get out alive

Grace Yerrid

Get out Alive Grace Yerrid

2

Table of Contents

Speed…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3

Captured……………………………………………………………………………………………………. 7

The CLI……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 11

Escape………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 17

Crashed……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 23

New York……………………………………………………………………………………………………. 25

Home…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 32

Prisoner…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 35

Burning……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 39

The End…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 41

A NEW BEGINNING:

A Moment From Death…………………………………………………………………………… 44

Back To Life……………………………………………………………………………………………. 47

Frozen……………………………………………………………………………………………………. 50

Dying Moments……………………………………………………………………………………… 53


3

Speed

My head rang as I tried to focus. It was only a few moments before school let out for summer vacation. I felt Joey Lerner looking at me. My heart skipped a beat. Joey was the most handsome boy in middle school. He had curly blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. Just like me, he had a tall and lanky frame that made him look like a runaway model. Today he was wearing an elaborate American Eagle t- shirt and his ripped jeans. He was five foot seven, making me two inches shorter than him. I tucked my wavy dirty blonde hair behind my ears and tried to pay attention to the math sheet. Suddenly, the final bell rang. There was a flurry of papers as the classroom emptied. As I shoved my own papers into my binder, I noticed that Joey and I were the only people in the room. “Hey Alexis,” he said, handing me my backpack. What he said next surprised me. “Is it okay if I take you home today?” I felt my face flush. “Uhh… yea. Sure.”I grinned, hoping that I didn’t sound too excited. Joey walked over to me and took my hand. “Good.” he smiled. “Let’s go then.”

We were about eight blocks away from my neighborhood. “Come on, I know a shortcut through the power plant.” Joey said, pointing to a huge concrete structure. Joey was taking me into unfamiliar territory, so I let him lead the way.

We took two lefts and rounded the corner. It was a dead end. “Oops. Wrong turn.” He said, blushing. We turned around and headed back to the main path. Before we could take a step, Joey grabbed my wrist and paused. “What is it, Joey?” He didn’t answer. Joey cocked his head, as if listening. His eyes widened. “Get down!” he hissed, shoving me behind him.

A split second later, a black van skidded to a halt in front of us, blocking any exits. A huge brown leather boot kicked the van’s door open. A man dressed in camo pants and a brown cotton shirt stepped out, unharmed. Five men jumped out of the back and fell into formation behind the first man. “On my signal, run.” Joey whispered, his face contorted.

“NOW!”

I took a step forward and sprinted for my life. There was a loud bang and I froze.

Two of the men ran up to me and neatly handcuffed my wrists behind my back. I felt the muzzle of a gun pressed against my spine. “Bring the girl here.” Ordered the first man. I tried not to show my fear, but my bottom lip was trembling. The men grabbed me by my armpits and set me down in front of the first man.


4

He was not normal. He had spiky brown hair and cruel brown eyes. He looked about twenty and was about eight feet tall. I was close enough that I could smell his onion breath. “You see, Joey,” He began, putting his muscled arm around my shoulders, “We have our ways of persuading you to come with us.”

“Let Alexis go. It’s me that you want.” Joey said calmly, his face growing dark. “Well, you see Joey; the whitecoats wanted you and your pretty little girlfriend. You just saved us the time by bringing her with you.” What?! I thought, confused and scared “Lies!” Joey yelled. The man suddenly grabbed my hair and lifted me off the ground. I shrieked and tears came to my eyes. “Stop it!” He raged, his eyes glittering with hatred for these men. “You should watch what you say,” the man warned. “Because someone might get hurt.” The man let go of my hair and I fell to the ground in a crumpled heap. I gave out a pained cry as my ankle twisted.

“Alexis!” Joey shouted his sense of restraint gone. He leapt at the nearest man and punched him in the gut. The man gasped and fell to his knees. Joey scooped me up into his arms and ran for our lives.

I was shocked. The men were about five blocks away from us, and they were smaller each second. Then I realized that we were faster than the passing cars. I looked down at Joey’s feet and saw that they were a blur. Maybe it was my eyesight. But I had to ask. “Joey, how fast are we going?” He didn’t answer me. Then he finally mumbled,”One hundred and four miles an hour.” I goggled up at him. “Really?” Joey nodded and I fell silent.

In about an hour, Joey had finally stopped. He set me down on the grass and sat down beside me. ”Where are we?” I asked. ”Somewhere far away from those men.” Joey replied, shaking his head in disgust.

“Joey, those men were bad news. How did they know you?”

“I have no idea.” He said, staring into my eyes. I just looked right back at him. I could instantly tell that he was lying, but I said nothing. He was a horrible liar. “You should get some sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow.”

“I’m not sleeping until you give me some answers.” I said, standing my ground. Joey shot me a look and sighed. “Well, what do I have to lose? Alright, I’ll tell you. But you’d better get comfortable; we’re gonna be here for a while.”

I blinked and shifted my position. “Ready?” I nodded, and Joey began his story.

“You know how I was adopted? Well, I was adopted from a little town in Russia. I was born with a special ability. Super speed. My family was poor. Money was running out, and my mother had caught a nasty disease. About a month later, I came home from work and she was dead. In my father’s grieving, he killed himself. The next day the Russian police came and took


5

me away to an orphanage. Oh, Alexis, it was awful. The beds were like rocks, the food like gritty sand, and the adults, like thorns. We had to work in sewing factories, and many of us injured our fingers. One day, I was sent on an errand to go and pick up groceries. And then they came. They were younger back then, but just as strong. Alec-“

“Who’s Alec?”

“Oh. Alec is the man with the spiky brown hair. And so as soon as they ran into formation, I knew that Alec was their unquestioned leader. He was the fastest, strongest, and fiercest. So they grabbed me and brought me to the CLI. The CLI is an organization in china. Chinese Lab Industries. There were children there, Alexis. They were mess up experiments. They did horrible things to my legs. Surgeries, IVs, and even breaking them to see if I could heal correctly. I was only seven at the time, but it was simple. I needed to escape. I did, and now I live here with my foster parents. But when I saw them hurt you I thought, ‘not her’. I knew that they would do horrible things to you, too, and the only way to escape was by running. It was a risky and dangerous thing to do, because I could’ve gotten us both killed, but I took the chance. And now look where we are.” He said, motioning to the forest surrounding us.

Then I noticed that it was dark. The crickets were chirping, and then I realized that I was exhausted. I yawned and leaned back against the tree. “You should get some sleep now,” Joey said, sitting up.”I’ll take first watch.”

“Goodnight, Joey.”

“Goodnight, Alexis.”

“Goodnight.”

As I slept, I dreamed. It was a nightmare.

I was running to my parents, but they were too far away. My mom was cornered in the kitchen, my dad protectively shielding her with his body, their eyes filled with the same expression. Fear. Then I saw what they were cowering from. A man stood in front of them, a gun in hand. As I got a closer look, I saw it was Alec. My breaths quickened, and I was screaming their names. But they never heard me. Alec raised his gun, and there was a blinding flash of light, and I bolted awake.

It was dawn. Joey was staring at me, a confused look in his eyes. I said the first thing that came to my mind.

“We need to find my parents.”

“No.”


6

“Excuse me?”

“No. It’s too dangerous.”

“Fine. I’ll fly there myself.”

Joey’s eyes widened.

“What did you say?”

My throat tightened, and I said, “I’ll fly there.”

With a shaky hand, I steadied myself and stood up. I limped to the middle of the clearing and braced myself, ignoring the fact that Joey was watching me with concerned eyes. I took a deep breath and flexed my back. There was a rip of fabric and Joey gasped. I blushed.

I could imagine him seeing me with a thirteen foot wingspan. He reached up and stroked my golden and white feathers, his eyes glassy. I flapped my wings a few times, just for show. Joey stumbled backwards, and all he could mumble was, “Wow.” I blushed and looked away. Joey got back up, brushing the dust off his jeans. “Now I know why they want you so bad. You’re incredible. Can you really fly?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never tried. Now can we go and find my parents? I bet their worried.” Joey began to say no, but paused. He saw how concerned I was and gave up. “Alright.” I gave a holler for joy and he cut me off.

“But first you’re learning how to fly.” I nearly had a heart attack. “WHAT?!” I yelled. “But that could take days!” Joey shook his head and said, “Think of how fast it takes a baby bird to have its first flight. Not long, correct?” I nodded in defeat. “Okay! Let’s get started.”

Joey picked me up and carried me up to the top of a large boulder that towered above the trees. He set me down and backed away. I spread my wings apart and sucked in a nervous gulp of air. “Well, here goes nothing.” And suddenly I turned around and jumped.


7

Captured

“Ugh. Joey, what happened?”

“Alexis, you were doing so well! You were in the air for two and a half minutes! But then a huge gust of wind came and it blew you into the trees. You hit your head and blacked out! You also sprained your bad ankle. I was so worried! I thought something bad had happened! Don’t scare me like that, Okay?”

I opened my eyes to see Joey standing over me, his face concerned. I heard a low moan and realized that it was coming from me. I tried to sit up and my ankle throbbed with pain, causing me to wince. Joey helped me into a sitting position and I examined myself for any injuries. A sprained ankle, three oozing cuts on my right arm, a deep and bloody gash on my right calf, a painful splinter in my left thumb, and a slash on my cheek oh, yea, and a small bump on the back of my head. I plucked out the splinter and ripped my sweater into strips. I wrapped the gauze around my ankle and calf. I shoved the remaining strips in my pockets.

I stood up, and with Joey’s help, walked around. “Can we go and get my parents now?” I asked pitifully. Joey laughed and shook his head. “You just passed out, and now you want to go on a hundred mile walk, just after spraining your ankle. Alexis, you must have hit your head harder than we thought! You’ve gone crazy!” I stuck out my bottom lip and crossed my arms. “Anyway, it’s getting dark. You need rest. It’s been a busy day for you.” He said, laying me on the ground. I groaned. It still felt like morning to me. Oh well. That’s what you get for trying to fly in the morning. I eventually closed my eyes and let sleep claim me.

I woke up to see Joey. He had a red face and he was breathing hard. I noticed that he was carrying me and that is was well past noon. “Wanted to let you sleep.” He panted. “We’re almost in your neighborhood.” My jaw dropped. “What?”

