by Jaclyn Lewis
I opened it and saw Andrew.
He was grinning again. This time, though, the evil was much more pronounced. I could tell he was up to something.
“Hello, Amelia Saunders,” he said, smirking.
As I went to close the door, he threw his hand out and pressed a cloth over my face and mouth.
I instantly fell unconscious.
***
When I woke up, I was in a windowless room, lying on a cot. I looked around at the colorless walls, feeling queasy. The room was tiny, only about six feet by eight feet, with the only thing in it being the cot I was lying on. There were two doors. One was open, and inside I could see a toilet, but nothing else. The other one was a locked door.
Then it opened, and Andrew came strolling into the room, smirking.
He threw me a blanket, the itchy kind, and a flat pillow. “Here,” he said.
“Wow, thanks,” I muttered, scowling as I took them. I sighed, having to ask the first question that everyone always asks when they’re kidnapped. “Why are you doing this?”
He grinned. “Wow, it felt better than I thought to hear you say that.” He smirked. “You see… you’re different, and I need you right now.”
I laughed humorlessly. “Wow, the almighty alien needs help from a seventeen-year-old girl.”
That wiped the smirk right off his face. A scowl replaced it. “What do you know, you little hybrid?” he spat. “You’ll always be a freak, no matter where you go. You’ll always be different and never fit in.”
I rose onto my elbows. “What do you mean?” Hybrid… what kind of hybrid would I be? I hadn’t even heard what else he’d said, the hybrid part was echoing all through my head.
He smiled and sat down on the floor very leisurely, taking his time before he even bothered to answer my question. “I’m going to tell you a little story. You’ll be able to tell when I’m lying; you’re getting stronger.”
I was confused already, but I didn’t interrupt.
“You see, where I come from, there was this powerful Leem. He was the first to rebel against Queen Samira, and he was far more powerful than any Leem ever before him, so he figured he should have the crown.
“He could turn himself into any element, manipulate any element. He was so powerful, he could do almost anything. Later, though, he was about to be killed because of the destruction he’d caused. In his Air form, he fled to Earth.
“He copied what he saw here, what humans looked like. He could hold the form for years without even trying, eighteen at the most before it would begin to fail.” Andrew scowled. “Eventually, he fell in love with a stupid human. He married her later, and they had one kid. Soon after, he died mysteriously; no one knows how. She remarried before the girl could even know that her father was dead. She never told her, so to this day, the child still thinks the man living in her house is actually her father.”
“What does this have to do with me?” I pressed. My brain was so foggy, I couldn’t think anything through.
He laughed. “Wow, you’re so dull!” he screamed. “You’re the daughter!” He pointed at me, driving his point home.
I gasped. I closed my eyes shut and refused to believe him, even though I knew he was telling the truth. He was right; I could feel it in the air if he was lying. I didn’t know how I could; I just could.
He laughed at my reaction. “Yeah, and since he could only hold his human form for eighteen years, when you turn eighteen, you’re going to have to be in element form for a while. You’ll need a week, at the least.”
“I’m human too, though,” I said. “I’m only half Leem.”
He shook his head, looking like he was seriously wondering about my intelligence. “Leem genes are more dominant than human ones, but they’re different under these circumstances. He was in human form, yes, but his genes are still there. When you turn eighteen tomorrow, they’re going to take over completely. You’ll have all his power. That’s how they’re different. When you’ve got human in you, they don’t become visible and usable until a certain time.”
I was an even bigger freak than I’d originally thought. No wonder Zane had been sworn to keep all of it from me. No wonder my parents hated me. Well, Dad hated me; I wasn’t really sure about my mom.
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked.
Andrew shrugged. “You need to know why it is I want you here. You wouldn’t have understood if I didn’t give you a little backstory.”
I rolled my eyes. “Then tell me why I’m here.”
He smiled. “Now, here’s where it gets fun.”
