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Transcendental Mysteries

Chapter 3 Ensnared Conscious

(the next morning – Preston residence: 9:00am)

The coffee tasted like shit. But she didn't care.

Cynthia poured the whole pot down the kitchen drain. She lazily set it down on the counter and yawned. Sleepily, her feet shuffled across the tiled floor and she walked over to the refrigerator. The woman pulled out a carton of milk and drank straight out of it. After taking two gulps, she placed it back into the refrigerator.

When she closed the fridge door, she caught a quick glance of her reflection in a little mirror magnet. Cyndi shook her head and looked at her visage.

"I look like I was in the trenches on the Western Front for a month," she mumbled to herself.

Her appearance was less than flattering and quite haggard. There were huge dark bags under her eyes. Her shoulder length brown hair looked like a grizzled mess. Her skin looked dull and unhealthy. In short, it appeared as if she had gotten a horrible night's sleep. That just so happened to be the case.

She had stayed at the light festival until ten with her siblings. However, Cyndi couldn't enjoy her time and very often, she caught herself looking over her shoulder for any signs of the inorganic giant she met last night. Thankfully, she didn't see him for the rest of the night but nonetheless, her whole time since meeting him was tense and unpleasant.

She was well aware her siblings were curious about her encounter in the dark park. Cynthia revealed nothing to them because she didn't doubt Blitzwing would hunt her down and kill her if she did tell them about the encounter. Yet at the back of her mind, she was extremely tempted to call the police so that they could send the Autobots to apprehend the 'Con.

Cyndi's sleep was harassed by nightmares and she had only slept for approximately three hours. She tossed and turned the whole night, she felt too cold and then too hot. Her mind ran wild and her pulse would race every single time she thought of him.

In one of the nightmares she had, she died by Blitzwing's hand. The whole dream was very brief but as violent as it was brief. Cynthia recalled being in a dark forest with dead, white trees. She heard and saw the trees being ripped out of the earth with their mighty and gnarly roots exposed. The fear and apprehension she experienced in the nightmare was so real, she could've sworn it was actually all real. His giant foot then descended from the sky and gorily crunched her into the ground in bloody and grim splendor.

From that nightmare, she woke up sweating and with a real sense of mortification in her soul. She pondered to herself, who wouldn't be disturbed by this?

Cynthia moved out of the kitchen sluggishly like a zombie. Amanda and Darien were still asleep and she was the sole one awake in their apartment. At times, she liked the quiet and calm of early morning when they were still slumbering. She sat down on the couch and turned on the TV.

"When they wake up, I have to let it all go," she thought. "I can't let them know it's still bugging me badly. I got to be strong in front of them. I really scared them last night and I don't want them calling Mom and Dad, telling them they think I'm becoming mentally unstable." Cyndi shook her head. "No way. I'm not going home now. Or to some loony bin… Mom and Dad wanted me out of the house and I finally took flight. I'm not letting them think I'm some weakling. Nothing's stopping me!" She smiled. "I just got to give myself a pep talk and I'll be fine! I feel better already…"

"…Yes, it would be wise for all the citizens of Detroit to be wary of the Decepticon presence that is here…"

Cynthia looked earnestly at the TV, seeing that the leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime, was being interviewed by a news crew. She leaned forward, her knees pressing into the coffee table.

"There have been some sightings here and there of them," the young Prime went on, "that have been witnessed by the citizens. My team and I would greatly appreciate any information anyone has about possible activity the Decepticons are engaged in unbeknownst to us. We're all in this together because the Decepticons are out to destroy both Humans and Autobots no matter what."

"Cynthia Rose Preston, you are one lucky lady," she said to herself. "You almost died last night."

She looked at the cordless phone that was sitting on the other side of the coffee table. Again, she wanted to call the police about what happened last night in the park. Yet once more, she was repelled by the promise she was forced to make. Not only that, he had let her go and she didn't want to incite his wrath by betraying him.

"I'm letting that freak off the hook… And I never did get his name." She sighed. "The right thing would be to call the cops… But he'll kill me and most likely Darien and Mandy too."

She turned off the news, feeling discouraged and ashamed of herself. Cyndi ran her fingers through her hair and sighed heavily. Her eyes shut and in that darkness, she could see the jack-o-lantern coming at her.

"Get out of my head!" she hissed. "You haven't traumatized me that badly!" Cyndi stood up and walked to her room. "I'm going to forget about last night and move on. My life's not stopping because you were poised to kill me. Worse things have happened to people and they moved on." She sat down on her bed. "I'm alive and I'll never see you again: that's something to be really happy about."

(An hour later – 10:00am)

"Hey, bumpkin!"

