Disclaimer: Characters, world, anything in or having to do with the TV series SURFACE, doesn't belong to me. However, the idea for this particular fan fiction does. Don't steal and we'll get along just fine.
Summary: What if the creatures dug slower for some reason? Or the mantle was a few hundred feet thicker? When would they have generated the displaced water that created the tsunami? And how would it have affected those involved? Miles has managed to escape the mob outside his house but revealed his new abilities in doing so. This time, there is no convenient news broadcast to save him. Nor is there any way to escape the consequences of his accidental actions against the bully at school. Running away is the only way to survive. But where can he run? Who can he trust? And most importantly, how will his body change next?
….yeah, that about sums it up.
Enjoy!
Delayed Consequences
Chapter 1: Change
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"Oh you can't possibly be serious."
Miles' voice squeaked slightly as he whispered in horror at the sight of his own hands.
The connection had been cool, the electricity worrying but still super hero-ish, the instinctual anger terrifying and personal, but this?
He slowly, almost fearfully, clenched the digits on his right hand; they could no longer be correctly termed fingers, and watched as if mesmerized as they obeyed his mental command.
The soft, flesh covered appendage with diminutive claws (called 'nails' by humans) he was used to had been…well, not replaced but altered almost beyond recognition. Dark mottling trailed down his outer forearms, blossoming at the wrists to cover the top of his hand A few fingers; point, ring, and index; seemed to have elongated by a couple millimeters while his thumb, though slightly longer, had been drawn further up his arm by an altered skeletal structure and the pinkie finger had shrunk about the same amount the others had elongated. All five were tipped with wickedly sharp, curved claws that had to be at least triple the length of his normal nails. The underside of his hand and fingers hadn't changed; a small blessing.
Worrying though these changes were, they could possibly be covered by gloves of some kind. The claws would poke out but could be mistaken as part of the covering. If those were the only alterations, he would not have a problem appearing human.
No, the worst change was what lay between his fingers.
Webbing.
It was boneless and thin but sensitive and stronger than it appeared.
It probably has cartilage in it somewhere. Miles noted absentmindedly. Like my nose, ears, or…he closed his eyes in resigned fatigue… the webbing that's probably growing between my toes.
"Miles?"
His head snapped up, slit pupils contracting to compensate for the sunlight.
"C-Caitlin?" he whispered, too low for her to hear. He was grateful she'd come, but also terrified. What if she sees me like this? I know she wants to help but she's never seen me change physically. If I show her, she'll think I'm a freak for sure!
"Miles? Are you in here?"
He pushed further back in the shadows of the dilapidated old boat house, watching the square of light (it had once been a door) with rapt attention.
"Come on Miles, I know you're here. I've already checked all the other places you like to go. Well, the ones Phil told me about."
Phil. A smile flickered into existence, small but steady. Trust him to surrender confidential information like that when faced with a pretty girl.
A slight blush tinged his cheeks, making him duck his head and rub his face with the flat of his hand.
Unfortunately, he'd forgotten about the sharp claws protruding from his fingertips.
Uttering a muffled yelp, he jumped about a foot in the air; five bloody furrows trailing across an unprotected cheek.
That was stupid. He gazed at the bloodied claws ruefully then investigated the slashes with the webbing and pads of his fingers, angling the tips away so as not to make the same mistake twice. But at least I missed my eyes. I doubt Nim's healing ability would regenerate those.
"Miles? Was that you? A-are you okay?" A silhouette darkened the doorway.
Guess I shouldn't have yelled like that. He remained hidden as she advanced a few steps, very small steps, and called again.
"Miles, if that's you…"
He didn't reply.
"This isn't funny! Miles, answer!"
She was scared and worried, he realized guiltily, that's why she was feigning anger and repeating his name every few sentences. But why was she scared?
Is she scared of me? N-no, she can't be. The very thought prompted an uncomfortable squirming sensation in the pit of his stomach. What if it was true? The rest of the town, including his parents, was terrified of him now. What if Caitlin was too? She'd seen more of his abilities then everyone else combined.
I need to know. Even if she freaks, I need to know.
She was still standing in the same spot, seemingly working up her nerve to either advance further into the gloom or call again.
"Caitlin?" This time it was loud enough for her to hear. Barely.
"Miles! Oh, thank God. Where are you? Are you okay? I can't see anything. Why did you yell?"
He tried to chuckle slightly but the sound never left his lips. "I-I'm…alright. I guess."
"'You guess'? Miles, what's wrong?"
She's worried. I don't want her to be worried but…
"I-I…" he paused to gulp as his throat constricted in fear. "There's…something happened."
Concerned by his stammering, Caitlin advanced, trying to follow the sound of his voice. "Calm down. I'm not going anywhere, I promise. Now, what's wrong?"
"W-well." Resigned and anticipating their confrontation, he began to climb to his feet. "I've…changed."
