Story 2/2 for voting. Chapter 1 is the same as the one already posted on SB. Chapter 2 coming in a moment!
Chapter 1"I am quite bored, but if it is important to you, I will attend. But please, at least speak with the teachers and allow me to use my datapad during class."April smiled at her daughter, Tanya. Her husband William doted upon her. For the first three years of Tanya's life, she had seemed like a completely healthy and normal human child. Then, as a toddler, something happened. They still were not sure if she had fallen and hit her head during one of her eager attempts to climb the kitchen counters, or if it had been some kind of internal seizure. Whatever it was, it radically changed their little girl. Before that day, she had been bright and quick to pick up motor skills. Afterward, something had been unlocked inside her head.No longer merely a precocious child, she had become someone who made April wonder, in quiet moments, who was really the adult and who was the child. Concepts came to her easily now. It almost seemed as if she already understood things even before they were taught. Emotionally, the warm, cuddly toddler who used to demand to be held had grown more detached. Over the last year or so, though, she had begun to soften again, and she leaned into the hugs and kisses from her parents with something that almost felt like real warmth.Schooling was where there had been an inevitable clash. Both William and April believed it was important for her to have a normal childhood, no matter how incredibly easy the schoolwork might be for Tanya. While other kids laughed and played, Tanya was dead-set on learning about advanced science topics. She seemed fascinated by it compared to other subjects.A few months prior to her enrollment, they had arranged for her to be tested at the local educational facility. While she had not scored perfect marks in every subject, she still found some of the standard lessons tedious, and the results showed clearly that her basic education was already complete. The testing official had even pulled April aside afterward with a surprised look on her face, commenting that it was rare to see a child her age handle the material so easily.That had led to several polite but persistent follow-up inquiries from the education office. First came a short message asking for more details about her early learning at home. Then another request for permission to review her medical records from the toddler years. A third note suggested they might want to schedule a longer conversation with a specialist advisor. Each new notification made William visibly nervous. He would stare at the home terminal a little too long whenever it chimed, then shake his head and mutter under his breath while helping clear the dinner dishes."Best to avoid extra government attention altogether, especially these days," he had said one evening. April agreed and regretted even having Tanya take those tests.They probably want to recruit her and put her in one of those specialized training schools, far from here."We will talk with the faculty of the educational facility about making an exception for you. But it might isolate you from other children."Tanya sighed. "Yes, Mother, I understand your desires. I will attempt to fit in and play with the other juveniles there. I am good at blending in."April gave her a rather frank look. "Oh, is that so?"William laughed from the kitchen doorway and scooped Tanya into the air with one easy motion, the way he always did when he wanted to remind her she was still small enough to be tossed around. "What have I told you about saying 'Yes, Mother'? She is your mom!"Tanya squirmed half-heartedly in his strong arms, kicking her legs a little as he lifted her higher toward the ceiling. For a few seconds, she hung there, a grin on her face, before he gently lowered her back down and set her feet on the floor. She gave a little huff, smoothing her shirt with both hands, as if he hadn't just had a smile on her face.She's growing so quickly. Already taller than most boys."Sorry, mom. I'll try to avoid overly formal language, especially around other kids.""You are so smart, Tanya, but there's more to life than just learning about interesting things. Having friends and playing with kids around your own age will be good for you! Just try. For us, please?"Tanya nodded quietly, her expression serious for such a small child. She was honestly a very obedient girl. Disagreements happened from time to time, but when her parents put their foot down, she never wailed, cried, or threw tantrums like some of the neighborhood children. Tanya would accept their decision, sometimes trying to negotiate or gently change their minds, but she was never overly willful or disrespectful. That calm maturity in a six-year-old was another strangeness, but a pleasant one!My little girl is growing up so fast. Please, stay my little baby a little longer!