Cynthia threw a pillow at the figure that was hiding beneath the bed covers. Amanda shifted beneath the blankets and groaned.

"Mandy, I'm going to the mall to do some last minute shopping," said Cyndi. "I just wanted to let you know."

"Cyndi, I'm sleeping, go do whatever you want…" she grumbled. "I don't have work for a little over a week… Please don't wake me up until that vacation is done."

"What do you want for Christmas? You never did tell me."

"Surprise me, Cyndi."

"Yeah that helps. Don't be surprised if I get you a few CDs for Christmas… Or an old time Disney movie for that matter."

"Okay, that sounds great." Amanda rolled over onto her side and curled up. "Happy shopping."

"Alright, tell Darien I'll be back hopefully before two or three, depending on how horrible the traffic is and whatnot. There's some food in the kitchen so make whatever you want. I'll seeya later."

"Bye…" The blonde yawned. "I better be able to get back to bed."

(the mall – 11:10am)

Cynthia looked at the CD case in her left hand. It was a Lady Gaga album and in the right hand, she held another CD that was Shania Twain. She wracked her brain trying to figure out if Amanda had either of these albums or if she even wanted them at all. Frustrated, she sighed and shook her head.

"I know she's obsessed with Lady Gaga but I don't think she has this disc…" she thought. "She likes every single genre style of music under the sun and that includes country." Cynthia placed down the Lady Gaga CD. "Yeah, she's getting Shania Twain for Christmas from me. It'd be nice to listen to something instead of Lady Gaga on that damn radio of hers."

Her cellphone rang obnoxiously. A few people glanced at her when they recognized the ringtone: it was 'Ain't Nothing Gonna Break my Stride' by Matthew Wilder.

"I need to change this thing a.s.a.p…" she grumbled, a bit embarrassed she allowed it to ring so loudly.

Cyndi fumbled through her purse in order to answer and silence her phone. She managed to grab it yet she forgot to check the caller ID. The young woman pressed the 'talk' button and held the device up to her ear.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Hi, sweetheart."

It was her father, Robert Preston.

"Hey, Daddy," she smiled a tiny smile, "what's up?"

"I just wanted to enjoy a nice little morning conversation with my eldest child," he answered. "That's all. I called your apartment and I got a very sleepy greeting from your brother… You haven't let him out partying in the streets all night have you, Cynthia?"

"Of course not. You know how kids are… They're always up late watching TV and hanging out. Darien, Mandy and I were together the entire evening so I know he didn't go out partying and end up coming home smashed. He's actually a weird kid because he hates all kinds alcohol."

"Well done, Cynthia. You know, I was at first a bit wary of letting your brother and sister live with you when you went off to college a year and a half ago. I thought you couldn't live up to that challenge." He laughed softly. "But you've made me proud, honey. Aren't you glad you decided to leave home and go to college?"

"Despite the fact I've left home for college at twenty one, I guess that's okay. Better late than never…"

"It's for the best, Cyndi… Anyway, Darien told me you went off to the mall for some last minute Christmas shopping."

"Yes, I just got a Shania Twain album for Mandy. I'm still trying to figure out what I should give Darien though."

"Applications to shops, fast food joints or whatever else you can get… That boy needs a job."

Cyndi walked over to the cash register to purchase the CD. She silently mouthed 'hello' to the cashier as she placed the disc on the counter. Then she dug through her purse with one hand.

"Dad, be nice to Darien," Cyndi said gently. "He's trying to get into street magic and I think he ought to go for it."

"There's no merit in it," Robert condemned.

"He doesn't want to be lawyer like you. According to you, a lake ecologist isn't meritorious either but you've allowed me to pursue that career."

"Darien's my only boy. I only worry about him."

"Uh-huh. He's the baby of the family so no wonder… Say, Dad, what do you want for Christmas? I know to not get you a tie or else you'll hang yourself with it."

Robert laughed.

"Anything but a tie, Cyndi," he said. "That and socks."

"Okay, I'll figure it out then," Cyndi found her wallet at last and pulled it out. "Can I call you after I get my shopping done? I'm determined to get what I can done today so I don't have to rush out again."

"That's fine. Shop well, Cynthia."

"Hi, Baby!" Cynthia's mother, Helen, screamed in the background. "I love you! I get to see you and my other babies within a matter of weeks!"

"Your mother is dying to come down. We're still coming over to Detroit on the twenty third."

"That's fine," Cyndi nodded. "I love you, Dad. Extend my love and greetings to Mom."

"Love you too, honey. Bye."

She disconnected the call and focused her full attention on the cashier.

"Sorry about that," Cyndi apologized.

"No worries, ma'am," the man said blandly. "That'll be nineteen ninety nine, please."

