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 Posted: Sat Sep 30, 2006 3:31 pm
Quote: January 15, 2007 ~ "Let me tell you something," Shawn murmured quietly as Demetri began to eat, putting his worn-down sneakers up on a nearby chair to rest his legs. He stared at them intently, as if they would give him the answer to an unspoken question in his mind. Should he tell the boy his story? Was it worth putting doubts into his new friend's head? Then again, the best thing he felt he could do was probably to tell it the way it happened. Perhaps if Demetri ever got into a smiliar situation, he'd be able to think twice before trusting complete strangers. "Last night I was...well, I was in my own city." There was no sense in giving out useless information. Why bother with minor details? After all, no one really seemed to care about what city someone lived in if they were homeless. "It's dangerous around the streets at night, and no one knew that more than I did, but I was only on my way home. I knew the way well enough. I just never expected I'd run into trouble." Darrow carefully neglected to mention his 'home' was a back ally behind some large building corperation as he continued. "It was a pokemon. I didn't run into it, exactly - I figured it had been following me for quite some time, but when I turned around, it realized I had spotted it and it attecked me with Lick. Clever b*****d..." Darrow swore, the memory still vividly accurate in his mind, along with the overwhelming sensation of fear. Never had he remembered being so terrified of a pokemon in his entire life. "It paralyzed me! I couldn't run very far, but I was lucky I could run at all. ~ In Hayden's rp, it is explained why Shawn is an especially fast runner - something ironic since when he is morphed he can no longer run (no feet, no sneakers, no running) ~ Lick causes parylyzation, not confusion as stated in Shawn's report. He's quite ignorant of pokemon, however, so he has an excuse. He talks to Demetri about how he got paralyzed too, though. ~ Corperation...is this Flare's corperation? We know his father owned a big company. ~ His mother died by a pokemon, so that explains his knowledge of how dangerous night streets are, and his caution of pokemon ~ Having hurt himself when crashing into Demetri, it explains he was used to being hurt on the rough allies before.
What had happened? Shawn couldn't even remember falling asleep. Why was he so sore? It seemed as though he'd been out for quite a few hours. Then, realization dawned on him. The thought of the Haunter that had emerged from behind, straight through a box. The fright would have been enough to give anyone a heart attack. But no, he hadn't had a heart attack. Perhaps he had fainted, but Shawn suspected something else. A memory came back - the last thing he had seen before blacking out. The Haunter had been acting funny and waved a clawed finger in his face. He had tried to look away, but to no avail. It was like being...hypnotized.
A sudden fear consumed him, and he found himself even more reluctant to open his eyes. What if...just possibly...the Haunter was still there, watiting for him to wake up and drain his life? But then, couldn't it have done that in his sleep? Maybe it wanted to toy with him; mess with his mind with its illusions...
SLAM!
Shawn jolted upright, his sepia eyes wide. The warehouse's garage had been raised. The sun was nearly blinding as it filled the small, cramped space. Men's voices were heard outside. The air was rather...salty, and the sound of ocean waves reached his ears. He buried himself deeper within the boxes, his fear of the ghost pokemon forgotten for the time being.
Waves?! The warehouse he'd stumbled into last night hadn't been by the sea. In fact, Goldenrod itself was nowhere near any body of water with waves. What was going on?!
A man's voice sounded closer, and the boy realized they must have been unloading boxes. He didn't understand. The warehouse was supposed to have been abandoned! He had to get out of here - before someone saw him and suspected him of stealing merchandise, whatever it was. He hardly had time to think of what he had been laying on.
The boxes that surrounded him were marked with curiously strange numbers, all meant to go to some Cronus Labratory. Shawn couldn't guess where that might have been, but he wasn't keen on sticking around. His delirious mind must have imagined the waves, he decided, and when the nearest man's back was turned, he'd make a break for it.
At last, he saw his chance. Racing as fast as his legs had ever taken him, Shawn Darrow leaped out from his box fortress, stumbled as he ran across the unexpected ramp, and into the broad daylight.
A beach. An endless, shoreline stretched before him. "Where the heck am I?" he murmured to himself, inner panic vacant in his voice. From behind, he was immediately aware of the many pairs of eyes on him. Turning, he saw the men moving boxes staring, and, without another thought, took off running inland. Perhaps he'd get help there.