He set me down on the concrete. Sure enough, we were just houses away from mine. Using his shoulders for a crutch, we slowly made it over to my house. We were about halfway up the walkway when Joey paused, appearing to be listening to something. “Get down!” he hissed, pushing me into the bushes and diving in after. “Joey what-“ I was silenced when be clamped his hand over my mouth. I struggled for a moment, but stopped as I realized what Joey was listening to. My heart nearly stopped.


8

A very familiar black van screeched to a stop into my alley. As I watched in horror, Alec and two other men walked up to the front door and knocked.

My parents! “Oh no,” I moaned. I couldn’t help it.

Alec’s head snapped to face us. He grinned at us and reached into his pocket and pulled out a- “RUN!” Joey yelled, hoisting me to my feet. Despite my swollen ankle, I ran as fast as I could. Joey sped ahead of me at top speed, not looking back. Suddenly, my bad leg buckled, sending me tumbling to the ground.

In seconds, the men had caught up to me. Alec pinned my hands behind my back and whispered, “You ain’t gettin’ away this time.” The other two men grabbed my legs and hauled me over towards the van. And then Joey was there, fighting like a wild tiger. In a flurry, Alec accidentally dropped me and Joey shouted, “Fly Alexis, hurry!” In a flash, I snapped out my wings and sprang up. “YOU GO NOWHERE!” Alec hollered, jumping after me. Yes! I was going to escape! Then a meaty hand grabbed my foot and yanked me down. I desperately flapped my wings, but it was hopeless. I looked at Joey, who was sprouting a black eye, and knew it was over.

We were caught.

“Are you okay?” I asked finally. “Yea.” Joey replied, rubbing his black eye. We were in the way back of the van. In cages. “Where do you think their taking us?” I whimpered, even though I already knew the answer. Joey blinked a few times, not saying anything. And after that, it was all quiet.

Hours later, we stopped. Alec opened the van doors and loaded our cages onto a metal cart. A black sheet was thrown over us and we began to move. “I smell salt.” Joey whispered down to us. “We’re at the ocean… I can even hear the waves.” I said, clutching the bars of my cage.

Alec pulled the cart up a ramp, and closed the door. The cart stopped moving, and the sheet was whisked off.

Bright light poured into the dark cage, blinding me. When my eyes adjusted, I could see that we were in a plane. Not one with bright and cheery wallpaper, seats, or windows. Even though I had not been in one, I assumed that it was a cargo plane. And besides Alec, Joey, and I, we were the only ones on board.

“Eat this,” Alec said, handing us two bowls of soup. Not even thinking, I slurped it down quickly. Joey did the same. He made a huge burp and we cracked up. Joey froze. His eyes rolled


9

into the back of his head, and Joey fell unconscious. My eyes widened. The soup! But it was too late. My body gave a final jerk and I blacked out.

“Joey?” I woke up. I was in a room like those in hospitals. My limbs were strapped down with thick Velcro, and I had an IV in my right arm.

Someone had changed my clothes, because instead of wearing my grubby jeans and purple t- shirt, I was wearing a white shirt and a pair of long white sweatpants. I was also barefoot.

To my surprise, I was alone. No Joey, no adults, and definitely no Alec. I coughed as the thick smell of disinfectant reached my lungs.

On the table besides me were tools that you would see only in a horror movie. There were scissors, needles, and even a knife. I shuddered as I read the labels of the colorful liquids that rested on a tray. Chloroform, adrenaline, acid… I forced myself to look away. Then I heard the door open.

A woman in a white lab coat walked over to me. Were these the scientists that Joey was talking about? My blood ran cold. I shot her a steely gaze, and she looked away.

She reached for a needle and filled it with a pale blue liquid. Then she stabbed the needle into my IV.

I instantly began to feel drowsy. My eyelids drooped. Right before I fainted, I saw the woman reach for a carving knife.

“Alexis.” I opened my eyes to see Joey standing over me. When he saw that I was alright, his shoulders relaxed.

Just like me, Joey was wearing a white t- shirt and sweatpants to match it. “I’m okay.” I said reassuringly. I sat up and looked around.

We were in a white, windowless room. There was no furniture, just two bowls of tomato soup and a door. Even though I was hungry, I wasn’t about to eat some soup. Not after what happened with Alec.

I reached for the doorknob. “It’s locked; I’ve already tried it.” Joey motioned for me to sit down beside him. Obediently, I did. Joey looked me in the eyes and gave me a funny look. “What?” I asked, confused. “What did they do to you?”


10

“I don’t know.” I admitted truthfully.

“Your eye.”

“My what?”

“Your eye.”

I rubbed it. It was still there. “The other one.” He said, staring at me closely. It was also there.

“I thought you had brown eyes.”

“I do. Joey, what’s wrong?”

“Your left eye is blue.” The shock hit me first. I felt it, and it felt the same.

Suddenly, the door unlocked and Alec stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. He took one look at us, then at the bowls of soup, and then I realized that the soup had been drugged, and that Alec expected us to be asleep by now.

We were on our feet instantly, and Joey was growling menacingly. I expected the jolt of pain to come to my sprained ankle, but I was surprised to find that it was like brand new.

Joey sent out a powerful snap kick, but Alec caught his leg in mid – kick. I snapped a fist at Alec’s face, but he swung Joey at me. We smashed together, and we skidded to the tile in a tangle of arms and legs. Alec plucked Joey off me and tossed him against the wall. He grabbed my wrist and was stopped by Joey, who was on Alec’s back, ripping out his hair. Alec gave out a roar and slammed Joey against the wall, and I saw Joey’s nose begin to bleed. As Alec reached for him, I lunged for Alec’s legs and held on for dear life. Alec wrenched his legs free and kicked me away.

As his boot connected with my ribcage, there was a loud crack and I was sliding across the floor. I saw stars. My world was threatening to go black, and my breath was coming out in ragged gasps.

“Nooooo!” Joey cried, his face contorted with fury, and he was on Alec. Before he could get in any effective blows, Alec grabbed his arm and flipped him onto the floor. Alec grabbed his neck and pinned Joey to the wall by his throat.

Just then, another man like Alec rushed in. He took one look at Alec, then at Joey, then at me, and realized what he had to do. The other man cuffed me and Joey’s hands behind our backs and the two men dragged us out the door.


11

The CLI

“Ugh. I will now and forever hate orange.” Joey laughed at my comment and slid the orange jumpsuit over his head. I did the same, and we walked over to the long line of mutants.

We had been at the CLI for about a week, and even though we tried to stay rebellious, Joey and I were slowly breaking in like the other Mutants. There were about one hundred and fifty of us in all, and we were all in the ages of four to sixteen.

It was the same routine every day. Wake up, put on new jumpsuits, go through the mousetrap test, eat mid- day meal, return to the gallery, go to bed.

The gallery was yet another windowless room, but it was the size of a football field, and it was filled with bunk beds. Since Joey and I were considered ‘newbies’ we shared a bed.

We finally made our way up to the front of the line. A couple of CHORDs were standing guard in front of a huge gate.

CHORDs were what we called Alec’s species. We didn’t know why they were called that, but we went with it anyway.

We were pushed through the gate and into the beginning of the mousetrap. The mousetrap was a huge obstacle maze. The objective was to find your way to the finish as fast as possible. We could’ve used our powers if the CHORDS hadn’t installed a device that deactivated our powers. Joey just wasn’t fast, and I couldn’t move my wings.

“Left or right?” Joey asked me. “Uhhh… right.” I said, and we took a right turn. I instantly knew that we had taken the wrong turn. I spun around, but I knew that it was hopeless. The door had sealed shut, and the only way out was forward. There was a screech of metal against metal, and the walls began to close in on us. “Run!” I shouted, and we sprinted towards the end of the long hallway.

“We’re not going to make it!” I moaned, giving up. “Yes we are!” Joey said fiercely, grabbing my wrist. I planted my feet firmly to the ground. “I almost lost you once!” he screamed, lifting me into his arms. “And I’m not going to lose you again!”

I cringed at his words. The wall slammed shut behind us with a sickening crunch. Joey set me down and looked away. I felt my face flush. I sucked in a deep breath and trudged on.

I had panicked, and it could have cost me my life. If Joey wasn’t there, I would be dead by now.


12

This time we made the smart decision and took a left turn. Now we had to swing on ropes to reach the other side.

In two and a half hours, we had successfully reached the finish line. Alive. “We did it!” I cheered. But Joey just looked at his feet and nodded.

Joey didn’t want Alexis to know his dark secret.

He silently slid off his orange jumpsuit and yanked on his t-shirt and sweatpants. When Alexis gave up back in the mousetrap, Joey had a flashback.

In those same walls, four years ago, someone special to him had died. Agatha, his younger sister. Joey was ten at the time, and little Aggie was four. They were new to the CLI, and they didn’t know much. When Joey had seen his sister being crushed by those walls, he then swore to himself that when he fell in love with a girl, he would protect her at any cost. So he could do what he had never done for Aggie. And when he met Alexis, it was no exception; she was the only one.

Joey shook his head and came back to reality. One thing was certain. He needed to get Alexis out of here. And, maybe some old friends.

It was midnight. Alexis was asleep, and Joey slid out of bed. He walked over to a bunk and quietly shook awake a familiar lump. A pair of blue eyes peered at him from under the thin blanket. “Joey?” the little girl peeped, her eyes widening. “Yes May, it’s definitely me.” He said, sitting down on the bottom bunk. May poked her head out, her blonde curls practically glowing in the dark. “Let me guess,” she said, sitting upright, “It’s that girl, Alexis, isn’t it?” Joey hung his head.

“Yes.”

“And you want to get her out of here before something bad happens, just like with little Agatha.”

“Yes.”

“We need to call in the kids.”

“Let’s”


13

An hour later, May and Joey had managed to awaken the children and bring them back to May’s bottom bunk.

“I’m sleepy.” Moaned seven year old Storm, rubbing the sand out of his stormy gray eyes. “Hang in there Storm.” Said a petite girl with pale blue eyes and long, glossy black hair.

June. She was always the calm one.

Sammy giggled. “What’s the matter, Storm? You need your beauty sleep?” Sammy burst out laughing when Storm growled. “Good one, Sammy!” cried out a tall, white haired girl.

Even though Heather was ten and Sammy was nine, they were the best of friends. They both had telepathic powers, and they wielded their dark gift happily. What was funny was that they looked like exact opposites. While Heather had long white hair, Sammy had short black hair. Even their eyes were different. Heather’s eyes were hazel, and Sammy’s were a midnight blue color.

“Alright. Let’s come up with a plan.” Joey said, trying to stay on task. “I know!” said Storm.

