Mechanical gods

(author's note: the first chapter is a bit boring, introducing characters pretty much, so I included chapter 2 in the first post. Please excuse my failure of a writing ability -w-')

Chapter one: Kaylyn

If a genius were to create a device that solved all of humanity’s problems there would be world peace and then…?
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The girl stood in front of a woman that had a strange look about her- light pink hair that had been styled into a short boyish haircut, striking violet eyes, and pale skin. There were several computer screens around them, each one showing some sort of natural world disaster. War, storms, a poster that held an Amber Alert on it, and other screenshots flashed across each one. They appeared to be arguing about something. “We don’t need any of that!” The girl finally cried out. The woman seemed taken aback, an expression of shock flashing across her face. After the shock was revealed, the woman then smirked, closing her eyes as if to say through actions, “Okay, then.” It was then something was breaking… something…. The sound of glass was shattering, but none of the computer screens seemed broken. It was coming from something else- but what? It was then a beeping sund echoed throughout the darkened room, clashing with the shattering sound. “Beep! Beep-

Beep! Beep! Beep! Kaylyn yawned, slamming down on her alarm clock lazily, missing the snooze button. She slammed down on the clock again, her head still buried in her pillow. This time, the alarm clock shut up. She rolled off her stomach and onto her back, rubbing the sleep out of her brown eyes before staring at the ceiling. That dream was much like the other dreams she’d been having in the past year- realistic, as if she were actually in the room. She had grown used to the strange happenings, now, though. She started having the dreams when “it” arrived.

“It” was the strange cube that seemed to appear worldwide about a year ago. No one knows where they came from- they just appeared randomly to a handful of people. Some owners of the objects decided to make their ownership public and ended up on the news. Each cube gave someone a special ability of some sort, at least that’s what everyone else thought. Kaylyn, however, didn’t think so. This is because of the fact that while everyone that had announced their ownership of the cubes had some special ability, Kaylyn had… nothing. Only the same weird dreams every night. Recently, though, not as many were revealing their ownerships of the cubes (and Kaylyn certainly wasn’t planning on doing it, herself). Each person that made their possession of the eccentric items was slowly being killed off by some unknown murderer and their cubes were being stolen. The media was calling the murderer Pandora, as the person only seemed to have interests in the small cubes that were just like boxes and so, just as Pandora released the many diseases and beasts of the world for the sake of her curiosity being quenched, the murderer was the deliverer of chaos for the sake of acquiring the cubes. So now whoever is left of the owners of the cubes is not willing to say it.

Kaylyn lazily stood up and looked at the clock again. Seven-Thirty-three. School begins at eight. Oh, crap. She grabbed her cube and ran towards the restroom, feeling goose bumps appear on her body when her feet hit the cold wooden floor. She walked in the bathroom and looked in the mirror, wincing at the sight. Her usually wavy blonde hair was matted in a rat’s nest on top of her head. She quickly opened the restroom cabinet and grabbed her brush, brushing out the tangles hurriedly. Once done, Kaylyn ran back into her room, slipping on a plain, short-sleeved light yellow V-neck and a pair of faded, blue-jean capris. After slipping on a pair of sandals and not even bothering with makeup, she rushed downstairs, sliding to a stop near the front door of the house.

“Mom! Dad! I’m going to school!” she called before pausing, as if waiting for a reply. Just as she expected, there was no answer. Her dad was probably already at work and mom wiped out from the nighttime shifts she does at work. Kaylyn sighed, grabbing a Dr. Pepper from the refrigerator and her backpack from the kitchen table (after placing her cube in it, of course) before heading out. Sure, a soda wasn’t the healthiest thing for breakfast, but it worked just fine for an occasional thing.

Kaylyn ran four blocks towards Harksville High School, making sure that the cube was still in her back pack the whole time. She had to make sure she had the item. The cubes, while a gift for several, excluding Kaylyn, was also a curse for all the holders of it. Apparently everyone who owns a cube has the same side effect from it- they feel weaker, almost as if their energy is being drained, whenever the cube isn’t with them. At least, that’s what the media, Kaylyn, and everyone else though, as those who made their ownership public had all said this was the case with them.

