by T R Tells
“Barricade for what?” Alexei exclaimed.
Before anyone could do anything, the doors busted down with a hard slam. The girls in the room started screaming. Noah stood at the doorway with the Umbra Shade standing behind them , and the red aura had become thicker.
It was getting stronger.
“I’m sure you can see that,” Veronica mumbled beside me.
I started to say something, but Noah held their arm out and with ‘Force-Induced Telepathy.’ They pushed Alessander and Trey away, enough that they weren’t hurt, but far enough that they dropped Brodie to the ground.
“Noah, don’t do this!”
But the black veins had started creeping further up their face. They grabbed Brodie and tossed him across the room. A loud snap rang in my ears. I watched, horrified, as Brodie’s blood was smeared on the wall, and his body collapsed to the ground, unmoving.
“Like now,” Veronica enunciated. “Get everyone out of here!”
She rushed for Noah, and the Umbra Shade with her blade summoned in her hand.
“Go, now!” I said to Alessander. We gave each other one last look, the plea in his eyes begging for me to believe him. I hoped that it wasn’t true, too.
Alessander and Trey led everyone else out of the classroom from the opposite door.
I turned to the Umbra Shade and summoned my bow. Veronica was using the sharp ends of her sword to attack the Umbra Shade as they both moved in rapid succession.
One of the tentacles caught her off guard and pushed her backward, slamming her back into the side of the teacher’s desk. She was spitting out blood when she saw me running over to her.
“So, you’re finally ready to do something?” She looked at my bow and scoffed. “That’s what you can do? Well, we’re screwed.”
“Do you want my help or not?” I said, holding out my hand, hating just as much as she did that we had to work together. Surprisingly, but not without a look of disdain on her face, she slapped her palm in mine.
I pulled her to her feet.
“We are not killing anyone,” I repeated. She turned her head to give me a sharp look. “Kill the Umbra Shade, and the Apathy goes away.”
Veronica snorted. “Let’s just get this over with. You distract the boy,” she said, and we broke off into two directions.
Chapter Fourteen
The Umbra Shade turned its attention to Veronica, shrieking in pain as she impaled it. Its tentacles sprouted wildly and tried to attack Veronica. She dodged one of its arms by leaning backward, like Neo from the Matrix.
“Noah!” I shouted, getting their attention. They turned to look at me, black veins underneath their eyes. It wouldn’t take long until the Apathy had complete control over their mind and they would be lost forever.
“You don’t have to become this way, this isn’t going to make you feel better or change anyone’s mind. I know that you aren’t like any of them.”
Noah looked down at my hand, fixating on my bow. I released my grip on the weapon, and it disappeared in particle clusters. I raised my hands in surrender, and their attention focused on me again.
I took tentative steps toward Noah, knowing that there had to be a way to save them that didn’t end in more violence. “I’m not going to pretend like I know what you’re going through, Noah. But I do know how it feels to be different,” I said. I wasn’t far from them now, and I could see Veronica was doing her best to keep the Umbra Shade busy. I turned my attention back to Noah.
“Before my powers, I’ve had people judge me and make fun of me just because. It isn’t often, but we still live in a world where people use stereotypes to define people. My brother and I have been followed into stores just because ‘others have stolen before’ but we try our best to turn the other cheek and not stoop to their level.”
I was a foot away from them. They didn’t react negatively or attack me, but only wobbled from side to side.
I stood in front of Noah now. The color in their cheeks was starting to lose the gray. The veins were slowly inching downwards. My heart was beating erratically, but I knew it was only a little while longer until I reached them.
“It might not seem like it now, but change is coming. Sadly, there’s a bunch of people who don’t realize that those with a different skin color or identify as a different gender are just as human as they are.”
“W-What c-can I do… about it?”
I rested my hand on their shoulder. “If change can’t start in them, you’ll have to change yourself. But even if you think you are alone—you aren’t. There are people like you, afraid to come out, afraid to speak out and make that change because there are bullies holding them down. It won’t be easy, and it won’t be overnight, but it’s a start.”
Noah parted their lips to speak but was halted when a massive racket was heard off to the side. I looked to see Veronica had been tossed into several desks. She slowly rolled to her feet, gritting her teeth in pain.
I looked back seconds too late to have Noah glaring at me, the blacks of their eyes becoming cloudier, and the black veins returning to their cheeks.
“N—” I choked on my words. My throat had been sealed shut, and I desperately grabbed it.
Their eyes started twitching as they raised their arm with their palm out. My feet dangled off the floor as they levitated me in the air. I tried to gasp, but the air was permanently shut from my lungs. I was starting to see black spots.
Is this how I die?
I expected to see my life pass before my eyes, or maybe see a bright white light with the voices of my loved ones calling to me. But that wasn’t the case, and my body smacked against the hard floor. I gasped. My eyes widened, and I gritted my teeth, wrapping my arms around myself as the pain from the fall was like landing on a sharp rock.
The screech from the Umbra Shade, however, broke me free of my pain. I opened my eyes to see that Veronica’s double-edged sword was lodged in the middle of the Shade’s chest. Its lanky arms grabbed the side of its head as it cried out in agony. I turned to see Noah mimicking the Shade’s movements, black veins disappearing from their face.
