Don't Forget

#20 A Split in the Sea

     Four wakes up before he's supposed to. It's a small blessing that he hasn't bothered to tell his caretakers. After one of the numbers escaped their room at night, they've all been sedated every night. If only keeps them asleep if they get it every night.
     It doesn't always work on him. Depending on how awake or energized he was before being sedated, Four would wake up early. It's entirely because of what he is. A sorcerer's healing factor only works when someone is asleep and relatively safe.
     Quinten is half Piscus and half sorcerer on his mother's side. There's only two others in the facility with a sorcerer's magic, but he's the strongest. There's over twenty numbers here now.
     The doors at the very beginning of the hall start opening nearly an hour after Four wakes up. It's earlier then usual. His healing factor is only getting stronger. It counteracts any of the drugs or poisons.
"Four, it's time to wake up", Quinten's room door swings open. Miss Laynath walks in and starts shaking Four by his arm. He opens his eyes slowly, faking a sleepy and dazed expression.
     He's grown a lot in seven years, now being 15. Quinten has a stockier build without being overly tall. All the tests over the years have made him strong. The orange hue in his eyes has become more vibrant as his magic got stronger.
     Four isn't stupid. He was 11 when it finally clicked that there must be something outside the facility. This can't be all there is. Where do new numbers and squid caretakers come from? Nobody ever talks about the outside. He hasn't told any of the other numbers about his theories.
"Miss Laynath? Is it time for breakfast?", Quinten moans groggily, keeping up the act. It's his advantage for whenever he might need it.
"Yes, Four. Hurry up and join the others", she replies. The caretaker always seems to be in a cheery mood. Except when someone fails a test. She's really scary after that.
Quinten is left alone to find the main hall by himself. He quickly sits up and straightens out his clothes. None of the numbers know how weird it is to be dressed the same; in white shirts and gray pants. All the cloth is made to never weigh more underwater. Magic users are also given gray jackets. A few other groups of numbers have something similar.
The halls of the facility haven't changed very much. Still all prismarine and sea lanterns. The only difference really is that two halls are now occupied with children. The youngest number now is five, and the oldest being 17. There's even supposed to be two babies in a separate area of the facility.
Quinten swims down the hallway and into the main area. A little over half the numbers are already sitting down and chatting, another passing through the hallway opposite. He quickly spots Seven and goes to join her.
"How come you're always so late? I have to wait for you all the time", Seven crosses her arms with a scowl. She's twelve now, and her hair has grown out an extra six inches since her last haircut.
"Not like I have much of a choice. The service is terrible in here", Four tries to crack a joke. Seven drops her head onto the table and groans. It's a bit of an inside joke to be as unfunny as possible.
       All the numbers have slowly developed their own separate friend groups. It was different when there were less of them, but now the social order has changed. It soon became obvious who the pure blooded Piscus favored more. Numbers with a strong sense of smell got lengths of green cloth tied around their wrists. Sorcerers got the grey jackets, and those with sharp claws or teeth get metal rings around their necks.
There was also the problem of breathing air and water. Pure blooded squid could live on land, but can become disoriented if not used to the air. It takes time for their bodies to adapt. Some of the squid soldiers in GoldenEye haven't been underwater in years.
Not all the squid numbers can handle both environments. Their genes never really knew how to form properly with the two different bloodlines. Four is one of the only few can handle both without side effects. That ability, along with his magic, gives him a very high social standing among the other numbers. Most of the other numbers either hate him or want to be near him. Quinten prefers to stick with Seven, who's always been with him.
     All the numbers are startled when a mental hatch opens up in the roof. Quinten hunches his shoulders and scoots a little closer to Seven. This only happens when numbers are taken. They doesn't always come back.
     A group of three squids quickly swim through the opening. All are heavily armored with swords at their waists. They took Eleven the last time they were here. He didn't come back. Seven shifts to duck behind Quinten.
The squid caretakers stay around the wall of the main hall, not interfering with the guards. All the numbers are quiet and somber as the soldiers swim down. None of them dare try to get to the open hatch.
"Squid Number Four. Sorcerer breed", one of the soldiers read the information off of a small card. Quinten's heart drops into his stomach. He might of thrown up from anxiety if he had previously eaten. Seven squeaks in protest and buries her head into the crook of his neck.
There's only three sorcerers like him with the gray coats. It's only a matter of time until Miss Laynath will give him up if Quinten doesn't get up. It would put Seven in danger.
It takes all of Four's strength to push her away and get up. Seven whimpers and tries to grab him again, but another number holds her back.
The squid soldiers instantly come forward and grab Quinten by the arms. They lock metal wrist bands onto him, red jewels on each. Four gasps when his magic is suddenly cut off. It's like a constant hum in his blood, but now it's like someone ripped it away. He can't feel it anymore. It leaves him slightly disoriented.
Seven watches Quinten loose his balance and almost fall. He would have if the soldiers weren't holding him up. Seven pulls against the hands that are holding her down, trying to get back to her best friend.
