I was looking at my old Fearless board, and Project GM is actually still there, so I've decided to continue it, it starts off after 31 or 32 I think, I've forgotten, I'll have to look it up, but if you need to catch up, here it is anyway:
Chapter One
Jake played with the lose string he had just pulled from the side of his pants, if there was one thing he hated more than being at Starbucks being mobbed by Megan, Melanie, Tina and the rest, was not being able to leave. Gaia had told him to meet her there, and one thing he couldn’t understand, was why the hell did she tell him to meet her there?
He took things in mind, Oliver had told him that something had now happened to Gaia, what? What is it? What did it do? Why did it affect her? How did it affect her? The day before he had waited for her outside her place, just waiting, and she got home at exactly nine o’clock the next day. She practically didn’t even see him; he was outside her place, sitting in the steps. He couldn’t have made it any more obvious, but no. She walked straight up the steps (and actually stepping on his pinkie) and went right in. She seemed asleep, where had she been? Why didn’t she look at him?
In a normal Gaia-day, she would’ve told him to meet her at Washington Square Park or one of her usual favorite greasy fast food restaurants. What the hell was wrong with her?
He saw Gaia out in the window, walking with her arms across her chest and wearing what looked like blue caprice and a pink tank top with a gray zipper hoodie…. Since when did she even own something pink? Before she entered the coffee shop he went outside instead of letting her step in, he had a feeling she wouldn’t want to leave (and neither would Megan and her crew) once she stepped in.
“Jake where are you going? You’re gonna miss—” He didn’t care; he stepped outside and walked up to Gaia.
“Let’s talk out here,” He said.
“Out here?” Gaia looked around the place, they were by an alley which had a dumpster against the wall, since when did she care?
“Where were you yesterday?” He asked her.
“At Liz’s,” She said, and he felt his chest start filling up.
“I was at Liz’s too,” He said, and her eyes widened.
“Well I was there and then I left with her brother Skyler, and then I went home,” She said.
“How long did you stay with Skyler?” He asked her.
“Thirty minutes, so you stayed with Liz for ten hours and thirty minutes, then you stayed at Skyler’s thirty minutes at seven thirty and I somehow missed you huh?” Jake asked her.
“No, well, wait, why were you looking for me?” She asked him.
“Because I wanted to talk to you, sort things out for once and for all, to make sure everything’s okay,” He said.
“Look Jake you’re my boyfriend and all, but the thing is, you’re not my father, watcher, or baby-sitter, if you want to talk to me, phone me, don’t look for me,” She said.
Okay, from where had that girl boyfriend talk come from? He knew Gaia was very awkward about stuff like boy-girlfriend situations.
“Look, whatever Jake, Why are you so jealous? Cause that’s what it almost sounds like, and with you’re attitude right now, I really don’t want to talk to you,” She said, and he knew that if it was the old-Gaia she would’ve marched off before the talk had even started.
“Jealous? I’m worried, coming home at eight o’clock in the morning! What are you thinking?” He yelled at her, she almost seemed scared by the look in her eyes.
“You were spying on me!” She said.
“I don’t know what you’re thinking Gaia! Because I waited for you outside your place from ten o’clock to eight in the morning, and when you came out of that cab, you didn’t even see me, you were almost asleep! I can’t have a girlfriend like that! Tell me what’s happening?”
He yelled; he hated the way he sounded.
“Well if you can’t have a girlfriend like me then why don’t you just not?” She asked him.
“What are you saying?” He asked her.
“Well you said it first, if you don’t want to be with me, come on, say it, say it’s over!” She said.
“Gaia do you want it to be over?” Jake asked her.
“As a matter of fact, I think it be better,” She said.
Gaia
What has just happened? I’m walking right now back to the place I just came from and don’t want to go back to, and I can feel hot tears slipping down my cheeks.
What is it with Jake? I thought he was the type of guy that didn’t worry about girls because as soon as he drops one, he can take a pick from which ever he wanted, but now…. He’s calling me more, he’s looking for me, he seems to call my friends (Mainly Liz) to see if they’ve seen me, and well, it’s just so weird. It bugs me; I’ve never had this, not with Ed or Sam, not at all. Or is this just another normal teenage girl thing I have to go through? It doesn’t matter, because I won’t have to deal with it.
When I was going towards Starbucks I saw a beautiful black long dress that had beautiful silver stitching at the side, the neck work was beautiful and it was back-less. I actually went in and touched it, the clerks lady asked me if I wanted to try it on but I nodded politely and left. I was thinking that I could wear that to prom, but Jake hasn’t asked me, and now he really can’t.
I don’t know whether to blame him or me, he’s actually acting like the typical jealous-bastard-boyfriend you see on TV, in the soap operas, following me, stalking me looking for me. What has happened? Why did I break up with him? I don’t feel exactly bad about it, I feel, kind of free, and not even that! But now I can ask someone to go to the prom with me. And there’s only one person coming to my mind.
Chapter Two
Sam Moon turned on his what-some-people-like-to-call-bed and tried to sleep, he hated where he lived, he had two comforters that felt like cold rock on his back, and every other hour, the Mexican lady that lived on top of his apartment yelled, “Aplakencey pinshes chikiyos desgresathose,” Or at least that’s as much as he could make out of her Latin tongue.
He looked at the ceiling, there were black dirt spots here and there, the floor carpet was white but it looked gray, and the one room apartment was so small it looked like his parent’s master bedroom, except it was almost slightly smaller. He heard his phone ring but didn’t bother to pick up, it was either idiots who confused the three for Pizza Hut with his eight and called demanding for a pepperoni pizza with bread sticks. He had a feeling that after a while they realized that it wasn’t Pizza Hut and just called for the fun of it.
He looked at the ID caller and he was surprised, it said Cellular Phone, Moore. He picked up immediately.
“Hello?” He asked.
“Sam?” His heart didn’t flip twice but a bazillion times.
“Gaia?” He felt stupid already in the one-second conversation already; of course it was Gaia why did he have to ask?
