Misery Saves the Night

by Brittany Allen

  Clink. The squeaky voiced man’s wife heard a shuffle in the darkness by the door.

  “Move!” Daouen’s hands glowed bright red. “What do you think you are doing here? Were the rumors true?”

  Ian did not answer. “And you are going against orders!” His hands trembled. He gave a glance back at Recarie just as she was getting up.

  Stumbling to her feet, the person who stood was different from the girl who had fallen. Recarie was all there consciously, but her mindset was different. Her eyes squinted and hands fell to her sides with her fist balled. She was pissed and would not let anyone push her around.

  In front of her, Ian performed the same actions before he went sailing towards Daouen. It was not the doing of his own will, but of hers. Recarie had complete control of Ian.

  “Son of a…” Daouen dashed to the side before his commanding officer could land a green pulsing hand on him. He knew what that green glow meant among the psychics and would not fall to it. “You will die for this!”

  Out in the crowd Gillian, Lioel, Armen, and their crew joined the villagers. Even though they could break up the fight, it was not part of any of their orders and so they knew that they could only watch on as their superior committed treason.

  “Is the crowd still under control?” Lioel asked his teammates.

  “All that and more.” Armen cracked a rare joke.

  “Looks like we are all good on this part.” Gillian sat on the fountain and watched the two males fight it out.

  Not far from Ian was Recarie making her puppet dance. She dodged to the left and Daouen’s rope took out the left side of the town’s clock tower. The other half fell behind her, leaving dust to fill its void. For a brief moment she could feel Daouen get distracted and took that chance to make her escape and it came not a moment too soon either.

  In the air, Recarie glided with the wind. On the ground behind her, Ian followed. Zooming through the woods outside of town, he did not have power over his body and that meant not being able to dodge the numerous trees he collided with. It was only because Recarie was sending her power through him that Ian was not seriously injured.

  In the tunnels beneath Farous, the island accented woman crossed their hideouts room. By the door she reached out her hand and grabbed a body.

  “Bring him into the light.” The other woman instructed. She had seen him once before.

  “And what do we have here?” Trey took the dark black haired boy from her. “You know what we have to do to you know, don’t you boy?”

  Hidden in the cloaks, the other four laughed and the boy starred the Hunter dead in his eyes. He did not bother with the other members or whoever they were.

  “Some nerve you got there.” He set the boy down. “Maybe instead of killing you, now that you know my identity and all, we can strike a little deal with you.”

  Tory dusted off his hoodie and jeans. “Can you help her?” His voice stern and serious even his he looked like a puppy dangling from its mother’s mouth.

  Everyone stared wide eyed at their capture. They were certainly not expecting him to volunteer with so little coercion.

  “We cannot interfere with Recarie’s life at this point boy, but you can.” The squeaky voiced man scratched his nose allowing Tory to see a wedding ring on his ring finger.

  Tory stepped right in front of the cauldron and watched as Daouen sank back as villagers grabbed him. Through all of the commotion, Armen and Lioel had been knocked unconscious by stray debris. Villagers were freed from their trance and attacking Daouen leaving Recarie to escape. They had recognized the boy as NSSH scum and would not allow his actions to go unpunished.

  This was one thing Trey and the others were not expecting. If anything they had expected Recarie to kill him or at the least, permanently disable him from using his abilities. They gathered in a circle and began chattering inaudibly for Tory to hear. He could pick certain words out of their conversation and did not like any of them.

  “Shut up!” The room shook. Tory rushed Trey. “Just tell me what to do?”

  “And what makes you so sure you can do anything?” The third woman in the room leaned over to look him in the face, leaving him still unable to see hers.

  “Yeah.” The couple joined the woman. “Just who the hell do you think you are?”

  Not taking their taunts, Tory backed up allowing them to see all of him. “I am who I am and it was you who said that I might be able to save Recarie so tell me,” his fists trembled. “What do I have to do?”

