One Touch

19: Not a Dream

The binoculars-filter was gone by the time I ate dinner. I knocked on dad’s door several times, but he was busy for the whole day. I got a sample of Atlanta’s nail, which could account for her skin sample. I hadn’t gotten any of Caspian’s samples, since whatever I did would be suspicious to him. I needed to think of an extravagant game plan.

The clock struck midnight and there was no sign of dad coming out of his room. With the lights off, I stared at the red eyes outside my bedroom window, picturing them to be glowing white. Locks of hair flew to the breeze, a silhouette of the entire body appearing and disappearing like a mirage under the streetlights. I couldn’t make out a face, nor could I make out any other colour.

There was a knock on the door and I jolted towards it. Dad was at the doorway with an array of equipment in hand, and I invited him inside. He asked me to pull the curtains over the window and turn on the lights.

In better light, I noticed dad’s eyes sunk into his sockets and his cheeks hollowed inward. A ray of exhaustion was inscribed on his face, as if it had always been there. But he was alive and energetic when he sat on my bed and motioned me closer. He had a book beneath all the equipment, and it had an ancient, sepia colour with encrypted symbols on the bottom.

“I studied the filter all morning,” dad said, showing me the frames of the army-goggles. “This is a ten second time lapse of the entire night.” The filter was recording the eyes?

I watched the video replay and saw the eyes make a gradual change. They were a crystal white in the video, but as they came into focus, I saw thin red circles in the eyes that took the shape of the pupils. At the half-point mark of the video, the red circles, or pupils, had thickened. At the dawn of sunrise when the sky was still a dark navy, the eyes returned to white. In the next millisecond, they vanished.

“Less than a nanosecond,” dad said, amazed. “Nearly the speed of light. They disappeared. How bizarre.” I nodded, unable to believe what I saw. I replayed the video and watched it three more times. It was in the span of ten hours. For ten hours, someone was standing out there.

“What is it?” I asked, afraid of the answer.

“I can’t confirm, but I have a theory,” dad said, pulling out the book he held earlier. “I don’t have samples or any evidence to prove this, but I strongly believe this creature is an Energy God.”

“An Energy God?” I said, going back to the module I was given by Rick.

“We’re not sure what they are exactly, since they can have different names and variations,” dad said, and gave me a straight look in the eye. “They are not humans. They take the shape of a human, function like a human, but they have original forms they can morph into at any time.”

“You mean like werewolves and mermaids or whatever?” I asked.

His eyes intensified, and it gave me the chills. “This is different. Anyone can possess this power, or this form, and no one will know about it. Their original forms look much like human forms, as well. What you see out your window is the original form of an Energy God.”

“What is an Energy God?” I asked, getting frustrated. I didn’t want dad’s madness catching onto me, but whenever he spoke, his earnest attempts and charisma was compelling.

“A creature that can absorb the spirit of a human or animal. Let it be soul, energy, the pneumatic elements in our body, they can take all of it with one touch,” he explained. “They’re not labelled with one name. They can be called Spirit Demons, Genieres, Mages or Sorcerers of Vigor. Or simply energy demons.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” I said, my head clouded with thoughts, doubts, and a whole lot of other things. “You mean that thing can kill me?” Dad turned grim and I peeked through the curtains. “It can suck my soul in one instant?”

“Could be possible depending on how powerful it is,” dad said, “but they need the energy of others to survive. They don’t need the food we eat, or the water we drink.”

Fear crawled up my skin. “Is it anyone? Can they possess the soul or energy of anyone?”

No words left dad’s mouth for a bit. “That’s the mystery. The Energy God outside our house now is seeking something from you, but it didn’t make a move yet.” Thanks a lot for pointing that out, dad. “I wonder if there are specific humans or animals they find appetizing, or could get a colossal amount of energy from.”

“Is there a name for them, too?” I asked with slight sarcasm. It was too much to know all of this in one blow, and I wasn’t sure if all of it was real. Then again, those red eyes I saw were real, so this had to be, too.

“I don’t know, and the book doesn’t specify,” he said, and brushed a thumb over the cover. “If it does have answers, I can’t read the language on the pages. This thing that looks like a magnifying glass,” he picked up the large object and hovered it over the book, “can covert these encrypted symbols to English, Greek, or other languages depending on what page and letter.”

I peeped into the magnifying glass and saw a zoomed, twisted version of the title which now read ‘Paradox’ in Romanian text. The other words were unidentifiable.

“Listen to me,” dad said, and my heart squeezed at the tenderness of his voice. “Once you know the truth and dive in to this world of fantasy, it is impossible to live a normal life. I failed to get a fill of both, and here I am. But you can’t end up like me.”

“Dad, you’re no different than the rest of us,” I told him.

