Intertwined

by Cooper Eaton

  Her fingertips slowly felt around the waistband of my boxers; as if debating on whether or not to enter. “WOW! You're so brave! I can’t believe you got out of there with all of those guards looking for you!”

  I could barely contain myself. I could feel passion stirring inside me, but the misgiving in her words slowly began to register. She leaned in close; her water sprinkled chest rubbed against my arm! Oh how I want this, but what did she just say?

  “Wait, how did you know about the guards chasing me, I never told you about that.”

  She leaned in and whispered with a sudden passion, “Kiss me.”

  As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t. There is no way she could have known about those guards! I pushed her away. “Stop! Stop it! How did you know about the guards!” And then I saw it!

  A needle in her hand! I tried to get away from her, but the thick mud sucked around my feet and held me in its grasp! She wrapped herself around me and stabbed the needle into my neck! Ahh! The pain was searing and excruciating but only lasted moments before the drug stole my consciousness and I slipped into the dark muddy water below…

  Everything was blurry and out of focus. There were shapes and sounds, but everything seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. It felt like I was under Niagara falls and a thousand of pounds of water was slamming onto my face!

  Things slowly came into focus, and I realized that I was in an extremely dark room. A few doctors were roaming. I continued to scan, and then I saw him. The headmaster was standing off to the side looking at me deep in thought. When he saw that I was awake, he moved in.

  "Hello, William. You, sir, are in a heap of trouble. I'm am usually one for leniency, but today you have crossed a major line." His voice had a cold, steely edge. "How could you? We've given you everything, and you couldn't help but stick your nose where it doesn't belong" Fear was coursing through me.

  What’s going to happen to me? This doesn’t look good. What are they doing to me! I was tied down, and I could do nothing to protect myself.

  “Tell me about the bodies.”

  “Mr. Blackwood he’ll never tell you.” Came a voice from the corner. Out of the shadows stepped Mrs. Nasdin, his assistant. “It's not like he’s going anywhere. There is no need to give him a heart attack before he can tell us what we want to hear.” Phew a voice of reason, but the wait is that a scalpel? She had a scalpel in her hand!

  “Why should we ask him questions when we can force them from him!” She squealed suddenly delighted!

  “I’ll tell you anything you want to know! Please don’t hurt me!” I yelled!

  “Tell us about the bodies.” Mr. Blackwood hissed in a voice close to what I imagined the devil sounded like.

  “I wandered downstairs by accident. I got lost and started to wander around. That's when I found them.”

  "Do you expect me to believe you just accidentally stumbled upon one of our most classified projects. Who told you about it? Who told you how to get down there!” Mr. Blackwood lost more and more of his composure with each word!

  "No one, no one told me! I saw a guard open the door! I followed him, and then I got lost!" Please believe me, please! I can’t give Rasben up; I have to stay strong.

  “What about the color cords you told Matthew about!”

  I didn’t know what to say. How did he know about Matthew and my conversation? I don’t think I can lie my way out of this one. What can I possibly tell them?

  "They started happening recently. The colors, they fly around in cords and follow people. It's very strange; I have no idea what it means. I promise I didn't do anything wrong. It just happened."

  “He’s lying! He knows why it started! Lets cut him up and find out what he’s hiding!” Mrs. Nasdin squealed once more.

  She was now in a crazed state and was hopping around swinging her scalpel with the glee of a serial killer. “Lets cut him up and see what he knows!”

  “Mrs. Nasdin control yourself! We need him! Mr. Dark would not approve. We should swipe his memory and put him back into the test. That way the others won’t start to wonder.” He began to pace back and forth. “If young Mr. Rose here, doesn’t tell them anything the issue will be put to rest, and we’ll be able to get back on schedule with the test.” Mr. Blackwood came to the end of his plan and began to talk to the doctor is more hushed tones.

  “Take most of it, leave only the important parts, got it?”

  "Yes, sir."