I jumped to my feet, hissing from the sharp sting, but I ignored it as I limped over to where Noah was staggering in pain. They’re fighting it.
“You can do it, Noah! You can beat this. You’re stronger than it.”
Noah’s natural brown skin returned, and the veins on their face and neck were no longer visible; even the whites of Noah’s eyes had cleared. The smile on my lips faded when I watched their pupils roll to the back of their head, and they started to fall.
I quickly caught Noah in my arms before they hit the ground.
“What do you know?” I turned my head to see Veronica strutting over to me. She wasn’t limping, despite having been tossed across the room. Maybe her healing factor is quicker than mine. “You actually saved him.”
I rolled my eyes, turning away from her, and cradled Noah’s body in my lap. I could hear her footsteps walking away from me and over to the window.
“And not a minute too soon, we’ve got company.”
Before I could ask her what she meant, the SWAT team burst through the classroom doors. I raised my arms above my head. I looked at the men in bulky black uniforms, holding assault rifles in my direction as they checked for any signs of danger. One of the SWAT members went over Brodie’s dead body.
“There’s another one over here,” one of them spoke into a radio.
“Alright, get these kids out of here!” another one yelled. One of the men knelt next to Noah’s side.
“Are they going to be okay?” I asked a masked SWAT member that approached me. I watched as they carried Noah out of the room.
“He’s going to be taken cared of, don’t worry, but you’ll need to come with us.” I turned my head so fast toward the man I almost had whiplash.
“Why? Where am I going?”
I couldn’t see the man’s face, but his hardened tone indicated that it would be best to cooperate.
>
“We’ll just need you to answer a few questions about what exactly happened here tonight.”
My throat tightened, and I had to swallow the bile that rose in my throat.
***
There were several ambulances and police cars in the back of the school’s parking lot. I sat down on the edge of the truck with a blanket around my shoulders and a white styrofoam cup filled with hot chocolate. The steam from the sugary drink wafting up my nose made me grip the cup tighter, trying to keep my numb hands warm. I stared into the dark liquid and sniffed, wiping my runny nose with my sleeve. Noah had been taken away by paramedics, but they said their vitals were stable. I was grateful for that. I wouldn’t know how the rest of Noah’s life would be, but I hoped they would heed my advice.
The back of my neck tingled when I heard a soft-spoken, “Hira Night?”
I looked up to see a dark brown, coiff-haired EMT in his late twenties. He was rather tall, possibly six-foot, and skinny. He held a clipboard and a flashlight.
There’s that feeling again. He can’t be one too, can he? I wasn’t sure if maybe I was sensing Veronica, or my body was still jolted by the recent events.
“How are you feeling?” he asked as he leaned closer, gray eyes surveying me. He turned the flashlight on. “No seizures or dizzy spells?”
I squinted when he flashed the light in front of me, and when he pulled it away, tiny black specks appeared in my vision. I rubbed my eyes with my right hand.
“...Not until just now,” I mumbled as I stopped rubbing my eyes. “When will I get to go home?”
“We’ve contacted your guardians, but the authorities still need to ask you some questions about what happened inside of the school.”
I pressed my lips together and looked down. I couldn’t tell them anything, and what if they caught me in a lie?
“Don’t I get my one phone call or something? I’m a minor.”
The EMT smiled. “You aren’t under arrest, you know.”
I rolled my eyes and sat the cup down beside me. “Where are the others? My friend and my… boyfriend.” I wasn’t sure why I hesitated. The more I thought about it, the more Veronica’s voice played in my head over and over that she was pregnant with Alessander’s baby. It couldn’t have been true, the look of shock on his face proved that, didn’t it?
“They’re being treated as well, and they’ll also be getting their statements taken.”
All I wanted was to pretend that this day didn’t happen, and I didn’t have this tugging sensation in the pit of my stomach.
“I can take it over from here.”
Alina Mulgrave walked over to us. She had a white button-down coat with a gray scarf wrapped around her neck. The EMT partially smiled at her and dipped his head in a small bow before leaving.
Alina Mulgrave looked at me. Her painted red lips pulled into a smile, and, just like that day in the hospital, I had an odd feeling being around her.
“Well, Hira, you’ve certainly been through quite a predicament. How are you feeling? I noticed that your eyes are no longer violet. That’s interesting.”
There was a gleam in her eye that sent a chill down my back..
“Why are you here?” I asked, avoiding her question. She smirked as if she could see through my uneasy state. She closed the space between us until we were only a few inches apart.
“Research,” was all she said. I furrowed my brows, wondering what she could possibly study in front of my school.
“I don’t understand. What kind of research?”
The cold wind whipped around us, and I pulled my blanket tighter. Alina didn’t flinch, standing motionless as she looked at me.
“Are you sure you feel normal, Hira?” Her hardened green-blue eyes never strayed from mine, forcing my feet shift in place. My throat tightened, and my stomach did flips. I parted my lips to speak but closed them again because I couldn’t find the right words. “I don’t know what happened here, but my research indicates that there is an infection at this school. It’ll be closed down for a week, so I can gather more evidence.”
