The Story

Inside the building, facing them was a wooden desk carved out of dark birch wood. The room was quite dim and was lit only by three hanging candles that shone quite bright for their size. To the left of the room was a wooden door and to the right of the room was a leather couch that was placed facing the wooden door.

The kids sat on the couch and waited for their dad to do his thing. As usual, he walked up to the counter to register them. The guard stayed outside the glass doors.

Behind the desk sat a skinny woman with dark purple glasses that had weird lenses which seemed to change shape every minute. Her hair was blond but her skin was very dark. She had a very serious expression on her face as she was intently examining the plastic cards the children's father had given her.

"Where is the fifth?" she asked in a stern voice as she glanced back at a slim looking computer that was placed on the desk.

"Oh, come-on Miranda!" replied Laneid, sounding annoyed; "You know there isn't one"

"You mean not yet?" asked Miranda raising an eyebrow and examining Laneid's expression above the rims of her glasses. Laneid replied by cocking his head to the side as if to say 'really?'

Miranda frowned and pressed a little brown button placed discretely beside her computer. As she did so, the wooden door on the other side of the room swung open, revealing a circular room with five metal chairs placed around the perimeter.

"You're clear" she said coldly, getting up to lead the way. When all the kids gathered in the room, they each (except for John who was looking at his siblings with a sad look) took a seat. Once they sat down (wedging their backpacks between their knees), Miranda walked toward the center of the room and stomped her heal into the floor. Instantly the center of the floor gave in, and from the hole grew a pedestal.

As the pedestal rose, the wooden door behind them closed with a loud 'click' that echoed around the circular room. On the pedestal was a strange looking glove. As soon as Miranda put it on, the whole room shifted into a pentagon for a second then back into a circle; causing everything around them to turn bright blue. Miranda then snapped her gloved fingers and the metal chairs the kids were sitting on where instantly incased with a glass tube. She then waved her hands left and right. Reacting to those motions, the chairs instantly began to hum in a particularly mechanical way. Hearing this, Miranda took a deep breath and placed her finger on the palm of her other hand. She then started moving her fingers in a strange and peculiar way. Her fingers moved so fast that they became a blur. This lasted for just a few seconds before she stopped, and snapped her fingers once again. As soon as she did, the glass tubes started glowing in a bright white light.

Then, with a flash, the light was gone and so were the kids inside the tubes. Miranda then made an 'L' shape with her fingers and swiped them carefully over the surface of the pedestal. In response, it immediately rose in midair, melted and morphed into an oval shape.

After that transformation was complete, Miranda took a step towards the levitating object and tapped the center with her middle finger. Her touch sent a single ripple wave that seemed to change the color of the oval, forming a picture. Once fully formed, the picture began to move. It revealed the four children that had just disappeared. They were all wearing the same clothes and seemed to be sitting in a dark room.

"All of you have arrived safe?" asked Laneid, slightly nervous.

"Yeah," replied Notna; "is the schedule the same?" 

"I feel kind of funny" complained Lyuba.

"It will wear off" said Laneid calmer, turning to Notna; "Yes it is, you're in charge Notna, and I will meet you in the same place in five hours - Got it?" All the children nodded.

Then, the image began to fade. Miranda once again did something quick with her fingers and the oval (now blank) morphed back into a pedestal.

"May I see the Units?" Laneid asked her. She nodded and silently walked up to a wall between two metal chairs and tapped it with her pinky.

The wall slid to one side, revealing five big silver tanks which looked like giant barrels. The tanks were twice the width of Miranda and twice her height. Beside each of them was a monitor. Laneid carefully checked each one.

John also came up to the tanks and peeked at the monitors. They were round and had a silver needle, the tip of which, pointed at a black line with numbers. The monitors where meant to check the status of the tanks. Each monitor was pointing to 'stable' except for one; which was pointing at 'zero'.

Seeing this, John's eyes started to water and he quietly asked if they could leave. Laneid noticed this, and nodded to Miranda. In response she tapped the wall once again, which caused it to slide back to being closed, and stepped to the pedestal taking off the glove. As she placed the glove back on the pedestal, everything turned dark once again and the pedestal instantly disappeared below the floor followed by the wooden door opening with a 'click'.

As the remaining three walked out of the circular room, John noticed the hand Miranda used the glove with; it was riddled with scars. The door behind them shut with another, this time quiet, 'click'. She sat down behind her desk and gave Laneid back the plastic cards (which he carefully put in his inside pocket). John noticed she used the other hand to give Laneid the cards; it was clean.

When the two remaining family members walked out of the building, they headed down the same street they used during the morning. Except this time, the vast space was to the right of them. The sun had risen higher making the windows, on the red bricked buildings on their left, twinkle.

While they were walking, Laneid attempted to cheer John up; "So, your first day of school! That's exciting!"

"Yeah, I guess" John replied passively.

"Now, no need to feel down, we talked about this. Don't let these things ruin your day" Laneid said earnestly.

"I know dad, I'm sorry. It's just," John sighed, "it seems I'm the only one that really thinks that world is fascinating."

"I understand that, but you know why you can't go" replied his father.

"I do, but it's kind of pathetic. I mean," John made his best impression of his uncle (Puffing up his chest, frowning, and lowering his voice the best he can); "I can't go because I simply don't have a big enough tank to store everything"

Laneid snorted, "Get more meat on ya before you imitate Bobbie" he put his hand on John's shoulder as they walked, "Anyway, it's not quite that simple; you need to master your gift fully, and you can't do that when you are spending half of your days on earth" patting John on the back; "you know this"

"Yes, but isn't it important to spend time on earth?" asked John.

"It is in some ways..." said Laneid thoughtfully, "and you will get your chance, once you master your abilities"

"But everyone else didn't master them!" protested John.

"The rest aren't as strong" came Laneid's mystical reply

"That makes - no sense" John grumbled.

"For now, it doesn't have to" said Laneid in the soothing fatherly voice that always puts children at ease; "now, where is the bus station to the place?"

"It should be right ahead," John gave a slight smile; "they said it was on the fifth avenue." He was beginning to feel a little more cheerful.

They continued their walk down the main street until they stopped at an intersection. As the two waited for all the spherical cars to pass, they saw a green bus in the distance making its way towards them.

"Hey, I think that's ours! C'mon; you don't want to be late" said Laneid, as he waved at the bus. John checked the silver tableaux hanging on the corner of the nearest building. It read; '5th av.'

He felt the excitement butterflies build up in his stomach; this was the right place.

When the green bus stopped, the doors (located at the front of the bus) opened. The two stepped in. Inside where rows of seats lined up to the back. The bus did not have a driver, so John and Laneid sat near the front which overlooked the road ahead of them. The bus was practically empty except for a few passengers.

One of them had white hair.