Kaylyn made it to school just as the first bell announcing the start of school went off. She had made it just in time. Kaylyn walked into her first hour class and slid into the back row, sitting next to a girl with strait light brown hair that extended to her shoulders and was wearing a light green hoodie and dark blue skinny jeans. She was one of the people that could look attractive without even trying. Her light blue eyes turned to Kaylyn as she sat down before widening. Her mouth turned into an “o” shape in shock before her voice came out in a quiet, amused tone. “Did you double check your hair before leaving the house this morning?” Kaylyn sheepishly looked up at the girl. “What’s wrong with it, Lisa? I thought it looked fine whenever I left.” Lisa shook her head before looking up at the front of the classroom, making sure the teacher wasn’t paying attention before she whipped out her iPhone and switched on the camera, handing it to her friend to be used as a quick mirror. Kaylyn winced after one look. She had thought that she had brushed out her hair completely, but apparently the right side of her head was untouched, still matted. “Liz, could I-“Lisa was already holding out a brush for Kaylyn. She hastily finished brushing her hair and handed the brush back to Lisa right when the second bell announcing everyone not present in the class was tardy rang. The class for the eleventh graders started, and the school day went on.
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Chapter 2: Lisa
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Lisa smiled, waving bye to Kaylyn who was walking home after school as she opened her car door. No sooner had she gotten into the car did her cell phone let out a soft hum, vibrating in her pocket. She flipped it out. A text from Carlos Larson, who several girls thought to be the hottest guy in school, had texted her. It was a group message.

Hey, peoples! Friday night party @ the concert hall in town tonight- ya’ dig? Casual dress- Bring a guest, if you want to

The smaller details for the gathering followed. Lisa giggled- a common thing for bubbly high school girls to do when they get a text from someone they find attractive. Of course he would text her one of the invitations- who wouldn’t? She quickly forwarded the text to Kaylyn, explaining the situation. No offense to her friend, but she wasn’t the most “popular” of people and didn’t really have many people who knew her number. Kaylyn texted back that she was so going and Lisa giggled even more. She couldn’t wait! It was then that she received another message, only instead of being the soft hum and vibration her cell phone normally sent, the ringtone for the text was an unequivocal shrill ring that would make anyone hearing the device automatically think, “Emergency! There’s an alarm going off! Emergency! Emergency!” Lisa was the only one who could hear this ringtone, though. Lisa winced, slowly looking at the cell phone again. She had received a text from it. She was a cube holder and had a special ability. Lisa looked back at her iPhone, one perfectly manicured fingernail poking the screen to read the message.

Don’t go to the party tonight. Something bad will happen.

Lisa scowled, pressing the center button of her iPhone, closing the message. Her cube gave her the ability to avoid the bad and aim for the good- it sent her helpful suggestions and information on what bad thing would happen if she did something. This meant that not only did Lisa have to carry around that annoying cube in her purse continuously, but she also had to carry around her cell phone everywhere. Not that she was complaining on the cell phone part, but it was still really annoying at times. And of course, she hadn’t told Kaylyn about it yet. She would get jealous, wouldn’t she? No way could Kaylyn have one, after all. Even after the cubes appeared, she seemed just so… typical. Though she had at first thought of telling the news people about her cube, but after receiving a text not to, she chose to listen. It helped in the long-run, as those who came out about their ownership all ended up dead. Lisa placed the cell phone in the cup holder of her car, pushing the warning of the party to the back of her mind. She was still going to go to the party, of course. After all, Carlos invited her. Mister good-looking invited her. Of course she was going to go. After all, what was the worst that could happen?

-

Lisa drove up into Kaylyn Mason’s driveway and honked her horn. She had curled her hair to the stylish, glitzy way she wanted it to look and was wearing some small silver hoop earrings. Her outfit, as she believed, was the perfect party outfit. A dark blue skirt that wasn’t too short as to avoid seeming desperate, a black dress tank top with a criss-cross design on the back and a pair of blue high heels, all topped off with her favorite black clutch. What guy wouldn’t drool over her?

