Athanatos

Chapter 2

Regan's

I'm falling.

That's right, I'm falling. Falling in a pitch black abyss. No one with me, just myself. The idea of being alone, I'm used to it. I've always been alone. "Are you sure?" A voice said. I looked to my side and found the lady. Her presence angered me, clenching my fists as I looked at her. "No use getting angry, we're both falling. You see, I'm the only one who understands you. The pain..." She said. "Of being a lab rat," she continued. "You know nothing about my life, bitch!" I shouted at her. She looked startled, then laughed. "Unfortunately, I know everything about you," she insisted. "From the day you got the mark, until now," she continued. Does she really know about these things? Successfully convincing me, my interest about her knowledge rose. "Are you sure?" I asked. "I'm certain," she said. The serious face, along with the serious voice convinced me wholly. 

"Your parents worked for The Facility, and during the time this experiment was about to be tested, your mother gave birth to her one and only daughter. The timing was perfect, so you became the test subject," she told me. I was listening to her, without having any second thoughts. "But nevermind that story," she continued. "What?" I panicked. How am I going to hear the rest of the story? How will I know my dark past? How will I know why she was haunting me? "Right now, awaken." She said as she put her finger on my forehead, and gave me a light push, causing me to fall faster. "Wait!" I shouted at her, who was sitting and smiling at me from above.

"Wait!" I shouted, then it hit me. I'm in a bed. No, I'm in my bed. The beige painted room was silent. I hurriedly got up, and wore my clothes. As soon as I finished, I went to the bathroom and fixed myself. "Why am I like this?" I talked to myself. Thinking of an answer, I stopped and stared at myself on the mirror. "Why?" I pointed to the mirror. "Well, whatever." I said as I shook of the question from my head. I stepped out of my room and went downstairs. Weird. Mom and Dad isn't here. They must've had to do something at The Facility. 

Oh yeah, that's right. They work for The Facility.

As I walked to the couch, I opened the TV and changed it to the news. My dream was very unusual. I was fully aware, and it felt surreal. The thought bugged me, but I continued to watch the television and shook the worry off.

Mass murder at New Jersey.

Anti-missile shield fully implemented.

'Athanatos' found.

"Athanatos?" I asked myself. Curiously, I got my phone to search the net about the unusual term.

"Athanatos, a person who never dies. 1 out of a million people experiences this unearthly phenomenon. Since the experiment tells people about their time of death, this strange occurence defies it," I cited. 

"Well that's awesome." I commented, then continued reading. 

"One goes through a process called 'fading', wherein the mark given to him/her starts fading as the day their death comes closer," I cited, then looked at my mark, just to see nothing but a triangle symbol. I looked closely, and found no date of death. 

"Weird." I said. 

"The mark will be replaced by the Athanatos' symbol, which is a thick outline of a triangle. Many incidents involve this, and people are banished if they experienced this, for they acquire strange abilities together with it."

The article made me uneasy. My mark faded, and was replaced by an outline of a triangle. "No, Regan. You're getting it all wrong!" I convinced myself. As I sat down on the sofa to cool my panicking self, I stared at the flower vase. Weird, it's showing me different moving colors, from the stem to the leaf. I tried picking one petal, and as soon as it detached from the flower, it turned gray. "What's this?" I gasped, making me drop the petal. 

As I was left in silence, my phone suddenly rang. "Hello?" I asked. "Regan, right?" A strange male voice asked. "Y-Yes, what is it?" I asked again. "I tracked you, and found out that you're the newly discovered Athanatos," he explained. "What about it?" I asked nervously. "I'm not gonna cause you any harm, just get your things and head to the gasoline station by the end of the street, where people won't find you," he instructed. "What will I do there?" I impatiently asked. "Just wait until someone approaches you, okay?" He said. "Okay," I agreed. "Just, whatever you do, avoid the government officials, unless you want to be another gruesome experiment," he said. "Sure thing." I agreed. 

As the call ended, I immediately rushed to my room, got my jeans on together with a black shirt, grey jacket, and a cap. "Let's see, money, sanitary napkins, comb, oh!" I shouted as I got an idea. As soon as I got my things, I went to the kitchen and grabbed a small knife, in case of emergency. When I finally gathered all my things, I headed straight to the gate and stepped out, on my way to the gasoline station by Partridge Street. The skies were a bit dark, and the wind was blowing hard. I kept on walking, until I sensed someone following me, maybe two. I sped up a little, and it seems like they sped up as well. Few more steps, and I decided to run. And it seems like they did too. "Hold up woman!" A guy said, I didn't bother to look back. Few minutes of chasing, until I reached the gasoline station, wherein they cornered me too. "Look, if you're looking for something, I don't have it." I told them. "Oh really?" A man said as he laughed, "We already found what we're looking for," he said with a creepy grin from ear to ear. From that moment, I knew that he works for the government. Plus, I also knew that it's my end.

"Don't you dare touch her." A manly voice said. I looked to my left and saw a guy, wearing a sweatshirt, together with jeans and shoes. His image captured me, leaving my body still, without emotion. "Who are you?" The agent said. "Just call me, Red." He said, as blood started to form puddles in a blink of an eye. I looked back at the agent, to see a body without its head. I was about to shriek, until Red came to me and covered my mouth. "Don't even say a word," he said to me. After few moments of mumbling, I decided to stop. "Very well," he said. "My name is Quentin, Red is my alias." He introduced. "Hello Quenti-" I said before he covered my mouth again, "Be quiet, don't call me by my name in these parts." Quentin warned. I nodded, and he let go of me. 

"So, what am I doing here?" I asked. "Well, I'm here to warn you. The government is already aware of your 'status'. I'd suggest that you pack up your things," he said. "Pack my things? For what?" I asked. "You can't live here anymore. From now on, you'll be with me." Quentin said, as he intimately looked at me. I blushed, "Stop that!" I shouted. He laughed at me, great. "I'll give you these next few hours to get ready," he instructed. "I made sure no one follows you. I'll be everywhere. See you later at night," he added.

I nodded and went straight back to my house. "Oh by the way..." I said as I turned around, but saw nothing. "Weird." I said as I went my way. After several steps, accompanied by the strange sensation in my body, I finally reached home. I immediately went to my room, got my traveling bag and started packing my clothes. As soon as I was done, I went downstairs to eat. I was lucky to have food in the fridge, so I heated it up and ate it. As I finished fixing myself, I went upstairs to rest and be alone for a bit, few hours left until Quentin comes. I sat on my bed and let out a huge sigh.