This is a Gift

When Liadan became aware of her surroundings again, she was across the school grounds, standing by a red mustang. On the other side of the car stood Aaron with what looked like a busted lip; it was purple in the lower corner, with a little bit of broken skin.

“Get in.” He ordered, and Liadan obliged without objection or a second thought about her own car. She buckled up quickly, breathing hard, and stared straight ahead. Aaron, likewise, climbed in on his side and immediately backed out, speeding through the parking lot and streets. They rode in silence, Liadan forcing herself not to think about anything. If she did, it might drive her insane. She picked at her nails, and absently glanced around the vehicle she was in. It was pretty pristine, crumbs nowhere in sight and the only trash looked to be an energy drink can leftover from the morning. The seats were black leather, warm from the sun, and the radio was on low, playing the top 100. She was almost lulled into a calm, but Liadan knew herself well enough to know she was far from it. For one, she was in a car with a guy she barely knew going only god knew where and for two, how the hell did Julian know about her mind reading crap? Thirdly, well, he could read minds…

“You don’t have to look so scared, you know. You’re safe now,” Aaron said to her.

Liadan just looked over at him, and then looked forward out of the windshield, her mouth open and her eyes wide. How was she going to deal with this tomorrow? How could she face the same people every day knowing she had been through this harrowing experience that they knew nothing about? Those, in all honesty, were the only things that really concerned her. They could already tell she was acting strangely. She wasn’t any good at acting. Was it possible to get PTSD from a paranormal event?

Eventually they arrived wherever they were headed and Liadan climbed out of the car, careful to pay no attention to the look of amusement Aaron had just cast at her, and saw that they were at a park. The sun beat down as she looked around at her surroundings, making her very hot and sweaty. It may have been well into Fall, but it was still quite warm despite the season change and the breeze.

“You never told me what we’re doing here,” she said to Aaron, looking at him over the top of the car.

Aaron didn’t look at her, “You’ll find out soon enough.” The car beeped as he locked it, making Liadan jump. Her nerves were so fried, a bunny hopping towards her would have startled her.

“How did you bust your lip if you can make your face disappear when someone tries to hit you?” Liadan asked, looking at the swelling that had started on Aaron’s jaw.

Aaron narrowed his eyes at her and touched his bottom lip lightly. “Sometimes I don’t do it in time,” he said. He winced as he looked at his reflection in the car.

It was only midday, so the parking lot was crowded; mostly with minivans. There were a handful of cars that didn’t look like they belonged to anybody who planned on having kids anytime soon (i.e. cars without backseats) and Liadan might have taken the time to think about why that would be if she didn’t feel like such a lost child. Aaron was already walking away, past the large playground with a wooden pirate ship built into the side of it, and into the woods that surrounded the jungle gym, and Liadan jogged to keep up. She dodged around five year olds playing tag, and caught up to Aaron as he was walking through the trees, not following any sort of trail that Liadan could readily ascertain. She sighed, staring at the back of his blonde head, practically running to keep pace with his long strides. A couple times she was smacked with stray twigs that stuck out from branches.

“We’re not going anywhere where everybody drinks kool-aid, right?” She could see that the t-shirt he was wearing was already sticking to him thanks to the heat, the letterman jacket off and hanging over his shoulder. Sand kicked up from their steps, filling Liadan’s shoes. She could feel it between her toes, and that combined with her exasperation at this excursion was making her very agitated.

Aaron didn’t answer at first. He glanced at her for the briefest of seconds and then back up ahead, not stopping to consider the question.

For a moment, Liadan thought he might not have understood the comment, but then he said, “Does making bad jokes make you feel better?”

Liadan’s mouth dropped open in response; if anything, she wasn’t expecting that reply. She saw him raise an eyebrow at her stunned silence and walk on. No one had ever called her out on her nervous habit of joking. She trailed behind. Soon, they came to a clearing. It looked like one of those meeting areas some parks have, with stadium style wooden benches all facing forward to one small platform for a speaker. Scattered about were a small handful of people, only five, and Liadan froze in her tracks when she saw that one of them was Professor Craven, standing in front of the platform. She wondered if his resting stance was just being in lecture mode and that’s why he was standing in a clearing in front of people. He was dressed in his customary slacks and a long sleeve button down shirt, tucked in. He was wearing slick brown dress shoes, and his glasses were sitting on the end of his nose. He smiled at her, seemingly unaffected by unbearable temperatures.