“How about all the walls turn into jell-o, and”

“The CHORDs turn into broccoli, and”

“That’s stupid. Why can’t the CHORDs turn into onions, just like their bad breaths?”

As Storm, Heather, and Sammy argued over their nonsense plan, Joey sighed, his patience running out.

“Guys…” but no one seemed to hear.

“GUYS…”

“But I want to ride the brown pony! Storm, you can ride the green one and”

“GUYS!”

They all fell silent. “That’s better. Now let’s think of a real plan.”

“Oh! I know! Heather, you can have the white pony , and Storm can have the gray pony and I can ride the black pony!” Sammy said happily.

“But I had the white pony last time. I want the gray pony.”

“No! I want the gray pony! It matches my eyes!”

“Since when did you have some fashion sense, Storm? Last time I checked, you wanted the white pony.”


14

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

“DID NOT!”

“DID TOO!”

Finally, Joey lost his temper.

He grabbed the younger kid’s hair and smacked their heads together, trying to knock some sense into the troublesome three.

“But I wanted the black pony….”

Joey sighed. It was going to be a long night.

“Awww… Everett, do I have to go?” begged eleven year old Ella.

“Yes Ella. Your father paid good money to bring you overseas. You should be glad to see him. It’s been a few years, hasn’t it?” said Everett, Ella’s personal butler and only friend. “Yes…” she mumbled, blinking a few tears out of her big, thoughtful brown eyes.

It wasn’t fair. She had to move from Michigan to China just to spend time with her psycho dad. China was so big. What if she got lost or kidnapped or something? What if she ended up like that thirteen year old girl, Alexis, who had gone missing on the last day of school, never to be seen again? The girl had lived in her neighborhood, and even babysat from time to time. But that was over, and it was behind her now. She would never see Alexis again, and it didn’t really bother her much.

When Ella’s mom found out that her dad was evil, she divorced, and Ella has been living in two worlds for years now. It was simple. She would stay with her mom during the school year, and live with her dad over the summer.

Her dad was the president of the CLI, and Ella just hoped that she didn’t end up like one of his experiments. She shuddered at the thought of being one.

The car pulled to a stop and Everett opened the car door and handed her a hairbrush. Ella quickly combed through her long mouse brown hair and tossed the brush into the backseat.


15

She walked up to the voice animated door. Everett dragged Ella’s luggage up to the door and set it down besides her.

The CLI was a relatively small organization, but at least it was out in the middle of nowhere, and next to a huge stretch of woods in the middle of the mountains. Ella wondered if she could go hiking tomorrow, but probably not.

The CLI was made up of four buildings; their house, the labs, the experiment’s living quarters, and the shed.

The experiment’s living quarters was made up of fifteen floors.

The first four floors was where the computers were, with all of their files.

The next five floors were where the CHORDs lived and trained for battle.

The tenth floor was where they held cages for their naughty experiments.

The eleventh floor was where they prepare all of the experiment’s food.

The twelfth and thirteenth floor was where the so called mousetrap was located.

The fourteenth floor was where the experiments were being held captive.

And the fifteenth floor was the sky light. There was no roof on this floor, and that’s why they called it the sky light. No one messed with that floor. It was abandoned.

The lab was, of course, where the scientists experimented on their subjects, and did who knows what to them.

The shed was where they kept all of the cars, weapons, tools, and machine parts.

And of course, Ella and her father lived in the smallest building, their home.

A CHORD opened the door and let them in. Ella didn’t know what CHORD stood for, so she made up a silly acronym. Crazy Hyper Onion Repulsive Dummies. She laughed at the thought.

The CHORD grabbed the luggage from Everett and hauled it down the hallway. Quickly, she followed. Ella noticed that Everett was no longer with her. She spun around to see Everett drive away. Great. She was alone with the CHORDs.

She followed him through a few hallways until they came to a stop in front of a door. The CHORD opened it, and inside the windowless room was another CHORD.

Ella could hardly remember his name. “Alec?” the man’s head snapped up and he glared at her. “Uhh… Ella has arrived.” Said the CHORD who was holding her bags. “Take the bags upstairs to Ella’s room, and get out of our sight.” Alec said, and with a wave of his hand, the man was gone.


16

Alec stood up from the desk and Ella had noticed how huge he had gotten. It had been years since she last saw him, and the man just keeps getting bigger. Go figure. Oh, the ever growing life of a CHORD. Alec was the biggest of the CHORDs, and Ella respected him.

He led her down a few more hallways, and they reached the back door. “So, do you want to meet the freaks?” he asked, grinning widely. Afraid to say no, Ella nodded her head meekly.

She followed him through the winding path until they stopped in front of the experiment’s quarters. They walked into the door and they were on the computer level. They took the elevator up to the fourteenth floor. There was a small room and, in the back, five CHORDs stood guard, which scared Ella to believe that whatever was behind that door must be horrible, especially if it took five CHORDs to guard it.

The CHORDs let them in, and the concrete door slammed shut behind them. In front of Ella was a large windowless room, about the size of a football field, filled with children and bunk beds.

The kids were all wearing white t-shirts and sweatpants to match. But they weren’t unmoving though. Some were running around in groups of twos and threes, while others were sprawled out on their beds, chattering away.

There were little kids, about the age of four by the looks of them. There were also teenagers, who were probably taller than her.

Suddenly, one person in particular caught her eye. She was sitting on a bed with a few other kids, including a cute blonde boy. They were talking, and Ella couldn’t hear them.

She had long shiny blonde hair that she hung in a ponytail. The girl had rosy red cheeks and a brown eye. Minus the blue eye, there was no mistaking it; it was Alexis.

The cute boy with her seemed to notice Ella staring at them and nudged Alexis.

All faces turned to her, and the look of surprise on Alexis’s face was priceless.

So it was true. Alexis was at the CLI, as a slave, all because of her father.


17

Escape

When I saw Ella standing there, next to Alec, I nearly fainted. What was she doing here? Then I realized it too soon. Ella was here to visit her father, the president of this living heck, and Alec was showing her around.

The shock came crashing down on my sleepless shoulders.

I haven’t gotten a wink of sleep in the past three nights, because I kept on having nightmares concerning my parents, who were alone, without any trace of protection from the bloodthirsty CHORDs.

My head was spinning, and I felt Joey’s arms slide protectively around my waist. “Hang in there, Alexis.” He whispered to me. “Don’t blink out on me now.”

But it was too late. I felt my body go limp on May’s bed, and I knew that I was going to get a good, long rest. I closed my heavy eyelids and drifted off.

“Alexis.”

I forced my eyes open and saw Ella standing over me. I was in my bottom bunk, and it was dark.

Wait… why would Ella be in the gallery in the middle of the night? Unless… then I got a whiff of smoke.

“Something’s burning.” I mumbled, on full alert. Ella giggled. “Sorry. That would be me.” I goggled up at her.

Her clothes were in perfect condition, and nothing seemed to be charred. “How?” I asked stupidly, and Ella burst into tears, burying her face into the blanket.

I didn’t know what to do.

“Oh Alexis, it was horrible! My bed was on fire! I really mean it, on fire! And I was in the middle of it. But I wasn’t burning. I didn’t even feel the heat! So I ran to you, because I knew that you would help.” Ella said, in hysterics now. I patted her back affectionately, and she stood up.


18

Then it hit me.

Tonight was the night.

I jumped out of the bed and shook Joey awake, who was snoring softly. “Wha- what is it, Alexis?” he groaned, sitting up.

“Tonight’s the night.”

I whispered, and his eyes grew to full moons. We jumped down, and quickly woke up the younger kids and gathered them all around.

Joey nodded his head, and all of them seemed to understand. I grabbed Ella and raced to the door with the others.

With a grunt, Joey and I managed to pry the door open just a crack. We all squeezed through the hole, and to our relief, the CHORDs were nowhere in sight.

We sprinted to the elevator and knew that the only way out was up. We knew that there were CHORDs at every floor, but the one place that no one ever dares to go is the fifteenth floor.

We all piled into the elevator and Joey pressed the button. The elevator came to a stop and all of us kids stumbled upon the sky light. Just like had I predicted, there was no roof, and we were exposed to the open night sky.

In the middle if the room was a single parachute with a pile of rope and metal clips.

I latched Ella onto the parachute, and with Joey’s help, managed to tie everyone else on. We crept to the edge of the roof and looked down fourteen stories down to the ground.

“One.” Storm squeaked. “Two.” Heather muttered nervously.

Suddenly, there was a flash of a knife, and the ropes were sliced away from me, and I was separated from the group.

I spun around to see Alec and three other CHORDs grinning, with knives in hand. Joey whipped his head around, and Sammy screamed. June covered her ears and May instinctively turned invisible.

It hit me like an oncoming train; do or die.

I knew that it meant sacrificing the chance for freedom for me, but I knew that the younger kids needed to escape more than I did. They had a future; and I didn’t. But I knew that Joey would hate me for my actions.

“Don’t do it,” Joey warned, but I knew what I had to do. I sent out a stunning snap kick to Ella’s leg, and the whole lot of them went tumbling off the side of the building.


19

“ALEXIS!” I heard Joey scream, but Alec’s goons grabbed me. I kicked one’s knee and bit the other, and they fell to the ground. I spit the CHORD blood at Alec, and it hit his black boot. He advanced towards me, and I knew that I was going to have to either fly or be chopped into little pieces by Alec’s knife.

He swung it over me in a great ark, coming down fast. But I was already falling down.

I spread out my wings and flapped them a few times, and the cool breeze ruffled my feathers. I was flying. I coughed, remembering to breathe.

I saw the parachute lying on the dirt, and to my relief, everyone had landed safely. I drifted to the ground, and Joey caught me.

I folded my wings back into my clothes and counted heads. There were eight in all, including mine.

Together, we raced off into the woods. Even though we were barefoot, I tried my best not to shriek when my foot caught on a branch. Storm kept stumbling, and finally, Joey scooped the seven year old into his arms and carried him. I also noticed that Ella was lagging behind, and I decided to give her a piggyback ride.

We ran for what felt like hours, and by that time, the sky was beginning to turn pink. We needed to rest.

Sammy’s feet were bruised, and his palms had a nice supply of blisters. Heather tried not to slow her pace, but she was getting farther and farther behind. Ella was breathing hard, and she had dark circles under her eyes. Storm was probably the worst. His face held multiple cuts from the brambles, and he had a nasty gash on his leg. June had already fallen five or six times, and her ankle was swollen. Joey and I tried to stay strong for the sake of the younger kids, but I was about ready to pass out.

