Deadly

Chapter 1

Deep in the subconscious mind of a young girl, there was a flash of light.

Suddenly, she was aware. Aware, but not awake, as she soon realized, much to her chagrin. She could hear and feel the world around her, but try as she might, her eyes remained shut and her arms lay limp at her sides. In some ways, this comatose state was even worse than the alternative of nothingness.

But she had no way to tell this to the people of the conscious world, so the girl waited, and listened.

"Do you think the doctor's right? Do you think she'll wake up today?" A male voice asked.

"I'm sure the doctor knows what he's talking about," a female voice answered. "He's told us everything he knows." Then, to a third person, "Are you sure you have no idea as to what she'll be like when she wakes up?"

"I already told you everything I know about the treatment." This was coming from a third voice. The girl assumed that it was probably the doctor, judging by the way he knew what he was talking about. "She will be normal when she wakes up," the man continued. "But I can't assure that she will stay that way forever. I've given you a list of precautions, and I'm afraid that's all I can do right now."

Were they talking about me? the girl wondered. It was definitely possible, but she didn't wonder that much, as she soon drifted back asleep.

"Mia? C'mon sweetie, wake up," Everything was hazy as the girl slowly opened her eyes, bothered by these piercing words. Her moments of subconsciousness had been long forgotten with sleep. Are they talking to me? the girl wondered. She didn't think her name was Mia. Still, the voice had woken her up, so she reluctantly left the sweet bliss of sleep behind and faced the world around her.

She was greeted by two faces that swirled around in her vision. Once the dizziness faded, she was able to see that they belonged to a man and a woman. The woman loomed over her, her dark eyes worrying and her brown hair, which had once been styled in a neat bun, was now missing more than a few strands. She was biting her lip, but stopped as soon as the girl's eyes fluttered open.

"She's awake!" The woman turned towards the man with enthusiasm. The man, who seemed to be her husband, had light brown hair that was growing quite thin at the top of his head. The girl also noted unpleasantly that his shirt was a little too tight on him. He smiled at his wife, but the effort seemed a little strained. The girl said nothing, unsure as to how to react to this strange couple.

Now that her weariness was mostly gone, she decided to sit up and look around. A slight pain coursed through her arm as she got up, and she realized that several tubes were attached to her body. The pain grew larger, along with some dizziness, forcing the girl to sit back down.

"I see you've woken up," a third voice chimed in. He came into her line of vision and smiled at her. This man had bright blue eyes that were just beginning to twinkle with elderly wisdom. His brown hair and beard were also on the verge of graying. "I'm Doctor Owen," he kindly told the girl. "You must be wondering what's going on here." He was right about that. The girl slowly nodded, wincing as the doctor began to take out the tubes. He was silent until the task was done. Upon finishing, he simply said, "You may sit up now."

The girl did just that, realizing as she got up that she had been lying down on a faded brown couch. The room was dimly lit, it's only power source coming from a single lamp. A glance around showed that there was only one door and no windows. Across from the couch, there was a wooden table, covered with metal instruments. The girl decided that they must be the doctor's equipment. Next to the table was a bookshelf, filled to the brim with books on various topics. The room itself was fairly small, and the girl wondered why she was there.

"As you can probably tell, I prefer not to operate in a hospital," Doctor Owen gestured around the room. Then, as if anticipating her next question, he said, "A few weeks ago, you were in a car accident that knocked you out." After noticing the look on the girl's face, he added, "Don't worry, nothing too bad happened. But tell me dear, can you remember anything?" The girl thought for a moment, then shook her head. Now that she thought about it, her mind was as empty as a blank sheet of paper.

"Just what I suspected," Doctor Owen muttered to himself. "Well, your name is Mia." So that was her name, the girl realized. The woman was calling to her before. If she lost her memory, and this couple was with her now, that must mean...

"Oh!" Mia gasped aloud.

"Yes," the doctor smiled at her recognition, gesturing at the man and woman standing before her. "These are your parents."