"Okay then…"

Cynthia grabbed a crisp twenty dollar bill out of her wallet and handed it over to the cashier. He ran up the transaction and was preparing to hand her change back to her.

She glanced at an inner compartment in her wallet while she was waiting to receive her change. There was a transparent strip of plastic that covered a slot in the wallet. In that slot, she kept her driver's license which could be seen clearly through that plastic. But it wasn't in its proper spot.

Panic balled up in the pit of her stomach yet she kept it concealed for the time being. Cynthia perused her wallet, believing she absentmindedly placed it in some other space in there. When she discovered it wasn't there, she began to search her purse.

The cashier watched her increasingly desperate search with the same blank look on his face. He leaned heavily against the counter, tapping the penny on it.

"Miss, your change and receipt," he said idly.

Cyndi was ready to have an anxiety attack. Her breathing became ponderous when she saw her driver's license was missing. She never took it out of the vicinity of her purse. Her wallet always stayed in there and so did the license since it was always in that wallet.

"Uh, keep the penny," she said waveringly. "Thanks."

She quickly grabbed the bag containing the receipt and the CD. Cynthia hurried out of the media store and out into the mall. To catch herself from falling over in panic, she hustled over to a bench and sat down in it.

"Oh, God," she thought. "Please don't tell me I somehow lost my license at the park when I ran into that Decepticon. I never ever take my license out of my wallet… He must've went through my wallet when I dropped my purse and…" Her eyes grew to the size of saucers. "HE HAS MY LICENSE!"

He knew her full name. He knew her address. He knew all he needed to know about her.

"He's got me under his thumb good..." Cyndi ran her hands through her hair and shut her eyes tight. "Now I know for sure that if I decided to report my encounter to the authorities, he'd be able to find me too and then eat me or something." She began to shake from the chills she suddenly felt. "God, he knows who I am and where I live! This is a nightmare! I have no choice now… I have to shut up or die. Mom, Dad, Mandy and Darien might have to pay for my action too if I decide to call the cops."

With all her might, she wished her driver's license might actually be at home and not within a Decepticon's metal hands. However, Cyndi didn't recall taking it out of her wallet at all yesterday. She was more than certain the triple changer had it.

"I can't lose my cool. I'll just say I lost it and I'll go get a new one issued as soon as I get done with shopping." The organic female sighed laboriously. "I'm doomed."

(Two hours later – 12:30pm)

Cynthia nervously scanned the crowds of people that walked past her. She claimed her own table in an isolated area of the food court. In her left hand, she tightly clenched a plastic cup of hot chocolate. At her feet, there were some shopping bags that were filled with the loot of her conquest at the mall.

She had completed what she meant to accomplish and she was officially finished with her Christmas shopping. However, her license continued to remain missing even after she dumped her purse out, dissected her wallet and nearly dismantled her car. Cyndi called Amanda and asked her to look for the missing item and her worst fears were confirmed when her sister did indeed say the license was not in the apartment.

"A giant robot stole my driver's license," she told herself. "Wait until my parents hear about that. Of all the rotten luck! Why me? Honestly, what did I do to deserve this? I think I'm a fairly decent individual."

Ever since she discovered her license had disappeared, she had felt edgy and extremely tense. Again, like last night after her encounter with Blitzwing, she found herself looking over her shoulder often. Cynthia felt as if she was being spied upon and it made her skin crawl. It was as if she believed a million invisible security cameras were watching her every move. More than anything else, she wished she was in a dark and enclosed space where no one could find her.

"I'm going to continue living my life and pretend like nothing happened," she decided. "As long as we never cross paths again, I'll be fine. I'll never tell anyone about what happened or report my incident to the cops. Hopefully, he'll keep his end of the bargain and leave me be. The last thing I need is…"

"Hey, scaredy-cat!"

Cynthia looked up from gazing at the melted marshmallows in her hot chocolate. She wrinkled her nose and studied the scene around her, wondering who said that.

"Over here!"

The young woman yelped out loud when she realized the voice came from behind her. Cyndi gasped a little when she turned around in her seat. Her eyes locked with a very handsome man's. She began to blush a little.

The man was quite tall: he easily was over six feet tall. He was wearing beige cargo pants, black boots and a purple and black checkered polo shirt. To protect himself from the chill of the December evening, he was wearing a black polar fleece jacket. His dirty blonde hair was kempt and shiny. His physique was manly and muscular but not grotesquely beefy. To top it all off, this fine specimen of a male had a pair of bright and beautiful ruby eyes.

"Ca-can I help you?" Cyndi coughed.

"Jou know who I am!" Random Blitzwing smiled at her. "I just vanted to say 'hi'!"