Rewind
There was a knock on the door and Lizzie’s little brother stuck his head in the room. “Mom says it’s almost time for dinner,” Taylor stated.
Lizzie growled back the reply, “Go away! I’m almost done!” She added a tossed pillow to the order and her brother closed the door before it hit him. Quickly she went back to the story.
Lizzie had just closed the book when the little boy knocked again. This time Lizzie reacted a little more kindly when he said, “Mom says you have to come down to dinner now.”
“Fine, I’ll be right there,” the girl responded. The boy quickly went down stairs and joined his family at the table. Soon Lizzie was there as well. She took a seat across the table from the black clad stranger. She studied him as they all ate dinner. The man was keeping his head down as if hoping she wouldn’t see his face. Lizzie took a deep and asked the man the questions she’d been waiting for; “Sir, I have a couple questions for you if you don’t mind.”
“Well actually,” he started, but Lizzie cut him off.
“Good. First, if you’re one of my brother’s friends,”
Taylor interrupted, “He’s not one of my friends!”
“I mean my older brother, if you’re one of Gyro’s friends, then that makes you about 24 years of age, correct?” She didn’t wait for him to answer, “Right, so that would make you one of his agents, because, let’s face it, Gyro didn’t have any real friends beyond his troop.”
“Lizzie! How dare you be so rude!” her mother gasped.
Without even looking at her mother, the girl responded, “You can reprimand me for this course of behavior later, but this’ll be my only opportunity to ask questions. So like I was saying; our only options as to who you could be are limited to Griff, Zayn, Dash, Devin, and Cale. You obviously aren’t a girl, so that rules out Griff, and your hair isn’t red, so that rules out Thane, or Dash as he was later called. Then we’re left with Devin, Zayn, and Cale. Since you don’t have a black necklace on, that means you can’t be Zayn. Lastly, you can’t be Devin because you’re hair isn’t black and your skin is too dark. So that leaves Cale, but you definitely can’t be Cale, because your skin is way too light…” Her voice faded as the man finally met her eyes.
He chewed thoughtfully on a piece of steak before he answered. Lizzie instantly matched this to the common action of the book’s narrator. “You forgot a few people,” the man pointed out plainly.
Lizzie visibly deflated; she’d expected him to admit that he was Gyro. Who else could she have missed? She was determined not to let him win. "Like who?"
The man continued to chew calmly on his food. "What about Quin? Or Aren, or Calvin, or Dr. Clark? You've left holes in your argument, dear girl."
"But-but you're too young to be Aren or Dr. Clark! And Quin isn't even mentioned in the majority of the journal!" Lizzie stammered.
"What in the world are you talking about?" her father bellowed.
The man got up to go. "I apologize, Mr. Duffy. I've over stayed my welcome." He walked to the door.
"No! Wait, Gyro! I remember!" Lizzie cried. "I remember when you gave me Kana; I remember when you were in the hospital! Please, I need you to stay!" The man had stopped, though his back still faced the crying girl and her family. When no one said anything for a few moments, Lizzie jumped to her feet and ran to embrace the man. She looked up when he returned the hug. The teen was shocked to see tears running down his face.
"It wasn't supposed to happen like this," he mumbled. "I was supposed to pop in, give you the journal, and Taylor was supposed to have Bo. Damn you," he squeezed her harder. "Why they hell do you have to be such a fast reader?" For a few moments, no one in the room moved.
Their mother whispered, "Zig, they'll be here soon. You should go." The man nodded numbly as he dropped to one knee.
"Taylor, come here," he ordered in a tired voice. The confused boy quickly joined his siblings. Gyro dug through the black bag he'd been carrying and pulled out a mechanical dog. "Here," he handed the machine to his younger brother, "This is the predecessor to Kana. He's been with me through a lot and I think you should have it."
"But I don't even know you," Taylor protested.
"Exactly, she can tell you who I am. Lizzie, you have some memories of me, Kana, and my journal," he added the latter at Lizzie's protests. "As confusing as it may seem, Taylor, when people ask you who I am, I want you to answer that you don't know, but you'll still have a connection. Now I have to go, mom's right, they're almost here." He hugged them all, picked up his bag, and was gone.
Lizzie watched his outline fade into the distance from the doorway before her mom pulled her back inside. They all continued as if the man had never been there. All of them except Taylor; he went upstairs and hid in his room with his new dog. When more black clad men came, no one could tell that they had seen their long lost family member.
Dear Lizzie,
This will never get to you, but it makes me feel better to write it. Here's what happened after I left the house for the last time.
I ran nonstop for an hour after I'd left my childhood home. I only stopped for a moment to catch my breath and I knew they were with me. I heard their soft footfalls before they were even within sight. I sank to my knees in defeat as shadows fell across my face. I knew they wouldn't get rid of me there; it was much too public and most of them wouldn't know how to get me back. Someone secured my arms behind my back with a pair of metal handcuffs. I laughed aloud. The last thing I would ever feel from my home world would be cold steel.
"What's so funny, Ari?" The man asked as the group helped me to my feet.
"Life, Dash, life is funny as hell. Let's go home," I laughed uncontrollably. My agent nodded and let me led with nothing more than a hand on my shoulder. I was helped into a van and the doors closed behind me. By then I had recovered from my momentary lapse in sanity.