“I am.” His eyes skipped from his equipment, one to another. “This is me. But you’re not me. You have a social life and a family. So try to put this out of your mind, because in reality, this is what you are. In reality, no one else but we know this is real.”

His words etched into my mind like carvings on stone. It was hard to commemorate this without going insane, but it was a truth I had to accept since there was no going back to the past. The only other possibility would be to wake up and realize everything was just a dream.

But it wasn’t, as I realized that the next day.

* * *

There was no school today, nor was there school on Monday which gave us four days to prepare, depart and arrive for camping. Odelia provided most of the equipment for me, although mom was fine with buying me the items. I grabbed my sunhat that bright morning and gazed up at the sky while mom and Odelia talked on the driveway. The air was fresh and crisp, perfect for a trip to the mountains.

An SUV was parked against the curb of the street. Ryu was in the drivers’ seat with Emerald at the front with him. Zavian and Amber were chatting in front of the vehicle’s headlights.

Whatever elixir Zavian gave Amber was working. He wouldn’t have gotten this far if Caspian and Amber didn’t become a couple. But were they a couple? The entire school thought so, and Amber acted so, but Caspian had never accepted the fact they were one. Now, both of them didn’t care about it.

“Eve!” Atlanta called from the other side of the street. I waved. “Tell me which sunglasses I should wear. This one, or this one.” She interchanged the glasses and I picked the first one.

“You’re not going on vacation, Atlanta,” Amber said, and she glanced at me. “Besides, why is she coming? I thought we agreed to leave her alone. We have nothing to do with her.”

“She’s a friend who’s hanging out with us,” Atlanta pouted. “And she’s my only friend, and I want her to come with us.” I grinned in gratitude of her support.

My grin dropped when I remembered Haiti and Luna saying those things about me using Atlanta. I wholeheartedly didn’t think I was that kind of person, but it gnawed on me like an itch.

“You’re all packed up, kids?” Odelia said, coming towards the SUV with mom. Emerald told her we weren’t kids and Odelia chuckled. “Okay then. Be careful, and make sure you save up that energy.”

“Ha, ha,” Ryu said, but there was no trace of humour in his voice. Caspian stepped out of the Cages' house with a bag slung on his shoulder. He put it into the SUV and talked to Ryu for a minute. Ryu’s eyes flicked to me.

“Come on, Eve,” Atlanta said, grabbing my hand. She let go when we reached the door to the SUV. “Bye, mom!” Odelia waved cheerfully and I looked at my own mother.

She was worried. “You’ll be safe, right?” she asked me, and I nodded. “Oh baby, I love you, okay?” For the woman who gave birth to me and had never been this affectionate with me, it melted my heart. I gave her a big hug before I stepped into the SUV.

“All set?” Zavian asked us. “You good, Evelyn?” I shot him a cold look and he laughed.

“Evelyn? Your full name is Evelyn?” Atlanta asked in amusement. I nodded, putting a hand to my forehead. “How cool!” She was sitting between Caspian and me, jumping with excitement. “Man, I can’t wait to see the super moon and the stellar scenery.”

“Did your mom ask her to come?” Ryu asked as he drove out the neighbourhood. His question was directed to Caspian.

“Atlanta wants her here,” Caspian said, slouching in his seat. “But yes, mom brought it up first. Eve’s an add-on. Just ignore her.” I scoffed, and Caspian glanced at me. I sat back so Atlanta blocked my view from him.

“Your mom is very thoughtful,” Ryu continued. “Very generous and…persistent. Isn’t she?” Caspian didn’t reply to that, but Ryu didn’t stop. “What? She lost one of her children before. Is she fine with losing another one?”

That made my ears perk up, but Caspian warned Ryu to not go any further. The car was filled with tension before Caspian rolled the window half-way down. I looked from face to face. There were seven of us.

“We shouldn’t be holding back,” Emerald said, turning her head to look at Caspian. “Why are you backing out of this anyway?” I had no idea what they were talking about, but I decided to tune them out and get some sleep.

“Because I can,” Caspian answered her. “If you go against my word, I can become your enemy. I’m sure you know that.” The air turned thicker and Caspian rolled down the rest of his window. A blast of cool air hit us, sweeping our hair back.

“You’re willing to go against us, huh?” Ryu said. “Good to know.” He switched the gears and sped up. “We should be a team, but I understand Caspian. We all worked alone before.”

“Guys, we’re going on a camping trip,” Zavian said, breaking the awkward silence following Ryu’s remark. “We’re just a bunch of friends now. Including Eve, so don’t bring it up again.”

“That b***h will never be our friend,” Amber spat. The uncivil Amber was back. Unfortunately, I forgot to pack my b-repellent kit.

The houses and trees disappeared from view as barren land came to view. The outskirts merged from the city and we were on a dirt path along the shore. We had a long way to go, hours even. Atlanta fell asleep on my shoulder within the first hour, and I didn’t move her. Caspian, however, waited ten minutes before moving her head onto his shoulder.

