• Chapter 1

    Matt sat alone in his apartment, staring at a portrait of a young girl. Tears dripped onto the picture, sliding off the glass.
    “I’m sorry, Sis… It’s my fault…”
    He placed the picture on his dresser, staring at it for several more minutes. He sighed, wiping his eyes.
    “Heh… Still a crybaby, huh sis? After all of these years and I sill cry like this… I haven’t changed at all…”
    He sighed, lying back slowly. He responded to some unknown person.
    “Yeah, I know, Sis. I’ve always been a crybaby and I always will be. What do you expect? People don’t change. We stay the same…”
    He nodded, once again to some invisible force.
    “Sure, Sis… Maybe people can, but I’m not considered a person, remember?”
    People that aren’t people. It’s a strange concept right? But, with today’s society, it’s a common occurrence. If you do not fit a pre-made mold of the ideal human, then you’re just a freak. It’s like this in every society, but in this one, all humans have these strange powers that are formed when they turn sixteen. However, sometimes, these powers emerge earlier than that. When this occurs, the child usually dies because of the sheer strain on their young bodies. In rare occasions, however, the child lives on, many wishing they hadn’t. They become the outcasts. The ones all fear. The freaks.
    * * *
    Matt strolled down the halls of his new school, bright blue eyes staring at the paper was held in his grip. Short, brown locks fell down to his ears. A school uniform draped over his slender frame, clunky brown shoes hitting the ground as he walked slowly into his classroom. He barely glanced at the other students as he took a seat in the back. He stuffed the paper in his pocket, staring at the desk. He heard three sets of footsteps, hearing female voices whispering as they approached.
    “You must be the new kid,” one said, tossing her long, black locks away from her face.
    He looked up, nodding slowly. “Yes, I’m Matt.”
    Another girl leaned in closer to Matt. “Hey, Matt,” she greeted sweetly, attempting to be seductive. “I’m Megan. That’s Sarah.” She pointed to the first girl. “And that’s Kim.” She pointed to the last girl in their group.
    Sarah sat in the desk in front of Matt, turning around to face him. “Have they told you about Marie yet?”
    “Marie?” Matt asked, sounding out each syllable as he stared at her.
    “Sarah! They only tell the ones who haven’t gained their powers! He obviously has!” Megan yelled.
    “No… Who is Marie?” Matt requested calmly.
    “Well,” Kim began. “That’s a long story…”
    * * *
    A scream rang out in the night. The terrible, ear-shattering scream of a child. It was a cry that broke the hearts of all those who were exposed to the sound. Of course, those around knew of this child’s world of torment. Yet, they did nothing to stop it. They allowed this ghastly ritual to occur each and every night. Perhaps, they wanted it to happen. Because, if they admitted that they wanted it to stop, they admitted that they wanted the monster of a child to live. They admitted that they cared for that horrid creature.
    “Come back here, you b***h!” a booming male voice shouted, shaking the small urban home.
    “Daddy! Please stop!” the small child cried, her plea followed by a loud crash.
    “Don’t tell me what to do, you freak!”
    The young girl, who was no older than eight, crawled into a corner of the living room.
    “I’m sorry, Daddy! I’m sorry I was born! Please don’t hit me again!” she screamed, clutching her knees close to her chest.
    “You’re sorry?” the father asked, an evil chuckle flowing from his throat. “You bet your a** you’re sorry.”
    “I’m sorry... I’m sorry...” the girl repeated over and over again, watching her father coming ever closer. “Please...”
    “No use in pleading! I’m going to get you tonight... Just like I do every night! I’m going to make you wish you were never born!”
    “I already do, daddy...” she whispered.
    “What was that? I couldn’t hear you!” her father yelled, picking up his daughter with a fierce tug. The girl silently stared at the floor. “That’s what I thought!” the father responded, flinging his daughter across the room, her body knocking into the wall like a discarded rag doll. The father stepped closer to the girl, a grin crossing his face.
    Marie shook her head wildly, her tears soaking the carpet. “Please, daddy. Don’t... Don’t hurt me anymore!”
    Marie bawled as her father seized her long black locks, dragging her by her hair into her bedroom. Her terrified cries sounded out through the night, letting all know that her father was breaking her again.
    * * *
    “Burn…” Marie said softly, sending her father ablaze. She watched him burn. She watched the man go up in the black flames that were the source of her pain. Her tormenting power became what destroyed the monster. She burned everything to the ground. Her house, her family, everything. And no one told her to stop. No one told her not to. No one said a word.
    * * *
    “…And that was about five years ago. She’s been living in this run down apartment ever since. Turns out there was this huge life insurance policy on her father. Since no one came forward to claim that she killed him, the fire was ruled an accident and Marie got everything. They didn’t bother putting the little brat in foster care, because they knew no one would want to take the freak in,” Kim finished.
    “Freak?” Matt asked, interest peaking in his voice. “You mean she’s a-”
    “Survivor? Yep,” Megan confirmed, taking a seat behind Matt.
    “Hmm… So, there’s one here, too,” he muttered.
    “What did you say?” Kim asked, sitting in the seat beside him.
    “Huh? Nothing… Don’t worry about it…”

