Anomaly walked up to the ADD. It was one in the morning, and everyone else was at home, asleep.

But she couldn't sleep. Not without the nightmares returning. She'd managed to keep almost everyone in the dark about her past. She simply didn't want to remember it.

She sighed. There were so many secrets surrounding her. She just wished she could forget it. Everything.

Her ears pricked, and she looked around. "I know you're there. Come out."

Cutter stepped out of the shadows. "I forgot something."

Anomaly rolled her eyes. "And you decided to come back for it at one in the morning." She said sarcastically.

Cutter smiled. "It was important."

Anomaly looked at him. "I'm sure." Sarcasm still dripped in her voice.

Cutter chuckled darkly. "I just…" He looked down. "I wanted to know."

Anomaly nodded slowly. She sat down on the floor, and motioned for Cutter to do the same. He considered, then followed her example.

She took a deep breath. "I knew this would come up eventually." She sighed. "All right. What do you want to know?"

Cutter looked at her. "How do you know Claudia?"

Anomaly smiled humorlessly. "I figured as much." She looked away, her gaze distant. "Claudia Brown. Worked in a place called the Home Office. Studied rifts in times known as anomalies." She looked at Cutter. "She no longer exists."

Cutter nodded slowly, and waited for her to continue.

Her eyes locked on his. "Time is a funny thing, Cutter. A raptor getting its head cut off when an anomaly closes on it is enough to bring a person back, though under a different name and life experience." Her eyes were distant. "We called the phenomenon Tolio Terria. In your language, Time Swap. It was what happened when something in the past was changed." She shrugged. "But, like I said. Time is a funny thing."

She took a deep breath and began again. "There is another phenomenon, known as Norfalia Tortalis. It quite literally means 'Bounce Back.' It is a rebound effect that time uses to heal itself." She sighed. "So, something happens, and Claudia disappears, and reappears as Jenny. That's Tolio Terria. Time Swap. A change in the pattern of time itself."

She looked at him. "But the other phenomenon, Norfalia Tortalis. When Claudia disappeared, time was trying to fix things. So it did, taking Claudia out of the equation. But what do you have to do to take something out of one side of the equation?"

Cutter thought for a moment. "You add it to the other side."

Anomaly nodded. "Exactly. But time is a little different from an equation. So when Claudia disappeared here…"

"She reappeared in your time." Cutter said, realization making his eyes light up.

"Precisely. I met Claudia in my time when time tried to repair itself. It sent Claudia Brown to my time, for what would be a split second for time itself, but months upon months for us."

She swallowed and looked down. "Claudia was the reason I chose The Guard in the first place. I needed a new Florlic, and he was… well, the worst of the worst. The weakling." Anomaly swallowed again. "That was considered the worst thing in the world, being weak. You had to be the strongest. You had to have the strongest Florlics and there was no way anyone would choose a weak one. Claudia convinced me to choose him." She chuckled darkly. "She gave me the name. And she's also part of the reason I know some English." She shrugged. "We had to teach it to her. She picked it up, for the most part."

She swallowed again and looked down. "And then, one day, she disappeared. No one knew where she went. One moment she was there, the next, gone." A tear formed in her eye.

Cutter looked at her. "And… she's gone?"

Anomaly looked at him. "I'm sorry, Cutter. She can't come back. There's no way."

Cutter looked down. He said nothing to her, and for a long time there was silence.


Neither Cutter nor Anomaly said anything to the others the next day about their conversation. The day passed like it normally did. Anomaly woke up screaming, the dreams haunting her like they always did. Connor talked about random techno-babble, Abby and Steven got into a fight about shooting creatures, and everyone acted like they always did. Only Cutter and Anomaly remembered.

And they kept it secret. They would always keep it secret.


Shadow and flame and ice and wind and everything this place has made me. I am the Rouge Child. But maybe I'm more then that.

I've been out here so long, in the cold and the sand and the desert and the flames that refuse to burn. The fire burns in its blue-green light, the cold flames flicking towards the night sky. Towards the stars. Towards my promise.

Maybe I should give up. Perhaps that promise was truly impossible.

But then I remember Sam, and I will never let that promise die.

Ikesa nudges my hand. He's scared, too. He whimpers. There's nothing around us for as far as the eye can see. I don't like being out in the open. It leaves you venerable to attack. Attack from Predators, from Terlanians, from all sorts of creatures that prefer the night.

The Guard looks at me. The Florlic's eyes glow a soft green in the darkness, reflecting the small amount of light coming from the blue-green fire.

"Rouge Child." The words come from the darkness. The Florlics sit up and whine.

I turn my head. He's a tall man, and I recognize him. And the pattern decorating his arm. It's not a common thing to have the largest pattern on your arm. He is a person of high rank; my false name doesn't really matter.

But then again, he's always hated me. He'd probably prefer to use my new name. Rouge Child. It fits.

He smiles, and I see what's in his hand. An empathic eliminator. It makes a person invisible to Florlics, eliminating their empathic abilities for the person holding it.

