Silent Feathers

Jace

I awake to a throbbing pain in my head. My vision is blurred, and I blink in vain trying to clear the spots. I must've been drugged. Attempting to sit up, my foot knocks into a tray with a small paper cup holding water and a bowl of something that resembles oatmeal.

"Drink the water. It'll help clear your vision."

Not knowing who is talking to me, but not being in a state to argue, I pick up the cup and drink from it. It's tainted, not purely water, but it must counter-effect the drug as I can now see and the pain in my head subsides. I notice that I'm not in a normal cell. Firstly, it isn't white like the rest of the Lab, it's black. Running my hand along the wall I notice it's made from a strong, rubber-like material. The back and front walls are solid, except for the locked door, but the two side wall are made up of thick bars made from the same material. I look between the bars and see that they're connected to other cells, but the right one seems to be empty. To my left, though, I see a hand holding onto a bar. I stand up quickly, walking to the left of my cell. A boy stands in the one next to mine with short, static hair and bright green eyes. It's the boy from the Experiments that I saw on the Lab screen! I can't help but think he looks familiar, and not from that. He looks at me, and I can tell he thinks the same. "Jace?" I ask.

"How do you know my name?" He looks puzzled, like he's trying to figure out where he might've met me, and if he knows my name.

"I'm Sara." It seems silly, but I hold out my small hand through he bars to shake in greeting.

"Oh..." He looks down. "I...can't really touch people." He gives a sort of sad smile, eyes staring at the unseen, reliving a memory. Suddenly remembering that I'm there, he looks up. "Oh, you're probably wondering why." Of course, I already know what he can do, or to the extent they documented on the screen. Jace walks over to his tray and picks up he cup. Coming back to my side of his cell, he tips the cup a little in my direction so I can see the water, and puts a piece of bread in it. He dips his finger into the liquid, and instantly the bread turns black, it's crust now brittle from the electrocution. Not wanting to see my reaction, Jace walks back to the rubber chair in the middle of his cell.

"How?"

He looks up, surprised. I guess he thought I would be repulsed or scared, but instead I am curious. "I had my Experiment early, and there was an...accident. I, of course, was under anesthetics and the like so I couldn't remember a thing, but they told me there had been some complications, and that I had been electrocuted, but it had mixed with some off the chemicals or something. They still don't understand it." He rubbed his arm along a scar that looked like a tree, it's tendrils branching out like an intricate design. I notice his veins are more pronounced, more elevated, like his heart is pumping faster and harder. "They were able to remove most of the scars, but this remains, along with a few others. I'm experimented on frequently, they're trying to figure me out." Jace forces a smile. "So, what was your Experiment? You're the first one I've seen in a long time."

My mind turns back to the problem at hand. I will be Experimented on in three days. Eyes consumed with despair, I realize Jace is waiting for an answer, and is looking worried. "I haven't had my Experiment." I confessed. His eyes widen.

"What? Then how come you're in here? When...when is your Experiment?" His voice is suddenly filled with fear, and I know he might as well be asking now, when are they going to murder you? I turn away so he won't see my eyes well up with tears. I need to be strong.

"Three days."

He sits down, dejected. Despairing for me. He probably hasn't seen another human who doesn't work for the Lab in ages. "There's...there's still hope." He says, but I know even he doesn't believe it. "Please." He closes his eyes. "I've seen many horrible things. I can't watch more people die." I wonder what he is talking about. Surely he doesn't watch the Experiments? Somehow, I know there's something else, something he doesn't wish to share. "Come back. Please." I shake my head.

"I can't. You know the odds." His eyes are filled with pain and misery. Jace walks over to me, or as far as he car with the bars. I stand up, he seemed scared at what he was about to say, but excited as well. He looks at me with trust, and lowers his tone to a whisper.

"We can escape."