[Two]
"Stand there" said the girl, whose name I hadn't even asked yet. She stood with her back to the tall building in front of us and leaned forwards and then backwards slowly.
"So" I said, trying to be polite and make conversation "D'ya have a name?"
"Yes" she said plainly, making no effort to carry the conversation. She eyed me suspiciously like I was a dangerous bug that must be squashed quickly. I clapped my hands together and then rubbed them together, both still wrapped up in my gloves, to warm them up.
"Are you gonna tell me what it is? Or do I have to guess?"
"Guess?" she said.
/Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank/
was all her thoughts were saying. Nothing else. Dog, however, was as annoying as always, jumping up at my side every so often thinking about useless Dog things.
"Guessing would take a long time" she said "Especially with my name"
"Well, you gonna tell me so I don't have to guess?" I said. I eyed the surroundings quickly, wondering what the hell we were doing standing outside an abandoned building in the freezing cold.
"It's Aralyn" she said, after a long pause. She was now hugging herself tightly to conserve as much heat as possible, as was I. It was really cold.
"Ok" I said "That was what my first guess would of been" there was a flicker of a smile in her face and then it went blank, expressionless, plain again. I focused in on her a little, but I still got nothing from her thoughts. Why couldn't I read her like the rest?
"Aran..."
"Aralyn. My name is Aralyn"
"Sorry, Aralyn? Err, why can't I read you?" She seemed interested by me all of a sudden, but she still kept that glazed look over her features.
"I'm a reader too Shae"
"Yeah but why can't readers read other readers?" Dog barked incredibly loud at an oncoming car, which was driving pretty hastily, and I lost my concentration on Aralyn. She came forwards off the building and stood out at the side of the pavement, waved at the car briskly, and then turned back to me.
"Don't know. We just can't. Everyone knows that" she folded her arms to tell me she was no longer interested in me.
"Everyone knows it do they?"
She grinned sarcastically, and then her face went smug and harsh as she stepped out into the road. The car had come to a rolling stop and Aralyn opened the back seat door, revealing a dark interior and posh looking seats. She gestured me to get in but I backed away slightly, and so did Dog.
"Get in" she said pointing inside the car.
"What? No way. I don't really know you. You could be kidnapping me"
"Shae, please just get in"
"Stranger danger..."
"Fucking hell" she snapped. I jumped at her immediate outburst and Dog barked at her for being so stroppy.
/Loud noise. Loud girl. Loud. Loud/
was what he was thinking right now, and I was pretty much thinking the same thing.
"Get it. I'm not going to wait for you" She puffed and got in first, leaving the door open for my entrance. Well, I thought, I haven't got much at the home so maybe it wouldn't be too bad if I got kidnapped. Maybe then people would notice my absence. Or not. After a couple more seconds of thought I got into the dark looking car and the door slammed shut on me. It locked, which made me jump again.
"Stop being so jumpy, we're not kidnapping you or anything"
"NO" I screamed, putting my face to the window. Dog was still on the side of the pavement, barking himself silly. I could not, would not, leave without him, brain dissectors coming after me or not.
"Dog is still out there"
"I'm sorry but we have to go" Aralyn said, her face cruel and rugged.
"NO" I screamed at her "I will run from you if Dog is not in the car with me very soon" I spun round to look her in the face "Please Aran... No, sorry... Aralyn. I need Dog" She looked me up and down again and then sighed a deep sigh before nodding her head slightly.
"Open the doors Mike" she said and a tall, dark haired man turned round from the front seat. His dark shades made him almost look like one of those people off the matrix. You know, the ones who wore cool suits and sports shades with wires coming out of them to add to the 'cool' effect.
"Aralyn, will he run?" he dodged my stare and kept his eyes, which I couldn't see too well underneath the glasses, on Aralyn. She looked to me and bit her lip. I shook my head at her.
"No, he won't" she said, never taking her eyes off me. The doors unlocked and I bundled out to meet Dog.
/Shae. Shae. Shae. Shae. Let me come. I want to come. Let me come Shae/
"You're coming Dog" Dog barked in reply and jumped into the car quickly, avoiding the outcome he really didn't want. To be left alone.
