It was as quiet and peaceful in the meadow as it was any other day. The sun peeked just above the trees, shaded by the branches reaching ever upward. A thick layer of undergrowth settled beneath the trees, tangling together and pushing upward for the warmth of the sun on their leaves. Vines tangled around the trunks, winding upward and snuffling out weaker plant life on the way. Fungus grew on a fallen log on the north end of the small meadow, beneath which a family of rabbits made their home.

The meadow itself was little more than ordinary, it's placement just north of a lake and far from human civilization. But something about this meadow drew them here. Something, be it a scent, an image, a longing; whatever it was that brought them here to this specific place, the urge to head toward it without really knowing where one was going, was much too strong for any of them to deny. The pull of the meadow was like a magnet to the Evolution Projects, drawing them together. A few had already collided before then, having left one anothers company before they were pulled back to this meadow.

Nothing disturbed it's peace, nothing but eyes watching each other across the meadow. Staring intently, untrusting and cautious. On one side of the meadow stood a male, a tiger, full of rage and annoyance before the one that stood across from him. He was losing control faster than he would have wanted, losing it to when even the Projects in the shadows turned to prey for him. Nothing would stop him from tearing them apart.

Nothing but the female across from him.

She danced side to side, her footfalls swift and barely touching the ground between steps. Grey fur lining the leopard paws on the end of hybrid legs. She watched the male, staring at him just as intensely as he stared at her. Either waited for the other to make the first move against their opponent. Those who watched knew nothing of the reason why the male had become so enraged with the female across from him. Her form was petite, perhaps half the size of his, and he looked an easy predator for the frail looking leopard girl.

Would any of the subjects step in to stop them before the fight truly began, or would they hide to save their own hides from the wrath of the winner.

Gina skipped through the grasslands. Her feet were bare, and she could still feel the morning dew cold against her toes. The moss of the forest provided enough of a cushion for her to tread barefoot without injury. A breeze blew by, her long green skirt flew up all around her. Gina giggled. She took a moment to spin in place, watching the brilliant green envelope her legs, and flow around her like a never-ending current. A second breeze brought her back to her senses. The scent that had drove her here grew stronger. It was sweet, something that reminded her of a time that she no longer remembered. If she had a mother, one of those elegant high heel wearing types, she imagined that this was what her perfume would smell like. The warmness of it surrounded her, and carried her legs in the direction from where it came.

In the sun, Gina’s eyes were bright yellow. Her side-ways pupils were squinting, trying to see through all the light. If Gina could have it her way, the sky would be cloudy every day. “But then I wouldn’t feel this warmth on my back,” she giggled out loud to herself. Gina talked to herself frequently, since it had been a long time since she’d seen anyone else. She forgot how to talk to others, but grew lonely fairly quickly. Talking out loud had become a habit, and Gina used it to pretend like she had others around her. It be honest, she missed her cell mate from before. Even though that time was horrible, there were moments of light to it. Gina tugged on her white tank top, and started to walk faster.

Just as quickly as she had come to the forest, Gina had left it. She stood in a clearing, her white hair reflecting the sunlight to a painful degree, and she let her eyes adjust for a moment. Standing not too far from her was a girl. Well she wasn’t standing, she was more-so dancing. And she wasn’t a girl, but something far more interesting. Gina watched her tail move side to side. For a moment the mutant stood, frozen in her place. This other girl was the most beautiful thing she had seen in a very long time. Before taking another thought to consider her actions, Gina ran.

Gina ran as fast as her legs could carry her, laughing the whole while. She almost tripped on a branch, but righted herself quickly and ran right up to the dancing leopard girl. Without saying anything, Gina grabbed the girl’s hands and started to dance. Her arms pulled to and fro, her hips moving back and forth, and she skipped her feet in time to a music she could only hear in her mind. A huge, childlike smile was plastered to her face, she closed her eyes and started to sing:

“Well I think it's fine, building jumbo planes.
Or taking a ride on a cosmic train.
Switch on summer from a slot machine.
Get what you want to if you want, 'cause you can get anything.
I know we've come a long way,
We're changing day to day,
But tell me, where do the children play?”

