A/N: A great big thanks to KingofHeartless'09 and Dudemeister for the reviews! Keep them coming, because they're just as much fun to read as writing this story :)
Waking up was at once abrupt and painful, and the first thing I realized was that my body was paralyzed. Futile attempts at movement drove me to the conclusion that I wasn't fully awake yet; that I was in between that stage of sleep and awake which tricks your mind into believing you no longer have control over your body.
This realization allowed me to let out a few breaths, and the numbness in my body started to subside. A chalky scent like burnt paper wafted around me, mixed with something coppery that was vaguely familiar. The slow ascent of my senses calmed me down and I inched my eyes open. Hazy blue blurs soon materialized into a bright afternoon sky, and the squishy feel of damp grass beneath me made me figure that I must have been lying in the school courtyard again. The sounds of students yelling in the distance confirmed this.
I sighed, realizing that it was probably still morning; meaning that I had to get up and get to class. Aw man, I don't want to face Jake today.
Defeated: I knew that there was no getting out of this class. For all I knew, the instructor would probably take marks off for cutting. Sluggishly, I brought my arm above my head to check my wristwatch.
What the?
Instead of my watch, bright red cuffs covered my wrist, attached to a navy blue sleeve that didn't look familiar in the slightest. I rubbed my eyes and propped myself up on my elbows.
Panic then, fire-hot and debilitating, clutched at the breath I'd been about to exhale.
Something silver stuck out from the middle of my chest, and all at once stabbing pain appeared there, as if brought on by the sight of the knife. I gaped at the weapon, dumbstruck as how it hadn't woken me up earlier. Shock: that's what made me sit up and reach for the knife in blurry movements.
I grabbed the handle with deft fingers, ignoring the tears that stung my eyes, and started to pull. Sobs escaped my throat as the blade passed through bone and skin. Shudders overtook me as a chill descended over my body. I could feel every inch of metal exiting my body, until finally it was completely out. Numb fingers dropped the knife and reached to undo the buttons of a navy blue collared jacket I didn't remember putting on, much less owning.
Blood oozed out of the cut in thin rivulets and ran down the ivory skin. Ivory? I must have lost a lot of blood to be that pale. The cut itself was about two inches wide and right below my collarbone. I could have died… the knife must have missed my heart by inches. Who did this?
That was when I realized that I wasn't alone. A shadow fell over me, and on instinct I grabbed the knife lying on the floor and pushed myself off the ground faster than I should have. I buckled as pain shot through my body. Gray and red flecks danced around my vision for a few seconds and I blinked several times.
Instinctively, I jumped back as a gloved hand reached for my shoulders. The movement caused a groan of pain to escape my lips and I tumbled to the ground in a heap. The flecks in my vision went haywire and I squeezed my eyes shut to control the thudding in my temples.
"Izzy!" a deep voice; accompanied by an arm that prevented my back from hitting the ground.
The next thing I knew was a chilling sensation that accumulated itself around my chest, and soon my entire body started to tingle. What's happening?
I snapped my eyes open just in time to see pale blue sparkles surrounding my body, and when the sparkles subsided, I found myself staring at the most beautiful person I had ever seen. Strands of dark hair fell messily into his stunning honey-coloured eyes, which showed the same concern as the frown on his full, round lips.
Aw crap, I'm dead, aren't I?
"Are you an angel?" I blurted out, grinning widely, because if I was dead, I must have made it to Heaven after all.
He bit his lip and narrowed his eyes before helping me sit up.
Feeling woozy, I clung onto his arm to keep from toppling backwards.
"Here," the angel whispered as he handed me a glass vial filled with a bright green substance, and told me to drink as I sent him a confused look.
I stared at the vial. It looked harmless enough, but hadn't I always been told not to take things from strangers? Well, I'm probably dead already, so why not? Plus, I'm pretty sure angels are good guys.
I uncorked the vial and downed the gel-like, tasteless contents. Again, my body started to tingle with unexpected force, and before I could even think of panicking, a feeling of renewal overcame me and my head cleared. I took a few deep breaths and blinked.
"Better?" he asked. I could now clearly see he was just a regular guy; a really pretty one, but definitely not a spiritual, supernatural being. He watched me warily through narrowed eyes.
Hesitantly, I looked down at the wound. What? It had disappeared! Only the scar remained, stitched up over the skin as if it had been healing for days. I looked back at the boy, dazed. "Did you fix it?"
He gave me a concerning look, as if he didn't understand the question.
I tried again, and everything I could think of came tumbling out, "Where am I? Who are you? Thanks for this drink thingy, I feel a lot better. Is it okay if I call you Angel?"
He gave me one of those looks people reserve only for the weirdest of weirdos. "…Right. We've been sent the order to withdraw. We have to get back to the vessel immediately."
