Ataxia

seventeen

Abhik

2037

"This is fascinating," Dr. Browne said to herself. She was wearing goggles over her face and mask over her mouth and gloves on her hands. And smelled a lot like man-made chemicals. Although I've gotten used to it over the last year. After being captured by Silver, he brought us to a facility run by a man named Frank Meyer. I've been stuck here ever since.

"This subject, Mr. Meyer, after a year of studying its body structure, I have concluded it cannot age."

"Do you mean living forever? Because that is scientifically not possible." The calm voice I now knew as Frank Meyer, approached me. I was bound by my hands and feet on a hospital bed. An anklet was attached to my foot that kept me from using my abilities. Those sick doctors ... I wished so much I could get my hands on them for some well-deserved revenge. After everything they've done to me and Darin and his twin sister, Farin, and countless other people, they needed a date with vengeance. "AK993158 should not be able to do this. As far as our research goes, it is only able to manipulate water and change its form of matter. Are you saying this certain subject has two abilities?"

"No, sir," she said, taking her goggles off from the microscope. Under was a sample of my blood. Yeah, they dissect us, too. "Water is the same as it is from when earth was made, it just changes forms and goes different places, just like minerals and rocks. And since it can turn himself into liquid, it will stay just as it is, which includes that subject AK993158 won't age."

"Amazing work today, Dr. Browne," Mr. Meyer praised, putting his hands together in a slow clap. "Now put this boy in his confinement, he is nearing his time limit."

"Yes, sir." She said, beginning to roll me out of the room on the hospital bed. She headed for my confinement/prison cell where I spent my time when I wasn't being used or experimented on, doing absolutely nothing. When she arrived at my room, she rolled me inside and closed the door behind her, which would be a huge mistake. She locked the door and began to snap the restraints off.

As soon as I was free from the bindings, I rolled off the bed, knocking Dr. Browne to the floor. Those sparring lessons with the other innocent subjects certainly paid off. I pinned her to the floor while she was still trying to process what just happened.

"Give me your key card!" I commanded loudly. "Or I will force you to give it to me." I meant by brutal force. And I knew she deserved every punch I gave her. And more. But hopefully it will come to that.

"You know I can call security and shock you so badly you will be sent into an unconscious state with that anklet machine of yours." She warned, fumbling for her pockets. "You will definitely get punished. Are you sure you really want to do this?"

"How can you call security without this?" I held up a black machine that looked like a small remote. Dr. Browne's eyes widened in shock.

"How did you get that?"

"Well, my Didi taught me how to pit-pocket and I'm quite the prank-pulling troublemaker at home," I replied with a glad snarl. "Now give me your keycard before I strap my anklet to you and call security on you."

"I won't, ever," she said courageously. "You know you can be pinned down like a rabid dog any moment."

"Yeah, right," I snatched her keycard which was attached to the pocket of her lab coat. "Take this as a friendly note saying to never mess with ataxias such as myself ever again." And I left without another word to her. And I would never see Dr Browne's face ever again. Which I was glad to, because I don't know if I'll ever forget her mysterious emerald green eyes.

I jogged over to Darin and Farin's cell, praying the alarms wouldn't sound off. I no longer had that stupid anklet tracker on so I wasn't technically running away. To the securities, I was inside my confinement with Dr Browne. But I still had to worry about security cameras and heat sensors. When I finally reached the door, I swiped the keycard and the door swung open. Darin sat there, looking very hopeless.

He looked up with heavy eyes, expecting to see a doctor in a white lab coat. But instead he saw his best friend, me, mujhe. "Abhik!" He exclaimed, rushing to get up. "How did you get out?"

"I took a little something from Dr. Browne," I said sheepishly, holding up her keycard. "Let me scan your anklet so I can get it off."

As I scanned the anklet to set Darin free from this forsaken prison, he chuckled with delight. "You never cease to amaze me, Abhik. You truly are awesome."

"No time for compliments," I said hastily after the anklet fell off, dead. "Though, thank you. But we need to save Farin and get out of this place."

As soon as all three of us escaped from the awful prison, we rushed out the door into the cold night. It wasn't very cold but as I was running away from the worst year of my life, I felt a cold shiver running down my spine.