Mateo

“Ahhh!” Mateo screamed as he sat up. He looked around, trying to recognize his surroundings. He was on the outskirts of a city, lying within a clearing. A shiver crawled down his spine as he stood up slowly, noticing the blank picture he’d painted in his head. He froze up in shock when he realized he couldn't remember a single thing. The first thing in his mind was a name. Alto Aureum. Mateo stumbled backwards in fear, his hands sprawling, trying to find something to hold onto. He caught himself before he fell. Slowly, he looked at his hands and flexed each muscle carefully. This city wasn't like ones that he’d seen before. Then again, he hadn’t seen that many cities in his lifetime either. He’d been trapped in one for almost his entire life. Wait, that’s right. He had been in a city, more specifically, the Overhead City. But the image of the area was vague in his head. He couldn’t have stayed in the Overhead for long if he couldn't remember what it looked like, right? So there had to be another one. Mateo thought for a few moments, then something clicked and fell into place slowly. The Sunken. He’d lived in the Sunken City for most of his life, and could easily conclude that this place wasn’t it. Having no other options, Mateo started walking away from the clearing, seeing buildings in the distance behind some trees. He slid down a narrow sidewalk, regaining control of his legs fairly quickly. The city was a mess. Most buildings were either abandoned or crumbled and there were few residents who lived there. Eventually he saw a slanted sign using the English alphabet, forming words he understood. Thomas's Pub. Clearborne, he was definitely in Clearborne. Mateo stopped and closed his eyes, remembering a familiar face. He couldn’t put his finger on who it was, which made him more frustrated by the second.

“I don’t want…” A boys’ voice trailed off. His hair was a soft blond, almost white, like you could run his fingers through it smoothly. His eyes were a beautiful contrast of ice blue, and he had a single earring on his left ear. Wait. Mateo furrowed his brows as his hand immediately flew to his right ear. The other earring was pierced delicately through. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t even see the figure standing in front of him.

“Hey man, you look a little, well, absent. Why don’t I buy you a drink, ya know, to get your mind off things. Seems like you could use it,” a short boy with black gelled back hair smiled, breaking him out of his trace. His accent wasn’t from Clearborne which meant the only other place he could have come from was the Commonwealth. Why would anyone leave the safety there for a broken place like Clearborne? Then Mateo remembered that nowhere was safe anymore.

“Nah, no thanks, I don’t drink,” he lied, knowing that he always stole a beer or two back in the Sunken.

“Who says you need to drink?” the boy replied, taking Mateo’s hand and dragging him along the city walls.

“Hold on,” he started as they broke into a run. “Who are you? And where the bloody hell am I?”

“Memory loss much?” the boy asked. They stopped along a small alleyway, catching their breath. “I’m Janus, are you new around here?” the boy, Janus, asked confidently.

“Yeah, I-I mean no. I mean, I just woke up here, and I seemed to have lost a lot of my memories. Nice to meet you, I’m….Mateo Que-,” he offered, though Janus cut him off before he could finish.

“No way,” Janus paused, staring straight at him. “You’re Mateo? Mateo Queensley?” Janus, asked. His eyes were wide in astonishment, mouth opened just a little, showing his surprise.

“Yeah...yeah, I think. I don’t really know,” Mateo admitted, scratching his head in confusion. Why was he so impressed? Did he know me?

“Mateo,” he whispered, smiling. “I don’t believe it. They said you were dead. They executed you. They….they killed you. You-you’re dead!” Janus stammered, clearly shocked. Mateo thought back to the other day, trying to recall the events that happened. There was a boy, then there was a chamber, then everything went blank in his mind. “HEY! Mateo! Snap out of it!” A voice called.

“Oh, sorry, I was thinking of what happened before, but there are things I can’t understand. I see this room and this boy, but after that, nothing,” he said, trying to describe everything. Janus paced back and forth across the alleyway, thinking. “You said something about ‘they’ earlier. Like ‘they’ executed me. Who are you talking about?”

“ULTRASONIC,” Janus said slowly.

“ULTRASONIC? ULTRASONIC,” Mateo whispered. “I was there at their headquarters in the Overhead. They killed me?” he asked. ULTRASONIC. The United Last Tactic Resort Acclimation of the Sunken Overhead Nation in Improvisational Circumstances. Try saying that 10 times fast.

“I don’t even know anymore, honestly. But um, could you do something for me? Could you just try to remember a girl, about 14 years old. She has black hair like mine and she's about my height,” Janus rushed. Mateo realized his eyes were the color of indigo, sparkling as he spoke. He closed his eyes and tried to focus himself on ULTRASONIC.

“Almost 3 years...brother….kinesis….Ansel,” he overheard. “Death…..Mateo….spy…”. Suddenly, a sharp pain in his neck forced him to lose focus. It was like a million needles were stabbing him.

“Hey, Mateo, don’t die on me,” Janus’s voice boomed again. Mateo opened his eyes as quickly as possible, hand flying to reach his neck.

“There’s a recruit that’s either been at ULTRASONIC for almost 3 years, or they’re 3 years old. I don’t know what gender they are but something about having a brother and-,” he gasped, stopping to catch his breath. Janus’s eyes sparkled at the information. Mateo saw a feeling of hope in his eyes. “I heard ‘kinesis’ and Ansel, whatever that means,” he finished, deciding not to tell Janus about his so-called death. His fingers traced across the back of his neck, feeling an indent across it. When he pulled his hand back, he stared in horror as his fingers were smeared with blood. Did he die because he was a spy?

“Ansel is German. It means God’s protection,” Janus smiled as he furrowed his brows. “It’s my last name,” he stated as he pulled Mateo in for a hug, his chin brushing against the latter's collarbone. “Thank you,” Janus whispered. A few seconds later, the truth came flooding back into the brunette, piece by piece. But there was still something he didn’t understand. Alto Aureum.

“Y-your sister,” he uttered. “She's a spy for ULTRASONIC.” The words hung in the air, none of them saying a single word as Janus pulled out of the hug sharply.

“A spy,” he said dryly. His demeanor completely changed.

“Janus, she didn’t choose what she got to be-,” Mateo started.

“I KNOW!” Janus screamed, hands covering his face. “How could they put her in such a dangerous position. She’s only fourteen, goddammit,” he groaned. “I can’t lose her again.”

“She won’t die, Janus, I won’t let her,” Mateo promised. “Come on, let's get out of Clearborne. I don’t think you were meant to be here either,” he smiled. Janus gradually let his hands fall to the side of his body, then tilted his head up to look his new friend dead in the eye.

“Thanks man, I appreciate it,” he said, a small smile forming at the corners of his lips. Those indigo eyes were filled with respect and determination. “But don’t think that I haven’t seen that blood on your fingers. I’m not as stupid as you think I am,” he sighed. “You really are Mateo Queensley, the most famous man in the entire country. I mean, you’re only 16 and everyone knows you! But I'm going to let you in on a little secret. No one knows about ULTRASONIC. So don’t go around talking about it to just anyone, ya hear me?” Janus warned.

“I hear you, mate. And call me Alto, it’s kinda clinging to me,” he confessed. I've been telling him all this stuff when I barely know who he is, but at least this would bring us closer.

“Nice to meet you, Alto. Janus Ansel at your service,” Janus replied cockily, saluting him with his right hand. “Now, let’s get moving, we don’t want to keep my sister waiting!”