Deception (Axyl, #1)

Chapter Two

Where am I? I asked myself as the darkness surrounded me.  My feet scraped against the powdery, soft dirt of the ground. I squinted into the shadows.

                “Hello?” I called. My voice echoed throughout the pit. I pressed my hands against the walls, feeling a prickly sensation poking the palms of my hands.  “Claus? Little girl?”

                A light flashed pink in front of me while muffled voices drifted toward my ears from the darkness. “Hello?” I tried to ask again, but my throat was glued shut. Softness wrapped around my head. My foot twitched, trying to push myself further into the pit.

                “She’s waking up!” A voice boomed, crashing into my skull with so much force that it knocked me off of my feet. I hit the ground with a thud, tending my butt. Hands gripped at my sides helping me move forward into the light.

                I smiled at them. “Thank you, Hands,” I said drowsily. The pink light grew brighter. My hands dug into the soil, climbing towards the opening. Almost there, I thought. Just one more foot to go. My arms shook with fatigue, but the hands slid underneath me, wrapping their arms around my thighs and helping me up.

                The light flickered again. “Oceania, my baby, come here,” a warm familiar voice called. The scent of cinnamon aroused my nose.

                “Mom,” I tried to respond, but my attempts were futile. I slowly opened my eyes, blinking back the golden-white glow of a light bulb. The bright walls weren’t any help. A comforting face filled my vision, gripping my shoulders.

                “Mom,” I said. Her brown eyes brightened with tears, wiping it away when one spilled over her dark eyelashes. She wrapped her arms around me. I smiled into her neck, welcoming the warmth of her body.

                “Mom, where am I?” I questioned her. My raspy voice drifted into the open air and I swallowed. She pulled away from me and retreated to a brown chair beside my bed. I dug my palms into the fabric, trying to savor the sensation. My mother grasped my hand. The silky texture of her skin soothed me. She squeezed.

                “You’re in the Clinicus. You fainted at the funeral for that man.”

                I eyed the room for the first time. My blue-painted toenails were peeking out from under the thin, pale sheets. Shivering, I pulled up the blanket around my shoulders. I’ve been to the Clinicus so many times because of the corporation. It’s only been a few months since I’ve been here.

                The door to my room opened and a Medicus walked in. “How are you feeling, Oceania? Are you ready to go back to your village?” He walked over to the bed, checking the recorder attached to it.

                I smiled up at him. “Yes sir, I am quite ready.”

                He nodded, drawing his gaze down to the board in his hands. “You just need your daily supply of Ayxl, but I’m sure your mother would like to get it.” His lips tugged upward. “And then you’re admitted.”

                “Thank you,” my mother and I both said, graciously.

The medicus looked back toward me and shook my hand. “It’s been a pleasure restoring you,” he said, wrinkles forming around his eyes. He made his way out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

“May I please have my Axyl?” I asked. 

Axyl was a shape-shifter drug, helping us with our health and strength. It is not for humans. There have only been a few cases of where they have taken it, and the results are always disastrous.