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LoQuinn's eyes fluttered as a hand pressed firmly against his knee and gave him a gentle shake. "Wake up honey, wake up." said the most familiar voice in his life. He let out a groan which prompted his mother to shake him again with a bit more vigor. "Come on LoQuinn, it's time for you to wake up."

LoQuinn stirred, bringing his hands to his eyes lazily in an attempt to wipe the sleep from them. He blearily looked to his window realizing that the room was awfully dark even for spring. It was still mostly dark outside. "What is it? It's not even morning." he said, his words punctuated by a long yawn and an attempt to roll away from his mother in vain hope that she'd let him resume the dream; in which Nancy Crobin was showering him in kisses after he'd pummeled Mathew Hawthorn.

"Now." There was an urgency to his mothers voice that he'd not heard since he was little and had climbed halfway up the 50ft pine outside their small house. Leslie gave his knee a stern tug causing him to slide in bed and a slight ache to form where her fingers had been. Needless to say it got his attention and he became much more 'awake' than he been moments before. "Sorry. There just isn't much time. Get dressed as soon as possible we need to be out of here in five minutes."

LoQuinn slid out of bed and oozed himself into some pants as his mother stayed just long enough to see him on his feet before leaving the room. She knew that getting her boy to stand was usually more than half the battle, once he was physically 'up' the rest would follow. However LoQuinn looked out into the early morning darkness before glancing at his alarm clock, horrified to see the digital numbers flick over to 4:15am. He was frequently late but his mother had never pushed 'wake up time' this early before.

~~~

Leslie Sumert stared out her 1st floor living room window into the street. At least the b*****d gave us a warning, she thought to herself. The words Samuel had spoken over the phone sickened her even now: 'They're coming for LoQuinn, so when theres a knock on the door just let them in, just let them take him.' His own son. He'd walked out and betrayed his child over what, an uneasy stomach and some minor property damage. Her boy wasn't a monster, he was put into that situation because the Hawthorn's boy was a degenerate. "LoQuinn! When you're done come on outside, we're going to McDonalds for breakfast today" she shouted upstairs. Leslie grabbed her car keys and headed out to the garage. She hadn't packed anything, better for them to think that they'd gotten an early start and have them check his school or her work.

As Leslie headed into the garage she heard the faucet in the bathroom turn on as her son began to brush his teeth. It gave her all the time she needed to unlock a tool closet and the locked but ordinary toolbox held within. She turned the key and removed the lock, the lid slid open with a slight groan revealing the Glock 18, 9mm handgun and ammo held within. As she inserted the first clip she thought agiain to those words 'just let them take him', she cleared the breach with a satisfying 'click' and pocketed the ammo.

~~~

When LoQuinn came running through the outside doors he noticed his mothers eyes stayed to the mirrors. However he paid it no mind and got inside. "So where are we headed?" It was an innocent enough question to ask as the small Toyota pulled out of the driveway and started off on it's journey 'away'.

"LoQuinn, I'll tell you straight, you're old enough for that I think. There are people in this world that hate you, hate you enough to hurt you or take you away from me," her voice began to fray at the edges and it was a sound that put LoQuinn on mute and fixed his eyes to the floor. "I however am not willing to let them hurt you, and if leaving is the only way for you to be safe then that's whats happening." The sound of the outside world whooshing by took over for a moment as silence fell once more.

"How did you find out?" LoQuinn asked.

"Samuel called." she said with emptiness in her voice. LoQuinn had taken notice that his mother had still called Samuel Sumert 'HIS father' up until this moment. Perhaps she could understand his failure to accept LoQuinn's differences but whatever part Samuel had in this was crossing that line of understaning. LoQuinn's heart however lifted for the slightest moment before his mind crushed it completely. His father likely hadn't been looking out for LoQuinn, rather he probably didn't want Leslie getting hurt on the behalf of a freak.

It would be several hours before LoQuinn stopped staring at the floor.

