Monique

Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck FUCK. Why? How did she find me that fucking fast? Fuck her and fuck her range on telepathy. She saw as Lee steadily rose up from his seat and looked outside the second story window.

Lee: Who is that?

Monique got up to do a double take and saw her.

Monique: It’s Angelica.

She panicked so bad. Monique knew if anyone could find her, it would be Angelica. She was always so perky and ready to do anything for “Father B.” She was intelligent for a fourteen-year-old with pastel pink pigtails. But God was she insane. She’d shoot anything or anyone that got in her way of a job with her tactic shotgun. She didn’t care. As long as she was praised by daddy dearest. Yet, she wasn’t as ambitious as him. Him especially…oh god was he here too?

Angelica: Ohhhh Monique~! I know you’re in there~~! You can’t hide from little old me.

She aimed her guns towards the window. Monique quickly sat back down for cover as Lee started mumbling some string of words.

Angelica: Bullseye. Sorry cutie, you’re in my way!!

She took her shot. And what followed afterwards Monique couldn’t quite remember or figure out. She was anxiously terrified. What was going to happen to her? Split moments splitting apart to smaller fragments. She knew if she tried running, they’d catch her. If she tried fighting it would mean no energy for teleporting and teleporting any large distance away could potentially knock her out, putting her more at risk. There was no going back. She’d rather die with bullets through her chest than return to those walls – those God damned heartless four walls surrounded by tyranny and fear. What do I do? What do I do? What. Do. I. Do?

Lee

As shots fired he glimpsed at a cornered Monique. What was going through her mind? Is she alright? She was so frozen solid, who were these people to her and why was someone who initially showed no fear to him so terrified of them? Right now, none of that mattered as much as their safety. He covered her from harm’s way.

Lee: SHIELD

A thick layer of glass substance covered them. Shots bounced and broke into pieces. Footsteps rushed towards the doorway. The magic dampener faded as the door slammed open.

Danny: What the fuck is going on outside?? Why are there actual children with guns and machetes trying to barge in here?

Monique: Shit. Shit. Shit. Fuck shit fuck.

Danny: What’s she doing here?!

Alexis: Isn’t that the girl they are after?

Monique: Fucking shit I’m so screwed. They’re going to take me away. THEY’RE GOING TO TAKE ME AWAY.

The air around them felt static, imbalanced. Molecules around vibrated at violent speeds. Everything felt out of place, as if the environment was removing them.

Lee: Monique!

He held onto her, attempting so hard to assure her everything was okay. He then darted his eyes at his friends, and somehow, they understood what he needed from them even though they couldn’t understand why. They instinctively flew out the door to the battle that went on outside. Lee then quickly returned his attention to her.

Lee: You’re going to be okay. It’s going to be okay.

Monique

The room was spinning and falling into microscopic pieces. Even his words started melting away. No matter how loud his voice tried reaching out to her, the letters all broke away. She couldn’t hear, couldn’t breathe. Everything kept spinning and breaking. Reality tore down all around –

Lee

Magical circles appeared all around Monique and him. Bit by bit, particle and by particle, they were both disappearing. Is this how she teleports? Or am I just experiencing it first hand? I swore that day she teleported to me, it was like a full body transition. Like how we teleport. But why does it feel like I’m being sucked away? He wanted to ponder and ask so many questions. Regardless of how inappropriate it was. Yet, in that moment, his instincts screamed to hold on. He grasped on tightly to her as they both vanished into a flash of light. As if being engulfed in it.

Moments later, in a dank cave with paintings shining under the full moon, located on the mountain side, the two of them were spat out. They were surrounded by seas and seas of trees underneath a starry night sky. Some wer tall enough to seemingly pierce through the night sky while others were so clumped up together they looked like grassy clouds. They were both far enough away from any kind of civilization to see the milky way.

Monique

Teleporting herself was already draining. Teleporting two people really took it out of her. Her vision blurred. Her body failed her. In one moment, she saw fuzzy signs of that guy. In the next, nothing but darkness.

Lee

Breathing seemed harder than normal. Was teleporting really all this exhausting? It couldn’t be, he’d done it all the time through an application on his phone. For fuck’s sake it’s his job, why does it feel so draining? Was this the old magic once used? Or was this what she could do? Once his lungs finally figured out how to regulate breathing, he scanned around the area, desperately trying to find her.