Only once did he glance back, in hopes of a clue that might answer the many questions now overwhelming his shocked, groggy mind. The Haunter was no where in sight. He must have been silly to think it had followed him. A ship stood out against the ocean, and what he had assumed to be a warehouse was the interior of it, filled with boxes. The men were shouting now, and pointing at the stowaway, but none made a move to go after him. However, Shawn did glimpse one of them men contact someone on a radio. Fear raced through his vains and made his heart beat faster with the pump of adrenaline. They planned to hunt him down.
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Posted: Sat Sep 30, 2006 4:55 pm
"Someone! Anyone! We got a problem here on the docks! Would someone up there pick up the damn radio!?!?"
The voice crackled through the walkie talkie, sounding alternately angry and panicked depending on the sentence. Finally, one of the CRONUS observers rushed back into the room, taking his place before the wall of screens, linked to security camera set up in the most important locations on the island, including the docks where supply shipments were delivered. "Geez, can't a guy even take a bathroom break?" he muttered, obviously already in a bad mood. Dropping heavily into his seat, he pushed a button on the console that activated the built-in radio communications module. "Yes? What's the problem down there?"
"Take a look at your damn cameras and you'll see what I mean!" The voice of the dock worker was just as harsh, now that he finally had someone he could pass the problem off on. It wouldn't be his problem anymore after this.
With an irritated grunt, the security specialist turned back to his wall of monitors, searching out the group of screens showing the docks. It wasn't more than a minute before a blur zipped by one camera before pausing in front of another. "What the...where did that child come from?!?" Moments later he was pounding on the panic button, calling his superiors and reporting the incident.
Ten minutes later, one unfortunate guard by the name of Hayden was hastily buttoning the top of his uniform as he dashed down the hall, rushing to carry out orders to bring the stowaway in.
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Sep 30, 2006 8:34 pm
The fifteen-year-old crouched low, panting heavily as he caught his breath. He hadn't managed to get far, but already he was sure he could see the promising white walls of buildings just past the palm trees and tropical foilage.
He stared at it, wondering whether or not it would be a good place to head toward. There were bound to be people there, and having lived in a city all his life, buildings and people were the most familiar to Shawn. Still, he had to question...what kind of people might have resided here? The building sure looked official, like a company or something. He wished he could see enough to read a sign or a company name, but he wasn't willing to take the risk. If he remained where he was, he had less chance of being spotted than if he was tearing down madly toward the place.
"Haun...hanuter?"
"Whoa - ahhh!" Shawn fell back hard as he heard the voice sound from behind him. It seemed the Haunter had found him after all.
"S-stay away from me..." He mumbled, backing up against a palm tree.
The pokemon, whether it understood or not, refused to obey. It couldn't see any reason to. The boy had no pokeball; no other pokemon; no badges. It was obvious he was in no authority. Haunter laughed and waggled its tounge at Shawn wildly, floating and swooping at him from high up.
Its insane cackles unnerved Shawn, causing him to edge farther and farther away in case the creature just decided to attack. One thing he knew about ghost pokemon were they were very unpredictable; one moment they could appear to be playing, another they could be hypnotising you and giving you nightmares.
In a desparate attempt to escape, he scrambled to his feet and raced toward the white buildings, hoping against hope the Haunter would choose not to pursue. As soon as he spotted the young man in the guard uniform emerge from a door, however, he swerved in an attempt to avoid him, swearing. It was then Darrow pondered whether the guard had something to do with whoever the other man at the docks had contacted. If so, he intended to stay hidden for as long as possible, even if it meant having to constantly try to evade the stalking Haunter.
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Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 9:32 pm
Hayden blinked in surprise as he stepped out of the door and was nearly run over by the young boy. Was it going to be this easy? His quarry was just going to deliver itself to him?
Apparently not. The boy quickly swerved, changing direction with a curse and scrambling off in another direction. Hayden began to give chase, then noticed he wasn't the only one persuing the boy. Frowning at the Ghost Pokemon, he called back to the other guards exiting the lab behind him, "You! Take care of that Haunter! I'll get the boy!"
He immediately turned his attention back to young boy, sprinting after him. "Hey, kid! Come back here! I'm not going to hurt you, promise! We'll take care of that Ghost Pokemon that's chasing you! I just want to make sure you're okay!" Nothing he had said was a lie. He did hope that the boy was okay. And he wasn't going to hurt him in any way. Of course, he couldn't speak for the rest of the lab at CRONUS.
