Robert Kallen walked into the darkened room, awaiting the call from his superiors. He had always hated when they summoned him. No matter the task, and no matter the methods, one of them had always found a way to nitpick at his success. He hated that. While he didn't mind high praise, he simply wanted to be put back into the field rather than be put on paid leave, especially after a successful operation, but he also knew the situation required authority directly from his directors, and he knew this.

Duodecim Security was run entirely by twelve separate directors, all of which oversaw different aspects of the company. Although the public had knowledge of them, with their faces and names and their positions of the company all within the company's directory, it was made very clear that any meetings with them behind closed doors would be conducted with anonymity in mind. All agents would have their names said, but directors were to be addressed by their assigned numbers. Failure to cooperate with these guidelines would result in termination from the company. Termination would also be the least of an agent's worries, as those who had violated it in the past had a habit of "disappearing."

He sat down in the meeting room chair, and took a deep breath. The call would start soon enough, and the inevitable berating would begin shortly after.

A loud ringing filled the room, and by the second ring, Kallen had answered. A row of 12 silhouettes appeared, outlining a man or a woman, depending on the person who was talking.

"Hello, Agent Kallen," Director 7, a man with a deep voice, greeted in a rather friendly manner. "I'm hoping you have gotten some well-deserved rest."

"Thank you, Director 7," Kallen said coolly. "I've been wanting to get back in the field since I finished that last operation."

"I must say," 7 replied, "you did a fantastic job at your task, and of course, we have plenty more work for you to do. Plenty."

"While I'm sure 7 is glad that you've returned, Kallen," Director 4, a woman with a professional demeanor to her, said,"I must say I believe that your methods were out of line, leaving danger to civilian life in the hands of our drones."

"I believe his methods were necessary," 7 replied, "completely necessary."

"And I believe you are only saying that because you funded his operation, 7. This could have been handled far simpler had we waited for an opportunity to apprehend Unit V.C.D.-01 in private."

"It's of no concern to us now," Director 1 said, "I agree, that while your methods were unorthodox, and beyond risky, you did manage to return what was once lost to us."

A surprise to Kallen, especially coming from Director 1. He'd never received praise from him before, even if he was condemning his actions in the process.

"The reason we've called you in here today, Kallen," Director 8, another woman, though far younger sounding than 4, said. "We've been meaning to discuss the next steps over what should be done about Unit V.C.D.-01, and its behavior."

Unit V.C.D.-01, or Vocaloid-01, was the name given to Miku Hatsune by the acting directors. Though her name had originated by the engineering staff when coming up with a name for her since her inception, the Directors had felt it unnecessary to use such names when talking about her, as it would imply she was of human descent. Instead, they described her as they saw her: A machine engineered to imitate a human being. She wasn't human to them, and that was the exact reason why she was to remain in captivity. Each of the Vocaloid's were all given names that matched their designs, and while the Directors believed this was necessary at the time, they were now coming to question whether or not this was why their property had escaped. Had they known that it would lead to such events, they would have put extra precautions in place.

"It is unfortunate," Director 8 continued, "that after our psychological testing over V.C.D-01's mental state, we have found it to be in complete control of its actions. Regardless of the fact that it was assisted in its escape by a third party, we still recognize that V.C.D.-01 has decided to follow its own autonomy. This behavior, while impressive in its own regard, is a dangerous precedent to be setting for our property. We have ruled that this rebellion must be quelled if we are to allow our research to continue."

"Yes, Director 8," Kallen replied, "though I don't see a point in letting Mik-" He stopped himself. Calling Miku by the name she had became somewhat of a habit for Kallen, if only for the fact that Miku did look like a person, and acted like one as well. He had grown accustomed to thinking of her as a human at times, but kept the fact that she wasn't at the back of his mind. Acknowledging her autonomy, while a fact, was not up for discussion, and would only lead to more headache.

It wasn't even because he had a friendship with Miku. It was more that Kallen had a special place for her in his "list of people who have crossed me." Miku sat at the top of that list.

"I mean, V.C.D.-01, I don't see a point in allowing our unit to take up an entire floor of our facility."