“Yeah Sam, I sort of need a favor,” Gaia said, she sounded almost nervous, was this a let’s-go-save-the-day-favor? Nope, that was Jake. Or I-need-to-talk-with-someone-that-doesn’t-want-to-kill-me-favor? And that was Ed. What was she calling for?
“Sure, anything,” He somehow was sure anything was anything like I need to borrow a car to save Africa from a terrorist that wants to kill my family.
“Will you go to prom with me?” Gaia said anxiously.
Sam was shocked; Gaia wants to go to prom? His mind had been running with theories of save-the-world-plans that he would’ve never expected this, prom? Since when did Gaia get interested into Prom? She wouldn’t have looked twice before if she saw a poster of Prom.
“Hello? Sam?” Gaia asked.
“But-but what about Jake?” He asked trying to let it sink in.
“Well, I sort of broke up with Jake,” Gaia said, normally Gaia would’ve shut him out and said that was her business.
“Yes!” He said.
“Yes about Jake?” She asked him, he knew he that sounded rude.
“No, I mean, Yes, I’ll go with you,” He said.
“Okay,” Gaia said, but before the awkward moment came, he asked what needed to be asked.
“When is it?” Sam asked.
“Next Friday,” Gaia said, but he thought carefully, today was Friday, so it was one week from then.
“Okay, definitely,” He said.
“I’ll pick you up?” Gaia asked him.
“No Gaia, I’ll pick you up,” Sam said.
“Okay, until then,” Gaia said.
“Until then,” And he hung up the phone carefully.
Chapter Three
Gaia hung up the phone and walked to the showers. She was actually surprised with her own bravery, if you could call what you she just did brave, well at least she felt pleased with herself. She scrubbed and washed herself really hard, she wanted to go clean to the store, so she didn’t look like that was the first time she had ever stepped in a store that wasn’t other than Walt-Mart or something.
She put on the most newest looking pants she had, she couldn’t understand how she had ever even looked twice at the pants she owned. They were all cargo pants, all of them looked color faded, she put on black ones that didn’t look gray or had dust on them. She then put on a pink tank to she had bought at Debbs; she brushed her hair two times making sure she hadn’t left a single knot. She needed a hair cut; she had a lot of split ends and longer hair here and there. She lifted the comforter of her bed and took out her dad’s credit card. He said she could spend as much as she wanted; the CIA paid him lots of money that he of course never really got to spend. She tucked it in her pocket and put on her sneakers. She had just spent the last hour and a half the previous day trying to get her sneakers to at least look somewhat tan.
She grabbed her keys and walked out of the house, she hated living there, it was so boring, but at least she didn’t get bothered much. She walked down the street, it was sunny outside, she looked at the clock on top of the First National Bank and read twelve forty five. It had been exactly one hour and ten minutes since she had just broken up with Jake, was that a good thing? She shrugged and walked towards the store with the black dress. As she entered there was a different saleswoman. And she immediately walked to her side.
“Why hello what can I help you with?” She asked politely.
“Well, I’m looking for a dress, a dress for Prom,” She said.
“Oh! You’ve come just in time! They’ve almost cleaned us out! What do you have in mind?” The lady asked her.
“Well, actually I was looking at that black dress there,” She said pointing to it.
“Oh! That’s beautiful, but on you it will be gorgeous,” The lady said.
“I’ll go get it for you so you can try it on,” The lady said.
She nodded and looked at the dresses around.
“Gaia?” She turned around to find Liz.
“Liz! What are you doing here?” She asked.
“Hmmm, I was bored and I went to your place but you weren’t there, and then I decided to go shopping since there was nothing else to do, I just walked in right now and saw you,” Liz said.
“Oh yeah, I’m looking for a prom dress,” She said.
“So Jake finally asked you?” She said.
“Um, no,” She said.
“So, are you going to go alone?” Liz asked her.
“No, I have a date,” She said, and Liz raised an eyebrow at her, “I broke up with Jake this morning.”
“What?” Liz asked her loudly.
“Its cause, we got in an argument, and it was really bad, I just said, maybe if you don’t want to deal with a girlfriend like me you shouldn’t,” She said, “And it was over.”
“So… who are you going with?” Liz asked her curiously.
“An old friend,” She said.
“Old friend? Ed?” Liz said.
“No, an older friend, his name is Sam,” She said.
“Oh, right I was about to say, because Ed is going with that wannabe skater girl Kai,” Liz said, Gaia wasn’t exactly shock to hear this but she was surprised to hear those words come out of Liz’s mouth.
“You don’t like Kai?” She asked Liz.
“Ugh! No!” Liz said in disgust.
“Why not?” She asked Liz.
“Because, I swear she’s a skater girl, but she wears Sweet Hello Kitty clip ons, she sounds like a cheerleader who says the word ‘dude’ too many times, and I’m her Science partner and she acts like she knows the book by heart. And she doesn’t shut up about how she tore her cousin’s ramp downtown once. She’s a nightmare.” Liz said.
“Here we are,” The clerks-lady was back.
“Okay, let me go try this on, will you wait for me?” Gaia asked Liz.
“Oh, totally, great dress too,” Liz said.
“Thanks,” She said, Gaia went to the dressing rooms and looked at herself in the mirror; she looked all right, right? She took of her tank top and let it hung on the hook on the door, she only pulled the string on her cargo pants and they fell to the floor. She slipped the dress on and pulled it all the way to her feet, she wondered why every other woman on Earth took so long to change from one outfit to the other while it barely took her a minute? “Liz?”
She called out, “I’m right here.” Liz called back.
She walked out of the dressing room and pulled her hair to the side and turned to Liz so she could zip up the dress.
“It’s beautiful.” The lady said.
“It’s absolutely gorgeous on you Gaia,” Liz said.
“Thank you,” She said as she looked in the mirror, she had to admit, she loved it. The dress went all the way to her feet and was a perfect fit in the waist. “We have white satin gloves to go with that dress, and black heels embroidered with white diamonds.” The lady said.
“Definitely, I don’t think that any other dress could be as perfect as this one,” Liz said.
“How much is it?” Gaia asked.
“It’s at a steel of two hundred and ten,” The lady said.
