Subject Seventeen: Wraith Among Shadows
Chapter 2

I slowly come to my senses whilst drifting in and out of consciousness. It feels like I’ve been asleep for a while. There’s a faint but distinct ringing sound in my head that eventually fades away. Now that I’m awake, I immediately try to figure out where I am.

I’m sitting down on a bed with silk sheets, bright pink in colour. The head is made of oak, light and designed to look like a gate with miniature cupids on each side of it, each baby holding what appears to be a trumpet to their mouths. I look around the room and take notice of all the details I can. The floor has been covered with a red carpet, dark and bearing an incredible resemblance to blood. For a moment I nearly fool myself into believing it smells like it also. There is a small white table in the corner of the room. Looking more closely, I notice that it's square shaped and remarkably white, similar to the colour of the wall.

I shakily get to my feet and head for the door. I stumble a few times, my feet feeling like jelly. After I’m able to steady myself I reach the door, which like the wall is remarkably white yet has no handle. Regardless, the door opens.

I walk out into an oval shaped room which – yet again – is all white from head to toe. The colour is beginning to make me feel nauseous. I can’t seem to remember how I got here or where ‘here’ is. In fact, I can’t remember anything at all. The more I try to force myself to remember anything the more my head hurts, forcing me to cry out in pain whilst clutching my head.

I realise that it is best not to think about it. I turn and examine the wide expanse of the room but it takes me a while to notice the door has gone. It doesn’t seem like there is an exit so I sit down cross-legged; something tells me if I wait long enough then something is sure to happen. Or maybe that's just me being lazy.

A panel in the wall slides over the next panel, and it does the same onto another panel until several panels have folded over each other to reveal a small archway. Through the archway I can see two dark silhouettes approaching. I squint to try and get a better look. The silhouettes gradually draw closer and eventually their faces become visible. The first face I acknowledge is that of a tall lean boy, pale in complexion. He wears rectangle shaped glasses which define his deep green eyes - which somehow seem to have lost its passion or soul - lifeless even. A few small freckles dot his cheeks with a freckle that's decided to be a rebel decorating his face just a little above the left corner of his lips. His brown hair falls to a couple of inches above his shoulders but most of it is tied back into a short ponytail. By his side is a nimble girl with flowing raven black hair which reaches all the way down to the base of her back. Her dark hair whips all around her as she walks towards me, her short black skirt flowing against the slight air resistance. I catch a glimpse of some shorts underneath the skirt and quickly avert my gaze.

The girl clutches a long sword in her left hand – a katana. The hilt seems to be decorated with patterns of hieroglyphics, coloured with gold and silver, whilst the scabbard or sheath is the purest black I’ve ever seen. The boy pushes up his glasses before bringing out two pistols from behind his back and taking off the safety. I somehow recognise them as M1911 A5 automatic pistols. Wait, how do I know that?

I don’t know why I’m still sitting down and casually watching them as they draw closer. The panels which opened before close; it must be some sort of automated door.

“I’m Three,” the girl says. She gestures to the boy next to her. “This is Nine.”

“Hi,” I reply. “Where am I?”

“It’s a long story,” Three replies. “But you’ll come to remember in due time.”

I stare at them warily and jump to my feet once I see Nine pointing his gun at me.

“We’re going to begin your training now,” Three says. “Are you ready?”

I stare at the Three as if she’s insane. Maybe she is insane I think. I look around me searching for a way to escape. It’s a while before I realise there is no way to escape. What startles me is that although I’m looking for a way to escape, I’m not actually afraid. I mean, who would just stand there when someone points a gun at you?

“What training? Where is this place? Who are you? What do you want?”

I ramble off a few more questions that I know are pointless, just trying to buy time while a think of a strategy. Nine and Three just stare at me, almost as if they’re bored, as if they've been in this situation quite a few times. They glance at each other, as if sharing thoughts of pity or boredom, however that moment is all I need.

I dash straight for them, covering the twenty metre gap in a space of a few seconds; to my surprise. Just as the girl turns in surprise I whack the gun out of her hand and in my haste continue on to push Nine onto the floor. The girl is already reaching to pull out her sword. I don’t wait to find out what will happen when she does and immediately sprint in the direction of the wall from which they emerged.

Just as I’m nearing the wall the girl suddenly appears in cloud of black smoke and swings her sword at me in a wide arc. I stop abruptly and roll to the left. What in God’s name just happened?

I turn just in time to see Nine raise both his guns and start shooting at me. I do the only thing I can and run. One bullet just grazes the back of my neck and the pain sends me hurtling to the floor. I realise that they're only rubber bullets but they hurt a bit. I scream out in pain, backing away till I feel my back against the wall, however the pain disappears almost just as soon as it appeared. Three suddenly appears before me in that same black smoke, narrowing her dark eyes at me. She lifts her gun at me and fires.

But nothing happens. I felt the bullet hit me square on but I didn't experience the pain that comes along with it. I don’t know what’s going on, but deep inside me I feel something stirring, and suddenly I’m no longer in control of my own body. I raise my hands and the gun in Three’s hand vanishes completely; as if it was broken down bit by bit in a pit of acid. All around me I can see millions, no perhaps even billions of tiny things. All slightly different from its neighbour in colour or size or shape. Many are even bonded together like DNA molecules or what I identify as atoms, linked together by what seems to be strings. I try to get a better look on them, but my attention is drawn back to my attackers.