“Hello, Miss Ryan,” he greeted. He smiled warmly at her, and Liadan managed to return the gesture. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

“Hello.” She didn’t think she had it in her to feel any more unsure than she felt in that moment. Her whole day had sapped an entire life’s worth. Still, she figured she might as well make the best of things. She stood where she was expectantly, crossing her arms behind her back to keep herself from fidgeting. She could feel her makeup melting on her face. “I can tell you have no idea what you’re doing here,” Professor Craven said, casting a glance at Aaron.

Liadan inclined her head, shrugging a yes. Aaron, for his part, strolled right in without hesitation. He and Professor Craven exchanged a look, one which seemed to Liadan to convey much more than just a greeting. “I didn’t know how to tell her we called an emergency meeting because she was in danger,” he said.

Soon enough, however, Aaron had found a comfortable spot next to a woman with a mane of curling brown hair, unbothered by what he had just said. The woman he sat next to took one look at him and began touching his face gently around the swollen lip. There was a pause as no one spoke, and Liadan’s eyes scanned the place. The fear and excitement she had felt from before was starting to wear off and she was feeling a little bit more rational about things; which meant she needed an escape route just in case.

“Would you like to have a seat?” Professor Craven asked and Liadan shook her head. “Miss Ryan, I asked Aaron to bring you here today because there’s more you need to know.”

“No, I’m good,” she squeaked out, deciding just running back the way she and Aaron had come was her best chance. She stood in the middle of the clearing, just a few feet shy from the platform. She paused. “More?”

Professor Craven nodded, “Well, wouldn’t you agree?”

Liadan hesitated. She had to admit, though: her curiosity was piqued. “We’re filling you in, hotshot.” Aaron replied, turning away from the woman next to him and raise his chin to shoot the response at Liadan.

The woman sitting next to him nodded, replacing her hands on both sides of Aaron’s face and pulling it back towards her.

“You really might want to take a seat,” she added, looking back at Liadan. She was slim, with a tan long sleeve t-shirt tucked into a pair of dark skinny jeans that accentuated her curves. Sitting just below her was another female. Her features were mousy. She had straight auburn hair and a mix of freckles. To her right, there was another male, his hair a stark contrast to his light skin. He had glasses and a geeky grin to match. All of them were casually sitting on the benches, and all were looking at her, awaiting her response as if it determined whether they all lived or died. Finally, she slowly made her way to the seats and sank unto the edge of one of the benches, a good distance away from anyone else. She had the distinct feeling she was going to hear something she really didn’t want to, but whether or not this was something she wanted to get tangled up in, it seemed to her that she was already tangled up in it. After all, she most certainly did not want to run into Julian by herself, and anyway, she wasn’t entirely sure which way she and Aaron had come from. Professor Craven smiled at her. “It’s nice to have you, Miss Ryan.” Liadan nodded, taking a breath to calm her nerves. “I’m sure you’re wondering what’s going on, and rest assured: no one here is going to harm you. Also, to retrace your steps you would have had to turn left, not right. Right leads to a creek, which currently has water flowing through it and very steep edges.”

Liadan blinked at Professor Craven. Her mouth dropped open in an unflattering manner with one side of her bottom lip going down and the opposite side of her upper lip creasing upward.

Liadan blinked again. She began to blink rapidly, trying to get her thoughts together. If it weren’t for the genuinely warm smile the Professor was giving her, Liadan was almost positive she would have bolted then and there.

“Aren’t you glad you decided to stay?” He asked. He began rolling up his shirt sleeves, “And you need to begin your training.”

“Can everyone read minds?!” She finally exclaimed, exasperated. Her eyes once again swept the group; the darker haired male pushing his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. She paused when the professor’s words caught up to her racing brain.

“Wait. Training?” Liadan crossed her legs, shifting her position the same way her mind was shifting gears. She felt the sweat make her skin slick. Overhead a bird ca-cawed. “What do I need training for?”