It's also illegal in every civilized city.

But then again, they never have been very… civilized.

He sighs and sits down next to me. My Florlics whine, unused to being without their empathic abilities. \

"I was out searching for Predators." He says. He is allowed to speak to me, being of high rank. But he can not help me. I wouldn't expect him to. "I didn't expect to find you."

I say nothing. I don't want to talk to this man. I have no reason to.

He looks at me. "I didn't particularly want to make the decision, Rouge Child. But it had to be made."

"You did want it." I hiss. "Everyone wanted it."

He shakes his head slowly. "No… Not everyone." His eyes lock on mine. "Sam wants you to know he's sorry. But he can't tell you himself."

The name of my brother brings the old wound to the surface, and I blink back tears. I will not let this man see me cry. I will not be weak in front of him.

He looks at me for a long moment, then stands up. "It is good to see that you are managing well. I'll tell the others, shall I?"

I swallow and nod slowly. He turns around and starts to walk away.

"Tell Sam." I say, and he turns to face me. "Tell Sam I don't forgive him." My eyes lock on his. "Tell him I will never forgive him."

He nods slowly, then disappears into the darkness.

The Guard whimpers and lays his head on my knee. Not for the first time, I wish the person who helped me choose him was here. She would know what to do. She always did.

The old song comes to my mind, one I've known for as long as I can remember. It seems appropriate. I can hear my own voice, sounding out the tune. Out here, there is no sound more haunting, lonelier then the sound of someone singing.

"When summer days,

And skies of blue,

Give away their shine.

When time itself will hold its breath,

And the world will fall down.

When darkness comes, and flames of green,

Will dance upon the land.

Then you will know, then you will see.

My hour is at hand.

The world will fall, the sky will break,

But I'll still be there for you.

When the skies have fallen,

When the world has cracked in two,

You'll look to your left, you'll look to your right.

And I'll be there with you.

But when the crowd has had enough,

And spits its hate at you,

Then I will fall,

Then I will flee,

And then I will leave you.

For I can face the falling world.

I can face the burning flame.

But what I can't face, and never will,

Is the horror of the pain.

I can not help you against the crowd,

When everyone hates you.

I can not say a gentle word,

For fear they will hate me too.

I will run, and I will hide,

And I won't face you.

Because it's the crowd, the horrible crowd,

The people that hate you.

I can face ocean and burning flame,

I can face the end of time itself.

But what I can never face, is what I've done to you."

I take a deep breath. The tears can not be stopped as they pour down my face. I'm scared. I'm so scared.

But more then that. I'm furious. I'm hurt.

And it's all because of Sam.

And I make my decision. I won't be scared. I won't be sad.

I pick up everything. The Florlics growl, surprised by my chance in mood. But they will follow me. They always do.

And then I run. I've never run faster. The area around me is a blur. And I know where I'm going.

I'm going to find my brother.


When I reach the walls, I climb them quickly. They're built to keep Predators out. Not people.

I search and search until I find the house I know to be his. I walk up to it, and open the door.

He's lying there, asleep. I walk over to him, and shake him awake. I'm his sister. I can do that.

He wakes up, and sees my face. He backs against the wall. His eyes are wide.

"Rouge Child!" He breathes. "You're not supposed to be here."

I roll my eyes. "I'm not supposed to do a lot of things, Sam. I'm not supposed to scream like crazy and wake everyone up and make them think you're keeping me here against every rule." I glare at him. "But I'm going to."

Sam's eyes go huge. "Rouge… No!" He whispers, shortening my name. "Please!"

My eyes narrow. "I won't." I look at him, disgusted. "But only because I have a promise to keep."

He looks relieved. "Thank you." He looks at me. "Rouge… About what happened…"

I look at him, waiting for him to continue. This should be good.

"I'm so sorry! Please! I'll do anything to prove it…"

"You just did." I snarl, interrupting him. "You proved to me everything I needed to know." I bend down on one knee so that I'm at eye level with him. "And that is why I don't forgive you, Sam. Because, even now, you choose this city over me." I can't disguise the fury in my voice. Nor can I hide the pain that's seeping through me, controlling everything I am.

"Rouge…" He looks at me. "Please. I'm really sorry. I'd do anything…"

"Really?" I ask. "Then come with me."

He looks at me, his eyes wide.

"Come with me!" I demand. "Become like me. An outcast."

"Rouge… I can't do that…"

"Exactly." I spit out the words. "Because you don't care. You didn't care then, and you don't care now. And that's why, Sam. That's why I will never forgive you." I glare at him. "Never."

He looks at me, but says nothing as I leave, running out of the house in a blur. The tears won't stop now. I can't restrain them. They flow down my cheeks in their own personal waterfall.

I have nothing left. My own brother has betrayed me.


It was three in the morning when Anomaly woke up, screaming.

Tears streaked down her face. "Sam…" She breathed. "Oh…Sam…"