Everything was a blur. And it turned out that Alec had really cut me with his knife. That idiot had actually hit me!

“Joey!” I moaned, and he understood. We came to a stop, and May fainted dead away. Sammy fell to the ground besides her and he was out, too.

With the little strength that I had left, I laid May in the crook of a large oak. Storm crawled into a hollow birch tree and fell asleep instantly. I wrapped June’s ankle up with a piece of her shirt and she was unconscious before I draped her into the large weeping willow. Joey had tied Sammy to a branch of May’s tree and he hugged Heather good night as she climbed into a tall pine. “Goodnight, Ella.” I whispered and gently placed her into the weeping willow with June. Joey and I hauled ourselves into redwood trees and I was sleeping soundly. Before I was unconscious, I muttered to Joey,


20

“Goodnight.”

“More like good day.” He muttered, and then he was snoring.

For the first time in days, I was truly happy.

When I woke again, it was nightfall. Everyone else was sleeping, and I was the only one awake.

I knew that when the younger kids would wake up, especially Storm, they would be starving.

I hopped out of the redwood tree and pressed onwards into the woods in search of food. To my luck, I found a shallow cave with water running through it. I drank from it eagerly and made a notice to bring the group to this spot.

I searched for another hour, with no luck at all. I returned to the entrance of the cave and heard something. Shouting. I climbed to the highest branch of a huge oak tree, looking around franticly. I spotted the problem.

CHORDs surrounded the sleeping experiments while they slept. Alec held a gun up to Joey’s head. The younger kids were tied up, still asleep.

Joey bolted awake to see everything, and to his dismay, he was tied up like the rest of them. In silence, the CHORDs threw my family into the van and drove away, leaving the rest of the CHORDs to walk back to the CLI on foot.

I unfurled my wings and silently followed the van. My mind screamed for action, but I held back.

When the walking CHORDs were out of sight, I swooped in to kick some butt.

I landed on the roof of the black van and snagged a branch from a passing tree. I plunged the branch into the roof and cut a hole about my size. I squeezed through, ignoring the jagged metal digging into my muddy skin. I nearly shouted.

My precious family was tied to the metal rungs that were securely strapped to the floor. June was crying, and Sammy’s eyes were welled up with tears. Pulling out a broken shard of metal from my bloody arm, I sliced them free.

With the branch still in hand, I quickly knocked out the two men driving. To my satisfaction, Alec was one of them. I pulled the car to a stop, and I dumped the men out onto the grass.

Grinning evilly, I stole Alec’s new camo backpack. I unlocked the car door and my family came piling out.


21

Hugs were passed around, and I offered a brilliant suggestion. Storm’s eyes grew wide, and Heather stifled a giggle.

We stripped off the men’s outer clothing, which was two jackets, two belts, a knife, two pairs of boots size XXXL, and a gun.

Joey and Storm tried the boots on, and surprisingly, they fit. May and I got the belts, and I got the knife. Ella and June got the huge jackets, and we hid the gun under some bushes.

We hopped back into the van, and with Joey’s help, drove off.

“Woooow!” cried Storm, who was looking out the van window.

I saw Joey flash a faint grin, and as soon as it appeared, it was gone. I sat up and yawned. Joey had been driving us away from the CLI for about four hours.

The thick woodland had disappeared, and we were somewhere in the countryside. I heard a giggle from the back of the van. I turned around to check on the other kids.

Storm was sitting by himself in one of the seats behind Joey and I his face was mesmerized by the landscape flying by.

A few hours earlier I had rooted around in Alec’s backpack and found a pack of cards, handing them to Ella and May, who seemed very close at the moment. Now June had joined their game of go fish, and they were playing happily.

Sammy was sleeping, and I didn’t blame him one bit. Heather crouched in the corner, playing with her muddy white hair.

Remind me to give them showers when I have the chance. I thought, looking at their stained clothes in disapproval.

Suddenly, the car skidded on the road. Ella screamed. The car was flipping upside-down now, and my seatbelt was hitting me in the face like an angry alligator. The windshield broke, and a fresh plate of shattered glass hit me full in the face. There was more screaming, and I heard a small beeping noise coming from the van. My stomach was sick, and the car came to a stop.

The beeping was more erratic now, getting faster and faster. I realized what the beeping noise was. Joey seemed to notice it, too.

“Get OUT!” he thundered, grabbing Storm and Sammy, who was now wide awake. May clutched Ella protectively; the two had become close friends in the past few hours, and Heather was on full alert.


22

In a flash, the younger kids scrambled out of the van. I struggled out of my seatbelt, but it hung fast.

I wasn’t ready to be blown to pieces, so I tugged harder. But in return; the belt only grew tighter, choking me.

“I’m stuck!” I gasped through clenched teeth. Then I remembered the knife attached to Alec’s stolen belt.

I madly slashed, but I could only pull up a few loose threads. There was a rip of fabric, and the belt instantly fell off.

“MOVE!” yelled Joey, lifting me into his skinny arms. He smashed the window open with his foot and threw me onto the dirt. I pulled him out and dragged him to the other kids. A split second later, there was a loud boom, and we were thrown back.

I think that I passed out for a moment, because when I opened my eyes, the van was scattered around my family. I sat up, only to see that I was the only one conscious. Sammy had a cut on his cheek, and June had a nasty gash on her arm. Ella’s ankle was twisted awkwardly to one side, and I knew that it was sprained, by the looks of it. Storm shifted, and his gray eyes fluttered open.

“Are you okay?” I asked him. “Yea, but my head hurts.” I nodded. We were all hurt. There was an ear shattering scream and I spun around. “My ankle!” Ella shrieked. “I think it’s broken!”

“Ella,” called Joey, rubbing his eyes, “Can you keep it down?” and then she bit her bottom lip and cried silently.

“Sammy! Sammy! Wake up, Sammy!” Heather cried, shaking his shoulders lightly. I could see instantly that something was wrong. I had not seen it when I first looked over him, but it was clear now.

Sammy had broken both his legs in the crash.


23

Crashed

Joey pushed Heather out of the way and slid his fingers under Sammy’s neck. Joey nodded in relief, and we knew that he had found a pulse.

“What do we do?” Heather asked, her voice small. I flinched as June slid next to Joey and examined Sammy’s broken legs carefully.

“What happened?” May groaned, her eyes the size of full moons. She took one good look at Sammy’s twisted legs and fainted dead away. I strayed back as June and Joey gently lifted Sammy into Alec’s backpack. They zipped him up, and only his head poked out.

Guilt washed over me. Why did Sammy have to get hurt, just because of me? If only I had have been faster, would things be different?

Storm helped June securely strap the backpack to Joey, and I found a branch for Ella to use as a crutch. I lifted the sleeping May up, and my pack was off. “What now?” Storm whimpered.

I had to make up my mind quick. “The ocean.” I blurted out. “We go to the ocean, hitch a ride on a ship to America, and find my parents.” The more that I thought about it, the better it sounded.

“Where’s the ocean?” Ella moaned. “For all we know, the ocean could be in the opposite direction!” I nodded. This could easily be true. It could take us a while to reach the great bodies of water. But I was willing to make that sacrifice. I thought.

“But will Sammy?” Heather asked, her deep hazel eyes peering into my mismatched ones. I flinched as I realized that she had read my mind. Again. I still wasn’t used to the fact that Heather and Sammy could read minds.

“Where’s Storm?” Joey said, looking over his shoulder. I counted heads. Seven. Storm’s was missing. “Storm?!” I shouted, looking around franticly. But the seven year old was nowhere in sight.

I set May down on the dirt and shot up into the air. I circled the pack three times before heading back the way we came. I spotted him standing on a boulder, his spiky gold hair ruffled by the wind.


24

I landed besides him. Storm’s eyes were closed, and his hands hung relaxingly by his waist. For once, he looked calm. As if to feel my presence, his eyes fluttered open and he smiled at me. “East.” He said.

“What?”

“We should head east. I can feel the ocean, Alexis. It’s calling my name.” his words spooked me. What did he mean? “Uhh… okay.” I muttered awkwardly. “Let’s catch up with the rest of them.” Storm said, and I carried him back to the rest of the pack.

“Where was he?” Ella pleaded, giving me a concerned look. “That’s none of your concern, Ella.” I grinned. “Well, where to?” Joey laughed.

“East. We head east.”

“Which boat do we take?” May said happily. It had been about a day, and we had come across a private trading company. There were about twenty boats, all lined up on the shore, waiting to be loaded. “We want to find the boat that lands closest to Michigan.” I said. “Let’s all fan out.” Joey whispered, walking over to a large ship.

Storm and June went around the corner, and May and Ella ran over to the ship farthest from the shore. Heather browsed with me, and I noticed that she was deathly quiet.

“What’s up?” I asked, but I already knew the answer. “Sammy.” Heather squeaked in a small voice. At those words, my heart throbbed for her. I have never had to go through anything like this, but I knew it hurt.

“He’s going to be alright.” I reassured, but it wasn’t very convincing. I then wished that I could do more for her, but I’m not the best person to deal with an emotional problem.

“We found it! We found it!” cried Storm. The rest of us ran over to where they were standing.

Spray painted on the side of the ship, in big letters, were the words NEW YORK. “Yes! It’s perfect!” Ella cheered. “Let’s get on board.” Joey said.


25

New York

When will this torture be over? I begged silently in my mind. I am probably the most claustrophobic person you will ever meet. So riding to America in a small, dark space is not my idea of fun.

I wished for daylight to seep through the cracks on the first deck, because I was gonna barf if I smelled any more bananas. They were packed in huge wooden crates that nearly touched the low ceiling.

I waited in the darkness, with only my lonely thoughts to keep me sane. “Was this the right choice?” I moaned out loud.

We were trapped in a cramped place, not knowing where we were headed, or what was to come. I looked at the deathly pale Sammy, and my heart leapt into my throat. He was still zipped up into the backpack, and he twitched feverishly in his unconsciousness, only to hurt his legs more. I dreaded the moment that he would wake up, and the fact that we still had to tell him that his legs are broken into a faze that he would probably never be able to walk again. I shuddered and glanced away.

I stretched over the floorboards and tried to get comfortable. I had promised Joey that I would take the first shift. Even though I was having supposed to wake him up hours ago for his shift, I let him sleep. Plus, under all this tension, I wasn’t getting any sleep any time soon.

