Infant and Innocent
August 21st, 2004
It was nearing the end of the year's warmer months as August began to wein closer and closer to the end. This would not typically be the portion of the year when new life began to sprout, wild and screaming, for spring with its beautiful plants and insouciant creatures had already long passed.
But maybe that made sense, considering that today held neither beauty nor an airiness to it. Perhaps spring should only be reserved for the wild and free.
Screams wailed throughout the dimly lit corridors of the Hydra medical wing high in the mountains of Siberia. It wasn't uncommon for screams to be shrouded in the compound; it happened almost daily. But these screams were different from the rest because they didn't bring about the end of a life. They didn't snuff out the memories of one either. No, these screams brought new life. New life that was strategically planned, paid for, and cautiously tended to for 9 months.
The surrogate was chosen among a handful of exemplary women whom Hydra saw fit to bring upon their big plan. She had to be a perfect mix of clever, strapping, and healthy to be picked. They examined the records of young women between the ages of 20 and 25 in Russia, then plucked a dozen of them from society to be poked, prodded, and pushed through trials to find the perfect one. They chose a young woman named Mary from a small city. They killed the rest.
Mary should have had a promising future; maybe even a chance to escape Russia entirely. She was bright; excelling in her studies and was an excellent gymnast. She used to sit in her bed at night, as a little girl, and dream of having a good job, while living in a beautiful home, with a kind husband, a rambunctious son or daughter, and her parents close enough that she could turn to them if she needed anything.
But now; as she screams with all her life force, her wrists clinging to the railing of the gurney, she knows that will never happen.
‘It's not fair,’ she thought to herself the night before she went into labor while laying on the cramped cot that she had to sleep on. ‘I'm only 24. I had my whole life ahead of me.’
Now, a few pushes from bringing upon her boy's life; she knew there was nothing else ahead of her. There were no roads left to turn down, no chance of a happy ending where she escaped out of this insentient compound. Her parents will never truly know what happened to her; they will not even be given her remains. Her sister May will only have her husband to turn to. Her boyfriend, Richard, will never hear her voice again and never be able to propose. And her baby…
When she first became pregnant, when the insemination worked, she was angry. She hated the fact that there was nothing she could do to change her fate. She was stuck in these shackles and these would be the last months of her life. She hated that all these scientists saw her as a birth giver; to bring upon what they called ‘their new asset.’ But as the final few months passed by, as June turned to July, and July to August; there was no more anger to give.
It was just sorrow now.
Because Peter, that was his name because she refused to call her baby an ‘asset’, would be born into this hell hole. She didn't know what would be ahead of him. Although they wouldn’t say it directly, she knew she wouldn’t be around to protect him.
She pushed a few more times, and finally, after hours of relentless pain and exhaustion; it was over. As she sat back, breathing heavily, new cries began to wail through the crowded room. Peter was born. He was finally here.
“Can I hold him… please let me hold my baby. Please!” Mary begged, pleaded, and cried. The doctors and handlers in the room were starkly against it at first, some shaking their heads and others flat-out saying “No!”. But, a man dressed in a nicer suit than any of the other individuals in the room stepped forward. He cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention.
“Hand him to me,” he said in an American accent. The doctors looked at each other, then the newborn, but nodded. A doctor carefully picked up the freshly swaddled child and placed him in his hands.
“There's not much resistance she can give us now. Her mission is over, and it was a success,” the well-dressed man commented as he peered down at the baby. He stepped towards Mary's bed, holding the child out for her to take.
Mary quickly gathers him into her arms, seeking to capture every part of his face. She cried soft tears, though she tried to compose herself. She couldn’t believe such an angel could be born in a place like this. It was like his presence alone lit up the dilapidated, put-together room they called their labor ward.
“His name is Peter! That's his name! I don't care if you give him some code name; his real name is Peter!” She choked out in a moment of bravery, looking up at the American. She stared him right in the eyes, with fire stirring within her. She held Peter a little tighter to her chest.
The man sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance. He let the pair have a moment longer before snatching the baby away once more. “We'll file the name somewhere,” He said with a wave of his hand, turning his back to the now sobbing woman. “Doctors, get the asset ready for examination!”
“Yes, Director Pierce!” the lead physician responded almost robotically. Doctors and scientists began readying their stations while one doctor took the baby from Pierce. Half the handlers in the room exited, but half stayed back. There was still Mary to deal with, after all.
They approached the bed, without a word and not an ounce of sympathy for the grieving woman. One held Mary down as she screamed and kicked to be with her baby, to let her go, to let the pair be free. The other put handcuffs on her wrists and ankles, keeping her on the bed so they could successfully take her out of the room. They didn't need her anymore, her mission was complete.
As quickly as the halls filled with pleas from a young woman, so innocent and kind, they were silent. It was as if there were never a Mary Parker to begin with. So quickly did the halls return to their sterile quiet.