A Great Fall [ #Wattys2017]

Chapter 7: We meet

Rish

I was sitting on a wooden bench, my head slouched and my fists resting on the bench. I felt a throbbing headache and overwhelmed by my surroundings. The door to the dimly lit room seemed to move far away everytime I looked at it. The room smelled funny. I looked around and saw that I was in a square sized, hospital room. Medicines and liquids were stacked in bottles on partitions made in the walls. The only window in the room was half open and it looked like the owl had begun it's watch.

Wait. Where was I and since when? I last remember, coming out of my college to be jumped on by three masked men in the desolate alley next to it. One of them held me while the other put a cloth dipped in chloroform to my nose but not before I had punched him in his solar plexus. I remember the faint sound of a van starting and I being carried by one man and the other limping behind him, holding his stomach.

I grinned at him from ear to ear before my eyes shut.

The door to the room was slightly ajar.
I got up but my knees buckled and I fell down immediately. I didn't have the strength to support my numb body. I crawled to a water pot next to an operation bed in the room and drank from it for what felt like eternity by keeping my mouth under the running water. After sitting against the bed for sometime, I got up and hobbled towards the door. As I came out, I saw a narrow corridor stretching both towards left and right till where my eyes could see. It was lit by bulbs at regular intervals.

"Hey you, get inside", I heard a man shout behind me from the dark. As I heard brisk footsteps approaching in my direction, I was impulsed to do exactly the opposite of what the man had asked me to do and I started running away from the man who was closing the gap fast.

I was panting, falling short of breath but I could smell my opponent on my heels. I ran for about a minute, slipping, hitting the walls. Slowly, the corridor started narrowing, not allowing more than one person at a time.

I came to a stop at a door. I pushed hard against it but it wouldn't budge. I could sense the footsteps getting louder by the second. Perspiration beads started flowing down my face. I gave a final hard push, putting all my strength in it.

The hinges gave away and I was met by a blinding glare of light.

I woke up and found myself slumped down onto a brown leather sofa. I looked around and the room was familiar enough.

I was in Prof. Rick's office.

I remember being blacked out and collapsing while Rick struggled with his opponent. A gas mask was lying on the floor. I picked it up and saw fresh stains of blood on it's back.

Where was Rick? What had happened to him? I got up to search for him. Just then, I heard a voice from the doorway -

"That was fast. I thought you'd be blacked out till morning", I heard Rick say.

He was standing there, leaning against the doorframe, holding a water bottle in one hand, unharmed and relaxed as if nothing had happened.

"How much time was I out? And, who was he and why was he here? Also, what did you do to him? ",I asked him, still dazed.

"Oh, don't rush. I don't know his name but he was an agent for sure. Wish, I could've held him, but he escaped with his left eye bruised and broken bones", he said ,balling his fists.

"He was here for this", he said holding the locket hung around his neck.

It was a red locket, triangular in shape. It reminded me of the suddenly appearing everywhere symbol, only without the circle outside it.

I was about to ask Rick, about the symbol when a girl appeared in front of the door.

Not 'a' girl, it was her.

I was seeing her after a long time but still she had the same effect on me. I stood there, staring at her, drifting away from the present. Her aura was so strong, I felt being dragged by an inexplicable force. Her brown hair, falling perfectly down her face, covering an eye.

As she moved a strand of hair, I saw those black twinkling eyes and I forgot about all my worries.

She was suave and flawless.

As our eyes met, a big smile came up on my lips.

But she just stood there, with no hint of any emotion or sign of recognition on her face. I swear, I saw a hint of a smile on her lips but it disappeared quickly.

As Prof. Rick turned to face her, Minnie said cautiously-

"Capt.. Sorry,Professor. I would like to speak to you alone".

"It's okay, Minnie. Rish here is one of us. He's different too",Rick said, staring at me intently.

One of us, what did he mean by that?

As the words had left his mouth, I saw a look of dread and disappointment cross Minnie's face.

She quickly recovered and asked me- "Show me where you've got that mark", she asked cautiously.

I unbuttoned two of my shirt buttons to show her the symbol. She gasped at the sight of it and averted her eyes. However, Rick didn't even flinch. It was just too normal for him.

"What are your powers?", she asked me. Her words were measured and precise.

"What powers?", I asked, taken aback.

"And I thought you were smart enough to figure that out for yourself", said Rick,rolling his eyes.

"Minnie, show him",he added.

Minnie closed her eyes and seemed to concentrate.

Next second, the spot where she had been standing was empty. She had vanished into thin air.

A/N : What are Rish's powers? How will he react to this new chain of events? Keep reading to know.