Hey.

I doubt this story is going to be popular.

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Skye's POV

"Your name is Skye, right?" He asked.

"How'd you know that?"

"You're a bit of famous here." I think I saw him blush a little. He took my arm, and I may or may not have flung my arm at him. In my defense, it was just reflex, really.

I hold my breath. "I'm sorry! I really didn't mean that-"

He waved it off. "It's fine. No big deal." His blush was gone. What replaced it was a combination of fear, shock, and confusion, which pretty much summed up my feelings about everything I had seen so far.

In front of us was a magnificent white building. A drawbridge like the kind you would find at the entrance of a castle, and instead of wood, the floor was a kind of shiny material was pretty much the star of the show. It was all beautifully clear and sparkling with a wide range of colors. A young woman sneered at me as if I was some kind of vicious animal.

"Hey, kid, what's your name?"

He looked offended. "Gayle."

"Gayle?"

"Yes?" He perked up a little.

"Why did that lady over there just look at me like I'm some a...what's the word? Dumpster?"

"I didn't say you were good famous." He said. "I just said you were famous. Kind of like Voldemort, I guess."

"But...Voldemort dies." I say. (Sorry if that was a spoiler)

"Alright, spoiler alert! I haven't finished the series yet!" He had his finger in his chest.

I glared at him.

"Fine, that was a bad example. Anyway, some people dislike you and some people think of you as the next big thing. Some just think of you as a big, fat, useless rock. And some see you as a threat."

I look at him and raise my eyebrows. "Excuse me? That's your description of me?" I trip.

He looked down at me. "It fits pretty well right now."

I stare up at him, picking myself up from the ground.

After dusting myself off, we start towards the big entrance. "Let me introduce you to a few people." He said.

"No, it's okay. I'd rather get to know the place first."

"Hey Azura!" He waved his arms and hit me in the face.

A girl about my age jogged over to us and when she did, her eyes were filled with amazement. "Oh my god! You're Skye, right?""

"Yeah... how do you know my name?" I ask.

"You're famous. I didn't know you were real, I just thought you were a myth."

"Why?"

"Oh, um..." She trailed off. "So, do you like it here?"

