When Dani opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the boy in the air vent.

She was no longer outside, seeing as how there was a ceiling with a vent, but the kid inside was what struck Dani as peculiar. A cage-like panel covered most of his face, and the darkness from inside hid most of his features, but Dani could tell it was a boy about her age.

Dani sat up, trying to get a better look at him, but as soon as she did, he turned and left.

Groaning, Dani tried rubbing the back of her head from where the rock hit her, but she realized she couldn't reach it. Her right hand was handcuffed to the medical bed she was laying in.

Dani then checked her surroundings and saw it wasn't just a medical bed she was laying in. She was in an actual hospital. There were two other beds in the room, but she was the only patient in there. Looking to her right, she saw a window.

Getting out of the bed, Dani dragged it to the window so she could get a better view. Maybe even find out where she was. The window had cage links around it as if it were trying to keep her inside, but all Dani wanted was to see where she was.

Outside, there was a chapel made of red bricks, a black clock on the belltower with golden numbers. In the chapel's front yard, there was a graveyard with a few graves here and there. The trees and grass were green, but there was no breeze blowing through them.

Turning from the window, Dani saw a door at the other end of the room. With much exertion, she pushed her bed toward the door, but stopped halfway.

There was a camera looking down at her from the corner in the room.

"Hello?" Dani called to the camera, hoping whoever was watching her could help her. No such luck.

Dragging the bed to the door, Dani tried to open it, only to find it was locked. Was she a patient here or a prisoner?

' "Hello?" she shouted, hoping someone could hear her. "Let me out of here!" Just then, the PA came to life with a light squeak.

"Relax, Dani," a woman's voice said. It had an accent, but Dani couldn't place where it sounded like the owner might be from. "I'm on my way to you." Dani heard a thud outside the room. Turning to the window in the door, she saw a woman walk up to the door.

The woman looked young, about her late 20's or early 30's. Her brown hair was tied in a tight bun on the back of her head. Over her outfit, the woman wore a white doctor's coat.

"Where am I?" Dani asked the woman as she banged on the door. "Where is my family?"

"I know you're scared, but you're safe now," the woman reassured Dani from the other end of the door. "If I could come in, I'll explain. Would that be all right?" Dani pondered the thought before nodding, pushing her bed away from the door.

"Doors. Infirmary," the woman said. Just then, the lock beeped and unlocked itself, allowing the woman to enter. As soon as the door closed behind her, the lock re-engaged itself.

"Hi, Dani," the woman said with a kind tone in her voice. "I'm Dr. Reyes. If you take a seat, I'll free your hand."

Keeping her eyes on Dr. Reyes, Dani sat down on the bed. Reyes then walked up to her and unlocked the cuffs from Dani's wrist.

"Dani," the doctor continued, "what I'm about to tell you... is going to be very difficult." Dani looked the woman in the eyes as she continued.

"An F5 tornado touched down on your reservation."

"No," Dani said, refusing to believe a tornado destroyed her reservation.
"You're the sole survivor of a terrible tragedy," Dr. Reyes continued.

"No, no," Dani said as she remembered that night. The growling sound she ran away from. "It was growling! Something was chasing us!"

"What?" Dani's breath trembled. She didn't know what was chasing her, but she knew it was.

"Sometimes trauma makes us remember things that aren't real," Dr. Reyes said. Dani looked the doctor in the eyes.

"Here," Reyes whispered. She then placed a necklace with a bear carved out of black stone tied around it. "I think this may be yours. I'm really sorry." Dani began gasping before lowering her head.

At that second, a little red light on the camera turned on and scanned her. On a monitor in another room, it read, "#204, Last: Moonstar, First: Danielle. Brainwaves: Normal."

- - - 

Later, Dani changed out of her hospital gown into a gray tee-shirt and sweats. She sat on a couch in a library with a blanket draped over her shoulders. Reyes, who had removed her doctor's coat, sat down next to her with a cup of coffee.

"Why didn't I just die with them?" Dani asked. "Why me?"

"Survivor's guilt is a common reaction to trauma," Dr. Reyes said. "We look for reasons. Most of the time, we find none. But the reason you survived... is because you're a very uncommon girl. Your reservation was wiped off the face of the earth. But you made it out with barely a scratch." Dani felt a tear roll down her face as Reyes continued.

"Do you know what mutants are?" Dani nodded. "Mutation most often occurs in puberty. You might spend the first 13 years of your life relatively normal. Then, just like that... you come of age and discover your true nature."

"What's my true nature?" Dani asked.

"We'll have to figure that out together," Dr. Reyes answered. Dani hesitated before asking another question.

"Then how do you know I'm a mutant?"

"The man I work for has a way of recognizing new mutants the moment their condition reveals itself. That's how we discovered you and your fellow patients."

Dani couldn't believe her ears. Fellow patients? Who were they? Where were they from?

"You're not alone, Dani," Reyes said. That made Dani feel a little bit better.

"This is a facility for young mutants like yourself," Dr. Reyes said as she guided Dani out of the library and down a hall of the hospital. "Teens who need some extra care before they can go on to live healthy adult lives."

Dani was then guided into a single room. It was small, with a desk and a twin-sized bed. On the bed were some fresh clothes that were folded into neat piles. On top of the pile was a bag with a bar of soap and a toothbrush.

"There's some warm clothes," Reyes said as Dani entered the room. "Toiletries." Dani then turned to the doctor.

"How long do I have to stay here?" she asked.

"Until I decide you're not a danger," Dr. Reyes answered.

"Danger to who?"

"Yourself." Sighing, Dani sat down on the bed as Dr. Reyes continued. "You've been through a lot. Get some rest, okay? We'll talk more in the morning."

Dr. Reyes then turned to leave, but Dani called for her.

"There's really no one left?" Dani asked, meaning the destruction of her reservation. She had been denying it, but knew the answer even before Dr. Reyes shook her head.

"But you're in a safe place now," Reyes said. "Nothing can hurt you in here, Dani. Good night." With that, Reyes closed the door and Dani heard the lock click.

However, Dani didn't know that there was another camera looking down at her, scanning her like the one in the infirmary did.