LoQuinn stared at the concrete building before him. It was a school, not unlike many others he'd been to. The past seven months of his life had been tough but he'd adjusted. It took some getting used to, running away. A different residence every night, a different name everywhere they went. His mother had sold her credit cards to gain extra money and they'd moved hoping that any transactions made by whomever would throw their persuers farther off their scent. It was fine though cash, as LoQuinn found, was king. They were eating cheaply, canned foods and soups mostly, stretching their money for things that really mattered. However LoQuinn kept his mouth shut the whole time about it knowing that whatever he was going through now was far better than the treatment he could expect if the government got their hands on him. He'd heard what the other children said despite the lectures they recieved on 'evolved rehabilitation'. Though he doubted that a child's account was credible he didn't plan on risking being thrown into a 'freak prison'.

His mother finally felt that they were far enough away and on the run long enough to simply attempt some stability. Leslie had rented a one bedroom studio month to month while working for their new complex. LoQuinn knew that it was a big step down for her he wasn't sure what she did beforehand, she'd always been sketchy on it though he believed it to be something to do with biochemistry.

However here he was tempting fate by mixing with society once more. His education was second only to his safety. He glanced at his schedule: English, Math, World History, Intro to the Arts, Gym, and Earth Science. It didn't seem too hard a day though his heart gave a slight flutter when he saw Earth Science. He'd always had an interest in the earth eversince he'd first started to feel it's vibrations. He felt an intrinsic bond with it, the subject, geology as a whole. It was enough to look forward to that even Gym didn't seem quite as daunting.

LoQuinn shifted his backpack slinging it over his shoulder as he walked towards the front entrace. He'd be a new face, a new student, a new start. LoQuinn was 14 now, and beginning to lose some of his boyishness, he had entered high school at the start of the new academic year. He would force himself to be outgoing, he would make as many connections as quick as possible even if they weren't strong. Perhaps if he was left alone he could just like everyone else. People would think twice about bullying a well known person, even if they were just a name and a face. Strength in numbers. LoQuinn no longer had any intention of being anything but strong.

LoQuinn stared at the double doors leading to the cafeteria. He mulled over Lydia's words trying to muster up the courage he needed to enter. He knew that by not sticking around and defending himself the day before he'd given them precedence with which to judge him. He could bet anything he owned that if he didn't go in there and sit down he'd become a mystery to the girl and if he knew anything it was that people like to pick at what they didn't know. And if Lydia and her friends picked at his background with any serious effort it was likely that they'd uncover something. There were somethings he didn't want to have to do again, one of those was to move. He was tired of having to pick up every few months or a year and move to some other place and start over once again. He would make this town his home even if it meant dealing with a few brats every now and then.

Sucking in a breath to help crush down the anxiety that was creeping along his stomach he pushed open the lunch room doors. The fuzzy sensations in the ground beneath his feet came back almost instantly. LoQuinn pressed on, less disturbed having felt it once already he saw the large frame of the meat bag who loitered with the amber haired girls her friends. However Lydia wasn't sitting with them. LoQuinn allowed himself to relax a little for a moment before he flinched as a hand made it's presence known on his arm. His head snapped to the side as pressure on the crook of his elbow began to pull him towards the group he'd been spying on.

"Oh don't look so surprised, you knew this was coming it's why you dawdled after class for so long." Lydia's voice met his ears before he actually registered who it was he was staring at in shock. LoQuinn felt a slight nausea pass over him, as though he were some dolphin being dredged up by a trawler.

"You spied on me?" he said flatly as they approached the table.
"Aw don't take it personal, just a look see. Same as you did just now." She let go of his arm and he found himself once again over a centrally located spot, the same exact seat he'd had the day before. The group quieted again as he set his food down and scanned them with the slightest bit of arrogance in his eyes. If they were going to be his inquisitors then he wasn't going to get too friendly with them. Things were quiet for a bit, a time LoQuinn spent completely still unwilling to resort to nervous habits such as putting small tears into his lunch sack.