Quinten doesn't struggle against the squid soldiers when they swim up to the hatch with him. He locks eyes with Seven before he's pulled out of the facility.
Four's fear is replaced with a surprising amount of curiosity. This is it. He's finally outside. The lack of walls makes him feel slightly on edge, even more then he already was. But it's so big.
The facility is built into an underwater, stone mountain. It lies on the edge of the Piscus's city. All their people live in the massive metropolis. All the building's cave openings displayed in the distance. Sea lanterns make the ocean floor glow with light.
All this is amazing to Four. He's never seen anything outside the facility. His world just got a whole lot bigger. Seven would love to see this. The thought makes Quinten's mood darken a bit.
The squid soldiers swim downwards with Four in tow. Another two squids wait on the sea floor. They're holding the reins of some sort of sea creature, three times the size of the soldiers. All of them are pale shades of green or blue with a hard layer of skin. Seahorses. Quinten's never seen them in person, and he didn't know that they were this big!
Six seahorses are waiting for their riders. With Four, each horse will have two riders. Quinten's sure that there could be four people on one horse if they squished together.
The new animals, loss of magic, and the unfamiliar surroundings all grate on Quinten's nerves. It's hard not to let at least a little of the fear show. He's only 15, and barely knows anything about the world. Four doesn't say a word to the squid soldiers.
His hands are tied together along with the metal cuffs, and the rope is tied onto one of the seahorses's reins. A soldier sits uncomfortably close to him in the saddle. The squid isn't too happy about being stuck with a half breed like Four, either.
"The General's orders are to go straight to the base after picking up the sorcerer", the lead soldier explains while mounting another seahorse. Quinten tries to listen to everything they say, hoping to understand what's happening.
"This mutt better be worth the trouble. The attack's been delayed because of him", the squid behind Four jeers.
"The reports on this one will be well worth it. Those troops won't know what hit 'em", another growls. Troops? As in an army. The pieces are starting to fall into place for Quinten.
It makes sense with all the pointless training and tests. His caretakers must have been preparing him to fight against someone. But why? And what exactly is he supposed to do? Quinten's magic has never hurt anyone before. It's more suited to defense and healing.
The ride on the seashore last for only a few hours. The ocean is suddenly so much bigger for Quinten. He can't help but stare at every piece of scenery that they pass.
      Quinten only realizes that the ground is getting closer when the seahorses suddenly drift to a halt. The squid in the front uses a series of clicking noises to direct the animals. Soon after, Four is being pulled off and onto the sand. He's a little put off by how soft it is. His feet sink down a good inch.
      The water has gone noticeably dark at this point. It doesn't make much sense to Quinten until they're suddenly above the water. It hadn't even crossed his mind that the water ended at some point above. He was a little shocked, but the abrupt shift from water to air didn't cause him any discomfort. The guards around him either coughed or panted for a few minutes after.
A small sand beach leads up to the beginnings of a forest. The sun is fully set, and the moon is the only illumination. Underwater creatures are able to see in low levels of light, and Quinten has no problem seeing the new environment in full detail.
An overhang of rock seems to reaching for the sky on Four's right. A thundering waterfall drowns out the other nighttime sounds. It's beautiful. Quinten's never seen anything like it.
     The squid number is suddenly grabbed and turned around. Four only has time to yelp before a blind fold is dropped over his eyes.
     "W-What's going on?", the teen stumbles. He immediately tries to take off the blind fold. His hand is slapped away with a growl.
"Keep it on. You're only here to do as you're told", someone barks at him. A hand is placed on Quinten's shoulder, guiding him closer and closer to the waterfall. The noise is completely overwhelming to him.
     Small chains are rattled before two thin bands are clipped over the others on Four's writs. He can feel the other side of each chain clip onto the bands blocking his magic. The first ones are suddenly unlatched, a shock of adrenaline kicking in when his magic comes back. The second pair of bands keeps the first dangling from his hands.
      "Don't get any bright ideas. Multiple guards are assigned to kill you if you disobey", Quinten is pushed by the speaker to stand just next to the side of the waterfall. Spray splashes all across his skin, making him shiver.
      Quinten didn't have a choice in any of this. Blindfolded, he couldn't see where any of the other Piscus were. This was the reason that he's been trapped in the facility. Surly that this all for some noble cause?
      When he's order to, Four draws up all the magic that he can handle. It's all he can do to direct the magic up in time.
      The waterfall splits like a cracking mountain. The split widens until Quinten can feel bodies quickly rushing past him. The water pressure is like nothing he's ever dealt with before.
     It's only a couple of minutes before Quinten's magic gives out. He drops to his knees, the two sides of the waterfall suddenly crashing back into each other. Four scrambles to move out of the way in time. He falls back into the large cavern just before the water would have killed him. No one helped, or cared.
       That's when someone screamed. Quinten's heart drops to his stomach. A child is screaming.