“Whoa, that is definitely, cheap,” Liz said.
“The gloves and the shoes will only be one hundred in total,” The lady said.
“I’ll definitely take it.” Gaia said.
“You know there’s Jewelry store just down the block, we can get you the accessories to go with your dress,” Liz said.
“Let’s go,” Gaia said to her. Liz couldn’t wait till her father was done with what he was doing with Gaia’s DNA. She hated Gaia, so perfect, she could be a model, and Gaia barely knew or cared. Guys adored Gaia, that’s way the pesky crew of Megan hated her.
“Here it is.” She said politely while holding the door for Gaia. They heard a bell ring from somewhere and a boy’s head popped up from under the cash register. He was probably about fourteen, or fifteen. He shrugged and looked back down and they started browsing before a man came out and greeted them.
“Ah, there you are, what can I do for you ladies?” The man asked them.
“We’re looking for probably… earrings, and just a necklace.” She said thinking.
“Well then you want to come to this section,” the man said walking to the other side of the shop.
“We’re looking for Prom jewelry,” Gaia added.
“Then you’ve come to the right place,” The man said smiling, he showed them a part of the shop that had earring and necklace sets with a ring.
“These are my personal two favorites,” The man said as he pulled out two boxes, they opened the first one which had earrings that were diamonds, and a necklace that was silver with a diamond hanging, it was shiny, clean and simple. The next one was better than the first, it had a silver earring which was just a stick but had diamonds embroidered on them and a necklace that had a silver string, with a diamond heart embroidered with diamonds.
“This one, this one is great,” Gaia immediately pointed to it, “How much is it?”
“That my dear is two hundred dollars,” The man said.
“Here,” Gaia handed the man the credit card. Liz stared at Gaia and tried to imagine her in her Prom outfit.
“We’re going to put makeup on you, you know that right?” She asked Gaia, Gaia looked alarmed. She laughed.
Chapter Four
Oliver looked at the blue liquid, he looked at the Syringe, and he injected his arm. And let the blue go into his veins. The last thought before he knocked out was just one: Sleep tight.
Oliver watched as Jake tapped his fingers on the coffee table he was surprised to see him on time, he opened the door to the small pub and sat across from him.
“So what’s new?” He asked Jake.
“Gaia has broken up with me,” Jake said bitterly to him.
How?” He asked alarm.
“I, we had an argument and—”
“That’s long enough, Jake; I want to share something between you and me.” Oliver said seriously.
“What’s that?” Jake asked him.
“You know about, you know, all that stuff about Loki and me, and you know? How I tried to kill my whole family and tried to clone Gaia to create my own personal army?” He said.
“Uh…. Yeah.” Jake said, confused.
“Come with me,” Oliver said, and he grabbed his suitcase and stepped into the men’s room. He and Jake entered and they waited for everyone to leave and exit the room by washing their hands. Then he locked the door.
He went back to his suitcase and he opened it, he took out a laptop and turned it on.
“What’s this?” Jake asked him.
“I am going to confide with you what’s wrong with Gaia, and what she’s all about, why you’re so attracted to her, why she is the way she…well, was.” Oliver said.
Jake watched as Oliver signed in, he didn’t understand his laptop; it wasn’t Apple, Windows or any of the type he knew. Then Oliver opened a file.
“Look at this,” Oliver showed him, DNA.
“Yeah, what about them?” He asked Oliver.
“What can you tell me about them?” Oliver asked him, and he looked at them, he could tell the first one was probably a girl’s, and the other a boy’s.
“That’s a girl’s DNA and this one is a boy’s?” He asked.
“No, they’re both female,” Oliver said.
“This is a normal seventeen-year-old girl’s DNA, and this is a normal seventeen-year-old girl’s DNA.” Oliver said.
“Uh,” Jake was confused, how can that be, the first was not as thick as the other.
“See, this is Gaia’s DNA a couple of months ago, this is her DNA now,” Oliver said.
“What?” Jake uttered, what happened?
“This is a normal 27 year old man’s DNA,” Oliver double clicked on a small icon and out came something that looked like Gaia’s sample a couple of months ago, except it was a little less thick.
“What, what does this mean?” He asked Oliver.
“You’ve noticed Gaia’s behavior, she cares, she cares what people think of her, she wants to be friendly, she’s changing the way she looks, she’s different.” Oliver said.
“Okay, right, so? What happened?” He asked impatiently.
“When Gaia was born, she was extraordinary, because she was born with missing gene,” Oliver said.
“What’s that?” Jake asked.
“Fear,” Oliver said, and it somehow seemed weird, someone that wasn’t scared.
Someone that wasn’t scared of anything. “Gaia was Fearless, she wasn’t scared of anything, she wasn’t scared to die, to jump into fights, to be in trouble, and she just… wasn’t.
Now, she is, remember you told me about that cockroach?” Oliver said, and he nodded and Oliver nodded too. “Now, someone would obviously be interested in Gaia because of her difference, that’s why she’s always in danger.”
“And I have reason to believe that Liz Rodke’s family, might have something to do with this.”
“No way,” He said.
“There’s only one person I think might now this about Gaia and its Ed Fargo, I want you to bring him to me,” Oliver said.
But Jake was too shocked to say anything.
Chapter Five
Jake sat next to Oliver in the Expedition, they were waiting for Ed to kiss Kai goodbye.
Jake put his face on his hands, he had had time to think about Gaia, and he so preferred awkward-I’m going-to-kick-your-ass-if-you-don’t-stop-looking-at-me-Gaia, than giggles-and-teddy-bears-Gaia. He barely paid attention as Oliver’s Henchmen got off the car and dragged Ed back in. He stared at Ed like staring at a wall, no emotion.
“What the?” Ed’s eyes were terrified upon Oliver but they were filled with lost thought on him.
Ed quickly took in the scene that had just happened. He had just been dragged in to a car he didn’t want to go into and filled with people he didn’t want to see. He saw Oliver, Gaia’s uncle, he could tell the difference between him and Tom in a second, Oliver was much or less of his brother. If Tom was being somewhat nice, Oliver was nicer, if Tom was being mean, you really didn’t want to see Oliver.