I looked at him warily. I had a feeling I knew where this was all headed.
“Since you do still have human in you, you’re technically a hybrid, a heterozygous being. You’re still going to have all of the Leem’s power, but you’ll be different than us since you’re not one hundred percent Leem. The rebels and I have decided that with the combined DNA, you might become even more powerful than anything we’ve ever seen. No one would be able to stop you if you wanted something,” he stated. I could tell he wanted to tell me about the next part, but he also wanted me to feel uncomfortable before he told me. It worked.
“So…” I pressed.
He sighed. “So, we can collect your essence and give it to our leader.”
“What? My essence,” I asked, still not getting it.
He sighed again, even more annoyed. “When Leem die, their essence, which is all of their power, is projected out. If we collect it before it disappears completely, we can make the rebel leader twice as powerful as any Leem ever created, even your dad. He would never get tired… ever.”
My eyes widened. He’d have to…
He was saying he was going to kill me. That was why I was there. There was no way out of it; I was never going to leave this place. I’d never see Zane again/
I wondered if Mom would miss me.
“Even better, though,” he continued, smirking again, “is that if I train you, you are going to get more control over everything and make it less dangerous and critical for the leader when he takes your essence.”
“Wouldn’t the leader need to be here, though?” I asked, thinking it would disappear before Andrew could get it back to Ellem.
He grinned. “Oh, you stupid, stupid hybrid,” he said. “I’m the rebel leader.”
Chapter 7
I’d been there a day, more or less. I couldn’t tell what time it was since there weren’t any windows or clocks.
I was already sick of Andrew. He’d stayed in the room and bugged me all during that before mentioned time frame.
I had a headache now, and my cheek hurt. I wanted to just curl up on my bed, at home, and sleep in. I wanted to wake up and see my mom making me breakfast for my birthday, even though she never had before.
I also missed Zane. He’d become an awesome friend, and I missed having him to talk to. Seeing his psychotic twin really made everything worse.
I was lying on that creaky cot when I heard the door open again. Andrew set down a tray of food and left without a word.
I didn’t go near it. I wasn’t hungry, even though it had been over twenty-four hours since I’d last eaten. I was really feeling sick, actually. I was still feeling the effects from that stuff Andrew had used Friday to get me there, like nausea, for example. Food would definitely not help that one.
I knew I couldn’t kill myself with hunger before my birthday, but it was definitely one of the first things that had popped into my mind. If I died before tomorrow, I didn’t think I would have any power to give him, but I just wasn’t a suicidal person. I just wouldn’t be able to do that to myself, even if I really had no one to miss me. I was just never that ready to stop fighting everything.
It still wasn’t an option, though, even if I was a suicidal person. No one could starve themselves to death in seven hours, tops.
I decided to pass the time by sleeping, since Andrew didn’t think to kidnap my book along with me. I’d never see how it en
ded. That didn’t matter while I was asleep, though. Sleep was amazing.
Finally, against my wishes, my birthday arrived.
It was early in the morning that I got an even worse headache, which was what had woken me from my slumber. It was like my head was splitting in two. I buried my face in my pillow and screamed in agony, waiting for it to pass.
It finally did after an hour or so, more or less, but it had felt like an eternity. When it was gone, my head was still throbbing from that intense pain.
That was when the convulsions began. I couldn’t control my muscles, and I felt like I was having some sort of seizure. I just wanted it to end.
I passed out then. I got to sleep through some of the agony. Like I said, sleep was amazing.
Passing out didn’t necessarily mean I didn’t have any dreams, though.
***
Zane was there when I woke up, smiling that handsome smile I loved so much when I saw him.
“Zane,” I cried.
His smile disappeared as he shook his head. “I’m not really here, Amy. This is really just a dream.”
I shook my head. “Then how?”
He shrugged. “Alien technology, I guess.”
I smiled a little at that. “So you’re really talking to me through my dream?”
He grinned and nodded.
