Forum Thread

Alecto was a good son. He was. He did what was asked of him and he did it without complaint. He didn't complain when they called him Alice, a name that didn't even belong to him. Sure, he impersonated his siblings when they didn't want to do any chores and turned to their reliable oldest brother to do it for them, seeing who could trick their caregivers the longest turning into a silly prank, but in the end he was Alecto. Alecto who had been Alice for so long that he had become a dead man. As he was dragged through the streets of District 9, dazed and perhaps a little concussed, Alecto bitterly contemplated how everyone had been so convinced that he was Alice that they had simply handed him over to the Peacekeepers when asked. The sting of betrayal hurt a lot less when he had other scrapes and bumps to keep the pain at bay.

He didn't even realize that he had been placed into a train until the scenery flew past his eyes, vacant eyes staring at nothing until someone tired to talk with him. By the time that happened, they were already in the capital and being ushered through the crowded streets, jostled around in a crowd that pressed in from all sides. An apt metaphor for his current feelings, Alecto.... no he was Alice now, wasn't he? Alice was assigned the 14th room, something he noted with minimal humor. At least it wasn't unlucky 13. Small mercies.

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The sound of a door opening in the distance grabbed Kara's attention. While she was unable to turn towards the sound or properly focus on it, she still tried to anticipate who it was and what they were doing. She was eerily aware of voices, but she could only pick out a few words. Ordered, awake, interesting, mother. Kara is only able to blink when she feels cold electrodes being placed onto her temples. The cold sensation snaps her awake for a split second, before the wonderful, calming waves take over again. Sorry, hurt the voice says before a shocking sensation tears through her head.

Kara is aware of a loud screeching sound, but she couldn't be certain if it was her own screams or the sound of the machine. So this is my fate? A forced aneurism? Kara wonders as the sensation intensifies. She could've swore that either her brain, or eyeballs would explode at any moment.

But as soon as it started, it ended. Kara was dimly aware of her heart hammering into her chest. She feels a needle prick her arm. A satisfyingly cool sensation hits her veins. But she doesn't have time to enjoy the feeling, because a second needle prick finally knocks her out.

Time seems to rapidly fly by. Kara remembers the train and the parade. She remembers being almost like a statue. Emotionless, unresponsive. But the spell seemed to break when she entered her room. But she was offered no privacy, as she could see into other tributes rooms. She was also aware that the boy from her district was also placed into her room.

He, like her, was in a zombie-like state and was moving slow. Too slow apparently, because the Peacekeeper has shoved him inside and seemed to be about to hit the boy with his club. "Stop!" She demanded. The Peacekeeper stopped short, even dropped the club as he seemed to mimic her outstretched hand. He blinks, then picks up the club and slaps her across the face before walking out, muttering something she didn't have the energy to pick up on. She bears her teeth, glaring at him before helping her fellow tribute onto a spare cot. She was confused by the turn of events, but it would have to wait. Man, her head was pounding. She winces holding her head and laying down on her own cot.

Echo wasn’t sure what was happening to her, other than being pricked by something sharp several times. She swore she heard someone curse, but she was way too groggy to be completely sure. Echo reasoned that the only thing it could be was a needle, so she assumed they were trying to inject something into her body, perhaps more sedatives— a particularly painful jab disrupted her train of thought, along with another muttered string of what Echo was now positive were curse words. “That’s the wrong spot again, dammit” Oh for goodness sake. How incompetent was this fellow? She was pricked in the wrong place? If she was being kidnapped and experimented on, couldn’t they at least give her a better scientist or whatever he was supposed to be? She couldn’t feel the blood dripping down, but she was positive she was bleeding- at least a little bit, after all the pricks she sustained. Finally, he? seemed to have done his job properly, as a searing pain shot through her entire body. She wanted to scream, to let it all out, but something was stopping her. She thrashed about, before another needle was injected into her and everything comes to a halt.

Whatever happened next was mostly a blur, before she found herself awake and somewhat in control of her body. She was roughly shoved into a room, which she noticed was facing all other tributes, grouped by District. She was then injected with another needle, and this time the pain was more intense than before. Dark stuff leaked out from her eyes like tears, and her hair seemed to become less and less solid. ‘Interesting, eh? A few moments ago you were powerless. And now you’re not! Care to test it out?’ “Who…are you?” ‘I’m you, dummy. Or if you want me to be clearer, I’m part of you, existing the moment you were given powers. I’m not so much a sentient being, but I’ve only been here for a while. Your mind is very organized, I must say.’ “Yeah, like that explains anything better. Do you know why it hurts so bad?” ‘Trust the process. Your body refuses to accept the darkness, it has yet to accept that darkness is now a vital part of it. I hope you aren’t that stupid, because you should realize that your power is Umbrakinesis. I’m gonna shut up now. Try out your powers. And embrace the shadows. Believe me, the pain will fade eventually’ “Wait— I haven’t finished—“ Echo tried shouting in her head to no avail. The voice had gone silent. She decided to heed the voice in her head, concentrating hard as she tried to utilize her powers. She could only create a miserable string of inky black, and it took a tremendous amount of effort to make it stay. It disappeared after only a few moments. Echo sighed, resting against the glass to take a break. She was jolted awake by someone opening her door, and in a panic, she flung her hands up to defend herself. When she opened her eyes, she saw the Peacekeeper looking around in confusion. “Where on earth did she go…I swear I saw her just a moment ago” he muttered. ’Took you a while, eh? But good job on hiding yourself in the shadows: that’s one function of your powers. You still have so much more to explore, and you really should learn to harness it when you want it, not just when you have that particularly strong surge of emotion. The shadows should be your fingertips, ready to act upon your command. Though…not a bad start, I would suppose.’ The shadows disappeared, leaving Echo visible, just as confused as the Peacekeeper was. He stared at her, before turning to leave. Once he left, Echo realized how much energy that had just took, and curled up on the floor for a nap.