ÆSH
With my heart thumping slow I make my way to Anahata. It is empty except for Ramu and a brawny forest ranger sporting a large handlebar moustache. "Beware, beware, the tiger, beware. You are not allowed to venture beyond this station. Beware," he recites, like some forest jester, hitting the ground with the butt of his gun.
ZZZzzzz ZZZzzzz.
A buzzing, as though a collection of iron strands colliding, letting off tiny sparks in my head. Rings of pressure tighten inside my cranial fossa. My brain is short-circuiting like it did when I was in solitary confinement.
I open the first door, then the next, my body floats up like a phantom. My lungs flail when I inhale, as though the veins and arteries have been tied down in giant wet knots. I close my eyes. I see a squiggle of light. Then waves, geometry and bursts of color. Then no color. No light.
Black.
White.
Black.
White.
Black.
White.
Black.
Knock. Knock.
A flicker, a flash, a body lay on the top of the glass ceiling, inches away from my face. I look Into his eyes and instantly recognize him. My heart jumps into my throat. In a blink, he vanishes. I look around but there is no sight of him. I wrangle out of the chamber and exit sprinting.
At the turn, I catch sight of him and charge ahead. He disappears beyond the corner. I sprint to find him crossing the moat over to the dark forest. Then he turns and faces me. A chill runs down my spine. I become inert, unable to breathe.
He is the exact replica of me. He's my clone. I stand there facing my shadow self.
He darts into the thicket, I bolt after him. Though I feel fear rising in me, I keep on with the chase.
Ramu lunges, grabbing me by my shirt. He pulls me back in a choking jerk.
"Let go of me!" Let go!" I scream.
"The tiger!" shouts Ramu. "The man-eater is out there somewhere!"
I wrestle myself away and make a desperate dash towards the stream.
Crack!
Pain collects in my skull. I fall to the ground in a sloppy 'S', catching sight of the forest ranger, the butt of his rifle held up in front of him.
All fades to black.
YOU ARE READING
BECOMING SUPRA
רומנטיקהWhen Raë (ambitious and driven) and Æsh (mysterious new kid) sign up for an after-school course, they chance upon Bose, a quantum physicist, who teaches them how to become SUPRA: beings that are above and beyond; beings that can manifest at the spee...
