by Erin Rickman
“What have they done to you?” he whispered angrily.
Suddenly a loud crash erupted, the smell of smoke suffocated me, yet I couldn’t cough, couldn’t react. I felt the room-temperature rise and heard whoever was carrying me hacking and spluttering.
“Atlas, we have to leave now, or we’re in serious trouble. Near-death experience for a girl.” A scoff ensued.
“You and I both know she’s not just a girl, at least not now, so shut it and get us out of here.”
✽✽✽
“Please wake up,” a slurred voice begged.
Slowly, I opened my eyes, my head pounding. I coughed feeling the soot in my lungs. It was heavy. I looked around and realised we were in a warehouse. I heard the faint sound of a water leak, dripping onto the hard concrete floor at a steady rate. Vandals must have smashed the windows in the past, and I could hear the whistle of the wind. It was dark outside. The long-time abandoned warehouse was mainly empty apart from a few sets of pallets and some large crates, both of which were rotting.
A blonde girl sat atop of some pallets, a blank look on her face as she stared outwards. Her deep, honey-coloured eyes were sad, empty. Next to her sat a Japanese boy, his hand on her leg as he stared intensely at the side of the girl's face. He looked a few years older than her, but both of them must have been in their mid to late twenties. Stood next to them was a blond man who looked no older than thirty; he was tall and muscular. I noticed a smell; it was familiar and came to realise I was in someone’s arms. I looked up at him while he stared down. His hair was jet black, green eyes with a brown birthmark in one, he wore a look of relief on his face.
“Blaire, oh god, I’m so glad you’re alive,” His voice expressed grave concern.
I slowly sat; the boy’s hands remained touching me for support while I moved. The floor was cold, hard. The boy with jet black hair seemed familiar, but I can’t put my finger on where I had seen him before.
“What’s happened? Where am I? Do I know you?” I asked.
His head snapped towards the blond boy, who walked over. He crouched, took my chin in his hand and moved my head from side to side, staring intensely in my eyes.
“What are you doing?” I asked, confused.
“Just as I thought, it appears your companion has sustained a brain injury.”
“Brain injury?” the boy with jet black hair and I asked in unison.
“Indeed,” the blond man confirmed, standing up. “I would not worry; she will heal quickly enough.”
I attempted to stand by myself, but it was difficult. The boy with the jet black hair realised this, and aided me in positioning myself upright, he bore the weight of my body in the process. I gently stepped away from him, needing to stand on my own.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“You are just as bad in person for an inquisition as you are through the conscious mind,” the blond man mumbled, walking towards the entrance of the warehouse.
“We’re at a warehouse, about five minutes away from the lab. We need to get moving,” the man standing next to me clarifed.
“No,” I shook my head. “I have no idea who you all are, I need to go home, speak to Jai, my mother and father,” I explained, starting to walk away.
“Blaire, stop!” the boy with jet black hair yelled. “You’re not with Jai, you split up, and your family…” he trailed off, attempting to formulate a sentence. “They’re, they’re in a bit of a predicament right now.”
“That’s not true, Jai and I would never split up. He’s my soulmate,” I snapped, angry at the thought that someone knew my relationship better than I did.
The boy with jet black hair stepped back as if he had just been punched in the stomach, hurt across his features. At that, the Japanese boy walked over to him, placed a hand on his shoulder and gently walked him to the pallets.
I looked down, noticing the deep blue veins. Faint memories started to arise—a man in a white coat injecting me moments before the building collapsed. I wanted to ask what had happened and why my veins were blue but I felt like I knew the answer. Before I had the chance to question further, someone spoke.
“We must leave with haste, do you know somewhere safe we can travel to?” the blond man said, approaching the group again.
The room was silent for a minute. Other than my home and Jai’s house, which the dark-haired boy protested against, I had nowhere safe to go. So I stayed silent, waiting for someone else to answer. I wasn’t sure if I should trust the adults that stood before me, but I felt compelled to do so.
So I waited until the boy with black hair spoke up. “I know somewhere.”
At that, the blond man nodded. The boy with jet black hair walked past me, not paying much attention. I watched as the Japanese boy took the blonde girl by the arm, pulling her off of the pallets; she walked with him, but her movements were slow and clunky. I had the choice to follow them or make a break for it, but being dazed, confused and alone was not safe, so I decided to follow. I didn’t have any memory of what my recent past held but—given the groups identical clothing—I figured I did not go through it alone.
✽✽✽
We walked up a long road in silence—the boy with jet black hair leading the way. I wondered if now was an appropriate time to appease my need to clarify what was going on. The blonde girl was in no state to talk, the Japanese guy was staring me down in displeasure, the blond guy was just weird, so I settled on walking forward to the front.
“You didn’t answer all of my questions earlier,” I started. “Who are you?”
He side-eyed me before taking a deep breath. “I’m Atlas. You seriously don’t remember me? Like anything about me?”
