“So can someone explain to me why our points are so unfairly given. How is it that I get only get 2,500 points while you guys just start off with so much more?” Katherine asked in a huff.

“Maybe it was random?” James guessed

Eliot thought about it being random before but when he heard how many points his parents initial obtained he scrapped that thought. “I doubt it, if you remember correctly. When the satellites first appeared they said something about points being earned throughout your lifetime. Maybe that's why you and mum have more points than us.”

“But i'm older than you, shouldn't I have more points then you if that was true?”  Kat questioned.

“Thats a good question, what if it's not just about age but accomplishments. The satellites did say ‘earned’ after all” Vivian added

Kat looked like she got slapped in the face and then with a hard edged voice she asked “You're saying the blind Eliot accomplished more than me, when he couldn't even do anything for himself his whole life?”

‘Harsh’ Eliot couldn't say anything to that, she had a valid point. It's not that he couldn't do anything for himself but nothing noteworthy. So Kats anger was validated but was it necessary to put him down whenever she got the chance. What happened to all that hugging and apologizing from upstairs in the library.

“I actually may have a way we could figure this out. In the forum section in the satellites I found a thread with someone who has a theory on how the points where given out in the beginning.” Eliot suggested while activating his satellite and watching the particles rearrange themselves to the previous thread page underneath the name ‘David&Goliath’.

After going through the page, Eliot finally understood why the points where so different. Apparently this ‘David&Goliath’ person works for the government, and with a couple of his colleagues they did an initial assessment with two hundred people on how many points they obtained. They then did background checks on all of them along with asking them a series of questions.

What they turned up was that people with careers in science or technology or the study of something received a high amount of points. There are also people who have studied martial arts or any type of body techniques that requires rigorous training who have also received a significant amount of points. Then there are the people who have actually obtained smaller versions of abilities from the list that received points just enough so that they could obtain the actual ability itself. All in all it was a lot of guess work and speculation but what they did find out was that no one passed thirty thousand points, even the most proclaimed engineers or the top ranking martial artist that they could get in contact with, their cap would be thirty thousand points.

After sharing the post with his family, everyone understood why they received the amount of points they did. Vivian was a scientist of sort when it came to plants and nature, his father was a mechanical engineer maybe not the best but still an engineer nonetheless. Eliot had been using the mind palace technique since he was ten years old and that was just a more limited version of the Method Of Loci. On the other hand Kat didn't really have much to show for her twenty years of living.

Kat was visibly relieved that it wasn't something that she didn't do but that it was because she was just a normal girl who did normal things. Maybe if she was older and had a career of her own or did karate like she wanted to when she was little she would have had more points.

“There's just one thing I don't understand, dad if you didn't buy any abilities or change your bloodline why are your eyes glowing that weird color?” Eliot asked catching the pulsating pink fade in out before disappearing again. He hated to change the subject again away from talking about his grandad and going into more detail about his mother's bloodline but he was curious.

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James blinked in confusion “What are you talking about, my eyes aren't glowing, are they?” He looked to his wife.

Vivian stared in her husband eyes for a solid three minutes making James feel slightly uncomfortable before the color appeared again. “Yes i'm afraid they are, what do you think it could be?”

“I have no idea, maybe it's because we're in Eliot's head and there could be side effects.” James guessed

“But mum and Kat seem to be normal, or at least normal enough. Did you pick something up or maybe get bitten by one the thrall?” ELiot asked thinking maybe the thrall has some sort of virus that they could spread, like zombies they did seem similar.

“No, I wouldn't hide something like. It's too dangerous to be hiding secrets that could harm them.” When James answered the question the pink glowed intensified for brief moment but everyone caught it.

“Uh, them? Don't you mean us?” Kat asked unsure if her dad was okay.

Vivian squinted her eyes and looked at James with a level stare. “What did you and Natalie talk about earlier James?”

James didn't notice how Vivian was regarding him and just shrugged his shoulders. “She wanted to thank me for helping them out, and I told them It was fine and I'll keep protecting them from now on, no matter what.” The pink glow grew even brighter than before.

“No matter what? Even if your family was to be over run by thrall, you would choose there lives over ours?” Vivian probed even further.

“But of course.” James simply answered, the pink glow was a steady now no longer fading in and out.

Everyone looked surprised at James, Eliot couldn't understand the sudden change in his father. Why would he ever put some strangers lives above his own flesh and blood, and the worst part about it was that he seemed to think it was normal. Eliot looked over to his mother and saw the most chilling smile form on her lips.

“The fucking bitch.” Vivian cursed and then shot a look to Eliot. He almost shit his pants thinking he was in trouble or something but all she did was order him to get them out of his head.

Eliot had absolutely zero clue on how to do that, but he told her to give him a minute to try and figure it out. Everyone was wondering what the sudden change in both Vivian and James signified, but Eliot didn't ask any questions and just did what his mother ordered.

He closed his eyes and began breathing deeply trying to concentrate, what he was attempting to do was reverse what he did to get inside his mind to try to get out; but that didn't seem to work.  He got up and walked outside to clear his mind, he sat on the grass and felt the wind in his hair and listened to soft music in the background. He noticed the music was different from when he first got here there was added notes and melodies, he concentrated on them and tried to grab them with his mind.

At first it was difficult, like trying to grab something slathered in oil. After multiple failed attempts he finally gave up and tried a new approach. Instead of trying to grab it, he called to it asking it to come toward him, Eliot didn't know if this would work. It was technically his mind so he should have some control over it right. He heard a gasp and he opened his eyes to see his sister standing in front of him.

“What the hell just happened?” Kat asked trying reorientate herself to the new surroundings.

“I think I figured out how to get us out of here maybe.” Eliot offered unconfidently, it was just a guess, but what he just did showed him he had at least some control on what goes on here.

He concentrated on all the other melodies that was his mother, father and sister and tried to silence them. His sister blinked out of existence along with his mother and father's melodies. Then everything started to disappear, the noises one by one where being stopped trees started to just not exist darkness started to swarm to his location in a wave of destruction forcing everything in its path to be consumed by its vestige.  

Eliot screamed in sheer panic, not knowing what was happening. He had nowhere to run or hide before the darkness consumed him. He opened his eyes and instantly jumped up, his chest was rising up and down in its attempt to gather air as fast as possible, he looked around only to see his family staring at him.

“Are you okay?” Kat asked

Eliot took a minute to calm himself down, he thought about what just happened and realized his worst nightmare was realer than ever. The ‘Silence’ existed in his mind and with the Method of Loci it gained new power over him.

“I'm fine, thought I saw something, but it was nothing. Don't worry about it.” Eliot sat back down and realized the ache in his hand from practicing all those hand movements was nonexistent but he could tell his hand where a bit more flexible.

“As long as you're okay, now let's go have a little discussion with our new friends.” Vivian said as she made her way to where Natalie and Thomas was sleeping. As she walked her staff was morphing into its humanoid form, and Eliot could tell something bad was about to happen.