But Jake, Jake made the scene worse, by the fact that he was there, sitting next to Oliver like a son, like a nephew-in-law. Like the man Ed wished to be switched positions with. Ed wished he could have Gaia, be in contact with her father, be friends with her uncle, be friendly to the family. But he wasn’t, he was in fact the opposite, the bastard that had rejected their daughter and niece and practically mess up her life even worse than it was.
“Please excuse us gentlemen.” Oliver spoke seriously and his two guards exited the car and stood outside guarding the car.
“Hello Ed,” Oliver said, and Jake made a movement of his eyebrows which Ed guessed was What’s up?
“Hi,” He said nervously.
“Well Ed, I’m going to the point, fast, so please don’t fall back. As you seem to know, back when you were Gaia’s best friend, you seem to be the only human being on Earth to be able to tell what kind of thought was in her head what kind of feelings were troubling her, what kind of emotion was running through her veins. Not anymore however, right?” Oliver asked him.
“Well, no, I don’t see her as much—”
“Ed she’s been changed,” Oliver said quickly, Ed looked at Jake, but Jake was staring at him endlessly.
“Uh….”
“Ed, you were in a conversation with yourself, Gaia, and Heather Gannis in a hospital, and Heather told you things about Gaia, she told you that Gaia was Fearless.” Oliver said, Ed didn’t allow himself to speak.
“Well, news-flash Ed, she’s not Fearless anymore,” Jake said, somehow awake from his deep dream state.
“How-how?” He asked.
“We have reason to believe that Gaia took in a serum, something that has changed her DNA, and put fear back on track. Gaia should not let herself be exposed to that any longer! She’s in danger!” Oliver said fast and loud.
“What kind of danger?” Ed knew he sounded strict and somehow with authority, but to be honest, he’d do anything for Gaia.
“Bad danger, Gaia could die, it’s your-every-day-serum, like on TV, DNA should never be tempered with. It needs to always be and stay its original form, Gaia’s body can’t fit her DNA, her body is strong, while she is now weak. Her body is suffering; her veins are running like loose puppies. She will die if we don’t eject this into her bloodstream.” Oliver said as he pulled out a test tube, filled with a light blue liquid.
“This isn’t Fearless, it’s a medicine, vaccine that will heal her, it’s like an undo button, it will replace everything that has been moved back to its original state.” Ed starred at its glow.
“I want your help,” Oliver said.
“How do I know you’re not lying to me?” He asked quickly.
“Look into my eyes, and tell me I’m lying to you,” Oliver said, but Oliver had the same blue eyes Gaia did, they didn’t lie, and they weren’t. “Okay, I believe you, but what can I do?” Ed asked.
“Gaia is going to prom with Sam Moon, you need to speak to Sam Moon, as you know, Sam Moon doesn’t quite get along with Jake, and well, he’s quite terrified of me,” Oliver said. Ed wonder why Gaia was going with Sam instead of Jake, but that didn’t trouble him as much as the fact that he Oliver’s eyes were just like Gaia’s, exact replica, and he could tell by the fact of Sam Moon’s reaction towards him hurt him.
“Also, I want you to take a look at this file,” Oliver passed him a folder, which had a tag that said, ‘Prison Reports,’ Ed didn’t know what to make of it. Or what in fact to think of it, he opened it and there were pages with pictures on them. The first one was of a man named Henry, and more, like single names like Claire, or Lucy, Kyle, John. But then one came, it said Sam, it was Sam Moon, the picture showed a pale unconscious boy on his back on the ground, shot. The picture next to it showed Sam sitting in a white room; it looked like it had been taken from outside a room, through a glass window. Sam was sitting, with his hands on his knees and his head looking at the floor. So this was were Sam had been, Sam had been taken in Prison, he read some stuff like Status: Escaped, alive.
“I did that, I put those people in Prisons, people that I had killed but didn’t die; I trapped them in there, letting them drive themselves crazy, back when I was Loki. But keep looking through the file,” Oliver said strictly. Ed nodded and he then looked at a paper that had a picture, George, he was the man that Gaia used to live with. Status: Deceased, natural cause. The picture showed him in the brownstone, on the floor, with paramedics next to him, he was breathing. Then it showed him in a white room, dead on his… bed?
He turned the page, the folder felt almost empty, Josh. It showed a picture, of a boy dead in Science laboratory. Then it showed him in the prison room. Status: Alive, In Maintenance. Ed let his mouth drop a bit; this seemed to be the first person alive other than Sam through out the whole file. Then he looked at a name on the wall, from the picture, Heather, it seemed to have been written in pencil. He saw many other Heather’s around the little picture. Then he turned the page, and his mouth dropped. Mary.
It showed a picture, a picture…. He never had pictures of Mary, and to see her face…. Mary. It was unbelievable, this was…. Just crazy, he started breathing harder, this first picture showed her, dead, with blood on snow. Blood. White snow. Filled with so much red, then it showed another picture, of Mary sleeping, the glass in her room was filled with scratches and marks. Status: Alive, In Maintenance.
Ed couldn’t speak, he wanted to walk out of that truck and run around the world. Kick Scream and yell for happiness.
“Where is she?” He yelled.
“She’s in the Prison,” Oliver said calmly.
“Get her out!” He yelled; Jake looked confused, staring at Oliver and then slowly at Ed.
“It’s not that easy Ed, look, each file has something on it, Qs, right?” Oliver said, and Oliver pointed it out to Ed, in a small line it said Qs: and it said R1.
“So?” He asked.
“That’s how many clones she has, one, and she’s dead, she was the one in the coffin!
Her parents think she’s dead, what do you think they’ll think when she pops out on their door? I’m not going to set any of them free just yet, of course, there’s only two left alive,” Oliver said.
“Well then?” He said.
“Look, I can set Josh free any time, but these people are terrified of me, they’ll kill themselves, they’ll know that I’m bluffing or something.” Oliver said.
“Get me to get Mary, send Josh to Heather, he’ll do a lot of major recovering with her,” Ed said.
