AB: I love how even when I need to take care of myself, I find myself back with my writing, both fanfictions and original works. I seem able to escape neither the clutches of reality nor the hold of fiction. (Is about to start a long soliloquy)
Dr. Beeman: (Walks in, interrupting AB's unstarted soliloquy) Have you figured out an answer to the question I asked you last chapter?
AB: (Sighs) Yes, I have. I wasn't celebrating your victory because it wasn't difficult to let you win. It was a struggle to keep Iris quiet, even if she was doing so on her own terms.
Dr. Beeman: Or, you are rooting for the Saturdays.
AB: No, I'm not. I'm the author, I don't get to pick sides. However, I do have favorites.
Dr. Beeman: AB, you're not supposed to pick favorites. It makes you biased.
AB: I am not biased; I have different favorites for different roles. One of my favorites for protagonist is already dead, and the other one, at the rate the story's headed, will be gone soon. Besides, my favorites will change as the story goes on; you're in the running for a favorite later on.
Dr. Beeman: I doubt that.
AB: Whatever. I'm really sorry if the last two chapters have been awful; not to burst anyone's bubble, but this one will probably be awful too. I've been a wreck, and so has my writing. To the guest who suggested the chapter with the song lyrics, voici (here). I'll bold the lyrics so you can tell where they are. FYI: this chapter hints at the reason I rated this story T. "Better safe than sorry" was my entire thought process for this whole chapter. Disclaimer: The Secret Saturdays belongs to Jay Stephens and Cartoon Network. Also, I do not own the rights to the Goo Goo Dolls' song "Iris." It's early, but here's Chapter 8: World of Impossible
(3rd Person POV)
The Great Serpent felt ill the next day, so he stayed in his chambers all day.
"Agrata. My dear Agrata, I'd fight any war to sssee you, "And I'd give up forever to touch you. 'Caussse you're the closssest to Heaven that I'll ever be . . ." now that I'm condemned to rule the Underworld. "And I don't want to go home right now." The Great Serpent finally left his chambers to find something to eat. He found something, but he took only a bite. "And all I can tassste is this moment. And all I can breathe is your life."
The same god who had come to visit the Great Serpent before suddenly returned. The god laughed at the Great Serpent's condition and told him he deserved it. Then the god told the Great Serpent it was time he made his way to the Underworld. But the Great Serpent refused. He told the god that it was not fair that he was forced the rule the Underworld when there were plenty of gods that would be more than happy to take his place. The god growled at the Great Serpent and told him to wait there until he came back; then the god vanished.
The Great Serpent felt dizzy all of a sudden, so he went to lie down again. He fell asleep and started dreaming. But his dreams were not one of Agrata. No, these were dreams about Gulama and his newfound, undying passion for her. The Great Serpent called out to her both in his dream and in his sleep. Gulama was telling him that his power would soon end.
To that the Great Serpent replied, "When sssooner or later it'sss over, I jussst don't want to misss you tonight." The sound of bells and other chimes woke the Great Serpent from his sleep. He opened his eyes and saw five messengers, all human females in burgundy midriffs, pants, and flowing skirts, standing in the center of his chambers.
"Are you the Great Serpent?" A tall blonde one asked, her hair tied back in a sleek ponytail. The Great Serpent nodded, astonished.
"The Gods of Sumer send us. They request that you please make haste to the Underworld. They say that you will find a surprise there." Another one said. The other three messengers stood silently.
"Tell them I sssaid no. The journey takesss me around the world until I reach the deepessst dessscent. "And I don't want the world to sssee me becaussse I don't think that they'd underssstand."" The Great Serpent turned his back to the messengers.
"Your Greatness," the youngest of the messengers spoke, "the balance between the living and the dead will be broken if the departed do not have a powerful figure to control them. The Gods chose you for that reason and not the other Gods who wanted the position." The youngest paused. "Your Greatness, I know the pain you feel is immense, I do."
"Kash," the eldest, and the first one to speak, warned.
"No. Your Greatness, please Agrata may not remember what she felt for you, but you know Gulama will never forget you. Nor will you forget her."
"Just like Gulama told me before ssshe left lassst night. ""When everything'sss made to be broken, I jussst want you to know who I am."" The Great Serpent smiled, love stricken by the thought of Gulama. No one knew it was only the potion Gulama had given the Great Serpent that was doing its job. Nor did anyone notice the Kash, the youngest messenger, knew these facts. "I'll go, but only if Gulama will join me there, alive."
"As you wish," all five of the messengers said as they vanished. The Great Serpent then began preparing to make his journey. But he knew something was off; he felt very different from his usual self. Hoping he was simply falling ill, the Great Serpent went to lie down in his chambers and sleep the illness away. He took no notice that his scales were changing color from purest white to deepest brown-orange.