***
She was looking for certain traits. Tanya Fischer only had some of those. But the ones she did have were like beacons in the night.Too passive. I don't see a fire in her belly, and yet every instinct is screaming at me that there's something I'm missing. And then there is the fact that two potentials were in the same educational facility. I should only select one.Most of the other children were playing 'King of the hill' with great abandon. Despite being only halfway to their teenage years, they were quite rough with each other. Even out here, medical care was easy to come by and could fix all but the worst injuries, and children this age had very little striking power. The one boy who was head-and-shoulders taller than the others was able to easily find his way to the top a second time even with three of the others ganging up on him.Meanwhile, Tanya was playing with two other girls, both small for their age. Tanya herself was in the eightieth percentile for height, while the other two were only average. Certain genetic markers showed promising reflexes, but in other areas she was not nearly as exceptional as the boy trouncing the other children in roughhousing.What pushed it over the edge was the fact that the girl had marked her and her ununiformed military protector almost immediately. Tanya was circumspect, but had adjusted her play with the other children so that she was always facing them, never letting them slip fully from her awareness.A two-for-one sale may be in order.
***
As far as grab-and-bag missions went, this one was simple. The target was just a civilian child. Unlike other operations that allowed for collateral damage, orders had come for this to be clean. Team Black's role was to get the target out quietly. Team White was to replace the target with a double.Breaking into the home was trivial. It had a simple perimeter alarm that was easily overridden. The target was in the bedroom opposite to the larger living quarters. Each step was utterly silent and the knockout drug was held in the needle of his partner's hand. She moved lithely through the home and noted there wasn't anything that might make noise. He had halfway expected to have to avoid a variety of toys that might light up or emit sound if touched. Evidently the Fischer family believed in neatness, as he saw none on the floor.The door to the target's room was opened without a sound and they neared the child's bed. Her blond hair was arrayed around her face in a way that almost made her seem angelic. The floor of this room was just as pristine and clear of toys as the general living quarters. He watched as his partner neared the sleeping girl. He knew better than to ask questions, but wondered why the little blond girl was so important to warrant his team's expertise.The blanket was gently moved aside to gain access to the arm. The fabric barely making any whisper as it slid from the girl's small frame.For a fraction of a second, everything was still.Then everything happened all at once.Something small and hard flew out from beneath the blanket, hurled with startling speed and accuracy. His partner jerked back, and her arm snapped up to shield her face. The edge of the datapad cracked against her forearm instead of smashing into her nose.At the same instant, the girl's high, piercing voice cut through the dark."Mom! Dad! Call the police!""Damn it," he hissed. "We are going loud; Team White neutralize secondaries!"The girl was already moving. She rolled from the bed in that same heartbeat of distraction, bare feet hitting the floor with barely a sound. Before his partner could recover, the girl stamped down hard on the back of her knee.It should have been nothing, a mere child's terrified lashing out.Instead, the angle was viciously precise, driving straight into the tender spot behind the joint. His partner's leg buckled with a sharp curse.He lunged forward, hands outstretched. Tanya came straight at him; her small body was coiled like a spring. At the last instant, she pivoted, twisting away from his grasp and diving left. She was quick and agile, more so than any six-year-old had any right to be.He snarled, and yanked the tranq gun from his holster. He tracked her and fired. The first dart hissed past her shoulder, missing by inches and buried itself in the far wall.Tanya's blue eyes went wide in the dim glow of the night-light. She scrambled for the door, but he adjusted and fired again.The dart struck her in the shoulder. She staggered, one small hand clawing at it, then her legs gave out. She slumped sideways onto the carpet.From the larger bedroom across the hall came a woman's scream, high and raw."Tanya! What's happening–"The words cut off as Team White crashed through the doorway. Two muffled thumps, and both parents went limp before they could rise from the bed.He stood there for a moment, breathing harder than he should have had to after such a simple grab. This had not gone to plan. Not even close.They'd need medical to handle the parents. Selective neural paralysis, targeted amnesia. No loose ends.His partner pushed herself up, still rubbing the back of her leg. He smirked at her as she limped for the exit."How'd you let a little girl do that to you?""Shut it. How did you miss your first shot?"Touché.The debrief was going to be a complete shitshow.