As I lay across the seats, curled in a ball, trying to keep warm on this April day, Devin decided to comment. "Hey Boss?"
"What, Devin," I groaned.
"They really shouldn't make a Landy an agent," he maliciously.
I started to laugh hysterically. "You're right." It was all I could manage until I regain control again and sat up. "I believe I've lost it."
Cale leaned again the wall that divided the driver from the cargo. "Yes, but knowing you're insane makes you truly sane." He pounded a fist to signal the driver that we were ready to go.
The van lurched into motion and I groaned again. "Lovely, a paradox. Hey, get me a blanket, I freezing my ass off."
"That would be quite a spectacle," Devin commented dryly.
My gaze grew serious. "That wasn't meant as a suggestion, agent."
His smart smile grew. "What are you going to do? You're in chains."
My smile matched his own. "That's never stopped me before." Blue fire crackled in my palm behind my back. Griff threw a blanket at me, breaking our staring contest.
"Stop it you two. Ten years and you're still at odds," she ordered. "Ari, you a have a long ordeal ahead of you." At a pleading look she opened the blanket and draped it over me.
"What do you think is in front of me?"
Griff returned to her seat by Dash. "I think it'll be time for you to retire."
"Unfortunately, I have a darker thought," Dash chimed in. When I prompted him, he continued, "I think they'll rid themselves of you once and for all."
"After ten years now they decide to get rid of me?" He only shrugged in response. “There has to be some way out of this…” I thought over all of my hidden inventions, hoping that something could be of use.
Giving voice to my thoughts, Dash leaned in toward me and whispered, “Weren’t you working on a transporter?”
Of course! How could I have forgotten the transporter? But I hadn’t had time to finish it; I had know idea if it worked or not. I shook my head sadly. “Never finished it.”
“If only we could stall; maybe then you could finish it,” Griff cried uselessly.
I began to hatch an idea; “It’s a fairly simple design. If I could stall then I’m sure Dash could finish it. All he has to do is…” I launched into an explanation of the inter-workings of my small device.
Just as I finished my instructions the van screeched to a halt. With Dash and Devin holding on to me, I was guided back into the Special Forces headquarters. As I was led past employees, busy at work, everyone stopped to stare. I figured they should be used to this kind of thing considering where they worked, but I guess few agents are stupid enough to try to run away. Well I’m a whole new breed of agent and a whole new breed of stupid.
The five of us crammed into the small elevator which led to our underground compound. No words passed between us, but we didn't need them; we'd worked with each other too long. All the words left unsaid weighted heavily on me. I hung my head as I was led out of the lift and down the hall. "What are your orders?" I asked quietly as the severity of what I had done began to weigh down on me.
Devin's reply was surprisingly serious for one who had been prone to mock me. "We have orders to bring you to cell ten and stand guard outside." Without another word, I was led further into the complex and locked in a cell. Though right before I entered the room, Devin patted me down, removing, to my dismay, my F.A.C. and, surprisingly, my shirt and shoes. Surveying the room I found it was surprisingly bare; apparently I had really ticked off the SF. The organization never intentionally makes a prisoner suffer. All offenders are kept in humane cells with all needs seen to. What was in my room was the bare minimum of humane. A single naked light bulb illuminated my room in unrelenting light. In the corner of the small room was a thin beat up old mattress with a thin blanket spread on top of it. A small closet in the opposite corner held a toilet and sink. With a sigh of despair, I moved to the middle of the room. While careful to keep my balance, I "threaded the needle" and brought my handcuffed wrists in front of me. Once I took care of that, I relieved myself in the "closet" and sat on the pathetic excuse for a mattress. I was still for a few moments as the day's events washed over me, leaving mental and physical exhaustion in their wake.
My eyes fluttered open in response to an argument going on outside. I quickly crawled over to the door in a less than graceful manner and pressed my ear to the door. "Why do I have to get him?" That would be Dash trying to warn me to put myself to rights.
"Because he won't harm you." I listened for a moment longer before scrambling into the middle of the room in a somewhat ape-like fashion and putting my wrists behind me again. I was coolly regarding the door when Dash hesitantly entered. He nodded slightly to me and took my arm. Waiting outside was the rest of my troop who formed a tight circle around me. Down the hall more guards waited to encircle me.
"You know, I'm almost flattered at how talented the Force thinks I am," I commented dryly. I think my team would have laughed under normal circumstances, but for now only uneasy silence met my comment. My destination was in the council's meeting hall. As the door to the meeting hall was opened a slight shiver ran down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold. At the back of the room a long desk was set up. Behind the desk sat five council members decked out in their nicest black suits. Spectators lined the wall, most of them with guns at their side, probably acting as extra guards incase I acted out. After I was positioned in the middle of the room, facing the council members, my guards took up their positions at the back of the wall. Uri Zeroun sat in the middle of the group his face made strangely paler by his short jet black hair. On his left was Ms. Collins with her pale blonde hair pulled painfully tight in a bun. Crag was on her left. To Uri's right were another man and woman who I didn't recognize.
Uri began the trial, "Ari of Troop 82-1, you have been charged with attempted desertion of the Force, endangerment of civilians, endangerment of troop members, trespassing in a restricted area, disobeying direct orders, destruction of Special Forces' property, multiple counts of disclosure, working on illegal inventions, failing to get approval on said inventions, and failing to adhere to proper conduct standards when involved in developing worlds. Now that the charges have been placed in front of you, do you anything to say?"
