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Lahat ng Kabanata ng My Shattered World: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

65 Kabanata

The Fifth Memory

And so, my new life as one of only five children living within Central Control began. I don't understand why I am not allowed to go home- aside from the fact that it takes over a year for me to recover well enough to function properly again- but eventually, Grandfather explains it to me. Central Control has been a tightly-kept secret for years. Centuries, even. Ever since the very founding of our colony world.Now that I know about it, I can't be allowed to talk to anyone else about it. They wanted to use their mind machine to wipe my memory, but after one of the scientists made the mistake that resulted in a drug interaction- that nearly killed both of us- it's no longer safe to even try it. As far as my family knows, I just vanished. Grandfather too... he can't go home, either. He will stay with me at the mountain, stay with the Ten... he will be one of the world's heroes that tries to keep

Making Friends in Strange Places

Dragging myself out of my memories was getting harder, but I finally succeeded. I woke to find Lauren leaning over me. She turned and called out, "He's awake!""About damn time, but I can't say I really blame him, all things considered." Captain Case appeared on my other side. "How are you feeling, Toby?""I've been better," I muttered, taking a quick inventory of my physical condition, and finding it in better shape than I expected. "I've been worse, too. I feel pretty good, considering that you found me on the floor shackled to a dead woman's bed. How the hell did you find me?""It was a series of deductions that even the ancient detective Sherlock Holmes would be impressed by," Captain Case said dryly. "Here's the basics: your driver regularly drives this route. When he made his next trip, I asked him to check an

A Hard Dose of Reality

After two days of resting- and eating absolutely everything in sight- I was back on my feet and ready to go. I had a closer fix on where the tracker on Janice's key was signaling from. It would still be something of a hike, and I'd have to find a safe place to hide for a night or two, but it was better than where I was before Captain Case and her people showed up.I took a little time to call my grandfather. He chewed me out, but not very much. He was just grateful to see me alive. After verifying that my table scanner was still working properly, he gave me a few tips on how to deal with Janice if she got obstinate.I figured that if she'd been taken prisoner as I had been, she wouldn't have a whole lot of choice but to cooperate with me, no matter what I asked.Captain Case and her crew took me all the way to the d

Janice

Once I had identified the entrance to the building where the signal was coming from, I made my way cautiously into the dark, looking around, bracing myself for an attack. Nothing happened. The place felt oddly still... it felt weird, and above all, there was a weird smell. It was almost like the aroma of rotten perfume.I found one intact door in its frame and opened it, finding a set of stairs. It screamed "trap" but I knew I had to face it if I wanted the key. Moving down the stairs slowly, I watched every shadow. Nothing moved, nothing so much as made a sound. I started to get a feeling roughly akin to walking into a crypt.I entered a room furnished with a few sagging sofas, a cracked table, and some long-dried flowers. That was where the perfume smell came from, but it was somewhere between rotten and a really bad effort on the part of a perfume maker. The

The Hunt For Cody

The moment it seemed safe enough to move out in the morning, I headed out to the transport depot in the ration center. I needed to catch a ride to the far north. It wouldn't be easy, but I still had a few bags of sparkly things that could practically guarantee cooperation. The little things I'd swiped from Vanessa's house. Thinking about her gave me a pang... as much as I wanted to be free of her, I hated to see her suffer such a horrible death. I'd had enough with suffering in general.I checked, and as I'd been told, there was only one truck going that way. It wouldn't go all the way. I'd have to hope I could find a transfer, but it was a start, at least.The driver was easily bribed by the shiny diamonds and told me to hop in the back. He didn't mind doing a favor for the captain, but the officials at his destination would be far less forgiving, so he'd have

The Orphanage

I let the little girl slide to the floor as I leaned against a wall, just trying to catch my breath from that long run in the chill air. The kid quickly told the dramatic tale to the person who had dragged us in here- a woman, from the voice- describing how I had snatched her from the very jaws of certain death.As they spoke, I examined our rescuer. She had dark hair pulled into a knot at the back of her head. I couldn't quite see her face but it looked like it was only lightly lined, if at all. She was slender, of course, probably just as starved as everyone else. She wore a long patchwork dress that looked like she had scavenged pieces from every mismatched tablecloth and curtain she could find.When the girl finished her explanation, the woman turned to face me with a stern but curious look... edged with just a touch of weary amusement. "You're crazy, stupi

Want Some Candy?

We took the kids into a room that resembled a dormitory. Everything was broken down, the beds were cobbled-together scrap, and the blankets were threadbare, but it was better than nothing. At her request, I told the kids a story while she supervised teeth brushing. Once they were all tucked in and had gone to sleep, she led me down another hallway to a smaller room.It had once been some kind of office. She had converted the desks into a bed. It was the first time I'd seen an effort- outside of the Dame's place- to create something comfortable and inviting. There were even bedcurtains to block out the chill breeze from the broken, boarded-over windows.Just as I thought it was odd to have something so relatively luxurious for a guest room, the door slammed behind me. I froze, a trickle of fear tingling on my neck. Had this been a trap?

Candy's Secret

The next time I woke, I was confused. I couldn't remember where I was until Candy shifted in her sleep, snuggling closer with a slight murmur. I frowned, wondering why I had woken up. Surely it wasn't morning yet?My body told me that it was. It was the oddest feeling... I'd slept through an entire night with no nightmares. None that I could recall... I seemed to recall something about a purple dragon racing a unicorn, but that was probably because I'd told the kids a story about a dragon the night before.I'd been careful not to move too much, but even slight movements jostled her awake. She looked at me with a soft smile, kissing me gently. "Good morning."I returned her kiss. "Good morning. Sleep well?""Better than I have in a long time," she said, holding me tightly

The Key to Cody

A few hours later, Candy surprised me with a warm shower. The only intact facility like that in the whole town, from what she said."There's a hidden tank on the roof that I painted black to absorb sunlight," she explained. "There's not a lot of water, but at least it's warm. To conserve, we should share the facilities.She was determined not to let me go any sooner than necessary, but she had a good point.After the heat chased away the shivers from the broken windows, I quickly dressed, mentally reviewing my plan. I was about to leave the bathroom when I noticed something out of place. A bottle on the counter... nearly full of pills. I picked it up and looked at it, feeling a hint of dread. "Candy? What's this?"She raised her eyebrows, shooting me a look of exasperati

Outwitting a Monster

Several hours passed as the three of us were locked into a sort of sick staring contest. My legs ached from the effort of balancing on the ledge, which was narrower than I'd first thought. The ledge was wide enough for me to stand, but not wide enough to sit. The one time I had tried, I'd nearly fallen back into the lion's pit of death.I doubted I would outlast either the zookeeper or the cat. Every time I looked at the keeper, he'd just give me a raised-eyebrow look as if to inquire whether I was about to make a break for it. I never bothered to respond.After pacing for an hour, the lion came to the same conclusion I had: I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. He laid down across the floor of the pen, watching me in hungry annoyance. Fresh meat was so close at hand, and yet entirely out of his reach. This wo

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