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CHAPTER NINE

HOPE YOU ENJOY MY CHAPTER NINE! (Will above even though he's a little older than that, this was the best pic I could find so :// )

I would say that the fall was not pleasant, but you see, even though it wasn't enjoyable by no means should it be labeled a fall.  I jumped, Blake and I, we jumped.  And Taylor caught us. 
      I didn't expect it to feel like floating on a cloud but I also didn't expect it to feel like going down on a crashing plane that is struggling to stay airborne.  When we were halfway down, the rush of wind bounced us back up.  I'll admit, I let out a little shriek, but I had never felt anything like it before.  I imagined that this is what skydiving felt like, except this might have been worse.
       I never let go of Blake's hand, I held it the whole way down, using it as a sort of anchor as though he could somehow keep me from drifting away.
      When we did reach the ground, I immediately collapsed onto my knees and Blake nearly fell flat on his face had he not caught himself with his hands.
      "Well.  I'd say that went rather well."  Taylor said, a faint smile tugging at her lips.  She brushed her hands together as though she had just finished a very laboring task and was satisfied immensely with the result.
       "Now what?  What is this plan you guys have to get us out of here?"  She asked, grabbing my hand to haul me back to my feet.  I told her thanks and then looked over at Blake as he was standing.
       "It's actually just Blake's idea, I'll let him tell you."  So he did.  Blake relayed every detail of his idea to Taylor who nodded every few sentences and watched him with eager eyes.  When he finished, my friend looked at me with wide eyes.
       "This is insane."  She said simply, her gaze darting back and forth between the two of us.
       "We'll never pull it off, there's too many variables and everything has to be just right."  Said Taylor, rubbing her forehead like she was suffering from a massive headache.
       "Look, I know it seems a little far fetched but we think it could work.  There's really no reason why it wouldn't unless we screwed something up and you know, I never make mistakes."  Blake said with a hint of sarcastic humor decorating his voice.  Taylor ignored him.
       "Maybe we should just stay here, help get the rest of these kids out of the cages, we can't just leave them here even if you say we'll come back for them.  What if we can't?"  I blew out an exasperated sigh through my teeth.  I didn't want us to have to persuade Taylor to join us, I wanted her to be willing.  If she was hurt, which was a possibility for all of us, I didn't want it to be because I forced her into this. 
       "Come on!  You can't-". I began.  But I didn't get very far before I was knocked off my feet and a flash of silver and gold light erupted out of thin air between Taylor, Blake and I.
       I was sitting down on the ground, scrambling to my feet until the light contracted into a floating orb the size of a penny.  Then, it disappeared altogether but it left something behind.  That something was a boy.
        I was standing now, staring at the kid who couldn't be older than ten.  He had light blonde hair that was perhaps a shade darker than its natural color due to all the dirt and grime smothered in it.  His skin was as pale as ivory with streaks of dried blood scarring his arms and legs.  His clothes were ratty and ripped and he smelled of something dead or dying. His eyes we huge and his dark brown irises locked onto me.
       "I didn't mean to scare you.  I just want to help." He said, the high pitch of his voice signifying his youth.  I looked him up and down again, stuck between responding with a question or letting Blake do the talking.  He apparently beat me to it.
        "Who are you and what was that?"  He yelled, a hand pressed over his chest to slow his rapid heart.  He hadn't fallen over and when I looked at Taylor, she was still standing as well, her eyes taking in our visitor. 
        "I'm Spider.  I am cursed, like you."  He said, his voice small.  He sounded somewhat taken aback by the anger and fury in Blake's voice.  Almost like he expected us to great him with open arms and smiles.
       "Spider?  You're from the zone?  I mean of course you are, where else would you have come from."  Taylor rambled, taking a step toward the boy who was still glowing a soft gold and silver, but his light was fading. 
        Spider turned to meet her before speaking again.
        "I told you, I'm cursed.  I can teleport.  I'm like a superhero!"  He said, turning back around to look at Blake and I and then back to Taylor.  He swiveled his head like that about five times.
        "It would be much easier for me if you guys could stand next to each other so I don't have to keep turning my head.  It hurts my neck."  He stated.  When no one replied I looked over at Blake who shrugged his shoulders and found a spot to stand next to Taylor.  I stood on her other side.
