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Chapter 9: Apprehension and confusion
I had been living in the thick forest for well over a week already. Lots of activities had steered me away from loneliness. In the morning, I went to the familiar creek to fish for lunch and to bathe. In the afternoon, I worked on the small defensive wall that was built around the tent. Long, spiked posts were driven deep into the soft soil by the constant hammering of a solid stone that I had found on the ground. The poles were pointing outward at an angle to stop any invaders from coming closer. A few days back, I saw a giant grizzly bear half a mile away from my resting-place. I figured that the barrier would at least give me some kind of protection, especially against wild animals such as the bear. Then again, it might fail.
I was extremely lucky when the sunny weather had lasted for such a long time, well over a week. The only time when I feared that it would rain was three days ago. Monstrous clouds roamed over the vast cerulean sky. Lightening steadily appeared at random places. But as soon as it came, the ugly weather left without dumping a heavy load of rainwater.
I looked up to see where the sun was. It was mid-morning. Time for my daily hunt for trout. I stood up from the boulder that I was sitting on, and stretched my arms and my wings. It was extremely entertaining to fish by yourself along a skinny brook. You didn't have to worry about other people taking your food away while they were fishing as well, and you didn't have to worry about the embarrassment that you got when you slipped and fell into the water.
When I reached the area where the white meat was the densest, I grabbed my spear and got into a ready position. Suddenly, I heard a helicopter flying toward me. From afar, it looked like a small dot. But with my enhanced sight, I could see the yellow letters on the side of the black transportation. It said: "Mounties Patrol".
Panic streaked across my head as I lowered the weapon and began to run into a thick shrub to hide. The sound of whirling blades floated closer and closer with each second passing by. A thin layer of sweat covered my face as I tried to untangle my wings from the vine-like branches.
While I was praying to the God, hoping that the aircraft would leave, it got lower and lower. Finally, it settled down on the bank of the river. Ripples were formed on the water surface by the strong burst of wind from the chopper. Twelve officers dressed in black came out with shotguns in their hands. For a second there, I thought they wanted to hunt me down and shoot me with those ugly-looking barrels. Yet, with a closer look, I saw the tag on their rifle butts: "Tranquilizer T-20".
That made it even worse. I would rather die instead of being captured alive. I didn't want to be humiliated. I didn't want to serve as a... a laboratory mouse.
One of the men kneeled down at the place where I had skinned the fish to get rid of their scales. He placed two of his fingers on the dark red patch and pulled them close to his nose.
"Fish blood. Judging from the dryness and the messed up rocks, I would say that the kid is not far from here," the stranger said after a minute of inspection. "The information is correct. Tobieaz's dwelling is around here."
I held my breath. They were searching for me! My heart pounded harder and faster as I continued to eavesdrop on their conversation.
"All right. Spread out everyone! Don't hurt Tobieaz unless you need to. Shoot him in the leg or shoulder with the darts," another guy ordered as he cocked the weapon.
"Yes, Captain."
They fanned out in an arc and began to advance into the forest. Slowly, I backed out from the bush while keeping them in my eyesight. Finally, free of the leaves, I darted back toward my campsite with full speed. Gathering my wings around me, I was terrified. I was hoping for a peaceful life in this rural region, but for some reasons they could still find me!
Tears flowed out of my pair of green eyes as thoughts were racing through my mind. It couldn't be. It couldn't be! I circled around the intruders and reached my living area. Quickly stuffing everything back into the backpacks, I kept on glancing around every few seconds. I forced the anchors out of the ground as I tried to fold the tent back to its compact position. Bugs, worms and dirt flew into the air and landed around me. My movements were wild and jerky.
Before I could tie up the canopy, voices were travelling into my sensitive ears. Tree branches snapped loudly as the group of men kept up their pace, coming closer. Running out of time, I ditched the tent and the bags.
I ran away as fast as I could. My tanned, brown chest and back were covered with sweat as heat in my body rose immediately from the sprint. The nearly worn out pair of jeans had provided me some shield from the piercing branches while I crashed through them. A few feathers fell onto the earth, but I didn't care. I didn't have the time to care.
"Hey! Over here! I found a tent and some equipment!" From far away, I heard one of the officers shouting with his discovery.
"Tobieaz is here somewhere! Find him! He's just left possibly a few minutes ago!"
Voices were muffled by my panting and by the thrashing of the leaves as I moved further and further away.
Morning had gone by rapidly and afternoon settled down. I was half way up into the mountain when my legs finally gave up on me. Sitting on a ledge with a valley falling away from me, I stared out into the vast open space before me. The world was covered in green. A few mature rivers were winding around the landscape. They sparkled as the sunlight shone upon their mini waves. I took in a deep breath as I tried to figure out what to do next. Bright yellowish sunrays beamed upon me. I felt its smooth and gentle touch on my skin as my shortened hair, created by the scissors, floated in the cool air current.