(Dr. Grey's POV)
I wake after a difficult night's sleep only to discover I am nauseous and that my right arm in completely numb. I almost start to panic; it's my worst nightmare come true. I try to move my arm, and, much to my relief, it moves. I exhale gratefully. Then I notice Iris sitting to my left, wide awake and curled up in ball. There's so much I want to tell her, but I know I can't. There's a heavy weight on my right arm, I now realize. It feels like Abbey's leaning against it. I look over, and sure enough, she is. A smile finds its way onto my face. I haven't been this physically close to Abbey in years, not since I was twelve and she was ten.
I gently pull my right arm from behind my sister and move it a little to get the blood flowing again. The pins-and-needles feeling comes and makes it painful to put pressure on my arm, but I crawl over to Iris anyways. We sit there in total silence for a few minutes. I don't want to interrupt her thoughts. She starts talking out loud.
"Je suis trés stupide. (I'm so stupid.)"
"No, Iris, you're not."
"Si, je suis. (Yes, I am.)"
"Iris, listen to me. This was bound to happen no matter what. Dr. Beeman just isn't the kind of person to just let something take away his 'victory' and move on," I explain. Iris squeezes her knees in tighter to her chest. She starts blinking rapidly, as if she's fighting tears. ""You can't fight the tears that ain't coming, or the moment of truth in your lies."" Iris looks at me in childlike shock. "Iris, you keep lying to yourself, and that needs to stop." Abbey starts to stir, so I crawl back over to her. She wakes up slowly. Once she's fully awake, Abbey expresses her desire to get her hands on Arthur and kill him. Same old Abbey.
I look over to the Saturdays as Iris tries in vain to heal them. I know she has some kind of power, but I wonder why it isn't working. She finally throws in the towel and calls it quits, not that I can blame her or anything. But she's more patience than I've, that's for sure. Iris makes her way back over to my side and curls up in that familiar ball shape. She rocks slightly and sings the lyrics to a song that seems so familiar. If only I knew that much French.
". . . chacun est une pierre, mais vous n'êtes pas seul (every one is a stone, but you're not alone). . ." Her meek voice sounds so perfect with the tone of the song, even if her pitch is off, not that I have much room to talk. Iris keeps singing so softly that I can't make out the words. But it's completely fine. Abbey doesn't say anything about it either. All three of us just sit in silence after Iris stops singing. The darkness of the room and the situation we're in has that effect on us. It seems almost calming.
A few hours later, the heavy metal door screeches to a barely open position, and Paul walks in. He looks at me, the light from corridor shadowing his face just enough to make him look sinister. There's a coldness to his face, a hardness to his actions. Paul sets something down on the floor and steps out before any of us has the idea to bolt. It locks, but a few minutes later, Arthur comes in. Abbey's whole body tenses as the fight instinct kicks in. I have to restrain her. Abbey, Iris, and I watch helplessly as Arthur injects each of the Saturdays with something I pray isn't poison. After he's done, Arthur saunters over my way, grabs my left arm, and yanks me to my feet. Not this again. Anything but this. I fight back against Arthur, but I trip; he takes advantage of this. I'm not clear on how he does it, but Arthur somehow forces me from the room, into the hallway, and into my room. He lets me go, and I instinctively prepare to fight. There's no way, my guard is going down now. I face Arthur, who seems so cocksure in his abilities. I watch as he signs something. I spin around and spy David. I dodge him quickly, and start fighting him. He looks me in the eyes, and I see the reason I fell for him back in college all over again: he reminds me of Derek.
"David." I'm facing him, meaning my back is to Arthur. "David, you don't have to do this," I mutter. Someone's hands grab my neck from behind. Or at least they try to, but the steel strip I have sewn into my collar prevents them from doing so. I feel their fingers move up my neck to the place where my collar stops. It all happens so fast, I don't have time to force the person off. The person's fingers press harshly on my neck. I've ten seconds before I black out. I kick and headbutt as much as I can, but the pressure intensifies. I lose control and black out.
"For my eighteenth birthday seven months past, Father and Derek paid for me to have a surgery to repair my right arm." I write the sentence in my diary. "It's now in a sling, and I am on my way to California for a summer internship with family friend Dr. Steve Baloen." I smile to myself. I miss Dr. Baloen so much and can't wait to see him.
The plane lands a few hours later, and I hurry off. I'm so anxious to spend the summer doing what I love. In my haste, I bump into a young man with graying black hair and pink glasses. He's reading a book on space. I apologize and keep moving, but I drop one of my science books on the ground. The young man bends down, picks it up, and calls to me. I walk back over to him, struggling with all my luggage and the use of only one arm. He slides the book into my sling, but he places it in a place that doesn't hurt. I thank him, and turn to leave; the transport Dr. Baloen arranged has arrived.