  Trey and the other exchanged smiles. This was indeed the boy they needed.

  Above ground on in the town square Farous Police Authorities were arriving on the scene. The NSSH officers were no match for their abilities. In comparison, the NSSH lieutenants were novices. Only their psychic abilities surpassed that of the FPA, but no one there had that ability. Though poor attempts to flee from the FPA were made, a portion, very small portion of Farians pitied the officers as they were chased, brutally battered, and detained for processing through their courts.

  A second team of FPA officers went into the woods after Ian and Recarie. Since not one of the villagers could give an account of what had happened that night before they came to. It was all the same story of waking up in the time square and ‘that’ boy was attacking ‘that’ man being used like a puppet by ‘that’ girl.

  Back in Disten, the remaining surviving NSSH higher ups, were getting ready for a press conference on the steps of their headquarters. Personnel scrambled all over the building, shredding any document that may be linked in a negative way to Farous. Anyone who may have heard of the Farous operation had their minds wiped clean from one year previous, to that day. All of this was done on the orders of Temthaw Vene. His orders were absolute.

  “Thirteen hours ago, a disturbance occurred on Farous soil. That very same soil that we had taken an oath to never step foot on without Farian law permitting us to such.” The older gentleman behind the podium, Temthaw Vene, owner and top officer of the NSSH, wiped the sweat the formed in great beads on his forehead. “The two dozen officers that caused the incident yesterday were acting alone on not on word given out by this organization. We are personably taking responsibility for it and are offering a hand a friendship out to our neighbors across the waters. We want to rebuild your town and guarantee that all those who were involved, including our former commander and lieutenants, will be brought to justice with punishments deemed fit for those found guilty of these crimes.”

  His speech continued, but by then Gillian had turned away from the television in a strangers home she had found. The owners of the house were out screaming their outrage at the NSSH government. Her brilliant hair was now charred and shortened to just below her shoulders. Though that was the very least of her worries. Along with the severed finger of hers that she held with her four fingered hand, Gillian was now one of the five most wanted people in Farous and she was all alone.” Flames emitted all over her body, but she kept the length down to a minimum so she didn’t accidentally set the house of fire.

  “I have given my life to these bastards. I have even killed on their orders never questioning the innocence of the target…” Her flame went out and died. “All for nothing. They turned on all of us without a second thought.” She sank to the floor in a crouch. “What am I going to do?”

  Morning was coming soon and Gillian knew it wouldn’t be long before she had to move on. Everything seemed hopeless. With her head buried in her arms, Gillian pondered what her next move was going to be. A single tear fell from the corner of her eye. Through everything, she was still too proud to cry properly.

  In the sky, the sun was rising and Recarie was fading out of consciousness with her influence over Ian still going strong. Stars sparkled like diamonds as the sky turned a soft blue. Recarie liked staring at stars and feeling the morning breeze against her soiled skin.

  “Hm.” Her head rolled side to side enjoying the sensation. She smiled before passing out several hundred feet a
bout land.

  Ducking beneath tree branches, Ian could only keep moving forward as that is where he was pulled. It was still dark from where he was and a comforting wind blew past him. In the blink of an eye, Ian’s heart lurched and he went running forward. He could feel it, she was getting closer. Bending his right leg first and pushing off of the ground with his left, Ian leapt several feet in the air. He kept his arms spread out in front of him, ready to catch the falling girl above him.

  Recarie floated gently in his arms and Ian feel slowly back to the ground. Back on the ground he wanted to throw her on the ground and leave her there, but he was still under her power. Ian propped her head on a soft patch of grass as he leaned his back up against a hollowed log.

  “How did this happen?” Several hours before, Ian had had a job, a home, and a fiancée, but in a flash of poor decisions, he was now wanted by the FPA. He had seen the television broadcasts through the windows of empty homes. Ian was all too aware of what was happening in the world around him.

  “I was foolish to…” His eyes, cold, confused honest eyes, looked at Recarie. “Oh gawd, all I have lost!” He lost it all over one girl. “Was she even worth it?”

