Felicio

A Dark Portent

Stephanie

When I saw Gina again she seemed skittish and could barely hold eye contact with me. I tried speaking to her but she didn't seem to be concentrating. I was worried about her. I think that reporter got under her skin. I didn't ask her though. I was already mixed up in one secret and I didn't need another weighing on my conscience. Every minute I was in the Shaw building my heart pounded. I was so afraid that somewhere they'd have a mind-reading device, as stupid as that sounds. All the guards looked at me with suspicion, but that was just the way they look at everyone. The more I observed Gina though the more it was clear she wasn't keeping herself under control. Her face was pale and she looked as though she was going to break down at any moment. Suddenly I hated the reporter for trying to get us to do her dirty work and placing Gina in danger, but then I thought about it some more and realized that she wasn't any different from Peter. I still thought of him as Peter even though he had taken on the mantle of Felicio. I hoped that he wouldn't lose himself in the new identity he had crafted.

I tried to keep my ears and eyes open for as much information as possible but after the first few days I quickly realized it wouldn't be enough. The reputation for secrecy was well-earned. There were cameras everywhere and everyone in the corridors seemed to be quiet, wary of what they were saying. I wondered how anyone could work under such conditions for an extended period of time. Already I felt stifled. The work itself was engaging, although difficult. I was researching how to make certain mechanical parts more efficient, which was difficult because I didn't know exactly what the parts did, or how they connected to other parts. There were so many redacted parts of files that at times I didn't know why they had let us into the building in the first place, and it was clear I wasn't going to learn anything from this small room. I hadn't even learned anything new about the others aside from Gina, and that was only because we shared a car ride. Everyone was silent, too afraid to speak, and I wasn't going to be the first one to break that silence. I wondered if anyone else felt the same as me but when I looked at them the only one who seemed ruffled was Gina, and for good cause.

We were left much to our own devices although there was a camera in the corner of the room. It was impossible to forget that we were being watched. I almost felt guilty for wanting to have some privacy. The building was filled with reminders of all the good work that the Shaw corporation did across the world but there was something false to it, like they were trying to convince themselves and allay their own fears. I think by this point everyone knew that they were into some shady dealings and I didn't buy all this for a second, but they were too big to bring down. I knew they were bad but the more time I spent in that building the more I dreaded what Peter planned. A chill crept through my bones and frankly I couldn't wait until the internship was over.

But I had made a promise to Peter and I was going to see it through. I owed him that much, and I owed it to Emma as well. I hadn't known her. It seemed that nobody really had and that was the tragedy of the whole thing. Something had driven her to kill herself. Peter was convinced the answer lay in this building. Something told me he was right. It was bad enough working here I couldn't imagine what it had been like for Emma growing up thinking this was a normal life. From what I knew of the Shaw's they didn't seem the type to protect their child from this life. Maybe Emma discovered something that she shouldn't have laid eyes on. Maybe she was going through a rebellious teenage phase and threatened to expose the secrets of her parents. There were still too many questions and I knew I wasn't going to get the answer to them while I stayed locked in that room. I had to find a way to get deeper into the complex without risking my own safety.

The only time we were allowed to leave the room were for our lunch breaks and bathroom breaks. The bathroom had been pointed out to us but on this occasion I took a different turning, hoping that it wouldn't be too suspicious. I was aware of my footsteps echoing against the floor. My breath caught in my throat. Peter wasn't here to save me if anything went wrong. The bathroom grew further from me as I went in the opposite direction. I tried not to stare at the camera with its blinking red light at the end of the corridor, almost hoping that if I didn't look at it, it wouldn't see me. I passed an elevator. I looked in and saw the hidden keypad. The building was so huge I could barely fathom what secrets it held within its walls. I knew I was pushing my luck by leaving the floor though so I stepped back and continued down the corridor, hoping that a door would swing open and I could slide into one of the other laboratories. So far I had only managed to glimpse the rooms through the windows and hadn't been able to glean any information other than they were packed full with scientists. There must have been thousands of people employed in this fortress. It was almost like a city on its own. While I was inside it was easy to forget about the outside world. There were no clocks so we only knew our days were over when we were told. It was as though our lives were completely controlled.

