Tag: ongoing series

Codexing Against Blood: Ch.4

Sarah walked a few steps behind her father, noticing the greying of his silk black hair. It started heavily at his temples and peppered along the sides to the back. Thomas was tall and slender, much like her own build. It was bizarre and comforting to be in his presence again. To see the age affecting him and her long past memories. Sarah felt insecure and shy.

Once they arrived at the entrance of the dining room, Sarah faltered. Looking up to the table she spotted her brother and she paused. There sat Tyler who was looking right back at her. He watched her silently and with an unreadable face. It wasn’t seeing him that made her pause, but the blur flicking white box of light that blocked a portion of his face.

“Ah, you must be Sarah! I’ve heard so much about you. Your father has told me so much about you over the years. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Did you just come in?”

The sweet soft voice of the woman sitting on the other side of the table pulled her attention away. Sarah made eye contact with the woman she assumed was her stepmother. Already she pushed away from the table to stand and greet her.

Dread swelled within Sarah as the lady walked around the table towards her. Was it too late to turn around now and flee? Before she could react, Thomas placed a strong arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close. Sarah had no escape route left.

“No mother, she came several hours ago,” Tyler spoke with an indifferent tone, neither interested nor bored of the conversation. The small white light was no longer there while he continued to stare at her. Sarah caught a glint of intrigued interest in his eye, despite his aloof act.

Sudden pressure to speak began to build up in Sarah. Should she introduce herself back? Say something nice about their home? It seemed silly to compliment the house since it was Sarah’s first before she married her father, but Sarah was at a loss for conversation.

Thomas chuckled with a dazzling smile. “I found her asleep in the library. I may have told you before that it was her favorite place to spend hours when she was a child. Old habits die hard, hey?”

With an intentional push forward, he stood behind Sarah with his hands in his pockets. Sarah stumbled forward, stopping to catch herself. With an awkward smile, she cleared her throat. Being the centre of attention or being held on display was never her forte. Clasping her hands together, she gave a small nod. “It’s nice to meet you, Miss.”

“Oh please, just call me Jane. We’re family after all! Come, come sit next to me! I would love to get to know you more.”

Politely taking her offer, Sarah allowed herself to be ushered to the seat. It was strange to be so far from her father at the table and even harder to not scowl at Tyler. He avoided eye contact, focusing all of his attention on his mother while their father rang the bell to be served. Two ladies came in, bringing plates with food. They severed the family quickly and silently. Sarah was unsure if she should thank them, looking about the others to mimic their reactions. None of them seemed to even acknowledge the servant’s presence. Jane turned in her seat, facing Sarah excitedly.

“Sarah, I heard that you are in the same school as Tyler now. How have you been fairing?”

Placing her hands in her lap, Sarah only turned her head to face her stepmother. “No different than the previous school, although I do have more spare time.”

“Do you find the module classes challenging?”

Sarah fought a frown. Jane knew a lot more than she realized about her school life. Glancing over at Tyler, she responded.

“I find it all the same…” A flash of dull light blinked in front of Tyler. Narrowing her eyes, Sarah could have sworn she saw something like a computer screen floating in front of Tyler. “The subject content could be flushed to flow a little easier, but overall it’s decent. “

“It must be a breeze then since you always did better solo than in class. When she was a little girl, she was diligent in her studies. Always the top of her class.”

Sarah blushed from her father’s compliment. This was news to her! “I wouldn’t go that far, dad.”

Turning back to face Jane, Sarah continued. “Although each subject is? simple, I don’t always agree with how the program is run. There aren’t enough students following school policies and we tend to have too much freedom. Sadly even I tend to get caught up in it as well.”

Jane gave a hearty laugh. “So I’ve heard. Tyler told us he sees you in the school library reading often. I guess it all makes sense now. I never really believed it until today that you very well could spend your entire life in a library and be content.”

Sarah shuffled with unsettled nerves. Tyler spoke about her? This was shocking considering they never spoke a word together until today. Before she could speak, Tyler added to the conversation. “Sometimes I even scold her for falling asleep there. I should have known she would have gone to the library here. Did you use to live here at some point, Sarah?”