"I guess." And so I kept the conversation going, but not letting go that she just completely ignored my question. And he did too.

~~~

Azura and Gayle lead me inside the gates. In two columns facing each other, with one at the end, there were seven buildings. At least 80 feet high and 100 feet across, they had a massive aura around them. Each had huge pillars and doors that were tiny compared to the building itself. The doors were silver and the steps leading up to them looked like mineral, possibly fluorite. The buildings had a single symbol engraved on the doors. The place looked really peaceful.

"All of us here have a power." Azura said. "They all have something to do with elements."

"Like fire and water?" I ask.

"Not fire...but we do have people with water skills." She pointed to a shiny blue building on the left. "That's the aqua aedificationem, or water building in latin." (Aqua ay-di-fik-a-tone-ium) "We also have buildings for aer(air), tempus(Time), umbra(shadow), vitae(life), glacies(ice), and psychicae(psychic). They're called the main towers, even though they're not towers. Each building has eight floors. One for business, one for training, two for living quarters, one for health and education, one for storage and shelter if there's ever an attack, one for shops and extra-curricular, and one for food and entertainment. Once you're determined at building, you'll get a schedule. Hopefully you get put in the aer aedificationem because that's where we are." She smiled and looked at her watch. "Sorry, I have to go. It was really nice to meet you."

"You too," I say.

"Let's get you sorted." Said Gayle.

We walked around the buildings on a path that led to a building about fifty feet shorter than the previous buildings. They walked inside and found five men and women, all sitting at a desk. They all looked up and asked if I was new. I said yes and they all pressed a button on their desks. Before I knew it, I was being lowered into a room underground. They were being lowered down too. The only problem was that I was alone. Gayle was waiting upstairs.

"State your name." One woman said into her microphone.

"Skye." I said.

They looked at each other. "What are you doing here Skye?" She asked with a different tone in her voice.

"I don't know. Gayle found me and he took me here because there were these two guys in trench coats chasing us." While I told them the story, their faces started to look worried.

"Thank you." Said the man farthest to the left. "Do you have any family members, friends?" He wrote something down.

"Not that I can remember."

"Alright. Do you remember anything?"

"Nothing but my name and age."

"Okay, thank you." He wrote something else down.

While they interrogated me, I got bored. Answering questions for twenty minutes tired me. Especially since the room didn't have much. There was no furniture, no table, no chair that I could sit in. Finally, the interrogation was over.

"Skye, please step forward." Said the first lady.

I walked up to the glass panel separating me from the five people. Out slid two sheets of paper along with a laminated index card that held my schedule. The woman walked up to the glass. She opened up a small door about the height of my chest. She slid a thin metal card to me. She closed the window and walked back to her seat.

"On the two sheets, you will find a map and a description of Allegiance Towers. On the card, you will have your ID, which you will need to get into almost every building from now on. On the index card, you will have a schedule that you will follow for the rest of your time as a trainee. This period of time will last until you are 22 years old. Thank you for your time."

I was raised back upstairs.

"How'd it go?" Gayle asked me.

"Fine, I guess. I mean, they said I have to stay in a building until I'm 22. Why?"

"Well, you can walk around outside. Everyone's schedule has breaks. So you can do whatever you want during that time. Once you're 22, you're out of that building and into town. You'll have to get a job and house there."

"And I can live where ever I want?"

"No, not really."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No," He said. "You'll have to live in a designated area where you'll live with people of the same grouped-powers."

I sighed. Everything is so strict. You can't live where you want. You can't do what you want. You probably can't even sleep where you want.

We walked outside a found a table to sit at. "Can I see your schedule?" Asked Gayle. I handed over the little index card to him and looked at the map of the place.

"Allegiance Towers is huge!"I say, amazed.

"Yeah," he said. "What tower were you put into?"

I picked up my ID. "Aer aedificationem." I said. "That's where you live, right?"

"Yep. I guess you'll be with me for a long time." He says.

"Great." I say sarcastically. Then we start laughing. And I realize that this was the first time I'll remember laughing with a friend.

~STUFF~

We walk side by side as we enter the aer aedificationem. On the doors, there was a symbol engraved in them. It looked like three triangles around a cloud. The symbol was glowing a silvery-white. Next to the door was a small metal rectangle with a label that read: scan ID here. I put my card against the screen.

"Finger print needed. Please place thumb here." It said. The screen lit up and had a shape that resembled a thumb. She carefully placed her thumb on the screen. It started to glow green.

"Thank you, Skye." It said.

Creepy, She thought. This place talks.

The doors opened and showed them a room. It almost resembled a waiting room. It also had a front desk. We walked up to the desk.