“Look, what will they think? They’ll think it’s a trap and that this and that, blah blah blah, the danger is that they might do something they shouldn’t, they’re like children now Ed, Mary is unstable, she could walk out that door and kill herself, throw herself off a bridge.”
Oliver said, and it started dawning on Ed that Oliver was right.
“I’ll get her then!” Ed said.
“Well,” Oliver seemed to think there was nothing wrong with this plan.
“Okay. When?” Oliver said.
“Are you serious? For real?” He asked Oliver.
“Yes. I’ve set up an apartment I don’t need, you know, I’ve got a bunch of them all over the place so, take her here, and stay with her, you must stay with her twenty-four hours,” Oliver said, as he took out his keys and looked for the right one. The jingle of those keys was like a beautiful echo in his ear. Mary!
“But don’t forget, you need to speak to Sam Ed, and here, have this.” Oliver said as he gave Ed the serum.
“I will send instructions later.” Oliver added.
“Okay,” Ed said.
Oliver
After we made sure Ed Fargo wasn't followed home by any cars, spies or sign of tailing, Jake and I went to my apartment, well, actually the whole building was mine, I have many buildings around the New York City area for my own personal doing, this building was mainly just for me. Each house room has its own level, except the bathroom which shares one third of the space in the dining area (Shares as in with walls). Entertainment area (mainly for visitors, Jake, business men....), kitchen, gym, (thought I barely exercise anymore...), my master bedroom, guest room (house) and dining room.
I went to the washroom and I noticed that my cheeks weren't as pale anymore, the serum that I gave Ed Fargo for Gaia was tested on a Fearless mouse, and it’s not hard to make anything Fearless, when you have the right tools anyway.... The mouse took the serum and it went back to its original state, its hair didn't look bleached nappy white but a normal tamed white. Almost bage, happy. I took the serum, I've noticed my behaviors lately, they're not regular me-Brother-CIA Agent-Twin Brother-Good-Oliver, I've seemed more vicious.
So I decided, no way I'm I turning back to Loki, not good, Gaia would never ever trust me, but more than that, Tom, Tom will never ever for the end of infinity trust me, I know that, he didn't even trust me when I tried to save him, he'd rather go back to the cage he was in, and he's the only person who I've known my entire life still alive.
And now the serum is changing me, but I'm afraid, what if it turns me back to Loki?
The mouse had only gone through one stage of doing; I've gone through many, even though they weren't chemically done. That's the one thing that keeps me going, they weren't done chemically....
Mary
Where in the hell is Paul? I scream for him but the guards only tell me to shut up, those guards, they'll never leave me alone, even when my other guards come they just won't go.
Paul! Dammit Paul you get back here!
I know he's out there, something tells me he's out there, I don't know who he is, but something tells me he's with Brandon, I've met Brandon before, he's tall, that's all I know. But I'd rather see Paul, though I've never met him.
Where the hell are they?
Oopsies! I said hell! I said it again! Now I need to really stop saying it.
And here we go again. I'm telling this sock all about my adventure, how I've persuaded the guards to take me to another place, and here I am, well, I'm actually in a truck, a big truck, I can hear kids playing outside, but I don't care my mission and plan, goal, and everything I'm working for is to get Paul. Now I'm persuading the guards to go to.....
Whoa.... that park! It's so freaking familiar, and there's a girl there, her name is Gaia, I know, her hair is blonde, and she is tall, I want to scream for her, for her to save me but as soon as I scream her name she turns! But then she runs! That's not Gaia!
"Shut up!" The guard puts his hand over my mouth and I bite it, but he hits me.
Chapter Six
Ed was shocked, he couldn't believe what he was watching, Oliver was showing him surveillance tapes, mainly stuff on the street, a parking lot camera, or a bank security cam. He was watching Gaia, she was different, if you knew her (and he did) you didn't need to glance twice to see, her walk, her face was different.
Gaia always walked with authority with a sense of pride, Gaia walked with her arms by her side never looking down, but here she was, looking at her shoes and walking with her arms crossed on her chest. And a face full of fear, who would've known she would ever do that? Does she know what she has turned into? He looked at other TVs in the room, the other one showed Gaia getting a fight, her instinct was wrong. There's a first time for everything, he thought.
"As you see we all know something is wrong, Jake knows it, I know it, mainly everyone, and even her friends notice something different about her." Oliver said.
"Tom doesn't know," Jake butted in from the corner of the room where he was looking at a TV, it was the Camera hooked to Mary's new room, Jake seemed to be watching her every move, not letting her out of his sight.
"Why not?" He asked Oliver.
"Because Tom won't buy it, if Gaia says that she doesn't trust me, he won't hesitate to take out a gun, cock it in my face and shoot me with witnesses or no witnesses," Oliver said holding his hands together, Ed shrugged, it was true, he guessed, he walked over to Jake's corner and sat on the chair next to him.
"So what do you think?" He asked Jake.
"Of what?" Jake asked him, not moving his eyes from the screen.
"Mary," He said.
"I think she's crazy," Jake said, while crossing his arms.
Ed felt like something had just punched his stomach and buried itself there, it wasn't like the sinking feeling you get with sadness, or when you feel like your stomach is completely empty and you feel like someone has just dumped a huge brick because of guiltiness. No he wasn't sad, or felt guilty, he was angry, who was Jake to sit here and say that? He hadn't gone through what Mary had gone; Jake would've turned out just the same. He didn't look at Jake, he decided he was going to explode if he did, he knew Gaia was strong, stronger than Ed, and if Jake could take Gaia, Jake could kill Ed. But Ed's arm was beginning to form into a fist, he wanted to punch Jake, to just let him have one punch, it would be filled with satisfaction, he wouldn't need to hit him more than once.
I think she's crazy.... That was what had raged Ed, everything about Jake was hate-able, his cocky-meathead self, well he understood that Jake wasn't a meathead, but it sounded right. Jake was a cocky bastard though, Ed disliked him, detested, he hated this guy, because of what was doing, done, had, have, everything.