  “NO, no, no, no! You can’t do this. You can’t take my memory!”

  They'll never get it; I have to remember this! I can't afford to forget; this can't be happening!

  "Goodnight Mr. Rose. When you wake, you won't remember anything. Although I do hope you remember to mind your own business." And with that, Mr. Blackwood turned and began walking away.

  "You'll never get away with this!" I screamed frantically! "You won't; this is insane!"

  “Who's going to stop me! You? Haha!” He continued his evil laugh as he and Mrs. Nasdin departed from the den of heathens I now lay helplessly in.

  The liquid entered slowly through an IV protruding from my hand! It was cold and thick. It began to freeze my veins as it made its way toward my brain! As it moved, it took away my ability to move. I couldn't think! What is it that I was trying to remember? Why is this liquid running through me! What’s happening, where am I, who are all these people?

  Chapter 12: Lost Memories

  "Alright, guys, who're ready to take care of business? Remember we ride into their camp quickly and efficiently. We have to get the notebook, and we need to get if fast. Any questions?" No one said anything, and so I kicked my horse's sides, and we were off.

  All of the jostlings of the horse made my already throbbing head feel as though it would burst. I drank a ton of water, why won’t this migraine leave?

  I couldn’t afford to tell anyone, for fear of missing out on the mission and being sent to the deciding game. Rasben had seemed concerned with the state I was in, but I'd made him swear to not question my judgment.

  Dwelling on my inner thoughts, only seemed to increase the migraine, so I took to scanning the terrain. However, there wasn't much to look at. The terrain was empty. There was no life. There were no trees. There were no water bodies, not even rocks. The only thing for miles around was sagebrush. Miles and miles of sagebrush. I felt a little woozy as I scanned the horizon. Night was coming, and so we had to hurry.

  Everything seemed to be happening all at once, I felt like I should be thinking about something, but I couldn't seem to remember what exactly it was. As I racked my brain for possibilities, a small village appeared over a rise we summited.

  I guess all I can really do is focus on the mission.

  I slowed everyone with a wave of my hand.

  The mission was simple, we were supposed to ride into a village on these horses and take out any opposition. We were armed with pistols and some kind of saber blade, and by the look of the village, we were going to need them.

  “It’s so small. Is this it?” Rachel questioned.

  “I’m pretty sure. It’s not like there are any other villages to choose from.”

  All eyes turned to me, searching for words of leadership.

  "It looks like there are only a few guards. We'll ride in fast and try and get the notebook as quickly as possible. With any luck, we'll be gone before they realize we've been there. Any better ideas?"

  “Your call,” Rachel answered nonchalantly.

  “Alrighty then, let's go, move!" I kicked my beast and boom; we were off!

  I managed to hold on as the horse, as the strange beast bolted! We raced down the hill and flew into the small village, I realized my big mistake. My head felt like it was going to burst! I heard a couple of guards yelling something, but we rode past them into the village.

  Our entrance was so unexpected; no one had a chance to rise up and stop us. Our horses pounded down the dirt street as we flew past wide-eye
d men! One man managed to raise his gun but was quickly shot by one of my team. “Zing!”

  We quickly made it to the far end of the tiny village and to an all-glass building that stuck out like a sore thumb. We'd been told this is where the notebook would be, so I pulled up short trying to dismount smoothly, but my new avatar was quite clumsy, and all I managed was to fall flat on my face!

  “Huff!” I breathed in a pile of dirt.

  I shot back to my feet trying to play it cool, unluckily for me, judging by the smirking faces, all three of my team had seen and weren’t too impressed.

  “You all stay mounted and protect the building. I’ll go in alone and find the notebook! Make sure no one gets it in, understand?” I ran inside the building with my small ray pistol drawn!

  The small wooden entrance, which seemed as old as the small village, was no match for my new giant of an avatar’s feet! I was surprised by the strength of my simulation body. This is gonna be fun!

