Ten years ago.
Somewhere with a very clinical look, there are a number of rooms with transparent walls and ceilings painted in various cartoonish motifs. The rooms are separated by walkways where both floor and ceiling are finely masked grates, showing that the floor above and below are similarly furbished.In one of these chambers, a boy of about seven is sitting at a plain desk, together with a grown man. Both have white hair, and the man also sports a beard. The boy has bright orange eyes.
''Alright then, 13-2, are you ready to begin today's session?'' asks the man in a pleasant baritone, while his dull blue eyes behind wire frame glasses show no emotion. The boy looks around and we follow his gaze to a chamber across the adjoining walkway. In this chamber sits a girl of about the same age as the boy. She is shaved nearly bald. Electrodes are strapped to her scalp via a harness that connects to a box on the table in her room.A woman is asking her questions, but we can't hear their words. ''Yes, Papa Brand.'' The boy answers and returns his focus to the man. The man called Papa Brand opens a small box with a hinged lid and produces a simple cog. The boy nods and studies the cog for a bit, then holds out his hand palm up. A startling transformation comes over the boy, as his face turns to that of a young goat with blue-speckled white fur. His eyes remain unchanged. At the same time, a chunky cog that looks like it belongs to a Fischer-Price set appears on his palm. It is made of a yellow, metallic substance. There're streaks of pale blue, like frozen lightning, in the yellow. ''That's fine, 13-2. But it doesn't look the same, now does it?" the man admonishes. ''No..'' the boy admits sullenly. "Sorry, Papa Brand. I'll try again." The cog in the boy's hand dematerializes in a puff of sparks and his face reverts to his own. ''As soon as you're able," the man says, while looking concentrated at his watch. The boy sits still for a moment, then looks concentrated; nothing happens. The seconds tick on and the boy tries again.This time, his face transforms to the goatlike appearance again. The man marks the time on his watch. [Goatface]. It's a sneer, only the boy seems to hear and his face reverts to human in an instant. In his palms a shower of sparks fades away. The boy looks across the walkway to the room with the girl and woman. He sticks his tongue our at her. The woman looks at the instrument on the table and says something to the girl; we still can't hear it.
YOU ARE READING
Children of the New Dawn n-logy: Book 1 - Facilitated.
Fantasy"Walk in the world of those gifted, and live life as they do with what may be a curse. Years later, children have been diagnosed with strange abilities and live their lives serving for others. Forgetting and leaving their old selves in the past. Unt...
