Doc code 1278803-4576b

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Entry 16-

It has been a long and grueling day, fraught with confusion and mental anguish. It began innocently enough, but quickly descended into a hell of madness and confusion, pain and disbelief. My mind is still reeling from revelations that I had not forseen. I do not know what to think. I wish I did not have to think. There is so much I do not understand right now.

But I should start at the beginning.

The day began with Arno and I dragging Thaal out of bed and coaching him tirelessly on what to say and do as he has a tendency to not listen when you tell him something the first time. Or the second time. Or third time.

Once that was through, Arno and I helped him put on the costume, and then promptly had him take half of it off again and shove it in a bag because it was too conspicuous. We decided he could put it on once he was waiting to audition, but wearing it to auditions would probably not go over too well.

I gave Arno directions (he was going to help Thaal get there as Thaal has absolutely no sense of direction), and the two of them departed, with myself listening in over the comlink and watching a live video feed from an eye-cam that Thaal was wearing.I sat on my hotel bed, knees tucked up to my chest, chin resting atop them.

Arno carried Thaal's bag for him out of courtesy. Thaal complained about the skintight aspect of AMESS. He also made cracks about it being "a mess". I dismissed his concerns as invalid, as acronyms don't require a meaning beyond the words contained in its lengthy form. Arno thought the acronym should be pronounced "Amos", and promptly conscribed anthropomorphic qualities to my invention. I listened along, ignoring Thaal and reminding Arno that the suit was not alive, and therefore could not be insulted by anything Thaal might call it.

Once Thaal arrived, Arno departed as Thaal marveled at the masses who had gathered from all across the United Planets to Audition. He also marveled at how much "junk" he had to wear for the suit to be fully functional. He also claimed it chafed. I knew full well from a week of field testing that it did no such thing. I believe he was simply trying to bother me. Or perhaps he is claustrophobic and did not appreciate wearing a helmet for extended periods of time.

Eventually, Thaal began conversations with the people waiting nearby. He introduced himself to Katal-Jin, an Empath and dream-walker from the planet Taltaro. Katal-Jin seemed pleasant. His abilities allowed him to sense the motivations of others and use that knowledge to find them in their dreams. Unlike Saturn Girl, he couldn't read minds. But unlike Saturn Girl, he claimed to be able to walk through people's dreams. He did not leave any traces, but he claimed he could influence the thoughts and ideas of people through subtle hints in their dreams.

Thaal commented that he didn't see how that power would help unless you knew about a crime before it happened, which Katal-Jin conceded.

"But I can also dream-walk when a person is awake. Dreams are never truly gone; they are dormant."

"So you're sure it's not the same as telepathy?" Thaal prompted.

"Titanians don't seem to think it is," Katal-Jin said, shrugging. "I consider them the experts."

Thaal shrugged. "Well, good luck to you."

Katal-Jin grinned. "Thanks. So what about you?"

"Me?" Thaal asked.

"What's your power?"

Thaal sighed. "The suit. Duh."

Katal-Jin frowned. "I don't understand."

"It's a mess."

Katal-Jin appeared confused as he pondered this. "Why is it a mess?"

"No, that's an acronym. It stands for…"

I could imagine the contorted face of Thaal as he attempted to remember. I decided to do him a favor and prompted, "Adaptive…"

"Adaptive Mile-fible Enhancing Systematic System," Thaal told him. I resisted the urge to hit my head on something hard. "Basically it makes my muscles strong without snapping my bones. Oh and also I have a force-field belt thingy. And a jetpack."

Katal-Jin leaned forward, moving back behind Thaal. "I don't see a jetpack," he said, voice muffled due to the lack of proximity with the microphone and camera.

"It's back there," Thaal said, reaching back and tapping the small device. "This."

Katal-Jin came back around front, his face shocked. "How? It's so tiny!"

"Powered by bio-energy," Thaal said.

At least he'd gotten that bit right. The two continued to talk for some time, until Katal-Jin's name was called by Matter-Eater Lad. Thaal wished him luck, saying that he fully expected to see "Dream Walker" in the Legion someday.

Katal-Jin thanked him as he jogged towards the doors.

Thaal sighed, shuffling around for about five minutes. "I'm sick of waiting. How long does this whole Audition thing take?"

"All day," I told him. "Stop whining."

"But I'm hungry!" Thaal moaned.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "You will not die of starvation in the next few hours. Be patient."

"Being patient is for whimps," Thaal muttered.

I rolled my eyes at that. "Apparently espionage would be categorized as a 'whimpy' pastime by you, then?"

"Huh?" Thaal said, sounding confused. "I never said that."

"Yes you did, if you take your comment to its logical conclusion, you'll see that-" I cut myself off, hearing the name "Syll Xinn" called.

"You see? I'm right!" Thaal crowed.

"That was your name they just called, idiot," I hissed. "Get in there before they think something's up!"

Thaal practically tripped over himself (and several unfortunate souls between him and the entrance) getting to the entrance. "I'm Syll Xinn," he told Chameleon Boy.

Chameleon Boy's eyes twinkled. "Nice suit," he said appreciatively, poking one of the lasers.

"I know, right?" Thaal said boastfully, watching Cham prod the laser a bit more forcefully. "It's my baby."

I strangled the air. What part of touching the "business end" of a weapon seemed like a good idea to that idiotic Durlan? Friend though he may have been, I could have smacked him. "Thaal, don't let Chameleon Boy touch the laser!" I snapped.

"Uh, that's a laser," Thaal told him. "Careful."

Cham yanked his hand back, chuckling sheepishly. "Oh… sorry 'bout that," he apologized.

"It's okay, just wouldn't want you to get hurt. It'd be a pretty terrible first impression," Thaal joked.

"Well, come on in," Cham said, leading the way.

As Thaal walked into the arena, my chest tightened.

My chest is still tight now, though currently, it is less my chest and more my stomach that seems to be a problem. I have not yet eaten today, and despite feeling ill, Thaal has just arrived with a variety of foods and is shouting for me to show myself. I do not wish to be accused of journaling should he discover me. I will return to this at a later time… after I have acquired sustenance.

I do not wish to eat. But I will, because I must. I do not think I will enjoy it.

A/N: Oh gosh I can't wait. I'm too excited about these chapters to wait. not sure if you readers will love me or hate me for this, but I'm posting a second time in the SAME DAY. ... ...yeah. Can I hear you say "inconsistent"?

...well it's true. Anyway. Thanks for reading! shout-out to The Violet Rose and Stormgirl415 for reviewing on the last chapter before I managed to break resolve and post this one too! hope you get a chance to see this one quickly also!

And to all my readers, thanks for sticking with me. I'm super excited about the next few chapters. Stay tuned!