“Oh that’s right,” Thomas picked up his fork and knife to begin digging into his meal, “Sarah grew up here. Her mother and I bought this house when we were young, just married. Up until her mother and I divorced, she ran through these halls well before you came along.”

Sarah sat quiet, listening for more to follow but it didn’t. She wished her father would divulge more, the only memories she had were fragments. The first whole memory she knew was when she started living in the small two-bedroom house.

This was not the only memory gap Sarah was aware of. Unable to recall what age she was when her parents separated or why she didn’t have the choice to stay behind bothered her the most. Reaching for the cup of tea that was poured for her, she took a deep sip. One day she would try to gain the courage to ask him personally, for now, it was best to leave it be.

Instead, Sarah curiously watched Tyler from behind the brim of her teacup. Talking about her past with her father was one thing, but her brother on the other hand. Why did Tyler lie? If he wanted to get to know her, why didn’t he make an effort? It was a redundant question since Sarah could argue the same herself. When would they have been able to approach each other at school because he was a Hopper? Scalers and Hoppers never mingle.

The flow of conversation continued while they ate. The abundance of food was more than Sarah could manage, yet she ate all she could to not appear ungrateful. Jane asked several questions regarding her schooling, current hobbies, and interests. Without being disrespectful, Sarah did her best to answer each question fully instead of short curt answers. It was beyond exhausting work to maintain this amount of effort.

Thankfully the questions slowed down, and she could lean back into her chair content and full. Sarah looked at her watch, realizing how late it was. Thomas caught her glance and spoke up. “Ah, if you are worried about the time, why not stay the night? Jane can help you with nightwear and I can drive you home in the morning. It would be nice to enjoy breakfast with you. I‘m sure your mother wouldn’t mind either since she is working late. It would give her some comfort knowing you weren’t alone.”

Sarah forced a smile, fighting with all her might to smile. It was a nice gesture, but all she wanted to do was be alone in her house. With one look at his puppy-eyed excitement, it was hard to say no. Sarah couldn’t bear to disappoint him. “That sounds lovely. Thank you, dad.”

Now how was she going to excuse herself to leave? Sarah was not one to socialize this long and now had no excuse to leave. Just then, Tyler cleared his throat pushing back on the chair away from the table, wiping his lips before standing. “Father, would you please excuse us? It would be nice to have a chance to chat with Sarah since we don’t get to spend much time at school. Different schedules and all.”

“Certainly! You too go catch up. If you need anything, we will be in the study.”

Sarah felt a wave of relief wash over her. At least she wouldn’t mind speaking privately with him. It was better than being constantly interrogated by Jane. Eagerly pushing from the table to follow Tyler, Sarah gave Jane a semi-bow. “It was very lovely to meet you.”

She didn’t need to wait long for Tyler’s brisk walk around the table. Together they turned to head out the door. Tyler’s pace was even and unhurried while they took the stairs toward the bedrooms. Sarah felt a new type of worry as they turned down the hall in silence.

Although they had never spoken, Sarah was nervous to break that wall. Once they reached his room, he waited for her to enter before shutting the door quickly. Sarah stood in the middle when he began.

“I know what I said at the table was a lie. I wanted to get that out before we say anything else. The fact is, you and I probably will never be close while we attend the academy. With you being in the module classes, it would be problematic. My parents wouldn’t understand as we do. So please, for their sake, let’s continue this farce. Father was so happy when he found out you were attending and well, I couldn’t break his heart.”

Sarah crossed her arms, listening intently. Everything he said made sense. In order to make their father happy, they would have to play this up. With how terrible the school’s feud was, Sarah understood why she may never have a good relationship with Tyler. Even if he was her half-brother. Sarah rolled her tongue in her mouth. There were still a few pieces of information she was missing that she hoped maybe he could fill in.

“I believe you. However, that doesn’t explain how you knew so much already. How did you know about me sleeping in the library?”

