I am Number Ten

CHAPTER 2

I jolt upright in the bed. The springs underneath me protest but I sit up. I'm looking at the darkness of the room that I share with Blake. I pull my hands to my head and wipe the sweat from my eyes. I've noticed that I've rumpled the covers beyond belief but despite all of that Blake is sound asleep next to me. At least, I think he's asleep. I can't really tell anymore and I'm too agitated to read his thoughts. I sit on the edge of the bed and wait for the dizziness to pass over.

I look at the clock radio I found in one of the back rooms and it reads that it's after 3:00 in the morning. This is nothing new for me. The nightmares have been getting more and more intense since we got here and I've been waking up earlier and earlier in the morning. The dreams/visions have taken their toll on me for the past few days and it gets harder and harder for me to sleep. I rub my sore side, the place where Blake accidentally put a bullet in my side. It's been rather painful and recovery has been slow. I hate just lying around all day while Blake is cooking or whatever, unprotected. Well, almost unprotected, he carries a small handgun in his belt and has a 12 gauge shotgun by the front door. But even the slightest sounds these days sets me off. I fear for Blake and I fear for the other Garde. These visions are more intense than before and I really want to know why. 

I'm worried that the leader is trying to tell me something but I'm not sure what. I know he wants to scare me but it seems like there's more to it. I start to wonder if there is some truth to what he tries to show me. Had one of the Garde really turned to the Mogadorians' side? Will we really lose this war? Are we not powerful enough to defeat him?

I walk out onto the crumbling front porch and look up at the moon. It's a waning quarter tonight and there are a billion stars above me. I try to remember what Lorien looks like but without much success. It's out there...somewhere among the stars. It was destroyed by the Mogs but we will restore it to its former glory. That is our mission and it will happen. In honour of Anali, Gramma and Grandpa and my parents...my parents. The thought of them brings my mind to a halt. I have no memory of them as all Loric children should. Annie told me that we are raised by our grandparents until we come of age and then we will meet our parents before we settle down to our own family life. It was a sad prospect and to me, quite unfair. I'm not allowed to see the people who gave life to me and Anali. I can't speak or have any contact whatsoever until I'm old enough. I personally believe that every child needs parents' love and that's nothing against my grandparents, but I want to know where I came from. I've had friends who have grown up in a loving family environment and they are caring and loving people. I've also had other friends, like Blake, who have grown up in broken or separated families and they are more quiet and distant. I have nothing against single parenting but I know that it's hard on everyone and it shapes the child in a different way. I can vaguely remember asking my grandmother about my parents and she simply avoided the question and told me to play outside.

I hear a noise behind me and I turn. I see Blake standing in the doorway watching me.

"Did I wake you?" I ask gently.

"No...I can't sleep knowing you're not there."

"You don't need to lose sleep over my own insomnia," I say, staring at the moon again.

Blake puts his arms around my waist and kisses my neck. I cringe slightly from the pressure on my bullet wound but I don't show it. 

"Can I help it that I'm in love with a beautiful alien and I hate to see her suffer like this. Your presence is as good as a glass of warm milk." He kisses my neck again and digs his face into my hair.

I'm glowing all over. I need to turn to face him. I want to tell him that I fear for his safety and there is a chance that both of us could die but I can't. I want to tell him that these visions are getting worse and I don't want him to suffer for something that goes on in my own head.

"You're the sweetest..." I blush slightly. "I love you," and I lean in for a kiss.

"I love you too..." Our lips barely touch before my vision blurs. I hear thunder and lightning from the gathering storm above me. I'm no longer in that crappy shack that I've called home but in the middle of a clearing in a forest. The wind is picking up and there seems to be a funnel in the gathering storm. I'm speechless and can only watch. A pearl, spherical ship descends from the funnel and lands softly on the ground.  I watch as the door to the ship opens with a soft whirr and a figure exits. I don't need two seconds to know who it is. The scar is glowing and so are the pendants on his bulging chest. He carries a golden cane with him. It seems that he needs it for support in some way. He pauses for a moment, in front of the cave and turns. He stares at me and my heart is in my mouth. I'm immobilized and all I can do is watch. This is not another dream...this must be real. His eyes laser into my skull and I think he smiles. He simply turns and enters the mountain.

"NO!!" I hear behind me.

I turn to see a figure bolting in my direction. I try to jump out of the way but I'm stuck in place. I brace myself for impact... I don't feel anything. The figure has passed right through me and I realize that this must be real but I am merely a ghost in this vision. I watch the figure run towards the cave but a blue forcefield appears and he is blasted backwards. I scream out to him but I can't move, nor do I have a voice. I want to go to him but I'm trapped. I see another person, a kid with long black hair run to him and something else. A bird-like creature swoops above us and lands next to the crumpled body. The creature shifts into something that looks like a horse and the long-haired figure picks up the body. 

Suddenly my mind kicks into gear. That hair...the name is familiar... I can see the blonde hair and the kid...from my...visions

"JOHN!!!" I scream out. "John Smith! I can see you. Other Garde! please...can you hear me?!!!" I cry with all my might but the figures don't even stir from the situation at hand. The long-haired Garde puts John Smith on the back of the horse and the two begin to run again.

"WAIT" I want to scream out. but they simply run away. 

I wake up and whack my head. Blake's holding my arms gently and supporting my head. When he sees that I'm awake he leans down and kisses me. I need help getting on my knees but Blake is there the entire way.

"What'd you see?" he asks calmly as if he was asking what the weather was like. 

I can't speak at first and I feel the need to shudder again. Blake wraps his arms around me and I lean against him. 

The nightmares are coming true. A part of me was hoping that all these nightmares were just nightmares, nothing more but they're not. The leader is here.

"The...the...leader..." I say. "The one that appears in my dreams..."

"He's here!"