Lee: Hey. Hey you okay?

He ran to her side, nudging her to see if she’d awaken. She had felt and looked so pale. So lifeless. Her breathing was so quiet and when he checked for a pulse it seemed almost faded. Shit. He checked his pockets. Nothing. No communicator. No health items. Just nothing. What could he do? An anomaly like her shows up out of nowhere, someone who wasn’t even described on the mission he and his friends took and yet, she was knocking on death’s door. Or so it seemed. By some form of weird miracle, light green orbs reminiscent of fireflies materialized, surrounding her. Slowly and gracefully, they spiraled downward towards her body. Like snow sprinkling on her body. Her face regained color. Her breathing regulated as her heartbeat came back to a regular beat. He couldn’t believe the phenomena going on. It was as if she was utilizing the energies all around her to heal herself. A twitch came here and there. He let out a huge sigh of relief as he unzipped his thick black jacket and covered her body.

Lee: I don’t know if you can hear me…but I promise I won’t leave you. I’ll be back.

He ran out to the forest in hopes to secure sources of food and firewood.

Monique

Flickers of fire filled and warmed up the cave room. From head to toe, she felt this comfortable warmth. It was the kind of warmth she didn’t have to use magic or any sort of energy to produce. Her vision started to trickle in as her hearing attuned back to her surroundings. She scanned the area. Searching high and low till finally, she suddenly spotted a pair of blue eyes, those very blue eyes, staring back at her.

Lee: Hey, you’re finally awake.

She quickly sat up, letting the jacket fall down just enough to expose her raggedy shirt filled with holes. Big enough to be noticeable but small enough to still cover the parts she needed covering. Panic had ensued once more.

Lee: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa wait. Just wait.

He quickly rose up.

Lee: It’s okay. From what I can tell we’re pretty far away from the villa. But I honestly don’t know how far. I could only assume far enough from civilization if the milky way is splattered on the sky. But that still doesn’t really give us a good location.

Monique: H-how do you not know?

Lee: Well when you teleported us away…I didn’t have anything on me at the time. No phone, device, nothing. So, I literally don’t know where we are.

Monique: I...wait....I-I dragged you with me?

He nodded. Slowly, yet surely, she noticed him stepping closer and closer to her. Yet she kept her guard up.

Lee: It’s probably why you passed out.

She nodded. She noticed a jacket she didn’t have before. Though it was a tad bit too far from her nose, the aroma that came from it smelled of vanilla and cinnamon. Her favorite scent. How intoxicating.

Lee: You…you looked cold passed out, so I lent you my jacket to keep warm.

Monique: Thanks…uh

Lee: It’s Lee. Lee von Solari. And you’re –

Monique: Monique, obviously.

Lee: Well Monique Obviously, it’s about time we were properly introduced.

He chuckled as he sat closer to her.

Monique: That’s not my last name.

Lee: Well what is it then?

Monique: I…I don’t know.

Lee: You don’t have a last name? Like a family last name?

Monique: Didn’t bother to remember. Nor did I want to keep it.

She stared down, refusing to look Lee in the eye

Lee: If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to.

Monique: I’d assume you’d like to know what kind of trouble you’re around. Speaking from experience, every time I’ve kept my mouth shut about it, people feel as if I’ve betrayed them.

Lee: Well, if you insist.

Monique: My parents sold me when I was six. So there was no point in remembering them, their last name, or tracking them down to live a happy life with them.

Lee: What do you mean?

Her eyes meet his, this time. She scanned him up and down. She knew deep down inside what she’s known since their very first encounter. They’re alike. Whether it's two peas in a pod or two sides of the same coin, she could feel it.

Monique: I can tell you’re not from around here. Like, you don’t belong. Like me.

She saw the panic in his eyes. Hah, how the tables have turned. Before he could ask, she already started to explain.