"Changed?" the first prickle of unease caused Caitlin's steps to falter. "What do you mean?"
He'd seen the falter and felt his heart sink in response. If she was unnerved by the thought, what would she do when she actually saw him?
"W-well, I've been ch-changing for a while. You know?"
"Like, a Nim change?" The prickle had intensified into spiders crawling up and down her spine.
"Um...yeah. A Nim change. But it's…different."
She could hear the fear in his voice and, despite her own anxiety, felt her heart go out to him. Poor Miles. He shouldn't have to deal with this. Especially since he was having such a tough time at home before he found Nim.
"Different? How?"
"I…w-well, it's…um…"
"Why don't you show me?"
She felt his aversion to that idea. Literally. The air crackled with electricity like it did around Nim when he was scared or angry. Thank God there aren't any bare wires or water in here. If there were, I'd be fried for sure, purposely or not.
"I don't-"
"Miles, I won't abandon you. I promise."
"You-"
His comment faded off but she felt it like a knife in the gut. He really thought she would leave him? After all they'd been through? Her hurt became worry. He must be really terrified if he jumped to that conclusion.
"Yes, I promise. I've never run from you before, have I?"
He didn't answer but she didn't expect him to.
Neither of them moved for several moments.
Time to try a different tactic.
"At least let me know you're okay. I heard you yell in pain when I got here."
"Oh, that. I'm fine."
No stuttering. Good.
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I just…well, I scratched myself."
She smiled at his sheepish tone but narrowed her eyes quizzically.
"On what?"
"U-uh, well…"
So that has something to do with this new change.
Her mind unconsciously pulled up an image of Nim feeding, tearing a live salmon to pieces with sharp teeth and even sharper claws.
A headshake dispelled the image but she had a sinking feeling she knew what this new 'change' was. And why Miles was scared of showing her.
"Oh, by the way, I spoke with Phil." Time to change the topic.
"Is he okay?"
"He's fine. He'd have come but…" she hesitated. Maybe this wasn't a good topic to introduce.
"But…?"
She sighed. Better to get it out in the open. "His parents wouldn't let him out of the house."
"They didn't want him near me."
It was a statement, not a question.
"I'm sorry."
"It's alright."
"What, really?"
"Yeah," he sounded, if anything, relieved. "If it's his parents keeping him in, he isn't trying to avoid me like everyone else. Well, everyone who isn't trying to kill or capture me. They are sticking to me like ticks (1)."
"Miles…"
"They came after me with guns! But could blame them? I mean, just look at me! Even I don't know what I'm turning into!"
It was definitely a physical change this time. Wait a minute… "Guns? Someone came after you with a gun?"
"Several someones." He sounded tired, sad.
"Who?"
"I dunno. Some guys from town. Doesn't matter."
"Doesn't matter? Miles, someone tried to kill you! We need to report this to the police!"
"They protect people, not monsters!"
"You aren't a monster!"
"Not a monster? You've seen what I can do, what I've done! And as if that's not enough, just LOOK at me!"
A faint scuffling sound heralded Miles' entrance into the dim light of the center of the room, fully revealing his newest changes for the first time.
Caitlin's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.
"Oh my God…"
TBC?
(See BBTW at the bottom)
Well, this is definitely not my best work.
And it's far too short.
-.-
But oh well, I wrote this while trying to get over writer's block so… Okay, it wasn't exactly writer's block; it was more…how to explain?
I normally write for anime but my recent favorite shows have all been with real people. The genres are so far apart that after reading about so many non animated characters, I lost my inspiration to write about animated ones. I'm hoping to reverse engineer the process by starting to write again then go back to animation, flipping my interest again.
Oog
I don't know when or if Laura and Rich will come in. I always wondered what would happen if they met Miles and/or Nim before the tsunami (especially considering how Rich reacted to the assumption that Lee was a clone) but I'm not sure if I'll follow them a bit before they come in or just have them enter the story unexpectedly. This is, of course, IF I get enough reviews to continue. If I don't, they won't show up period. (See BBTW)
But at least I got something out the experience of writing for real people. It's only my second try. (My first was for POTC and I posted it over a year ago)
BTW: Sorry for all the ellipses, colons, commas, and hyphens. I'm kind of addicted to excess punctuation. . And I don't have a beta so there might be some spelling, grammar, and/or tense mistakes.
BBTW: If you want me to continue, review. I doubt I'll get any further if I don't get at least 5 reviews.
(1) I HATE ticks. Little bloodsucking parasites that carry limes disease. The other day I was outside for an hour and touched one patch of grass about 3 by 5 inches. There was no overhanging foliage, I touched no bushes, but when I got home I had FOUR of the hell born little arachnids on me. –shudder- Least they hadn't burrowed all the way to my blood yet, I they were still trying to get through my skin.