         "So, you are here because....?"  Blake trailed, his arms crossed over his chest as he studied the boy.  He wasn't sure what to do either.
        "Well, I was up there in the cages. The monitors locked me up a few days ago because I tried to escape.  They found me while I was sleeping and crushed a pill into my head.  When I tried to get away, my curse wasn't working.  I guess they put me in here to keep me from getting away again."  Spider lowered his head and closed his hands behind his back.
        "And you just now decided to get out?"  I asked staring him down as fiercely as I could.  I felt bad for him but there was so little trust left in the world that the word had become almost meaningless.
        "Well, I hadn't known that the pill things were only temporary so I never tried to get out.  Then you guys showed up and I overheard your conversation from my cage and watched you guys use your curses so I thought to try mine.  It worked, I guess."  Spider raised his head and blushed, a tiny smile spread on his cracked lips.
       "You said you wanted to help.  Help with what?"  Taylor inquired, taking a step toward the boy who instinctively stepped back hastily.  The sad thing was, I felt that this flinch was caused by the association his brain had made with people approaching him delivering pain even if Taylor meant no harm.
       "Isn't it obvious?  I want to help get rid of the zone."  Spider's tiny voice paused for a moment before he looked at me and softly said, "I like how your eyes glow, it makes you look scary."  I tilted my head to the side and observed him more closely.  How could I think that he was a threat?  This boy was just like us, and he was younger.  He was so little and frail that I'm surprised he hadn't crumpled like a piece of paper in the hands of the monitors.  Maybe he had a strong mind and that's why the indicatory training didn't break him like it did to so many other kids.
        "I say we make him part of the team."  Blake finally said, looking at Taylor and I for approval.  Spider's face lit up.
        "So do I.  But on two conditions."  I said, slowly getting closer to the boy.  His smile faltered slightly and he shrunk away just a little but eventually he stood his ground.
        "First, you don't call what you can do a curse.  You will call it a power because that's what it is, it's a power and you are powerful."  I stated.  Spider nodded hastily, clearly relived that his first condition was not something more difficult.
       "Second, you tell us your real name.  Trust me, it's better than Spider."  I said, my heart swelling with memories of my own foolish thoughts when I refused to share my name.  Spider didn't seem to have any of those thoughts, then again he was younger.  Perhaps the innocence of youth is more of a blessing than pure ignorance.
       "Will Buller."  He said, his simile returning to its previous size.  I watched it widen and I wondered how someone who had gone through all this pain, all this suffering and could still smile in the midst of it all.
        "We can't take him."  Taylor argues, looking at me with pleading eyes.
        "He's so young-"
        "I'm eight and a half."  Will interrupts, crossing his arms and pouting at Taylor who continues.
        "He's too young to be tossed out in a situation like this.  What if he gets hurt?  I couldn't live with myself."  Clearly, Taylor had forgotten that Will was right there listening.
         "I'll be fine.  I won't get hurt, I'm really good at using my power, I'll just escape if I get scared. Which I won't be scared."  He says, looking at Blake and I for help. 
        "He's right.  His power will make it easier for him to avoid trouble.  We need all the help we can get anyways."  I say.  Blake then reaches out his hand to Will who flinches slightly but after a moment lets Blake take his small hand in his much larger one.
        "Time to show them who's boss."  Blake says more to Will than any of us.  Will gives him a smile so wide I thought it might keep stretching past his ears.
        "I'll stay here.  Help get the rest of these kids out of their cages.  I'll figure something out."  Taylor says, avoiding looking at any of us as she says this.  She knows I want her to come, she knows that she could help us out but she's too scared.  The old Taylor that I had always known as Flea began to surface again.  Maybe it wasn't fear she was feeling but doubt or nerves.  Whatever it was, I wouldn't argue with it.  We needed to free these kids and she was willing to do that for us, that was enough.
        "Ok."  I muttered and walked straight ahead, my eyes lighting the way so that I could see the door.
        "Hey Will."  I said, my back facing my companions while I examined the door.
        "Yep!"  He piped. 
        "Is there anything else we should know about your power?  Anything that might help us?"  I asked, putting my hand up against the metal surface.  Blake and Will soon appeared at my side, hand in hand.  They looked like brothers, except for their shockingly different appearances, the way they held their ground made them seem like kin. 