LoQuinn was the first to break the silence.
"So do you guys eat or do you just stare and make people uncomfortable?"
"A little of both actually," one of the girls said with a bit of mirth in her voice, she wore glasses that were a little too large for her face, the rest of the group chuckled somewhat.
Lydia sipped from a once-bottle that was now naked except for a few traces of the glue that kept the glossy cover on. "We're really more interested in you actually." The statement would have made LoQuinn's pubescent heart racing if it hadn't been said as casually as anything he'd ever heard. "It's not often that someone new comes from the 'outside'. Usually a new batch of freshmen come in and we know them from around town or through siblings. There have been two other 'new' kids since I graduated elementary school."
"I'm flattered to be in your zoo. But twenty questions and nasty accusations aren't how I like to start things off. Can't think of anyone who would."
Honest smiles began to grace the faces of his tribunal. Apparently they enjoyed sarcasm, good because he'd become a fair bit of jaded as of late.

Lunch went fairly well from that point on, there were some questions here and there. Mostly about classes and his opinions on the teachers. Each of the group had introduced themselves. LoQuinn already knew Lydia. The large boy's name was Colin, he'd been expelled from a school elsewhere in the state and this was his last chance at a high school education in the state. What amazed LoQuinn was that Colin was only about six months older than him, 'some people come from big stock' his mother had always said. There was Elizabeth, the girl who wore glasses, she seemed somewhat outspoken, second only to Lydia. Finally there was Mo, short for Monique, she stayed quiet throughout the whole of the lunch. She wore very simple clothing and had a constant air of serious tension about her.

As the bell rang for the next set of classes his new acquaintances stood up and turned. "I'm Eric." said LoQuinn, using his alias.

"We know," they replied in unison.

"Why're we out here?" LoQuinn asked tentatively.
The air was chilled and his syllables were accented by puffs of whispy white. There was no snow on the ground but the foliage underneath his feet crunched as he trudged ever upwards along the alpine slope after his mother. They'd driven for several hours, leaving at nearly 8am (an ungodly hour in LoQuinn's mind) on Saturday. He hoped it had something more to do with skiing or some other snow filled sport rather than some cruel attempt to force him into another one of her diet schemes. His mother suffered from the delusion that all women needed a fair amount of suffering in their lives to be considered beautiful. So if this turned out to be a weight loss trek through the 'savage lands' the sooner he learned the sooner he could walk the half mile or so back to the car.

"We're going somewhere." The voice called from up ahead.
Leslie was fairly athletic, went to a gym but the first hints of age was beginning to set in. She stopped walking only a few moments later at the crest of the closeest little ridge. She turned around to watch her son climb the fifty or so feet he was lagging behind.

"Really, here I was thinking we were back at home where it's warm and..." As LoQuinn approached he felt something a little bit different than what he was used to normally. It was a sensation similar to that of having very slight pins and needles in his feet. The sensation spread slightly up into his ankles as he continued to walk an then his legs.

"What do you feel?" She asked. It was quite apparent that she knew a great deal more about what was going on than she let on. All of a sudden things seemed much less than some crazed fitness trip.

"Mom whats going on?" he said as he continued to climb. The further up he went the more the sensation spread. He stopped level, giving his legs a slight shake to see if they really were asleep.

"What are you feelling."
"It's like my feet are asleep, I know they aren't but it's just weird, where are we."
"We're standing on top of an incredibly dense section of igneous rock located not much more than fifty feet below us. What you're feeling is probably due to your proximity to it."

So his mother was a geologist as well? There would be much explaining to do. However before he could open up his mouth she pulled something from her pocket and held it out for him. It was a stone, unremarkable in design, until he plucked it from his mothers palm. It caused his fingers to tingle in a similar fashion as his feet. He didn't have to ask if it was the same type of stone as what laid below them. The sensations were more or less the same

((I'll be finishing this up later))