ELEMENTS[On Hold]

Chapter 10

Piper was woken up by the sound of flesh meeting flesh. She struggled to move her head so she could find Vanessa. She smiled as she saw the girl had just been resting.

"You fake!"

After a couple minutes and dozens of falls she was finally able to stand. Her vision was blurry and her legs were wobbly.

"Go away!"

She used the surrounding objects to support her body. It ached all over but she persevered. Taking deep breaths, she grabbed Vanessa's arm and pulled it around her neck. The walk to the bedroom seemed to last for hours.

"I don't know who you are or where you came from but," the boy pulled back his fist. "I want you gone!"

It was as if two of the same person were fighting. It was impossible to tell who was going to win the even battle. One of the two had a determined look upon their face.

"I'm the real one!" With that last strike, the body that was attacked dispersed into thin air. Without any thought, a triumphant smile spread across his face. Not too much after, his body crashed into the ground.
-
Piper batted open her eyes to see that it was just approaching dusk. Her stomach ached a little but she continued to walk into the living room. She stopped in her tracks when she saw a boy with a disheveled appearance. A swollen eye was then followed by a trail of blood streaming down his lip. Now that she had gotten a closer look, it was the same guy who had invaded the house.

Piper searched around the entire house before she found the weapon from earlier. She raised it high above her head and closed her eyes to avoid seeing anything gruesome.

"What the heck are you doing!" Piper opened her eyes to find the boy wide awake. Her arms shivered at the thought of killing someone. Just by looking at his panicked face, she seemed to calm down.

"Get up." Her voice was strong, showing nothing but authority. "I want you to tell me everything that went down. What happened? Why were me and my friend left unconscious on the ground? Where are we? Who are you? And how did we get into this situation!" Her face was red but went unnoticed. She took several deep breaths as she waited for a response.

"I can tell you now that you need to calm down." She growled at his response but relaxed nonetheless. "Honestly, I can't tell you everything that 'went down' but I can tell you what I know."

"First I want you to tell me what was going on when me and my friend were unconscious." She crossed her arms and tapped her foot as she waited for a reply.

"For one thing I can tell you that you need to show some hospitality to the injured and to a person who you almost killed with a bat." Piper shushed him by putting her finger to her lips.

"Just tell me what happened."

"Fine," he sat down. "To be honest, I saw you and your friend come inside. I was sitting on top of the roof listening to you guys talk--"

"You creep!"

"I got a bit confused when I saw a guy who looked just like me come into the house. I also noticed how he carried a very dangerous item in his hand before he walked in."

"That's what knocked us out, right?"

"Yeah," he replied. "It was an oneirogenic general anaesthetic that was used to put subjects, in this case it was you and your friend, to an unconscious state."

Pipers face was completely blank as she tried to follow the words the boy spoke but was completely lost. Luckily, he quickly noticed.

"In other words," he rolled his eyes. "Sleeping gas." Piper nodded her head in understanding.

"Now tell me where we are!" Her voice of authority had returned.

"Isn't it obvious?" He laughed before continuing. "We're located around mountains in an old house."

A red tint covered her cheeks. She turned her face away from his.

"Now tell me who you are!" Her voice was gone. The only audio she had was complete embarrassment.

"Well isn't it obvious?" He placed his head in his palm. "I'm Eric."