Wolf

"Oh god, where to start with *him?" Across from me, Inquisitor crosses his legs and leans back into his chair. "It's just so strange, being able to talk about him freely. Up until now, David was trying to do everything in his power to convince people that Wolf was a myth," He sighs, twirling a lock of blond hair around his finger. "I still don't understand *why.* It seems counterintuitive. Wouldn't you want everyone to know that--" He pauses, and drops his hand down onto the table. "I'm getting ahead of myself. What was it you wanted to know about Wolf?"


"Just... start from the beginning, I guess? Or as far back as you can remember." I flip to an empty page in my notebook, smoothing down the paper as I prepare to write whatever stream of consciousness is coming my way. "Tell me whatever you know about him, and I can cut out anything that doesn't matter in editing."


He hums, his finger tapping rhythmically against the desk. "From the beginning... I knew his parents, if that's how early you want. Nice people, really, you'd never think their son would turn out like *that.* Then again, Wolf isn't really their son. They didn't raise him-- in fact, they didn't even know he existed. They found out with everyone else," His mouth twists into a sneer. "What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall during that conversation. Ack, I'm rambling again. What was I saying? Right-- Wolf's not a clone, at least not in the traditional sense. Calling him a test tube designer baby would be more fitting."


"What would the government want with a designer baby?" I ask. He gives me a look that says I should already know why, and that he's disappointed I'm asking. "It's just for the article," I clarify, shrugging my shoulders. "I want your opinion. Good journalists try to get as much information as possible."


"*Good journalists* get assassinated by the CIA," He leans towards me and grins like he's telling some sort of joke. "But to answer your question-- they were trying to see what method had the best results. Straight cloning, taking the best genetics from two donors, or using nanomachines to enhance the soldiers they already have. Wolf was supposed to be the second option, but..." He holds his hands up in a "what can you do?" motion. "I'm not so sure they picked the best genes. He has his father's bull-headed stubbornness and his mother's wit. What that does, is create a man who is willing to bend the rules if it means he'll benefit from the result. You don't want a whole army with that mindset."


"So you think he's not a good soldier?" I flip to a new page, rolling my wrist to ward off the stiffness that's developing from writing so much. "You think he'd betray whoever's above him in order to get what he wants?"


"In any other scenario I would, but David's got that boy wrapped around his finger," Inquisitor actually looks proud. "And I don't think anyone could argue that Wolf isn't a good *soldier,* just not a good listener. He has selective hearing, you know-- only listens to what he wants to hear. But luckily for David, what Wolf wants to hear is typically whatever he's saying. The two of them tend to focus on similar things, since they're so close."


"Oh, that actually sort of ties into my next question. How did the two of them meet?"


He sighs and rests his head in his hand. "Why couldn't you ask *him* all these questions? Do you think I don't have anything better to do?"


"I don't *think* you have nothing better to do," I do my best to replicate his resting "you're nothing but mud on my boot" smile, but it comes out as more of a grimace. "I *know* you don't. Besides, Atlas would just lie about everything. I'm trying to write an article, not listen to the ramblings of someone who doesn't understand how jokes work."


Inquisitor scoffs, allowing the jab to go unprotested. "He still hasn't figured it out?"


"Nope."


"Right, right, I should have expected. So... Wolf and David met during a mission. You know the one-- a raid on a hidden base in the mountains of Alaska. It was supposed to be an easy job, in and out, but our intel was bad. Someone was feeding us false information, they were leading us straight into a trap. I'm a bit fuzzy on the details, seeing as I wasn't there, but David makes it seem like they were counting on Wolf killing him, or the other way around. Whoever planned it wanted some loose ends to be tied up. I don't think they were expecting either of them to make it out alive."