/thank you Shae. Thank you/
"its ok Dog" I said and Aralyn shuffled more towards her side of the car.
"He stinks" she said and I grimaced at her.
"Who cares?"
"Me" she spat, sitting more upright in her seat. She leant forwards slightly "Ok Mike, we're ready"
"Where are we going?" I said, but she ignored me. That was all the talk I was going to get from her for now.
A large, glass, mirrored wall was the first I saw of the building. The light shone off of it and reflected onto the pavement down below. The car pulled up in front of it and Aralyn got out almost immediately, whereas I felt slightly intimidated by the giant structure and slid down in my seat. It had taken no less than an hour to get to this desolated area, but the warm, stuffy feeling you get in cars when people refuse to click on the air conditioning made me lethargic and drowsy, which made the journey seem so much longer. Dog was still sitting with me, even though the door had been opened for him. He waited for me. He was a loyal dog Dog was! I felt better knowing that I had at least one friend watching out for my back, and it gave me a new found confidence, which eventually lifted me out of the car and onto the pavement just outside the massive building looming over us all.
"Hold your arms up" Aralyn said as we entered the building, which, now inside, was very posh looking compared to the outer appearance. I glanced at her confusingly and she lifted her arms up above her head to show what she meant.
"What? Why?" I said.
"Just do it Shae" she said, dropping her arms back down.
"Arms above your head son" a man said, appearing from behind a counter. There was a glass panel across the front of the counter, which separated the man from us.
/Cat?/
"Shut up Dog" I said quickly and lifted my arms above my head. I looked like an idiot probably, but I wasn't thinking about how I looked at that moment. I had bigger worries to fuss over. We walked through a security door, the ones that had metal detectors and drug detectors in the rims. I let my arms down when they had searched me manually. They didn't find anything except my picture, which they nearly took before I had noticed.
"Give me my picture back. I need it" I had said and the scary people dressed in black who were watching over us had laughed and shoved it back in my face rudely.
"Fine" They had said "But say please next time"
Aralyn led me into an empty room and sat me down on the only chair in the room. There were 6 of us in the room: Me, Aralyn, Mike, the matrix man, Dog, and 2 of the scary security officers.
"Have you told anyone about your..." she hesitated "Power?"
"Err. Power? That's a bit..."
"What?"
"I would have thought it was a skill rather than a power really" I said, not really knowing why I had started this debate on whether the mind reading thing was a 'power' or a 'skill'. I didn't really care to be perfectly honest.
"Whatever" she said and looked at me, full on in the eyes. I felt slightly scared by her and tried to look away, but found I couldn't.
"No"
"You sure?"
"Err"
"YOU SURE?" she snapped, sending my nerves jumping all over the place. Mike, Mr. Matrix, stepped up and put a steady hand on Aralyn's shoulder. Why he did that I had no idea because it was me that needed to be calmed down, not her, and it was then that I realised this wasn't going to be one of my best trips ever. The most memorable probably, but not the best by far.
"Yes. Yes I'm sure"
"Woof" Dog said, standing by my chair.
/Let's get out of here Shae. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go/
"Don't even think about listening to your dog. Dog, is it?" Aralyn was starting to get on my nerves with her constant attitude thing she had going. It wasn't doing her personality any favours, and it certainly wasn't doing me any favours either. She needed to calm down.
"Yeah, his name is Dog. Got a problem with that Aran?" I said, putting a firm hand on Dog's head to show I was with him to the end, even if I never broke away from these crazy lunatics.
"It's..."
"Aralyn" I said "I know, but I don't care. I like Aran better. What do you think Dog?"
/Cat Shae. Cat Shae. Cat Shae/
of course Dog's couldn't understand humans, could they? "No dog, Cat" I said then shook my head when I realised my mistake. Aralyn's faced screwed up in what seemed to be a happy emotion. She was almost smiling.
"I meant no cat, Dog" My face was blank.
/Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank.
So were her thoughts.
It was weird that I couldn't hear her, but sort of nice as well. It was quiet. Well, quieter.