        "I can only go short distances, like however high it is from the cages to this ground, that's about my limit.  Also I can take people with me, as long as their touching me.  Watch!"  And before I could say anything else silver and gold light burst into the air and then it was dark again except for the light from my eyes.  For about a split second of no Blake and no Will, I panicked.  What if he went outside just for fun and then got themselves shot?  But these thoughts didn't last long, they soon reappeared on the other side of the chamber in that same flash of colors.
        "That was so cool!"  Blake said, now that the light was gone and my light didn't reach that far, I couldn't make them out. 
         Then the light reappeared and vanished again.  I called out for Blake but as soon as I got the B out, the colors were back.  And so where they only now they stood right in front of me.
         "Good luck guys."  Taylor said with a feigned sort of cheerfulness that it only seemed sad.  I knew she was, and so was I.  If this was the last time I saw my friend, my only companion besides Ant for a whole three years, I don't know what I'd do.  But as I stood here and thought about it longer, the more likely it felt that this was Taylor and I's final goodbye.
         "Hey Taylor?"  I called, only able to see her silhouette in the dimness.
         "Yeah?"  She responded, her voice quivering.
         "If anyone that's not us comes in here to mess with you, I want you to promise me something."
          "What?"
          "Make them pay for what they did to Ant." 
          Without another word, I grabbed hold of Will's small hand.
          "Take us up to the next floor. The floor right above us, are you able to go that far?"  Blake asked, peering at Will with curiosity and concern in his eyes.
           "I can try.  But don't blame me if we get stuck in the floor."  With that ominous thought, I squeezed my eyes shut and gripped Will's hand a bit to hard, like that would save me. 
           Teleporting felt like a roller coaster.  Not that I remembered exactly what they felt like but this experience brought all those memories back.  There were many roller coaster rides in my past, when my mom and dad took me and Charlotte to the theme park somewhere in Kansas City.  We'd stayed for hours, riding anything we were tall enough to sneak into and winning all the prizes we had money for.  We bought cotton candy and played tag by the fountains until we collapsed from exhaustion and my parents had to carry me to the car.  All night while I was sleeping, I kept getting that feeling in my stomach.  You know, when the roller coaster hits the top of the hill and before you can scream or throw your hands in the air, your rushing down to the ground faster than a speeding bullet.  While you plummet to the ground, your stomach is hurtled around inside of you in that semi-pleasant feeling of dread and lightness. 
           That was the memory that came to me instantly as soon as Blake, Will and I were consumed by a blinding flash of silver and gold.  Then the gold was replaced by a darkness so vast even my eyes didn't provide any glow.
          When the light returned again, it flashed away almost as quickly as it had appeared.  It took me a minuet or so before I realized where we were.
         We were in a closet, Blake and Will were smushed up against me, pushing my back against the handle of a broom that was leaned against the back wall of shelves.  It was dark and I couldn't see much, the only light came from what flooded in under the crack at the bottom of the door.  I guess my eyes had used up all their glow since most of the anger I had felt earlier had diminished.  It was replaced by the toxic combination of nerves, adrenaline and determination.
         I reached out in front of me and found Will's bony shoulder which I held tight to.  He seemed to understand to be quiet in this moment.  I guess the kid was a lot smarter than his age led me to believe. 
         Blake stood in front of Will, closest to the door. He was facing the two of us even though I could only see a faint silhouette of his face. 
         "Stick to the plan.  Easy in easy out.  Will, you just stay in here, it's safer." Blake whispered but I still cringed at the noise.  I was worried we'd be heard but I guess we were just about to make our presence known anyways. 
         Will didn't object, I suppose the fear was starting to sink in of the reality around him.  The kid shimmied his way around me while I moved foreword, pressing against Blake's back, since he had turned around, to make room for him. 
         I watched Blake put his hand on the door handle and pull it down slowly, swinging the door out. 
        As soon as the door was open, we were hit by a blast of light.  While it blinded me only temporarily, since I was accustomed to the dark of the cellar below for so long, I regained myself quickly.
       Blake leapt from the closet and I followed, closing the door behind me with my foot, trapping Will inside, protecting him.
       There was no time to observe the room, no time to register my surroundings.  My thoughts didn't even form complete sentences, just staggered words jumbled together running on a loop.