This is a story that I'm writing for The Neopian Times. Almost all characters are out of my head. I started this a long LONG time ago.
When Emma woke up from her after-breakfast nap she took a moment to realize where she was. She looked around. There were the gray walls with the door with the bars on it, and there was the corner with the recorder on it. Then she remembered. She yawned and sat up. She wondered what she was today.
She walked over to the mirror on the wall. A Tyrannian Ixi stared back at her.
She groaned. I look so stupid! She thought. Then a voice came from a speaker stuck on the wall. “Tester number 11324, the door is open, come in to the experimental room.” The voice said.
She walked over to the door, and sure enough, it was open. She walked out into a long corridor with doors just like hers on either side, and a large steel door on the end. She headed towards the door, her heart thumping.
When she reached the door she walked through it without waiting for invitation. Three of the four walls of the room were concrete; the fourth was made of bulletproof, shatterproof plexi-glass. Behind that wall were several dark figures with clipboards. In the center of the room there was a small metal table with straps on it, and pointing down towards it was a huge ray gun.
She sighed. A voice came from another speaker. “You know what to do.” It said. She sighed again and lay on the table. The ray gun swiveled to face her. She closed her eyes.
There was a whirr of machinery and then the sound of a blast. Then she felt as if she was being electrocuted.
She waited for the tingling to stop. When it did she stood. The person behind the glass pushed a button. “Thank you Tester number 11324. You may return to you quarters.” The door opened. She walked down the hallway, wondering what she was now. When she reached her quarters she hurried to the mirror.
When she did she jumped. A glowing Zafara stared back at her. Well, at least I’m not a mutant. She thought bitterly.
She felt a spell of nausea, (Hey, after having your molecules rearranged you’d be sick too,) and hurried to her bed. Suddenly she felt very, very, tired. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
She was flying through the air towards a cloud, breathing the fresh air. She felt free, happy even. She laughed as she did a backflip in mid-air. Then everything went dark. She felt herself waking up. She opened her eyes.
There was a shrill bell ringing outside. She looked at her clock. It was 12:30 PM, lunchtime. She got up and walked out the door, following a crowd of other pets down the hall. They walked through another door on the other side of the hall.
In this room there were ten tables, with benches next to them. Emma headed to her usual spot in the right corner of the room, soon after she sat down a mutant gelert came over and sat, looking dejected. “Hey Em.” It said.
Emma was surprised. “Joey?” she asked incredulously. The gelert nodded. Emma felt a surge of pity. “I’m sorry Joey, Maybe next time you’ll change.” The gelert nodded, somewhat more cheerful. A moment later a cloud Shoyru came over. “Hey Em, Joey.” “Hey Anna.” They said at the same time.
Anna smiled. Then she saw Joey and sighed. “You have the worst luck don’t you Joey? First the Halloween Kacheek, and now this.” Joey nodded. Then the soup came to the table. The soup was leftover from the Soup kitchen, and was normally cold, and rather disgusting, because they also got the soup that was messed up. (Which wasn’t very often). Today it was better than most, and it was lukewarm. They ate quickly, and the bell rang again, this time for an assembly.
We haven’t had an assembly since Anna came. She thought. “There must be someone new.” She said out loud. “Poor person.” Joey said.
As they walked to assembly, they discussed what they thought the newcomer would be. “I hope it’s a rainbow Pteri.” Anna said. “Well I hope it’s another Mutant Gelert, so that I’m not embarrassed so much.” Said Joey sadly.
Emma sighed. “It doesn’t matter what they are, by this time tomorrow they’ll be something totally different.”
The other two laughed and nodded. Then they sat down in the assembly room and waited for the new arrival.
This is different than they said it would be. Thought Beth, surprised. Some people had come into her room at the pound and told her she was going somewhere, she asked them where, and they told her that she was going somewhere that they took any neopet that had been in the pound for over five years, where they could live happily and in relative comfort.
Beth had been happy with that explanation, but she was now beginning to think that she had been duped. As she walked through the building she noticed that all of the doors had a handle on the outside, but not on the inside.
She was just puzzling about this when they walked into a room full of neopets, ranging in colors from rainbow to mutant. Heads turned and stared at her, almost all of them looked curious. But one glowing Zafara was staring at her with an expression of pity. She wondered why that was. She would soon find out.
Emma looked at the Fire Uni with an expression of pity. The poor thing didn’t know anything. Then one of the head scientists walked over to the microphone. “Hello Neopets!” silence. “We have come here today to welcome a new member to our little group.” There were a few sniggers at this, but nothing more.
“Now, please give a warm welcome to Beth!” the Uni walked up, looking nervous. There were a few people who clapped, but that was all she got in the way of a welcome. “Now Beth, let’s take you to your new room.” Said the scientist.
As the scientist led her to her room, Beth looked around her, taking in her surroundings. The walls were made out of some kind of metal, and the doors of a reinforced wood, with a small glass window with wires criss-crossing it. They led her to the last room, nearest to the steel door at the end. “What does that door lead to?” she asked. The scientist grinned, “You’ll find out soon enough.” He said. She walked in her room and looked around. There was a small bed in the corner, with a bedside table with a clock on it. In the corner of the wall there was a camera, like a Spyder crouched to spring.
