Part Two

A short rest.


Nevertheless.


It was not over.


Yet.






The free-floating feeling didn't last long. Before I knew it, I was screaming myself awake. Still, I couldn't move, though this time for a different reason.


I was attached to a table.


A table! Why was I strapped to a table, like some dissection project?


At that moment, something told me I was different, like I wasn’t… human. It was a faint something, and went away quickly, as my vision.


“Keep him down!”


The pain subsided.


“Wh-who are you?” I couldn’t help but notice the hint of pain in my lungs as I spoke.


“I'm a doctor,” he replied in a semi-sweet tone. He wore a white coat, but he seemed more like a scientist than a doctor.


I still couldn't breathe properly as I looked at the black-suited three around me. “But... but they--”


“I know,” the doctor said. “You've been through a trying time. We'll figure out what's up with you and then let you go.”


I frowned. That couldn't be right, that something told me. It insisted the doctor wasn’t all that he seemed. “You're... lying.”


The man wore a sinister smile.


“You're sharp. Almost as sharp as your brother.”


Adrenaline shot through me. My brother? John? The one who's been missing these past two weeks?


“Where is he? Where's John?”


“Calm down, kid,” the doctor shouted, his smile gone and frustration filling his face. He and the other three held me down as I struggled against the restraints. The idiots. What right did they have...?!


“Don't worry about that guy. He's not our patient anymore. He was discharged.”


I stopped squirming. I didn't like the way he said that, and the overall vagueness of it. My heart dropped through to my stomach, and the little something told me this wasn't actually a good thing.


In a quiet, fearful voice I asked, “Why was he your patient in the first place?” I didn't want to know that, yet I asked it. Since I thought I was going to the same place, maybe part of me wanted to know what was going to happen.


The doctor only laughed. The only conclusion I could find would be among my own fears.


Then the pain came back more intensely. It wasn't just tiny daggers, but full on steak knives, and they gouged even deeper into my chest, my lungs, my heart....


Then it was gone. What was that about? The doc was staring at me, but he wasn’t nearly as confused as I was. As the man opened his mouth to speak, something hit the van in the back, making everyone fall over. The van screeched to a halt and the back door flew open. The doc signaled to his men to rush out and see what all the commotion was about.


“James!” a female voice called out. “Don’t worry, we’re here, buddy!”


“Emily?” I said. “Rosa?” A girl with dirty blond hair entered the vehicle, followed by another girl with black hair and red streaks. I recognized them as two of John’s friends, two of the same who wanted to meet with me before all this happened. “What’s going on?”


“Don’t talk,” Em said quietly. She started working at the straps pinning me down. “Rosa, see if you can find some water. James, this is a rescue mission.”


“Re--?”


“Shh!” Em scolded. “Now's not a really good time for you. John was supposed to be here when this happened....” The last sentence was more of a thought to herself.


Rosa came around and lifted my head up so I could get a long awaited drink.


“Drink slowly,” Em instructed, “and don't give him so much or he'll choke on it.”


“Em, it's okay. Stop worrying so much.”


“Okay, okay. I'm just....”


“I know,” Rosa agreed, and there was silence between them.


A shaking held me captive within my own body. I wanted to fly.


I wanted to fly.


...


Whoa. Wait! BACK UP! WHAT! Why in the world would I want to fly? Humans can't fly!


“Rose,” Em said suddenly as she noticed my impaired breathing. “Rose, calm him. I think it's happening.”


“I'll take care of it.” Rosa placed her palm gently upon my forehead and the silly fantasies seeped away. She was also kind enough to give me an explanation this time. “I'm sorry James. I had to take away your instinct. We can't handle it right now. We'll get you free of this mess, then you’ll be fine to be yourself.”


Okay, I was still confused. What kind of an explanation was that?


“I'm sorry, that's all I can tell you right now,” Rosa added.