Then he got serious. “I know that you don’t know where you are, but I just need to know if you’re okay.”
I smiled. “Of course I’m okay,” I lied, but it sounded so convincing that I was sure he wouldn’t notice.
He sighed. “Amy…”
I sighed too. “What, Zane?”
He looked down. “My time’s out. I just need to say… be careful, okay? I’m going to find you.”
I nodded, my heartbeat stuttering at the determination in his voice.
***
When I woke up, for real this time, I was seeing through the twisted glass again, just like I had in my dreams sometimes. I could see in all directions, even up and down. I could process everything I saw, no matter where it came from. It was like I unconsciously knew what to do already. I felt a lot more powerful than I had ever before.
I sighed at the stupid dream I’d had. Zane couldn’t have the technology to actually speak to me, but that didn’t stop the hope that formed at the memory of him saying that he’d find me.
Andrew came into the room then. He grinned at me. “Happy birthday, little hybrid,” he said.
“Shut up, weak alien,” I retorted. It was weird; it sounded like the wind was talking. I just really thought about what I wanted to say, who was to hear, and it was put into the air. It was incredible.
He scowled. Then, he laughed. He must’ve had some sort of multiple-personality disorder; he was constantly switching emotions, and I couldn’t ever keep up. “You’re going to be in a little bit of pain today. I just came to warn you. Today, you’re going to experience going between all of the elements, over and over and over. Also, your body is changing on a cellular level, and that can be painful too. The only element that it won’t hurt at first to change into is Air form, as you’ve already realized.”
I smiled. Well, I felt like I was smiling.
I manipulated the air around him into a tornado-like thing. It slapped him and slammed him into the door. I also made sure he could hear my laugh.
He scowled and shoved his hand out. It turned into water and was driven straight into the center of my air. I was scattered for a second before I could get back together. It was the weirdest thing.
“Bye, little hybrid. Have fun practically imploding,” he spat, slamming the door shut and locking it behind him.
I hit the door, thinking I could just go through the cracks. It was airtight, though, so I knew he’d put a lot of work into this kidnapping thing.
That was when I felt myself switching again. I felt unbearable agony for a long time, switching into water form, which was twice as painful as the convulsions I’d experienced that morning.
That one was fun when I was in it, though. I could only really see in one direction, like I normally could as a human, and that relaxed me a bit. I still had the shape of my human-self, but I could stretch myself farther out. I could make water pretty much appear. It was cool, but painful.
I melted into a puddle, forming a smile at my success, and slid over to the door. Airtight didn’t exactly mean water-tight.
It did in this case.
Darn it!
Over and over and over again, I would switch forms. I went into Fire, Earth, Water, and Air form over five times each. It was painful to switch, getting worse and worse; all of them hurt except for Air, just as Andrew had said.
I’d also tried torching the door and smashing it with tree arms, but nothing was working. I did manage to make a small dent, though. I also tried the walls, but again, came up with no way of escape.
At the end of the day, though, I was back in human form. I was surprised that I was, after what Andrew had said, and when he came back into my room, he noticed too.
“H-How did you…?” he stammered.
I grinned, but it was a tired one. I was worn out from the alien-related DNA thing that was now never going to stop torturing me. I would never be even somewhat normal ever again.
“You’re more powerful than we thought you’d be!” he screamed, throwing his fist into the air. He ran out of the room, continuing to scream that I was better than they’d thought.
I noticed, even in my state of drowsiness, that he’d neglected to lock the door.
I smiled and focused as hard as I could on turning into my Air form. I’d never purposefully done it, and I really hoped it would work.
When I felt that rush of power that I only really got as air, I smiled.
I glided to the door and manipulated the sound waves so I could get it to open silently. It was just instinct. I was in my natural form; the form that had chosen me at birth to appear close to my eighteenth birthday. I didn’t even have to think about it.
