Psyche Transfixed (First 4 Chapters) (1) CHAPTER ONE: A NEW JOB “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” “I beg your pardon?” I asked the person, frowning deeply. It was an elderly man, waving his cane at me as he glared with narrowed gray eyes that matched his short gray hair. I blinked at him, wondering how he could possibly have the audacity to ask me such a question, and a bold one at that. He was only around five-foot-four and I stood a good six inches taller than him. I also had muscle mass on him, though the leather jacket I wore now didn’t quite do it justice. “You heard me, boy!” the man snapped. “Those are my Wafers!” He snatched the box out of my hands and moved toward his cart, muttering to himself about how rude today’s youth was. I stared after him, shocked so much that I couldn’t even find words to express how I felt. He’d snatched my vanilla wafers. Why would he possibly do such a thing when there were plenty of other boxes just an aisle over? Had he seriously followed me just so he could take the box? And he thought today’s youth was messed up? What about its elderly people? I shook my head and decided that it wasn’t worth it to go after the man. He was probably confused anyway. Besides, I didn’t like to argue with people that were older than me--especially when they had a wooden cane that they just loved to wave at me in such a threatening manner. No matter what anyone said, those canes hurt like a bitch and left wonderful black and blue bruises, sometimes even busted veins. That was the last thing I needed right now. I shook my head again, chuckling to myself, and moved toward the check out line without wafers. I wasn’t sure why I’d even been going to buy them in the first place--I never ate them. My dog, though, occasionally ran out of food and I had to feed him something. Wafers were always welcome by my dog. I paid for the items I’d gotten, and as usual I was stunned by the price. For milk, bread, pizzas and dog food it cost me nearly thirty bucks. That was thirty bucks of my hard earned money that I was now kissing goodbye. I would never see it again. I grumbled to myself as I stalked out of the store and into my old, beat up Corvette. It wasn’t too old, really, made only a few years ago, but it had been through so much trauma in the short time I’d owned it that it looked like it was a century old. Whatever--I didn’t care so long as it still worked when I willed it to and kicked ass wherever it could. The drive back to my one-bedroom apartment took only ten minutes. I took my groceries in side and was almost knocked over my overly-enthusiastic dog, Pineapple…or Pie for short. Pie was a wolf-hybrid with dark gray colors mixed in with black through his slim yet muscular body. His tongue was hanging out of his mouth as he greeted me at the door. “Hey, Pie,” I greeted him, juggling my groceries as I gave him a pat on the head. He growled something in response and followed me into the kitchen. He went obediently to his bowl and lapped up some water as I tore open the bag of dog food. He began eating the food before it was completely poured into his bowl, causing me to spill it all over the floor. I scowled at him as he lowered his ears in apology. “Look what you did,” I scolded, and then snorted to myself as I left it there. I knew he would eat it off the floor and save me the trouble of cleaning it up. My phone began ringing and I sighed heavily as I plucked it from the kitchen table, where I’d left it this morning. “Yeah?” I answered in my usual fashion, pulling out the rest of my groceries and putting them in the appropriate places. “Will,” a voice greeted, “how are you today?” “Uh, I’m fine,” I said with a small frown. “What do you want, Tony?” Tony was on the council in the Underground. The Underground was a network of secret groups of people called misfits. I was one of them--a misfit, or freak if noticed by normal human standards. Luckily though I was one of the misfits that could actually blend in to human society. There were others, though--like some vampires, werewolves, Imps, and demons--that couldn’t blend so well. “I have a job for you,” Tony said. Of course he did. “How come you never call for a beer or something like normal people do?” I grumbled as I left the kitchen and sat down on my couch, reaching for the remote but then leaving it where it was on the coffee table. “What’s this job?” “There is a new Seer out there and I need you to retrieve him for me and possibly keep him at your place for a few days.” “What? Why?” “Because he doesn’t understand what’s going on…and some demons are after him. He saw a vision concerning one of their plots at killing someone and stopped it and now they’re angry. I just want you to keep him at your place for the time being--until things settle down and we find the demons after him.” I sighed heavily, pinching at the bridge of my nose. I was a Seer as well and knew what it was like to get visions and want to help as much you could, even if it meant certain danger. “Alright,” I grumbled. “But what about sleeping arrangements? I only have one bedroom.” “The couch.” “What if I want to watch TV?” “Then he can sleep in your bed.” “Not funny.” My bed was my sanctum. My glorious, comfortable bed. Seers weren’t supposed to get attached to people and vice versa, so I got attached to my dog and my bed. Personal items as well, like my toothbrush--don’t ask. Tony sighed on the other end. “You have a spare room you’re not using--throw down some blankets for him.” “I’m using that room--it’s Pie’s.” “Well he can have a human pillow or room with you for a while.” “Uh uh, he snores.” “Will, you’re making this hard.” “Sorry,” I apologized. “Alright, I’ll house the punk for a few days. How old is this kid?” “Seventeen.” I snorted. Teenagers were always rude and spoke as though they knew everything. I should know--I used to be one five years ago but now I was twenty-five. “Name?” “Matt.” “Ah.” “He goes to Broken Dale High School--you can probably