It was a long time before Case visited the castle again in slumber. Case was a good artist and liked to draw, so he drew pictures of the castle and the Nomalies, and the children. But their faces were fading. He couldn't remember some of their names, or their voices... it was as though they were distant relatives he'd left behind long ago.
Case sat at the kitchen table sketching. Frustrated, he crumpled up an attempt and tossed it into a nearby wastebasket as his father entered the room.
"I'm going out tonight, Case, so you can order pizza," said Charlie.
Case looked up. "You don't go out," he said in bewilderment as his dad searched in vain for his other shoe. "You don't go out, Dad."
"Tonight I do," Charlie answered.
Case picked up his sandwich and took a thoughtful bite. He couldn't seem to swallow it, but forced himself to. "You don't... have a date, do you, Dad?"
"Case, I'm just going out with some people from my work. Don't be paranoid." He left the room.
Case went into the living room and pulled out a photo album, which he flicked through. His parents hadn't owned their own camera until Case was two, and didn't take many photos even after that.
He looked wistfully at a picture of his mother and himself sitting at a kitchen table and drawing pictures. If he squinted just enough, he could roughly make out a cartoony sort of building with a couple of towers that his mom was drawing with a row of small stick figures in front of it.
Only nature could have made someone so great, he thought, gazing at her.
"Case, go, you'll be late for school!" called Charlie.
Case spotted the schoolbus outside and panicked. He grabbed his backpack and bolted out the door, running alongside the fast-moving bus.
"HEY!" he yelled. "STOP THE BUS!"
The bus ground to a halt. Everyone stared at him as he climbed on and modestly went to sit with his friends.
But he felt separated from the conversation. All through homeroom he brooded, and he slid quietly into his seat in English. The teacher began to talk about their assignment.
Case was tired. He'd stayed up late the night before, playing video games and finishing homework. He supposed he was pushing his luck, staying up four nights in a row.
I'll just rest my head on the desk for a second, he thought, and felt his eyes falling shut...
"WAKE UP!" he heard someone yell, and for a second thought they'd seen him falling asleep. But no- he remembered this place. The courtyard outside the castle.
And suddenly the faces of the children all around, standing in lines and facing each other, all came rushing back. A boy had fallen down and was twitching.
I remember him, Case thought bemusedly. Blonde Boy.
King Lydecker was standing over him, yelling. Everyone stood there tensely. He could see Princess... Eva, was it? Yes, her name was Eva. He could see her face caught up in fear. Her lips were moving very fast, mouthing, please Jack, come on, Jack, wake up, wake up, please...
Lydecker shook his head and snapped his fingers. Two Nomaly guards came down the stairway into the courtyard, picking up one of Prince Jack's arms each and dragging him away.
With a silently sad look on her face, Princess Max seemed to forget herself and step out of line. A human soldier got in her face, forcing her back. "Back in line, girl!" he raged.
And suddenly Case was standing beside the fireplace in the tower. Two boys were climbing through the fireplace laden down with food- the boy who resembled Princess Max and a tall skinny boy with close-cropped hair that plainly showed off the 205 branded onto his neck.
"Something for every taste," kidded 205 Boy, handing around bread and bottles of liquid that were shared among the children.
Everyone was very subdued. Tinga stood in a corner with Brin and some boys, talking. Brin was crying and Tinga had her arm around her.
Princess Jondy was perched on a bed head, playing cards with Princess Syl, who sat on the bed. Both were simply tossing random cards into the centre, not keeping their minds on the game.
The thin dark girl, Princess Jace, had a sword and was swinging at a broken armchair. With a grunt of defeat, she threw down her sword and wandered into a corner to brood.
Princess Eva sat with a lyre on her cot, strumming away, trying to find her muse. Frustrated, she pushed it away and flopped backward, staring at the high ceiling.
Prince Ben sat unhappily on his cot, staring despondently at an uninhabited cot between his cot and another girl's. The oldest boy and Princess Max came to sit with him.
"Zack," he intoned flatly, nodding at him. "Max."
"They took Jack," said Prince Zack, his voice numb.
"What'll happen to him?" Max asked, the normally tough child shivering slightly.
"They'll take him to the Bad Place and drink his blood. Then the Nomalies'll take him away."
"The Blue Faerie- why doesn't she protect him?"
"I'm going to the High Place," said Prince Ben, standing up. "I'll ask her."
Ben struggled to give his younger sister a smile, and went to the slit window. A thin, fraying rope hung from the tower roof, and bravely, Ben began to climb it.
Case dithered behind for a second- he seriously doubted whether the rope would even support Prince Ben's weight, let alone his. Nevertheless, Case was champion of the rope-climb in PE, and followed Ben to the roof.
He watched from the edge of the shingles as Ben walked around with the air of a broken man, though he was only ten years old.
On the roof, on a stone block from which flew a proud banner, was a shred of parchment. Case looked over Ben's shoulder at an illuminated picture of the parchment. It was a woman in a blue robe, a holy look on her face, holding a luminous wand in a slender hand. Sparkling wings fluttered from her back. The Blue Faerie.