I shrugged, smiling apologetically. “No, sorry. The last thing I remember was getting a coffee with Jai after an argument with my mother. Though, that was a regular occurrence.” I paused, looking at my arm. “Do you know what this is?”
I slowly raised my arm, showing it to him. “Shit,” he mumbled, “A-jax, what do you think about this?”
We stopped in our tracks; the blond man—A-jax - walked forward. He inspected my arm and spoke. “She has adapted previously, the dangerous part is over. It may just enhance the pre-existing abilities.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked, confused. “What abilities?”
“What would you say if I told you that we were now uh… together, and you were telepathic?”
A small laugh escaped my lips as I withdrew my arm from his grasp. “That you were funny and extremely insane. Telepathy doesn’t exist.” I hesitated, watching the amused smile form on his face. “Look, I’ve been with Jai for years, and I think it’s adorable you’re trying to make a move on me but…”
“When your memory returns, you are going to feel like such a twat,” he jibed. “I spent months trying to woo you, B, and I’ll do it all again if I have too.”
I glanced at him and realised he was determined; something about his words almost made me believe him. His smile was faint but hopeful. I wasn’t sure what he had to be optimistic about mind you. I knew who I was in a relationship with, and it wasn’t him. I had no doubt we knew each other, but I felt he might have been stretching the truth. Regardless of what I thought I knew my body was telling me different, I had the strong urge to remain close to him. It was almost as if his comfort was like a drug, I hadn’t had it for a while and being near him triggered a craving that I couldn’t fight. I wondered why it mattered so much, was he correct in that we were ‘together’? I was becoming frustrated at the thought that these people had a wealth of knowledge on me, but I knew nothing of them.
Eventually, we arrived in a woodland area. I was sure I had never been here before. However, the surroundings, like the people, seemed familiar. I watched Atlas closely, studying his features. He was incredibly handsome and confident, but he looked tired. He was worn out, in need of a good night's sleep. I glanced at the other members of the group and came to think they all looked exhausted, and I certainly
felt it.
We made our way through the woodland, and after what felt like forever, we arrived at a secluded pond. It was beautiful, the bluebells, wild garlic, large willow and sounds of frogs and crickets left me feeling calm. I sat up against a large oak tree, closing my eyes.
‘You have to speed up her recovery, A-jax.’ Atlas’ voice floated towards me, evidently they were whispering about me.
‘You would risk sending her into shock? I do not disagree that she needs her memories returned if we are to move on shortly. However, humans and trauma is not a desirable combination; do you want a repeat of your blonde companion’s state?’ A-jax questioned.
‘No, but I want to give her the option to say good-bye. You know what she has been through and we are not safe here.’
‘That is precisely why this is not ethical. You are going to put Blaire through all the pain of your capture in seconds.’
“Instead of whispering about me, you could just ask me what I want,” I mumbled, opening my eyes.
They were standing next to each other by the bank of the pond, staring out at it. The other two had settled around the side near the bluebells, already deep in slumber. The two males turned to face me.
“I do not think my aid is appropriate; your memories will return in droplets as you recover,” A-jax explained. “You may not remember what you have been through, but your companions’ composition is indicative that it was not an easy process. Do you want this to belabour you all at once?”
“I want to know what on earth is going on,” I stressed. “If you can do that for me, I want it.”
A-jax looked to Atlas who gestured for him to walk towards me. A-jax eyebrows furrowed, his eyes glowing an electric purple. I watched as he raised his hands, the purple energy pulsating around them, akin to the colour in his eyes. I went to scuttle backwards, taken back by
the situation, but all too quickly, he placed his first two fingers on each hand on my temples, and it all came back, hard and fast.
I watched as each memory flashed through my head: Maze was missing; Hector’s disappearance, illness and death; Atlas’ conspiracy; the capture; the injections; my mother; the abilities; my abilities. Everything went black.
✽✽✽
I woke to the sounds of birds chirping and the bright orange glow of the morning sun. It was extremely bitter, my breaths making light clouds as I opened my eyes. I was surprised to find that, at some point throughout the night, I had curled into Atlas’ arms.
I pulled away and sat up. I relived the memories of the past forty-eight hours. I expected to scream or cry, but instead, I felt nothing. Hector and my mother were gone, and all of it was due to the devil in the lab coat. I couldn’t help but think that, if I hadn’t followed Atlas’ plan, I would at least still have my mother. Why did I indulge in his childish games? Why did I get stuck into his wormhole? If I had never let myself fall for him, then I might have been more resistant to his ridiculous charms. It angered me, how he could control my actions without even realising it. It took us down a path of self destruct, and because of him, I no longer had my mother.
“Morning,” his voice came from beside me, it was soft and gentle, “how are you feeling today?”
My head snapped towards him. “How am I feeling? Why did you get A-jax to give me my memories back?”