Tyler shuffled a bit at the question. “I may not be able to approach you at school, but I did want to get to know you. This may be a little lame, but I grew up knowing I had a half-sister that I could never meet. I didn’t know much about you and I always saw your picture in the hall. You may have seen it on the way to the study. Father doesn’t talk much about it either, so any time you did come up, it left me curious. Coming from a man who talks about everything passionately, why didn’t he say much about you? It wasn’t until I saw you in school one day that I told him. He was so thrilled and excited that he always ask me about you.”

Sarah nodded with a small smile. “So you would check up on me when you could.”

The sentiment was adorable. A little brother who wanted to know about his sister in secret. Maybe they would be able to develop a kinship now that she could come to visit at the house any time. It was comforting to learn. Sarah relaxed visibly, turning to sit on his bed.

“Well, I always wished to speak with you but I didn’t know how to approach you either. You may have noticed I don’t really socialize well and don’t have many friends.”

Tyler smirked, joining in beside her. “That’s ok. I am surprised though, you don’t seem like a Scaler to me. You have the ideals of a Hopper. Would you consider joining the classes instead of staying in modules?”

Sarah scoffed. “And lose the ability to sleep in the library? No way. Not going to lie, it’s absolutely perfect. And as long as I keep my grades up, it will stay that way.”

Leaning back into the bed, Sarah crossed her arms under her head. It was nice to finally lay down and close her eyes. The day was extinguishing.

“So what do you usually do when you come home? Do you read in the library as well?”

Tyler chuckled. “No, I‘m not one to read leisurely. This may be a bit of a surprise to you, but I play video games. Are you interested in any?”

“Video games?” Sarah propped herself up to stare at Tyler in disbelief. It was a bit of a surprise indeed. “What is with everyone in our school being so obsessed with games?”

“So your not interested at all?”

“No, not at all. I see no appeal to it.”

Tyler was stunned. Brushing his neat hair back, he was a bit speechless. Was it that big of a deal to him? Sarah raised an eyebrow. “Is that really so surprising to you?”

With a nod, Tyler pushed up off the bed. “Yeah, a little. I just… never mind. It was a silly thought.”

He walked over to his desk where his laptop sat. Waking it up, he lifted it with one hand and walked back over to her, sitting on the floor. “I know you are tired so you can rest here. If you feel like talking then just ask. I could tell you were dozing off during dinner. Don’t feel inclined to force yourself for my sake. There will be plenty of time for us to catch up. That’s if, you want to come back here again. “

Sarah adjusted herself to look over his shoulder, propping her head up with her arm. “I appreciate that. What will you do in the meantime?”

Tyler loaded up a game on his screen, already typing away with commands. “I need to do a little bit of skilling for a mission I am on.”

Within the silence of Tyler’s typing, Sarah watched with heavy eyes. If that was what he wanted to do, then she wasn’t going to stop him. It was nice to have a bit of comfortable silence. Before Sarah could close her eyes and rest, a small buzzing alerted her. Opening her eyes wide, she saw the fuzzy blur of a screen once more. It was distorted and faint with different symbols that shuffled into new ones quickly in repetition.

Sarah sat up to watch. There was no way this was a trick of her eyes. Squinting hard, she tried to focus on what it was. With a fizzle, the screen dissipated once more. To have seen such a screen in front of him twice in one night? This was no coincidence. With piqued interest, Sarah decided to intently watch over his shoulder.

Codexing Against Blood: Chapter 2

Sarah stood with a groan after Heather left to return the book. I guess it won’t hurt to be a little social today. She brushed off her skirt to straighten the back end and picked Heather’s bag up. Sarah never brought her bag to the library. It felt weird to be carrying something so bright and cheerful. It was a bit of a surprise that Heather was into these kinds of things. Then again, if you knew how cheerful she was, it did make sense. 

Sarah placed her hands in the pockets of her blazer and stood near the book aisles. Heather placed the book back on the shelf and then promptly skipped back with excitement. Her momentum didn’t stop when she reached Sarah, linking arms the moment she reached her. Without pause, she pulled them off in a flash.