  Inside was one man. He was hanging onto a briefcase in the corner and shaking with fear. “Why are you here? You weren’t supposed to be here for another two days! This isn’t right! Please leave my village in peace. We mean you no harm. We didn’t know what his plans were, I swear we didn’t, if we had we would have shut down his research months ago!”

  "All I want is a notebook. I have no idea what you're talking about. Just hand over the notebook, and we'll leave in peace."¶“No, it’s too dangerous. This type of power shouldn’t be harnessed by one man. It will corrupt whoever possess it. I cannot give it to you!" The man broke down crying with an eruption of emotion.

  "Give me the notebook," I said bluffed with my new growl.

  The man, began to shake with fear believing fully that I’d kill him.

  He broke instantly. “Alright, fine it's in this briefcase. Just please give me my family back.”

  I didn’t have time for whatever game this guy was playing. I took the case from him and opened it with one hand while keeping my small gun pointed in his direction.

  Inside the case lay a small black notebook. This had to be it! I was about to open it for a peek when sounds of a ray firefight broke out!

  “Zing, zing, zing! Crash!” One of the windows was hit with a ray and melted instantly!

  “William, it's time to go. They're coming!”

  I ran and jumped through the new window exit! I tripped over my giant feet but was much faster picking myself off the ground this time.

  In front of me lay three dead men!

  “What’ve you done?”

  "You said to keep people out, so we did, did you get it?" Rasben responded.

  "Oh," I answered still shocked at the death around me.

  “Zing!” A ray beam scorched the dirt at my feet!

  “Come on William, lets go!”

  My horse flew into existence, and I was on him in an instant.

  “Let's go, let’s go, let’s go!” I boomed.

  We all kicked our horses as hard as we could as we made our hurried escape. Luckily the men seemed uninterested in following and let us go once we reached the village's edge.

  We rode over another rise and back out into the barren surroundings.

  “Where’s the extraction point?” I yelled to Rasben over the pounding of horse hooves.

  “We need to slow down.”

  "Alright." I waved my hand, and once again the group slowed their horses to a walking pace.

  Rasben spoke. "It'll take us a while to get there. We'll follow this ridge for another 10 miles before we approach it and it's almost dark, do you have a plan?"

  Realizing that indeed the light had fallen from the sky, I assessed the situation. "I think we should camp here for the night. We should be safe seeing as how no one gave chase. We can rest for the evening and then start again at first light, any opposed?"

  After deciding to camp in a secluded area between a few rocks that provided a small amount of privacy we ate.

  “Everyone should have snacks in their bags. We shouldn't start a fire in case we were followed.”

  “I bet the real reason you don’t want to start a fire is so that you can snuggle with me again.” Jessica cooed as she approached.

  I was at a loss for words. What is happening? I turned to her and was met with by her new avatar’s brilliant brown eyes that sparkled with anticipation!

  I noticed Rasben and Rachel’s avatars were looking at us clearly confused. I felt just as lost as they looked. What does she mean? Why is she so flirtatious suddenly? I remember snuggling for warmth on the cliff, but to my recollection, it had been nothing more. I tried hard to remember what she was talking about on the cold cliff so many nights ago, but the memory seemed distant and foggy.

  I stood abruptly leaving Jessica who’d been leaning in slightly off balance. I have to escape what is she doing? I could feel the judgment that Rachel and Rasben must be sharing. "I need to clear my head; I'll be back." And with that, I turned and headed for the edge of the rock circle.

  “Wait, what’s wrong?” Jess ran to catch up. “I’ll come with you.”

  “No, I think you should stay here, it’ll be safer.” I turned as she approached.

  “I think I’ll be safer with you.” She patronized.

  “Okay Jessica, I don’t know what is happening, but you're acting really weird.” I felt Rasben and Rachel’s eyes once again focus on us as if they new something was about to happen.

  “What do you mean?”