I narrowed my eyes at him, my legs and arms crossed. “Mr. Over-Protector,” I muttered. Caspian grinned ever so slightly before turning his head to the window. Amber was asleep against Zavian, and so was Zavian against Amber. The peaceful couple were not bad, to be honest. Much better than Amber with Caspian.

After the next few hours, we were in a rain-forest district, or the empty wilderness. Large mountains lifted from the ground and reached the clouds, while others reached the horizon. It wasn't very sunny here, but warmer due to the sea. The car continued along the shore’s dirt path as we came to a stop at a resort, an unmarked, crippling resort. We could disregard the parking fee and the no-parking spot. There was no one here to stop us at this empty site. We unloaded our bags and made our way past the resort.

“Not as popular as it was before,” Emerald noticed, looking around at the barren land. We were among lush trees and a hiking trail. “Could it be because of the missing people?”

“The deaths? Probably,” Ryu said, and turned to Caspian. “Your brother had been here a while ago, right? What did he call it, the Reiki Sanctuary?”

At this point, Caspian was irritated with Ryu. “Can you not bring up my brother?” he said, and Ryu shrugged. “Let’s get our s**t together before one of us breaks down.”

We came across a clearing where we met the edge of the mountain we were on. The cliff provided an astonishing view of the entire city, and a layer of light fog covered the buildings. My eyes couldn’t stop staring as Zavian pulled out his camera. The kingdom took pictures of each other as I continued to stare down from the edge of the cliff.

“Hey, can you get out of the way?” Emerald said to me. I stepped to the side while she snapped a picture. Atlanta wanted me to come and join them, but I declined her offer.

Atlanta complained about the pictures turning out bad and she had an argument with Amber. “Eve, let’s take one together!” she suggested once more, shaking my arm. Ryu and Emerald have already begun walking, and Amber waited with Zavian as he took one last snap.

“Wait!” Atlanta called. Caspian sighed in agitation when she grabbed the camera, walking backwards. I kicked a rock and watched it fall down from the cliff, disappearing into the fog. “Eve—” she bumped into me and turned. I moved forward, my eyes widening. “Eve!”

It was too late for her to react, because I was seconds away from falling to my death. Damn it! My heart pounded in my ears as I felt my stomach rise and my body tip over the cliff. My arms spread out, but my balance was long gone.

Yet it was so quick, I couldn’t recap what had happened. Before my feet left the ground, an arm circled my stomach like a band of steel and I was pulled back. I crashed to the ground, while still in the arms of whoever saved me. Atlanta rushed over with her hands over her mouth.

“Oh my God,” I breathed, my head pounding, and every pulse in my nerve moving rapidly. I looked back to see Caspian, and somehow, I wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t the first time he caught me from falling, and it took him one-fourth of a second. “How…” I swallowed. “How did you get here so fast?”

“Is that the gratitude I receive?” he said in reply, and I clutched his arms around me, unable to breathe straight. “Don’t be an i***t and stand close to the edge again. Got it?” I nodded tightly. I didn’t want his arms to unwrap around me. I wanted to stay in their comfort until my fear died down and I was able to stand.

Atlanta crouched in front of us. “I’m so sorry, Eve,” she said, and I could see the dread in her eyes. “I wanted a memory of us, that’s all.” She stood up, produced the camera, and took a picture of Caspian and me. She slid the camera out of her face and smiled. “Now, we have a memory of you.”

“Come on, guys!” Zavian called. “They’re waiting for us.”

Atlanta lend me a hand and helped me up. I felt cold after Caspian released me. He dusted himself off and followed from the back of the pack. Through the whole way, he never strayed from me. I could feel the heat roll off his chest as he walked a foot or two behind me. A small smile stretched across my face, but I tried to fight it off.

I didn’t know why I was feeling this way about him, when for the past few months I loathed him. I focused on the trail in front of us. I focused on the person beside me, chatting away like she usually did. Could I call Atlanta my best friend? We earned that title.

“Almost there!” Ryu called from the front of the group.

I hugged myself and continued walking. I snuck a peek behind me to find Caspian looking ahead and over us. “You’re not mad I came?” I asked him.

His eyes slipped down to me. “You can’t back down, now that you’re already here,” he said. He sounded calm. “We’ll have to make the best of it.” He lifted his head. “Try not to die, because no one here is going to look after you.”

“Oh, really?” A smirk played behind my lips. “What’re you doing now?”

“I’d do this even if you weren’t here,” he said flatly. I faced the front. He was right. There was no reason for him to keep me safe, nor was there any sign of difference in his face or body language. I had too many mistaken feelings guiding my thoughts into the wrong direction.

He had been a pitiless jerk, and still was. I shouldn’t forget that.