Behind him, the sounds of Pokemon being called and orders being barked out sounded across the clearing. Pokemon cries and growls sounded as the battle raged to catch and subdue the Ghost Pokemon darting about in the skies.
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 12:42 pm
'I'll get the boy'? What was that all about? Shawn struggled to contemplate the words that disappeared behind him as he ran. If this place was with the government or something official, surely they didn't want a strange kid running around their property. But something in the way the guard spoke had caused Shawn to be wary.
He barely managed to skid to a halt as he reached a tall white wall. Dead end. Glancing back, the boy considered his options. He could try jumping the wall, but then where would he be? Cornered on the other side by more gaurds? If he tried to climb onto the nearest building, he'd be trapped on the roof. And this was assuming he could manage to haul himself up in the first place. With all that running, he found he was very out of breath; his strength drained.
Exahusted, he decided to give up and slid to the floor in a tired heap. The approaching guard's voice, now directed toward him, was audiable and getting louder as drew near. It was just loud enough to understand over the terrifying pokemon sounds beyond.
Darrow waited patiently, though his mind raced. He couldn't keep from trembling.
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 2:19 pm
"Hey, kid! Come on, wait up!" Hayden pleaded with the youth, struggling to keep up. The kid was fast on his feet and Hayden wasn't exactly trained as a cross-country runner. He was panting when he finally caught up with his quarry. Placing one hand on the wall, he took a moment to catch his breath, chuckling softly. "You're fast, kid! You run track or something?"
Smiling, he crouched by the boy, placing his hand on his small shoulder. "Just wanted to make sure you were okay. What happened back there anyway? Your Haunter turn on you or something? Ghost Pokemon have been known to do that, especially if they're high-leveled."
The sounds of Pokemon battle had died down due to distance, but the young guard was pretty sure they had managed to subdue the rogue Ghost-type by now. There were enough strong, elemental-type Pokemon in the security arsenal to bring down a raging Tyrannitar if they needed to.
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 5:53 pm
Shawn was quiet at first. He simply sat there and watched as the gaurd drew up and halted to catch his breath. Then he answered the young man's question. "No. I'm just used to recognizing danger and staying away form it."
His voice was cold, though some part of him told himself there was no need to be. The man had just given him a compliment. Still, it had triggered the memory of a horrific childhood; racing through the allyways and backstreets to avoid the things that lurked in the shadows, toying with him. He couldn't help but wonder if he was being toyed with at that very moment.
Darrow returned the Hayden's friendly smile wth a hostile glare. He wouldn't be decieved, not after living a life of illusions and lies. It was that very reason he had come to be here in the first place. As soon as the man placed his hand on the boy's shoulder, he flinched and jerked away. "Dont touch me. Don't you even come near me," he spoke in a low voice, dangrous in its own, desparate way.
Shawn's expression dissolved into one of puzzlement with a trace of fear as the guard mentioed the ghost pokemon. "My Haunter? You think that thing's mine?" He let out an eerie laugh, mirthless and harsh.
"Take a good, long look, dude. Do I seem the pokemon trainer type to you?" He spread his arms wide in emphasis, his dirty tank-top and baggy worn jeans just visible beneath his long, black coat. "I have no idea what you're talking about! All I do know is it tricked me into coming here somehow. And I don't even know where 'here' is! What the hell is this place?!"
Though the sounds of the struggle between pokemon had long since faded to be replaced by silence, Shawn could not relax. If anything, it was the silence that alarmed him the most. The silence meant that the Haunter had been delt with. And as he stood there, his spiteful gaze even with the guard crouching a few feet away, Darrow could only ponder if he too was to be dealt with.
If it was so, Shawn promised himself he wouldn't go down without a fight.
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 6:51 pm
Hayden frowned, pulling his hand away after the hostile reaction. "Hey, kid...I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by it. I really just wanted to make sure you were okay." His eyes reflected a sort of honest sadness, even if he didn't realize it. Something about this kid really got to him. He sorta' reminded him...of himself.
How many years ago was it now that CRONUS had swept into his pitiful life and pulled him into its world of deception and lies? It wasn't as if he had had much of a choice at the time. It was either suffer through his personal problems and enormous debts on his own...or leave them all behind and go to work for CRONUS. In a way, they had saved him. Even if he hadn't known exactly what he was signing up for at the time.