Monique: You see, the world all around us has this certain wavelength, this pattern, this essence, where everyone else is attuned to but me and you. Like we’re different. Outsiders. Anomalies. Yet, it's somewhat easy to sort of blend in this world since a good number of people here have genetic dispositions that give them powers whether it be super strength, telepathy, or whatever you can imagine. However, I am not like most people. I’m not saying I’m this special snowflake, but I’ve always been different. I can teleport great distances, so far that I’ve been able to go to other places. But I can also manipulate the environment and so far, I’ve never met another who can do that.

Lee: So, because of the latter, your parents didn’t want you?

She stuck her hands in the roaring flames, allowing it to engulf her hands up to her wrists. She observed it for a time and continued talking as if the flames became a part of her.

Monique: Some parents love their little freak of a child. They coddle them. Send them away to places where they can learn how to behave and act like they’re good members of society. Others, like me, have been sold to companies who’d rather use us as weapons for war and mass destruction. I guess I was too much for my parents to handle when my powers started developing. I was too expensive. So they used me as a sort of cash cow so they can live a luxurious life while I suffer every moment of it. I mean I guess it was better than abandonment but…

The flames grew larger, reacting to her emotions. She snapped out of it and immediately extinguished the flames, smothering the fire Lee had started.

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Monique: But yeah, keeping their fucking last name would give me nothing but pain.

Lee

He was both amazed and annoyed how quickly she extinguished both the flames in her hand and the fire that kept the both of them in a lit, warm area. Perhaps she didn’t do that on purpose. Perhaps that was merely because she was just in so much pain talking about a past she managed to survive.

Lee: That’s…sorry to say so blatantly but I’m so sorry that must’ve been rough.

He grabbed a piece of wood from the nearby pile and placed it methodically onto the smothered flames

Lee: Accendo

Sparks of flames reignited.

Lee: So you can see these so called wavelengths off me?

Monique: You and the people you’re with.

He looked surprised.

Monique: Can’t you see them too?

He pondered that question for a while. Yet, the while lasted longer than expected and since it had been more than a while since they’ve last spoken the air between them was a lot more awkward. But how can he ask questions he couldn’t even fathom? Like, how long had she been feeling that way? Were monsters appearing before he and his friends arrived? And if so, why weren’t they told? Why was no one at the Dragon’s Nest aware of a person such as her. They had gotten plenty of cases of people ending up in different parts of the galaxies who didn't belong, yet no one had ever heard of her. Silence accumulated in the cave. He didn’t know what to ask and she didn’t know how to converse. As she looked down, avoiding his eye contact once more, he got up and stretched his legs.

Lee: Well I suppose we’re now at some form of predicament.

Monique: Wh-what do you mean?

Lee: For starters, we’re going to have to wait till daylight to see where we are at. No point in tiring ourselves right now. And I’m quite curious about you Ms. Monique Obviously.

Monique: HEY! That’s not my last name!

She pouted. He laughed.

Lee: Yeah but, you’re not in that sad mood right now.

She blushed.

Monique: D-don’t go trying to flirt with me.

Lee: Heh, I don’t even know if that would be considered flirting however, I do have a proposition for you.

Monique: Yeah? What is it?

Lee: Well, I don’t want to test out how far you can teleport. As in, I don’t want to risk trying to teleport to a different world if I am assuming that what you’ve insinuated is that we’re still in the same world…

Monique: You would assume correctly.

Lee: And since my only way to teleport to anywhere is now with my friends back at the villa, our only chance would be to wait till dawn, see where we are, and rendezvous where I am supposed to be and get you out of here.

Monique: And how would I know you won’t just ditch me when the opportunity arises?

Lee: I would not have just listened to your whole sad origin story if that were the case, besides what kind of asshole would do that.

Monique: I can name more than I’d like to count. And I know at least five of them were there, probably giving your friends a run for your money.

Lee: I would like to disagree. That blonde girl whose hairs stick out like antennas who saw you, Alexis, she tears people to literal pieces with her bare hands. I’ve seen it once. It was kind of cool.

Monique: Well how do I know you’re not just blatantly lying to me?

Lee: I wouldn’t have lied for you otherwise. Could’ve just given you to Doctor-whatever-his-face-was at the door then and there.

Monique: Why didn’t you?

Lee: For the same reasons you didn’t just up and teleport away when you had the chance. You’re…interesting. I don’t just want to get to know more about you, I want to also get you out of here. To a place where you feel like you do belong.