Great. I'm not supposed to know anything. Ever. “Can I at least know what's going on out there?” I almost asked, but as I got through the word “least,” Rosa and Em gasped at the same time and started backing away. What came out was, “Can I at leas—WHAT?”


The big door slammed shut and then the doctor came into view. He was holding two guns, aimed at Em and Rosa.


“Ha! Now I've got you!” he shouted with maniacal glee. “You pariah are NOTHING compared to us! Nobody speak. Nobody move.”


He inched around with his big guns trained on the girls. Then he put one down (on top of me!) and pulled out some handcuffs.


“You're first,” he said to Em as she cowered in the corner. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back.”


Em knew she couldn't do anything else, especially act against this armed man, so she slowly did as he directed.


“Sit.” he ordered, pointing to a bench on the right side of the vehicle. Only when she slipped on the way down did I realize we were moving now. That just about made my day. We were getting to that mysterious, probably dangerous, place that held my brother prisoner.


The doc was at Rosa now, doing the same thing. When she sat down, he rounded on me again. He pulled something out of his pocket and smirked.


“We won't have any more disturbances from you for a while,” he hissed as he plunged the needle in my arm.






Oh Crap.

Welcome to Dae's!

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Part One

I don't know what got me into this mess. I was walking from home, down the dark and somewhat dirty streets of my neighborhood. Everything seemed normal as I strolled to the baseball park where my brother's friends wanted to meet. All was well, yet I felt uneasy. Something was wrong, but I couldn't tell what. I wanted to believe I was just being paranoid, except then I would sound crazy.

The truth came to me only four blocks from my home, and eight blocks away from the park. I was the only one around since it was so late... except for the cars behind me.

They jumped out of their shiny black cars, two per car, six people total. Them trailing me was reason enough to be paranoid, right? They looked seriously mean, which freaked me out. My gut told me to run, but before I did, each of them pulled out guns. I didn't stop to think, I just ran, full of adrenaline, fueled by fear.

I barreled down an alley-type thing, a path halfway between a street and a paved nothing and made it to the next street over. I kept running. They wanted me for a reason unknown, and I wouldn't let them have me.

A small playground nearby provided little cover, but enough for me to skirt around it and hide somewhere else. Thanks to the broken light, the clouds over the thumbnail moon, and the darkness inside each home surrounding the park, it was easy for me to escape this way. I turned right and doubled back to hide behind the building I just passed. Being as fast as I was, the three hadn't noticed, and just went straight ahead.

Wait.

One... two....

 Where's the third?

Maybe I wasn't as tricky as I had thought, but where was he? Was he waiting in the bridge-road? Could he be going around? I was hiding behind a duplex, so it wouldn't be hard for him to sneak up on me. Sweat littered my face as I leaned against the wall for protection. I was breathing loudly; I tried to calm myself.

I looked to the left. No shadow. Was he there, lying in wait? I searched the right. He may not be coming around that way, and if he did, I would have a clear view of his approach.

There on the left, I saw his shadow. He was moving... but I couldn't. My muscles, bones, my whole body froze in fear. I knew I wouldn't get away in time. Guns could shoot from far away, right? Somehow, the idea of running seemed childish, that I had no choice but give myself up to this man.

And then.

 Pain!

Millions of tiny daggers fought for a place in my chest, going in and out randomly, each stabbing with tons of ferocity. I couldn't breathe! I couldn't move, except to fall to the ground. The man around the corner came running at my scream. By now, all I could see were blurs, though I could hear him clearly, even above my own shouting.

“What's wrong, kid?”

Another voice entered the fray, this one female. How did she get here?

“What did you do?” Her voice was accusing, and sharp.

“I didn't touch him!” the guy replied. “I almost had him when he burst out screaming!”

“You know we're supposed to deliver him unharmed,” someone else said.

“I swear it wasn't me! Crap! What are we supposed to do now?”

However, I didn't hear a reply. Suddenly, nothing hurt anymore. There was nothing to fear. I was... free, and alone....



In Darkness, to Rest.