He shook off the cloud of memories, looking back at the boy in front of him. Hayden could tell he was scared, 'tough guy' attitude or not. Understandable, really. Afterall, he was in a strange place, and apparently alone, seeing as the Haunter wasn't his.
"Alright, kid," he said tiredly, taking a seat on the ground and leaning back on the wall, still recovering from his mad dash. "I don't know your name, so I'll just keep calling ya' 'kid' until you tell me what you'd rather be called. I'll do my best to answer your questions, 'k?" He waved a hand at the view in front of them. "This is a private island, owned by a research company called CRONUS. They have other labs and offices I hear, but this one is primarily medical and agricultural research. I'm just a guard, so I don't know all the interesting details. I just make sure no spies get in and steal anything. That's pretty much all I'm good for." He smiled good-naturedly. He really wasn't anyone important, afterall. Who would care about what he did?
"I'm sorry again for scaring ya', kid. I didn't mean to upset ya', really. I swear. Just wanted to make sure you were alright. I'm sure the others have caught that rogue Haunter by now, so you won't have to worry about him anymore. They'll probably take it off the island or something before releasing it. Somewhere far away from here, likely."
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 8:14 pm
The boy seemed to soften somewhat at Hayden's reply. The other part of him felt guilty for being so cold, but he had never been away from Goldenrod City before and all he had ever gotten from officers there was trouble. He had been one of those homeless children whom they pitied, but when it came to robberies, was always the first suspect. As a result of the mistrust he had recieved, Shawn had, in turn, learned to trust no one.
He looked away to stare at the ground instead, ashamed of himself at the sorrow in the guard's eyes. Maybe he had been too quick to assume after all. "Yeah, sure...as if anyone would care if I was alright." He traced a circle in the dirt with the toe of his shoe. "I didn't mean to trespass. If I did, I'm sorry. If that's what this is all about, I'll gladly take the first ship out of here."
Darrow glanced up at Hayden as the guard seated himself against the wall. "That's fine with me. Don't see why you need to know my name. You haven't given me yours." Shawn may have felt sorry for being so hostile before, but he didn't want any sort of friendship with this man until he was certain he could trust him. He wanted to make it clear he wasn't gullible. "I'm listening." The boy crossed his arms over his chest in a defiant stance and listened carefully as Hayden explained about the island.
"An island?" He raised his brows in surprise. "Reaserch company, huh? Well, seeing as I don't need any research done and I could care less about medical or agricultural details, just point me in the right direction and I'll be out of your way faster than you can say 'Cronus'. I swear I'm no spy, and I'm definately not out to steal anything." He shrugged and again held up his hands to prove his point.
"Thanks for your concern, whether or not it's genuine. I'm fine. And Thanks for taking care of my stalker. I don't care where it's released, as long as it's far away as possible from me." Shawn looked hard at Hayden, regarding him as if for the first time. "So...now that you know I'm no threat, you don't need me around do you? Just tell me where I can get a ride." His tone almost seemed sarcastic, as if testing Hayden. It was almost as if he doubted the young guard.
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 9:00 pm
Hayden smirked, laughing. "We'll I'd call ya' a cab myself, but they don't usually come out this far for pick-ups." Meet sarcasm with sarcasm; good way to live life, eh? He thought so. "And judging by the commotion I heard you caused down at the docks, I'm sure the boat is long gone by now. Those guys aren't exactly the most reliable anyway. I don't know why CRONUS keeps using them, honestly. First sign of trouble and they run, passing the buck to someone else." He rolled his eyes, arm resting casually on his knee.
"Well, I'm sure we can arrange a ride for you on the next ship that brings in supplies," he nodded reassuringly. "Shipments usually arrive once a week, so you shouldn't have long to wait. Until then, I'm sure we can find a spare room for you up at the lab. There are enough scientists and researchers that stay here year round that they always keep extra rooms available in the main lab building."
He yawned, stretching and standing up, brushing off his pants as he did so. "We can head back that way now, if you want. Unless you'd rather stay out here for the next week with the wild Pokemon on the island?" He chuckled, offering the boy a hand. "Name's Hayden, by the way."
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 10:43 pm
"Heh...I guess not." Shawn allowed himself a slight, sad smile. He wasn't in the mood for jokes. And he still couldn't tell if the guy was trustworthy or not.
