INSOMNIAC

Chapter 10

Verity woke up with a start. She had had the most terrifying dream. She was in a car crash. She died. Verity looked around the room and realized that this was not her room at Tyson's house. The room was slightly smaller, but still nice, with round about the same layout. She heard a knock at the door, and she yelled, "Come in!"

Alvin entered the room with two cups of coffee in both of his hands. "Morning!" He greeted cheerfully. Verity stared at him in confusion for a few seconds, then asked, "Where am I?"

"Your new room. We had it modeled similar to your one at Tyson's house so that you could feel more at home." Verity nodded in understanding.

"How did I get here?"

"I made the projection of the car crash, and now everyone thinks that you're dead." Verity let the thought settle in her mind for a minute and then realized something.

"My mother! My friends! They all think I'm dead?" Alvin nodded.

"That's kind of the point." Verity looked away from him and grabbed her coffee.

"Look, Verity. If you want the life of a superhero, then you better take the consequences. If you didn't want the life, then tough, you've got it. Now man up and take the results," Alvin snapped at her and left the room. Verity sat on the bed for a while. I'm dead...

-

Verity made her way down the steps of the building to find herself in a living area. Okay then... Now to find Alvin or Tamara. The living room was clean and had a long couch that was laid out in front of a tv. Verity walked past and saw a door at the end of the hall. She opened it and was immediately greeted by an open street with one or two people working in gardens. She walked out and made her way down the street, careful to remember which house was hers. As she walked, she saw an elderly lady moving plants with powers, her garden's trees and bushes blooming with flowers.

"Hi," Verity greeted. "You wouldn't happen to know where Tamara or Alvin is, would you?" The lady turned towards her, and with a sweet smile said, "Of course, dear. They should be at the dome, in Tamara's office."

"Thank you," Verity said sweetly before continuing down the street. She could see the dome on the far end of the many rows of houses, and her walk would probably take around 15 minutes to get there.

-

"Verity," Tamara greeted as she opened the door for her to enter. "I see you're ready to talk." Verity nodded and took a seat at the table. Alvin was standing in the corner, glaring slightly. Verity shook it off and asked, "Why does it matter so much that I have to be 'dead' in order to be here?"

"Because if the public sees you, they won't be able to figure out who you are."

"Hypothetically, say I decided to leave you guys. What would happen to me then?"

"Either you have a lot of explaining to do, or you're still dead," Tamara shrugged. She handed Verity a piece of folded paper, which Verity opened upon receiving. It was a map, showing every house with the owner's names above theirs.

"I stay on the border," Tamara told her. "There are guards at every entrance to Paradise, and if anyone unwelcome enters, they send them on their way."

"What does that mean?" Verity inquired.

"It means that they are dropped off somewhere else with no memory of what they saw here." Verity nodded, realizing that the people in the small city weren't cruel, but merely protecting themselves.

"How did you find out about me?" Verity asked.

"The same way we found out about everyone else," Alvin butted in. "We have people who can sense the presence of others powers, and we send them around the city. It's important that we stay hidden, or the government with hurt us. Because they fear what they don't understand."

"Enough small talk," Tamara interrupted. "You should head off to training now. Don't want to start too late." Verity and Alvin left the office, heading to the center of the dome once again.

-

Tyson slammed his fist on the table in frustration. It's been 3 days since she disappeared. Verity just can't be dead! She was the key to unlocking everything about the superworld, especially with the fact that he had found out that at her last moments of life, she was with the trickster. He was in his secret room, looking around for clues. Her suit was gone, and so was the majority of her things. They would be here if she didn't plan on leaving to stay somewhere else. He looked around a bit more and saw a book lying on her desk. It had a note on the top of it, addressed to him.

Tyson,

I know that you're probably looking for me, but please don't. I've been planning to leave for a while, and I know that you're probably disappointed in me, but I want you to understand that I'm safe, and I don't need looking after. You'll find an address in the book but only use it for emergencies.

Sincerely,

Verity

Tyson stared at the note for a few minutes, before tearing it apart in frustration. He opened the book immediately, and what he saw confused him There were sketches of streets that he didn't recognize, and an arena of some sort with a cheering crowd and two figures in the middle fighting. There was a flaming car and a cup of tea on the page next to it. There was another, of a woman handing a girl a map, and then a sketch of the map. After all of those were drawings of what seemed to be a dining hall with hundreds of people sitting and talking whilst easting food. And another, this time of a room that looked almost identical to his spare one. Tyson was suddenly hit with the realization that this was every big event that happened to her since she left, starting with the car crash. Tyson searched the book until he found the drawing of a small house with the address, 21st on 3rd, Paradise. Tyson stared at it in confusion. He turned to the last page, and there was a little note. No one ever comes, no one ever goes. Was this a joke? He examined the book from front to back again. Where was the once place that he never went to? Then it clicked. The abandoned city, the one place he has never gone in his life. Tyson raced to put his suit on, ignoring how Verity said to only go there for emergencies. He was going to get her back.

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