I tried to manage to make it look like nothing was happening; I wanted to trick anyone’s mind that happened to be around. I didn’t think I managed, but no one was around, so it didn’t matter.
I drifted through winding hallways as quickly as possible, but I wasn’t fast enough.
A guard was by a giant door. I figured it would be the door that led outside, but I wasn’t so sure.
He looked up and began looking around. His eyes rested right where I was.
“You,” he said, pointing to me. Then, he began screaming, “She’s escaped! She’s right here! Andrew! Over here!”
I didn’t know how he could see me, but apparently, he could.
I drifted to the ceiling, knowing it was useless. I tried my hardest to get away, but Andrew got there right at that moment.
I tried to speed away, looking out for vents. Since I was in Air form, I could also see Andrew making this weird water-bubble thing. It followed me, and when it caught up, it wrapped itself around me. I was trapped in this water-bubble, and it was making its way back to Andrew. The bubble was impenetrable.
“No!” I screamed. “Not now! Please, not now!”
When I was back in my room, I turned back into human form.
Andrew came storming in. He walked right up to me and slapped me, hard, across my still-bruised cheek.
I squealed from the pain, but didn’t say anything.
“Why?” Andrew demanded.
I shrugged. “It was your fault, not mine. You’re the one that left the door open.” I pointed to the door. “What was I supposed to do? Do nothing and stay here, where I’ll eventually die? No thanks.”
His face turned red from fury. “You shouldn’t have tried to escape.”
“I still don’t get how everyone could see me. I was in Air form,” I muttered. “I should have been invisible.”
Despite himself, Andrew smirked. “Duh, we are all Leem here. We can see other Leem, in all forms. You’re just as visible as
air as you are as a human.”
I scowled. I hadn’t known that. That was when it hit me. “But I can’t see Zane when he’s in his Air form.”
He laughed. “That’s because the Leem genes were still recessive, still hidden. As I said earlier, in these circumstances it takes time for those to actually come to the surface. They’re not human genes, so it’s not the same as you’ve learned in genetics classes. They’re extraterrestrial. You weren’t powerful enough to see him then. You are now, but you’re never going to get the chance. Your full powers aren’t even here yet.” He smiled. “This might be way over your head. You did, after all, get a human brain, which has way inferior intelligence.”
I was glad someone was happy… not. If I was a different person, I’d have flipped him off at that moment.
He left, and I practically fell onto the bed and was asleep before my head hit the pillow.
***
The next day, Andrew came into my room at three in the morning. At least, it felt like three in the morning. I had no real concept of time. All I knew was I was really, really, really tired.
“Rise and shine,” he sang.
I groaned and swatted my hand, motioning for him to go away. I just needed a few more hours… maybe a few more days… to sleep.
He laughed. “No, get up. Now,” he commanded, doing that switching personality thing again.
I shook my head, not caring about the consequences. I was going to die anyway, right? What did it matter at this point?
When he realized I was seriously going to stay in the bed, he grabbed my arms and forced me to the ground, but I didn’t do anything to make it easier. I just fell to the floor. He hauled me to my feet and tried to keep me from falling over.
After he finally managed to keep me on my feet, he grabbed both of my arms and put these weird handcuffs on them, practically pinning them to my back.
That was when they burned me.
“Ouch!” I yelled, reflexively jerking my hands, and they became more in contact with my wrists. “What the heck is this thing!?” They were digging in my wrists painfully. I just wanted Andrew to take them off, but I knew he wouldn’t if he knew how much I wanted that. He’d just keep them on me, until he finally killed me, if he knew.
I kind of wished he’d just get that part over with, the killing part, so all the endless torture would come to a close.
Andrew laughed, enjoying himself. He squeezed them even tighter on my wrists. “They are these cool handcuffs that force you to hold your current form, burning you like that when your body tries to switch forms with them on. This is my way of insuring everyone, including myself, that you can’t escape into the air on our way to the training room.” He grinned. “We wouldn’t want that.”