Barely above a whisper, I demanded, "When did I put my troop's lives in danger?"
Ms. Collins shuffled through a thick stack of paperwork, my file I'd assume. "On Toril, you got yourself beat-up, your second mission to Mirar when agent Zayn was paralyzed, on Aquain, just to name a few." I stiffened as buried memories clawed their way back into my mind.
"I couldn't have prevented it, he was-" I tried to plead with them, but Uri silenced me with a hand.
"As the leader you take all responsibility for any injuries to your troop."
"But there was a trial for that mission and I did accept responsibility for what befell us! I was exonerated of any wrong doing! You can hardly expect to bring up-"
Clark interrupted this time, "The Council can bring up whatever evidence they see fit. Now, if we can continue the hearing?" He looked at Uri who nodded in assent. As I had expected, this was a fairly one sided trial. Only Dr. Clark and Aren were allowed to testify in my favor. There were few there against me, but few were needed when the Council was against me. Through it all I met the Council's eyes in slight defiance. I was not allowed to say a single word, and when I did speak out because I couldn't stand it any longer, I was quickly silenced.
Finally, when all the evidence had been presented, Uri announced, "The council will take half an hour to decide Ari's fate." The five filed out a side door as whispers started from the spectators. I crossed my legs and sunk down into a sitting position. Different escape plans started forming in my mind as I closed my eyes. I knew if I didn't stop thinking about it, I'd act on them and that wouldn't help my situation. I clenched my fists to prevent the blue flames that I could feel trying to get out. Surrounding me, people shifted into fighting stances. Some cocked guns and trained them on me. In response, I slowly unclenched my fists and prayed no flame would escape them. The thirty minutes seemed to last a lifetime as I fought to keep my temper under control.
A door clicked open and in a panting voice someone said, "What'd I miss?"
"Aren," I growled more than said. I slowly opened my eyes and raised my head. Even though he was directly behind me, I'm almost positive that he gulped in fear.
He gave a nervous kind of laugh, that spineless man. "How goes it, um Ari?"
In the same low voice I told him, "I've been working very hard to keep my temper these past twenty minutes or so, as I'm sure the others can tell you, and you're just the thing to push me over the edge. So get out!" The last was the loudest roar I could manage.
"Uh, I only intend to watch..."
"Out!" The man was at least ten years older than me, yet he immediately ran out the door. My fury left me panting as the council members returned.
"What's going on here?" Uri demanded as he returned to his seat. Unknowingly, my fists had clenched once more and in response weapons were again trained at my head. He didn't give me a chance to explain nor did I attempt to. Instead he pointed irritably at two men and ordered them to help me up. Once I was standing and my guards had safely retreated back to the wall, the trial continued. "We have come to a decision. Due to the frequency and magnitude of the charges, Ari shall be put to death."
I started shaking my head and muttering, "No, no."
"But what about all he's done?" Clark's voice silenced the erupting crowd.
"Don't you think that that has been weighed?" The man whom I didn't know stood up in outrage.
"Calm down, Miles," Uri said softly he ordered the man back into his seat, "All angles have been considered and our decision is final." I had been almost deaf to the outside world until this point. "We will use lethal-"
"What if I don't let you?" I asked the man quietly. My mind was still in turmoil from his announcement, but I wanted to know their answer.
"What did you say?" This from Craig.
Trying to quell the shaking in my voice, I repeated myself. "What if I don't let you?"
The bastard almost started laughing. A grin plucked the corners of his mouth as he met my defiance. "You know you can't get out."
"I did it before."
"Yes, but that was when there weren't agents posted at random intervals expecting you. Besides, even with your unpredictable magic, you'd still tire out rather quickly, having to fend off multiple attacks."
Uri took control again, 'Now if that's done,"
"Sir," I spoke up, "A moment to collect my thoughts?"
"What on earth are you talking about?" People were reaching for their guns again and I had to think quickly.
"I need a moment to rationalize everything. If you don't give me a moment, I can't be responsible if I fight back." Craig was correct; if I fought I would soon be too weary for any other escape attempts. Also, fighting back would damage my reputation, which I didn't really care for, but it would be an added regret. Then I guess I only had one choice. I hadn't realized I was smiling until Uri called out to me.
"I'm just envisioning what I could do if I wished." Not the smartest thing to say, mind you, but thus far I had held my tongue.
"Get him out of here! Execution is set for fourteen hundred hours!" Two o'clock? That only gives me four hours!
"What?" I exclaimed as I was grabbed by the arms and more dragged than led back to my cell. I could have attacked those guards because they weren't my troops, but I was too shocked. "That's not enough time!" I kept shouting until I was locked safely behind a metal door. I was shaking and I couldn't stop. I sat down on my mattress, move my hands to the front, and hugged myself against a nonexistent cold.
I cried, and I must have slept, for I dreamed. I'm in my old workroom. Dash is bent over my desk working rapidly one something. Griff stands behind him with Cale at her side, both look more apprehensive than I'd seen them in a while. "We won't have time!" Griff cries.
"Be quiet for a moment. I'm almost done!" Dash silences her.
After a long moment, Cale speaks up, "How will we get it to him?"
Dash sighs and puts down his tools. "I don't know, but we have to."
