Chapter 1 [Adroits]
A shout full of anger, determination and pride seeped into her middle ear. It amplified to the point of where she couldn't even cover her ears anymore. She ceased in her frantic movements and finally lay still on the ground; numbing into the abyss of limbo.
Clara gasped as she came out of the vision. A tear rolled down her cheek out of absolute fright. She looked down at her hands, the once broken plate still intact, yet ready to drop. She then realized that it was her own fate she saw.
She took a shaky breath and put the plate back in the sink, not even bothering to turn off the tap. She raced upstairs, filled up her duffel with anything she could put her hands on. The pounding on her door already started once she reached the bottom steps of the stairs. She quickly ran outside, to her backyard, and hid behind the large garbage disposal.
Clara already knew that if they didn't find her now, it'd be later. She held her breath as a bleeder came outside. He peered outside and with a sweep of a gaze, he went back inside. Exhaling in relief, she then waited at least an hour till they've gone, knowing what she had to do next.
She had to find Cassie Holmes.
Panting slightly, Clara rested her hands on her knees. She's been running for 6 months now. Japan, London- Paris. She went everywhere to look for Cassie Holmes. Yet, she didn't appear.
She could have a shadow on her.
She groaned softly as another vision hit. It went quickly as it came. This time it was on a more positive note. She and Cassie were talking. Actually talking. This meant that she will find her.
She took a deep breath and ran down an alleyway. She was in Hong Kong. No idea of where she was really going just had the ideal focus that she would find her. She could faintly hear footsteps behind her. She picked up the pace and settled behind a dumpster. She found herself peeking out to check the vacant space, clear of danger. She ended up walking down a path where little markets settled. It seemed as if there were apartment complexes up ahead. Climbing the stairs, she looked into the future, checking to see if any apartments weren't being occupied.
She closed her eyes softly and reopened them just as fast. She cocked her head to the right. Not exactly comprehending why she wanted to go in a room, obviously occupied by someone else. A male's at that too.
Hesitantly, she knocked. She heard footsteps and then a brief pause behind the door. As the door opened, Clara refrained from letting a laugh out. Even with a gun pointed at her.
"You could put it down, I'm not Division." Her vision showed her just so. She tried not to be offended when he still didn't lower the gun.
"Who are you?" The man demanded.
She simply stared, responded awkwardly with, "My name is Clara Miller. You are?" The man looked closely at her before tucking the gun into his jeans.
"What do you want?" He bluntly asked.
She fidgeted a bit before responding. "I...I'm just looking for someone-"
Clara drew back a bit as another brief vision hit. It showed the man. He sat up on his bed and sighed. He got up and moved the cup that was on his bed side desk, to the kitchen sink.
"You're a 2nd generation Mover." She spewed out on impulse.
The man didn't look surprised. "And you're a Watcher. Fantastic."
Clara cleared her throat at his placidity and looked at her toes before going back to his face, "I'm currently looking for someone. Her name...her name is Cassie Holmes...do you happen to know where she is? It's really important."
He seemed to clench his jaw in a threatening stance but suddenly changed back into a calm demeanor. It confused Clara more than anything.
Clara looked at him expectantly when he answered, "Sorry, can't help you. I have no idea who the girl is."
She looked at her feet again then looked back up to his eyes, underneath her lashes. "You see, I can't help but not believe you."
They started at each other in silence, after brief tense seconds, "I am, sorry, about this." She muttered quietly.
Clara quickly reached into her beach bag and pulled out a gun. Only, it hovered in mid air with a simple thrust of her hands.
The guy sighed while putting his hands up. Clara reached out towards the gun in his pants, grabbed it and tossed out in the hallway. She proceeded to slowly breech the dingy apartment, the man moving back slowly.
"Thought you said you were a Watcher." He stated, gazing intensely at Clara.
She shook her head, "No. You did."
She came inside, shutting the door without using her hands. She kept the gun pointed at him, as she rummaged through his drawers, filled with clothes, money, and endless amounts of junk. Clara stopped tersely before slamming her hands atop the drawer table. She made a sound in the back of her throat which resembled a whimper.
