[To Be Named] - Chapter 13

[To Be Named] - by Ho-Oh16
A QuizUp fantasy adventure story.

[quick note: the pronunciation of the word "Ovidii" for the sake of my story is "oh-vid-ee-eye". You'll see what I mean later in this chapter.]

Chapter 13.

   "But first, you may want to remove your devices."
   "What for?"
   He didn't reply, but the silence told me it was a good idea to listen.
   Once Shadow and I had taken out the lenses and earpieces, they were destroyed in four tiny, self-destructive explosions. I was mortified.
   "Could they have done that while we had them in?!" I asked, now concerned about how crazy these people actually were.
   "No. We pride ourselves in thorough testing. The scientists here are some of the best in this world." the figure replied. "Now, come along. There's something I want to show you."
   *Wait...that's not Greg's voice, which means that he's elsewhere. Dammit...*
   "I have a bad feeling about this." Shadow thought aloud.
   I was thinking the same, but regardless, I followed the figure as he disappeared around the corner.

   "The trial has been completed. Make your way through the door and you will find yourselves back at the mansion. Wait there for further instructions."
   "Will Shadow and Chloe be there?" Anton asked the new voice.
   "You will see."
   "...well then."

   "So where are we going exactly?" I asked the figure as we walked along an empty corridor. He was somewhat tall and skinny, and he was wearing a dark grey suit. He wore a fedora, and his curly grey locks were loosely tied behind his head.
   "Nowhere special. There are just some people I think you ought to meet.". After that, he had finished communicating. He didn't turn to face us, he didn't speak again, and he made no noise as he walked. It was as if he was a ghost.
   Eventually, we reached a door towards the end of the hallway, and the figure opened it.
   "Wait here until I call you in." he ordered, before entering the room and courteously shutting the door.
   Finally, I got a better look at his face. Well...some of it anyway. His grey hair now puzzled me, as he didn't look all that old. In addition, the way his hair was styled meant that his fringe partially covered his left eye, but I could still see that they were a vivid purple.
   *You don't see that very often...*
   "What do you make of him, then?" I asked Shadow.
   "Calm. Intelligent. I wouldn't call him crazy. Borderline civilised. He isn't intimidating...but I think there's more to him than meets the eye..."
   "Ok, and who do you suppose these other people are?"
   "I couldn't say. They're obviously people we don't know. After all, we've only met three people since the start of this. Him, the guy you call 'Greg', and whoever has been communicating telepathically. Speaking of which, why didn't you say anything about that?"
   I didn't answer.
   "Remember what happened last time you kept something to yourself?"
   "That was different!" I snapped. "A voice inside your head is not the same as having a wounded arm! One makes people think you're insane..."
   "We don't need to know you're hearing voices to know you're insane." he commented.
   It took me a moment to realise what he's said, but I punched him in the arm in return for his kind remark.
   "What was that for?"
   "I have no idea..." I replied, deciding to stay quiet until we were allowed into the room.
   "Right..." said Shadow with a grin plastered across his face.
   *Keep smiling and I will wipe that grin straight off of your smug fa-*
   "You can come inside." spoke a voice from the doorway.
   "After you." Shadow insisted, gesturing towards the door.
   "How kind." I replied, making the sarcasm as obvious as I could.
   "Friends," voiced the tall figure, "I'd like to introduce you to two of the company's...assistants."
   *Assistants? More like test subjects...*
   "Shadow and Chloe are two of six people randomly selected to participate in the trial series."
   "Randomly? I hardly think-" I began to say.
   "Don't interrupt, please. You'll have a chance to ask any questions at the end." the figure responded. Shadow was right, he was a very calm character, and there was no sign of aggression within him. It certainly made a change. "Carrying on, three trials have been completed so far. There has, unfortunately, been one...fatality...but this seems to have encouraged them to succeed."
   "And where are the rest of them?" questioned one of the figure's 'friends'.
   "Currently, the others are back in the main housing facility. The Mansion. Soon enough, Chloe and Shadow will join them there and they'll wait for Stage Four. Of course, we needn't go into details."
   "Perhaps we should introduce ourselves. After all, they'll all need to know sooner or later." a female voice suggested. I looked at her, then at the other six figures in the room. They formed a slight arc in front of us.
   "Of course! Where are my manners?" uttered the figure who'd brought us here. "Allow me to introduce myself properly. My name is Ghost."
   "I am Light." announced the female voice next to Ghost. Everything she wore was white, just like her asymmetrically cut hair. I didn't question the fashion. Her eyes, on the other hand, were a golden hue and shone like the Sun.
   "And I am Fire." stated the next figure. He was as tall as Ghost, with fiery red hair and a grey suit. He also wore a friendly smile.
   *Are they all going to be like this? Why do they seem so...nice?*
   "My name is Nature." greeted another figure. His verdant, wild and green hair reminded me of the jungle we'd just been in. I looked away fairly quickly.
   "I am Water. It's a pleasure to meet you.". This time, it was another female, and similarly to the others, everything she wore was synonymous with her name. Blue. Here, there and everywhere.
   "Hello. I'm Healing. As in, that's my name. Healing." spoke the second-to-last figure. Another female. Way too much pink for my liking.
   The final figure looked at me, then at my arm. The silence that followedl caused a bit of tension, which unnerved me.
   "Well...I guess that's it then." Ghost said, diverting our attention.
   "That's it?" Shadow asked bluntly.
   "Indeed it is. Why? Is there more you wanted to know?"
   "Sure. Let's start with why you felt the need to introduce yourselves to us." he suggested.
   "...right." replied Ghost sternly. I wasn't sure if his calm aura was slowly fading, but I hoped it wasn't. I didn't want to see any of these people angry.
   "We are beings known as Ovidii. That means we are able to morph into a specific kind of supernatural beast - dragons." Healing began to explain.
   "However, we are unique, in that we have powers that normal dragons do not." Fire continued.
   "We are the only seven of our kind." Nature stated.
   "You see, we were designed. We weren't just created like normal beings. We were once like you - human." said Light, before passing the metaphorical baton to Water.
   "We were taken as kids and made into what we are today." she said, completing the story.
   "What are your powers then?" Shadow interrogated.
   "It's different for each of us." answered Ghost. "We-"
   "We are elementals." interrupted the final figure with a sigh. "We each control a different elemental power, regardless of what form we are in. It's more powerful when we are dragons, of course, and the older we are, the stronger we are."
   "So, you're named based on your power?" asked Shadow, making it his final question for the moment.
   "Essentially, yes." Healing responded.
   I couldn't stop staring at the final figure. The one who'd announced the type and potency of their individual powers.
   "I can control, manipulate and teleport through shadows." Ghost continued to say in the background. I assumed that each person was now willingly telling Shadow what they could do. Probably something that'd come in handy. Probably something I should've listened to. But I still couldn't tear my eyes away from that final person.
   I was starting to put the pieces together.