"Hello Gayle." Said the woman. "And who are you?"

"Skye."

"Ah... I've heard about you. You really are amazing."

"Thank you." I looked down at my hands; they were trembling, and my card fell to the floor.

"May I help you two?"

"Yeah," said Gayle. "She needs the tour."

"I love my job." She clasped her hands together and spun around on her chair.

We walked up to one of the four elevators available. Inside was just a regular elevator. Except this one had a water dispenser.

Cool.

The woman pressed the number eight and I hear a click. A satisfying click — almost like an smartphone typing click. For some weird reason, I like that sound.

They waited for the elevator to bring them to the eighth floor. Finally, the doors slid open.

There were two long hallways. Each had either a "FEMALES" or a "MALES" sign on it. We turned left.

"May I see your ID please?" She asked me.

I hand her my ID card. She looks at it. "Room 414F"

"How many rooms are there?" I ask.

"A lot." She answers.

We walk down a very, very long hallway until finally we reach my room. She places my card against the same kind of metal screen that we used for getting in the building. A circle on the door lights up green and we hear the lock click open. I push the door and find myself looking at a decent sized room with a giant floor-to-ceiling window that had a view of the forest next to Allegiance Towers.

"This place is amazing." I say.

We walk further into the room.

I open the bathroom door and find a full-sized bath with everything already provided.

"If I use something up and I need more, where do I go?" I ask her.

"There are shops on the sixth floor of the building that you can go to if you ever need anything. Clothes, books, whatever you want. On your ID card, you have 200 rebus. (Rebus means points in Latin) You can pay for things with them. To earn rebus, you have to earn them in your training or education. But for now, we have provided you with all the materials you need."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Is there anything else I can do for you?" She asked me.

"No, that's fine."

"Alright, well, enjoy." She turned around and started to walk away.

"Wait." I say.

"Yes?"

"Can you tell me where Azura's room is?"

She checks her electronic pad (like a notebook of paper). "Room 462F."

"Cool. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Have a nice day."

"You too."

She closes the door and we hear her in her heels walk back down the long hallway.

"So," Gayle said. "You like it?"

"Yeah, it's amazing. Except I would like it better if I knew my last name...which you could, technically, tell me. But it's fine...I guess. I mean, it would just mean that you're a good friend. But apparently...you're not. So..." I was playing stupid right now. I wanted to guilt him into telling me. Practically everybody else here knew me, except for me. I know that might sound bad, but trust me, if you were in my situation, you'd most likely be doing at least something similar to what I'm doing.

"Seriously?"

"What?"

"You're going to try that trick on me?"

"What ever are you talking about, my dear friend?

"Wow."

I sit down and look over my schedule with him.

SCHEDULE~

7:10–Wake up

7:40–Morning Training _Room 2E_

8:10–Breakfast_Room 1D_

8:40-12:30–Education_Room 16B_

12:35–Lunch_Room 2D_

1:05–Free Time

1:30–Training_Room 4E_

3:00–Extra-curricular (Everyone must take)

4:00–Training_Room 6E_

6:10–Dinner_Room 3D_

7:00–Education_Room 7B_

8:00–Free Time or Wednesday Obstacle Course _At commune aedificium_

9:00–Free Time

10:00–Stay in assigned buildings

11:00–Stay in bedrooms

"Why is there three times a day I have to train?" I ask him. I am not the most fit person.

"In the morning, it's only stretching, exercises, easy stuff like that. Then the second time it'll be for more physical stuff like sword fighting, rope climbing, archery sometimes. Then the last time it'll be for your powers. That's probably the most tiring one. Using your powers drains your energy." He said this so quickly I was barely able to keep up with him.

"So, I've been meaning to ask this. When did you first arrive here?"

"Oh. Um, I was around eight years old. I was pretty young."

"What's the normal age that people arrive here?"

"I guess...around ten to twelve year olds. The nicer ones sometimes come in at thirteen or older."

"What do you mean 'the nicer ones'?"

"Kids usually arrive when they really start thinking about things. Like, when changes start to happen. (I tried to make that the least awkward I could, sorry.) Their parents are usually pretty strict, or just hard to live with. That's why they leave."

"Oh. Well let's keep talking outside. I want to see some other places."

"Okay." Gayle didn't seem so happy about this, but he agreed. He didn't look comfortable talking about arriving here, like it was a nightmare, instead of a life-changing-happy-moment. I didn't understand why.

We stand up and I place my schedule carefully on my new desk, careful not to lose it accidentally. We exit my room and start down the long hallway. We spot Azura just getting out of the elevator with a few guys. They walk their separate ways. She sees us and we wave to her.

"You guys going down?" She asked.

We told her we were and she turned around and started walking back to the elevator on the right.

"You wanna walk together?" She asked us when the door slid open.

"Actually, that's what we were doing anyway."

"Can we stop at level 6? I'm really thirsty. Just got back from training."

"Sure. But we're going dinner anyway. They have drinks there, Azura."