"What? Long gone?" he repeated in disbelief. "What, they just planned to leave me here? What kind of idots - ?!" Taking a deep breath, he let it out in a big sigh. "Yeah, well, if they didn't even notice they were loading on a boy and a pokemon onto their ship, I'm guessing they wouldn't be." But with careless people like that, who wold bother checking the shipment crates? Shawn began to wish he'd had time to check just exactly what was in those boxes before. It hadn't sounded like only medical and aggricultural supplies in there, and he was sure he had seen the glint of sharp steel once. But then, what did he know about either?
It was then the guard's words began to sink in. "Once a week?! Are you serious? I can't wait that long, I have to...to..." To do what? Get back home? If the back alleys of Goldenrod city could be called a home. It seemed even more dangerous there than on this island. And yet, it somehow seemd much less sinister. But who would miss him? No one cared. He had no family; no friends but for Flare. Flare had his own life, though. He could live it without Shawn.
As the boy opened his mouth to protest at the suggestion of lab rooms, he shut it just as quickly. The young man rose, and somehow predicting Shawn's thought processing, silenced him with the mention of wild pokemon residing on the island. How did he get himself into this mess?
"I...alright. I guess...if it's okay with everyone in the labratories..." His mouth opened slightly in surprise at the hand extended toward him, then he closed it and turned away to face the white buildings without acknowledging the friendly gesture. "Shawn." he replied quietly.
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Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 11:01 am
Hayden smiled sheepishly, lowering his hand with an awkward cough. "Err, yeah. Anyway, don't worry; it's no trouble at all. It's not your fault you're stuck here afterall. We'll get a room set up for you as soon as we get back to the lab."
He turned around, trusting Shawn would follow as he headed back towards the largest of the sterile-looking white buildings. He stared at the ground as he walked, inner turmoil tearing at his gut. How could he keep doing this? The lies, the deception, the betrayal? Each time it got easier...and yet harder at the same time. And each time, some part of him died inside. It wasn't as if he had much choice in the matter. It was either them or him, and what sane person wouldn't choose to save their own life? But how much longer could he keep this up? How long until the strain make him crack...or something worse happened?
His thoughts were interrupted briefly when they reached the door he'd come through earlier. He pulled out a security card, swiping it in the reader, then pushing the door open and leading Shawn into a long corridor lined with doors, some marked clearly, some marked with mysterious code names and numbers.
"The dormitories are this way," Hayden explained, turning left and walking down a side hallway.
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Oct 07, 2006 12:47 am
The boy, though quite younger than the guard Hayden, found it moderately easy to keep up, despite his baggy jeans and long coat that somehow never seemed a hinderance. He followed his new aquaintance reluctantly toward the most intimidating building, and though Shawn was used to buildings, the ones he spent time around weren't so...well...clean-looking. The place was unnaturally spotless, as if brand new. If Darrow had ever visited a doctor's clinic before, he might have noticed the resemblance, but he hadn't, so he didn't. All he noticed was the curious eerieness of it all.
As Shawn entered the secruity door afer Hayden, he felt it again; something wasn't right. His keen intuition had developed from being around so many ghost pokemon; the feeling of being watched, of having another unseen presance nearby. It was his way of comforting himself that he used to try and discover the reason for his uneasiness each time. Here, though, he felt so alien he knew he wouldn't be allowed to go poking around seeking what made him so nervous. Perhaps the Haunter was being kept around here somewhere and its ghostly presance was what disturbed him. As that was the only explaination he could come up with, Shawn decided to stick with it. But the worry wouldn't go away.
At the same time, Shawn sensed a similar sort of unease about Hayden, but he didn't think it was caused by the same feeling. The young man was definately troubled, but as Darrow was unlikely to inquire if he sensed something strange in the halls, his reason was not revealed.
In a second attempt to rid himself of his own unease, the boy glanced at every door they passed, noting a few of the names and numbers, but not really holding them to any significance. He nodded as Hayden stated the direction of the dormitories and followed almost eagerly. He had never had a room before; never a proper bed. In his inner excitement, his worries and concerns were momentarily forgotten.
"Do many scientists live here?" he asked casually.