It was then Kaylyn came out from the house in a black sun dress with pink floral designs decorated strategically all over the dress. She wore a dark blue jacket over it and a pair of flip flops. Her hair was in its natural wavy blonde state. Lisa couldn’t help but nod in approval. The get-up fit her best friend’s personality perfectly- shy when you first meet her, but really loquacious when you get to know her. Lisa had a habit of doing this- trying to tell someone’s character by what they wore. Kaylyn stepped into the passenger’s seat of the car. “Let’s go,” she beamed, buckling in her seat belt. Lisa nodded, the thoughts of the warning from her cube far behind her as she stepped on the gas and the two friends headed for the party.

Chapter 3: Kaylyn
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Everything seemed great whenever Kaylyn and Lisa arrived at the party- it was perhaps the liveliest one of the year with an enormous amount of adolescence, comparable to a school dance, and an excellent DJ that knew all the right songs to play. The building was large and well decorated, with most of the normal lights off so that the strobe lights cast off a kaleidoscope of color in the most remarkable of ways. There was a snack bar off to the side that had various gourmet foods that would make one’s mouth water just by the aroma. It was quite obvious that not only was Carlos the most popular guy in school, but he was also the richest. Kaylyn found it typical to have the most “popular” also be the richest. She believed that Carlos fit the stereotypical popular guy character impeccably. She had been planning on not going to the party, in fact. She had never been a fan of Carlos as he seemed to be too Narcissistic and vain, never really paying any attention to those who seemed unworthy of his time. However, Lisa had invited her to come along and seemed really enthusiastic to go, so how could she say no to her best friend?
Lisa had already wandered off from Kaylyn, though, and was trying to talk to Carlos. The dark-haired senior seemed to have girls swarming him as if he were a king. How revolting. She turned around and sunk to the back of the building, watching everything go on without her. She rested her back against the wall beside the exit, everyone ignoring her. Not that she was complaining, of course. Kaylyn always felt awkward when people she didn’t normally talk to tried to talk to her. However, if it was someone she was use, she felt perfectly fine with talking to the person. It was a after a few minutes of waiting at the wall did someone actually approach her. It was a boy of about sixteen years- the same age as her. He had bleach-blonde hair and pale skin. He was rather thin, but still held muscular build to him, making him seem athletic but not too athletic. He wore a pair of name-brand tennis shoes, some faded blue jeans, and a dark red, button-down short-sleeved shirt, that was left unbuttoned to reveal a plain black t-shirt underneath. Kaylyn had seen him around the school, before. He was normally someone who was quiet, like her, only his shyness was on a larger scale. They had talked before, but only for a while. What was his name again? Linley or something? Yes, that’s it- they had the same English class together, and that’s what the teacher usually called him before he would faintly reply, “here,” for role call. Kaylyn decided to go ahead and speak to him. “Fried brought you here, too?” He nodded. “Feel awkward as well?” Another nod. Did this kid even have a voice when socializing? She couldn’t remember, so she decided to test the question. “Linley, right?”

Finally, the boy spoke up. “I prefer to be called Len,” he said, voice not quite as faint as Kaylyn normally heard it in class, but still the same, unmistakable voice. She quietly congratulated herself for getting him to speak. “Oh. I’m sorry, Len.” She looked at the crowd before continuing to speak, “These people are all just trying to impress each other, aren’t they?” Len nodded, a small smile appearing on his face, “That’s what I think, too. It’s almost…” his voice faded, unsure what word fit it. Kaylyn found the perfect word for it- repulsive. There was then an awkward silence between the two until a voice rang through the speakers inside the building.
“What up, what up!?” Carlos had somehow escaped the swarm of girls and was now on stage, a movie-star smile on his face that made Kaylyn want to vomit. “Is everyone having a good time tonight?” As one would expect, almost everyone in the crowd cheered in response. “Okay, great! Well, I think I’m gonna kick off tonight with-“ A loud gunshot suddenly echoed throughout the building and people were sent into a panic. Carlos, his luxuriant dark hair, movie star teeth, tan skin, and every other part of him was now splattered with blood, a large bullet wound visible in the center of his forehead. His body fell to the floor of the stage, a pool of blood forming under him and a tall, female figure stood behind him in his place. The twenty-some-odd year old woman was holding up a gun, her arm still strait out as if she hadn’t even shot the notorious Carlos yet, had a large grin on her face. She appeared of Asian descent with black hair, pale skin, and almond-shaped brown eyes. Hair covered one eye as the woman’s hair had been cut to give her bangs, but her one visible eye was wide open. The wide eye and large grin combined with the gun gave the woman an obviously psychotic look to her personality.