Bernard lumbered through the woods, lost not in the trees but in his thoughts. Nothing guided his steps except for the fact that he had to take a winding path to avoid walking into trees. No physical needs plagued him at the moment, and yet he was still driven to seek... something. The feeling would allow him no rest, and so he walked rather than finding shelter to sleep the next week or so away until he was truly hungry again.

Ahead, there was a brighter area that he could see between the trees. He spotted movement, and the amount of sunlight could only mean that there the trees were ending. Forging through the undergrowth, Bernard continued on. The scent of prey animals came to him as he stepped over a log, but he did not stop. He could now clearly see the two girls dancing in the meadow, and he stopped at the edge of the trees. Still in shadow, he looked out into the light to see what he could see.

Spotting the other Project, for what else could they all be, made Bernard's scars itch. The two of them had rarely been near each other, but he recognized another of his kind that had been subjected to similar treatment. A low growl rose unbidden and his throat, and he started towards the center of the clearing.

If there was going to be a fight, he wasn't going to let it be between to two feline projects.

Nemo was sitting on the black leather couch in his house. The soft sounds of orchestral music emanated throughout the building from a record player. He was leaning over, looking at what appeared to be profile files on his coffee table. Directly across from him sat a small television with a mans face on it. The face seemingly waiting for a response from him. Nemo leaned back, looking to the TV before speaking. "So let me get this straight." He paused. "You bred a person with a enchilada. And then you just managed to... lose? The manchilada?" He asked with a curious face. "Ah... I got it. I think I know what your problem was." He added, pointing at the screen. "...You should of done a mantaco instead." The question of if Nemo was serious or just trying to rub salt in the wounds of the people who lost the creatures was a mystery.

"No, you see the projects are all mixed with predator DNA. Not... Mexican cuisine. But besides that... yes." The man on the television responded.

"Hmmm, yes I see. I suppose that would make more sense. What a shame, I've never hunted an enchilada before." He spoke back, returning his attention to the files.

"We just need to know if you're interested on not, Mr. Sammler." The man remarked, sounding impatient at this point.

"If you thought I might not be interested you wouldn't of already given me the files." Nemo said with a slight smirk, not bothering to look back up. "Of course I'm interested." He confirmed.

"Very good. I suppose this concludes our discussion then, Mr. Sammler. You should know what to do from here on out."

"Auf Wiedersehen." Nemo looked back to the TV and said his goodbye with a small smile. After this the picture went black, leaving him with just the files now. He got up from his couch and gathered the paperwork before moving to his bedroom. As he made his way there he passed by various stuffed animal heads and trophies he collected from various safari hunts. Something he thought humorous considering the substance of his task. Nemo was a collector to be sure, he had all kinds of various items in his home. Ranging from weapons, instruments, jewelry, to awards. Just about anything of value that suited his tastes he had hung or displayed somewhere.

"I guess I'm a glorified animal control officer now." He mused on with a chuckle as he opened his closet and pulled out a rather large vintage rolling luggage case with a few various travel stickers stuck on the front. Something he prepared in advance in case he had to go to foreign soil for a job. While the contents of the case were a mystery, one thing that could be said is that if Nemo didn't have special agreements with certain people, it definitely wasn't making it past the first security check. He stashed the files within it and got ready.

Nemo began to hum along to the song on his record player as he rolled the luggage case through his home, even after he turned it off he continued to hum the tune. He called a cab from his cellphone to pick him up and bring him to the airport as soon as possible. After arriving Nemo waited in line just like all the other people. He seemed to take the grueling wait quite well, unlike the rest of the. Once it was his turn up to bat, a flash of a governmental card from his wallet was all it took for him to get special access.

Nemo boarded his flight with ease soon enough. He made the odd choice of flying coach despite his status. And the reason why quickly emerged: Nemo always found himself the most entertained back in the crowded seats of coach class. There was always a show to see back there to him. On top of that, he was maddening to be around for long periods of time. Nemo talked to his two neighboring passengers the whole trip whilst eating peanuts to the point of almost driving them insane. But they didn't break first, instead it was a bald man three rows ahead off to the side. After turning back and loudly asking him to shut his mouth, the man got what he wanted literally. But no peace was going to come to him in the end.