There was a mirror on the wall. She went and laid on the bed. She noticed a small note on the table. She picked it up. It read, Beth, we are happy to have you with us, while you are here the scientists will call you tester 11489, or simply 11489. There will be no exiting your quarters without prompting. She was curious about the last part. Then she realized it. It’s comfortable, but it’s no better than the pound. She thought bitterly.
After Beth had been led away, the Neopets had been taken back to their ‘Quarters’ or as Emma liked to think, cells. Then the bell rang for dinner. The door opened with a pop. She walked into the hall and headed into the eating room. She went to her usual place, and as usual, Joey and Anna joined her shortly afterwards.
They were just starting to talk when Beth came up, looking nervous. “Can I sit with you?” she asked shyly. “There isn’t anywhere else left to sit.” Emma smiled and nodded. Beth smiled gratefully, and sat between Emma and Joey.
“So, how’s the pound these days?” Asked Anna.
“The usual, full to bursting, awful food, and freezing.” Replied Beth.
Anna smiled. “Not much changed then.” She said with a laugh. The soup came to the table. They ate quickly. After they had finished they began talking again. Then, all to soon, a voice came over the speaker.
“Return to your quarters within the next ten minutes. You will be sleeping or trying to sleep by 10:00.”
Emma stood. “See you at breakfast!” she called, and raced down the hall.
Beth woke to a shrill ringing. She looked at the clock. 9:00. She got out of the bed and walked to the door, which was open. She followed the crowd to the eating room, and went over to Emma and her friends. “Hi.” She said.
Emma looked up. “Hey.” She said, smiling. Then a voice crackled to life from the speaker. “Tester 11234, please report to the experimental room.”
Emma groaned. “I was just about to eat.” She moaned sadly. She stood and walked out the door. Beth stared at her retreating back. “What was that about?” she asked, bemused. Joey sighed. “What?” she asked. Joey shook his head and said nothing.
As Emma walked, she wondered why they had called her so early; usually they didn’t call people until just before lunch. Maybe they had another false ‘Breakthrough.’ She thought bitterly. She walked into the room, lay on the table and closed her eyes. The electric shock came, normal. Then she felt a strange sensation.
It was a warm fuzzy feeling, kind of like the feeling you have when you sip a warm cup of Borovan after a long day of sledding. It crept up her toes and up her body until it reached her head. Then as quickly as it began, it was gone. That was weird. She thought. She wasn’t about to tell the scientists what she had felt; she knew what would happen then.
They would all come out of their little Plexiglass area and take her into a secret room, where they would poke her and prod her. Then she would be shipped off to some unknown place.
She only knew this because she had crept after them when she had been turned invisible after they had found an ‘oddity’ as they called it. She hurried out.
As she went to the breakfast room, she stopped to see her reflection in one of the windows on the doors. She sighed in relief. She was still the same. She hurried to the breakfast room and sat.
Joey looked surprised. “No change eh?” he asked. Emma shook her head. Beth looked very confused. “’No change’? What does that mean?” then Anna broke in. “Hey guys, guess what day it is!”
“What?” Emma asked.
“Today is Saturday!” Emma grinned. No matter the situation, Anna always knew how to cheer her up.
Then a voice came over the speaker. “Doors open in five minutes.” The voice said. Emma inhaled her food and ran for the door, followed closely by Anna, Joey, Beth, and about a hundred other neopets. Then the main doors opened. The whole group rushed out into the sunshine. There was a barbed wire fence around the area, true, but it was better than being stuck indoors all day.
It had obviously just stopped raining; the ground was wet and slippery. As they ran through the yard, Emma noticed Joe, a green Skieth coming towards us with a very angry face. “Shoot.” Said Emma. “Joe at 12 ‘o clock.”
Everyone except Beth looked around for somewhere to hide. “Who’s Joe?” whispered Beth, nervous. “Joe is the bully of the compound.” Said Emma bitterly. “He picks on newbies, weaklings, etcetera.” Beth looked frightened.
“Oh don’t worry.” Said Emma, smiling. “He’s not after you.” Then Joe walked over. “Hey losers, why don’t you go and hide like your friends?” he asked, sneering. Then he looked at Emma. “I still haven’t forgiven you.” He said, glaring.
Emma sighed. “You still won’t get over it huh?” Joe smiled. “Nope.” Then he lifted his fist to punch her.
As Joe lifted his fist, Beth’s heart seemed to stop. She stared as he moved his hand forward. Then Emma ducked backwards.
His fist swiped over the place where Emma’s face had been seconds before. Then, with surprising agility, Emma dodged an onslaught of punches, kicks, and grabs from Joe. My jaw must be about two inches from the ground! She thought. Emma seemed almost as surprised with her own speed and agility as Joe was.
Then Emma’s attention wavered, and Joes fist went towards her. Suddenly Emma’s hand went up to protect her face, and there was a flash of green light. When the flash was gone, Joe was on the ground, and Emma was standing there panting, looking at her hands in amazement.