"I feel like such a coward saying this, but I hope we aren't connected with his escape." That from Cale.
"We're not cowards, we are...well not humans, but at least a type of animal thus making us put our own preservation up with our leader's."
"I've got it!" Griff exclaimed excitedly. "We're never going to give it to him unseen, right? Right. So what we need is for everyone to clear the room. Then, someone will start a video loop of one of us talking to Ari! So while the loop is playing, we give the device to Ari. We leave, he waits a few minutes and escapes to...where did you program it?"
"Abarat," Dash supplied.
"Abarat, he escapes to Abarat and our superiors are none the wiser!"
Cale scratched his head before he asked, "Who shall supply the loop?"
"Our only option is..," she sighed, "Aren."
A guard nudged me awake with the tip of his gun. "Ow," I muttered softly.
"Come on, time to go," he ordered. I opened my eyes and surveyed my surroundings. There was only one guard and he'd left the door open. Idiot. I couldn't help what happened next; it could only be blamed on the stupidity of my guards. I jumped to my feet. That shocked the guard enough to give me time to knock the wind out of him and make for the door. I made it about a yard into the hall before something solid connected with my head. I fell to my hands and knees as black edges formed around my vision. Two sets of hand pulled me up as I tried to regain my footing. They gave me no time for that as one man moved to my feet and picked them up and the other held under my armpits. The two carried me down the hall and into a medical room with a large metal table in the center. I started fighting against my captors. I struggled even harder as more agents stepped forward to secure me in the binding on the table. I fought my binds with fading strength. Most of the time is now in a haze, but I must have attempted to bite someone, because I remember a gag of sorts being put on me. Soon Dr. Clark came in, his head down in shame. The guards were dismissed and sent outside. Dr. Clark picked up something from a cart behind me.
"I'm going to give a mild sedative so you won't feel anything," the old doctor informed me as the cold needle pierced my vein. I recoiled from it instinctively. A strangely familiarly fuzziness swept over my body, numbing it. Silent tear fought to be freed but I shut my eyes against them. Many times I had previously resigned myself to death, but those had been hero's death. Those times I hadn't been dying without purpose. If Clark saw my tears, he made no comment on them. He set the needle aside and put a hand on my shoulder. "Dash has asked for a word with you. He only got five minutes and that was only after I had given you the sedative. I'll be back in a few minutes." Pitching his voice so even I had to strain to hear him, he added, "There's a stimulant in the needle with the blue markings. It should counteract the sedative." He squeezed my shoulder and left. A couple of minutes later Dash came in.
"I just wanted to say goodbye," he moved within my restricted view. "I know we won't be able to see each other again but I hope you know I'll always think of you." He was silent for a few moments before he nodded to himself. With a broad grin he announced, "Okay, time for you to go." He freed my hands and allowed me to fumble numbly with the gag as he worked on my feet.
"Hand me the needle with blue markings," I ordered in slurred speech while he finished freeing my ankles.
He picked it up carefully and shook his head, "I think I should probably do this." He turned my arm over to expose veins. I gritted my teeth as the needle pierced my skin. Clark was wrong, the sedative only immobilized me. Pain was as fierce as ever. The numbness faded and Dash helped me sit up. "You better get moving. Here's your transporter, a translator and the list of primitive worlds." The last was as thin as construction paper yet in reality, it was a paper thin computer listing thousands of discovered worlds.
"Do you have a shirt or shoes?" I asked hopefully. He shook his head.
"Anything you could use as a weapon was taken, thus why Devin took your shirt and shoes. I just couldn't smuggle them in. Now go, you're going to-"
"Abarat," I interrupted.
He was visibly shocked. "How did you know?"
"Apparently the visions I told you about aren't strictly about missions." With nothing more than a warrior's embrace for a goodbye, I hit a button and I was off.
Dash's coordinates had been off; I was dropped right into an ocean. I quickly surfaced, gasping for air. My translator started to spark. Hastily I dug it out of my ear and chucked it as hard as I could away from me. As I tread water, I looked around; there was land in the distance. It looked far away, but it was my only choice. I kept my stokes as even as possible as I struggled against the currant so I wouldn't expend my energy too quickly. Soon the movement became mechanical allowing my mind to wonder.
Why isn't my transporter shorting out? Oh, right, I made it water proof. How did they convince Aren to help? Will I ever see them again? How will I get food? Then that little voice spoke up, silencing all others; Focus on getting enough air.
My strokes were getting weaker and I wasn't getting enough air when I came up. I ignored both my leaden arms and my short breath as I struggled to get closer to land. By the time I was within a mile of the coast, I was more than willing to swim lazily parallel to the shore and allow the tide to bring me in. Exhausted, I pulled my weary body onto to shore and collapsed.