"I assume then," Director 7 replied, "you are in favor of dismantling our project?"

Kallen thought about that for a second. "I believe it would be necessary to isolate the problem, as we have done before with... 'Problematic' systems of this type. Either dismantling or isolation. There's no real reason we can't just do both."

"The issue with that, Kallen," Director 3 said, a young man with a pronounced British accent said, "is that I believe the chassis of this unit is far too valuable to let go to waste. We have resources to move the unit off-world. It would be for the best, financially, if we allowed for it to be isolated, at least until we know how to successfully instill obedience into it."

Many other members of the board agreed with this statement. Director 5, another man older than 3, disagreed however.

"If we allow this behavior to continue, even in isolation, we will have no choice but to dismantle it eventually."

"It's a risk I'd rather take," 3 retorted. "By all means, we can keep it in isolation as long as we need to. Dismantling the brain case is especially dangerous, but I don't expect you to think of such things."

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5 ignored his comment. 8 cut into their conversation.

"Which is why we are going to call a vote. We will leave you to think on your decision as well, Kallen, should we reach a stalemate. We will contact you when we have reached a decision."

Kallen nodded. Any time a vote would be called by the Directors, the agent they would be assigning tasks to would be allowed to vote in the event their decision was met with a tie. Rarely this ever happened, as more often than not, most Directors would unanimously agree on things. This was an unusual circumstance, however, as was the subject they were debating.

The screen powered off, and the silhouettes disappeared. Kallen waited patiently, though he had only just wanted to get this over with so he could resume his work. A thought occurred to him while he waited, specifically from when 4 had made mention of harming civilians. He thought about how in that moment when he had finally confronted Miku, his handgun drawn, and Miku had acted so stoic in front of him. The moment he pointed his gun at the boy on the ground, she panicked. He made her fear him.

Of course, that confidence came back the moment we had left, he thought. She acted so defiant, almost cocky, because I hadn't harmed him. Maybe I should consider having a chat with her today.

The Director's all came back, with their votes all called.

"Agent Kallen," Director 1 announced, "our decision has been made. 7 in favor of isolation. We are moving forward with this as of now."

"I understand, sir," Kallen said, nodding. "May I ask, then, what steps are necessary?"

"We'll be sending Unit V.C.D.-01 through our experimental scanner system connected to the Interspace Singularity Construct that our researchers in Europe have been observing. You will ensure that the subject is sent through, with our prisoner cells set up ahead of time. You will have two weeks to fulfill this, is that clear?"

"Yes, sir." Kallen nodded again. "I take it my men have been informed?"

"Your subordinates will be assigned as per usual procedure," 4 said. "We see no need for more than necessary."

"Understood," Kallen said.

"All we ask, Kallen, is do not damage the unit, it is still our property. Should it attempt to escape, you are to incapacitate it."

"Don't worry," Kallen said, grinning deviously. "I don't need to get physical."

"Then this meeting adjourned," and the call ended.

Kallen stood up, and left the room, heading straight for the holding cells. On his way, he sent a call to his security team he oversaw.

"Prep our aircraft," he said, "we're leaving for Europe tomorrow morning. Also, I have something we picked up in our security lock-up. It's a wallet. Bring it to my office."

The security team agreed, and hung up.

Once Kallen arrived at the security office, two Duodecim security drones stood at the cell, labeled "HC-137." HC-137 was the only cell on the floor that had been occupied., Patrols manned each corner of the floor to ensure that escape was almost impossible for the unit locked up inside. The unit inside in particular, was where Miku was stationed. She was locked in a chair, with restraints over her arms, neck, legs, and torso.

Kallen pulled out his identification badge, and showed it to the two. They scanned it, and responded with an affirmative "beep," before standing by to open the door.

Miku saw him as soon as he entered. While she couldn't turn her head away completely, she avoided eye contact.

"Oh, come on, Miku. Don't be like that. We don't get to hang out that much, why can't you be a little more friendly with me?"

