Different.

Chapter 21: Welcome to the club

Chapter 21

Welcome to the club

"What do you mean, 'job'?"

I was in a large, circular room, joined by Adam, Jenna, Alex, Akshana, and a few other scattered people my age that I didn't recognize. We all sat at the same table, paying silent attention to what Akshana had to say. Well, except for me that is.

"Would you let me finish Kaylee?" She snapped.

I was going to protest, but Adam reached under the table and put a hand on my knee, shaking his head gently. Grumbling, I let my mouth snap shut and crossed my arms over my chest, slumping back into my chair and rolling my eyes.

"Thank you Adam," Akshana uncomfortably acknowledged him for a millisecond before continuing. "As I was saying, I've decided that you'll all go on this first job together. It will give you a chance to bond, and get to know each other a little better." She looked at each of us, suppressing a grimace when she made eye contact with me. "Aside from that, it actually is crucial that we get this done. There's been an unusual pocket of activity in this area-Santiago, If you'd please," She interrupted herself to motion to the small boy standing at her side.

At first I wasn't sure what she was asking him to do, or why he was even in the room honestly. After all, he was probably only around nine or ten, so it wasn't like he was going on this 'job' with us. But I got my answer soon enough.

He crept away from Akshana's side, extending his arms toward us with his palms out, tiny fingers splayed. For a few seconds, nothing happened. But then his eyes started to roll back into his skull, the whites overtaking the brown of his irises, making me inhale sharply. They began to glow faintly, and the next thing I knew, the room was gone.

Startled, I flinched. But strangely, despite the fact that I could clearly see I was outside, I could still feel the cushioned chair beneath me. And if I reached up a little, the wooden table in front of me.

Out of nowhere, Akshana's voice materialized, making me flinch again.

"This is Santiago's ability. He's a seer. One kind of seer at least."

That little boy was doing this?

"What do you all see?" She asked, her voice seeming to grow louder. Or maybe closer. I couldn't tell.

"A creepy old forest trail," One of the girls in the room that I didn't know answered.

I thought I heard Akshana snort.

"Yes, Delaney, it's a trail. But why am I showing you this?"

When no one answered, the vision changed. I was still seeing the same trail, but now it was as if the eyes I was seeing it through were moving without a command on my part. Like I was stuck inside someone else's head without control of what they did. It made my stomach turn with unease, so I gripped the table tight in my hands to remind myself that it wasn't real, only an illusion.

But damn it was a realistic illusion. I could even smell the pine trees.

"The rocks to the left," A voice that was deep and hushed came from somewhere in the room.

The eyes moved, and focused in on what the boy was talking about. A small group of boulders, each around the size of a tire, stacked up next to each other in a weird misshapen circle.

"It marks the entrance to their hiding spot, doesn't it?"

"Thank you Parker." Akshana praised him in a tone that said, 'the rest of you could learn something from him'. "You all are going to go here tonight. You'll be prepared with the proper gear and information."