Monique: I only stayed because I didn’t want the chance to get a way

Lee: What chance?

Monique: The chance to see if my gut feeling was right. If you were like me. But why would I ever think for a moment you’d want to help me? Get me out of here? And back into that cage? That place that has nothing more than pain and suffering for me.

He shook his head.

Lee: Look, I may not know what that’s like, but I do know what it’s like to feel like you don’t belong. I know what it's like to feel like the whole world is rejecting you and there’s no longer a home you want to return to. Because all you can hear is this screeching in your ears and no matter where you run to, it’s always the same. I know what it’s like to want so desperately to want to leave but you can’t until you finally meet the right people. So here I am, the right person, reaching my hand out to you. If you want, we can get out of this fucking world. You can go somewhere where there’s nothin’ but soft melodies playing in your ears and you’ll be nowhere near those cunts who’ve made you suffer for so many years.

For once, she didn’t have any snarky remark to tort back. For once, she sat there silently, tears forming on her face. He got down to her level, wiping them off her face.

Lee: Sorry, didn’t mean to make you cry.

Monique: It’s…it’s weird. Why do I feel like I can actually trust you?

Lee: I intend to have that effect on people.

He chuckled a bit.

Monique: I-is it a promise? You promise to get me out of here?

Lee: Yeah. I promise. I solemnly swear to get you out of here.

Monique: And where do you intend to take me? If you don’t mind me asking.

Lee pondered for a moment.

Lee: Wait right here.

He went out, searching high and low through the forestry around him. He then came back with some twigs and rocks and started to methodically place them in a circle of some sorts.

Monique: What are you doing?

Lee: Magic. Haven’t you heard of that? Do you even have that in this world?

She slightly nodded.

Monique: Didn’t know anyone else who could do it.

Lee: Well, I’m not really an expert. My sister, Karin? She’s so well advanced for someone her age. She could cast thirty different spells all at once and still have enough time to make up a new one on the spot. I, however, flunked out of the academy and instead have mastered the ways of the sword.

Monique: There’s an academy?

Lee: Hell yeah there is. The best one there is to teach you all sorts of crazy things. There’s also multiple schools that teach you specific aspects of magic.

As he finished setting up the final touches of the symbol, he started producing more firewood on each side of the cave, setting them on fire which caused the entirety of the area they were in to light up. He then utilized a very sharp edge of a stone to cut himself, dropping bits of blood onto the symbol.

Lee: Repetir Memoria Visione.

The light produced from the flames started swirling around, creating images of a world not known to anyone on this Earth. Her eyes sparkled in excitement.

Monique: I-is this real?

Lee: I am using the memories of my time on Eridelium. The place I hope you can call home one day. It’s a place only the misfits go. The people who don’t really belong anywhere can belong there.

She saw fairies flying from place to place, oceans that were as clear as day where sirens and mermaids would pop out to play. Ogres were spotted hiding in a forest that looked as if it were stretching onto forever. Like a storybook coming to life.

Monique: I can really call this place home?

Lee: I don’t see why not.

Monique: And they won’t find me there?

Lee: No, it would be impossible. You probably can’t even teleport there yet. The magic that surrounds and inhabits that world is utilized to also hide it from everyone else. You can only gain access to it through people like me.

Monique: People like you?

Lee: Yep, my job is to take the people or things that don’t fit into one world over to a place that they do belong to. Sometimes, it also involves eliminating certain monsters or targets that have violated some laws or whatever but essentially I am just a courier. Or rather a teleporter.

Monique: Who doesn’t have anything to teleport him anywhere.

Lee: Hey, I already said that I am not very good at magic so for people like me who can only do this low level of magic, we get a special little app on our smartphones that allow us to teleport from one world to the next. Or one place to the other.

Monique: And where is it?

Lee: I left it behind because I was worried about you.

Monique: Oh…

Lee: Yeah. Had me worried there for a second. Want to tell me about those people who were chasing you since we’ll be here for a while?

Monique

He had already opened up to her so much about a world never seen before. A world she couldn’t even reach by proper means. She knew it was fair, but the question remained how much information should she share? Would it be too much? Too little? What seemed fair?

Monique: I-uh.

Lee: Just share what you’re comfortable with.

