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modMARS
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Jun 6 2008, 06:10 PM
Post #1
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Unregistered
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[size=7]Where can you go when you've been EXILED?[/size]
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“2137,” He stated it simply – as if that was what had really happened. As if it explained everything. It didn’t. Somehow, he knew my emotions as he stared intently back at me for a pause in time, and then he tore his gaze away to look behind me. “It happened when I was 14. I- I didn’t know what was happening, really. I went through everything in a sort of oblivious daze. I simply thought that I hadn’t been affected – it wasn’t important to anyone. Oh, Thanos, how stupid I was. So young, so much to live for – I-I regret everything then.” He was getting off track, but I knew this moment of anguish. It happened every time. Every time we spoke of the Wave. His eyes held so much raw pain I had to glance away, just for a second, just like I did every time. It was a broken record, this conversation. “Scientists in some country – I don’t know where to put the blame, honest, tried to make the human race more powerful. Extremely power. I don’t get why, actually. We were at the top of the food chain, right then. And even though we didn’t have the flying cars like we wanted, I didn’t mind. The times, as far as I was told, never really changed so much. There was always an air of disappointment about it, too. But we were so selfish back then – we wanted our dreams to come true. It was never like that.” He was always like this – being so hazy and around the edges. At first it frustrated me when I spoke to him, but now it didn’t. I had heard the story too many times – I knew it by heart. Plus, I could feel the emotions he felt at the time – he was a great storyteller.
His wrinkled face broke into a grin, but it never lit up to his eyes. He was always trying to comfort me, but never himself; it made me fill with guilt. “I was sitting on the couch, playing some jenkingly game – what they use to call video games – when my mother ran into the house. She was in hysterics – switching between muttering, sobbing, and screaming. I turned away from my game to watch her as she tried to stuff things into random bags. I recall asking her where we were going, but she looked me right in the eye and said ‘No, not we. You and your siblings. We are all going to die – but you… you and your siblings are going to be taken away. They say there’s a chance for the young ones.’ And before I had time to react she was calling the family down.” He sighed, pressing his withered hands at his temples. It was painful, and I appreciated him talking about it. Just once more, I had begged him.
“The Government of the United States said they could do something about this .. this disease, they called it. It wasn’t cureable, but they thought they could save the people with healthy bodies. I’ll always regret leaving my weak brother, my mother, my older father as me and my sister left them, to be hauled onto a bus. We were sent to Kentucky – I wasn’t sure why. But I remember being fed this nasty food. My little sister threw it up after eating it. I held it in. It must have been important, because months later when we were accidentally introduced to the disease, she died, I lived.” Another painful pause; I waited patiently for him to continue. “Later on they told us they had named the disease. Obviously, they knew it was going to be around if they named it. They called it Thanos, and .. and it changed life – forever.” A nod here, like usual. He was agreeing with himself.
“Thanos wasn’t just a simple sneeze and you fell over dead – it destroyed your body for it’s liking. Unfortunately, it was highly contagious. First, wherever you had had any contact with it, the skin around that area would slowly flake away – and then take the whole body with it. Usually, people came in contact from the mere air – thus their pain wasn’t as long, but greater as it tore away their insides,” His brow furrowed as he struggled to empathize with it. He couldn’t, though. “I remember when I was in the underground hospital room, awaiting whatever information I could. The nurse came in, as usual and gave me my medication via IV. I asked what was going on outside and she looked at me for a few minutes it silence before sitting on the edge of my bed and looking dead at me. ‘I think everyone is dead.’ She stated it simply – yet she was confused, too, she didn’t know. And it was then I knew I had to get out of there.”
