20) The Men in Black Revisited.It's been a week since the whole disaster at the MASK headquarters in Newberry, and nothing has been seen or heard from Hillary since then. Believe me when I say that I’ve been trying to find her, alright. Wade and I have been scouring through local and even global news reels online, hoping to find a mention of someone strange turning up where they shouldn’t be. I know that doesn’t sound like much, but what else could we have done? Tell our parents who would’ve wasted no time before running to the ministry? How exactly would we then explain how she got lost in the first place? Swept away by a tornado? Disappeared down a rabbit hole like dear Alice? Come on!And as of this moment, I’m not the only one asking questions. I might have been a little bit foolish in thinking that no one would think twice about her absence, that they’ll explain it off as her way of coping with the trauma of the attack.That would’ve been enough to excuse anyone but Hillary
19) Strange Awakening.Stormfist stirred, and regretted it immediately as pain tore up his sides like a million needles crawling under his skin. He blinked once, twice, before opening his eyes to a bright room, the flare of the morning sky outside coming at him with a pounding headache. He closed his eyes again to block out the light, before baring them more gingerly. No, it was more a five star hotel suite than a room, possibly a penthouse of some sort.Still in his reclining position, he made out glass walls looking over a city of skyscrapers on either side, chandeliers hanging down from the vaulted ceilings, and soft music playing in the background. The suite was expansive, branching off into an open washroom on the right and some sort of bar far right of a sitting area complete with white couches and electronics for entertainment. He could just make out the feint sounds of vehicles plying the streets far off.Where am I? How did I even get here?The last he could remember
19) Strange Awakening.Stormfist stirred, and regretted it immediately as pain tore up his sides like a million needles crawling under his skin. He blinked once, twice, before opening his eyes to a bright room, the flare of the morning sky outside coming at him with a pounding headache. He closed his eyes again to block out the light, before baring them more gingerly. No, it was more a five star hotel suite than a room, possibly a penthouse of some sort.Still in his reclining position, he made out glass walls looking over a city of skyscrapers on either side, chandeliers hanging down from the vaulted ceilings, and soft music playing in the background. The suite was expansive, branching off into an open washroom on the right and some sort of bar far right of a sitting area complete with white couches and electronics for entertainment. He could just make out the feint sounds of vehicles plying the streets far off.Where am I? How did I even get here?The last he could remember
Ok, now let it not be said that I'm nervous or anything. The fact that I can't seem to sit still in one place or completely concentrate on anything at all has nothing to do with nervousness. My palms may be sweaty and my heart may have developed a fast-paced rythm since I got the text, but believe me when I say that I'm cool. Chilly as ice. Not panicking. It's not as if I've never been on a date before. I've had a total of two girlfriends in my lifetime, and I know it's not a high number enough to brag about but at least I kicked off my dating life early, which points to the fact that I won't be lounging in my parent's basement, alone and food addicted, at the age of forty. The first girl in my life was Mindy Frasier. Beautiful, brave and popular with teeth that didn't require braces like half of the school's population, she'd asked me to be her partner for a science project one sunny afternoon admist the chaos of elements and formulas. And I accepted. Dear me, how co
"How did it go?" Wade asks the moment I drag myself through the front doors of the school. When I glance in his direction, the gasp that escapes my lips is TV worthy. "Dude, what have you done?" He shrugs innocently and pushes away from the wall he had been leaning against. "I got bored waiting for you, so I decided to practice my powers." He flexes his fingers for emphasis. "What do you think? They're beautiful, right?" Beautiful is not the a word fit enough to describe it. The rows of shrubs flanking the front steps were certainly round and even when I walked into school today. Now they're totally different. They're shaped into various animals, realistic and majestic as they come. There's a lion, an elephant, something that looks like a transformer (Optimus prime probably) but I can't be sure...oh, would you look at that ferret over there that appears suspiciously like Mr Elfo. They're tall and life-like with a few more colorings than they had before. It's h
"Won't they give it up already?" Wade wonders loudly on Monday at lunch. I shrug, stuffing some pork ribs into my mouth. Mom doesn't tolerate meat much at home so I savor the spicy helping for a bit before speaking. "Have you ever seen a crystal mimic before?" "No." He admits, nursing his tall cup of orange drink. He opted out of getting anything else to eat, claiming that he didn't have the appetite for solids. I didn't waste time in pointing out that the body digests everything equally no matter the state or nature it comes in. I might've been feeling a bit high and mighty with my brilliant piece of knowledge until he gave me an incredulous look and shook his head, muttering something about the downfall of secondary education in the present generation. In my defense Physics isn't my strongest subject. That's where they force you to learn useless and weird things about your body, right? "Me neither, and I'm sure we are not alone on that line of thoughts. I didn't
"It's happening all over Newberry." Mom announces in panic when I reach her. Actually, I almost collide with her when Hillary and I raced out of the office. There's a mixture of panic and relief on her face as she finds me. "The storm came out of nowhere. They're saying something about a certain supervillain on the news. I was just coming in to get you. Are you ok?" She comes as if to pull me into a hug, hesitates and blushes self consciously. I grin and take her hand. "It's just alittle storm, Mom. Nothing to worry about." "Tell that to the news stations. They're making a big deal of it. And it's right over our heads! I wonder why it has to be today of all days." Yeah, Mom, we are all wondering the same thing. Selena and Wade are in the lounge area too. They seem quite odd standing there like that while the rest of the lounge is in chaos as men, complete in their one piece suits, fled for the elevators. The ladies are not left out, some even going as far as lea
"So...tell me all about it." I narrow my eyes, and I can't help the scales that travel up my spine. I'm feeling unnerved all of a sudden. And despite the million air conditioners in full blast around the room, my palms are hot and sweaty. The above reaction is not due to Hillary, the registration officer handling my case. No, she's perfectly ok. She's a bit formal and hasn't cracked anything close to a smile since I got in, but I don't mind. Her office is also cool and conducive, what with the good view of the city it has thanks to the all glass walls. She offered me a choice of tea or smoothie and some biscuits when I walked in but I kindly declined. My stomach is tied up in a knot, one so strong that nothing I eat would go the right way. She doesn't look like the type who tolerates any form of disorder what with how clean and pristine her table is. Ok, I'm sweating through my jacket. The AC is in full blast in here but I'm not feeling comfortable. This was not