My thoughts turned to my parents. How were they? Do they miss me? What will they think of my new friends? I knew that they must be distraught with worry, but what will I tell them? Hi mom! Don’t worry about me, I was just kidnapped twice, almost died in an exploding van, and illegally immigrated this group of fellow mutants overseas, and one has badly broken legs. “What do you mean, fellow mutants?’ she would ask. You see, being an only child, my parents never knew that I had wings. I have kept it a secret for years now, but I have almost slipped up a few times. Like once my mom offered to wash my hair, and I almost told her, “I can’t, or else you are going to have to call animal control.” I smiled at the thought.

I wondered what they were doing. Putting up lost posters? Pasting my face on the school’s milk jugs? The possibilities were endless.

I sat up and decided to rifle through the bananas and find some chow. I looked in one box. Bananas. I looked in three more boxes. More bananas. I looked in all of the boxes. More BANANAS. My head spun. Too much yellow for me.

Then it occurred to me. How could I see the bananas, if it was supposed to be dark?


26

I stuck out a skinny arm, and a fresh beam of warm light touched my fingers. I looked up to see the sun through the floorboards. I gave a hoot for joy, but then I remembered that everyone else was asleep. Oops.

I sat back down and rubbed my temples. To my relief, they were still snoring soundly. I rested my chin in my hands and flexed my poor spine. I felt my heavy eyelids droop, and even though I tried in vain to stay awake, they sealed shut.

The sound of a foghorn woke me up. I bolted awake, only to hit my head on the ceiling. “Ouch!” I gasped, clutching my head. That was going to leave a mark.

“Alexis, are you alright?” Joey asked, and I nodded with my teeth clenched. I shook it off and shot the floorboards a nasty look.

“What time is it?” I groaned, wondering how long I was out. “I think that it’s only eight. The sun must’ve just come up.” Well that was a relief. “Are we there yet?” Ella pouted. “I think so.” May said in a cheerful tone. “I can’t wait to come out of this ship!” Storm grinned. “No more bananas for me.” He laughed, plugging his nose.

That snide remark made us all laugh. “I’m hungry.” Heather moaned, her stomach growling. I nudged Sammy’s arm and pulled out a pack of crackers from Alec’s backpack, handing her the prize.

Heather eyed it greedily, and in an instant, the crackers were gone.

“The first thing we are going to do in New York is eat and take showers.” I said. “That’s two things.” June pointed out. I rolled my eyes and rubbed the small bump on my head, which will probably turn into a bruise.

There was the sound of boots on the floorboards, and we all looked up. “Hide!” Joey hissed. We hid ourselves deep into the bananas, not bothering to make a sound.

I held my breath and buried myself deeper until I was pressed up against the bottom of the wooden crate. I prayed that everyone was completely out of sight by the time that the cargo men reached the bottom floor.

There were more footsteps, and I heard the door creak open. “Hello? Is anyone there?” asked a male voice. “You’re such a chicken, Martin.” Said another voice, but this one had a German accent. “You guys, let’s just get these crates onto the top floor. I have a lunch to go to after this.” Said a third voice. Three voices. Three men! “Who’s this lunch with?” scoffed the first man, Martin. “Yea, who are you going to lunch with, Chuck?” laughed the second man. “You know that I have been taking a part time job just to get to that sweetheart, Carrie, right?” said Chuck. “Well this time, I invited her out to lunch. And she thinks you’re ugly, Boris.” There was a


27

shocked gasp from the man called Boris. “Your just making it up to get to me aren’t you?” concluded Boris. “Maybe I am.” Chuck taunted. There was a low growling noise, and I heard a brawl going on. A few punches were thrown, and occasionally, there was a muffled grunt. “GUYS!” shouted Martin. “Let’s just get these dumb crates up to the top floor so we can all resume our daily lives!” I heard Chuck and Boris groan, and I felt them lift up my crate.

I was carried up into a bright light, and I nestled deeper into the disgusting yellow fruit. The crate was set down with a thud, and the wood threatened to snap. I was beginning to feel dizzy, and then I remembered to breathe. In a few more minutes, we were all piled up onto the top floor.

We were lowered into a truck, and I punched my way to the top of the crate. I opened the lid and Storm, Heather, Ella, May, June, Joey, and Sammy all fell on top of me. I managed to haul Storm off me and crawl onto another tower of banana crates. The truck was roofless, and the wind was whipping my hair in my face. I pulled it into a tight ponytail and helped the rest of us onto the edge. “There it is! There it is!” May cried, and Storm joined into the excitement. I turned my head a good ninety degrees to see the magnificent city of New York.

The city was indeed magnificent; with the sun’s rays reflecting off millions of different windows, and the trees, trimmed to perfection. The buildings were grand, with various colors, and the people were anything but normal. The streets were crowded with people; some were walking their dogs, while others were enjoying themselves to luxurious spas.

There were stores of all kinds, varying from shoe stores to tattoo parlors.

I saw Ella’s face light up when we passed a beauty parlor. “What I would give to do one of those,” she breathed, plucking a banana peel from her hair.

“Ooh! Ooh! Look! A toy store!” Heather and Storm squealed as they bounced up and down in excitement.

I saw Joey grin, and I smiled back. We caught eye contact, and just for a second, I oddly missed seeing him at school. I don’t know, maybe I had inhaled too much banana essence. And then he was Joey again, the boy who saved my life more than once.

The truck pulled into a Shell gas station and came to a stop. “Now! Here’s our chance!” I whispered urgently.

I tossed Storm onto the sidewalk and jumped down myself. Joey handed me Ella, then May, then Heather, and finally, June. With Sammy on his back, Joey neatly landed next to me.

We herded the kids and led them deeper into the city. “Let’s go shopping!” Ella shrieked, and was skipping around us. “Let’s just hope that Alec put some money in here;” I muttered, looking through hidden pockets.


28

Then my hand brushed against something papery. “AHA!” I shouted, waving a stack of hundreds above my head triumphantly. I zipped the bag shut and counted the bills.

“Three hundred and forty two dollars!” May yelled. “We’re rich!” Storm exclaimed. “Shhh!” I hissed. “Keep your voices down!”

Storm was skipping along with Ella, and I had to stop them. “Who wants new clothes?” I asked, looking at all the stained white t-shirts. “YES!!!” all of us screamed, including Joey and June, who were usually quiet ones.

I turned into a mall, hoping that they had cheap clothes. I ran them into a McDonalds and fed them. And geez, for a couple of scrawny kids, they sure do eat a lot.

I filled them up with junk food, and rushed them into the bathroom so I could wash their hands and faces.

When we were all full, we set out for a clothing store.

Our first stop was at a GAP store. I told Storm to pick an appropriate outfit to wear, and he quickly came back wearing an orange t shirt and a pair of red sweatpants.

May giggled at his atrocious attire and I rolled my eyes. “Joey, help him out.” I groaned, “I’ll take the others to a Justice store or something.” I winced as May, Ella, Heather, and June squealed with delight.

We went across the outlet and I let the younger girls run wild. “Ohhh, Heather, this is perfect for you!” Ella said, holding up a pink t- shirt.

“No pink.” Heather said with disgust. “Okay.” Ella whined, setting the shirt on the rack. “You guys have fun.” I told them. “I’ll just sit on this bench here.”

“Yay!” was the answer. The girls darted away, and I sat down heavily on the green bench.

“Hi!” Storm said, plopping himself next to me. “Much better.” I cooed, looking him over. He was now wearing a pair of camouflage pants, a plain black tee, a new pair of white socks, and a white, blue, and navy pair of NIKE sneakers.

“Good job.” I grinned, giving him a big thumbs up. “What, no sweater?” I asked. “Nope! I never get cold.” He beamed. “Oh yea. If you can make the temperature fifty degrees below zero, a little chill is nothing.” Storm nodded proudly.

“Hey,” Joey said, sitting to my left. “Hey.” I mumbled. “Where are the girls?” he asked, looking around. “In the Justice store.” I replied, leaning back.

What seemed like forever, the four girls finally came out. I lifted my head up, and my jaw dropped. Next to me, Joey stiffened.


29

June had pulled her hair up into a gracious bun, and she had pinned it in place with a light pink lotus flower pin. She wore a navy and white striped t- shirt, and khaki Capri’s to match. On her feet were clean socks topped off with navy blue converse. She was beautiful.

May was wearing a light blue V- neck with a white long sleeved shirt, a pair of plain denim jeans, and a pair of brand new silver sneakers. Her curls were pulled into a ponytail, and she had pink lip gloss on.

Heather had on a neon green t- shirt, a pair of basketball shorts, and a pair of black sneakers. Ella had pulled all of Heather’s white hair into two nice pigtails.

Ella wowed me the most. She wore short jean shorts, a brown t- shirt with a long, light gray cover up that hung by her skinny knees. She had picked out a brown pair of Uggs, and golden bracelets ran up and down her arms. She, unlike the others, kept her hair down. The transformation was phenomenal. I was now wondering how much money they had cost me. I shuddered at the thought.

“Wow.” Was all I could say.

“Woa! Nice shoes!” Storm gasped, his eyes growing wider.

“Nice.” Joey muttered, looking sheepishly down at his feet.

“What about Sammy?” Heather asked, looking at his dirty clothes. “I didn’t want to move him.” Joey said. “He’s hurting enough already.” I nodded, and Heather bit her lip.

“Now it’s our turn.” I grinned. “Where to?” I asked Joey. He shrugged. “I saw an American Eagle store on the second floor.” Ella offered. “Well, okay.” I said. I knew how much Joey loved American Eagle.

We took the escalator up to the second floor and walked in. “Can we help you pick out your clothes?” Ella, May, and June asked innocently. I shot a bewildered look at Joey and he sighed. “How about you help me? I think Alexis can handle herself.” He said, and their eyes widened. “Sure!” was his answer.

“Thanks.” I mouthed, and he mouthed back;

“You owe me big time.” I grinned and strolled over to the girl’s section. I wasn’t big on choosing stylish clothing, and I almost wished that I had accepted their help. Oh well, my loss.

I finally chose a gray t shirt that had a slightly colored butterfly. Apparently, American Eagle was big on colors, which is not very good if you are hiding out in the woods in broad daylight. So I kept it simple with this shirt. I also picked out a pair of comfortable jeans, which fit me pretty well, and I could easily run in them. I spied a black and white pair of sneakers, and I knew that I had to have them.