Mischievously, he smiled at me. I couldn’t help my lips as they curled into a smile as well. “It actually wasn’t that hard, to be honest, I just stole a lab coat and acted as if I knew what I was doing. Everyone was too absorbed in themselves, I can’t blame them, really. But what I couldn’t prepare myself for was the scene outside the underground systems. The smell of decay hit me before I heard it, and saw it. The smell was absolutely miserable – my eyes teared up, and I had to gag at the even thought. What I heard still haunts me, and I suspect it will always do so. There was .. screaming. Screams of pain, anguish. Not just of themselves dying – of the people dying around them that they were forced into watching. Forced, I must say. The sight wasn’t a ball of chips either – Everything about that day haunts me. The area was barren – not touch of green anywhere. It was a desert wasteland. There were shacks instead of houses, and to me – one of the greatest countries, the United States, was suddenly thrown into a third world country. I later learned that all effort was to keep the people underground and no attention was given to those above ground.”
He sighed, pausing for a moment before looking at me with apologetic eyes. “I haven’t explained what the disease did, forgive me.” I nodded my head in response, not really trusting me self to speak. “It changed forms – thus why it was uncureable. With some people, the body was so afraid of it that their memory was wiped clean. Most of the people died. There bodies were too weak to handle it – or so it seemed. Actually, each disease strain was different than the next – and thus, different results. Some stayed dead, others rose from their own graves. They use to call them .. vampires, werewolves, and .. mutants, I believe. Those have no meaning now but to themselves class wise. Now they are only spoken to as if they are dead to society – a vial nickname was given to them. Nonhumans. It doesn’t sound that hurtful but imagine growing up in such a world that if you were born a certain way you were spat at, given no rights. It happened hundreds of years ago, and I suppose its just history repeating itself.” He glanced at me then, another sad smile on his lips. “I’m sorry, I keep forgetting you are not of the human race. As am I. What an odd pair we make.” I laughed at that, lightly and trying to lighten the mood. Sometimes I forgot myself – only the small curve of my teeth against my lips was a reminder. Bloodlust was pushed away now.
“In a nutshell, that’s what happened. The Governments was so scared of what was happening they pushed everyone out of numerous countries and told them they were useless, worthless creatures. Most of the countries didn’t actually ban being nonhuman, they just stripped nonhumans from their rights as a citizen.” He sighed, as if remembering a revalating moment. He had, I knew it. “It was then when me and a close friend of mine, Yakio were running from some police we thought of it. We thought ‘There had to be a place where we can go and no one cared what we were. Maybe there could even be more of us – our own country.’” A grin flashed along his wrinkled face. “We did it, although when I say we – I mean Yakio did it in spirit, you know? He wasn’t there but I knew it was in some way. The school was the first thing we built in Blackwater – well, it wasn’t suppose to be a school but it turned into one. At first, it was suppose to be a safe house for all the nonhumans. But slowly a town evolved around it and then it turned into a school. The town was amazing at how fast it grew. “ He smiled again, before patting my hand, which was resting on his armrest as normal. “Come, Hue, we have to make sure dinner is getting ready as planned.”
We stood, and it was the last time I would see him. There was a large thud of footsteps, and before we had time to react the door smashed open. For a second I was blinded by the splinters of wood. Voices were yelling, and I was in full vampire mod in an instant. I crouched infront of Flamme, the founder of our great rising nation, in a protective stance. I hissed, full and loud as humans rushed into the room – wearing all black and holding guns. I wanted to laugh, but didn’t. Thank Thanos I didn’t because all of a sudden there was an ear splitting sound of gunfire, and it all collided with me – the obstacle. My body pitched forward, eyes wide and trying to heal as fast as I could. I heard Flamme’s voice above my moans. “Leave the girl alone. I know it’s me you want – she’s doing what she thinks is best. Do not kill her.” The humans didn’t know I wasn’t human, so they thought whatever they had done worked. I wanted to jump after them, tell them they were wrong and not to take Flamme. But my body willed not – I was frozen in time, too many wounds to heal so quickly.
Days after, as I was healing and the town was in panic I heard of a person – a person I had no clue who – who had reached an agreement with the town. We were going to fight back. I sighed, letting my head rest against the pillows as I stared at the ceiling for awhile. I was prepared to fight – to get Flamme back. He was more of a father than any blood connection could show. But even I was scared – the future held no hope nor comfort in what was going to happen. But maybe .. perhaps maybe the nonhumans could win. We would win. We were winning.
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7:55 AM Nov 26