He stood up and helped me to my feet, then stepped onto the stone path curving around the gradual slope of a hill.
I took in the scene around me. We were standing on some sort of hill, the path leading down to a set of stairs. Sloping upwards, the path curved away around the hill, and the cliff obstructed my view.
The boy scuffed my arm. "Selphie should be in the Central Square. Let's go!"
Okay, then. Clearly, I was supposed to comply. I picked the bloodstained dagger off the ground, and finding no place to put it, awkwardly wrapped it in my skirt seam (a skirt that wasn't even mine).
"Where'd you get that?" he asked as I joined him on the path.
"It was lodged in my chest."
His eyes went wide, and he opened his mouth – and faltered.
Dense silence; before distant clank clank clank tore through the air. The sound became louder and louder, as if something terrible was approaching.
We stared wide-eyed at each other.
The clanking was starting to reach deafening levels. I looked around frantically; trying to figure out which direction the sound was coming from.
A blur of navy blue materialized from the top of the cliff, as if the cliff had just spit out the figure of a young, blond man. He was followed closely by a brown-haired girl in similar military-style clothes.
"RUN!" the blond shouted as he came closer. His face held a manic adrenaline of the likes I had never seen before. He zoomed by us and lumbered off down the stairs without so much as a backwards glance, the brunette hot in his tracks.
The next moment, my ears exploded as something metallic scraped against stone. I covered my ears and gaped as another boy in navy appeared around the corner. He ran towards us, brown hair flying and face a mask of horror.
Clomping six feet behind him was what appeared to be a metallic spider the size of two fully-grown elephants. My heart stopped. What the hell is that? But I didn't have time to ponder on the existence of this abomination as the beast lumbered its way down towards us.
It swiped at the boy with its gigantic pincers, but he was a fast runner, and managed to evade its attack.
A tug on my sleeve was all I needed to break into a sprint. Adrenaline took over all other feelings as the three of us ran down the hill.
The only sound that mattered was the clank clank of the robot spider behind us. We soon reached a stone bridge, and galloped across, until, halfway through, the telltale clanking stopped.
Silence, followed by a whoosh as the monster jumped. A look upwards revealed masses of wires and circuits holding the legs of the beast intact.
I dived out of the way just as the beast landed with a thud and scraping of metal on stone. Pushing myself off the ground, my heart sinking, I realized that we were trapped; and Angel was nowhere to be seen. The beast stared us down with eight glinting, scarlet eyes, swaying side to side with metallic clinking sounds.
"Hit it with lightning spells!" shouted the other boy, who unsheathed a sword-type weapon from his belt buckle, raised it above his head, and charged at the beast.
Sword and metal spider leg collided with a shower of sparks, causing the spider to roar and recoil slightly. He raised his sword once more and aimed at the face, but couldn't get any further. Pincers the size of a four-seat sedan lunged at the boy, but he jumped back just in time.
Slightly panting, he turned to me. "It's carrying Doubles! Draw-cast, then hit it with your Lightning spells!"
I stared. He'd spoken plain English, but it sounded like a bunch of gibberish.
Though before I could ask him to clarify, there was a crack of thunder, accompanied by a violent flash of lightning directly above the spider, followed by another, stronger flash of lightning. The beast roared its terrifying, grating roar and swayed a little on the spot, the top of its ugly head smoking.
"Izzy! Squall!" came the muffled cries of Angel from the other side of the bridge. What was he still doing here, and why was he yelling out random words?
The moment of pondering came at a heavy price. After it was too late, I saw the massive pincers reach for me. I stood horrified as the metal contraptions grabbed me around the middle, and with a jerk, lifted me clean off the ground.
No time to react; blade sharp metal pierced my sides as they squeezed tightly before letting go. I dropped to the ground in a heap.
'Summon me.'
Trembling, I pushed myself off the ground. The sword-carrying boy now stood facing the beast, which had somehow turned around so its back was to us. He seemed to be concentrating on something, and a moment later, he extended his arms to shoot out a bolt of lightning straight at the spider.
'Natasha!'
I faltered, unsure, because the hearing disembodied voices inside one's head could only mean bad news. The voice kept a refrain of my name and the words "Summon me!" in a frantic yell, which I tried hard to ignore. I had more pressing matters to attend to.
The sword-boy was thrown backwards as the spider turned again with the grinding of gears. I immediately went over to help him off the ground.
Other than looking slightly shaken, he was unhurt, and taking my offered hand, he got up. He batted dirt-stained dark brown hair out of his face and looked around for his blade, blue eyes flitting frantically.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
I turned around to come face to face with eight bright red eyes in a metal face. Crap!
'Call me into battle. Quezacotl. I can destroy the X-ATM092.'
The spider was getting closer.