Three jumps back, her eyes opening widely in surprise. Nine makes a movement with his hand and I’m jerked forward, flying in his direction. Instinctively I rotate my arms in front of me and a group of the strings bunch together, weaving together in a strange form at tremendous speed. I put my hands together and fling them open. The result is a high energy pulse which blows everyone back – as if I had reflected the force Nine had just used on me but on a much larger scale. Nine is sent flying into the ceiling at the other end of the room, leaving a small crack in it. The force generated must have been immense considering the strength and distance he flew. The room must be at least a little over half a dozen miles in length, and it's oval shaped meaning going all the way around must take ages.

Three on the other hand has teleported to my blind spot, but somehow I can sense her – like some sort of sixth sense. Once again my body instinctively reacts, and I’m suddenly behind her, as if I had teleported myself. The strings around me move slowly, developing a pattern that begins to feel a little more natural. Exhaling my breath, I will the strings to circle, and to my surprise they move around in a pattern both strange and familiar to me. What I don’t expect is the sudden lack of air in the room and more surprisingly, the gravity in the room reverses completely. I’m still unsure as to whether I did that or not, but if so it’s as if I can control everything around me to its core. Three rises and hits the ceiling, dropping her sword and clutching her throat for breath, trying desperately to breathe.

I try with all my might to stop myself. Whatever I assume is my instinct that is controlling me is overpowering my senses gradually, but I fight back and force myself to gain control, a feat in itself. Three drops to the floor, seemingly grateful to be able to breathe again. Her chest heaves up and down as she pulls herself up to a sitting position, leaning on her hands. She gives me a strange look – one of confusion I would guess – before saying:

“The hell?”

I drop to my knees as whatever power I felt I possessed dissipates and leaves me panting. Sweat trickles off my brow.

Nine is already back to his feet despite the stream of blood trickling down his face. His face is full of rage. I can see the blood rushing to his face as he glares at me intently, which is hilarious because it only seems to make more blood flow out of the wound on his forehead. I know that I will die if I don’t move, but that’s just the problem. I can’t move.

I struggle in vain and will my body to move. Get out the way. Run. Run. Nine only draws closer, eyeing me with a look that could move mountains. That’s strange. I think the words over and over. How strange is it that even though I’m in what I assume to be a life-threatening situation, I’m not afraid.

Rather than try to make sense of my thoughts I decide to focus on moving. My body finally responds to my will, though not as fast as I would have liked. Just as I rise to my feet Nine is already pointing his gun at me at point blank range. It’s over. It takes me a second to remember they're only rubber bullets and relax.

Just as I expected, the bullet doesn’t come.

Instead Nine holsters the gun and pushes his glasses up against his nose.

“Well…” he begins, his voice is husky and he's clearly short of breath. “You pass I guess.”

“Excuse me?” I ask.

“I can see why he’s important now…” Three says, seemingly wary of me. She turns to Nine. “He not only stopped me using my powers, he literally copied them.”

“This could pose quite troublesome,” Nine says, turning his back to me. I feel as if he’s turned away from me to compose himself, struggling to keep his anger in check. I don’t mention this though.

Nine and Three simply stand there for a little while just catching their breath. It’s only during this short interval that I notice the room which had been completely white moments before has now turned to a deep shade of grey. Two bright red doors have appeared on both ends of the oval room, one marked with a big yellow and black striped G letter. The other doesn’t seem to have anything on it.

I look up to Nine and Three expectantly, expecting them to explain all of this.

“Where am I?”

Three looks at me with what I assume to be a sort of pitiful admiration. She seems about to say something when Nine puts his hand on her shoulder, shaking his head. She turns away from me and walks towards the unmarked door.

Nine remains where he is, waiting for Three to leave. As soon as she exits through the door he ushers me to stand. I comply.

“You have questions I assume?”

“Yes,” I answer calmly. Nine stares at me, his eyes burrowing into every aspect of my soul.

“Then follow me.”

I rise to my feet and trail in Nine’s wake. My body starts to ache all over and something wet covers my ear. I reach up and touch it, only to see my hand covered with blood once I bring it into view.

That’s strange; I don’t remember getting hit around there. Why does the sight seem so normal? There’s a small subconscious thought floating around my mind telling me I should be freaking out but I ignore it. Before we reach the same door Three had exited out of a man with horn-rimmed glasses enters whilst flourishing his white coat.

There’s something about him that sort of draws me to him; almost as if I’ve known him my entire life. I still watch him cautiously just in case he wants to go a few rounds with me like the rest.

“Doctor,” Nine says, lowering his gaze.

“So,” the man says. “It appears we successfully manage to link his ability to his senses. This way he can use them as easily as blinking.”

“Someone want to explain what’s going on?” I say.

“Oh my dear boy, don’t you worry. You’ve just been asleep for a long while. It’ll all come back to you in due time.”

The Doctor motions for me to follow him and I do. Clearly he’s the one with all the answers around here. If I ever want to find out where I am then I should listen to this man.

The man walks through the door marked with an 'H' and I follow suit. We walk past a series of computers and various machines all crowded into perfectly aligned rows. I guess at least eighty men are here, all of them wearing white coats and scrambling up and down the room. Some hold clipboards whilst others are carrying glass cases which appear to be empty. I'm proven wrong on that as inside one of the cases I see something ever so small – just as small as the little strange substances I had seen floating in the air earlier – fly up and hit the glass. The sound echoes across the room and the glass cracks, a jagged line stretching from top to bottom. What the hell is that?

“He’s ready,” the Doctor says.

I hardly have time to look at who the man is talking to before my feet give away and I fall. The ground rushes up to greet me, promising to take care of my troubles as my vision closes in all around me.

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