Project Justice – PART 2: A Hero’s Awakening
By ‘Johnny’

Several weeks had passed since the success of Project: JUSTICE. His vital signs were all normal, but it had yet to fully awaken and come out of containment chamber it had been placed in. The interest in the continuation of the project was waning, and unless more practical results were seen, the higher ups would consider pulling the plug on Project: JUSTICE. However, that was not to be.

The sun rose from the ocean to the east during late June, shining in beauty. The sun grazed the eastern walls of the Prison Island research facility. The promise of a new, exciting day filled the energetic scientists with the inspiration to do what science was meant to do, to be betterment to mankind. A young security guard is doing his routine patrol, also energized by the sun’s warm kiss.

Guard: Ah, the morning is so peaceful. I love these times the best, before all the eggheads can make all the noise on their silly assignments.

The guard wandered into the containment room where the product of Project: JUSTICE has been hibernating. The containment pods in which the life form lay dormant was top of the line technology. A liquid life sustaining matter inside was heated and oxygenated to provide a sense of what we humans would classify as being in the womb of a woman. The guard looks into the glass window of the container’s hatch and stares at the being inside it.

Guard: Hey li’l fella. *chuckle* Too bad you aren’t awake to see the morning sun like the rest of us.

The guard continued to stare. Suddenly, the create inside let out a gasp of air, a massive amount of bubbles coming out of the creature’s mouth as it was failing to understand just where he was. Seeing this, the guard jumped back in a state of fright.

Guard: Oh my God! It woke up! It actually woke up!

Soon, the creature opened its eyes, looking out of the glass window and seeing the guard. In a panic of seeing the closed environment, it began to flail its arms and legs, struggling to escape. The monitors on a terminal donned on the wall began to display readings of the creature’s heart BPM, it was skyrocketing, if it was to continue, the possibility of heart failure became almost definite. Seeing this, the young security guard dashed out of the room and through the halls.

Guard: Help! Project: JUSTICE woke up! It finally woke up! 

A fellow guard heard his screams and called the room where the newly assigned leader of the project resided. He got the call of emergency and got to the containment room. Upon the sight of the struggling life form through the pod’s window and seeing its BPM still rising on the monitors, he got to the terminal controlling the pod in which the creature remain in a state of panic, punching in override codes to unlock the pod’s hatch.

Scientist: Thank goodness I got here when I did, if I would have been even seconds late, I don’t think this thing could have managed to pull through.

The final override code had been typed and the hatch opened successfully. More scientists began to enter the room, giddy and still a little worried from the panic beforehand, with high expectations of just what the experiment would be like. The creature still inside the life sustaining pod was still gasping for air and clinging to the walls of the inside of what has been his home for the past several weeks. The creature inside the pod was a light pink, fleshly color with an ever more pale stomach, pair of arms and chin. It had rounded ears and a black nose that jutted out away from his face. It had long legs and ten fingers and toes total. The scientists began to gather around its pod to get a closer look at it, and in a shaky, quiet voice it let out its first words.

JUSTICE: W… Who… Who are… you?

Hearing its words delighted the scientist gathered around him.

Generic Background Scientist: My word, it’s capable of speech!

Another GBS: Of course it is. He was cloned directly from the samples of Project: Shadow.

The creature didn’t recognize anything the two men in white were talking about, and couldn’t understand why it was where it was.

Scientist (In charge): Gentleman, get to the hospital ward and assign a room for Mr. JUSTICE here, and tell our colleagues in the physical testing laboratory to get basic equipment set-up a first run diagnostics test.

GB Scientists: Yes Sir Prof. Yeager.

The GBS crew exited the room. “Mr. JUSTICE” began to stand up in the pod from which he came and climbed out. The panic in his eyes was almost entirely gone since most of the drooling GBS were gone.

Prof. Yeager: Amazing, you can walk too. I guess we don’t need to teach you that then do we little guy?

With a confused look in his eyes, Mr. Justice looked up at the tall man in white that he recognized from inside the pod.

Mr. J: You didn’t answer my question mister. Who are you?

Prof. Yeager: So polite, you were just born and you already have so many human characteristics.

Mr. J was starting to get annoyed; it showed in the now hardened expression on his new born face.

Prof. Yeager: Oh, I’m sorry. My name is Prof. Yeager. You’re on an island called Prison Island, and where you are right now is inside a government research facility. This is, well, I guess I could say this is your home.

Mr. J began to wander around the room and look at all of the shiny monitors and bright buttons on the terminals. After childishly studying them, he turned and walked back to the tall man, blinded to the astonishment of just how well the experiment was adapting its new environment; Mr. J tugged on his arm.

Mr. J: You called me Mr. JUSTICE a little while ago. Is that my name? What am I mister?

Prof. Yeager got on one knee and placed his hand on the short creature’s shoulder.

Prof. Yeager: Well, I did call you that, but what you want your name is is really based on what you want to be called; and as for what you are, I’d assume you’re a Hedgehog just like the other life form.

Mr. J (Curious): Another life form? Who is he mister, tell me!

Prof. Yeager: You see little fella, your full name is Project: JUSTICE and I’m not going to lie to you, you are a clone made from DNA samples taken from another creature just like you, and his name was Project: Shadow. We took those samples, replicated them and all of us in this research facility created you.

Mr. J: So… would that make you my Dad?

Prof. Yeager: Sure, you can call me Dad if you want.

The tiny creature’s eyes lit up with the excitement of having a father.

Mr. J: Ok Dad, I guess you can just call me Justice, I kind of like the name. Oh, and by the way, who were those other people standing around me earlier?

Prof. Yeager (A Daddy): Well, to sum it all up, they’re your family.

Justice started to jump up and down with happiness.

Justice: Wow! I have a really big family!

One of the GBS peaked around the door.

GBS: Prof. Yeager, the training room is ready for the experiment, and we also sent the good news to the investors in the project, they’ll probably want to see a full demonstration of Project: JUSTICE if and when they decide to pay us a visit.

The GBS left almost as fast as he came.

Justice (Confused): What’s a training room Dad?

Prof. Yeager stood back up from being on his knee.

Prof. Yeager: It’s a really fun place. Wanna come with me?

Justice (Excited): You bet Dad!

The tiny Hedgehog grabbed his “father’s” hand and together they began to walk to the training room.