I closed my eyes tightly.
'Hurry!'
"Quasa-kettle!"
Nothing.
Shing! The boy had found his blade and held it against the spider's pincers, holding it back from attacking him.
What the hell do I do?
Suddenly, miraculously, a surge of power overtook me. I held up my hands, which had started to glow a pale yellow, but soon I felt as if the power was slowly escaping, as if a spirit had decided to no longer possess me.
I caught a whiff of rain and looked up into the sky. Thunder erupted as dark clouds overhead started gathering in a whirlpool of energy. Flashes of lightning lit up the mass of gray, randomly striking each other, until one monstrous bolt escaped and snapped at the ground. But the bolt didn't disappear. The ground sparked, and from the sparks appeared a giant green and yellow bird, wrapped in a cocoon of tattooed wings.
The mighty bird rose into the sky and spread itself, displaying its strength and beauty. Lightning gathered at its chest in a growing ball of energy. The bird flapped its wings once, twice, and the ball of lightning blew up, sending showers flying at the robot spider.
The spider recoiled, and was sent hurtling back a few feet, roaring in its meat-grinder way.
As soon as it had started, everything ended. The bird gave a cry of triumph, and flew off into the whirlpool of clouds. When it disappeared, the sky cleared once more, leaving no trace of what had just happened.
With a groan of metal, the giant spider collapsed on itself, charred and smoking.
"Let's go!" the boy exclaimed gruffly, and lodged himself between the spider and the wall.
After he had gone through, I shimmied my way through the space; wary that the monstrous robot might squish me against the wall, and trying hard not to gag at what smelled like burning fuel.
"We have to get back to the vessel!" yelled Angel, and led the way as the three of us headed across the bridge.
We piled into a dingy street when a groan of metal was heard, followed by clanking that signified that the robot spider was very much alive. Ears pounding, I barely wondered how it was still moving. The clanking followed us down the street, accompanied by the rumbling and crashing as buildings behind us fell to the ground. We passed a fountain, which moments later would be crushed by the beast. Blindly, we ran through an alley, the spider's footsteps not far behind.
Finally, the sight of a beach littered with large black ships allowed for relief. Down a flight of stone steps we went, our feet landing softly on the sand.
The beach was littered with departing ships, and I blindly followed the boys towards the only one that had its door ajar. In the doorway, I saw the blond boy frantically waving us over. He yelled something inaudible and disappeared within the ship.
I followed the boy who had found me as we sprinted across the beach, and onto the metal steps of the vessel door. Panting, I took a look back to see the sword boy still sprinting furiously towards the vessel, the robot spider not far behind him.
By some miracle, the spider was suddenly racked with a barrage of bullets. The deafening pop pop pop was coming from on top of the ship, where a young woman handled a stationary machine gun. She kept firing until all I could hear of the spider was a dying groan.
The boy furiously ran towards us, but for some reason it felt as if he was running backwards...
"Squall! Come on man!" I turned to see the blond boy next to me, his eyes brimming with worry. The ship had started to move, and the gate started to close. We watched anxiously as at he leaped into the air and barely made it into the vessel door just as it snapped shut behind him with a groan of metal.
For a moment, no one spoke. Sword boy pulled himself into sitting position, his breathing laboured and uneven.
"Are you okay?" whispered the brunette. She offered him a hand, and pulled him up.
The ship suddenly jerked, and then fell into a steady motion. Without a word, the group made their way inside the cabin, which was a cramped room with two rows of seats and a slab of wood serving as a table. I followed them, trying to wrap my head around what had just happened. Where in the world am I?
I looked around at the haphazard group, but no one met my eyes. I didn't blame them, everyone looked shocked and dazed. We all shuffled around quietly when finally a distraction arrived in the form on a thin, young woman. She looked at a piece of paper on a clipboard she carried in her arms. Why isn't anyone fazed? Everyone in the cabin stared at the blonde in anticipation, but no one questioned why a robotic spider had chased us off. Did these people face something like this everyday?
"The mission was a success. You all did a great job." Said the blonde suddenly. Mission? Success? It nearly killed us! Her eyes collided with mine for a split second before she looked away.
What threw me off was that she showed no signs of surprise. Surely, I must have been out of place here. I looked around the room, slowly looking at each person. There was the boy who had found me on the hill, whose name I was pretty sure wasn't Angel. He stood gazing dreamily out of the window; brown hair caked with mud. He was tall and lanky, with rather skinny limbs.