"It should be here," she muttered repetitively.
Now out of focus, the gun fell into the man's hands and he immediately pointed it at Clara. The click of the gun seemed to snap her out of it.
"How did you know that 'it' was supposed to be here?" He asked.
She sighed and rolled her eyes, "YOU said I was the Watcher. Remember?"
"But you never denied it." The man continued with complete confidence.
Clara blankly looked at him, realizing she was beaten in her own game. She was hit, again, with superfluous colors that specified an image; it kept rolling like a film in her head. Her body suddenly went tense. That's when she froze and stared at the man with incredulous eyes.
"What is it?" He asked hesitantly.
"You're him. You know Cassie...the person I'm looking for," Clara paused at her realization. "You lied to me... you're Nick Gant."
Nick stared at Clara until he pointed 2 firing shots into the ceiling above her and quickly pointed the gun at her again. "Move." He ordered.
Clara, having shrunken back slightly at the abrupt sound, flinched and stood up straight as he jabbed the gun at her once more. She silently stood up straight and walked towards the door. Before she could open it, he said to wait.
Nick went in front of her, still securing her place with his gaze, and slightly opened the door while looking left and right to secure the perimeter. He opened the door wide before motioning at her to move forward. Clara looked down at her feet, jaw clenched, as she walked out of the chipped apartment. Nick silently told her to go downstairs, towards the exit of the complex.
Once they reached the streets and sidewalks of Honk Kong, Nick put the gun in the front of his waistband while forcibly gripping Clara's forearm and telling her quietly, "Let's go."
They were quiet for quite some time until Clara mustered up the courage to ask, "Where's Cassie?"
They faltered in their step a bit as Nick slowly gathered into a secluded area of the streets. He turned Clara to face him. He clenched his teeth and said, "I don't know."
She looked at him for a second in bewilderment. "You don't know?" she stated rather than asked.
Nick looked in her eyes and proceeded to throw her off, "She left. 2 years ago. I woke up and she was gone."
Clara began to shake her head, "No that can't be. I saw you with her."
Nick frowned but grabbed her arm again in shock, "Wha- where?! Tell me."
"Ow! I don't know! Why do you think I came to your apartment?! I knew that I had to go to your door…don't ask me why but…I just feel that I could trust you." She spoke as she looked into his eyes but then drifted her gaze down to her arm that he was grabbing tightly and looked back at him."Though, much less that I felt before." She told him smartly.
Nick looked at his hand and let go of her arm, slowly. "Sorry, it's just hard to trust anyone these days. You know why."
Clara rotated her arm at instinct and broke the intense moment. "Relax. As I said before, I'm not Division. I'm running from them myself."
Nick fixed his stare as if he remembered something. "Right. That little stunt you pulled before. I didn't think people like you actually existed."
She retorted, "People like me?"
"Yes. You know damn well what I mean. Adroits." He sneered back at her.
Clara staggered back at his brutal tone. Adroits. Very able or skilled. That was how people like her were described. People who were…multi- talented. Adroits were a mere story. A myth. Nobody truly believed they existed in the mutant world. Well, except a few people. Those people being Division. Adroits were listed at Divisions' top priority list. They halt whatever and whoever they would be working on, just for that small alert on the location of an Adroit. Evidently, that's how Clara came to this situation.
Clara thought of the possibilities in her head as they stayed in silence. She looked at the wet pavement and explained how she came to meet him and stated, "Someone tipped them off. Neighbor or stranger—I don't know. But they know me now. I had to run. After I left, I arrived to Japan. I was hit by a vision of me with a blonde girl. The blonde girl. Cassie Holmes. Everyone knows about the two of you, you know. The one's who defied Division rule," Nick didn't say anything to her comment but silently signaled her to continue. "I don't know where we were but I knew I was intoxicated. I don't know by what but she was gripping my head, repeatedly telling me, "It's alright, Clara. It's over." "
She stopped talking to take her gaze to his face. Tears were over the edge of her eyes, waiting to fall as she continued, "I keep having the same exact vision and I think it's because I'm getting closer to her. Then I went to your apartment and just felt a strong connection of Cassie. In my vision, she was also gripping a key. I felt it. On my temple of when she was gripping me. I thought she and it would be here." Her voice broke on the last word and she swallowed down a sob.