30

I paid for the clothes and sat next to Storm and Heather, who looked extremely bored. I figured that Joey had brought Sammy into the back with him, so I wasn’t that worried.

“You look nice.” Heather observed. “Thanks.” I mumbled.

I searched through the bag for a moment, and pulled it out. I was always desperate to know what time it was, so I had bought a simple watch. I latched it on, and the digital clock read two o’ clock. Wow. Time does really fly by when you’re shopping with your mutant friends.

I had also bought a pair of sunglasses; because the stares that my mismatched eyes bestowed on me were unbearable. I slid them on and leaned back into the couch’s cushions.

About ten minutes later, Joey and the girls emerged from the dressing rooms. My jaw dropped, and I quickly closed it. Joey was wearing a red and gold shirt that scribbled the words American Eagle. I noticed that he had found the ripped jeans that he was wearing on the last day of school. He also wore his black converse, just as usual.

I paid for his clothes, and we were off.

“Awww… can’t we stay in New York a little bit longer?” Ella moaned, her eyes pleading. I ignored the tempting look and my eyes locked their gaze onto Sammy. We needed help. I needed to get him over to a doctor. Fast. He didn’t have much time left. I picked up a newspaper lying on someone’s doorstep and pulled of the outer plastic covering. The headline read:

LOST TEENS STILL NOT FOUND; PARENTS DEVISTATED.

Thirteen year old Alexis Dawnshard and fourteen year old Joey Lenard have been missing for fifteen days now, and authorities suspect a kidnapping. In Lansing, Michigan, Alexis Dawnshard was supposedly abducted on the last day of school and her captor remains unknown. “She was there at school.” Says one of Alexis’ classmates. “She just left like the rest of us, but today she was walking home with a cute boy from school, Joey Lenard.” Reports show that Joey was also abducted that same day, and their captors have given us no clue, not even a ransom. Three hours after the four parents called the Authorities, the local police found the teen’s school backpacks, some blood, tire tracks, a stray bullet, and a muddy footprint in the alley of the local power plant. The crime scene was secured, and tests were run on all of the objects listed above. The footprint was from a leather boot size XXXL, and the mud was a soil only found in China. We found no clues from the book bags, but the tire tracks gave us a clue. The captors were driving a black van, and they screeched to a stop. The bullet had no blood on it, and was from an older modeled gun. The blood was from Alexis, but there was not enough of it spilled for it to be fatal. The scene appears to be that Joey and Alexis were innocently walking home from school, and to get a shortcut, they cut through the power plant. When they realized that it was a dead end, the two were startled when a black


31

van blocked the only exit, and the two were abducted by three large men. We don’t know what else happened, but Officials are working on it.

Three days ago, in china, a black van exploded. We suspect that this is the same black van that the two were driven in. We found some blood, and we were shocked to see that there were eight different blood samples, and two were from Joey and Alexis. The other six were not identified, but we know one thing: Joey and Alexis are somewhere in China. Alone. Lost.

Will we ever find them?


32

Home

“Joey?” I said, concerned, “You’d better have a look at this.” I handed him the article. He read it quickly, then handed it back to me.

“Well?” I asked impatiently, waiting for his opinion. “This is bad.” He muttered. “Oh yea. This is real bad.” I groaned. “What?” Storm asked, and four pairs of probing eyes locked onto Joey and I. “Take a look for yourself.” I said, giving Ella the newspaper. As we walked, May and June read over Ella’s shoulder. “Wow. That’s terrible.” Ella admitted. “What is it?!” Storm and Heather demanded eagerly. May bent down and whispered the secret into their ears. “Cool! You’re on the front page!” Storm grinned. “Yea, great.” June exaggerated, rolling her eyes.

“Good idea, Alexis.” Heather said. Then I realized that I was thinking about taking Sammy to a doctor. “Uhh… thanks.” I said slowly. I trudged up a steep concrete hill and came across more buildings. There! I ran up to the door and waited for the rest of the gang to catch up. It was a small doctor’s office, and it looked promising. By now, Joey had reached the top of the hill. He took one look at the doctor’s office, then at me.

“No.” he grunted. “Joey, he doesn’t have much time left. We need to do something or else he might never be able to walk again. We gotta do this.” I tried to reason. “It’s too dangerous! There could be CHORDs crawling in there! I can’t take that chance! I lost you almost twice now! Don’t make me lose you once and for all!” he stormed, and I sighed, because I knew it was useless arguing with Joey. He was as stubborn as a yak. “Fine.” I grumbled.

We met the others at the bottom of the hill. “What was that all about?” Ella inquired. “Yea, we heard shouting.” Storm added, blinking innocently.

“Nothing.” Joey muttered, looking away as I gave him a dirty look. The kids looked us over quizzically, and then gave up on the subject. I let out a frustrated sigh and walked away.

“Where are you going?” Joey demanded, grabbing my wrist. I shook him off and took a few more paces. The streets were abandoned, and I knew what I had to do. Joey knew it, too. “Don’t do it.” He pleaded. I turned around and gave him a pained look. “Joey…. I have to find my parents. For all I know, they could be dead.” I whispered, and looked away.

I snapped out my wings, and let the breeze carry me into the sky. I rocketed upward, not even caring that people would see me. “NO, ALEXIS!” I heard Joey shout, but I ignored his cries. He could wait.


33

I needed to find my parents. It was my mission. My duty. I knew that later on I would be guilty about leaving them, but I would just cause them more pain if I stayed with them.

I knew that it was wrong. Dumping the responsibility of six other kids on Joey’s shoulders. But he could manage it. And once I find my parents, I would fly back to Joey and bring them to my house to live. My parents wouldn’t mind the five extra bodies.

When my feet hit the ground, I instantly knew that something had gone horribly wrong. It was quiet. Too quiet.

Twilight had long ago passed, and I was enshrouded in black.

I ran up to the front and walked in the door, which was wide open and on one hinge. I ran into the living room. It was ransacked; with our things scattered on the floor. The TV was smashed; the couch had been sawed in half, and papers were scattered all over the floor. There was a musky and sour odor in the air. I ran into the kitchen to see the same: ripped furniture, broken dishes, and scattered papers. Then something brown on my mother’s white tile. As I leaned in closer, I saw that it was a footprint.

A footprint of an XXXL size boot.

Alec had been here, I was sure of it. And he had brought his CHORD friends with him. But if I knew Alec, he’d leave no survivors.

A block of ice settled itself in my stomach.

I dashed into the dining room, and then into my parent’s bed room. To my relief, it was empty.

Skipping two steps at a time, I ran into my room. A wave of memories came rushing back to me.

I remembered when I was six, and I moved here. I was nervous, and I had to move to a totally different school entirely. I was lonely; and having no friends, my Mom promised me that she would transform my room completely. We had a lot of fun, and sure enough, I was happy at the new school.

My eyes watered at the memory, and I kneeled by my bed and tried my best not to cry. All of the emotions came crashing down on me. Why did this have to happen to me? What did I do to deserve this? I rubbed my watery eyes and sat on my bed. I looked at my books, my old computer, and my precious stuffed animals. What memories. I missed my old life. Why couldn’t I just move back to Texas? Life was much better there. What if I could…. I never finished the thought. I perked my head up at a familiar voice.

“Help.”


34

I bolted up the stairs and into the attic. The stench of blood was in the air. My Mom had called for help, I was positive. But where were they? I scanned the floor and tried not to scream.

My dad was lying on the floor in a pool of blood; and I could tell by his glassy eyes that he was dead. Then I saw my mom. She was lying on her side, her eyes closed. Ragged breathes heaved from her chest, and I knew that her time was coming.

I kneeled beside her and slowly shook her awake. Her eyes fluttered open, and a confused look crossed her face. “I am dead, aren’t I?” she asked softly. “No Mom. Your still alive, and I’m here.” I whispered, and my voice faltered. “Alexis?” she said, “You came back.” A smile cracked her lips. “I love you mom.” I told her, and I started to cry. “It’s okay, it’s okay.” She coughed, stroking my cheek. “Take off those sunglasses,” she offered, “So I can see your pretty brown eyes again.” I willingly removed my glasses. The gasp that escaped her throat was unmistakable, and I hung my head. “What happened?” she demanded. In a flash, I spilled out everything, including the part about my wings. My mom asked if she could see them, and I slowly extended one out to her. She smoothed out the feathers and sighed deeply. “You were adopted, you know.” She mumbled, and I was speechless. “I wish it didn’t have to end like this. But I love you.” She cried, her eyes closing for the last time.

And then she was gone.

I brushed away the tears and knew that my parents needed a proper burial. Well, my adopted parents. It would probably take me most of the night, but that was alright with me.

I ran out to the shed, grabbed a shovel, and ran to the back of the house. Behind the house was a big stretch of woods, and I have never dared to enter. I knew that no one would be looking, so I was prepared to dig their ditches. Then I remembered that my parents always wanted to be cremated.

I put the shovel away and dragged my parent’s bodies out to the back. I searched the house for a lighter, and I got lucky. I lit them on fire. The light was hypnotizing. As I watched them burn, I thought, now what?

The image of my bloody parents replayed over and over again into my mind, boring a solid image. It was going to drive me insane, and suddenly, I gave in.

I let out a wail of pain and let myself cry. There was no point of holding back anymore. My body trembled, and I cradled my face in my hands, letting my tears drip down my face. I couldn’t stop, and I didn’t care if Joey could hear me from here. I was in so much pain, it was unbelievable. Stop it. I told myself. No point in crying for them.

I’m adopted. It made sense, but it was still shocking.


35

Prisoner

When I finally lifted my head, it was well past dawn. The flames had reduced to a smolder, and I decided to change out of my sooty clothes.

I stood up and walked into the house. I ran up into my room and changed into a brown turtleneck and yet another pair of jeans. I was about to brush my hair before I remembered that I wanted to take a shower. I sighed and turned on the water.

An hour later, I was out of the shower and in a great mood. I had eaten a bowl of cheerios and brushed the tangles out of my hair. I now sat on the couch reading one of my favorite novels. I was interrupted by a screeching of tires. I leapt to my feet and knew that I had two options: Either run or stay here and fight.

I’d rather run.

I ran out the back door and into the woods. I sprinted, glad that I had put my shoes on earlier, because I was stepping in thorn bushes and sticks galore. Just as I thought that I had gotten away, I ran into something hard. A tree, probably. I turned around, only to see that I had ran smack dab into Alec. Darn. He grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and dragged me into the trees.