Voices spoke above me in a strange language. For a moment I was frightened, but soon I remembered everything. Someone had flipped me over, so now sand stuck to me on both sides. I slowly opened my eyes to see three kids standing over me. Two boys and a girl, all must have been ten years old or younger. The older boy had a stick in his hand and had decided it would be fun to poke me in the eye. I pushed the stick away, annoyed. The kids shrieked at my sudden movement and ran down the beach where I heard an older voice comforting them. With a groan I stood up, swaying on my feet and looked around. The beach stretched on as far as the eye could see in both directions. Dusk had just begun graying the light and a fire burned a bit down the beach. Finding standing to be too taxing, I quickly sat back down, which was more like falling than controlled movements. I knew there were people surrounding the fire, but I made no attempt to join them. It's not like they would have understood me if I did. Instead, I sat for some time, staring out into the surf. Only when a young man, maybe seventeen years old, approached me, did I move. Slowly, I turned my head in the boy's direction. He scratched his head hesitantly and said something I couldn't understand. I said as much earning a frown from the boy. He motioned for me to follow and walked back to the fire. I took a deep breath and pull myself to my feet. I wearily trailed the boy until I found myself in a ring of people around the fire. There were about five kids under ten and the boy. The kids were busy eating when I joined them, but they soon stopped to stare. The boy said something I'm sure was like, "Stop gawking and finish you're dinner," and the children resumed eating. The boy handed me a bowl with some liquid in it.
He pointed to and said, "Wiln." I nodded in thanks and looked at the children. They were all sipping straight from the bowl, so I followed suit. In my dripping wet clothes, the chill was starting to get to me. Apparently the teen noticed my discomforted because he produced a blanket. Again I nodded thanks and wrapped the thin cloth around my bare shoulders. I stared into the fire and tried to warm myself. The teen shooed the children off to bedrolls. Once they were settled, he sat next to me. I mock scratched my ear, masking a thin tendril of magic I sent in my ear, hoping it could translate. "Rupt," he pointed to himself.
I lay a hand on my chest and started to say something but stopped short as if I couldn't remember. He looked disappointed but continued talking.
Apparently my magic worked for when he said, "...understand me..." I caught some of his phrase as clear as if it was common but it was still in his language. I have it translated here. I held up my fingers a little ways apart from each other to signify 'a little bit.
"...can...speak...?"
I searched for the words and hoped they worked as the magic invaded my speech center. "Not...um..." I floundered for the word.
"Well?" he supplied.
"Not well," I repeated what he said in his language and nodded in agreement.
"How old are you?" I wore a confused look for a moment before I shook my head again.
“Don’t remember, but the language is slowing coming back to me.”
“Where are you from?” I put my head in my hands and ran my hands through my hair. They froze when they found a sticky patch on the back of my head. I carefully prodded it and winced with pain as I wondered when I got the injury. “What is it?” I pointed wordlessly to the spot and bowed my head lower so he could see. He touched it gently.
I took a quickly indrawn breath in pain, as dizziness came over me. “Ouch,” I whispered. “Water?”
“Wait one moment, first I need to wash out this cut,” he ordered. He looked worried; I didn’t think he knew what to do. I said as much. “You’re right, I don’t know how to treat it, but I do know I need to clean it off. In the morning I can take you back to our village where Carnt can fix you up. She’s our village medicine woman. Let me get some fresh water, hold on one moment.” He produced a small clay jug and poured some water into a rag. Rupt had me bend over again and started cleaning my wound. I grinded my teeth in pain, determined not to cry out and wake the children. “It seems like you're getting your tongue back. When we get back to the village you can get some clothes and a bath. I doubt you’re comfortable being covered in sand.”
I shrugged as I sat up. “I can survive a little discomfort. Right now I’d really like to sleep.” The little voice in my head spoke up as I spread out the blanket and lay down. Don’t sleep! You have a concussion! You could slip into a coma! But it was too late, I was already asleep.
"Slow down or we'll drop him again!" My eyes flickered open.
I took a moment to make sure my speech would be the correct language before I asked, "What's going on?"
"Rupt, he's awake!" I was on a crude stretcher with a man carrying each end. Now one of them was nodding excitedly at me. "Rupt the boy's awake!" Boy? I'm twenty-four! A depressing thought passed over me, Dash programmed how he always thought of me, not how I currently was. I would have to live years of my life over again.
Apparently, Rupt was carrying the front of my stretcher for he talked over his shoulder, "How are you feeling?"
My hand immediately went to my head as I noticed a subtle throbbing. "I'm so confused..."
"It's ok, we'll be there soon," Rupt comforted me.
"Where?"
"Ethonay, our village. The healer will take a look at you."
I started to sit up, saying, "I think I'm okay to walk." A man rushed up to me and placed a hand on my chest, easing me back into a laying position.
He shook his head and said, "Not now, we don't want you hurting yourself more. Now, little Kikly, you should lie back down and try to sleep."
I wouldn't make the mistake of sleeping again, but before I relaxed I had one question. "How old do I look?"
The man wasn't even phased by my question as he answered, "A couple years younger than Rupt, and he is eighteen. So I'd say you're about sixteen years old." I nodded and lay back down.
A calloused hand shook me awake. When I opened my eyes, an old woman was staring back at them. I jumped in shock and had to stop myself from taking a defensive stance. The woman had white hair pulled back in a long braid which reached past her waist. There were flowers woven into her braid and I couldn't help but stare. As soon as I came back to myself, my hand quickly went to my head. It was tightly bandaged in something like cotton. The woman patted my hand and returned it to my side. "Calm down Kikly, you're safe. You've been asleep for days, I was starting to worry."
"What did you call me?" I studied the room while she answered.