After a few minutes Nemo silently chucked a peanut at the man's head. The man flinched and immediately turned back to the prime suspect. But Nemo simply shrugged his shoulders with a innocent face. After the man grudgingly returned to his book he hurled another one at his head. The man turned back faster this time, immediately cursing at him. "You should try one." Nemo said plainly. The man didn't seem to give his suggestion much thought and continued to berate him until Nemo threw another. This one landing directly in the man's mouth mid-insult. While he was momentarily silenced, the bullseye caused the man to only get louder afterwards until a flight attendant had come over to silence him. Despite the mans accusations and protests nothing really became of the event.

Nemo figured things had reached a boiling point and his antics might get him into trouble if he continues. He was pretty satisfied with the way things had gone so far anyways.

Hours later his flight had come to an end. He spent the rest of the time listening to music on his phone with a pair of earbuds and looking out the windows. After getting off the plane he swiftly retrieved his luggage and left the airport by cab again. The ride took him to a normal looking hotel. Nemo checked in and brought his case to his room. The heels of his boots made a quaint tapping sound as he walked through the corridor to find his room number.

Once inside Nemo began his preparations. He cleared a table, took off his coat, and finally unlocked his case. He retrieved the files and a laptop from inside, not taking the time to fully explore all the goodies he had with him yet. He set the computer up on the table and opened all the case files. He took great time to display them on the table in a neat and orderly fashion. Nemo studied them thoroughly before deciding on a plan of action. Lastly he pulled out his phone, setting it on the table and playing a classical song while he thought. This finally marked the beginning of a long mission.

The wind was steady, but calm. Leaves rustled on their branches with the gusts before falling off. The forest was quiet as the sun hid behind the thick grey overcast coming off the Great Lakes. Beautiful fall colors were still somewhat vibrant in the woods.A lone whitetail with an eight point rack grazed in a small clearing until the call of a doe drew his attention. A few seconds passed as the buck stood there, looking off in the direction of the call. A shot rang out, and the deer fell immediately. Off in the distance, part of a tree moved.

"Gotcha..."

Victoria Hawkins, former Army Airborne, slung her dad's old M40A1 rifle over her shoulder and stepped out of her homemade hunting blind. She grabbed the large tarp and walked out to the clearing. One shot right through the heart. A quick, clean, ethical kill. Dad would be proud when she told him she nabbed her first buck on her own. He had given her his old rifle from his time in Vietnam to use to hunt, so that was the added bonus to that. She wrapped up the deer in the tarp to take out to her truck and get home. A nice display on the wall, and some good meat and hide too. The guys at the local gun club will be thrilled.

In a half hour, she was home and ready to gut and clean the deer when she noticed she had gotten a call while she was out. She took out her cellphone and called the number back. A few rings, and the other person picked up.

"Hey....yeah, it's me...what do you want............a job? Now? You know it's deer season, right? ...uh huh...yeah I know I'm still considered a probation recruit...no, I don't care...look, what's in it for me that you have to drive me away from a perfectly good deer for? ......hunting? Did you even-....uhhhh huh....am I being paid well? ....oh wow, really? Shit....uhm....hmm...yeah, gimme a day to get some things settled at home and I'll be out......anything in particular I need to know right now? .......okay, I'll look at the files. Where should I meet you? ...road trip? Yeah, I know customs is a bitch and the TSA can go suck my dick if they want to try full body searches on me...yeah, fine...sure, we'll take it cross country. You know we'll catch hell from local police...alright, I'm trusting you on this...you'll pick me up tomorrow? Fantastic...no, I'm not canning the sarcasm. It's part of who I am....yes, I am a bitch. Thank you for noticing...alright, see you then."

Victoria hung her phone up and went about calling the president of the gun club. They could put the deer meat to good use if she wasn't going to be able to use it. A quick exchange about them picking it up and that was that. Now, she went about packing for her first assignment as a contractor. She opened up her laptop and downloaded the case files from her email. Well, this was certainly interesting. Black-ink shit, definitely. Almost like one of those old "coming of age" movie scenarios that she hated. Ugh, well, at least this was the real world and there was little chance of that happening. Not only that, but if she was really to take this on, she wondered what exactly would needed to be packed. This was the most dangerous kind of game, and she needed to be on top of it. She with a mix of her usual hunting camouflage jacket and pants and her rifle, along with her SOG Fixation Bowie knife and M1911A1 sidearm. Extra gear would be stowed away with the company orderlies for her to get on call in case she needed it.