She felt like she sounded whiny and impatient, but she was having a hard time – probably caused by an unwillingness to accept what was happening – processing all the information being thrown at her.

“Your powers. You need to be able to control them,” Aaron answered instead of the professor. His face was still turned away from her, towards the woman next to him. Liadan expected him to go on, but he didn’t. She was going crazy and nobody seemed to be acting like anything that had happened was that big of a deal. Or that they had anywhere else to be. Her heart began thumping in her chest again, but this time with anxiety more than terror. She thought of the parking lot and the cars, and centering herself by grabbing handfuls of the grass. In response, a handful of twigs near her feet snapped. She jumped, and the smaller female gasped.

“Like that.” Aaron added. Professor Craven remained the picture of serenity. “No, not everyone can read minds, but we do all have abilities. Aaron can become invisible, as you’ve seen, or rather, haven’t seen.” He winked at her. “Debi can heal anyone she chooses,” at this, the curly haired woman nodded and smiled, finally releasing Aaron. Liadan noticed that Aaron’s lip was no longer swollen.

“Hey,” Debi greeted.

Professor Craven continued, “Christopher can travel in time and space,” the man with the glasses gave a wave and nod, which caused his glasses to slide down his nose. “And Gina can talk to plants.” Here, the mousy looking female blushed. She gave a very small wave but didn’t make eye contact with Liadan. “I even heard, once, of a man who could fly.” Professor Craven chuckled at the thought and looked at Liadan. “You, however, are unique all on your own.”

So she was a freak even by freak standards. Peachy.

“No, Miss Ryan. Unique. Special. Gifted, if you like,” Professor Craven replied to her thoughts, tapping his temple. “I, myself, am a mind reader, and so are you.”

Liadan shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Yes,” she said. “I can’t help it.” “No, but you can learn to control it.” Professor Craven only watched her, his steady gaze gentle and kind. “I’m very sorry to bring you into this in such a way. I would much rather have slowly introduced you into our world, explaining things so as not to frighten you. Fate, alas, has forced my hand.” He began to pace back and forth in front of the little platform. His steps were slow and firm. He walked the same path each time, turning on his heel. Though Liadan did not pick up on his thoughts, she could see that he looked as if he were deciding how to proceed. “We are wanderers, Miss Ryan. These people you’re meeting today, and many others you have yet to, are all born with abilities.” His hands were clasped behind his back. He kept his eyes on the ground, as if his thoughts were too far away to focus on anything else. Behind him, leaves began to fall as a warm breeze drifted through the clearing.

“They are born this way to fight against evil and wrongdoing in the world,” he continued. “You see, everyone is born with just one ability; everyone selected, that is. But you, my dear, are gifted with two.” He had an excitement in his eyes when he turned to walk the direction towards her, though he only glanced at her occasionally. “There is a prophecy that one will be born without powers, but when the time is right, acquire them, and acquire as many as necessary. They shall be the one to cleanse the earth.”

Liadan didn’t say a word, watching her professor. She didn’t like the term “cleanse the earth”; it sounded very cultish and conspiratorial to her. Still, she had to admit she was viewing all of this from her lens of experience and supernatural abilities certainly hadn’t played into any of her thought processes till now. Likewise, it meant she was waiting for a cue that this was some semblance of a joke. Something to hint to her that he was going to explain he was just pulling her leg and that really this was something entirely different. She knew it was déjà vu, pretending she wasn’t being reminded about how different she was. The rapid beat of her heart was slowing now, her professor’s soothing voice stabilizing her. She licked her lips, as if reminding herself to use them.

“And you think this person is me?” She asked, trying to hide the look of sheer disbelief from her face. “And that potentially, I could have a lot more powers?”

“You weren’t born with them, were you?” The one with the glasses - Christopher - chimed in, and Liadan looked in his direction. He seemed to be genuinely asking, leaning forward in his seat, hands clasped together in front of him, most of his upper body propped on the elbows he had against his knees. She furrowed her eyebrows, but remained silent: she didn’t think that warranted a response.

Professor Craven spoke again, “Are you familiar with the story of Pandora’s Box?”