On the seat next to him sat a smug-looking boy with a pale face marred only by a gash running down his forehead, and golden slicked back hair. He slumped inside a loose-fitting white trench coat and casually rested his feet on the table. Opposite him sat the spiky-haired blond boy from earlier, who, I now noticed, had a jet-black tribal tattoo covering the entire left side of his face. He gave me a thumbs-up when he caught me looking. I diverted my attention to the brunette sitting next to him. She was humming quietly, apparently oblivious to the tension around the room. Next to her sat the sword boy. He stared at the ground without moving, his dark brown hair covering up his face. Lastly, the blonde woman stood next to the entrance with her arms crossed, watching everyone in the room.
All of the occupants except for the trench coat wore dark blue uniforms, including me. Have I been forced to join some kind of organization? The uniforms were not what stood out, though. It was the strangeness of their faces. Each face was eerily perfect, with smooth, almost waxy skin, and prominent features. They looked like animate mannequins; all beautiful but foreign at the same time. Clearly, I wasn't anywhere near home or school.
I closed my eyes to try and remember how I'd possibly gotten here. I got kicked out of class, Rachael followed me out… then Trevor and I were driving home. Oh my God, the crash! My eyes shot open. The sorceress! Had she brought me here? Were these people working for her?
"Are you okay? You seem confused," commented a low voice, snapping me away from my thoughts.
I turned to the side to see that the boy I'd started calling Angel had stepped away from the window. He gazed at me with a worried expression.
Taken aback, I replied, "Um… what's going on?"
He chuckled. "You mean, what's going to happen with the results? I'm nervous too." He glanced at the blond woman briefly. "But I think we did pretty well."
I stared at him blankly.
"Don't worry, we'll be at Balamb soon, so let's relax before going back to Garden."
Balamb? I had never heard that name before, much less knew what part of the world it belonged in! I must be really far from home…
"Are you okay? You're looking a little clammy." He cocked his head to the side, a hint of concern shadowing his eyes.
Do we know each other? I gulped. "What's going on? Where am I? And why am I here?"
"Izzy. Is something wrong?" it was the blonde this time. She stepped closer, watching me with the same, worried expression as Angel.
"My name isn't…" I trailed off. Did these people think I was someone else? Is that why no one had mentioned my obvious difference? I looked around the room again. surely, I must have stood out among these people, but everyone seemed oblivious "You have the wrong chick, lady!"
That invited inquiring looks from the other residents of the room. I looked from one face to the next, trying to find a trace of familiarity. I backed up a few paces, my heart racing at the thought that I'd been kidnapped or something. So what if none of them seemed malicious?
Pretty boy took a step towards me, eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Izzy, what-"
"Stop calling me that!" Panicking, I pushed through him and fled through the door opposite. I had to, no, needed, to get away from these people. I slammed the door shut and locked it behind me. Nothing made sense. All I wanted to do was go home, or at least somewhere familiar.
I took a deep breath and fumbled for a light switch, and with a click, the room was lit. In front of me stood a girl with blood down her shirt staring at me. I screamed in surprise, and the girl did the same. We stared at each other with wide eyes, and it was then I noticed that I was staring into a mirror. I gingerly extended my hands to touch the mirror, and the girl inside reached for me. That's not me… Everything about her, me, was different. Her wheat-colored hair complemented a pair of round, pale blue eyes. Where was my short black hair? I stared at the baby blue eyes that were so different from my hazel ones.
Reaching a shaking hand to touch her… my face, I realized that I was one of them. No one had noticed my difference because I wasn't different. I felt my throat constrict and my breaths came out as shallow gasps. This couldn't be possible. I had to be dreaming. Things like this didn't happen in the real world. What the hell had the sorceress done? Was I dead or something? I mean, this was definitely not what I would have imagined any kind of afterlife to be like.
Maybe it's not the real world. Of course, I was either dreaming, or in a coma from the car accident. I had to be in a coma; perhaps the sorceress didn't even exist. Shudders overcame my body. I didn't know which thought was scarier: the possibility of a psycho woman sending me to a weird, hellish world, or me losing my mind and dreaming up all of it.
There came a sudden tapping on the door, pulling my attention away from the mirror. "Izzy, it's Nida. Are you okay? Did something happen? You screamed."
So in this coma my name was Izzy, and I knew these people. This I could accept. At that moment, I decided that, yes, this had to be some weird ass dream or coma, because as long as it was in my mind, I could control it.
I inhaled deeply before opening the door. The boy named Nida's concerned face greeted me. I cleared my throat and grinned widely. "I'm fine."
"Is there-"
I managed a nervous giggle. "Nope!" I turned to everyone else, "I was totally joking earlier! You should have seen your faces!"
Before Nida could get in another word, I crossed the room to sit on the seat next to the trench coat boy. I smiled at him and he looked at me as if I was deranged.
Now that I knew I was dreaming, I would wake up soon, and life would be normal. I would bitch and moan about having to go to Jerkass Jake's class, but it would be okay, because everything would be fine. I sighed and leaned back into the seat. There's nothing to worry about.