  Now that Ian was there, with the girl he had thought about for so many months. They were alone and he could be with her as long as he wanted. So many nights had he secretly wished for this, but now he wanted his life back. He wrapped his shaking fingers with locks of his greasy hair.

  “How could I do this?!” Everything was so different and to Ian, different meant wrong. He loved his fiancée, didn’t he? And the organization he worked for and the house he lived in and the woman he lived there with. It all now seemed impossible and it was all Recarie’s fault.

  “Ugh!” The pain began to take over and Ian rolled into a ball on the ground grunting through each sharp stab.

  Above his knees he caught a glimpse of a golden ray of light. It was coming from Recarie. She was healing and coming back to consciousness. Everything was blurry at first to her, but she could hear Ian’s wails loud and clear.

  “Oh!” Without a second thought, Recarie went to his side. There he was again, the man who had saved her life. “Here.” She went to put one hand under his back to sat him up right.

  “Don’t!” Ian snapped. The last thing he wanted at that moment was to have her hands on him.

  Recarie flinched. The first word he had said to her in almost four months was not of admiration. That one word was of hate, anger, and disgust. Her mind went blank. This was not what she expected their reunion to be.

  Her eyes began to sting and then tears built up. All breath escaped her body and her heart raced. This was not how she imagined it all to be. She dug her fingers into the dirt as she gasped for breath. In a situation like this, there was only one thing Recarie knew to do. So, forgetting her troubles, or at least trying to, Recarie got up and ran.

  What Recarie did not count on was Ian following. After dashing through half a mile of open fields, she sensed Ian still on her trail. She slowed and stopped. There it was, with a hand on her heart, she felt it.

  Ian was thrown into tree after tree as Recarie fled. He was sure that a tooth or two had been lost and the last tree limb he smashed into left splinters all throughout his body. His speed slowed as he saw the trees thinning and the mountains in the distance appearing.

  Now Ian could walk a normal pace. The woods ended and he stood atop a hill, but not alone. Glistening mauve hair flowed with the breeze. He heard her cries and felt the tears drip down her face. Her pain was now his pain. Any emotion she was experiencing, Ian felt it too and it didn’t feel good.

  Soft blades of grass crushed beneath his bare feet. Recarie knew he approached, but did not care about it anymore. The mountains in the distance were all she wanted to focus on. Ian approached, all his rage and anger pent up was just ready to give the girl who had ruined his life a good what-for. Inches behind her, Ian was ready to get it all out.

  His heart fell too as he got a wave of what Recarie was feeling. They were both experiencing the same emotions. Fear, confusion, hurt, and all the others that came with their situation. He sat next to Recarie and looked at her, not saying a word.

  The hill took a steep dive and their legs were able to hang in the air. Taking several deep breaths, Ian tried to clear his mind. All he wanted was a little clarity. Recarie needed a couple of seconds to realize that his eyes were on her. She wiped the tears and mucus from her face before lifting her head and staring at his.

  He tilted his head and smiled then turned his attention back to the snowcapped mountains before them. She watched his short hair wave in the wind. Recarie had not expected him to be smiling after the way he had reacted to her attempts to help him. At all one moment she got it. Recarie stopped sniffling and crying. Now all she wanted to do was look out into the valley below and forget about her worries for a while.

  “He, he.” She laughed bringing her hand to her lips.

  Ian looked over and watched the girl smile. Feeling like a weight had been lifted off him, he joined her. They laughed together. Completely without a reason, they laughed anyways.

  In Farous, the FPA was having a meeting to decide whether what the NSSH was telling the true or not.

  “Our representatives that were sent to Disten found no traces of those men and women’s supposed mission.” A woman in a white polyester coat and slacks stood before a table of other FPA members. “Our Psychics, our best Psychics, scanned the minds of the entire building and the computer hard drives.”