/Hmm. Hmm. Shit. Oh, hmm. Me. Me. Think about nothing. Nothing. Nothing/
Mike was obviously trying to hide his thoughts as best as possible, and he wasn't doing a bad job either. Probably from spending time with Aralyn he had learnt to try and think about as little as possible. Maybe it was the fact he was scared of us hearing him, like he was afraid of letting out a secret or something.
/I want to go now. Can't stand being here. Hate this place/
the security officers, however, hadn't bothered to hide their thoughts. They were still coming through as clearly as ever and I could hear them both perfectly. Well, I didn't want to be here either, and I also wanted to go home, to opt out, or to run away. More than ever.
/Cat../
"No cat, Dog" I found myself saying that a lot these days. He was such an annoying Dog, but so loyal as well it was hard to spend time without him.
"Right" Aralyn said finally "Put him through the questions and then we can get on with it, can't we?"
"Get on with what? What tests?" I started but she put up a hand in reply to silence me.
"It'll all become clear after" was all she said before her and Mike left. A large man came in, studied my face for a second, walked to a different side of the room, and then studied my face again. I followed him with my eyes, everywhere he went.
"Out" he pointed to the door and the two officers walked out formally and without a word.
/Cat Shae. Cat Shae. Cat/
Dog whispered in his thoughts behind me and I looked at the man suddenly. He rolled his eyes and ushered Dog out of the room. So, I thought, he could read minds as well then.
I woke suddenly, sitting upright in a bed that wasn't my bed. I was in a very small room which contained just one bed and a small sink in the corner. I sighed and looked around. "That was weird" I whispered. One minute I was in that big room with the scary man questioning me on basically everything that had happened to me in my whole life, and then he gave me some water, that I drank very quickly, and then before I knew it I was in here, on my own, without Dog.
"Hey" I shouted, still in my bed "Where's my dog" There was no answer and I sighed heavily before getting myself out of the bed, which was actually surprisingly comfortable. I hit the door hard, hoping it would break open to let me run free to find Dog.
"Goddamn it" I said to myself.
"Shae" a whisper came from the other side and I pressed my head up against it to hear better.
"Who's that?"
"Are you ok? Leonardo didn't hurt you did he, coz he can be quite tough sometimes?"
"Aralyn, is that you?"
"Yes. Just came to see if you were ok"
"Where's Dog?" I said hastily. I wanted to get out soon and, hopefully, this was my chance to get out, if Aralyn was in a good mood that was.
"Safe" was all she said.
"Safe doesn't give me a good enough idea on where he is though. Aralyn, what do you want with me? Why can't you just let me get back home and to my normal life"
"I already told you that Shae"
"What is this place? Why do I have to be locked up in here?"
"You don't" I frowned at the door as the lock bolted to it, clicked open. I put my hand on the handle and opened the door suddenly, as to exclude the outcome of her locking it again. She was standing outside, her expression more calm then earlier.
"Hi" she said, kind of awkwardly.
"Where's Dog? And don't say safe. Tell me where he is" I said and she looked down at her shoes and pointed down the hallway. I bolted off away from her.
"I coming, Dog" I whispered "I'm coming"
"Aralyn you can't just lock me in a room, take away my dog, and expect me to be ok with it, surely? I want to know what's going on. Right now"
"All will become clear soon, Shae"
"No" I snapped at her and stopped her from walking away by putting out my arm "That's not good enough" Aralyn turned to me, narrowed her eyes, and looked straight into mine.
/SCREEEEEECHHH!!!!/
Her thoughts went wild and I screamed suddenly and keeled over on the floor. The noise was so loud I could barely keep consciousness. I looked up to Aralyn to see her eyes still fixed on me, and I waved my hand at her to stop.
/Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank/
"Ouch! Why did you do that?"
"All will become clear"
"You are one mean little shit" I said, managing to get myself up off the floor without stumbling over again. I held my head and groaned about the enormous headache that was starting. Aralyn didn't say anything... just...
/Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank/
"I'm not" she said, finally. Her eyes had gone shadowy and her body language was a little shiftier than normal "I just need you to stop asking questions because I can't answer them. A year ago I was in the exact same position as you and I managed to keep my calm, so why can't you?"