The elevation was steep and I was at a high place. Beneath my feet was nothing but air. I was not afraid of heights. I never was. I could just jump right here and end my life. It would be over instantly. Just a splat and I wouldn't feel this pain anymore. Yeah, I could do that right now. I could. I looked down and watched the tiny birds flying below me.
They didn't have to worry about the problems that us, humans had. Actually, to be correct, those humans had. Not "us". I was not a human anymore. I might look like one. Starting from the moment that I grew these pair of wings, I wasn't a human being anymore. I touched the wings softly. They were so beautiful. Clean and white with a line of light gray colors existing at the end of the wing tips.
I envied those birds.
In the distant, I saw two black dots circling around in the sky. They crept nearer and nearer as the sound of helicopter blades boomed across the heaven. Gulping, I stood up shakily. My wings were extended from my back. Without warning, something had struck the back of my leg. Turning around with surprise, a patrolman grinned as he lowered his tranquilizer.
Crap, I had overstayed in this place for far too long, allowing those humans to find me.
"Hey guys! I found him! He has a dart in his left leg!" He shouted with glee as he took a step toward me.
My eyes were wide as I saw a thin steel barrel with a red feathery decoration drew out from the back of the projectile hanging from my lower limb. I gritted my teeth while I reached down and pulled out the strange object. A small amount of blood was drawn.
"You can pull it out if you want, but it won't do you any good," he said to me as he took another step. "In a matter of minutes, you'll fall into a deep sleep. We'll bring you back to the lab and analyze you. We are trying to help you, Tobieaz."
I glared at the man. I didn't reply. Several footsteps were around the corner of a bend and more people came into the scene.
"We've finally found you, Tobieaz! Come on, let's bring you back to civilization," the Captain smiled as he lifted his hand to grab mine. I shunned. I was close to the edge of the cliff.
"Come on, Tobieaz! We're not going to hurt you! We're just going to bring you to a hospital and take some blood samples," the rest of the group mumbled as they, too, tried to grab me.
At last, I couldn't take it anymore. Taking in a deep breath, I said: "Get lost with your lies, I through with this life." My voice broke off due to the long duration of not using the voice box. It sounded rough.
I dropped backward, flew into the air, and fell straight down in full speed. They all gasped as they stopped at the edge of the sheer wall. I shut my eyes as I allowed the wind to accompany me to my death. I subconsciously opened up my wings as my ears were rumbling with the rushing gust. My descent slowed down at once. Stunned, I righted myself and stared at those large feathers.
"Oh hell, why not? I'm going to die anyway and this is not going to make a difference," muttering with frustration, I began to flap. My eyes closed.
The muscles at my back and shoulder blades were strained with tension as series of mini aches flashed throughout my bones. After a long time, I was waiting for the final, solid crash. However, that didn't come. Gradually, I opened one eye. I almost shouted with happiness had I not remembered that the Mounties Patrols were still nearby.
I was flying. It may sound stupid and absurd, but I was actually flying! My wing tips fluttered with intensity as I glided over the treetops, which were barely brushing against my chest. It felt so serene. I could see everything while I was floating over the widely expanded forests.
With a sigh, I closed my eyes and fell the rest of the way down onto the ground...
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I didn't know how long I was unconscious. All I saw when I woke up was bare white walls surrounding me. Immediately alert, I got to my feet. My body felt weak without energy as my legs shook beneath me. A brief ointment scent discharged in my nose. Blinking a few times, I fluffed my wings. A security camera was mounted up in one corner. Four lighting tubes were located at the ceiling. They brightly lit up this cell, smothering me in frosty beams. I turned around and saw a giant transparent window. Beyond that, walkways could be seen with officers and medical personals moving about with their tasks. In the middle of the hanging paths, machine of various kinds were shifting with precision. Infrequent yellowish-red sparks showered in random places.
I wetted my lips with my tongue as I squinted. My vision was slightly blurry. The drug of the tranquilizer dart had not wore off completely.
One of the staff members saw me awake. He wore a snowy lab coat with a nametag pinned near the pocket at his left chest. He was tall with a long golden hair. He flung his arms wildly, causing the papers on the clipboard to go flying around. What he was yelling I couldn't hear it. Not a single word. Slowly, I placed my hands on the thick, clear glass. My reflection was lightly painted upon the cold material.
More people gathered in front of me as they pointed and commented about my wings. Nervously, I wrapped the wings around me and stood back. This was a nightmare...
A man in his early fifties opened the sliding door on my right and walked in. I stared at the keypad. There was one inside the cubicle and one outside.
"Tobieaz! How are you feeling right now?" The man had many wrinkles, and even more appeared as he laughed.
I didn't reply as I continued to glare at him.
The man was slightly shorter than I was. He was nearly bold with light gray hair growing at the back of his skull. He whistled as he wrote down something on his board. His pair of dense glasses hung at the edge of his nose. People were still standing there, watching me. I cleared my throat a few times, trying to get the larynx to work.
He looked up.
"Release me," I whispered as I approached him gradually.