Blatantly leaving through the front doors, Sarah griped loudly while fighting against Heather’s pull. There was no escaping Heather’s iron grip on her arm all the while tugging Sarah along. All pleas fell on deaf ears the entire way down the street. Constantly Heather would ignore her request to wait till the bell had officially rung. She knew full well how uncomfortable it made Sarah. It probably humored her to tease Sarah relentlessly over it.

The walk to the cafe was short since it was close to the school’s campus. It was a convenient place since the owners knew it would attract business efficiently from the academy. Upon entering the front doors, it was bustling with kids. Several of the Scalers were crowded around a booth on one side and a handful of Hopper’s on the other. You could tell instantly by the painfully obvious difference in attitude. Scalers never stuck to the academy’s dress code while Hopper’s thrived on it. 

Several blazers had been discarded carelessly unto chairs and tables nearby, nearly every Scaler had untucked shirts or rolled-up sleeves. The Hoppers sat neatly in their chairs with clean neat suits and skirts while they shot deadly glares. They were brooding and collected closely into a small group around a table. 

Sarah tugged at her blazer to straighten it, sharing equal disapproval for the disregard the Scalers had for their uniform. In the past, Sarah tried to convince them to follow the dress code to no avail. There was nothing she could do to convince them, being “fresh blood” to the school. Most of the students had been attending the school since they were in preschool. Some habits died hard.

Sarah and Heather approached the table and were welcomed into the swarm. Each person gave a small cheer and shuffled to offer a place to sit. This won a loud scowl from the other side of the room. The Hoppers shook their heads at their rowdiness, watching them closely with sneers. 

Sarah did her best to act properly, sitting with her legs and arms rested in her lap. Even though her actions were observed, there was no gaining any favor from them. Her association with the Scalers sealed her fate and would always be disliked by them. There would always be a painfully obvious distrust from each faction. 

Each interaction was met the same; either inside or outside of the school ground. The distinct separation between the two was palpable.

Although, Sarah knew that becoming a Hopper would change that, giving up her new way of living wasn’t worth it. Still, she made a valiant effort in hopes to patch the difference.

The sound of laughter bursting around her brought Sarah’s attention to the table. Easily she’d forgotten to pay attention to the conversation around her, although it wasn’t any better. She could hardly keep up with the crew since the only thing they ever talked about was video games. 

What was it about video games that teenagers were obsessed with? The constant comparing of scores, skills, and abilities was insufferable. Not to mention the ever-changing lingo and abbreviations from game to game. It was difficult to follow. 

Sarah had learned to stop asking each time because it was visibly irritating for everyone. To constantly keep her in the loop each time they spoke slowed down the pace. Instead, she long learned to just pretend.

Again Sarah’s attention drifted, looking about the cafe for stimulation. Several more groups of classmates had flooded their way in. It got busy and loud with several more Scalers crowded around them. The bell must have rung for lunchtime. 

People lined up for food or piled around the small tables around them. Despite the high energy, Sarah found it hard to fight her drowsiness. With no stimulation or intriguing conversation, she began to zone out and picture the hillside instead. 

How quiet and peaceful it would have been while lying outside. The wind blew softly through the trees rustling the leaves, the chirps of the birds as they flew about building their nests, and even the bell as it rang in the distance for class changes. It was such a shame she was trapped indoors in a cafe with nerds instead.

A sharp nudge to the rib tore her back to the present with a dizzy whirl. With a grunt, Sarah pouted at the person responsible. Heather offered her a smile and then nodded her head to the shooter game behind. Was it that time already? 

Gladly removed from the conversation, Sarah willingly crawled out of the booth. Sarah made her way to the machine and pulled out some cash to hand to Heather for coins. Leaning against the machine, Sarah glanced around. The cafe had died down significantly. The Hoppers returned to the academy for classes aside from a few stragglers who were still eating. 

Several Scalers had moved into the computer backroom, leaving the lobby emptier than when they first arrived. The once overly crowded tables branched out into smaller groups, each in deep conversations. 

