1. The Beginning
PROLOGUE
I was a curious one, never knowing who I was supposed to protect, only knowing his name Mikael. My name is Darae, but you can call me Dara or Arae. I was very young when I was given to the Lab. But I was training hard to protect that boy. But one day curiosity was nearly the death of me. I was wandering around the Lab when I went into the wrong room and that's when i was when I changed. I don't want to tell you all of my past because the memories are too terrifying and I can only remember this memory too vividly, I felt my body split in two and cold darkness engulfed me. When I awoke I was abandoned on the streets, I don't remember anything else…
ARAE
"I don't know." How many times have I repeated this sentence I wondered?
"Where were you at approximately at 11:45am Tuesday?"
"I'm guessing Iwas at school." I replied, sarcastically. Finally a different answer.
"Did you not hear or see something out of the ordinary?"
Well 'ordinary' is a broad term and different from everyone's perspective. Would you call seeing someone dying ordinary? Would you say I was ordinary if I stood watching? Is it ordinary to smile at ones death? In my world it certainly was. "No. Nothing in particular."
And that was the end of the policeman enquiry.
X Y Z
"He is not ready." X says.
"We won't find out till we've test him." Y replies.
"1 month and it will end to another termination." Z sighs.
"There are always replacements." Replied Y. X had walked towards the boy draped in a white thin garment. His skin was as white as snow and a toned body carved out perfectly, his name was Mikael. As X felt for the small chip inserted at the small of his back, project Mikael had slowly awoken.
DARA
"Did you hear about the hot guy at our school?" Gushed another stupid girl.
"Yeah, I know right? Oh my god he's right there." Another girl squealed.
I silently headed out the gates of the school with my head down and rammed in a stone hard shoulder. I hardly glanced up and mumbled an apology and headed towards the woods. It's time I thought.
I woke up against a tree, to the sounds of loud birds squawking; still fuzzy headed and irritated I threw the closest thing towards the source of sound. A hollow thud and the noise had stopped. What had I done this time, I wondered. I took a few breaths and tried to clear my head empty. A flashback of red blood, screaming, gurgling of someone's rapid breath, laughter and…that's it the same noises over and over every time I wake up, yet I can't see or smell. Only hearing sounds… it's as if I was sleeping walking. But as always I dismiss this as nightmares. Who was the person that I bumped into? Huh… I looked at my watch just in time for the last class. I got up brushed myself down and felt myself going vertical. But warm hands grabbed me just in time.
"Whoa." A male's voice, I violently shook of his hands and turned to see whose hand it was. The new boy, I recognised, jet black hair with apple green coloured eyes. His skin is so white as white as mine I thought. With the quick assessment, I turned and ran towards the safety of school.
The new boy was a new distraction from the Forest Wood murder. I quietly unpacked my books and sat waiting for the teacher to mark the roll to begin the class. I saw in the corner of my eye to see the new boy come towards me to take the seat next to mine, but thankfully Min beat him to it. But casually he took the empty desk right behind me.
"Hey Dara, spacing out lately?" She asked brightly.
I turned, "Hey." Today was going by slowly and I felt empty as always.
She leaned towards me and lowered her voice, "Can you believe Mikael, is sitting right behind us?"
So his name was Mikael, what an unusual name I thought. "Yes, so what?"
"So… he might have the hots for one of us." She smiled and flicked her hair out and looked straight at him.
I just turned my face towards the front and began to write notes, ignoring Min's obvious attempts for a small talk.
MIKAEL
She does not recognise me… Why? Dara the one that was made to protect me, but now it's the other way around. I think Dara had changed too much, so quiet and what's the word…alone. I sighed. This school was a bother. The smell of girls crowding around me with their perfume and caked-on make-up was disgusting. I ignored every look, smile, handshake that was put in my way.
I tried to grab the seat next to her, but that spot was taken in a flash. –Sigh- I moved right behind her to look at her dyed chestnut coloured hair. She had definitely changed I thought. I still didn't understand why X Y Z had sent me here to "tame" her. She's already tamed I thought. But suddenly she stood up and left the class. The bell went I realised. I slid from my chair to follow…
She was too quick for me she disappeared, couldn't have gone far and I followed her scent.
ARAE
Min was yabbering away non-stop to Dara, but then a girl suddenly rammed into me. The number one, girl bully had purposely pushed into me, bad mistake. "You," pause she looked at me in scrutiny, "Just coz' you think you're smart means you can do whatever you want? Get out of my way you Chink." And then that's when I snapped. Another girl the same race as me called me a chink, at least I wasn't pretending to be a white. I began to plan out what my next move would be.
After school I waited for her to be alone. I followed her she went to rundown alleyway and began to smoke. "Ahh, naughty girl, your underage human." I said repulsed. The smell coming from the cigarette was overwhelming.
She whipped around, but relaxed when she saw me, "You again," she smirked. Foolish girl. The red haze began to come. I felt so angry and wanted to smash the girl inside out, adrenaline rushed through my body. She lashed out a fist but I was faster. I blocked her and cracked her wrist… broken. I slapped her hard across the face, the audible crack only was the slap supposed to hurt her it was to crush her pride. She cried out in pain, I grabbed a fist of her bleached, blonde hair and broke her nose against the wall. Blood began to drip down. "Had enough?" I smiled cruelly.
She nodded tears pouring, she couldn't even talk what a coward. I laughed without humour. "Well we ain't done yet." I detached her jaw painfully and dragged her by the hair to the nearby forest. By the time I was finished her face was unrecognisable and couldn't be reconstructed. I assessed the damages. Broken jaw, can't talk crap for a while. Wrist broken from previous hour, major cuts and bruises, broken ribs, fractured ankle to prevent her from running. Heavy concussion, hmm… would lead to coma if no one notices her for another hour. Her parent's would pull the plug undoubtly. Happily maybe, finally able to get rid of a troublemaker in the family. I tossed her against a rock for good measure.
If she manages to live through this, I'll make sure she's off the face of the earth before she even begins to say my name. I stood up and washed my hands in the river, ice cold. I heard a rustle I spun my head around and saw nothing. I covered my face and ran. But I knew I was discovered and I knew it was Mikael that had seen me. I calmed, he wouldn't do anything to hurt me I thought. I went to the same tree and closed my eyes, waiting for Dara to wake.
MIKAEL
The school's prefect had stood and went to the microphone. "School bully ahem, one of our school students has gone missing. Her name is Yen Li, had been reported missing from between right after school on her way home between the hours of 3pm to 4pm. If anyone knows her where about, please report to the police or the principle immediately." The announcement was beautifully said, might I add. The school bully, who would want to look for a bully, the irony.
Although now I know why Dara needs to be tamed, she's undercover being a nice girl but in the inside she's a real killer. I wonder if she really was the one that murdered the convicted man at Forest Wood. Most likely is… Another question is: Dara had sensed someone, but she did not recognise me. Or she did recognise me, but pretends not to know me. I should test the theory. The Dara I know would never have done this.