He hated the fact that he had been with Gaia, did they sleep together? He wondered looking at Mary, he hated Jake because Gaia would've never gone out with him if she had still been Fearless, she would've seen through him, he was just another FOH. Why had Gaia ever let this guy near her? He remembered when he saw Gaia at the Karate club or whatever Jake had; Jake had lifted her in the air, in happiness. In that moment Ed felt happy for Gaia, because Gaia had a smile on her face, something you didn't see around much. But Jake had done it, jealousy was something Ed didn't deal much with his girlfriends, but Gaia, Gaia had been a totally different thing.
Death, grief, disaster, horror, and the rest came with her, the Gaia Package he decided, you ever need sorrow, death, grief, sadness, loneliness, just give Gaia a call, 100% Guaranteed, for examples call Sam, Ed, Jake, and her family! (Or what’s left of it)
Sam looked through the news paper, he had finally dragged his ass out of that shit hole and looked for another job that gave him decent money and hopefully soon a good place to live. He looked around the room, finally clean, well at least he tried, the bed was made and he had gone to the laundry place down the block to wash clothes.
He looked up surprise to hear someone knocking.
Gaia waited for Sam to open the door, she didn't like the place he was staying at, it was were most African Americans lived and you would find an old man inside the hallway sleeping. Apart from that the smell, she heard some moving inside and when the door opened Sam looked surprised.
"Hey!" Sam said cheerfully.
"Hi," She said.
"Um, come in," Sam said as he let her go in, she noticed immediately that the room was filled with a smell she recognized as Sam's cologne.... She immediately felt her chest melting, she felt herself smiling as the whole reaction to the room filled her senses.
"Hey, I just wanted to stop by, you know, see what's up," Gaia said, Sam seemed confused, but then he seemed amused, she put her hand on her hip and Sam looked her up and down.
"Fine, how have you been though? I mean most of the times I see you we don't have much time to talk, well, I mostly never see you at all," He said.
"Well things have been good, I'm actually socializing, yup me, socializing," She paused as he followed Sam into a small room and into a seating area, she noticed the apartment was super small, with a kitchen as small as her close, and the dining room a small two seat table.
The bed, something made her uneasy about that bed.
"My dad of course has gone on another top secret mission, which I'm totally against, but it's his job. I guess...." She said, she felt extremely comfortable sitting there talking to Sam, Sam, the one person on that Earth in which she didn't feel like a total asshole, or confused.
"I'm surprised, last time he disappeared, well, you didn't take it too well," Sam said uneasy, she remembered and the pain cu deep into her, she had hit Sam, she hated that moment, she had never attacked a human that she loved and cared for as much as Sam other than him. Not Ed, Jake, (Well with Jake it wasn't serious) just Sam. Sam had gone through so much, why? Why had it been him?
"I am so sorry!" She busted out, she stood up and clutched his neck, she felt horrible all of a sudden, “I am, I am so sorry of what I've put you through, everything, all of it, I never really even stopped anywhere to tell you that, I've never noticed how much you've gone through, you didn't ask for it, but you went through it and I m so sorry because you had to." She said, feeling tears in her eyes.
"Gaia, it's over, I mean, that has happened, what happens happens, it's not your fault people's actions affect us," Sam said as he hugged her back.
"No, yes it is, because you were my target, they didn't need to come to me to hurt me, they went to you, and you didn't need what you got, I am so sorry!" She felt herself sobbed; she knew that no matter how many times she said it, it would never be enough.
"No, don't say that, I don't blame you," Sam said.
"But everyone else did," Gaia said, “It would've never happened if it weren't for me, Sam, I am so sorry, and it sucks because I know that whatever I do will never pay up for it."
Sam pushed her back, and he kneeled in front of her as she sat on the bed, "Gaia, you don't need to pay for it, what happened to me should never happen to anybody else, or you, I love you Gaia, and I would never like it for you if you went through that."
She hugged him and his arms had now seemed more of a protection than anything else in the world, "I love you."
She felt a familiar memory coming to her, when she thought that she was in heaven, with Sam, holding her hand, he had told her that he loved her, she didn't know what was true, if she had said it, if he had said it, but now she knew, that they both had said it.
She kissed his lips, she touched his beautiful cheeks and kissed him, she felt her hands on his waist before his hands were in her hair. They fall back on to the bed, his kisses were something she needed, she kissed him with such desire, and demand. She had missed his touch, his unique touch. She felt his hands slide under her shirt, and she felt her own hands lifting his shirt off him, this was so familiar, they did this probably two to thee times a day when they were together, she missed it, his smell, his face, his body, she missed him.
Chapter Seven
Sam lay awake, next to Gaia’s warm body; he was somewhat shocked, Gaia had cried, she had shown emotions to him that she would’ve never allowed anyone to see, no matter how much she trusted that person, weakness was not Gaia’s thing.
He had his arms around her in the small bed, she cuddled up to his chest, he would’ve never thought this would happen, well, not again anyway, he wondered what happened to Jake. If he would’ve been attacked, kidnapped, or whatever he could’ve stood his own, he could take care of himself, but, he didn’t seem hurt, otherwise Gaia would be in grief. Or trying to do something, but something seemed different about Gaia; she was so much more opened.
“What are you thinking?” He jumped in surprise; he didn’t know Gaia was awake.
“How long have you been awake?” He asked her.
“Just now, how many hours have we been here?” Gaia asked him while rousing.
“Um… let me check,” He opened the cabinet on the side-table next to the bed and took out his watch, “Whoa, three hours,” he said while sitting up, but Gaia grabbed him by the waist.
“Stay here with me,” Gaia said, he nodded and lay back on the bed, then Gaia did something he had never seen her do, she took off her shirt. Gaia didn’t wear bras and seeing her without a top for such a longtime made him immobile, he felt his jaw drop, then she pulled herself up to him and kissed his lips, at first he didn’t move, he didn’t know how to. But then he felt a tingle in his back, telling him to grab her and never let her go.
He grabbed her neck and kissed her, letting his hand guide its way around her body. Questions seemed to be popping in his head like popcorn, but then they joined the swirling mist that was Gaia.
“Sam…” He heard Gaia breathe.
“Huh….” He heard himself hum out.
“Let’s make love Sam.”
