths in and out. When my heart rate had settled a little, I started forward.

Nearing the wall, I spied another card reader. I slid my card through and waited. The wall in front of me started to shimmer until it was transparent. I edged a toe forward and found no resistance, so slid the rest of the way through the opening. Immediately I was awash in the normal sounds of office life. A hive of cubicles wiggled through the immense room. Keyboards clicked and quiet murmurs of conversation faded in and out. Looking over my shoulder I saw that the wall had...rematerialized, I guess, behind me. I caught sight of a woman I remembered from my interview and cleared my throat, managing a little wave.

She looked up and considered me for a moment before nodding in recognition and beckoning me to her desk, "You're right on time. Any problems?"

I shook my head no.

"Alright, this way then. Let's get you settled in. First days," she paused, "well, first weeks usually, are spent getting acquainted with the work we do here. I imagine you're curious." She smiled slightly.

I struggled to keep up with her brisk pace through the maze of cubes, "Well, yes."

"It'll all be clear soon. Ah, here we are." She stopped in front of a cube, empty other than a workstation and a huge pile of binders. "You'll want to read in the top down order to get the full picture."

Just then a blood curdling scream followed by several muted cries and popping noises tore through the room and everything went silent for several heartbeats before picking up right where it had been.

"What...?"

She just shook her head and tapped the top binder, "Read, dear. That won't concern you for a while yet." With that she strode back in the direction of her cube.

I slid into the chair, pulled the top binder into my lap and flipped open the cover. I barely noticed when it slid from my fingers and clattered to the floor, pages of photos fanning out from the open rings. My eyes locked on the picture of the woman who had just left, then scanned back over the description of the surgeries that transformed her from hardened criminal to civil servant cyborg.