August 7, 2009
Mattias
[ An alarm klaxon drills into his skull with every heartbeat, but entering the remains of the observation room, the silence that falls over their group is palpable. Calm in the eye of the storm. He steps to avoid broken glass and his trainer sole smears in a dark puddle that streaks from door to door. Black. No, emergency light washing it out black. Emergency light washed out by the shifting colours of the overground rift. ]
Mattias
[ He shields his eyes against the brightness. If he squints, he can almost make out a diminutive figure, separated from them not by the two-way mirror that once rested in this frame, but a widening spiderweb crack of light in the air. ]
Ellie
Soren! [ First to break the stupor, not so much a name as a shriek. Her shoes don't belong here. ]
Terra
Just, stay where you are— [ Desperately. ] Don't move, we'll come get you— [ She bounds towards the inner door, trembling fingers outstretched. ]
Dominic
Wait don't—! [ Adrenaline must bridge the gap because he seizes Terra by the waist and hauls her back just before the edge of the rift lances through the doorway. ]
Mattias
[ From the entryway, he notes: Soren (wavering in the moist and howling gale), rift (gradually increasing in size), Terra (grappled), others (panicked), a slumped shape in a chair in the corner (motionless, disturbingly organic). It would be a very good time for somebody to do something. But he can't. Feels distant from his body. All he can do is observe this shadow play of human— ]
Dr. Bennett
—suffering any side effects at all, since the last dosage increase?
August 18, 2027
Dr. Bennett
[ The psychiatrist crosses her legs in her pleather seat, observing her patient over horn-rimmed glasses. Her round, kindly face is offset by a severe haircut sharply framing her brow and cheekbones, her brown roots poorly highlighted with blond. A woman in her mid-forties, Adelaide Bennett is a caregiving professional. Her years of service in Arcadia speak to the depths of her empathy for the plight of the psychic. ] Weight gain, lethargy, tremors...?
Mattias
...
Dr. Bennett
[ Her patient's expression is vacant. No lights on in the house. She clicks her pen pointedly. ] Matt, are you still with us?
Mattias
Er? [ Said patient startles out of his reverie. He is sat in the pleather chair opposite Dr. Bennett. As he has been all along. ]
Mattias
[ He fiddles with his glasses, stalling for time. ] I'm sorry. Can you repeat the qu—
Felix
—time for a fucking traffic jam! [ He pivots on his heel, turning away from the mob pressing towards the reinforced portal, and dashes for the common room as the ground rumbles. ] Okay, new—
Mattias
...estion?
Dr. Bennett
[ A sympathetic smile. ] Having trouble focusing? [ She makes a note on her clipboard. ]
Dr. Bennett
I was asking about the side effects of your present dose. Have you struggled with weight gain? Lethargy? Tremors, uncontrollable movements?
Terra
—Mattias? [ Doubling back, hem of her dress torn, violet sparks cascading from her hand. ] Can you hear me? We have to go. [ She tugs him by the hand towards the shattered window— ]
Mattias
[ He adjusts his position, uncrossing and recrossing his legs. He can feel both grass and carpet beneath his feet. Dr. Bennett's bland, welcoming office smells faintly of ozone. ] Yes. I mean, no. No tremors. [ He gives her a polite smile, modulating his voice quieter than his instincts are telling him to. ] Just tired, sometimes.
Dr. Bennett
I see. [ She makes another note on her clipboard. ]
Dr. Bennett
And what about your affliction? [ She flips back several pages to her notes from a previous session. ] Are your visions still bothering you?
Mattias
My v-visions?
Mattias
[ —another tremor sends him pitching forward, he hits the ground and rolls— ]
Mattias
[ Eighteen years later, he gives Dr. Bennett a slow nod. ] ...Right. Those. Every once in a while, I suppose.
Mattias
[ Hastily. ] Not much—just in the evenings, really. But I'm still—
Ellie
[ —Struggling against Agent Kepler. Not without her brother. He can understand the logic. ] Let me go! He's still in there, let me go!
Felix
[ He drags her back with a snarl. Human again, coat torn (the plate glass, probably), injuries sizzling with healing fire. ] Not a chance in hell. We need to get out of here yesterday—
Terra
I am not leaving. [ Firmly. ] He's in as much danger as we are—I promised I'd protect him!
Felix
[ He looks over his bloody shoulder, at the ruined facility, the gathering clouds. By his expression, he comes to a decision. ] ...Nah. That's on me, fledgling. You just leave it to me. I know I couldn't swear on it before, but... This time, I'm—
Mattias
—Handling it. [ Pause. ] I think the rexupresine is really helping.
Dr. Bennett
[ Encouraging: ] That's good to hear, Matt. I'm glad it's doing its job. [ She notes down: Still showing signs of absent-mindedness. ]
Dr. Bennett
But I wonder if a slightly larger dose wouldn't help with those pesky evening visions? It would be nice if you didn't have to manage them at all, wouldn't it?
Mattias
[ The conversation in the future—the present, rather—it feels so much less important, less vital, less real. But don't be fooled: He's still walking a tightrope. He needs her to prescribe a higher dose. He needs to convince her, without giving away anything that would cause him to lose his job, without letting her know just how bad things really are— ]
Mattias
—Don't do it. [ Catching Agent Kepler by the arm, as if sleepwalking. ]
Felix
[ He pauses, for a moment it seems like he might—but he shakes Mattias off. ] You get out of here. Let the adults take care of it. [ Blood on his forehead. Can't be as old as twenty-five. ]
Felix
[ Just the same as always. He runs off. Says something over his shoulder—what is it? Then he's through the doorway. Gone. ]
Mattias
[ Then, there is a screech and a crack, and the facility implodes. ]
Mattias
[ There is nothing to indicate Felix was ever there, except the fading sensation of fabric against his fingers. He stares at his hand in disbelief. ] No no no no—
Mattias
—No. Er—yes. [ A mild shrug. He wipes his hand on his trousers. ] Whatever you think is b-best.
Dr. Bennett
[ Another smile. ] Why don't we see how a slightly higher dosage treats you? If you have any other problems, experience any other symptoms, come see me right away.
Dr. Bennett
[ She jots down one last note: If visions persist, consider stronger methods of treatment. ]
Mattias
[ He bobs his head, trying not to be too intense, too obvious, too unconvincing with his relief. Eighteen years ago, he sobs on the ground as his companions attempt to drag him out of the blast radius. ] Thanks, Dr. Bennett. You'll be the first to know.