“You wanted them back,” he countered defensively. “Don’t put this on me.”
“No Atlas, I am putting it on you. I was happier before I remembered everything; all I feel now is anger. You got jealous hearing me talk about Jai and couldn’t stand it, so you brought me back to a world where I was with you while my mother and Hector were dead. Why couldn’t you let me be happier for a little longer? I was dazed and confused—you should have ignored what I wanted.” My blood began to boil so much I no longer felt the cold, just the heat radiating off of my cheeks.
I stood and started to storm away towards the exit of the woods. I heard the crunch of leaves and twigs as he ran after me. Quickly, he grabbed my elbow and spun me around.
“I was trying to do what was best for you!” he snapped. “So I made the wrong choice.”
“To right you did, you weren’t thinking about me at all, you were thinking about yourself. You seem to always make bad choices, just like when you chose to convince me to follow you into your fucking wormhole. If I hadn’t, then my mother would still be alive.”
“Yeah?” Atlas snapped. “I am not the one who slit her damn throat, Blaire!”
“No, you’re not the one who literally performed it, but it may have well been you who did it.” Anger filled my every pore and drove the tears that rolled down my cheeks.
Atlas’ eyes were wide, shining with infuriation. “You didn’t have to follow me! We might have all been dead if things were different. They grabbed Kenji just because he was friends with us, even if you didn’t help me that night they still would have come for you and your mother would still be dead. Van Wick did this, not me so don’t you even think about misplacing your anger when I am trying to support you.”
“Supporting me by making me remember about all of this? I don’t want your damn support. I wish I never met you,” I seethed acerbically. I couldn’t help it, the pain was crippling me.
I started to storm away, no longer wanting to be in close radius with Atlas and he let me. I needed to go home, collect my belongings and get out of here. I couldn’t stay in this city, but equally, right now I couldn’t stay with him. In my anger, I meant every word I said. The old me would say my words were laced with malice, uncalled for and a way to direct the grief, but I wasn’t that me anymore. Frankly, I didn’t think I would ever be that me again. I knew I was being unfair, but the emotions all came at once. I needed someone to blame. Atlas was one of the only close people I had left, so he seemed like the easiest choice. It didn’t seem fair, however, as I had learnt recently, life often isn’t fair.
Chapter Twenty
4th December 2024
I spent the day storming around the woods. Walking around as someone who was ‘dead’, in broad daylight, in a busy city, would not have been a good move. Plus, if word got back to Van Wick, who knew how long it would be before we were in his grasp… Again. I vowed that the next time I would see that man would be when I brought him to his end. Additionally, I had to decide how I was going to approach collecting my belongings. Would I speak to my father? Would I let him think I was dead? Would I tell him about my mother? In the end, I had decided to wait until night to go home—I would do what felt right at the time. It’s not every day your child returns from the dead, so this was a situation in which I couldn’t preplan a conversation.
I stood outside my home, and a pit of dread filled my stomach. I saw the living room light was on, so he was home. I wasn’t sure how long I stood there for, but it felt like forever while I mustered up the courage to face him.
‘Where are you?’ I was startled by A-jax.
‘If we are leaving, I need to get some things.’
I marvelled at how accessible his telepathic abilities were when he communicated with me from miles away; he did it with ease while I struggled much more to return an answer. Maybe one day I would be able to project a thought for miles, though I doubt it would be any time in the near future.
‘You need to be careful; you may put your farther in danger—’
‘I appreciate it A-jax, but I need to do this on my own, I will meet you in the woods in a few hours, alright?’
At that, I shut down the connection and took in a deep breath. I had to be quick; the longer I was, the longer everyone was sitting ducks. I was sure A-jax would like to find a way home sometime this decade. I walked up the path and stood at my door. I took another deep breath, the adrenaline running wild and knocked.
The seconds felt like hours, but eventually, the door swung open. I watched as the glass of red wine fell from my father’s hands, smashing on the marbled floor below.
We stared at each other while the sound rang in our
ears. Finally, I pushed past him as he stood frozen in place. I waited for him to turn and give me some form of attention, but my eyes just burnt into the back of his head. Eventually, he took a step forward, looking around outside. I could sense what he thought, which was that, if I had come back from the dead, then my mother might have too. It pained me to watch him yearn for her, so I gently placed my hand on his shoulder, pulled him back and closed the door.
“Hi, Father,” I mumbled, nervous.
Slowly, he turned to face me. He looked me up and down, his eyes shimmering but sad and empty. I knew he was trying to convince himself that I was real and not a figure of his imagination. He took a step forward and finally engulfed me in a hug; it was a tight hug, as if he never wanted to let go again. We both cried, sobbed even. It felt so good to hug him, see him again, but it was eerie knowing my mother was not here to do the same.
His thoughts raced, wondering how I was here and why. Regardless, his relief that I stood in front of him was overwhelming. I knew because I could feel this, and it was overcoming me.