   "And now, we can relax." Anton said, as he, Rashaun and Dragon entered the main entrance foyer.
   "Not until we know where Chloe and Shadow are." Rashaun stated.
   "We should at least sit down and take the time to chill." Dragon suggested, making her way to the small drawing room. The site of many pillow fights yet to come. "All we can do is wait."
   With a sigh, Rashaun followed Dragon, and in turn Anton followed Rashaun. They all walked into the minuscule room, sat down, and waited for news of any kind.

   "You..."
   "What?" snarled the figure, looking down at me.
   "I can't believe this..." I huffed back.
   "What's wrong?" Shadow asked.
   "Just ask yourself this, Shadow. If all of these people can turn into dragons, or elemental dragons, and you still don't know his name, can you make an educated guess? Because believe it or not, we've already met this one.". I continued to stare.
   "People, please. We don't need to get ahead of ourselves and start throwing accusations everywh-"
   "Accusations?" I interjected, cutting off Ghost. "This isn't an accusation. This is a declaration."
   "You want to know who I am? Fine. I am the reason that you're constantly in pain. I am the reason that your arm was severely wounded. I am the reason that electricity is currently coursing through your blood and attacking you."
   "THANK YOU!" I cried, throwing my arms in exasperation. "You see, you all act so calm...so nice...when really, you want us dead! Dead, just like Ozy! Go on, which one of you did it?! Which one of you killed him?! Which one of you looked him in the eyes and murdered him without mercy?!"
   "No one answer that." Ghost demanded. "No one."
   By now, I had tears welling up in my eyes. I felt physically sick, and all I wanted was to be back at home with my family. All of them. I wanted to be able to see five other smiling faces stood before me. I wanted a great big family-sized hug. I wanted to see the day where we all sat down together and thought of the good times before these recent events. But I knew that day would never come.
   "I think it's time you left.". Ghost's calm front had definitely disintegrated by this point. His purple eyes were glowing brighter and his tone had lost its liveliness. He started to walk towards me, but Shadow stepped between us.
   "Then please, show us the way." he ordered, holding his scythe firmly in his hand. "Wouldn't want any more deaths, would we now?"
   "Fine." he replied. Ghost opened the door back into the corridor and told Light to escort us to the necessary area.
   "It's just up there." she said once we'd walked some way along the same corridor. "Second on your left. Wait in there, and before long, you'll be back in the house."
   I stayed silent and didn't thank her. With Shadow close behind, I walked through the door and back into another small holding room. Three of the walls looked like giant mirrors, creating a 'fun' display for my eyes.
   "I just want to go home." I muttered.
   "We all do, but it's not as simple as that. If we had the ability to leave, we would. The only thing we can do is get past anything and everything they throw at us. We just need to show them the true extent of our mettle." Shadow responded.
   "Really inspirational...thanks...". I leant against the wall and left myself sink to the floor. My head was starting to hurt.
   "Any time."
   "That...that was sarcasm..." I replied, having to take a breath in between words.
   *I'm not that exhausted...am I?*
   "Something's wrong." Shadow announced.
   "Thanks for stating the obvious."
   "No, I mean in here, right now." he said. "This seems very familiar."
   "How so?"
   "Remember the end of the maze? Well..."
   "Wait, you mean-"
   I was interrupted by the sudden presence of a coloured cloud of smoke in the room. It was a rich purple, but it's appearance was deceiving. Before long, it filled the room.
   "Not this again!" I yelled.
   I tried to look for the door among the smoke, but I could feel myself getting more fatigued with each second. In my frustration, I hit the wall that was in front of me and cursed.
   On the other side of the one-way mirror, Ghost didn't flinch. He just stood and admired the effectiveness of the smoke.
   "Fire," Ghost said through a small device, "it's time."