    Marie awoke in an alleyway, gazing out at the school courtyard. It was not the first time she awoke in a strange place. After nights of trying to make a way out through a drug soaked fantasy, she was used to finding herself in alien areas. Drugs and alcohol were her escape. She was an addict at seventeen. Yeah, that was a great life to live...
    She ran her fingers through short, scarlet tresses, closing her eyes as she reached her shoulders. She had destroyed her old identity. Anything left from her childhood was gone. All that remained from that dreadful existence were the memories and she was slowly obliterating those with her addiction. She reopened her eyes gradually, distant and blood shot brown eyes shown to the world. A tattered and grimy red tee fell down to her just as filthy jeans, bare feet scraping the ground as she attempted to stand. She found she had little strength, so she settled in the filth that had become her resting place. She rested a hand on her forehead, groaning lightly.
    “Ugh… What did I do last night?” she asked herself, searching the ground for her bottle of some mysterious alcohol. She took a sip of the warm liquid, letting it settle in her empty stomach. She sighed with content, lifting herself up merely to lean against the gritty brick wall.
    She stared at her arms, dropping her bottle to the ground. The glass bottle shattered, the liquid gushing over the broken pieces. She tenderly fingered the self inflicted wounds that spanned her slender arms. So many attempts; no successes. That was just one more thing she had failed at. Just one more thing people could hate her for. She was a freak. She was an addict. She was a child who could never let her past die. She could never escape what had happened. And she could not end her miserable life.
    She took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket, knocking the last one out of the package before throwing the empty container to the ground. She snapped her fingers as she positioned the cigarette between her lips, watching a black flame light her last escape until she could reach her home. She took in the black smoke, lightly tapping off the ash as she sighed away the excess smoke.
    This was the mighty, frightful Marie; an addict who slept in alleys to escape her past. This was what she had become and this was what she would remain.

    Matt grabbed his books, proceeding from of his homeroom as hastily as possible. He sincerely wanted to avoid the girls. If they knew the truth… He shook his head as he sprinted down the halls towards the exit.
    There had to be one here, he thought. There had to be another one here…
    He ran outside, hearing a voice calling out near him.
    “What’s the hurry?” the voice teased, snickering faintly. “Too scared of your teacher to stay?”
    Matt spun towards the alleyway, seeing Marie standing there, cigarette in hand. He walked towards her, books clutched against his chest.
    “You must be Marie,” he said.
    “I see my reputation proceeds me,” she responded, taking one last drag from her cigarette. She flung it on the ground, smothering the dim flame under her bare foot. “Damn things never last long enough…”
    Matt stared at the ground for a moment, watching Marie put out the cigarette. “Doesn’t that hurt?” he asked. “I mean with the bare foot and all?”
    “Yeah… It hurts like hell…”
    Marie began walking away, but Matt followed her. She stopped, speaking without turning her head.
    “What are you, a puppy?”
    “Where are you going?” Matt asked.
    “Hell if I know. Home, probably. Why?”
    “Please stay.”
    “Why should I?”
    “Because I’m just like you,” Matt said loudly, trying his best not to scream.
    “What do you mean?” Marie asked, turning around slowly.
    “I’m a freak.”
    “Of course you are. Run along home, little boy. Your mommy is probably worrying about you. If you’re good, maybe she’ll bake you some cookies.”
    “My parents… aren’t around anymore. I live by myself.”
    “Well, the world’s tough all around. How about you go back to class now before they count you absent.”
    “Please… Don’t make me go back there. If they find out what I really am…”
    “They’ll kill you. Simple as that.” She paused for a moment. “Unless you kill them first, of course.”
    “W-What? I…I can’t kill anyone.”
    Marie walked closer to Matt slowly, making each step as carefully as possible.
    “You think that now, but until you’ve had to make the choice to kill and live or not and die, then you don’t know what you’ll really do.”
    “I can’t kill anyone. I promised someone very important to me and I intend to keep that promise.”
    “Like I said, you never know what you’ll do until you’re backed into a corner.”
    “You mean like you were?”
    Marie stared at him, unsure of how to respond. Matt gasped, realizing what he had said. He began backing away slowly, his eyes widening.
    “I’m…I’m so sorry… I-I didn’t mean to…”
    Marie stared at the ground. “So, they tell that part of the story now, too, huh? They used to leave out… a lot of information… They used to only say that I went psycho… Because that’s what freaks do… We just kill our parents for no reason…”
    “I know it’s not that, Marie. I know what he did to you. He deserved worse than what you gave him.”
    “Maybe… I don’t know. I try not to think about my past anymore.”
    “I understand. I do too, really.”
    “Listen, I know that you think we’re the same, but we’re not. You’re still innocent and untainted. You’re not like me at all. You just need someone to cling to so you don’t feel so alone. You don’t need me around. You need to go make friends like a normal person and hope they never find out who you are. If you hide it well enough, at this age, they’ll never know. You can live you life normally, just fitting into the crowd.”
    “I don’t… I don’t want that life. I want friends that can just overlook the fact that I’m a freak. They won’t care about how I was born. They’ll just be happy to be around me. They’ll just be happy I’m alive.”
    Marie laughed softly. “You’ll never have that life. They despise us. They want us dead and gone from this world. They don’t want to be our friends. They don’t want us around. They fear us and hate us. Nothing will ever change that.”
    “I don’t believe that. I know there’s a way that they will accept us.”
    “You really don’t get it, do you? They don’t want to accept us. They need someone to hate and we’re the perfect target. We’re already considered dangerous. Might as well consider us outcasts and enemies, too.” She sighed. “And yet, if we defend ourselves, we’re the cruel ones…”
    “There just has to be a way…”
    “There’s not. Once you accept that fact, maybe you’ll actually be able to live that normal life.” Marie stuffed her hands in her pockets, turning away from Matt. “Listen, I know what I’m talking about. Just lead a normal life. Pretend you just got your powers. Pretend you never spoke to me. Just act normal and live the life you should be allowed to live.”
    “What about you?” Matt asked, resisting the urge to run towards her. “You should get to have that too.”
    “It’s too late for me. I’m… too far gone…” Marie walked away, leaving Matt behind.