Kaylyn did the first thing any sensible person would think of doing- headed for the exit. To her dismay, however, all the doors appeared locked by some unknown force, as just before the gunshot echoed the building people were going through the doors at will. The seen was chaos as teenagers were beating at the doors, trying to escape. Several different screams and wails of freight echoed throughout the large building. Kaylyn chose not to go with the groups of people to the three different doors in the building, as she knew getting out would be useless. Her hand instinctively crept into her jacket pocket, fingers wrapping around the small cube. If only she knew what its power was, then she could probably escape. She turned to find Len, but he was nowhere to be seen. It was then a clear, calm voice reverberated through the speakers throughout the building. “Attention!” Almost everyone- whether it was out of curiosity or some small amount of hope that the situation wasn’t real and the voice was of someone announcing, “this was all a prank”- turned towards the direction of the voice.

The woman had picked up the microphone that had still been in Carlos’s hand whenever he had died and was now holding it. There was blood on the hand holding the microphone and also on the said device as it had been bathed in Carlos’s blood when he died. “I would like to ask of something from someone in the audience. I heard that there’s someone with one of these…” the woman held out a small metallic cube that brought a gasp to many people’s faces. There was no denying about what it was. The woman smirked and placed the cube back in her pocket before she continued speaking. “If that one person steps forward, then everyone gets out of here alive. If not…” the woman held out her other hand that was apparently still holding the gun and shot it once… twice… three times into the ceiling, each shot sending a shriek from various people in the crowd of terrified spectators. There was no need for the woman to finish her sentence. The crowd had gone silent, as if anxiously waiting for someone to step out and give up their life for their own sake.

It was here that Kaylyn was faced with a certain case of indecisiveness. She could easily sacrifice herself, die, and save everyone else. Then again, she could just as easily not sacrifice herself and let others die, possibly surviving. Okay, maybe it wasn’t much of indecisiveness that she had, but more of fear of dying. She obviously had to step forward to keep others from being killed, but still… she was afraid. Kaylyn forced her feet to move her forward, slowly stepping out of the crowd that had now gathered at the wall, as if being on the opposite side of the room from the psychotic woman would protect them from her, and towards the stage. She felt everyone’s gazes on her as she slowly walked up the steps of the stage, looking up at the woman who was casting her a wild smile as if she knew Kaylyn was going to step forward. The smile sent chills down her spine as she took one more step onto the stage.

“So you’re a cube holder? Let me see.” Kaylyn looked at the ground as she reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her own metallic cube, holding it out to the woman. She cast a glance at the crowd. She spotted Lisa looking at her in shock, her eyes filled with tears. Kaylyn was unsure of whether the tears were from freight or the fact that she was about to lose her best friend. She knew that Lisa must be surprised to see she was a holder of a cube, however. Kaylyn looked up at the woman who now was pointing her gun at her. Kaylyn winced, stepping closer. She was almost stepping in Carlos’s blood, now. “Well, then. Thank you for your cooperation.” The doors swung open, but few realized this as they were all intently staring at the stage, where a girl hardly anyone knew was about to meet her doom. “This is where I shoot y-“ The woman’s sentence was cut short but a fist being smashed against her face. A snapping sound could be heard, and it was quite evident the woman’s neck was broken. Len stood beside her, his hand still frozen in the air, balled up into a fist, and the woman remained standing with her head tilted to the side. He grabbed Kaylyn’s hand. “C’mon,” he urged and began pulling her off stage. She looked back at the woman, who was just frozen, not even falling to the ground, with her head tilted to the side in an awkward position that should only be possible for owls. Kaylyn winced and turned around, running with Len. Everyone else in the building was now filing out, as well. Right when they were about to leave the building, being some of the last to leave as the crowds were preventing their exit from proceeding at a normal pace, Kaylyn looked back at the stage one more time.

To her horror, the woman had her hands holding her head, and she snapped her neck back into place. She slowly turned her head to face Kaylyn, still breathing with every psychotic, wicked part of her being, and scowled at her as the girl ran out of the building.