With that all taken care of, she packed clothes and other equipment in her suitcases, being sure to not skimp on the scent-killer. This was going to be quite the mission, but at least she was being paid handsomely in return. With everything squared away and ready, she went about studying the files and keeping up on anything she needed to until tomorrow came and she was off on the hunt. Her ride arrived and departed in minutes as they packed and went. Victoria lit up a cigarette as they rode across the country. With any luck, she'd be back in time to get some more deer tags before the season was over.

Kat hid quietly in the trees over-looking the clearing, she was absolutely silent as she scanned around the clearing. Her swords were attached to her thighs alongside her pistol so as not to hamper her movement. She looked down at the clearing below she saw a large lumbering shape off to one side and watched it intently.

She noted the immense strength the figure seemed to posses and made a mental note to be cautious of it, before returning her gaze to the clearing where she could see another project.

Fury looked past the plants into the clearing. His anger was raised to a level he couldn't contain himself anymore. He stared straight at the woman who looked like an easy prey to him. In the back of his mind he knew to be careful as it was an experiment as well, but his animal side had too much influence right now. He waited for the right moment to strike, when suddenly another woman stepped into the clearing and started dancing with his prey. It looked like another experiment, and he was a bit confused, but that didn't matter, he just had an extra prey. He was about to go for it, when he heard something in the bushes at the edge of the clearing.

It was another experiment, slowly walking towards the center. He looked familiar to him for some reason, but his instincts overruled his thoughts. This guy was taunting him, wanting him to fight. Well, he didn't know what he was in for. The Tiger-man jumped out of the cover of the plants. He was clearly angry, and on four legs, weaponised with claws, sharp teeth and eyes that almost literaly spit fire, he ran straight for the bear-man. At this moment, he didn't care about anything. His surroundings, his human side, it all didn't matter: He was totally focused on his target.

Nemo had developed a pretty straightforward way to find the projects in his mind. He knew given the nature of the subjects they'd naturally be somewhere uncivilized, somewhere out in the wild. But the question was where? He had flown in to a city not far from where they originally got loose. So he knew they couldn't of gone too far. But it needed to be narrowed down further.

The solution was simple. They couldn't of gone completely unseen. Someone somewhere has to know something. He checked what he thought would be the most likely place: Police reports and forest ranger reports. Nemo's tracking skills weren't limited to just the field. After fiddling on his computer for a few minutes he had accessed all the records he needed. He began to scan though the most recent ones within the areas he thought were relevant until he found something that caught his eye. Hunter called in about mysterious 'Bear-person' he saw out beyond city limits heading north. Described as having black claw nails. Park ranger dispatched. Found nothing but human like tracks. Suspected hoax.

"Ich sehe was, was du nicht siehst." Nemo said as he immediately glanced at "Bernard"'s file on his desk with a grin. He pulled up the map for the area where the call came in and looked to the north. Finding a large forest far from the city, a lake, and a meadow to the north. Just the kind of place he'd expect his targets to go to. He was convinced at least one of them was somewhere over there.

Nemo shut his computer off after taking photographs of any relevant information with his phone for later. He then put his laptop away and grabbed a change of clothes from his suitcase. He decided on something more casual for now. He took a shower and changed into his clothes. As he waited for his hair to dry to went into his suitcase. He armed himself with his usual three revolvers, using his clothing to keep them as concealed as possible. Once Nemo was finished with all his preparations he left the room and made his way to the hotzone.

Nemo managed to catch a bus that took him to the rural town the hunter from the report lived. It was the closest civilized place to the area he thought the subjects were in. And even then it wasn't that close. After arriving he decided to take the chance to get something to drink. He found himself in a local bar soon enough and ordered a glass of German beer. Nemo sat down at a table by himself and took a sip. "Ahh, das Beste." He remarked at the taste.