She was kneeling near me. I was in low wooden cot and there was a basket filled with bandages next to me. Next to that was a tall clay jug that I assume was filled water. Surrounding me was a wood similar to bamboo which formed the circular hut we were in. A thin blanket covered me and I still wore my S.F. pants. "I called you Kikly; it means 'lost one.' Unless you have another name..." Let's see...There's Zig, Gyro, Ari, Durn, Landy, and various others. What was another addition to the list? I shook my head sadly.
I sat up and swung my feet onto the floor as the woman moved towards the water jug. She poured out water into a clay cup and handed to me. After emptying the cup and handing it back, I asked, "What shall I call you?"
"Kris, my name is Kris." She handed me the cup, full with water. I drained the second one more slowly.
"Kris, where can I get a bath and some new clothes?"
Kris stood up with a groan and numerous pops of old bones. "I'll get my grandson to find you some clothes." She leaned her head beyond the door and called out, "Trilin!"
"Is there a bag of sorts that I could have for my old possessions?"
Again she leaned outside to call for the boy, only to jump with surprise to find him waiting by the door. She explained what I needed and told me to follow him as he left. I hurried after the boy; however my steps were awkward; it had been a long time since I was in a sixteen year old body. As I hurried behind Trilin, who approximately ten at the time, I steathfully reached into my pockets to assure myself that both my transport and my world list were still with me. I wondered wistfully at how I managed to keep a hold of both of them through everything, but I dismissed it as a miracle that I was glad had happened, but one that I didn’t particularly care if I found out. Trilin led me to a river just beyond Kris’ hut. As soon as he was out of sight, I took off my pants and carefully folded them with my possessions still in the pocket. I threw my boxers on top of the pile and waded into the water. The current was swift enough to take away the layer of dirt which covered me without threatening to sweep me up with it. I spent a long time scrubbing myself down completely before I turned around to get dressed. I nearly jumped when I saw a pair of feminine eyes looking back at me. I sunk down in the water in an attempt to cover myself. “Um, hello?”
She stepped outside of her hiding spot. The girl and I were of an age, though she was a bit shorter than I was. Her midnight black hair fell unhindered down to the small of her back. Her short sleeved shirt and two paneled skirt showed off her bronze skin and curvy body. The twenty-four year old in me thought she was too young for me, but nice looking none the less, while my sixteen year old body told me to shut up, it was concentrating. “I heard we had a new arrival.” She idly twirled a nearby flowed between her hands as she danced around childishly. “We haven’t had a visitor in years.”
“Well th-that’s pretty girl- pretty legs- pretty interesting!” I was babbling like a teenager with a crush. Oh wait…I was a teenager with a crush and my body was hindering my mind. She giggled sweetly and started humming a tune. “What do you need?”
“Oh nothing…” She said disappointedly. “Guess I should go and let you get dressed. I’ll see you later.” She danced off into the village. For a few moments I just stood in the water and stared after her, mouth agape. When I got a hold of myself again I got out of the river, toweled off and dressed with what Trilin had supplied. The boy had supplied me with a pair of short pants, roughly sewn, and a thin vest. With a grimace, I donned the simple outfit, leaving my dog tags in place, and stuffed the rest of my things into a small knapsack included with the clothes. After I had thrown my sack across my chest I raced after the mysterious girl.
I had just passed Kris’ hut when I heard my name called from within. “Kikly! Get in here!” I hung my head with a sigh and headed back to the small dwelling. “Oh stop that; sit down and let me redo your bandages.” I sat down on the dusty ground and allowed her to peel off the wet cloth. I only winced once when she added some herbs to my new bandages. I made a mental note to redo the wrapping myself so it didn’t get infected. “Now you can go chase Milan. Just make sure that you don’t get yourself into any trouble,” the crone warned, “And talk to Rupt while you’re there, he’s set up a cot for you in his house.” She gave me directions on how to get to the village; she lived separated from the rest of them. I thanked her and took off in a sprint. When I reached the fringes of the community I figured that Kris was probably an oddity, living in a hut while the rest of her community had simplistic houses. Everyone who walked past was dressed like Milan and I were; substantial enough to function yet thin enough to allow air in the heat. As I got closer to the heart of the village, people recognized me and directed me toward Rupt’s house. It was an old building, small compared to any modern house, but large in comparison to the surrounding buildings. It was a simply constructed building with gaps in the woodwork covered with fabric providing the door and windows. I pushed aside a gray piece of thick material and entered the dimly lit room.
Rupt welcomed me before my eyes had a chance to adjust. “It seems Kikly is doing better,” he spoke to a large group of children, all seated before me.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized, “Am I interrupting something?”
“Just have a seat at the back; we’re almost done.” I passed rows of kids and sat with my back against the wall. While I inspected the room around me. This was what took up the majority of the building. The room I sat in had a large woven reed mat which covered the ground. There was a scroll rack pressed against one side of the room. On the other side was a door, which I’m sure led to Rupt’s private quarters. I must be in a school… Which made Rupt the teacher; he was a young one, but the teacher none the less. The old teacher probably died and left his apprentice, Rupt, to take over teaching the young ones. But what is the point of learning when there is no way to implicate it? This is a world of survival where learning cannot flourish when you must fish to stay alive. Rupt broke my train of thought by dismissing all the children and joining me against the back wall. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m as well as can be expected considering I have a head wound and I have know idea who I am,” my voice was thick with despair.
He patted me on the shoulder comfortingly. “You can create a new identity here. Let’s start with your knowledge; do you know how to read?” I shrugged and the teaching began.