She didn't respond. She didn't want to hear it, and if she had control over her own systems at that moment, she'd have disabled her hearing. Unfortunately, she had no way to do that to begin with.

"I just had a chat with the board," Kallen continued, "they voted for isolation. Personally, I think it's foolish what they're doing, but they're my bosses."

"Good," Miku finally said, "maybe I can finally get away from you."

"Don't be so cocky," he retorted. "You may be property of the company, but don't act like you're immune to any consequences for your behavior."

She'd attempt to avert his gaze, but he grabbed her by her chin, forcing her to look in his eyes.

"I can't hurt you, no," he continued, "but there's someone who I can hurt. You would be wise to listen."

Her defiant act ceased once she had realized who he was talking about.

He stepped back, and started pacing. "I think you should be glad I'm doing this favor for you. I'm about to bring back the only friend you've ever had. You should be ecstatic and begging to kiss my boots."

"No- no! You wouldn't bring him into this! You can't!"

Miku started panicking. Her voice trembled.

"That's it," he said, "that's what I was looking for. That fear, that panic. You never seem to want to show it unless it's someone you care about."

"Why are you doing this?" Miku asked. "Haven't you done enough?"

He started chuckling. Kallen had finally found the one thing that he could use to break Miku's spirit.

"Here's the thing, Miku. That boy is probably just trying to live his life like normal now. He's probably forgotten you, and moved on, maybe found a nice girl who won't disappear on him. Who knows."

Miku gripped her hands into fists. She wanted to break free so hard, and she wanted to bash Kallen's face in until the guards rushed in.

And yet, Kallen was right. Griff probably did forget her by now. He was normal, a teenager who went to school and lived an average life. He wasn't involved in any of this, and that's why it upset her even more. The fact Griff wouldn't even have a chance to fight back. They'd probably swoop in immediately, and knowing Kallen, he would probably take his time with Griff. Miku could hardly stand it.

"So, what do you think? Awful, isn't it?" Kallen asked, smugly.

"You're horrible," Miku said, red in the face.

"It's a job, Miku," he said. "I know that he's just a kid, so I'll do you one kindness. I'll bring him back alive. I'll do it right before isolation, and I'll let you two see each other again. Then you can know just how badly you screwed up."

"He has nothing to do with this," Miku said, "leave him out of it."

"Oh, he has everything to do with it!" Kallen said, his voice raised. "The moment you decided to enter his life, he became part of this. This is your fault, Miku, and yours alone. And when he's brought back to you, you can tell him yourself just how sorry you are for doing this to him!"

In truth, Kallen had no plans to carry out his threat. He was a busy man, with more important things to do than track down some brat. Besides, if the board of directors got wind of it, they would consider it unprofessional. Embarrassingly so.

One did not want to embarrass the board.

But the girl - the robotic girl, he reminded himself - had no way of knowing that, and seeing her squirm was satisfaction enough for Kallen. Maybe she'd remember to behave herself now.

Miku just stared at Kallen. He was really going to bring Griff in, just to get back at her.

"All of this," she said, her voice quivering, "just so you can get back at me."

"Maybe next time," he said, his gaze inches away from her face, "you'll think twice before you make me look like a fool. I'll leave you with that."

Miku didn't speak. Her mind was caught up in worry at the idea of Griff being hunted. She wanted to cry, scream, and do whatever she could to break out and save him.

But she couldn't. She was locked up in a chair that confined her to her cell. She was left in place. Everything seemed much more empty than before Kallen had walked in.

"One last thing," Kallen said, "the board has revoked your privilege to have the name you were given. As of right now, you will be referred to as V.C.D.-01 from now on. I would recommend you get used to hearing it again."

Miku didn't acknowledge the order. She refused to listen anymore. Kallen had a satisfying grin across his face, and walked out.

Once the door shut, Miku started sobbing uncontrollably. The reality of the situation had finally hit her.

"I'm so sorry, Griff," she cried, "if only there was a way I could warn you."

She sat there, waiting for morning when she'd be taken away somewhere. The chances of someone coming to rescue her, dwindling by the minute. She had finally hit the bottom, and it hurt where she landed.