"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't..."
"About a month ago" she interrupted "We had found a mind reader in Japan, brought him over to England, and he couldn't cope with everything, and so he ran away. Guess what?"
"What?" I whispered, focusing all my energy on her.
"He got caught. By the scientists, and do you know what they did to him?" Instead of answering I shook my head "They cut his head open, while he was still awake, and cut his brain out of his skull, leaving his body on the floor because they couldn't be bothered to throw it away. He died because they wanted to test his mind reading powers. It's all about knowledge with them. They don't care about the ethics. Remember that Shae" She walked away after a long, hard stare. I let out a breath and sighed deeply, gathering all my nerves to follow after her. That was a horrific story, wasn't it? Well, I knew one thing. I wasn't going to run away.
/Shae. Shae. Upset?/
"No Dog, I'm not upset. I think"
/Cat Shae/
"No, Dog. There isn't a fucking cat"
"Ok Shae" It was Mike, the matrix man, who I hadn't seen in a while "This is it" he pointed to the door and I shrugged.
"What is it?"
"The Hotel. Well, we call it the hotel. It's more like a block of flats, inside another building"
"So completely normal then" I said and he gave me an awkward look. He handed me some keys and I looked at them confusingly.
"They are keys to your room. It's next to Aralyn's"
"Lucky me" I said, sarcastically, even though I didn't really mean it sarcastically.
"Well, off you go. I'll be in touch"
"Wait. How will my 'carers' know I'm here?"
"Don't worry, Shae. You're here on government business and they completely accept that"
"Government business?"
"Yep. Off you go" he said, nearly pushing me through the door.
I walked into a posh looking room, which resembled the layout of a hotel lobby slightly. There were four lifts at the end of the room which had a couple of kids, some older, some younger, queuing up besides them. Aralyn was one of them. I walked over to her and stood behind.
"Hi" she said, not even turning round to face me.
"Hi" I said back "Look, I'm sorry about what I said before"
"its ok. Forgiven" She finally turned "I'll lead you to your room" I nodded at this gesture and she turned back round.
I studied the kid in front of her. He was tall, but not massive, and he carried a couple of books in his hands. His hair was jet black and draped over his eyes, which made him look like one of those gothic people who always do depressing things and act depressed all the time. Not very fun to be around, but you can't judge a book by its cover.
/Clear. Clear. Clear. Clear/
was what he was thinking about. He was obviously a mind reader too. I looked at the girl in front of him.
/Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty/
and the girl in front of her.
/Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing/
"Hey" I tapped Aralyn on the shoulder and she turned around promptly "What can you hear coming from thoughts?"
"Nothing. I told you..."
"No, I can hear the word 'Blank' coming from you. Him" I said pointing at the Goth guy "I can hear the word 'Clear', and her I can hear the word 'Nothing'. What can you hear from mine?" Aralyn looked at me, her face vacant with no expressions. Then there was a hint of sympathy coming from her and I screwed up my face in thought.
"What?" I said and she turned fully around to face me.
"I can hear" she started in a whisper "the word 'shadow'" she looked down, away from my eyes.
"What does that mean?"
"Shae, don't worry too much. But, it's meant to be a bad omen"
"A bad omen? What will happen to me" I said and she hesitated for a moment and then smiled one of her 'sympathy' smiles "Nothing. Nothing at all"
"For some reason I don't believe you" I said and she hesitated, before she turned around "There is only one other guy in this whole establishment with the word 'Shadow' coming from him Thoughts. You need to keep away from him, Shae. He isn't very..." she paused "Healthy".
"Healthy? Does he have an illness?"
"No, Shae. I mean he is... Mentally unhealthy"
"Oh" The Goth guy was staring at me, and so was the girl in front of him, and the girl in front of her.
"The Shadow" he said, and my heart skipped a beat.
"Sorry, what mate?"
"The shadow"
/Clear. Clear. Clear. Clear/
"The shadow" I whispered back "What does it mean?"
"The shadow" was all he said in reply.