Sam felt his lips stop moving, that moment took him back to a memory, Ella, when he had sex with Ella, she had said Let’s make love. And just like that moment he couldn’t refuse, he couldn’t say no, his body felt weak, like if he was drained out of energy, but at the same time he held onto Gaia. Not letting her go; he had done it before but he wouldn’t do it again.
He reached into the cabinet that was still opened, deep under the junk he found the box of condoms; he thought before that he knew he would never use them, but be better secure than not safe, so he bought them. Who knew it be Gaia?
Chapter Eight
Ed hated everything about that moment, the smell, the smell of new leather, he was very used to it and he didn’t like it, the noise, the noise of the unsteadily wheels against the metal and the hardwood floor. The Image of that moment was even worse; Ed was rolling on a wheelchair down the hallway of Mary’s apartment, finally going to see her.
The therapist had talked to Mary, at least now she did something human and satisfying, watching TV and eating donuts. Oliver had told him that he could see her anytime he wanted. And since Oliver and Jake had gone off somewhere Ed didn’t know, Ed decided that he wanted to talk to Mary, he didn’t want Oliver and Jake to be there when he was with Mary, and now was his chance.
But however he didn’t like the fact that he was in the wheelchair, Oliver said that she might not recognize him, but if she did, it would alarm her that he was now walking, so back to old Ed, Ed would do it for Mary, but it was so…. Disgusting.
Ed opened knocked on the door, he could hear the noise of the TV, she was watching some movie, form what he could tell it was Jake’s favorite movie The Fast and the Furious. In other occasions he’d be worried when he knocked on a door and hear no reply, but he could hear her humming, and the soft thud of her setting down her glass of milk on the wooden desk.
“I’m coming in,” He said loudly, still no reply, he opened the door, and Mary slowly drew her eyes from the TV and looked at him.
“What do you want?” She asked him.
“To talk to you….” He said.
“Sorry, I don’t want to talk to you,” She said.
“Well that’s too bad,” He heard himself say, and he entered the room.
“What happened to you?” Mary asked him.
“Huh?” He was taken aback by her question, what happened to you as in, what happened after I got abducted? What happened to you, you look older?
“Why are you in that wheelchair?” Mary asked him.
“Oh, this,” He wasn’t going to lie to Mary, he was going to tell her the straight truth, it seemed like she didn’t know who he was, so he was going to try and say the most familiar things he could.
“I was in a skating accident, my ex-girlfriend wanted to show me off, to her friends, see, my ex, Heather Gannis, she’s kind of, top stuff, she thinks highly of herself, and her friends of course, do too. Of course they thought I was crap, so Heather wanted me to fit in, so she told them I could skate down this long downhill street, I was doing pretty good halfway, until I busted my skateboard with something else, I went flying. I was pretty good too, used to call me Shred, but look at me now, I feel like an old man telling stories,” He said.
“Hmmm, how come I saw you walking?” Mary asked him. “Right outside the door, with Jake.”
“Cause I like my wheelchair, I got surgery on my legs, now I can walk, but once you’re on this you don’t like standing up again, what do you know about Jake?” He asked Mary.
“He’s cute, and he gave me this movie,” Mary said.
“Yeah, right,” He heard himself say while glancing at the TV Screen.
“What’s your name?” Mary asked him.
“Ed,” He said.
“Is my name Mary? Everyone calls me Mary,” She said.
“Yeah, your name is Mary,” Ed said.
Chapter Nine
“You’re going to lose this battle you know that?” Liz heard Gaia say to Sam Moon.
“You think what’s inside that tiny little brain of yours, I’ll think what’s inside mine,” She heard him say to Gaia across the chess table.
Liz looked at Gaia and Sam, Gaia had good taste, but that was only in men, other than that, throw the girl a hairbrush and a couple of decent jeans please, she looked homeless!
Liz kept staring at Sam, he was definitely hot, Jake was the jock, well not really, the hot popular boy, and Ed was the skater boy downtown trying to sneak into an abandoned house with an empty pool. And Sam, Sam was the college guy, well as far as she knew he wasn’t in college anymore. Through all the crap Loki had put him through, his friends, his emotional status with himself, his friends didn’t want him, they thought he was a murderer, and it seemed like Sam had the lowest self esteem on the planet. Ed was one thing, but Gaia had shattered Sam, he was such a broken soul.
“Agh.” She gasped by hearing her cell phone ring.
“What?” She said strictly.
“Liz? Dang girl what’s up in your grill?” Tina asked her, Liz slapped herself on the forehead, she was expecting Skyler to call, not Tina.
“Tina, stop it with the gangster talk already, your white,” Liz said.
“Word, but my style isn’t my appearance, yo, where you at?” She asked her.
“Oh, I’m walking home, why?” She asked her.
“Well, you know, me and Megan and the rest of the crew are going to Charlie’s crib to chill, supposedly he’s got some homies with him kickin’ it there, wanna’ go?” Tina asked her.
“Nah, I’m a little tired, I want to go home,” Liz said while adding a fake yawn to that reply.
“Okay, later home girl,” Tina said.
“Bye.” She snapped the phone shut, she could tell Tina was the only girl in that group of her’s still genuinely trying to be friends with her, but Liz wasn’t interested.
“Why didn’t you answer my call?” She heard someone whisper in her ear, Skyler.
“Because someone else called me,” She said.
“Yeah, right, what are you looking at?” He asked her searching the park, she let his own eyes wander around, She knew that ever since their father had showed them that picture of Gaia, he was dying to meet her, but he couldn’t not according to schedule.
“Who the hell is he?” Skyler asked her.
“Sam Moon, first love, first target,” She said with a grin on her face.
“Not the last though,” Skyler said as he took out a smoke.
“Father is not happy that you’re smoking,” Liz said.
“So, I’m not happy that he’s married, screw him,” Skyler said. Skyler acted so much like those kids on TV, those punk bullies that were so angry because their poor parents neglected him, and he was really a sensitive kid inside, all he needed was a little love.
Especially after their dad got remarried again to this lady named Pearl, she was actually a hit-woman, almost died going up against Gaia, but daddy being the doctor and all, and healed her fast.
