Rebel Young

Part 4

The doctors finished their physical examination and led me into a private room. Lacey and Freddie were in there already, waiting for me. A nurse passed the results on to them and left us alone. Lacey and Freddie studied the notes, leaving me sat awkwardly on a bench watching them. 

        "April, you scored very highly in both the agility and speed tests and above average in the strength test and your hearing is phenomenal, we've only recorded one person before with that level of sensitivity," Lacey explained.  

        "Is that a good thing?" I asked nervously.

Lacey nodded curtly before turning to Freddie. They shared a few hushed words before Freddie scampered off excitedly. He returned a few minutes later with a stocky young man. 

        "April, this is Brodie. He's one of the specialists we have on site," Lacey introduced. 
Brodie nodded in my direction before taking out a stethoscope and listening to my chest. His brow furrowed as he listened. He then took a pen light and shined it into my eyes. Moving the light around my iris. 

        "Was I right?" asked Freddie. He was nearly peeing himself in anticipation. 

        "You were correct Freddie," Brodie confirmed with a grin, "I've got a definite red sheen in the iris at an array of different angles."

        "So what's your verdict?" Lacey inquired.

        "I'd say she's definitely Talented, quite powerful too," Brodie concluded. 

Freddie let out a cheer and Lacey smiled at Brodie's revelation. I, on the other hand, had no idea what the big deal was.

        "Talented?" I asked, "What the hell does that mean?" 

        "April, it means you have super-human abilities," Brodie explained.

        "How?" I questioned. 

        "The Talents are a result of genetic modifications performed on our ancestors," Lacey explained.

        "So you're saying that my great-great-great-great Grandma or Grandpa, or something along those lines, was pretty much a superhero," I remarked.

        "Not really," Lacey corrected, "the modifications morphed the test subjects into monsters. They were merged with animals or transformed to resemble mythical creatures - they became unstoppable, and our army's worst nightmare."

        "So it was an enemy tactic and my ancestors are traitors, great," I said sarcastically.

        "April, be serious!" Lacey snapped, "Your grandfather might not have been a traitor. He might have fled his country to find safety here where he settled down to start a family."

Either way, my ancestors had betrayed their country and now I had inherited the proof. 

        "Is anyone else here Talented or am I some freak of nature?" I snarled.

        "You're not some freak of nature April," Brodie comforted, "you're Talented - they're completely different things."

        "You're not alone," Freddie added, "Jack has Talents too!"

Lacey had continued trying to explain the advantages of being Talented, but I had stopped listening long ago. I gained a merciful moment of peace when one of Freddie's radars picked up air traffic. Jack suddenly appeared at my side.

        "Let's get out of here," Jack whispered in my ear.

        "Gladly," I murmured. 

He took my hand and led me to a ladder. We scaled it quickly and emerged above ground via a hidden trapdoor.

        "So you're Talented, huh?" Jack asked nonchalantly.

Wow, rumours travel quickly around this place.

        "Yep, and so are you from what I've heard," I remarked

        "It's not as bad as the rumours say," he muttered, "most of the Talents aren't obvious."

        "Brodie said that I was 'definitely Talented, quite powerful too' what does that mean?" I asked exasperatedly.

        "It has something to do with your eyes, different levels of Talent reflect different colours," Jack explained.

        "How does it reflect?" I inquired

        "At cetain angles, under direct light, a Talented person's iris reflects a different colour. My eyes reflect a golden yellow, this means I have a fairly high level of Talent, but not the highest. The colour scales goes from a light purple to a deep crimson ," Jack explained.

        "My eyes reflect red," I confessed. 

        "April, that's insane!" Jack gawked, "you could be the one that wins this war for us." 

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A/N - I had to completely rewrite this part because my draft sounded rushed and stupid. I'm happier with this version, but I dunno v( '.' )v