This wasn’t so bad, Sarah thought while tapping her fingers against her arm. She browsed the room until Heather approached with a cup full of coins, wearing a grin from ear to ear. Sarah smirked, shaking her head, then turned around to grab her trusty grungy red gun. The way Heather got excited to play a lame old game was adorable.

The game was one of those “cop-duo” games where the players had to save hostages from gang members that held up buildings and malls. To Sarah, it was something mind-numbing to point and click at. Heather, on the other hand, was a different person. 

Her entire being was into it, cheering at kills made or yelling at the screen when she felt the game glitched. If a shot missed or a bad guy didn’t die after several shots, she would slam her hand on the surface of the counter before them. 

Sarah couldn’t help but laugh at how obsessed Heather was about how far they made it, achieving certain checkpoints, or when they beat their previous scores. How was Heather able to keep track of each game flawlessly?

Despite how carefree Heather was, this was one area that surprised Sarah. Who would have thought she was such an intense gamer?

To Sarah, it was no different than playing a game at a carnival. You already know all the games are rigged so you have to pay more to win. No matter how good you are, it was impossible to win. 

Sarah speculated that maybe the reason she couldn’t be bothered with games was because of that. She believed it was all just a waste of time and money since there was nothing to gain from it. Games were just a giant sinkhole for your pockets. Either that or Sarah had extremely low motivation to do anything. Which rightly did play a big factor. 

With no real hobbies or interests, sleep was the only compelling thing. There were no driving passions other than reading, but even then, Sarah did it to only pass the time. There wasn’t any real enjoyment from doing so.

The screen began to flash red and her character died again. Absently reaching into the cup for a coin, it came up empty. Sarah had zoned out entirely the whole game, not paying attention at all. With no more coins, she placed the gun into the holster to watch Heather’s character instead, placing her hands in her pockets. 

Sarah witnessed Heather shoot at several thugs in quick recession, saving a running hostage. The graphics of the game were terrible and pixely, making it laughable to watch the 2D character run, flailing arms towards more criminals. 

Tsking, Sarah shook her head. Why did they program them to be so stupid and run towards more danger? It was such a nuisance.  It was no bother to Heather though, already popping two more guys nearby for a successful hostage escape. 

It was amazing to see how skilled Heather was at the arcade game; to see her with so much focus; saving ammo until the right moment to shoot, finding all the secret items that hid in the background of the rubble, and even managing to run to the next shelter point without taking damage. 

Intently watching Heather’s gameplay, Sarah saw a strange quick flicker fizzle across the screen. It was barely noticeable at first until it focused into a blur of red flashing words. Sarah squinted, trying to read it when it vanished. 

Scanning the screen, Sarah blinked a few times then rubbed her eyes in confusion. She must have been seeing things due to being tired.

Heather glanced over to Sarah’s side of the screen quickly before abruptly dropping the gun into the holster. She must have realized that they had finished the coins and no longer had the desire to play. Sarah frowned, watching the character on the screen take damage all around and die within seconds. 

Game over scrolled across the screen, playing the failure end song. Shrugging at Heather, Sarah scoffed. “You could have kept going.”

It was the same banter they exchanged after each game. Heather swiped her hand dismissively. “Naw, it’s no fun if you’re just standing there watching me. And frankly, I think this was your worst game yet! What’s up with you today? You seem to be zoning worse than usual.”

Sarah rolled her eyes, leaning against the machine to scan the room, not taking note of anything in particular. It was hard to say what was going on in her mind since all she wanted was to sleep. Having kept herself awake all morning in anticipation of the warm hillside, she had exhausted all the revered energy. Why did socializing have to be so tough?

Heather watched with the anticipated smile, snickering as she pulled out an energy bar from her purse. Handing it towards Sarah, she lifted a brow.

“When was the last time you ate?”

Taking the bar with a grumble, Sarah chose to eat the bar in silence. It was interesting that Heather had an acute intuition, especially when it came to her eating habits. Granted, Sarah’s desire to sleep had bypassed the idea of a meal. Never expanding much energy left her hardly feeling hungry. That, or when she did eat it was always alone. 