find him there sometime today, if you hurry. School lets out at 2:45 and it’s already--” “Noon,” I broke in, sighing again. “Alright, I’m going. What’s this punk look like?” “Short for his age, brown hair, blue eyes…you’ll know him when you see him, I’m sure.” “Fine. But you better take him off my hands ASAP,” I said, and then pressed ‘End’ on the phone and tossed it onto the coffee table, scrubbing a hand over my face. Sometimes I hated that I wanted to help people. I really didn’t want to house this kid--teenagers were always trouble and this kid probably didn’t even know he was Seer or what it meant in the long run. I honestly wasn’t looking forward to being the one to break the news to him. Pie jumped on the couch with me and looked at me expectantly. We always watched TV together but today I rubbed behind one of his ears and stood. “Not today, boy,” I said. “I have work to do. Hold down the fort and I’ll be back in a little while.” I walked out the front door and climbed back into my car, wondering why these things kept happening to me. All I wanted was a peaceful, relaxing day at home with my dog. Was that honestly so much to ask? I just wanted some time to myself to be like a normal twenty-five-year-old man and watch a game or two, or maybe a race. The drive to Broken Dale High was about forty minutes long. By the time I got there, my stomach was rumbling and I was reminded of why I went to the store in the first place. I’d had stuff to fix at home but Pie hadn’t had anything and if I’d fixed myself something, he would have snatched it or given me big, pleading sapphire eyes and I just couldn’t stand that look. So now I was driving to pick up some punk kid to keep at my place--why my place?--and I was hungry. Could this day possibly get any worse? Then it started to rain and I turned my gaze skyward, thinking Why, God? Really is this necessary? Why do you hate me? Then I scowled and wished I’d never woken up this morning. Sometimes I caved to Tony too easily, but he was the closest thing to a friend I had, save for a few people that I didn’t really see anymore. There used to be a lot more Seers but then came the famine--and the Empaths had all but destroyed us. I couldn’t really blame them, though. We were their fallback source of food, and also their favorite. They liked feeding off our souls, or psyche, which often rendered them the name “Psi-vamps” or “Soul Eaters”. I couldn’t blame them but sometimes it felt nice to blame others. So maybe I’d blame Pie. That’d be funny--he’d look at me and growl out his innocence in the matter because he hadn’t even been born when it had happened. So technically he wasn’t at fault. Besides that, he was a dog. He was my dog. I shook my head and focused on the road. The school appeared in the distance and I knew they’d be letting out soon. I hoped I’d be able to recognize this kid so I didn’t accidentally snatch the wrong one--it happened sometimes. It was always a horrible experience and a lot of paper work. My fingers couldn’t handle holding a pen for that long, especially with the Underground Council watching over my shoulder. I also didn’t wish to do “jail time”, as they put it. I didn’t want to be imprisoned for an accident. Besides, who would take care of Pie if I wasn’t around? I parked in the parking lot at school and waited. I wondered if this kid had a family. If he did, it would only make things harder because I would have to answer to his family should things go bad. If he didn’t, it’d make things easier but might make the kid overly suspicious, which would cause me problems in the long run. I wasn’t sure which I was hoping for. How was I supposed to convince this kid that he was to come live with me for a few days? He didn’t even know me so how was I supposed to get him to get in the car after hearing those “Stranger Danger” talks all of his life? Firstly, I told myself not to come off sounding like a pedophile or rapist. That wouldn’t go over too well and plus, that was just offending if people thought I was either of those. Those kinds of people were what we misfits in the Underground called animals--the real monsters. When the bell finally rang—I could hear it from outside—I watched as kids emerged from the building and immediately pulled out their cell phones. As I scanned the area, I couldn’t find anyone that correctly fit Tony’s description of the kid. I didn’t see a short seventeen-year-old with brown hair and blue eyes. I didn’t see anyone near that description, exactly. I saw a lot of girls but no guys, so maybe Tony got it wrong. Maybe this was the wrong school. Figures, he’d send me to the wrong place. He couldn’t tell the shoe from the ceiling or up from down. He was always confused—or at least that was what he seemed like to me. Either that or he was a marvelous actor and I never knew. “Don’t see the punk,” I muttered to myself with a low, growling sigh. “Figures.” Did Tony hate me or something? He had to have. Why did this always happen to me? Tony hadn’t even given me the kid’s last name. Who knew how many people were named Matt at this school? I sat back in my seat and tried to think clearly about what to do next. I didn’t have a cell phone--I hated technology. As a general rule, I had no new things of the mechanical world, such as computers or email or cell phones. It was just the way I lived. As it was, I was lucky I’d broken down and gotten a cordless phone as opposed to the ones that were connected to the wall. A few boys were coming out of the building now. None of them were short, though a few of them had brown hair. I was too far away to see if they had blue eyes or not and I wasn’t willing to move closer just yet. Why did I always get stuck with the crappy jobs? This was so not fair. I was going to have to have a talk with Tony one of these days. Then I saw a kid come out with short brown hair, his head bowed low as he made sure not to make eye contact with anyone else. He moved quickly even though his legs were short--his