Nick quickly softened at Clara's tearful expression, finally looking at her. He saw a woman. A terrified woman who feared for her life. Who was confused, disoriented and nearly towards the brink of falling over the cliff to panic. He could see that she was genuinely and properly afraid of what's to happen. That's what made Nick decide.
She let out a small, dry sob, "Please. I don't know what's going on and what it has to do with me. I just need to find Cassie and the key, please."
Nick pulled the woman he barely knew into his chest, slightly hugging her. He could never stand a girl crying.
"I'll help you. Don't worry; we'll find her." He whispered as he rested his hand on top of her head.
Clara proceeded to let out small sobs while her shoulders shook. The two stayed in that position for a long time until Clara sniffed and relaxed enough to put her hand on his arm around her. "Thank you." She looked up at him and gave a closed smile.
Nick nodded with a frown and came out of his slight stupor, taking his arms away from her. "We need to go to a safe place, ok? My apartment isn't exactly ideal."
She shrugged half-heartedly, "Sorry about that." Nick looked at her and let out a small laugh while slowly jogging away with her following.
"So, what's this key you're talkin' about?" Nick asked her as they seated inside a Chinese, dim-sum restaurant, eating silently.
Clara ate quickly, being famished and all before responding, "I'm not sure. I just know that it was there at the time. As an…Adroit—she stopped shortly before saying the word—I could feel, essentially see, the emotions one would have to things, people, the list could go on."
"Huh," Nick let out in wonderment. "Can you sense the relationship between me and this bowl?" He teased curiously.
Clara swallowed her food quickly, "No. But I could see the relationship you have with this food in front of us," she leaned her arms on the table, "I could see that you would go without eating for days due to your financial problems. I could feel the hunger you had to endure to survive and the suffering you feel when you look at food. Specifically, dim-sum, because this is your favorite. Isn't it?" Clara ended while resuming to eat.
Nick simply stared at her with his mouth slightly ajar. "You're good." He spoke after a few seconds, choosing to ignore her tellings, interrupting the depressing tone set around them.
"I'm flattered. I'm still a 2nd generation, you know."
"Clearly, well done." He responded sarcastically. She merely smiled at him before going back to her food.
"Do you have any idea of where Cassie would have gone?" Nick asked.
"Honestly, no. However, I still feel her energy surging through the streets. That means that she is currently here. In Hong Kong." Clara told him while finishing her food and getting up, preparing to leave.
Nick looked up at her while also getting up, throwing down a few bills. "So, she's definitely here. Makes you wonder why."
Clara looked at him and said, "For you." Nick stopped to look at her in confusion. "Nick, there's something out there. A war is coming. It's between Division and us. The 'mutants'. It's spreading throughout the world, and quickly. Now, it seems like Division is winning. They're coming for everyone, Nick and maybe. Just maybe, Cassie picked up on this to warn you. To let you know that it's coming."
Nick stared at Clara as she continued walking. "What is this war? Why?" Clara slowed down until she was right next to him. "Division seems to have concentrated some type of antidote. Before, they'd do anything to hunt us down to experiment. Well they don't need to anymore. They seem to be using it on unsuspecting mutants and rumor says it works. Now, we all know that being like…this, isn't exactly easy," Nick hummed in agreement. "However, these gifts make us who we are. We may not like it, we may confused on how to live with it, but it's apart of us. Division wants to suddenly take it away? We mutants wouldn't tolerate that and you know it. We're stubborn with pride and for the sake of us, we're fighting back." Clara ended with a certain vindication that Nick quickly admired.
He smiled at her with a look of pride and couldn't help but agree all the more.