Ben looked sadly at her picture and Case could see tears sliding from his closed eyes. "Jack..." he muttered, and pressed a fist to his face, unfurling the fingers and trying to get rid of stinging tears.
All in a second, he looked to the sky and screamed out to the stars above.
"WHY?! What did we do wrong? We believe in you!"
Case jumped. There seemed to be a commotion down below, of children running to snuff out lights and dive into beds before the door burst open and human guards swarmed in.
And a guard appeared, having climbed the rope. More scrambled onto the roof, heavily armed. With a hopeless look in his eyes, Ben began to back up, dangerously toward the edge of the tower.
Case panicked. This was a familiar scene from films he'd watched, but this was all too real. Ben stepped backwards-
And Case grabbed at his arm. In a second he realised how stupid that was, how his fingers would go straight through the prince, but in an amazing turn of events he could actually feel himself holding Prince Ben's arm.
Ben seemed to teeter for a moment, supported by some invisible force. Case hauled him up. Almost the second the prince found his balance, the soldiers pounced on him. It was a horrible thing to see, eight fully-grown men viciously beating a young boy. Case watched numbly as he was taken back down the rope and into the castle again.
He followed. A soldier barked at the young royals to stay in their beds as they dragged Ben from the tower, his family's sanctuary.
All was quiet.
Max climbed slowly from her bed and went to the door, slipping through. Almost instinctively, Case left too.
The staircases and passages Princess Max took seemed to go on forever. Max looked like she was looking for something- or someone.
In the dank dungeons was where the young girl found what she was looking for. Case felt his stomach twist in revulsion.
A crowd of Nomalies stood around the limp form of Prince Jack, who hung from the ceiling by his neck as though lynched. What was really disturbing was the fact that his throat was slit and cackling Nomaly guards held their wooden cups to his wound, drinking his blood, little by little.
Max looked almost as repulsed as Case felt, so sickened and nauseated and yet so terribly angry.
There were screams from the other end of the hallway. It was Ben. "Don't give me to the Nomalies! IF YOU EVER LOVED ANY OF US AT ALL, DON'T GIVE ME TO THEM!" He was reduced to frightened sobbing. "I'm a good person. I try so hard. Please don't give me up to them."
Max grimaced. "Ben..." she whispered. A Nomaly grunted from within the room and Max ran away into the darkness.
Case awoke, drenched in sweat. He hadn't been this affected by a dream since he was a toddler, and kept imagining Ben nearly falling to his death, and Jack hanging in the darkness.
And in the bland boredom of class he thought he still heard Max crying.
* * *
DISCLAIMER: 'Dark Angel' belongs to Fox and James Cameron. Not me. So don't sue.
Case sat at the kitchen table sketching. Frustrated, he crumpled up an attempt and tossed it into a nearby wastebasket as his father entered the room.
"I'm going out tonight, Case, so you can order pizza," said Charlie.
Case looked up. "You don't go out," he said in bewilderment as his dad searched in vain for his other shoe. "You don't go out, Dad."
"Tonight I do," Charlie answered.
Case picked up his sandwich and took a thoughtful bite. He couldn't seem to swallow it, but forced himself to. "You don't... have a date, do you, Dad?"
"Case, I'm just going out with some people from my work. Don't be paranoid." He left the room.
Case went into the living room and pulled out a photo album, which he flicked through. His parents hadn't owned their own camera until Case was two, and didn't take many photos even after that.
He looked wistfully at a picture of his mother and himself sitting at a kitchen table and drawing pictures. If he squinted just enough, he could roughly make out a cartoony sort of building with a couple of towers that his mom was drawing with a row of small stick figures in front of it.
Only nature could have made someone so great, he thought, gazing at her.
"Case, go, you'll be late for school!" called Charlie.
Case spotted the schoolbus outside and panicked. He grabbed his backpack and bolted out the door, running alongside the fast-moving bus.
"HEY!" he yelled. "STOP THE BUS!"
The bus ground to a halt. Everyone stared at him as he climbed on and modestly went to sit with his friends.
But he felt separated from the conversation. All through homeroom he brooded, and he slid quietly into his seat in English. The teacher began to talk about their assignment.
Case was tired. He'd stayed up late the night before, playing video games and finishing homework. He supposed he was pushing his luck, staying up four nights in a row.
I'll just rest my head on the desk for a second, he thought, and felt his eyes falling shut...
"WAKE UP!" he heard someone yell, and for a second thought they'd seen him falling asleep. But no- he remembered this place. The courtyard outside the castle.
And suddenly the faces of the children all around, standing in lines and facing each other, all came rushing back. A boy had fallen down and was twitching.
I remember him, Case thought bemusedly. Blonde Boy.
King Lydecker was standing over him, yelling. Everyone stood there tensely. He could see Princess... Eva, was it? Yes, her name was Eva. He could see her face caught up in fear. Her lips were moving very fast, mouthing, please Jack, come on, Jack, wake up, wake up, please...
Lydecker shook his head and snapped his fingers. Two Nomaly guards came down the stairway into the courtyard, picking up one of Prince Jack's arms each and dragging him away.