"I'm afraid that's not possible. First of all, we need to examine you. We need to know why have you grown these magnificent wings. Second of all, your parents have requested to have these wings to be removed surgically. We need to study you for a while before we can attempt such an arduous task. Thirdly, we need to get a psychologist. After all, you have been through a lot lately and your mind must be messed up with unnecessary thoughts."
I gritted my teeth. "Release me. Let me go."
The stranger shook his head sadly. "I can't do that. I have orders. Why don't you relax a little? Do you want to watch some T.V? How about some video games? We can bring those into your room."
"This is not my room, and I don't want to watch or play anything. Let me go," I said with rage. "Why are you guys doing this to me? Why?"
"Whatever do you mean by that?"
I pointed at the crowd on the other side of the wall. "Them! You can't do this to me! I'm not a specimen that you guys can tamper and fool around with!"
He chuckled. "Oh, them! They are just curious that's all. Humans are curious don't you know? You're a human, you should know. Don't worry, they'll be going soon when I leave this room. Now, why don't you sit on the floor and put yourself at ease?"
"I don't want to relax!" I screamed. The doctor jumped back with surprise. "Let me go damn it! Why can't you just leave me in the wild and stop harassing me?"
The door opened again. Two bulky men rushed in with gloves and needles. They snatched my arms as I tried to run. They forced one needle into the side of my left upper arm as I yelled and flogged around.
"Don't fight us, Tobieaz! Calm yourself down!" More people came in as they tried to hold me down. My wings extended and contracted as I cried out with fear and anger.
In the end, I couldn't win. Darkness took me as the medication took effect...
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Lights buzzed around me. The fan whirred softly. I sprawled across the malleable floor as I opened my eyes with a gasp. My head was spinning as I crawled to my knees. Looking around, everything was dark outside. Only cameras and LCD lights of the switches moved and flashed with an interval.
I curled up in a corner with my wings around me as I sobbed with dismay. How could I escape this hellhole?
Fresh air flowed into the tiny jail cell as the fan carried on its rotating motions. I sucked in a deep breath as I rubbed my sore arm. Everything was so bleak, so pointless now. I should have just killed myself back there at the cliff. If only I could have the guts to do so, I wouldn't suffer so much right now.
The place was spiritless. My future was hazy with no clear path for me to journey on.
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A blinding flash had made me stirred with unease, waking me up from my sleep. The day was new and everyone went right back to work. Throughout the whole morning, I watched men and women walking to and fro, carry on with their daily chores. Occasionally, one of them would stop before my room and gaped at me for while before attending to their errands.
A plate full of food was brought to me. I set it aside and didn't look at it. First of all, I didn't want to eat a meal that was filled with beef and chicken, and some mashed potato. The greasiness was upsetting my stomach. Second of all, I didn't have the heart to eat breakfast. How could I, when I was trapped in here with no way to flee?
Forenoon came and went. In the late afternoon, physicians and nurses came in with different instruments. At first, I fought. I tried to dash toward the opening doorway. I couldn't. Not with people blocking my path immediately.
They held my arms and my legs as another person took some blood sample. They even plucked one of my feathers off my wings. I yelled with pain.
One day, two days, and three days had gone by. I didn't eat. The routines were always the same. People in white rushed in, took samples, and did some tests. I battled, I flapped my wings, and I screamed with fury. At last, the doctor that I had met on the first day showed up. He keyed in some numbers on the electronic pad. This time, I watched the codes being entered. No one knew that my eyesight was like a binocular.
He walked past the door and brought a chair in. I sat on the floor; legs huddled close to me. My wings folded together.
"Tobieaz..." he sighed as he rubbed his eyes. "Why are you acting this way? We are trying to figure out a way to help you, yet you do not cooperate with us. And you have to eat, damn it. You've refused all the food that we've brought to you."
Only silence replenished the room as I gazed at him.
"Look, we're analyzing your DNA right now. Soon, we'll find out what is happening to you. But we need you to collaborate with us." He paused for a few seconds. "Your parents are here. I'll bring them to you, okay?"
He got up and began to leave when suddenly, I shouted: "No! Don't let them show their faces to me!"
The scientist stopped in his track as he turned around with a puzzled expression.
"I don't want to see them," I said bitterly. "I don't want to see them, ever!"
"But surely you missed-"
"No!"
"But you can't-"
"No!" I snapped. "No is no! I don't want to meet them!"
He sighed as he placed his hands on his hips. "Tobieaz, this is a type of psychological treatment. You have been through things that no normal boys in your age have ever been through. This is a good way to make you feel more comfortable with people. You are jumpy right now. You are not comfortable with people around you anymore."
Taking in a deep breath, I replied: "If you bring them to me, I swear to god that I will commit suicide. I'll find a way to end my life and then you can kiss your experiments goodbye."
In the end, all the man could do was groan and left. I buried my head in my arms as I seek a way to escape this place. In fact, I would attempt to do so tonight. I already had the pass codes memorized in my brain. All I needed to do was to punch in the numbers in the keypad, and the door would glide open, allowing me to run away silently.
My life was nothing but chaos. It was nothing but misery, and it seemed to be getting worse...
~End Chapter 9~
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