"I'm Arthur," he calls as I rush off.
I turn around to face him before walking out the door. "Miranda," I call my name out to Arthur.
I meet with the driver, and he helps me get into the car and puts my luggage in the back. I ask how long he's known Dr. Baloen, and the driver answers thirty-three years. We talk for the duration of the hour drive, until we pull up in the research station; Dr. Baloen races out to greet me. He hugs me and asks about my arm. I tell him the story.
Several weeks later, I'm finishing up some work in Dr. Baloen's lab late at night. I've just stepped out of the room and turned off all the lights, when I hear a loud clanging. I open the door and flick the lights back on and look around, but I see nothing. I double check everything and go back to the lightswitch by the door.. I hear the clanging again, only this time louder. I look around once more, and find nothing. This pattern continues several times before I finally find something in the lab two rooms over. I see Abbey in there, but she's not awake; I begin to question my hold on reality. A pair of hands grabs my neck suddenly . . .
I wake up in my room at Arthur's lab, sunlight streaming in through the window and feeling nauseous. Then I notice how cold I am; I'm not in the bed, nor am I dressed. I see my clothes, washed and neatly folded, on the bedside table. I wrap myself in a blanket I grab off the bed and grab my clothes. A note falls to the ground. "With love, Arthur." My eyes widen, my heart pounding. NO! NO! NO! NOT AGAIN! This cannot be reality! This feels surreal, it feels like a movie! I race to get dressed, but in my hurry, I scrape my ankle on the bed. It starts to bleed. "When everything feels like the movies, yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive."
(Iris's POV)
I watch as Ms. Grey drives herself to the point of insanity many times. She screams at the door, at the wall, at the Saturdays, and at me in multiple intervals. I try not to notice. I seem to be doing pretty well at it.
The door swings open, and it's Dr. Beeman again. Ms. Grey about goes bizzerk, so I try to restrain her before she hurts herself. It doesn't work at all. She starts ranting to him about everything, using a rainbow of words. Dr. Beeman just blows her off and keeps doing whatever it is he's doing. I've noticed that Ms. Grey and I have the ability to stop Dr. Beeman, but neither of us has the willpower or the strength to do so.
Dr. Beeman leaves, and I go back to the Saturdays. They keep getting worse, and Mister Zak is the closest to death out of all of them. I keep trying to heal him, but something's blocking my powers. I can't get them to go through, even without the gloves. But I keep trying. I know it won't work, but with each failed attempt, I hope that the next will work. I suppose I keep trying because I belong to them, and because it's my duty. But I can't say for sure.
Ms. Grey attempts to figure out how long we've been here, but it's no use. It doesn't change the situation one bit. Ms. Grey curses her broken phone and Dr. Beeman. I just stay out of her way as best as I can. It's easier said than done, considering the size of the room.
"I wonder who's next," Ms. Grey says.
"Pardon? (Pardon?)" I ask.
"Think about it, Iris. First the Saturdays, now Miranda. Which of us is next?"
"Je ne sais pas, Mademoiselle. (I don't know, Miss.)" We stop talking for a long time after that. I have a feeling, that Ms. Grey hopes I'm next.
Dr. Beeman comes back in intervals throughout the day (or night, there's no way to tell). Each time, he does something to the Saturdays, but he does so from the doorway; there's no way we could escape. D'ailleurs, j'ai besoin de rester avec les Saturdays. (Besides, I need to stay with the Saturdays.) After a while, Ms. Grey becomes tired, as do I, so we decide to rest for just a moment or two. We end up sleeping the equivalent of one night.
When we wake up, Dr. Beeman is in the room. Ms. Grey lifts an eyebrow and indicates that she's going to pounce. I don't know whether to discourage this rash act or to bite my tongue as I was thought to do. Ms. Grey acts quickly, but Dr. Beeman suspected something. He turns around as Ms. Grey is about to attack and stabs her in side. She falls to ground in pain. Au moins, elle est encore en vie. (At least she's still alive.) Her blood starts to pool. I feel my legs take me over to the door very quietly.
"Que voulez-vous de moi? Que puis-je vous qui vous fera repens donner? Que va faire vous laissez moi à les sauver? (What do you want from me? What can I give you that will make you relent? What will make you let me save them?)" I cry. The tears are heavy on my face.
"Nothing will stop me. Even after I take what I want, I will never finish. Stupid girl, it's impossible for you to save them when you can't even save yourself. Your powers working is impossible. This a world of impossible, and it's high time you learned so." Dr. Beeman turns to leave.