  "I mean, since when have we been so close? Since when have you been this nice to me? Are you playing some joke on me? What's going on?"

  Jessica turned, like a scolded puppy, and walked away from me. Both Rasben and Rachel stood there looking at me and then at the ground awkwardly, so I broke the silence. "Wait, Jess. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it. Will you please tell me what's wrong?"

  “How could you not remember? It’s only been one day! I gave you everything! What do you mean, you don’t remember us being close. Why are you pretending like nothing happened last night!”

  “What are you talking about? Since when did something happen last night?”

  My words seemed to cut deep, and she turned and began walking.

  “I honestly have no idea what you're talking about.” I once again questioned her back.

  Rachel followed Jessica from the small circle of rocks. Most likely to comfort her over whatever I’d done.

  Rasben walked my way as if he could somehow explain to me what I was missing.

  “Hey man, you wanna talk?” Rasben started to speak, but out of nowhere, the sound of horse hoof beats were all around us!

  Horses! And men! They were everywhere! What’s going on? Where’d they come from?

  “Halt! Do not move, or you will be shot where you stand!” A man, the leader, shouted at us from atop his giant white stead! “I believe you have something of mine! And I would very much like it back.” The man had slightly greying hair and cold blue eyes.

  I knew instantly what he was talking about. The black book! They followed us! How could I have been so stupid, I shouldn’t have stopped, now we’re doomed!

  Rasben nudged me from my stupor. "You should probably give it to them; it's not worth it." Following his counsel, I grabbed the small book from my inner pocket and tossed it up to the man.

  “Thanks.” He laughed and raised his gun!

  Both Rasben and I sank to our knees desperately hoping for mercy. “We’re sorry, we didn’t know. We honestly didn’t know!” Rasben voice cracked.

  “Haha, how easily you scare. What is there to be afraid of? If I shot you, which I'm not, nothing would happen. You see, I know you're not who you seem to be. You're just doing what you're told in hopes of being rewarded. My advice is not be surprised when your only reward is a stab in the back!" He seethed his eyes darkening.

  And with that he whipped his reigns turning his horse, but just as he was about to leave I called to him.

&nb
sp; “Who are you?”

  “I am Damian, and it would serve you well to remember that! One day it will be the only one that matters!” He kicked his horse leading the group of men following him from our midst just as quickly as they had joined it.

  Just as there horse streamed out of the small outlying rocks, that surrounded us, and into the dark from whence they’d come a crack of thunder sounded in the distance.

  Jessica and Rachel came running back into the circle.

  “Who were they?” Jessica asked as she ran to me, only barely stopping short.

  “Not sure, but they have our book!” I yelled. “How’d they even get here? Did no one hear them? How could this happen?”

  "It'll be alright, and everything will be fine." Rasben tried to calm me down.

  "No, it won't Rasben! Without that book, we're screwed! Now we'll have to take part in the deciding games, and we'll be killed!"

  “Are you afraid of, being sent to the room full of lifeless testers?”

  What is he talking about? “What are you talking about. Since when has there been a room like that?”

  “The one you told us about?” Rasben tried, now just as confused as I was.

  “I have no idea what you're talking about. Since when has that been a possibility?”

  “You told us a couple of days ago that you saw all of tester's who'd been killed in a simulation in a room, and they no longer had a bodily function."

  “Rasben, are you sure you're not crazy. I never said that. If we get killed, we'll just go home, that's what they told us. You're starting to freak me out."

  “You literally told us about this like two days ago,” Rachel fired back.

  “Yeah, why are you pretending it never happened?” Jessica asked moving closer.

  "I have no idea what any of you are talking about?" I turned exasperated. "That's it; I'm going to bed, just leave me alone you guys are freaking me out."

  I went to my horse, grabbed the small sleeping bag, that had been there since I’d entered the simulation, and laid it out a few feet away. I layed down and looked over my shoulder only to see the tree of them whispering and glancing in my direction.