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2006 5:35 pm
"Hmm?" Hayden was startled out of his thoughts once more, shaking his head slightly. He really needed to stop zoning out like that. "Err, yeah. It's easier to just live here than trying to commute back and forth from the mainland, as you might imagine," he chuckled good-naturedly. "And there are a lot of scientists involved in a lot of projects, so we have a pretty large dormitory section. Some of the higher-ups and doctors have private rooms in an adjacent building, but most of us are stuck here in the lab building." He smirked, winking at Shawn. "'Fraid you'll have to settle for one of those rooms for a week. They're nothing special, but ya' get a bed and three square meals, so it's not a bad deal, eh?"
Laughing, Hayden paused in front of a door labeled only by a number. "Here we go. This room is empty if I remember correctly." He pushed open the door, revealing a sparsely-furnished, though spotless room, containing only a small cot-like bed, a chair, a table, a sink, and an adjacent mini-bathroom. "Like I said, it's not much, but it's something, right?" Grinning sheepishly, Hayden ushered Shawn inside. "If you'll wait here for just a bit, I'll go arrange everything for your stay here with the doctors. And don't worry...I'll take the heat if there's any trouble, 'k? You just relax. In fact, this might take a while, so go ahead and make yourself comfortable. Take a nap if you want. I'll be back as soon as everything is arranged."
Without giving the boy a chance to object or even respond, Hayden turned to leave, letting the door swing shut behind him. As he walked down the hall, polished shoes echoing his steps down the empty corridor, a soft ominous click signaled the door locking behind him. His portion of the work was done. Now to disappear until he was beckoned to do some other awful deed for those dubbed his 'superiors'...
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Spliced - Cronus Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2006 11:04 pm
"Huh. Guess that makes sense. Something bothering you, Hayden?" Shawn inquired, with a tone somewhere between skeptisism and concern. He regarded the guard with a suspicious glance before turning away to look at the passing doors. Now the man was acting just a bit too friendly. Not that Darrow knew much about being friendly. He supposed he was overreacting and tried to ignore it.
The smirk and wink helped to put him at ease some. He shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Just so long as I don't have to deal with any pokemon while I'm here. That's pretty generous, actually." Shawn was just about to mention he had no money to pay for the room and food when Hayden halted just outside a door. As he opened it, the boy's eyes widened in surprise.
It was nothing at all like he'd pictured. In fact, it couldn't have been farther from the images of the dank, dirty jail cell he'd pictured. Just like the sterile white building, the room was spotless. And better yet, it was furnished with much more than Shawn had ever hoped for. A table and chair? A bed? A sink and a bathroom, all just for him? And with no fear of pokemon coming to give him nightmares in his sleep? His mouth hung open slightly, at a loss for words.
"This...this is all for me? B-but...but I..." Before he managed to complete his sentance, Darrow found himself being shoved inside the simple, clean room, with Hayden chattering on. Shawn couldn't make out all his words. The ones he did hear he couldn't be sure he had heard right. Make himself comfortable? Take a nap? Arranged? And just a few minutes ago he had been running like he was a criminal, and now...now he was being treated like he'd never been in his entire life. Like he was someone more than a street orphen. What was with this place? Surely they couldn't expect him to pay for all this?
But then, hadn't Hayden said something about everything being 'arranged'? This both calmed and bothered Shawn, though he couldn't fully understand why either was happening. Perhaps he could ask Hayden. However, looking up, he discovered the young man had alreay left. Plopping down onto the cot, he sat there in silence, trying to take everything in.
Arrangement had to mean this was probably all free. But why? Why would they do this? Hayden had said it wasn't much, but it had to cost something. Maybe they wanted him to work for his keep. Oh well - he'd worry about that later. It wouldn't be too bad.
But then something like panic had risen in the back of his mind. What was it? It was that same feeling in the hallway...the feeling something was terribly wrong. Arrangement could also mean another thing; that this was all planned. A plot of some kind. But for what?
Now Shawn knew he was being ridiculous. He had to speak with someone right away. Surely someone could tell him what was going on? And maybe in the meantime while he was serching for answers, he could figure out what it was that upset him so.
But as he got up off the bed and reached for the door knob, he discovered with a sort of detached conciousness that the door was locked. As Darrow's nimble fingers fiddled with the knob absently, it was a whole five minutes before his awarenemss came into focus and he realized it had been locked from the outside.
An awful, terrible notion forced its way into his thoughts.
"Hayden? Hey, HAYDEN?! HAYDEN, ANSWER ME!"
Frantic fists beat on the door, but in vain.
"HELLO?! Anyone?!"
He knew he had been tricked.
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