Chapter 4: Kaylyn
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Kaylyn ran with Len for what seemed like forever. They ran four blocks, past the mall, another three past the park, and finally stopped after running two more blocks to the edge of town. Both were breathless and collapsed in a pile of freshly fallen leaves that crunched under them. “Wh-why did you…. Do that?” Kaylyn managed in between breaths. Len reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a cube, sucking in a breath of air. “I… have one as well.”

Kaylyn nodded, finally having caught her breath. She wasn’t really surprised on the matter. No sane person would bravely run into such a situation where one is being held at gunpoint without some serious backup. Well, unless the person was seriously stupid or wanted to die, they wouldn’t.

“So what’s you power?” Len’s face was suddenly lit with excitement. She must be the first person he had met with a strange cube, as he was for Kaylyn. This made her feel awkward replying, a sheepish expression on her face.

“I have none.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. I just… don’t.”

“I thought all of them di-“

“Well not all of them, apparently,” Kaylyn snapped. They were both quiet, the silence both noticeable and uncomfortable. “I’m sorry,” she finally mumbled after about a minute of silence. Kaylyn, while stubborn at times, knew when to apologize. Right now, after snapping at an acquaintance that had just saved her life, was a time to do so.

“It’s fine. I’m sorry, too,” Len replied. Kaylyn nodded as another awkward silence awakened between the two, leaving Len to play with a blade of grass and Kaylyn to look at him, bored out of her mind. This guy was really a socialite, huh? Kaylyn sighed, trying to think of what to talk about.

“So what’s your power, then?” Len looked up from the blade of grass. “Oh, me? I can, uh, turn invisible.” Kaylyn nodded, “Cool.” It made sense- that’s why he seemed to have disappeared when the psychotic, immortal woman appeared and how he snuck up onto the stage unnoticed. Kaylyn was envious and opened her mouth to say so when a beeping sound came from her pocket.

She took out her old iPhone 3 and glanced at the screen. Lisa was calling her. Oh joy; this’ll be fun to explain. Kaylyn help up her index finger in front of Len as a way of saying, “One moment please,” and answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Kaylyn- thank goodness you’re okay!” Lisa’s voice sounded on the verge of tears and the thought of her best friend crying made Kaylyn feel guilty for not calling her as soon as she and Len escaped. Lisa continued rambling on, “I-I thought you were dead b-but then I ran instead of trying to save you. I-I didn’t know you had a cube, too. I-I would’ve worn you about it, but I thought it was going to be nothing! I-I’m so sorry. I-I….” Kaylyn could hear sniffling on the other line. “It’s fine,” she said, trying to sound as warm as possible. Kaylyn then fully registered Lisa’s statement. “What do you mean by, ‘too,’ Lisa? You have one?” Lisa explained through sobs her cube and the warning she had received earlier.

Kaylyn sighed. “Okay, I’m with Len.” “Who?” She ignored the question and continued talking, “He and I are currently out by the woods beside town- you know, five blocks east of the park. Can you come pick us up?” “Oooh, is Len cute? Does he have a girlfriend?” Kaylyn rolled her eyes up in her head, and it was almost as if Lisa could see her friend’s annoyed expression. “Just kidding! Okay, um, I’m on my way. I was already in my car, so yep.” Kaylyn nodded, “Okay, thanks. Bye.” “Bye-bye!”

Kaylyn hung up and looked at Len, who looked back at her with a confused expression. “Okay, that was my best friend Lisa. She apparently also has a cube, and is coming to pick us up.” Len nodded, a smile appearing on his face. “There are more people with the cubes than I thought,” he remarked. Kaylyn nodded, not really that impressed. “Yep.”

Chapter 5: Len
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It wasn’t long after Kaylyn explained to him about her friend Lisa did they get picked up by the girl. He quietly examined Lisa- obviously one of the perky, popular girls that you would see as a cheer leader or something. He scooted into the back seat, Lisa and Kaylyn in the front. Looking between the two girls, he couldn’t see how they could have possible become best friends- Kaylyn was one of those quiet girls that preferred to stay out of parties, and Lisa the exact opposite. Those sorts of people don’t mix, usually.

The car ride was quiet a few moments before Lisa spoke up, breaking the silence. “So, Len,” she began. “What’s your power?”

