The Secret Tunnels

Chapter 3

Behind me, I hear the sound of a throat clearing. I stop for a second, considering that it might be a question from a frightened newbie. I shake my head a moment after; the sound is too formal. I turn around with half a smile; I recognize that sound.

"Lucky," M starts, "How good to see you." He smiles somewhat awkwardly. "This small talk is. . .new for me."

"Then obviously, it's not what you're here for." I raise my eyebrows. He shifts uncomfortably.

"No, I'm- I'm not." He pauses. "I apologize, I'm not very good at this comfort business."

"Comfort?" Suddenly I feel sick. After my mother and sister died, I grew used to seeing a certain look of pity on people's faces. It's as if they had twisted their facial features into something so horrifying I would forget about my pain. Obviously, that didn't work. After what happened with Maria, I got the look again. All the time. I hoped M wouldn't sink to that level.

"It seems I may have been a little wrapped up in my daughter's death."

I sigh, relieved. "And no one would blame you."

"Yes," he stammers, running a hand through his disheveled hair, "But it appears I may have let you take all the blame. You see, there was nothing you could do to stop Maria from doing what she did. My daughter was a brave girl, selfless to a fault. She would have saved her brother no matter what you did or didn't do."

"I know that." I nod to him. "Of course I do. So many people have told me. I just wish I hadn't gone out that night. Thomas came looking for me, you know? He wouldn't have been inside that- that thing if I had been where I was supposed to."

"That's true. But it had to happen."

"Wait." I hold up my hand. "What do you mean? I'm sure they could have found some other way to save us all without killing an innocent girl."

"Lucky, there's something you should know."

". . ."

"It's something that's been a part of this world since before we got here. I've kept her a secret for her own safety, she possesses such a power, I fear others would use it to their own advantage. She's. . .something else."

"You're really starting to freak me out," I tell him, "Who is she? What do you mean by power?"

"Okay. Okay, okay, umm. . ." For the first time since I've known him, M looks almost human trying to explain this. "I'm sure my son told you that all failed BLI experiments have an equal and opposite in this world?"

"Yes."

"Well, my other son, Silver, informed me of the being known as Fortune. You'll have to forgive him, she's a very dangerous presence. We had to know."

"Being?" I straighten my shoulders. "Sir, I'm not sure if you know, but I'm highly schizophrenic. Fortune was a representation of my lack of trustworthy females in my life. She's not real."

"Did a therapist tell you that?" He shakes his head quickly. "No, no, of course not. She's real. Fortune, originally named Mireya, was a girl who led quite a few anti-BLI protests. This was back when protesting was vaguely legal. The government took her and ran a series of experiments on her, they took her fighting spirit and separated it from her love for the people. They split her in half, essentially, and a half went to each world. Of course, they couldn't separate her completely, so your Fortune was still your friend. And ours still has her moody days."

"Your Fortune?" My mouth hangs open in disbelief. 

"Not Fortune, exactly, no." He furrows his eyebrows. "She speaks prophecies here. I've always called her Fate. She was the one who told me my daughter would die. I wanted to stop it, of course, but she warned me that if I tried, Maria would only die in a different method.  And we would still be under siege."

"So. . ." I pause, speechless. "You have a prophet, you never told anyone, and my friend was destined to die?!"

"Oh." He looks down. "That seems to be it, yes."

"And my Fortune?"

"I'm afraid that, unless she can be stopped, she will continue wreaking havoc on the world as we know it. You're the only one with the influence to shut her down. I guess that's what I've been trying to say through all of this. The revolution needs you. You can feel sorry for yourself, if you want, but don't let it interfere with the safety of our worlds. We need you."

"Good to know." I take a deep breath. "In that case, you have my word."

"Thank you." M smiles, the corners of his eyes wrinkling into worn laugh lines.

"And you." I agree. "For being straight with me."

"Why wouldn't I be? This is a revolution." He tilts his head. "Not politics."

Sorry! This chapter was a little rushed (it's hard, being a writer again.). I hope it wasn't too traumatizingly awful, (let's be honest, it totally was.) Vote, comment, etc. Enjoy!