  “Nothing?” A younger woman in the same uniform stood and the other took her seat. “That is too perfect. Too… Too clean.” Taking her seat a man stood wearing the same standard issue FPA uniform, but his had less medals on it.

  “But we gave our full investigation in to this time sensitive issue. I recommend that we give the accused back to the NSSH and accept the olive branch.” Taking his seat, no one else stood to speak.

  “Let them aide in rebuilding the damage their associates and that girl did to our town and we will give them back their traitors. In the process we will build a new relationship with them to advance both of our societies.” At the head of the table, a gray haired woman said what they all were thinking. “Any objections?” More of a threat than a question. “Good, then let it be done.”

  Across the water in Disten, they prepared to meet on neutral grounds for the prisoners return. Back in Farous, the prisoners were led out of their white padded rooms and into a dingy operating room.

  “This will only take a moment and before you know it, you’ll be back in Disten.” The man in charge hissed the ‘is’ in Disten.

  Still carrying her severed finger, Gillian huddled in the bushes like a squirrel staring at a clinic. She had yet to decide whether or not to go in and have here finger reattached. That meant a possibility of being noticed and arrested. The noon sun beat down on her back and sweat dripped into her eyes.

  “I don’t know how much more of this I can take.” And in the next moment, she staggered to her feet and headed for the hospital. In front of the hospital was a nurse who screamed for stretcher as soon as she saw the battered and bleeding Gillian. Her skin tingled, something was happening. Before passing out, Gillian saw two hooded figures hiding in the exact spot she had just come from.

  “We need to get this man to the third floor! He’s lost a lot of blood.” The nurse had been referring to Gillian.

  “But I’m not a…” And the sedative had kicked in.

  “Shush now, lovely.” One of the nurses at her side brushed her cheek gently. “You’ll be just fine.” He left her as she was taken into room seven of floor three. “At least I hope so.”

  Hours had passed by and Recarie was getting drowsy. It was nice and peaceful where she sat with Ian, but that peace had made her a tad bit tired. She was afraid of getting up. If she did, she feared the moment would disappear. The moment she had wanted for months.

  “Um.” She cleared her throat so that maybe,
just maybe, he would start the conversation. Recarie knew it was going to be awkward and embarrassing, but she was going to be honest and let it all out in the open.

  “So…” When Ian had failed to start things off, Recarie jumped in. “Hi. My name is Recarie.” She reached out her hand, but Ian did not shake it. After a moment of silence, she was beginning to wonder if Ian would speak to her at all. “But you already knew that… Yeah…” Only the blowing wind responded. “Eh. You know there is really nothing else I can bring up in a situation like this. A little input from you might be nice here.”

  “What am I supposed to say?” He was kind with his words and tone.

  “For real.” Recarie stood. “Of all the things I want to say, I will tell you this: I am not sticking around here for those NSSH goons, no offence or maybe, yeah to hell with what you think, to come and get me.” Recarie stood. “If you excuse me, I am off.”

  “Where are you going?” Ian was standing behind her.

  “Excuse me for not trusting you and all, but that is a secret.” The sound of her invisible wings fluttered in the wind.

  “Not like I just did not save your life back there.” Ian was still calm, showing very little emotion. For some reason those words seemed to freeze her in her spot. Recarie’s blood boiled and her face turned red. “And whether you intended to or not, you have made me your puppet.” Now his rage showed. “I have lost my job and life because of it.” Ian stepped to her closer. “So I think the least you can do for me is tell me where you are going, because whether I like it or not, I have to follow you.”

  Recarie started off in the direction she was facing. “I don’t even know what happened back there. He was my friend and I thought… Well, forget him!”

  “But you saw me back at the café you were working at…” He blushed and even if he could not see Recarie’s face, she was blushing.

  “And you knew that was me and did not alert the NSSH immediately?” They headed down the hill together.

  “Ha, ha, ha, ha.” They laughed together sliding down the hill. The grass was glossy and they let their arms fly behind them.