Len was quiet for a few moments, trying to find the words to speak. This was always a problem for him- it was just awkward talking to people that he didn’t normally talk to. Eventually, though, he managed to find his voice. “Invisibility.” Lisa nodded, “Cool! How about you, Kayly-“ “I don’t have one,” Kaylyn replied before her friend could finish the question.

Len had a feeling Lisa felt the same guilt he did when he asked that same question to Kaylyn, as there was a quick apology given by the girl and then an awkward silence. There had been just too many awkward moments of quiet for the day, even for Len, who was used to such instances. So that got him to break the silence.

“So, uh, are we just getting dropped off at our houses, then or what?”

Lisa stepped on the breaks at a stop light and glanced back to smile at Len. “Nope. We are going to go eat, my treat, and then I’ll drop y’all off.” Kaylyn began to protest, “No. You always pay whenever we eat out- a-and I have homework to do.” Lisa clicked her tongue, “Nope. I need to treat the two heroes to something special, don’t I?” Kaylyn was quiet and looking out the window. The stop light turned green and Lisa went on. They slowly passed the concert hall where the tragic scene from earlier had appeared. Cop cars were surrounding the building and several police officers were around the area. They motioned for Lisa to pull over.

Len’s eyes were wide as Lisa slowly pulled the car to the side of the road. His mind couldn’t help but think something along the lines of, “Oh no. They were told I was on stage- they think I’m an accomplice. I’m not! I’m innocent!” He remained quiet, however, as a large, tanned, bald police officer began questioning Lisa. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but we’ve been given orders to pull over any youth driving cars for questioning.” He glanced into the car at Kaylyn and Len before flipping through his notepad. He looked at Kaylyn quizzically, “Are you, by any chance, Kaylyn Mason?” Kaylyn hesitantly nodded. He then looked at Len, “And you’re Linley Jackson?” Len bit his tongue when he was called Linley and nodded.

The officer sighed, “I would like to ask for you three to step out of the car for a second.” Everyone slowly but surely filed out and Lisa gave the officer her driver’s license. After giving the license back to Lisa, the officer looked turned to the other two in the group. “We have contacted your parents in attempt to find you two. You really should have called the police when you ran off,” he scolded. The officer sighed as he rubbed the temples of his forehead, as if saying to himself, “Kids these days are so daft.” He looked back at Len and Kaylyn. “I would like to ask to take you to the station for questioning, as you came in contact with who we believe is the fabled Pandora thief.” Len swallowed nervously. Great. He never thought he would end up in prison.

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Chapter 6: Kaylyn
-

Kaylyn nervously glanced at Len before she walked down the hallway and then into the room for questioning. She looked up at the mirror on one side of the wall next to the door, wondering just how many people were watching. The floor and walls were white and the desk they sat her down at a plain grey. A faint smell of antiseptic lingered in the air and made its way up to her nose. These rooms really were like you see on T.V. for crime shows. The thought only made Kaylyn more nervous. At least she wasn’t in handcuffs though, right? Yeah… that was a good side to the situation.

Kaylyn watched as a muscular African American man with a shaved head and a dark suit walked into the room. The door slowly closed behind him. His dark brown eyes smiled and seemed friendly enough. Kaylyn gave him a look over before going back to stare at the mirror beside the door, once again wondering who else was there.

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” he smiled, seemingly reading Kaylyn’s thoughts. “I’m not supposed to say this, but if it will help you relax I’ll tell you that no one else is watching us or listening to this conversation.”

Kaylyn couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at this statement. She was nervous and that helped her relax, sure, but was that really a wise thing for a police officer to say? She wasn’t going to hurt him or anything, but if she were someone willing to hurt a police officer, couldn’t they easily attack? Ugh, never mind. Maybe she was just thinking too much.

The police officer continued to smile. “My name’s Klark,” he began. “I just have a few questions for you. You aren’t in trouble or anything- We’re just trying to find out whatever we can about who tried to harm you.”

Kaylyn hesitantly nodded, biting her lip as the police officer took out a notepad and flipped through a few notes before peering back up at the girl, his expression suddenly serious. With one hand, he snapped the notepad shut and slowly asked Kaylyn a question, stressing the importance of the question as he slowly sounded out each syllable.