“Alexis is in trouble.” Joey said. They were somewhere in Pennsylvania, and it was three in the afternoon. May looked up from her game of checkers with Ella. Heather, Storm, and Sammy were watching the television.

Sammy had woken up the day before, and had graciously accepted his fate. Joey had made his mind up and had brought him to the doctor, who had applied leg braces to Sammy. He could hobble around some, but that was about it.

“Ella, you’re in charge. I’ll be back in a few days, alright?” he said, standing up. “I’m coming with you.” She insisted, and he shook his head. “No, it’s too dangerous.”


36

“You say that a lot, Joey.” She snapped, annoyed. He walked out the hotel door.

Ella knew that he would be miles away by the time that she reached the hotel lobby, so she gave up. She stormed back to the game of checkers. June walked out of the bathroom and gave Ella a look. “Joey went to go and rescue Alexis again.” Sammy said, not even looking up from the TV. June shrugged and flopped onto the bed with the younger kids.

“So, what is your name really?” Alec asked, leaning towards me.

We were in the kitchen. I was tied to a chair, and the other CHORDs were roaming the house.

“Fine. Be that way.” He said, standing up and poking his head into the fridge. He poured himself

a glass of chocolate milk and chugged it down. I struggled against the ropes, but Alec saw that,

and laughed. “Good luck with that.” He grinned at me. I returned him with one of my mean

looks, which made him laugh even harder. I had refused to talk, which has really bored Alec

greatly.

Suddenly, Joey, who was also tied in a chair, was slammed down next to me. “What took you so

long, Joey?” Alec said humorously. “He was found spying on us, sir.” The other CHORD replied,

and left. “Glad you could join us. Your girlfriend and I were just having a little chat about you

two.” He said, and next to me, Joey winced. “Did you know?” he smiled, “We just killed the

girl’s parents. You missed out on all of the fun.”

That was it.

I broke free of my bonds and tackled Alec. I punched him as hard as possible, and he easily

picked me up. I was flung against the wall, and the thin plaster broke. I smashed into the living

room, pieces of wall followed me. Alec plucked me again off the ground, and I flew into the

bathroom. There was the sound of glass shattering, and I guessed that the noise was the mirror

breaking. I winced as I fell to the tile, and my already bruised head just got a new addition. Then

Alec was on me again, and he threw the punches. I reckon that I will have a black eye, but that

was on the least of my concerns.

I was tied back to my, chair and this time; my feet were tied, too, as were Joey’s.

So much for escape.


37

“Sorry. About everything.” Joey said. I nodded, but refused to lift my head. “Well, if it makes

you feel better, I took Sammy to a doctor.” I couldn’t help but smile. Joey gave me a look that

said: it’s okay, their fine and in a safe place. I sighed and said, “Well, at least their okay.” I

offered, trying to sound cheerful. Joey nodded swiftly.

“What was that?” I whispered. It was the middle of the night, and all of the CHORDs were

sleeping. Joey lifted his head up, and I pulled against my bonds.

“Shhh…. Don’t move.” Whispered a familiar voice. Our ropes were cut off, and I wheeled

around to see who had rescued us. “Ella!” I smiled.

“Shut up. We’re trying to rescue you!”

I did, and Ella hugged me. May dropped in, her posture feminine. June graciously followed, and

Heather and Sammy stumbled in behind her.

“Where’s Storm?” I asked.

“Here.”

I turned around. Storm was floating down from the ceiling as easy as pie. He looked like he had

been doing it for years. Controls the weather. Go figure.

“Let’s go!” whispered Storm.

“Let’s go where?” demanded Alec.

“Run!” I screamed. May turned invisible, causing whoever she was holding turned invisible, too,

which happened to be June. Heather dragged Sammy out the door, and Ella followed.

“No!” I yelled. A CHORD grabbed Storm and stabbed a needle into his frail neck. The needle

contained a pale blue liquid. Storm struggled for a moment, but then he went limp in his

captor’s arms. I was on the CHORD in seconds, fighting my way to the unconscious seven year

old. The CHORD smacked me in the face, and I bit his hand. The CHORD threw me off,

screaming in pain. I launched myself at another CHORD, and I dislodged its shoulder blade. As

the CHORD winced, I aimed a kick at his stomach, but I actually hit somewhere lower. The man

dropped to his knees, and I sent a snap kick at his head. He was down. Two down, a million

more to go.

“Don’t anyone move.” Alec confirmed.


38

I spun around to see Alec holding a knife up to June’s neck. “Now get down.” He ordered, “Or

else I will have to use this knife on the Korean.” I got down to my knees, and the others did the

same.

Joey, me, Storm, and June were the only kids here.

Ella, May, Heather, and Sammy had escaped. They had gotten away. Relief washed over me,

and I nearly fainted.

A brown sack was thrown over my head, and I saw nothing.


39

Burning

“What are we going to do?” May moaned as the refugees watched the CHORDs load their

friends onto the white van. “Ella?”

Ella looked up. “We do something.” She growled, a determined look in her eyes.

“Make me mad.” Ella said, a plan forming in her mind.

“What?!”

“Make me mad!”

“Uhhh…. You smell?”

Ella sighed and stomped out in to the open. “Hey you! Jerks! Come and get me!” a bunch of

heads turned to glower at her.

“Hey! It’s the mutant freak!” one called.

“GET HER!!!”

The CHORDs charged, but Ella was ready. She had only done this once, on the night that her

bed caught on fire, but Ella was beginning to realize that she had caused the fire. That’s why she

was fireproof. She was the fire. Now Ella found herself as one of the experiments. And she

actually enjoyed it.

A burning feeling rose from inside Ella. Rage inspired this feeling. And Ella had a lot of rage right

now. Good thing that’s what the CHORDs were for.

Just as Ella thought the rage was going to explode her, she let it out.

First her feet were on fire, then her torso, and finally, her head. The flames were coming from

inside her. The flames did not burn her, and all Ella could feel was a rush of adrenaline.

“Here’s for ruining my life!” she yelled as she threw a basketball sized fireball at one CHORD. It

hit him square in the chest, and he howled in pain. She threw more, but she was just getting

started.


40

“That’s for kidnapping my friends!” Ella infuriated, punching a fiery fist at another’s head. She

heard a snap as she hit the CHORD’s nose. She turned to Alec, who was cowering behind a tree.

“And you” she fumed, and Alec whimpered, knowing what was in store for him. Ella let out a

screech and shot a HUGE fireball at Alec. It hit him smack dab in the face. Ouch. Ella turned

away as the flames licked him.

She rushed over to the van and flung the doors open. The other kids were tied in sacks, and Ella

cut them free. Alexis came stumbling out of her bindings and looked at her. Ella blushed and

turned away.

She was just glad they were alive.

Joey carried Storm out and laid him on the ground. The medicine had still not worn off, and he

was still sleeping. Alexis helped June walk out, and the others came out to join them.

Ella told them about her new power, and how she single handedly defeated the CHORDs. They

sat around a fire and Alexis gave them all a special treat from her pantry.

Suddenly, Heather screamed.

Ella jumped to her feet, as the rest of them did. Alec staggered out of the trees, his face

bleeding from a burn. Then Ella realized that he had a gun in his hand.

He aimed it at her, and fired.


41

The End

As Alec fired, my only thought was; Not Ella. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for death to

come. Today was not her day to die.

At the last second, I leapt in front of Ella, ready for the bullet.

“NOOO!!!” Joey yelled.

But it was too late.

I hardly felt the pain as the bullet entered my side. But then the sharp stab came to me, and I

was on the ground, too weak to move.

Joey was at my side instantly, and so was June. Through blurred vision, I saw Alec disappear

back into the woods. Heather and Sammy hung back with May, and Ella finally opened her eyes.

She gaped at me, suddenly significant of what had happened.

I had taken the bullet for her.

I groaned. I was in so much pain. I clutched my side, and I could smell the rusty smell of blood. I

lifted my head to see how bad it was. But the minute I moved, my side screamed in protest. I

knew that I was going to die.

“No no no!” Joey gasped.

“There’s too much blood!” June exclaimed as she too, knew my fate.

My life was flashing by right in front of my eyes. There I was, the first day of middle school, and

then I saw my mom’s face when I had brought home my cruddy report card. And there I was, in

the cafeteria, when I had first met Joey. Joey. He was going to kill me. But it was too late for

that. The world was silent, and all I could hear was the sounds of my grieving family. I tried to

comfort them, tell them that I was going to be fine, but the words never left my mouth. “Don’t

go!” Joey said quietly, but my eyes were closing too fast. I wished that I could tell him

everything, but there was not enough time left.

I gave out a final sigh of relief. My family was safe, and that was all that mattered.


42

I smiled as I saw my family’s faces for the last time. Ella, June, and Heather were crying. Sammy

was staring at me, and he sunk to his knees. Storm was still out cold, and I knew that I was

breaking Joey’s heart.

Goodbye, I thought, and I looked up into the pretty sunset. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad way

to die. And I will get to see my parents in heaven again. That wouldn’t be so bad.

My eyes closed for the last time.


43

A NEW BEGINNING


44

A Moment from Death

I opened my eyes only to find myself in my room. This confused me greatly. Where was Joey?

More importantly, where was my family? Then I remembered that I was supposed to be dead.

Did heaven really look like my room?

I got up and checked the clock. It was four in the morning. How long was I out? I ran downstairs,

only to see the living room in perfect condition. Almost as if….

All of this never happened.

There were no holes in the wall, the chocolate milk carton was full, and there was no evidence

of my house ever being invaded by CHORDs. I ran back up into my room and looked in my

mirror, hoping that my guess was wrong. I looked at my face.

It had no wounds or scars on it, and I had two brown eyes. My hair was still in its curly brown

form, and I felt no pain. None at all. I pulled up my shirt so I could see my gaping side wound. I

gasped.

The bloody wound that had ended my life was no longer there.

But if that wasn’t there, were my wings just a dream, too?

I tried to flap them, but nothing happened. I tried harder, but I got nothing. They couldn’t be

gone. That’s unreal. I reached a shaking hand down my shirt. My cold fingers felt nothing but

skin.

Alexis Dawnshard no longer had wings.

The thought didn’t compute. No. Impossible. Not true. Denied. No no no! My mind screamed.

How could this have happened?! But if any of this wasn’t real,

Was Joey?

Was any of my family? Or was all of this a bad nightmare?