“Whatever.” She said while looking back, they were behind a couple of trees sitting on an old stone bench, it was almost getting dark.
“She looks easy,” Skyler said while looking at Gaia.
“She probably is, if it weren’t for that green crap, she’d probably kick your ass for saying that,” Liz reminded him.
“Like I can’t take her?” Skyler said sounding sarcastic.
“Think what you think, when she comes she’s going to kick your ass,” Liz said standing up.
“You’re still against this, how friends have you gotten with her? What do you feel like she’s your sister now?” Skyler said while standing up too.
“I’m not her friend, but through this whole time I’ve told you and daddy that I’ve had a bad feeling, but no, you morons don’t listen, so you know what, screw you, you’re going to get fucked,” Liz said, an she turned quickly and walked just as fast, she didn’t want him to reply to that statement.
Liz
This was the plan, as soon as my father met Pearl, he learned about Gaia, of course Pearl, working with Loki and all, knew everything. And we planned this, we thought ahead, we predicted, but since I met Pearl I had a bad feeling about this new scheme. I hated it, I knew that something bad was going to happen, and I told Skyler, but he didn’t care, he just wanted to get as Fearless as Gaia was. I told my dad but I knew he and Skyler were the same.
Skyler loves everything about the plan, I introduce him with Gaia, he starts talking to Gaia, gets friendly with her, and then he sleeps with her a lot of times. See my dad wants to get close to Gaia, but with Gaia fearless she’d never glance at any of us twice, so finally we got her fearfull, and seriously full. And it would be a piece of cake for Skyler, Skyler and I will retrieve documents, information, anything, because my dad wants Loki’s work, cloning, fearless-ness, fear-full, whatever he’s made, because my dad believes Loki is a genius, and my father would never get up to that level.
All Skyler wants is to get laid and get fearless, my dad, everything Loki has, Pearl, to sleep with my dad, but me, well, I’ve learned to hate Gaia in everything as I met her. And what kills me is that my dad is paying more to Gaia than me, he knows every freckle that’s on her back, every strand of hair that fell off her head in the last twenty-four hours, and he barely cares how old I am. It kills me that I’m actually jealous of that six-pack of trouble.
Chapter Ten
Gaia took a bite out of her hot dog, she wondered if she looked like a pig eating like that in front of Sam, but Sam loved her for who she was, she definitely didn’t have to worry in front of him.
She could tell Sam had been starving all day, first they had gone to Washington Square Park, and catch a few games at the chess tables, and came out victorious by beating Sam three to two. Then they actually went to a show downtown, celebrating April Fools day.
They had stayed there for about two hours, and through all the walking, talking, and everything, they had spent literally three hours gone since they woke up at ten.
She loved being with Sam, the night before they got dressed and went to Washington Square Park, and played like ten games. Then he walked her home, but instead of actually going inside the house, they spent thirty minutes outside making out. Then he left because it was going to be eight o’clock, and he didn’t want to get home before dark.
But then he asked her if he wanted to do something the next day, of course she did.
So here they were; Sam was almost done with his hamburger when she was barely halfway with her hot dog.
She took another bite out of her hot dog and then zipped from her pop, she looked outside, finally a day that the sky didn’t look like it had been littered with mud. Not a single cloud in the sky, was this some sort of sign?
She took the last bite of her hot dog and took a French fry…French toast…French kiss. She smiled at her own thoughts, but with that French fry in her lips, and the image she had just seen made her choke it out.
“You okay?” Sam asked from his own fry.
“Yeah,” She muttered, and took a sip from her drink. She looked again at the corner, she had sworn, completely sworn, that she had just seen Mary, out of the blue, Mary, just there, she could’ve sworn she did, but Mary was gone….
“Okay, I’m done,” Sam said while tapping his stomach.
“Me too,” She said but taking a whole handful of French fries into her mouth.
“How about we go now?” Sam said as he stood up and stretched.
“Okay, let’s go down this way, I think there’s another festival coming,” She said hurrying and standing up.
“Hey, let’s go, over here!” Mary said to him, Ed grabbed Mary by the hand and pulled her away.
“No Mary, we’re going to the festival remember? I did not just get out of my comfortable sofa from watching the festival and to being in it. Let’s go,” He said while he walked away from the next shopping store he really didn’t want to go into.
“You’re not fun,” Mary said but stopped resisting and followed him.
“I am fun, let’s go,” He said, Ed had been with Mary since eight o’clock in the morning, Oliver had said twenty four seven, and well, Ed didn’t mind, but when Ed switched to the festival on channel seven, Mary wanted to go. So she dragged him out of their lovely, comfortable, warm living room into this chilly day, sure it was sunny, and clear, but still, Ed didn’t want to go out, not with Mary, she wasn’t annoying like a little sister, it’s just, what if someone saw them? A family member? A friend?
They pushed and scooted in to the front of the crowd, the float in front of them was a skittles float, that said taste the rainbow with a setting of a mountain with a girl sitting there eating skittles from her bag. Even though there were a hundred littered around the float Then next came the M&M float.
Mary looked at the float, she wanted to go grab a skittle, and soon they started throwing some into the crowd, she struggled to catch some, but no luck, and then as she leaned back to catch one, her eyes glanced at something else, M & Ms.
Suddenly images popped into her head, her sitting with Gaia, her sitting with and Gaia, Gaia kissing Ed…. Ed being with her, Ed kissing her, she remembered those moments. She dared Gaia to kiss Ed, she remembered it, and she remembered herself kissing Ed in seventh Grade, before Heather had broken him.
Then reality sunk into her, Gaia, Ed, Oliver, Drugs, and snow, cold, that prison, Jake, and now Ed. Ed can walk!
“Mary!” Ed yelled for her as she fell back.
“Oh my god Ed! You can walk! Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!” She heard herself scream.
Ed didn’t say anything, his face first looked plain, and then he looked confused.
“Ed! I remember!” She said, knowing he had no idea of what was happening.
“Oh. My. God.” She saw Ed’s plain face, shocked. She hugged his neck with all her might.