"Yeah, well I need it right now. And I'm not gonna wait until dinner." She checked her watch. "Ten minutes is a long time.

We feel ourselves being lowered down to level 6, for Azura to get her drink. We exit the elevator and stand by a refreshments stand.

"Ah, Azura. Would you like your raspberry soda?" Asked the person behind the little counter.

"Yes please. Thank you Typhis."

Typhis places the cup under the machine and waits for the cup to fill.

"Typhis has water and wind powers because her dad controlled wind and her mom controlled water. She's really talented, and she remembers everyone's name. She's really nice." Azura whispers in my ear.

Typhis places the lid on the cup and places the drink on the counter. Azura hands Typhis her card and Typhis scans the plastic card on the machine next to her.

"Would you like anything, Gayle?"

"No thank you, Typhis."

"And you?" She asked me.

"Oh, no thank you."

"Bye, Typhis!" Exclaimed Azura.

"Good bye, honey." She responded, looking back at her watch, then sighing.

We get back into the elevator and the door slides closed. "I don't think it's fair." I say out of nowhere.

"What's not fair?" Asks Gayle.

"The jobs these people get. A drink stand? Really? And I saw someone selling only little packets of snacks."

"Well, I think they make enough 'money'. I mean, there are a lot of people in this building. And plus, we're all pretty much friends."

I decide to let it roll of my back.

We exit the elevator and start walking down the hall. We finally make it to room 3D.

My first impression: It's big. I mean, I know it has to fit everyone, but it just never really occurred to me how big rooms can be. Like, if you can imagine a really big gymnasium, and multiply that by fifteen, then you can imagine what this place looked like.

Okay, maybe I exaggerated a little. But it was really big.

There were tables all around, with a few smaller ones on the left and right. I saw a group of really experienced kids in the back, like they didn't really feel like eating with a bunch of twelve year olds.

Off to my left, in the far corner, was the door to the kitchen. And along the left wall was a huge line of food. Buffet style. Everyone seemed to know each other so well. They were all huddled up in clumps around the room. A few looked at me, and whispered. One boy gave me a disgusted look as we passed his table.

"Come on," said Azura. "let me introduce you."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's fine. They're great, I've known them for a while."

Azura and Gayle led me to a group of people on the right side of the room.

"Hey guys!" Azura said.

"Hey!" Said one girl. She looked at me. "Are you really...?"

"Yeah," I said. "I am."

"That's so cool!"

"Thanks...I guess."

The three of us slowly walked up to the long table that held the food. I grabbed a plate and started glancing at what was there. I saw pasta, bread, some soup, sandwiches, chicken wings, and other things that I assumed were from other countries.

I pretty much got what Azura got because I don't really remember what I like, because, you know, my memory.

When both of us finished getting food, we looked over at Gayle. To my surprise (not), I saw him grab a burrito and place it on his already full plate.

"Gayle, why'd you get so much?" I asked.

"I like burritos." He said, like it was obvious.

We sat back down with their four friends.

"So, Skye," Said the girl from before. "Have you discovered your powers yet?" She took a bite from her burger.

"No, not yet." I respond.

"Well, I'm sure you'll find out soon." She said. She took another bite and finished the burger.

"Where 'ya from?" Asked a boy I honestly hadn't really payed much attention to until now.

"I don't know." I said.

"Why not?"

"I don't know." Nice comeback, Skye. What an inspiration.

"She lost her memory." Answered Azura for me.

"Yeah." I said.

"Well.... why?" The boy asked.

"I don't," I took a short break. "Know."

"O," He said, mocking me. "Kay."

I gave him a look.

He raised his eyebrows at me and suddenly I felt wind blowing at me.

I fell off my chair.

"Thanks." I say, getting back up. "What a gentleman." He glares at me.

"Come on, Halo." Said Gayle. "Be nice to her."

''Yeah, be a nice orange." Said another boy.

"You better sleep with your eyes open tonight, Volance." Said Halo.

"I don't get it." I say.

"Of course you don't."

"Halo is a brand that sells oranges." Says Azura.

"I hate oranges." Grumbles Halo.

I take a bite of my pasta. It tastes really better than it looks, and it looks really good.

I see Gayle take the last bite of his burrito and reach down for another one, only realizing too late that instead of a burrito, he just grabbed hold a his soup. His hot soup.

"Ow!" he yelps. "Why is that so hot?"

"It's soup," says a girl sitting across from me.

"Yeah, I realize that, Em." He snaps back, wiping his hand dry.

"Em?" I say. "What's your real name?"

"Why, you don't think that's a real name?" She answers back, a little too forcefully.

"I didn't mean it like that-"

"Yeah, right."

"I really didn't-"

"You realize I'm kidding right? My name's Empearal." She puts out her hand for me to shake.

"Oh, um, okay." I reach for her hand and grab it.

Another girl arrived at the table.

"So, what'd I miss?" She asked. I guess she was getting food.

She put her plate down. "I just got my food. Had to stay late at training. Someone got their hand stuck in the net." She started twirling her pasta on her fork. She pushed her blonde hair out of the way.

"Oh, sorry. I guess I should introduce myself." She looks at me when she says this. "I'm Cerulis." She smiles, and I smile back.