Two months later found me completely literate in the Langlas language. In the passing time I had assimilated into the local culture; I could hunt, fish, and dance with the best of them. There was a side effect to all of this, though; I began to have nightmares about my time in the S.F. This would have been fine with me, except that I shared a bedroom with Rupt and my yelling was bothering his sleep. I apologized profusely, but he still insisted on taking me to see the "dream doctor." I had met the man before at a village gathering. The man's name was Ezra and he looked roughly thirty years of age. The older man was surprisingly well muscled for someone his age. He had the same bronze skin of everyone else in the village and yet he had a strangely familiar accent when he spoke. I couldn't place it, but I was sure I'd heard his voice. Ezra had a small house on the opposite side of the village. Rupt knocked politely on Ezra's doorframe. I shifted uncomfortably as Ezra herded me into the room and had me sit down on a high cot. Rupt had abandoned me to go teach a class.
"So what seems to be the problem, little Kikly?" Ezra leaned on an old desk which a few feet away.
I rested my elbows on my legs and my head in my hands. "I've been having bad dreams. They seem to center around the items I have in here," I indicated the rucksack which was ever-present at my side.
He leaned forward at this; everyone knew in some fashion what was in my bag. "Go on," he prompted. I paused for a moment, trying to place his accent. Then it hit me; the accent is Common! He's a field agent and this is his permanent assignment!
Without thinking about how wise it would be to reveal that I actually remembered the Force, I launched into a veiled story, "In my dream, I am leading 82, well; they call themselves 'agents.' Anyway it's 82 agents, but it'd be 82 minus me, because I'm the leader and don't count...” I scratched my head as if confused. "Okay, so it's 82-1 agents that I'm leading. They all speak in a language I don't know, but I can understand them. When I ask, 'what language is that?' they all say, 'the language is Common.' So then I say, 'if it's so common how come I don't know what it is?' And so the conversation continues for several minutes. Next, this man with an annoyingly big smile takes me away from my agents and leads me to a land where there is always light, yet none of it is sunlight. The man makes me sit down in the magic circle of sorts, and he calls out 'Mercu!' and a blinding light appears bringing numbness with it. I don't know why that word scares me so much, but I always wake of shaking." By the end I looked up to see Ezra staring at me with great interest. I returned the stare in silence.
"I'll have to tell them you were here, you realize that, don't you Ari?" He said quietly.
I stood up and nodded. "I'm surprised you haven't already."
"I figured as long as you didn't remember..." He walked behind desk as I inched towards the door.
"How long can you give me?" If I turned and ran now, I would be outside before he could catch me.
He looked over some scrolls he had piled on his desk. "My next report is due tonight. That's all the time I can give you. If you need help getting out by then, I suggest you somehow bring up demons in a conversation with Rupt. Besides that, I have nothing."
I was about to go, but there was question that I had to ask; "Why aren't you stopping me?"
"Because everyone knows your story, Ari. Although I would like to know how you managed to become sixteen again, considering you are reported as being twenty-four, but if I keep you that long, I'd have to capture you. At least now I can pretend I was slow on the uptake," Ezra explained.
"But can't you help me at all?" I pleaded.
He motioned for me to wait and disappeared into another room. When he reemerged, he was holding a small book and two pens. Ezra handed then to me and ordered, "Now, get!" He motioned to the door and I bolted for Rupt's house, making sure to add the journal to my bag. Class had just gotten out and a stream of kids was coming out of the doorway. I waited patiently as they rushed by, returning their little greetings.
When were finally all gone, I went inside to confront Rupt. "How did it go?" He was tiding up the scroll rack and I joined him.
"After he mentioned something about demons, I kind of tuned out," I replied, nonchalant.
Rupt, who I had never even seen mildly annoyed, became mad. I don't mean just muttering-bad-words mad, I mean murder-in-his-eyes-mad. "It's always those damn demons that ruin everyone's lives." Before I could say more he said, "Come on," and grabbed my hand as he raced out the door. He didn't stop running until the village was out of sight and a small hut stood before us. It was guarded by two burly men. They didn't even flutter an eyelash as Rupt stomped inside, pulling me with him.
Inside was a strange sight. A boy of about eight years was hanging upside down. The structure the boy was attached to looked like a freestanding pull-up bar. His ankles was each separately bound to the top bar and he dangled with his arms bound in an 'x' across his chest with his fists right below (or should I say above?) his chin. Rupt dropped to his knees before the boy and did something below the boy's head which caused the boy to squirm anxiously. I couldn't see what was going on until I stepped to the right and looked around Rupt who now had his hands pressed together in angry prayer. Below the boy's head was a small pile of tinder which Rupt had just lit on fire. Horrified, I rushed past him and stamped the small fire out just as the flames began licking the boy's hair. "What are you doing?" Rupt demanded.
My jaw dropped. "I'm saving this poor boy from being burnt!"
"But he's a demon! He's the reason you're having such awful dreams!" Rupt explained. I turned to examine the boy. This boy was skinny, but not malnourished skinny. He was the kind of skinny that came from constantly being active. The poor boy was dressed in ragged pants and lacked a shirt. His blonde hair was sheared to an inch's length and was thick with dirty and ash. His bare chest was covered in a layer of dirt as well as various dips and scratches whose origin I couldn't discern, but he only had a few burns. Rupt was trying to get me to move, but I couldn't let him light the fire once more. So I did what all great heroes do when caught between a rock and a hard place; I feigned a headache.