With a silently sad look on her face, Princess Max seemed to forget herself and step out of line. A human soldier got in her face, forcing her back. "Back in line, girl!" he raged.
And suddenly Case was standing beside the fireplace in the tower. Two boys were climbing through the fireplace laden down with food- the boy who resembled Princess Max and a tall skinny boy with close-cropped hair that plainly showed off the 205 branded onto his neck.
"Something for every taste," kidded 205 Boy, handing around bread and bottles of liquid that were shared among the children.
Everyone was very subdued. Tinga stood in a corner with Brin and some boys, talking. Brin was crying and Tinga had her arm around her.
Princess Jondy was perched on a bed head, playing cards with Princess Syl, who sat on the bed. Both were simply tossing random cards into the centre, not keeping their minds on the game.
The thin dark girl, Princess Jace, had a sword and was swinging at a broken armchair. With a grunt of defeat, she threw down her sword and wandered into a corner to brood.
Princess Eva sat with a lyre on her cot, strumming away, trying to find her muse. Frustrated, she pushed it away and flopped backward, staring at the high ceiling.
Prince Ben sat unhappily on his cot, staring despondently at an uninhabited cot between his cot and another girl's. The oldest boy and Princess Max came to sit with him.
"Zack," he intoned flatly, nodding at him. "Max."
"They took Jack," said Prince Zack, his voice numb.
"What'll happen to him?" Max asked, the normally tough child shivering slightly.
"They'll take him to the Bad Place and drink his blood. Then the Nomalies'll take him away."
"The Blue Faerie- why doesn't she protect him?"
"I'm going to the High Place," said Prince Ben, standing up. "I'll ask her."
Ben struggled to give his younger sister a smile, and went to the slit window. A thin, fraying rope hung from the tower roof, and bravely, Ben began to climb it.
Case dithered behind for a second- he seriously doubted whether the rope would even support Prince Ben's weight, let alone his. Nevertheless, Case was champion of the rope-climb in PE, and followed Ben to the roof.
He watched from the edge of the shingles as Ben walked around with the air of a broken man, though he was only ten years old.
On the roof, on a stone block from which flew a proud banner, was a shred of parchment. Case looked over Ben's shoulder at an illuminated picture of the parchment. It was a woman in a blue robe, a holy look on her face, holding a luminous wand in a slender hand. Sparkling wings fluttered from her back. The Blue Faerie.
Ben looked sadly at her picture and Case could see tears sliding from his closed eyes. "Jack..." he muttered, and pressed a fist to his face, unfurling the fingers and trying to get rid of stinging tears.
All in a second, he looked to the sky and screamed out to the stars above.
"WHY?! What did we do wrong? We believe in you!"
Case jumped. There seemed to be a commotion down below, of children running to snuff out lights and dive into beds before the door burst open and human guards swarmed in.
And a guard appeared, having climbed the rope. More scrambled onto the roof, heavily armed. With a hopeless look in his eyes, Ben began to back up, dangerously toward the edge of the tower.
Case panicked. This was a familiar scene from films he'd watched, but this was all too real. Ben stepped backwards-
And Case grabbed at his arm. In a second he realised how stupid that was, how his fingers would go straight through the prince, but in an amazing turn of events he could actually feel himself holding Prince Ben's arm.
Ben seemed to teeter for a moment, supported by some invisible force. Case hauled him up. Almost the second the prince found his balance, the soldiers pounced on him. It was a horrible thing to see, eight fully-grown men viciously beating a young boy. Case watched numbly as he was taken back down the rope and into the castle again.
He followed. A soldier barked at the young royals to stay in their beds as they dragged Ben from the tower, his family's sanctuary.
All was quiet.
Max climbed slowly from her bed and went to the door, slipping through. Almost instinctively, Case left too.
The staircases and passages Princess Max took seemed to go on forever. Max looked like she was looking for something- or someone.
In the dank dungeons was where the young girl found what she was looking for. Case felt his stomach twist in revulsion.
A crowd of Nomalies stood around the limp form of Prince Jack, who hung from the ceiling by his neck as though lynched. What was really disturbing was the fact that his throat was slit and cackling Nomaly guards held their wooden cups to his wound, drinking his blood, little by little.
Max looked almost as repulsed as Case felt, so sickened and nauseated and yet so terribly angry.
There were screams from the other end of the hallway. It was Ben. "Don't give me to the Nomalies! IF YOU EVER LOVED ANY OF US AT ALL, DON'T GIVE ME TO THEM!" He was reduced to frightened sobbing. "I'm a good person. I try so hard. Please don't give me up to them."
Max grimaced. "Ben..." she whispered. A Nomaly grunted from within the room and Max ran away into the darkness.
Case awoke, drenched in sweat. He hadn't been this affected by a dream since he was a toddler, and kept imagining Ben nearly falling to his death, and Jack hanging in the darkness.
And in the bland boredom of class he thought he still heard Max crying.
* * *
DISCLAIMER: 'Dark Angel' belongs to Fox and James Cameron. Not me. So don't sue.