“Now, I understand that you have one of those strange cubes the media is going nuts about, is that so?” Kaylyn slowly nodded. “And what is your cube’s ability?” Klark had his palms pressed against the table, intently looking at Kaylyn with an expression of utmost urgency. The expression only made her nervous. “I-I, um, don’t know.”

Klark glared at Kaylyn, suddenly angry, “Don’t play dumb with me.” He repeated the question, only in a more annoyed manner. “What if your cube’s ability?” Kaylyn shook her head frantically, feeling the need to run all of a sudden as the friendly Klark suddenly turned irate. He frowned, mumbling something that sounded like, “Of all the people….” He slowly looked up at her, his expression dark with anger and some other emotion that was hard to grasp from Kaylyn’s viewpoint. All that she knew was that she knew was that this guy suddenly didn’t seem like a police officer that much, anymore. She frantically began to stand up when- bam! It felt almost as if a giant hand were wrapped around her, preventing her from moving, and Kaylyn had the breath knocked out of her.

“Now, now, we don’t need you to run,” Klark smirked; one hand raised and clenched, obviously the one in charge of Kaylyn’s sudden immobility. He tightened his grip, and Kaylyn screamed under the pressure.

“My, my. She is going to be pleased that we caught you,” his grin was dark- one that Kaylyn believed matched the woman from earlier. “Now, let’s take you-“ he didn’t finish his sentence as an invisible fist suddenly knocked the fake officer out. Kaylyn fell to the ground, sucking in a breath of air. She slowly looked up and saw Len looking back at her.

“C’mon,” he said, grabbing her hand before she could say anything. She stepped over the passed-out Klark who, Kaylyn noticed, was still breathing. They were SO in trouble, now.

Chapter 7: ???
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A familiar woman with black hair and brown eyes stood before a monitor that had another familiar woman on it- a woman who held a mystical aura about her with strange, light pink hair that had been styled into a short boyish haircut, striking violet eyes, and pale skin. The strange woman on the monitor had a smile on her face, as if she knew the secrets of the universe and had been through everything life can throw and was still alive. Her voice came out clear and rich- many would find the voice alone full of beauty.

“So…. Ran…. You’re being called Pandora by the news?” The woman said “Ran” like one would say “Ron,” so that is sounded like a name.

“Yes,” the woman with black hair- who you now know is called Ran- replied. “It is clever, I say.”

“Yes, yes. I trust that you were in the disguise you are currently in?”

“Yes, Mistress. I can still walk around in my normal form and no one would ever suspect me.” As if to prove her point, Ran first took out her contacts to reveal light blue eyes, still holding the insane look in them as before. She then removed the wig to reveal light blonde hair that, once let down, extended a couple inches past her ears and covered up her left eye. She then licked her thumb and whipped it across her skin to reveal a darker, more tanned skin tone.

“Excellent,” the woman on the screen replied. “My only concern is the boy and girl that you say saw your power?”

“They did, indeed, Mistress. They now know that I am immortal. However…” Ran smirked, “We now have two targets. The one with the power of invisibility is the boy and the girl… well, Klark contacted me and said he was working on it.”

“Did someone say my name?” As if on cue, Klark stepped into the dimly lit room with the one monitor. He had large bump on the side of his head and had an aggravated expression on his face. It was quite clear that he had gotten into a quarrel, and Ran laughed at his condition. Klark ignored her as he approached the monitor with the mystical woman on it.

“Mistress,” he began, a growl deep in his throat. “The girl has the powerless cube- she is the one meant to destroy you.”

The woman glared at Klark, her smile vanishing and expression turning dark and full of anger. “Is that so…?” The woman remained glaring at Klark for a few seconds after he hesitantly nodded in reply. A cold smile then appeared on her face. “Then let her continue fighting back. Her and that boy’s activity should attract the attention of the first holder- the one who can reset her life. Ah, yes, catching her has been tricky, hasn’t it?” The woman laughed forebodingly. “There aren’t many holders left, is there?”

“No, ma’am,” Ran quickly replied. “We only have a handful of holders left. There’s the one of life resets, invisibility, retaliation, time freeze, life cheating, and the one of resistance.” After a pause, she added, “Only six, Mistress. And then you will be a mechanical god once again.”