Rupt agreed to go back with some muttering, but once he was back in his schoolroom with the children, he returned to his normal, nice, self. I pretended the whole even in the hut never happened and continued my day as normal. Up until the moment I lay down at night under my thin blanket on my low cot, I made sure Rupt was none the wiser on my upcoming flight. Once I was sure Rupt was deeply asleep, I rolled out of bed, threw my bag over one shoulder and sped out of the village, leaving my shirt behind. I blew out the village like a wind, silent and invisible.
When I reached the hut in which the demon resided, I crouched behind some bushes and examined the guards. Luckily there were only two of them, and they were both sitting down, looking tired, but I didn't have a weapon. Instead, I opted for the oldest trick in the book; I picked up a nearby rock and chucked it far to the right of me. As expected, one of the guards went off to investigate. I guess I shouldn't expect it to be that easy. I picked up another rock and aimed for the man's head, silently apologizing as the man fell down, unconscious. I snuck into the hut, making sure to keep my head low incase the other guards was returning. Once inside, I held a small magic-fire light in my palm to illuminate the room. The young boy had pulled himself up and hooked his arms over the top bar in a display of incredible flexibility which I suspected was an attempt at finding a comfortable sleeping position. As I was attempting to take in the situation, the boy woke up and tilted his head to look at me. Pain had etched the light-haired boy's face beyond its years.
"I'm getting you out of here. I need you to hang back down," I whispered. The boy looked instantly grateful and stretched back out without a word. With a moment's pause, a thin pale blue thread of magic dangled from my free hand. With one hand, I tied the thread in a loop around one of the boy's wrist. I looped it around my own wrist and let it disappear. The boy raised his eyebrows in shock, but still didn't say anything. With a moment's thought, my fire turned into an icy blue blade which I sliced through his bonds with. While he rubbed his chafed wrists I jumped and grabbed the top bar which his ankles were fastened to. I pulled myself up and as I hung there I sawed away and his bonds. Just as the list bit of twine was about to brake, I dropped down and put my arms below him. When he fell I was right there to catch him. Needlessly, I placed my finger to my lips in a motion for silence. I hefted the boy onto my back and crept up to the doorway. The first guard was still gone; I silently hoped he hadn't gotten himself hurt. The other guard was lying nearby, but I was cautious as I straightened and dashed into the woods. I ran the whole night, stopping only a few times to catch my breath. When I finally stopped, the sun had a firm grasp on the sky.
We had stopped in the middle of the forest where little light penetrated the thick canopy of trees. I set the boy down and lit a magic-fire in front of us. The blazing blue fire gave off light but neither heat nor sound. The boy stared in amazement as I took out my journal and found the pen tucked inside. On the first page I simply wrote; The Lost One's Journal. I closed it and returned it to my bag. I focused my attention on my new charge. "So what's your name?"
The small boy looked at the ground in front of him. "Adlai," he murmured.
"And why did they have you there, Adlai?" I prompted.
"Because I'm a demon and they think by burning that awful incense under me, and causing me pain, their gods will be more inclined to listen..." his voice trailed off.
"Come here," I ordered as I got up on my knees. The boy diligently walked over and let me examine his cuts. Adlai just came up to my head when I was on my knees. I inspected him from head to toe. He shifted uncomfortably under my gaze. "It'll all heal with time." He nodded and we both resumed our seats.
"Uh, Master?"
I shuddered. "Don't call me that," I ordered.
"Well then what shall I call you?"
"In all honesty, I have as many names as a shark has teeth."
"Then what shall I call you?" he asked again.
"Whatever you like," I told him.
"Then I shall call you Brother," he said warmly.
"Alright then. It shall be Adlai and Brother."
The boy was quiet for a few moments, then, "What are you, Brother?" he stared at me avidly. "You aren't a demon, but you can't be human."
I nodded absently as I picked up a bit of the magic-fire and played with it in my hands. "If there are only two choices, then you are correct, I am neither. I am a third choice, something different and yet similar to both,” I stopped at the look of the confusion on poor Adlai's face. I smiled warmly. "As you've said, I'm Brother." At this, the boy smiled back. The boy's stomach growled loudly, ruining the moment. "But enough of that, right now I need to talk seriously to you. I have to keep moving; there are people after me. You can accompany me, but you have to be prepared to keep going every day. Can you do that?" He nodded and our journey began.
We traveled for many weeks, aimed at nowhere in particular. Somewhere in our conversation I discovered that Adlai's power was speed. He could run at speeds higher than jets could fly. We lived off the land and slept whenever we felt like it. Those weeks were some of the most relaxing that I'd ever had. But winter began to set in; we had to find shelter. One day while we were threading our way through the forest, we came upon a cave. Once you squeezed through it's small opening, it had a monstrous main cavern and a few smaller one. Now one of those rooms is full of food. Another has two roughly made beds complete with blanket which we found in the woods. I have begun teaching Adlai to read, write, and speak in Common. While he is entertaining himself, I have taken to recording my life in this journal. Once I have finished this entry, I'm handing the book over to Adlai, as long as he promises to only write in Common. This Brother, signing off.