"Prenez-les. (Take them)."
"Excuse me?"
"Mes pouvoirs, prenez-les. Je ne veux pas eux après tout le mal qu'ils ont causé. (My powers, take them. I don't want them after all the trouble they've caused.)"
"With pleasure." Then Dr. Beeman grabs my wrist and starts dragging me out of the room and into the hallway. I feel something in my left arm start popping and shooting pain up it. I try pulling back, but the pain gets worse. I just start walking behind Dr. Beeman, accepting my fate. Something makes noise behind me, but I don't bother to look. The sound of heels clicking on the tile floor gets louder and faster. I close my eyes and pray that this is over soon.
"Arthur." Je sais cette voix! C'est Dr Grey! (I know that voice! It's Dr. Grey!)
"How'd you escape?"
"It's not hard to escape anything when your captor leaves your matter transporter, the one he stole upon your initial capture, lying under on the closet shelf." Dr. Grey smirks as Dr. Beeman swears.
"I suppose you're going to try to be the hero you weren't when your brother died, aren't you?"
"For once, you've guessed something correctly." Dr. Grey's voice sounds confident and assured, but her eyes betray her and reveal the pain she harbors from her brother's death. Attendez, son frère? Dr Grey avait un frère? (Wait, her brother? Dr. Grey had a brother?) The two scientists have a short-lived standoff before Dr. Grey makes the first move. Dr. Beeman throws me against the wall, and I scoot out of the way. I don't know how long it takes, but Dr. Grey soon has Dr. Beeman's throat. "Now you know how it feels, but unlike you, I'll make sure you never wake from it."
"But, Miranda, you don't have the guts to kill," Dr. Beeman chokes out. Dr. Grey draws her hand back. Dr. Beeman collapses on the ground.
"Let's go, Iris," Dr. Grey commands; I stand as she makes a portal. Then I realize I know that portal too.
"Vous m'avez sauvé il ya trois semaines. (You saved me three weeks ago.)"
"Yes. Now let's go." We step through the portal and find ourselves back in the room. Dr. Grey gasps when she sees Ms. Grey, deathly pale and lying in her own blood. "Abbey!" Dr. Grey cries as she holds Ms. Grey's head in her hands. "Abbey. Not you too. Please, Dear God, do not take Abbey too." The door swings open; it's Dr. Beeman. Dr. Grey motions for me to take Ms. Grey's head. I lift it and try in vain to heal her, but nothing works. I blink back tears. S'il vous plaît ne pas mourir, Mlle Grey. (Please don't die, Ms. Grey.) I watch as her breathing slows until it almost stops. Ms. Grey suddenly become heavy.
Dr. Grey pulls a pocketknife, and flips it open. She holds it just beside her left leg and approaches Dr. Beeman.
"Who said I don't have the guts to kill?" She asks snarkily. "Oh wait, you did." Then Dr. Grey stabs Dr. Beeman in the thigh and pulls the knife out. Dr. Beeman keels over in pain and starts gasping.
"Miranda, please. I'm sorry."
"It's too late." Dr. Grey watches as large quantities of Dr. Beeman's blood spill out. She's smiling powerfully, but her eyes convey sadness and terror. She knows she's no better than the man bleeding to death before her. Dr. Grey turns away from the dying man.
"Miranda, if you save me, I'll make a truce."
"For how long?"
"How ever long you need."
Dr. Grey looks to me; I nod, while holding Ms. Grey's head. "Two months," Dr. Grey replies. Then she nods to me, and I race over to Dr. Beeman. I heal him successfully, and he walks out of the room as if he were never injured. Dr. Grey kneels next to her sister and cries. "What have I done? Why is loving the enemy so impossible? Why is this world so impossible?"
AB: Well, that was, um … violent. Thank you for nothing, Dr. Beeman. This is what I get for letting you drive this chapter, isn't? Hey, where'd everybody go? (Looks around and sees no one.) Great, now I'm alone all over again. I figure I'll go ahead and tell you all this, but I did not finish Dr. Grey's worst memory; I did so on purpose. I'm not going to tell you why, though. That's something you'll figure out later. I'm also not going to say why Dr. Grey asked for two months or what Abbey's fate is. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, even if it was a lot darker and more violent than usual. And to the guest with the lyrics suggestion, I know it's different, but what did you think? Please, if you like this fanfiction, tell your friends who know about The Secret Saturdays; I want to know if people are having a good time reading this and if they would enjoy a sequel. Two more quick notes: 1) my friend actually helped me write the song Iris sings, and 2) if you ever have any questions for me or the characters, feel free to ask. Don't forget to review, follow, and favorite! Love you all!