She stared back at the fire as Lee sat next to her, tending to his newly made wound. She ripped a part of her already torn shirt and used it to bandage his hand.

Monique: I’m not sure if I can remember it all to even talk about it. Some of my memories are pretty blank, and I think it had a whole lot to do with someone mucking up my head. Like, I can distinctly remember running away when I was 8, and again when I was 10 but I don’t remember where too and who I was with. But I do remember the person who essentially turned me in was more or less the same guy. I just grew to distrust a lot of people and for the life of me, I can't figure out why.

Lee frowned a bit. She sat back down, this time however, she was sitting closer to him.

Monique: I was brought to this Organization called Twilight Baleful. They essentially took in orphans, foster kids or abandoned kids who showed any potential dangerous powers and trained them as weapons. We would work as agents for any company or country that would hire us. Sometimes it was for espionage, other times it was for instigating wars. They always said I was the best at what I could do. Terraforming environments, teleporting behind enemy lines, all that fun jazz any kid does in childhood essentially.

Lee: You didn’t want to live that kind of life anymore, did you?

Monique: How could anyone want to live that life? You were only worth anything if you could bend to their will. And if you couldn’t? If you didn’t do as you were told or if they found out you saved an enemies life it meant weeks, even months of torture. You were punished for having morals. So yeah, I wanted out by any means. But I couldn’t just kill myself to get out you see.

Lee stared at her with sorrow in his eyes.

Monique: I wanted to do anything to leave. Anything. But even if I teleported somewhere else they just found a way to get me back. It’s like I’m stuck here and I can’t really leave. I want to get out of here. I want to go to that world you showed me but I realize now that it’s just a dream. A dream I’m not even allowed to have.

Bursting into tears, she curled herself back into a fetal position.

Lee: Hey…

Monique: Just leave me be. I know deep down inside I know you are not lying to me but I know that even if I go there, I’m stuck here. I’ll always be stuck here.

Lee: No, you won’t. You won’t be.

Monique: And how can I trust that? How can I know that it won’t be like the other times?

Lee: Because, we’ll find out what curse was placed on you that causes you to stay and we’ll get you out of here.

Monique: W-what?

He pointed at the glowing purple swirls that were on her feet.

Lee: Those are curses someone put on you

She looked at it, studying it a little more.

Monique: H-how how did these….

Lee: I think when you teleported they appeared. As if almost signaling to someone where you are. I mean, the symbol of that particular curse looks really familiar but again, I flunked out of the academy. I think my sister knows more.

She grabbed Lee’s collar.

Monique: Where can we find her!?

Lee: Whoa, whoa whoa. I don’t even know where we are. And its not going to help either of us to go looking for civilization when it looks like the middle of the night. Let’s just rest up for now and see where we are in the morning.

Monique: And what if they come now? While we are asleep?

Lee: Well for starters, they were dealing with my friends. And they don’t really back down for anyone. So that’s going to take them a whole long ass while. And another, I think we’re far enough away that they can’t get here in time. Let me ask you something, do you know anyone else who can teleport like you do?

She shook her head.

Lee: That’s good. Then we now know even if they try coming after us it’ll take them a while.

He gently pushed her away.

Lee: So, let’s get some rest.

Monique: I’m sorry.

Lee: It’s okay. Even if they do get here, I’d also kick their ass.

Monique: I don’t know if I believe that. They’re a lot stronger than that monster you tried fighting earlier.

Lee: Hey. I was distracted okay??

Monique: By what?

Lee: Moments before you literally popped into my life, I was protecting a family. Any movement or move sets I had would’ve possibly put them in danger. I couldn’t really risk that.

Monique: You were protecting someone?

Lee: Yeah, that’s part of the job.

Monique: Haaah. So, what? You’re going to protect me too?

Lee: If you're really unable to hold your own, yeah. I’ll protect you too.

Monique could always tell or sense when a person lies. It was the way their body shaked, the way their heartbeat would suddenly spike every time the blurred truth came out. Yet at this moment, she found no lies came from his lips. That every word he spoke was ever the more truthful. For the first time, in her whole time of existing in this world, she finally found a small spigot of peace. And she hoped there wouldn’t have to be a price to pay for it.