Sleep and answers

Color surrounds me, as I sit in the field of flowers. I pull a daisy from the ground, staring up at the endless blue sky.

The sun shines brightly, birds chirping in the distant. I smile softly, laying back on the green grass, breathing in deeply. This is one of my few good days.

Just as I about to doze off, a searing hot pain goes down my arm where my mark is. I jolt up, watching the line pulse different colors at once. I've never seen it do this before, and I get to my feet, the burning sensation increasing.

"You didn't think it was that easy, did you?" a voice said behind me.

The voice, the same deep raspy voice I heard, raises goosebumps on my arms. Turning around, I see him, Casimir, grinning maliciously.

"You have no idea what you set in motion. This will be your doing. Of course you can't see that now, but in time you'll see." He said, raising his fist in the air. A dark beam of night shot out into the sky, opening a portal. He floated up, the darkness swallowing him.

"The war is just beginning." He says, as he disappears, his words echoing out.

A rag is on my forehead as I open my eyes. The sun beams in from the windows overhead, and an ache forms behind my eyes. Slowly sitting up, the rag falls away from my face, I. glance around the room.

I'm in a queen sized bed, the walls painted a creamy peach coloring, mahogany wardrobe pushed against the very far side of the wall. I pull the thick light pink blanket off of me, noticing that I'm in different clothes; I'm wearing matching baby blue pajama sets. They look familiar, which means they probably belong to Rowan.

Just as I'm about to get up, a small noise it heard. "Good afternoon, Ms. Maxwell. I have alerted to the others that you've awoken. Please take cautious steps, as you've been asleep for three days." Quinn says from over the intercom.

My jaw goes slack; three days? I've been out of it for three days?!

The news is enough to make me stumble. I reach out last minute of the edge of the bed, righting myself.

"You just got told to be careful when you walk, Laney." Rowan says, stepping inside the room. There is no mirth in her joke, and she looks relieved to see me. "How are you feeling?"

"Sweaty. I definitely am in need of a shower. What happened?"

"We're not sure; when you woke up from helping David, you kind of just passed out on the ground. You weren't responding when we tried to wake you up." Rowan explained.

Brief flashes of Casimir float in my mind, before they disappear.

"Can you remember what happened inside David's mind?" Rowan asked gently, snapping me out of a daze.

"It was...a lot. Like...I don't have the words to explain what I saw in there. The fact that I was able to beat PTSD is a freaking miracle." I replied, standing carefully away from the bed. Rowan nods, not saying anything.

"Is there a restroom? I need to shower and stuff."

Before Rowan can respond, the wall in front of us starts sliding opened, revealing a hidden restroom with a fancy white finish. I can see a bathtub, separated from that a shower with a chrome shower head. Taking a step forward, I marvel at the sight of it.

"You can leave now." I call back to Rowan, who lets out a soft laugh.

I wanted to take my time.

After what feels like hours, I step out from the bathroom, wearing a fluffy bathrobe, and my hair in a towel. I feel refreshed, and calm, the most I felt in the past week.

An assortment of clothes is placed on the bed, and I wrinkle my nose in disdain; designer clothes, flashy shirts with sequins, and dark washed jeans. I place the clothes down, letting out a sigh in relief when I notice the faded jeans and a plain black t shirt.

Changing into clothes, I sit back on the bed.

"Ms. Maxwell, boss wishes to enter the room to speak to you. Is that okay?" Quinn chirps.

"Yes, of course." I reply.

A beat later, David steps in. He looks a lot better than the last time I saw him; his hair is combed, he looks like he slept, eyes focused, and calm. He has his trademark cocky smile, and I find myself smiling back at him.

"I told you I could do it." I say, breaking the silence.

"Never doubted you for a minute, kid." he replies, chuckling a bit.

"How do you feel?"

"Honestly, the best I've felt in ages. I slept for a good twelve hours, ate some food, and was able to work on some projects I put off for months."

"I'm glad, David."

He smiled, then grew serious, running a hand through his hair. "What was it like..." he started, "in there? What was it like in my mind?"

I stop to think about it, Casimir's words echoing back to my mind.

"Have you ever heard of Casimir?"

He freezes, face paling. "W-where did you hear that?"

"He was in your mind. I didn't know if he was a disorder, or a real being. He warned me about you though. Telling me that it was wrong to help you." I stare at him, searching for something, anything that gives off to what the real problem is.

"I guess the cat's out of the bag now." he replies, shoulders slumping. He sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed, hands on the blanket. "A couple years back, I had been part of this project with an old mentor of mine." His eyes looked like they were staring at something back in time.

I sat next to him, patiently waiting for him to go on.

"What my mentor didn't fill me in on was all those kids he kidnapped, and took in broad daylight. He used my research to repress the rare brainwaves we were able to find in each super powered teen, and added modifications, specifically one that would measure the activity that each neuron posed. If it was too high, the chip that was inserted in the teen would create a shock strong enough to set off a brain aneurysm to kill them."

"What does Casimir have to do with any of this?" I interrupted.

"I was getting to him. My mentor, well, he ended up getting Casimir's daughter taken, Jabez. I have no idea what they are; they're not from earth, I know that, but they're also not human or something that's evolved from human. The oldster ended up having Jabez as a trained guard, because with her skill set and powers, it was the only role that fit her. And then..." he trailed off, sighing a bit.

"And then?" I prompted, waving for him to keep going.

"Jabez escaped with another group. No one knows who they are or where they're coming from, or what they're going to do next. But what I do know, is that Casimir has it in for me. And he has plans that are going to be set in motion if I don't find Jabez."