My mouth was dry, but I was finally able to form words, “Why are you telling me this?”
Alina smiled. “Perhaps you’ll help me figure this out, or maybe I can learn something from you, Hira. Discovering you has rejuvenated this project. I thought your kind was almost dead until you came through those hospital doors that night of the explosion.”
My ‘kind’? Discovering? Project? She was observing me like a specimen rather than an actual human. I didn’t know what she was talking about or what kind of infection she was referring to. Did she know something I didn’t? Or did she know what I could do? What Noah could do?
“Hira!”
Alina turned around, and I looked straight ahead to see my mother walking toward us.
“Mom.”
As soon as my mother approached, I saw that her cheeks were stained with tears. My heart jumped, realizing what she thought might have happened. Since my dad’s death she probably imagined the worst. Her arms wrapped around me, and I sank into her warmth hugging her waist as her cheek pressed against my hair.
She kissed the top of my head before pulling away. Her eyes were stained red, and she examined me for obvious injuries.
“Let’s go home, baby.”
She grabbed my hand, and I got off the edge of the ambulance when Alina called us back. My mother turned around, and she had a look on her face that could be described as ‘I do not want to deal with your B.S.’
“This will only take a moment of your time, Mrs. Night,” Alina said, smiling from ear to ear, uncaring about my mother’s feelings. “My name is Alina Mulgrave and—”
“—And I remember you from the hospital, yes. I appreciate all that you and your team did to save my daughter, but right now, we’re going home.” My mother was usually easy-going and lighthearted, so I didn’t recognize the hardened tone in her voice. It sounded different when she was reprimanding me. She pulled me closer to her and kept her eyes trained on Alina as if the woman would leap across the parking lot.
“And I can understand that your emotions are in a bit of an unbalanced state. I’m a mother too, but I am also a geneticist and a pathologist, and your daughter may be able to help me further my research. I’ve found strange anomalies in this school, and with time—”
“—then, as a mother, you can understand why I don’t want my daughter to be treated like a lab rat. You’re just going to have to do this on your own.” My mother draped her arm around me and pulled me away from Alina. I turned my head back around to look at her. I saw the smile on her face, and the unease in my stomach increased.
I had a feeling this wouldn’t be the last time I’d see her.
Chapter Fifteen
My eyes opened when I heard my phone alarm. Thankfully, I had decided to change my theme music to Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” (also, not the best song to wake up to because of its loud tone). I grumbled under my breath and shut it off, forgetting that, despite it being Tuesday, there was no school because of the incident.
I rolled on my side and unlocked my phone, flicking my thumb across my screen until I found something interesting. I went to my Twitter and scanned through my timeline. I’d created it for when I was ready to market my book. I had been talking about it, promoting it (and reading other author’s tweets), and it seemed like I had generated plenty of followers— but then my dad died. Alessander went into a coma. Writing seemed almost… meaningless. Sometimes, though, I would catch myself yearning to get back on the computer and finish my novel.
I sighed loudly, and exited the app.
“And that was a wasted effort… ” I turned over and plopped on my back, looking up at the ceiling.
I thought about what Alina had said about her project and my ‘kind’. What did she mean? I had a feeling that it wasn’t good, and every time I was around her my stomach would get upset.
And waiting around isn’t doing any good either. Maybe I sho
uld call—
I hesitated as my thumb hovered over Alessander’s name in my contacts. I hadn’t even realized that I had unlocked it again. It was like my mind was on autopilot before my brain remembered the situation.
But what situation? You’re overthinking things. The look in his eyes… Why would Alessander lie to me? No. It wasn’t about whether or not he lied to me, but imagining him in bed with someone else was like a stab in the gut.
I would just need more time before I saw him, that’s all.
I scrolled through the names, passing by acquaintances and friends, when I stopped at Helene. I pressed it, and the icon for the text message appeared.
Me: Hey. So I’m awake. And not to sound like that kind of person, but I could use a distraction—wanna come over to my house? We could have a Netflix movie night.
I sat my phone on the bed and slowly rose, like a zombie from the dead, swinging my legs over the side just as my phone vibrated. I picked it up to see Helene’s message:
Helene: Ha. Not having the best of luck, huh? I heard about what happened, by the way. I am guessing it wasn’t a disease or a terrorist attack on the school? People are saying that it had something to do with a tenth grader.
I quickly typed as I slid on my slippers and walked out of my room..
Me: And you would be correct. It was an Umbra Shade, and it had taken over Noah’s body when they Awakened.
I was already in the bathroom (surprisingly Omari wasn’t hogging it).
Helene: Seriously? I didn’t think people like us could get an Umbra Shade.
Me: If you let the Apathy control you, it can. And frankly, the Brodie and Jett crap pushed them too far. They were already going through enough at home and in life in general.
I stared into the bathroom mirror, letting my thoughts take control. Brodie and Jett were assholes, but they didn’t deserve to die. I hoped that Noah took my advice or, at least, didn’t blame this on themselves.
Helene: At least, they didn’t find anything. But I’ll talk to you later, I’m about to run some errands for my grandparents.