I heard a door open behind me.

“I believe you are lost,” a cold voice said. I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the thunderous beating of my heart. I turned around and put on the best ditsy-looking expression I could.

“I'm so sorry. I was going to the bathroom and I must have got turned around somewhere. I find this all so confusion you know. All the walls look the same and I just lose my bearings most of the time. I don't know how long it's going to take me to get used to it,” I said, and laughed a little. The man standing before remained unmoved. His lips were thin and his eyes were as cold as ice. His skin had a gray tone to it, as though he rarely saw the sun, and I felt vulnerable at just being in his presence.

“The bathroom is right outside your laboratory. I suggest that you make the effort to familiarize yourself with the layout of your area so that these mistakes do not happen again. Return to your place of work immediately.”

It was a command, not a request. I nodded, snapped my heels, and then rushed back to the room. The others glanced in my direction as they saw my flushed cheeks. I gripped my chair as I sat down. My knuckles were white. I looked back at the camera and wondered how long they would have watched me for. I locked my eyes on the monitor before me and carried on with my work. I tried to think about anything else and I didn't know how I was ever going to find out any useful information. The entire place was locked down and I was just a kid in college. I didn't even have any super powers. There were times when I hated that Peter had gotten his powers and started off on this vigilante life. I understood his reasoning but it seemed like it was only going to end in one way; death.

How could he even hope to get in here? And if he did I was sure they had ways of stopping him. He was powerful, but he was still a man and I was sure that this corporation had so many weapons with different ways to kill their enemies. Sometimes it seemed stupid. We were just kids. This was something adults should have handled.

For the rest of the day I was so afraid that someone would enter the room and haul me out that my hands were trembling and my clothes clung to my skin. I had never been so afraid before. The car ride home was tense as neither me or Gina wanted to say anything in case the driver overheard. I knew that she was undertaking a secret mission, but she did not know about mine. Often my eyes darted towards her but she seemed intent on staring out of the window. When we reached our destination we got out. Gina said a quick goodbye but I called after her. We waited for the car to turn around the corner. Still her eyes did not meet mine.

“What you're doing...be careful okay? These people won't mess around,” I said. Gina's face was pale and I imagined that she was sleeping just about as well as I was. She nodded and chewed her bottom lip, then walked away. I watched her and then turned away myself, heading home. My parents asked me how my day was but of course I couldn't tell them. I had nothing to tell Peter either. I had a bath, which helped to relax me, and then crawled into bed for an early night. I hated the thought of going back there though. I couldn't shake the feeling that something horrible was going to happen and I had no way to prevent it. I hated Peter for asking me to do this. I hated myself for accepting. I hated Emma for killing herself and starting this whole thing off. I pushed my face into the pillow and beat my hands against my bed before I finally fell asleep. Anger resided in my heart and before I knew it I was dreaming. I was standing all alone in a white corridor. Red lights blinked at me. The black orbs were silent guardians watching for any transgression. Suddenly I felt his presence. The air grew colder. I gasped. He reached out a skeletal hand and I felt it upon my shoulder. I turned and saw him there. That thin-lipped smile The gray skin. The cold eyes of ice.

'You're lost child,' he said in that calm tone. I didn't know what to say in reply. I didn't know if I was allowed to speak. 'You are not where you belong. You need to find the right way'. Behind him there was a small hum as elevator doors opened. This time the hidden keypad was open. As I looked at it he smiled, almost daring me to challenge him. I ran forward, barreling past him. The elevator was so close all I had to do was push a button and escape. I felt triumph in my heart as I raced forward. It was in my grasp. I reached out a hand and then felt something wrap around my ankle. I fell to the ground with a thud. Turning, I screamed as I saw the monster before me. Out of the man's mouth an oily black tentacle emerged and was being drawn back, pulling me along with it. His eyes rolled into the back of his head as a mechanical whirring sound clanked and churned. I scrambled at the floor but it was so smooth. There was nothing for my fingers to grip. I screamed for help and twisted and turned but there was no escape. I beat at the tentacle but its grip never loosened. The man's jaws gaped open. I stared at the abyss and suddenly everything was black.