~~~

After we finish dinner, we get up and I say goodbye to my new friends, I guess you could call them.

Azura and I exit the building.

"So, they were nice." I say.

"It wasn't really their best day." Said Azura. "They're just all kind of stressed out at the moment." I decided not to ask.

"I asked Gayle before, and he told me he was only eight years old when he arrived here." I say, trying to change the subject.

"I came here last year, so I was twelve. Cerulis brought me." She looked older than thirteen, but I thought it would be weird to bring up.

"So," I say. "Can we go look at some of the other buildings? I want to try and get a feel of the place."

"Sure."

We walk up the steps to the first building to our right.

The doors of the building had a symbol on it. We walked up to the doors, and scanned out cards. The doors swung open slowly and we entered. At the "front desk", there was a banner on the side of the counter.

"AQUA AEDIFICATIONEM" It read.

"Cool," I say. "Water powers."

I look around, the elevators were a bit smaller than the ones in my building. Everything in the aer aedifitionem was so elegant and clean. Everything here was so much more colorful, and happy.

The silver doors to the elevator opened, and out came a little kid with a sixteen year old. She waved, and we waved back. She smiled and walked away with what appeared to be her older brother.

We talk with the grown up at the desk. We ask if we can just walk around the building, and she says we can. *I just really don't want to write this part. Not feeling it right now.*

We tell her "thank you" and enter the elevator. In it is obviously a water machine with a sign that said, "DO NOT USE FOR ENTERTAINMENT OR PRACTICE OF POWERS". Underneath it in small letters was, "please."

I grabbed a cup and filled it with water. I took a sip and said, "This place seems cool. Nice people, nice water machine, nice colors."

Azura nodded her head. "Yeah, I like this building. Except for the fact that..." She stopped. She just stared into space, or the wall, which ever one you prefer.

"Hey, you okay?" I ask her.

She didn't respond.

I asked her again and this time she said, "Yeah, why?"

"You stopped talking."

"Oh, it's fine. I get those sometimes."

"Okay," I say, not wanting to make it weird. "Whatever."

She shows me around the building. It has pretty much the same format as my building. The stores are on the sixth floor, and the food is on the fourth floor.

We take our time there, not caring about what time it was.

Then, of course, we heard a bell in the distance.

"What's that?" I ask.

"It's ten o'clock." She says. "We have to go back."

"Oh."

As we walk back to the aer aedificationem, we talk a little more.

We enter the elevator for the last time that night and we met up with Gayle, Cerulis, and Volance. We all started snacking and chatting in my room, since I was the only one that hadn't eaten used anything from the room yet.

Before we knew it, it was eleven o'clock and the woman from the front desk told us to go to sleep. Gayle, Azura, Cerulis, and Volance said goodbye.

I opened the closet door. Inside it it held clothes than creepily fit me.

I changed into my new pajamas and crawled into bed. I turn off the light on my nightstand and lay down. I close my eyes and dream a dream that made me wonder.

"Who am I?"

~~~

So, yeah. Another cliffhanger. Thank you to all twelve people who have read it. Even though probably half of the reads are from this and my two other accounts. Even so, thanks.

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Or both.

Preferably both.

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Next chapter...

~Olympusaddict