45

“Alexis?” my mom asked. MOM!!!!! SHE WAS ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I raced up to her and hugged

her. “I missed you.” I whimpered.

The odd look on her face was unmistakable. “I missed you, too?” she said awkwardly, hugging

me back in a strange way. “Do you want some breakfast?” she asked. “No, I’m just tired.” I

grunted. “Okay, then.” And my mother left the room.

“Alexis, honey, wake up.”

“Huh?” I sat up. Mom was at the foot of the bed, and she looked concerned. “Oh. Hi mom.” I

said, rubbing my eyes. I must have fallen asleep, and she probably wanted me up.

“Alexis, are you okay?” She asked. I guessed that I must have talked in my sleep again. Now

what did I say? “Yea. I’m fine.” I told her.

“You were talking in your sleep. You kept murmuring, ‘Joey, Joey’, and I am going to take you to

a therapist.” Oh no. Ohh no. A therapist?

“Get dressed and we’ll go.” She said, leaving the room.

I threw on a pair of sweatpants and a t- shirt and walked downstairs. We got in the car and

drove to the therapist’s office.

I stifled a cough as we walked in. The place smelled like disinfectant; and we all know how

much I love disinfection. It reminded me of the CLI so much, that I knew I was not going any

further. My heart nearly stopped when a CHORD passed me. The thing tipped his hat at me,

and I recognized Alec. He grinned.

I sprinted out the door, three CHORDs at my heels. I looked around desperately for a place to

hide, but I found none. Then I saw the crab shack around the corner. I picked up speed until I

was sprinting, and I dashed through the door. I ran around the restaurant, tipping over heavy

things as I went, in hope that it would slow them down. I spied the girl’s restroom, and I knew

that none of the CHORDs would ever follow me in there. I flung the door open and locked

myself in the last stall.

When everything was quiet, I noticed my surroundings. I was in one of those handy cap stalls,

and I slid against the brick wall. I waited for them to come in and get me, but just as I expected,

they wouldn’t dare follow me into the girl’s bathroom. My nose crinkled as I smelled the place.

Well, that’s what you get for hiding in a bathroom. There was a chill in the air, and I shivered. I


46

noticed that something was different. Someone had written something on the stall door. I

stood up and took a closer look. The words sent chills down my spine.

Welcome back, Alexis Dawnshard.

As I read the words, I had a pain in my side. There was a flash of white, and then black.


47

Back to Life

I twitched.

The movement woke me up, and my eyes fluttered open. I saw a billion colors at once, and I

quickly squeezed them shut again.

I was aware that a pair of arms were holding me, and a gentle hand brushed the hair out of my

face. The movements were hypnotizing; and I couldn’t help but relax.

This was a strange dream. I could still feel the pain in my side from where the bullet had

penitrated my skin. The nagging feeling ebbed away, and the pain was gone.

I tried to open my eyes again; but my body wasn’t strong enough yet. I would have to rely

totally on my hearing if I wanted to know anything. I listened to the voices around me. They

seemed familiar, somehow.

“I still can’t believe she’s gone.” Whispered a male voice.

“It’s my entire fault!” cried another voice, female this time.

“What should we do with her?” a quiet female voice asked.

“We should bury her.” Said the male voice.

Then I realized that they were talking about me. No! I didn’t want to be buried! I was alive! But

they thought I was dead.

The first two voices were bickering on what to do with my body.

“Let’s bury her!” said the male.

“No! We should let her body be cremated in flames!” protested the female voice.

“Shhh!” Hushed the quiet voice, but the two kept fighting.


48

“Shut up!” the quiet voice hissed suddenly. The noise died down, and I guessed that they had

listened to the quiet voice.

“Listen!” she said.

“She’s alive!”

“Huh?!”

“SHE’S ALIVE!”

I decided now to open my eyes.

Standing over me were three people. One had blue eyes and curly blonde hair. the second one

had stick straight black hair and pale blue eyes. The third one had long mouse brown hair and

brown eyes. The brown eyed one was voice two. The girl with the blue eyes was the quiet

voice. And the one with the blonde hair was the male voice.

I had a feeling that I knew these people, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Alexis!” the blonde boy said, giving me a great big hug. I flinched away from his touch. Who

were these people? When I didn’t hug him back, the blonde boy pulled away, looking puzzled at

my actions.

“What is it, Joey?” the brown eyed girl asked, looking over his shoulder at me.

“I- I don’t know.” He said. “Alexis?”

I scrambled to my feet, taking a few steps back. “Who are you people?!” I asked as they neared

closer. It was their turn to be confused.

“Alexis, it’s me, Joey, remember?” the blonde haired boy said cautiously.

“No. I don’t.” I narrowed, standing my ground.

“Don’t you remember anything?” the boy pleaded, the look in his eyes clearly shocked.

I thought it over. In fact, I didn’t remember anything. Nothing at all. Not my name, not any of

these kids, and not even where I was. Nothing.

I looked down at my hands. Who was I? What have I become? My breaths quickened, and I

gasped, because I couldn’t remember a thing.


49

I needed answers.

I screamed aloud and ran into the woods. I couldn’t help not knowing. It just wasn’t my nature.

Did I even have a nature? Did I even have a name? It was all so confusing. I stumbled over roots

and sticks, until I came into a clearing.

I was so tired; and I felt like crap.

Just go to sleep. A voice cooed. I agreed. Besides, it was already dark. I just wanted this day to

end.

I lay down and closed my eyes.


50

Frozen

I swatted away the leaves that had fallen on my face while I was sleeping. I rolled over, only to

land on a pinecone. I yelped and jumped to my feet. Then I saw a dark figure standing in the

shadows.

I had to act quickly. With a battle cry, I leapt onto the figure. I pinned him down, waiting for his

excuse.

“Ow. Ow! OW! Darn it, Alexis! OW!!!” I yanked the trespasser to his feet. We stood two feet

away from each other, and I glared into his sea blue eyes.

As I locked my gaze onto the boy, I thought, what did they call him again?

Joey.

Suddenly, my head felt like it was going to burst, and I gave out a cry and fell to my knees,

clutching my forehead. As the throbbing went away, I finally looked up into his eyes.

“Joey?” I asked, suddenly remembering everything. He gave a hopeful expression, and my eyes

welled up with tears.

“Oh, Joey!” I muttered, tackling him again, but this time, I hugged him. Joey understood that I

had just received my memory, and he hugged me back.

I spun around to see the kids walk from out of the brush. They had seen everything. I took a few

steps back from Joey and blushed.

I was then flattened by six kids who were trying to hug me.

“Help!” I gasped as Sammy’s braces crushed my spine. Joey just laughed and jumped on top of

the pile. I spat the dirt out of my mouth and hauled myself out from under May’s body. It took a

while, but I finally managed to squeeze out.


51

“That was amazing!” Ella cried. I didn’t understand. “What was amazing?” I probed. “You’d

better have a seat.” Joey said, straitening himself out.

I meekly obeyed.

“You tell us your story, and we’ll tell you ours.” Joey bargained. I sighed as I remembered the

fact that my parents were dead.

I told them everything.

There was no point in keeping it a secret, so I let the words spill out.

Waking up in my room. Wingless. Falling asleep. The CHORDs in the therapist’s office. The

writing on the bathroom stall.

Everything.

“Wow.” was all Joey could say. “Now it’s your turn.” I said gravely, patting the spot where the

bullet struck me. Now all that was left was a pink scar. “That wound didn’t just close by itself.

Something must have happened.” I whispered, and my grip tightened.

“Heather?” Joey inquired, giving the ten year old a curt nod. Heather rose to her feet. Joey did,

too. What are they doing? I thought as they neared closer.

“Heather has a special power that only I knew about.” Joey said, sitting in front of me, as did

Heather. “Ever since she was three, she could show someone’s memories out loud. She could

project anything that the mind thought.” He smirked. “In other words, let me just show you.”

He closed his eyes, and then remembered something. “Ella, take the others back to the house,

okay?”

“No. I want to stay with you!” Ella insisted. “Do you really want to see Alexis, all bloody again?”

Joey said calmly, his eyes growing dark at the thought. Ella just stood there for a moment, and

shook her head vigorously.

Ella stomped off into the woods, the other kids trailing behind, afraid to make Ella angry,

especially after what she did to Alec and the other CHORDs.

After they left, Heather placed her palm onto Joey’s forehead. She placed the other one onto

mine.

Heather closed her eyes and relaxed her body. As I watched in horror, a faint blue light

appeared on Joey’s forehead. The light spread to Heather’s fingertips, and then to her whole


52

arm was giving off the faint glow. The light kept going, until both she and Joey were nearly

transparent. That’s when it got scary. Even though I tried, I couldn’t pull myself away from

Heather’s cold fingers. I couldn’t move.

Frozen.

The light was coming towards me. The second the light touched my skin, my eyes closed and I

was at peace.

“Alexis, we’re here.” Joey said, and I jumped at his touch.

We were at the plain behind my house. It was around sunset, and a white van was parked

outside the house. Alec’s van.

I gasped. We had to do something.

I took a step towards the house, but Joey caught my arm. “It’s okay. This is just a memory,

remember?” he growled. “Plus, they can’t see you, anyway. Just watch.” He said, putting a

finger to his lips. I crossed my arms.

Then something caught my eye.

It was Alec. And he was carrying me.


53

Dying Moments

It was definitely me. I had a brown sack over my head, and my wrists and ankles were tied. My

withering form was fighting in vain against Alec, and I kicked him in the shin.

As I watched, I stifled a giggle as he groaned in pain.

Me still bound and with a sack over my head, ran blindly away from Alec. No! I was running in

the wrong direction. Instead of running into the woods as I had planned, I was heading back

towards the house. I winced as I ran smack dab into the brick wall.

I rubbed my nose where I had collided with it. I remembered that.

I shuddered as the old me fainted. Alec had simply picked me up and threw me into the van.

The other CHORDs followed, and June, Storm, and Joey were piled on top of me.

“So that’s what happened!” Joey said besides me, his face spreading into a wide grin. “I thought

that they had drugged you!” I shot him an annoyed look. “Well, at least I know that you weren’t

entirely crazy when you took that bullet for Ella!” I couldn’t help it. I slapped him, and Joey

shrieked.

Then I spotted the old Ella sneak out of her hiding place in the bushes.

She yelled a few things at the CHORDs, and suddenly she was on fire. Literally! She shot

terrifying fireballs and in an instant, the CHORDs were gone.


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get out alive

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