stature was short too, and instantly I got the feeling that this was the kid I was supposed to pick up. I watched as he turned away from the direction of the buses and began walking down the lonely sidewalk that led in the opposite direction that everyone else was walking in. I got out of the car and followed after him, wondering if this would be the best approach. The kid hefted a backpack over his left shoulder and trudged across the street, not even looking up so see if there were any cars coming. Frowning slightly, I followed after him, shoving my hands into the pockets of my black leather jacket. I never took my eyes off him, not wanting to lose him and get lectured by Tony for not keeping him in sight at all times. I’d had enough lectures to last me a lifetime. “Matt?” I finally called out, getting tired of following him. I wasn’t sure how far away he lived and I didn’t feel like walking all the way back to the school to get in my car. Call me lazy, I don’t care--I’m a Seer, not a fighter. The kid stopped and turned, frowning at me. His face was pale and the way he was holding his head let me know that he had a headache, and probably a bad one at that, judging by the look in his pale blue eyes. “Huh?” he asked, looking me over. “Do I know you?” “Uh, no,” I said, coming to a stop in front of him. “But are you Matt?” I mentally cursed Tony for not giving me the kid’s surname. “Yeah, why?” “I was just wondering,” I said with a sigh. “I’m glad I didn’t get the wrong guy.” I was going to have to give Tony a lecture myself next time I saw him for putting me through this. “I’m Will.” “Yeah, okay…uh…I gotta go,” he said, turning to walk away. I mentally groaned and reached a hand out, clasping his shoulder to stop him. “Dude, what the hell?” he growled, turning toward me again, an icy flame burning in his eyes. “Look, we need to talk,” I said. “I know it seems strange but I really need you to listen to me, okay?” His head was leaning to one side. I knew it probably felt like it was overly heavy because of the pain--I’d often experienced it myself. “Your head hurts, huh?” I asked. He glared. “So what?” “You dream of things…sometimes during the day, yeah? And they come true--you see them play out all the time, don’t you?” I asked, watching his face as it grew pale and his eyes went wide. “How did you know that?” he asked shakily, taking a precarious step back. “Don’t be alarmed,” I said quickly. “I just know what it’s like, okay? You saw some people do something bad to someone in a dream--and you stopped them, am I right?” He gave a jerky nod. I took in a small breath. All things considered, this was going nicely. “Well, they know you knew what they were going to do.” “How? It’s not possible to know anything!” “It is,” I said, and then jerked a thumb back in the direction we’d come. “Please walk with me and maybe we can go in my car to get coffee.” He shook his head. “Hell no.” “Look, I’m not going to do anything to you. You got a license?” At his nod, I continued. “Well, you can drive, okay?” I tossed him my keys. “Just…we really need to talk. You can drive so you know I’m not trying anything. I can explain to you what’s happening to you.” He hesitated, and for good reason. He didn’t know me, after all. “I don’t know…” he murmured, shifting his feet and averting his gaze, looking as though he were going to run as he held my keys in his hand. “I promise I will tell you everything you need to know,” I said. “I’m not going to do anything. You can drive. Hell, you can even pat me down--I don’t have anything.” He shook his head slowly. “I can’t believe I’m doing this, but…alright.” He nodded carefully, looking at me. “Just for a little bit.” “That’s fine,” I said. A little bit was all I needed, after all. I began leading him toward my car, which was still parked at the school. He was fidgety the whole walk and I was afraid he was going to run off with my keys. Then we’d both be in trouble. I just wanted this day to be over with already. It was barely three o’clock and it already sucked. What would this evening bring? Would this kid even believe me? So far, I seemed to be spot on with the guesses of his visions and headache--Tony had helped with that--but he would only believe me for so long. Would he believe my words when I told him he was a Seer? And if he believed that, would he believe the Seer’s Fate? I couldn’t leave him in the dark about it, after all. It would probably scare him off and I knew that if he started to run, I’d have to use force--and duct tape. I prayed it didn’t come to that, though. I sighed and decided that if it did come to that, this was going to be a very long few days. CHAPTER TWO: I’M TAPING THIS The café we stopped at had coffee--the hot kind, too, not that crap the fast food places slopped into a cup and presented to you, claiming it was the scalding goodness. Steam rose from the coffee mug and for a moment, I just stared at the dark liquid, transfixed, my stomach growling hungrily and my mouth salivating. The kid, Matt, was looking at me strangely and I finally took a sip of the coffee and then swallowed slowly, my throat nearly getting burned. I should have waited. “So,” I said with a sigh, wiping at my mouth. “Do you understand why you’re getting this…visions?” “Uh…no,” Matt said. “I thought you said you were going to explain everything to me? So far all you’ve done is gawk at the coffee.” I glared at the kid. “Look, okay--it’s hard to explain. But you get visions--those images that come true, that’s what they’re called. Images and sounds, along with sensations. You saw something bad about to happen and you stopped it, yeah?” “Yeah,” he answered, watching me as I took yet another sip of the coffee. Scalding or not, it was addicting. “How do you even know about this stuff?” “I’m like you,” I told him. “I get these visions, see, and they come true as well. They leave me with bad headaches--I’m guessing that’s what they do with you?”
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