Parallels

Chapter One

"Sky, we need you at the main HQ. The captain wants to hear from you", a sweet voice whispered. Waking me from my light sleep.

I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar place. A room with hard metal sheath for its walls, a dim florescent light on the ceiling and a dark green carpet. I got into a light panic since, I don't really remember getting here but, Two's presence put my heart on ease.

"Am I in trouble?" I asked, faintly.

"No silly! The captain just wants to hear from you. He wants to know what happened before you got here, what happened after we lost you in the valley, and how you ended up with the Tracers"

I sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. My body still feeling like it just got off a rollercoaster, and my head still spinning from the thoughts I fed it.

"Are you okay? I can tell them to talk to you later if you are not feeling alright." He suggested.

"No, it's fine. I can manage", I sighed.

Two smiled at me and ruffled my hair. "Look, if you need someone...I'm right here, alright? Now I am going to leave these clothes for you to change into here, and I will see you...later"

Leaving the room with the smile on his face, my mind still can't get over the worry in Two's eyes when he looked at me. I could feel it. His loving face hold the strongest emotions, both of love and compassion. But sometimes, traces of pain and worry cracks on his face.

"Looks like somebody needs to charge more, huh?" a familiar voice broke. "Need a hug or something big guy?"

I looked over the bed across mine. It was Seven, one of my tougher parallels. He lay on a tangled mess, one hand resting on the back of his head. He looked at me with both concern and happiness in his emerald green eyes.

"I would appreciate it, Seven", I smiled.

Seven then rises from the bed across mine and a hard, calloused hand pulled my arm into Seven's warm body and two arms wrapped around my waist. I buried my face on Seven's chest, and hugged him back.

"You're shaking, you know. Just calm down. It's just me."

"That is what I am scared about"

Seven giggled. "So, you are scared of me now?"

"Who in their right mind will not be scared of you? You are tall, buffed and you have an intimidating aura floating around you that can suffocate anyone that come across it", I looked at him.

He laughed again and stroked my head. He kissed my forehead, and hugged me tighter.

"I'm sorry I was harsh on you yesterday, I just got fed up with your niceness. It's sickening"

"I'm sorry too. I was just lost. I couldn't comprehend anything that day"

He slowly let go of me and he cupped my face with his hands, looking at me deep in the eyes. I could feel him say "Don't make me worry again and always stay safe" from what I can see from his eyes. Without warning he pulls me closer and hugged me one last time before kissing me on the forehead and heading out the door.

He is kind off this father figure to me, out of all my parallels. He is the one that cares for us most. He always thinks about what's good for all of us and always keeps our safety his top priority even though he risks his own.

My clock read 4:30 am. I turned on the light on the bathroom and I stepped into the shower. I then took the clothes Two left for me earlier. I was surprised that it fitted me so well, even though we are off the same build, he is much taller and skinnier than I am.

The moment I went out of the room, I was immediately greeted with winding halls of reinforced steel walls, all lit by dim fluorescent lights. Some of the walls I passed by were plastered with screens. What really got me about this place is this NASA planetarium feeling I have when I walked further down the halls. Just like when I was a child.

I got so caught up with daydreaming that I can't seem to know where I was going. I tried to ask some people I met along the way but they all seemed too busy so some of them just shrugged me off. Now I just walked around like a kid lost in a mall, finding his parents. That is until when I bumped into that man with the camo again.

"Sorry"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was blocking the way. Are you alright?" he said, concerned.

"No, It's okay! I am the one clumsy here, I wasn't looking to where I was going", I apologized. "I am just finding my way to HQ. The captain asked of me"

"I'll take you to HQ, if you want to"

He walked closer to me, closing the distance between him and me. His statuesque body made me feel like a small creature, but his benevolent nature makes me feel safe. We looked at each other for a brief moment, taking in everything from each other. His ember eyes on his sweet, lean face feels like someone I knew from before even though we just met.

"Is that...okay with you?" he asked me again

I shook my head, blinking my eyes. Was I staring at him for that long?

"That- would be nice!" I tried to smile.

He smiled again and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. He excused himself to his comrades, and walked side by side with me.

He led me through what seemed to be like a web of passageways through the base and eventually we got to where HQ is located. I thanked him and he was about to go back the way we went earlier when I stopped.

"Hey!" I called out to him. He stopped in his tracks and turned back to me. "I'm Sky, by the way!"

"Garret, at your service!" He smiled, before walking back down the hallway.

When I entered the room, the first thing that met me is the blaring screens plastered on the walls. It's low, eye soaring lights made it hard to focus.

"How are you, Sky?" a voice greeted me with a deep, raspy but gentle voice. It was the captain and he smiled at me and dropped his coffee on the coaster on the table.

"I am doing well now, sir. Thank you", I smiled. A little nauseated with the lights of the room.

A girl in a white uniform came up to me and assisted me down on a chair across from the captain. He looked at me with a look of curiosity and concern, seemingly taking every single information about me with just a simple sweep of a stare.

The Captain is a really intimidating man. His face showed great might, with a scar that lasted from his left forehead down to his left cheek. He has a tall stature, boulder shouldered and a jacked build. It was getting really hard to focus with this man, without getting intimidated.

"You seem to be tense Mr. Harlow" he pointed out "Don't worry, I don't bite"

I apologized to him. I just can't seem to wrap my head around what is supposed to happen to me if I said something wrong or if I just simply mess up.

"Anyway, I wanted to ask you of something Mr. Harlow," he leaned in. "Do you still remember the reason why you have been sent here?"

I looked at Two and Seven who were sitting on the either end of the table. Two nodded at me while Seven winked, both of them mouthing "You can do this." Taking a deep breath. I mustered everything that I know. I eased my shoulders and sat up straight.

"Well...I remember it started when the school year is coming to an end..."