FREAK

Noah

I kept the good boy act on for the rest of the trip to wherever she was taking me. I honestly didn't want to find out what happened when you were to make an unaltercated adult mad. Maybe it wasn't as bad as father. Maybe it was. I didn't want to risk it.
"Where are we going?" I finally peered up to ask.
"Good question," she said before pressing her lips together, "we're going to a safe heaven, I guess."
"Guess?"
"Well, I don't really know what to call it. It's were you go if you refuse to be altercated. Few children come. Mostly because most of your generation was taught that altercation was a good thing. But, children come nonetheless."
"Ummm...explain the 'raising a child to believe altercation is good' thing some more."
"Unlike us, many kids were wired by their parents in a way so that they want altercation. We think it was the fact that their parents actually took the medications that they were given and were able to bond closer with their families. While as in our case, we viewed our parents and others as our parents treated us."
"Ok, um...why alteration? Couldn't they come up with a better name for it? You know, one less long?"
She giggled, "it was named altercation because your human side is fighting back the side of you that you were altercated with. So, there's an internal altercation going on."
"That name sounds too scary though."
"Well, ten year olds and even adults don't question it. We aren't really sure why they never changed it," she said stifling a laugh.
"What are they fighting over?"
"They fight over wether or not to control the blood lust that they gained from their altercation. The pills they take help but do little to stop it. You and I may not know it, but they constantly fight back the urge to kill and maim everything that isn't altercated as well. So I guess you could say..." her tone darkened a little as she looked to her feet, " ...morality..."
     And with that, the rest of the walk down the road stayed silent.
     We reached a large U-shaped street. A beaten sign at the entrance read, "Blue Avenue." Buildings lined the sides of the streets. Signs hung from them, painted over and renamed. One read "infirmary," another "mess hall." There were people of all ages happily going about their day. Children smiling, adults conversing, old folk nagging away, and none of them were altercated.
     Miss Amber led me to what looked similar to an rundown hospital. She pulled me in and started talking to a teenager located at the desk. They conversed for a bit until Amber looked down at me with a frustrated face.
     "Sorry, bud," she said, "they're moving all the older kids to another apartment building. You'll have to stay with me until they finish. All the rooms right now are occupied."
      WHYYYYY???!!!! "Okay."
      Miss Amber led me to another building. This one looked bigger and the inside was filled with adults. She spoke to the teen at the desk and pulled me up several flights of stairs only to walk down a long corridor. By the end, I wondered how this woman could even stand let alone do her job.
      She opened the door and plopped down onto her bed after letting go of my hand. "Welcome home," she said after raising her arms into the air to gesture to the room we were in.
      For such an old area, the room looked pretty clean. A small kitchen rested in the far left corner. A door to what I hoped was a bathroom was a little further from that. A bed lay in the corner closest to the door. A desk sat next to it. A table and chairs rested in the middle as a huge bookshelf stood in a separate corner. That was accompanied by several arm chairs. The whole thing seemed to be black and white with a red ascent.
      "Where do I sleep?" I asked.
      "My bed. I'll be on the floor till you get a room," she said as she got up and stretched. She then pointed to the bathroom door,  "go take a bath. I assume you know how to use one."
      I shook my head slowly and started in the direction of the room.
      She then snapped her fingers and I sipped back to her. "Stuffed animal, please," she held her hand out and I hesitantly handed it to her. "This will be as good as new when you get out. Imma go wash it. Don't drown," she giggled and headed out of the room.
      I glared at the doorway that she had deserted and started to run the water into the bath.
     Maybe this won't be that bad.