Crossing her arms, she chewed solemnly. The only time she had company was with Heather. As the idea crossed her mind, Sarah closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly she released it and swallowed her meal. 

Thinking about it, there was something that weighed heavily on her mind: the visit to her fathers on the weekend. Glancing at her friend, Sarah fidgetted with the bar’s wrapper.

“I’m supposed to visit my father in a few days. It will be the first time I’ve seen him in years, ever since my parent’s divorce. Something about meeting his new wife and establishing a relationship with my brother.” 

Why she felt so inclined to share so much was beyond her, possibly the fact that she had no one else to speak to about it all.

Heather nodded with understanding, slinging her bag around her shoulders before leading them towards the small bench against the wall. Sarah followed with a bit of surprise. It was rare that they would ever sit and talk. Heather turned to properly face her, with readiness to listen to her. Sarah nervously sat down. It was a little offsetting.

“Were you ever close with your brother before?”

Dropping her arms to her lap, Sarah leaned into the wall in thought.

“From what I can recall? Not entirely sure. A lot happened back then and it is a bit of a blur. I would be the first to admit that when it comes to this kind of stuff, I had never paid much attention to my surroundings.”

Heather giggled, not surprised by that sort of response. Sarah shot a look of irritation, triggering Heather to promptly wave her hand in front and apologized. “Sorry, don’t mind me. It just sounds very much like something you do even now.”

It was a typical answer Sarah expected to hear. Still, she huffed and leaned her head back against the wall to stare off into the space before her. True as it was, Sarah always thought that the gap in her memories was odd. A piece of her she was missing that led to her isolation and solitude. Her father made no efforts in the past. Now suddenly he was reaching out to attempt a shell of a family? 

Heather’s frowned, feeling a little guilty at the sudden laughter, her voice softened as she spoke. “Are you worried about seeing them again?”

This time, Sarah dropped her head with a smile. It was considerate of Heather to show such kindness when it wasn’t needed. It was accepted graciously. With a slight shake of her head, Sarah took the last bite of the bar and crumpled the plastic neatly into her palm while she chewed. She took a moment to trace her finger on the outside of her lip to gather crumbs. Before answering Heather, Sarah licked her finger clean.

“My father, yes. My brother on the other hand…  He attends the academy here in a different grade. We’ve seen each other here and there, although there haven’t been any attempts in conversation. Besides, what is there to say? We have nothing in common outside of our father and attending the same building. Not grounds for a conversation starter.”

Sarah avoided eye contact, not eager to see Heather’s reaction. The last thing she wanted was any pity. Quickly, Sarah stood up and straighten her skirt before heading to the garbage bins. She knew she wasn’t doing a swell job communicating. It was uncomfortable talking about a past she barely remembered and a family she was never close with. 

With a huff, she prepared to face Heather only to be grappled around the shoulder. With no warning, Sarah was dragged away towards the door. Heather wore a grand smile on her face, pulling Sarah close under her arm. Barely steady on her feet, they collided into the door and nearly tripped out into the sunny afternoon.

“Don’t worry about the small stuff.” Heather planted her feet on the ground, supporting Sarah from falling, “I am sure that your dad feels incredibly guilty and wants to make it up to you. If not, why would he suddenly be inviting you? 

Sarah wrestled out of her grip with a grunt, glaring at Heather as she continued, “Cheer up! It could be good news! For now, let’s just head back to the school.”

Heather pivoted on her heel towards the school, flashing her a wink as she walked off ahead. Over her shoulder, she spoke loudly for Sarah to hear her. “I’ll let you finish reading your “Russian Agriculture” book. If you want, I can teach you how to speak it. I’ve heard I’m an excellent teacher.”

Sarah chuckled, shaking her head. Heather was right, there’s no reason to fret it now. All she could do was wait and see. Shoving her hands in her pockets, she took her time to catch up to her sly friend.