Jensen Strother and the Thirteen Stars

Chapter 10

I'm still not sure 2011

[Happy to be out of that ridiculous room... angry that I was almost killed for hitting... a random parrot?]

Dear Listener,

These two really big (and by big I mean BUFF) guys helped me gently out of the white room (not that I was even sure there was an actual way out of the white room) and brought me straight into a place that looked something like a small, decorative dentist lobby; completed with nice music, AC, pretty paintings, and even a receptionist desk... with no receptionist. They left me there where I was alone and still cold.

I sat down in a nice big, comfy couch-just like they really do have in real dentist offices. Except, of course, this wasn't a dentist, and I had a feeling I was going to get a little bit more pain here than pulling out a wisdom tooth. Which, I guess, is a lot of pain...

While waiting there for only God knows what I realize that I'm not in my clothes that I blanked out in. Instead I'm in this interesting looking navy blue and black sweat outfit... then there were the white shoes. It's like no matter where I go I can't escape from that color.

I look around the room some more. The door that I'd come in, believe it or not, wasn't even there anymore. That's probably the reason I couldn't get out of the white room. You can get in, but once the door behind you closes there's no going out.

I was thinking about trying to escape through the receptionist window when the one-way/invisible door opened and Denise walked in.

I don't know about you, but I did not want to talk-much less see-ANYONE from my so-called family at this moment. Not to mention the fact that I have no idea why she's here and not busting me out.

"Jensen," she says sweetly. "I know-I KNOW-you hate me right now. I would, too. I also know that you don't know why you're in here." She paused as if she expected me to say something. When I didn't she continued. "So I'm just going to come out with it... You're not human. You're a Zwune." Silence. "So is Idelle and Aidyn. Me and your mother are not. We're just the people assigned to watch you till you're mature enough to know what your purpose in life is."

I rolled my eyes. "You mean my cause in life. Like what that kid Mikah was talking about."

"Jen-"

"It's Jensen. Only my family get's to call me that-and as of now I have no family."

A sad look floods over my aunt's face, but she persists to speak. "Jen," she says stubbornly, "don't listen to anything anyone around here but what your FAMILY tells you, okay?"

"But why not? Because I'm supposed to trust you or something." I laugh humorlessly, just to piss her off. "Not happening. Now get me out of here and we can talk about emancipation later. Or even better... finding my real parents."

She frowns. "Your mother told you?"

"You mean Lydia? No, she didn't tell me. I heard you two talking about it."

"But we were never talking about it."

"I know, I know, maybe I was dreaming or something," I said derisively.

"No, honestly, Jen. Your mother and I never speak about your... your adoption. Ever."

"So I guess someone just made me think I was hearing you two have that conversation? What about when you came in my room and told me to stay away from Piper?"

Denise's eyebrows knitted together. "Oh, Jensen, that's called a test. If you didn't stay away from Piper that just confirms that you ARE what we think you are. If you did stay away from Piper then you're human. All Zwunes have the particular trait of stubbornness. You are made with it."

"But that means I AM human and all of this crap has nothing to do with me, right?"

"But you didn't stay away from her."

"But I did."

For the first time my aunt looks genuinely worried. "No you didn't. You saw her in the grocery store."

"What? Did you have people following me?-Denise, I stayed away from her. She came to me that day. She spoke to me first. I had only... very little intention of actually disobeying your-" I made little quotes in the air with my fingers "-'orders.'"

Denise shook her head. "There's something wrong with you..."

"No kidding."

"No, I mean. You're Jensen Strother, the only Zwune in history to not have immediate recollection of what your purpose in life is, you don't follow any Zwune laws-the laws that are supposed to be implanted in your brain, meaning you have no say in breaking them, and you morph on accident when you're angry..."

"Morph?"

"Do you even remember that? The tattoo on your neck. Panthera leo? It's a whole half of you, Jensen, how do you not know?"

"What does a lion, have to do with anything here?" And I thought she'd be angry about me having a tattoo but apparently we're waaay pass that stage... I think. I hope. I mean what kind of respectable guardian doesn't care about their kids mysteriously getting tats over night?

"Zwunes... Okay, so you have no idea what a Zwune is..." She scratches the back of her neck like she always does when she's nervous. "Okay, how do I explain this? There's this god-"

"God? Like the God?"

"No, like a God. His name is Darick. He created Zwunes for a purpose-you know, the purpose you've been hearing about so much lately. Anyway, more on that later. Back to Zwunes. They're half man, half beast."

"What kind of beast?"

She shrugs. "Oh, nothing you kind find in your local zoo. Zebras, monkeys, even seals... Normal animals like that. But only a select few. Well Darick he mixed human and mammal DNA and multiplied the power they each had separately by a million and there was born... Zwunes. ...And Opexxs but they're not important as of right now, because you still need some catching up."

"Alright, alright, so here's what I got from you so far: This high and mighty god creates mutants-which would be human and animal-to do his bidding... and I'm one of those mutants?"

"You're not a mutant. You're so much more than that, Jensen-you are elite. Superior. Spectacular... Don't you understand that? Don't you care?"

"Yeah, I'm starting to understand, Denise, but I don't care. I don't care what you call me. I will always be human."

"But you won't. Can't you see that? Do you want to know what happened before you blacked out? Why your own mother had to shoot you with a tranq?"

"Yeah, you know, actually I would."

"Because you became inhuman."

"What ARE you talking about?!"

"Panthera leo, Jensen. A lion. Put it together. You're a REALLY smart boy. You morphed into a lion."