Liadan squeezed her eyes tight, not ready for the revelation. She focused hard on the idea of silence, uncomfortable with the words “chosen one”, “deliverer”, and “salvation” all being followed by her name - all of which she was beginning to hear from those gathered. She began to feel the beginnings of the panic attack she had had a few weeks ago; her heartbeat kicked up and oxygen seemed to be in low supply, despite being surrounded by trees. Her palms gripped the edges of the bench she was on, finding comfort there. Vaguely, she hoped she wouldn’t get a splinter.

Quiet, peace, silence, serenity. She began rocking back and forth, repeating the words over and over in her mind until suddenly there wasn’t a sound. Liadan slowly opened her eyes, surprised, and saw that she was still in the clearing in the woods, Professor Craven and the mishmash of young people who had been staring at her. There was also, in her desire to block everyone out, now a cocoon of leaves, pinecones, and twigs creating a small barrier between her and the others.

Professor Craven’s voice infiltrated her thoughts, “See, you did it just now. You controlled what you could hear and what you couldn’t. Now you only need to figure out how to block out other telepaths invading your mind.”

Liadan realized his mouth wasn’t moving but instead curled in a smile; she could see it through all the twigs and branches, warm and kind like he had always been. It was like he had floated the words straight to her mind, and bizarrely, she felt reassured. Proof positive she wasn’t crazy had its comforts, she supposed. Feeling calmer, she said, “Yes…”

He didn’t react to the fact that she had created a wall between herself and anyone nearby, though she could just make out that Debi and Gina were staring wide eyed. Christopher kept pushing his glasses up his nose, leaning even more forward in fascination, and Aaron was frowning.

Abruptly, the barrier collapsed; leaves went everywhere. A silence ensued. Liadan broke it, the gears in her brain taking right back to where they had been. “The box that contains all evil, right?”

“Yes, my dear. That Pandora.” Professor Craven spoke out loud now, unperturbed. Liadan assumed that everyone else knew what was going on, she also assumed he was so unfazed because he had seen others react this way – at least, she hoped she wasn’t the only one who had reacted this way. “She was real. Her name was Anesidora. The details of how and when, and all that are very long and convoluted to get into here.” Prof. Craven still kept his eyes on the ground as he spoke, his hands still clasped behind his back. Liadan kept her eyes on him, occasionally glancing at the others but noticing they seemed to be more interested in her reactions. “The main thing you should know is that she opened up a jar, rather than a box, and it unleashed evil into the world. Much like the myth stipulates.” Prof. Craven continued. “In the simplest terms I can put it, we fight that evil. However, we can’t completely rid this world of it and there the One should rise up and stop it.” Here he stopped and he lifted his gaze to meet Liadan’s. She had a sinking feeling in her stomach that she didn’t want to know what was coming next; without thinking, she lifted a finger to her own chest. Professor Craven nodded. Liadan started laughing. A bizarre laugh that wasn’t happy. It was the, this-is-bullshit kind of laugh. No one laughed with her.

“So, to recap,” Liadan began slowly, clasping her hands together. “I have two powers, which means I’m the ‘Chosen One’ – Here she raised her fingers to do air quotes before clasping them again – “and you have one, which means you all are just do-gooders?”

“That about covers it.” Aaron looked at his phone, showing instead of saying how utterly bored he was with the entire conversation.

Liadan initially opened her mouth and then closed it, wanting to reply with a sarcastic “Fantastic”, but instead she replied, “But to cleanse the world of evil entirely? That all those wars, all these mass shootings, every single bad activity is going to cease? Is that even possible?” Liadan held her hands out palms up as if waiting for the answer to fall out of the sky into her hands and she looked around the clearing.

“It’s not so much evil, as a certain kind of evil.” Debi began, watching Liadan closely as if to read her reactions. “The unnatural, not-man-made kind.”

“Because,” Liadan paused, not quite grasping the reality of this situation. She wanted to laugh again. “There are levels.” Liadan’s eyes widened a little bit, and she wanted someone to pop out and tell her she was on a reality TV show getting pranked. She felt liked everyone gathered shared a look between them. Her sanity must have finally gone and she was in a disillusioned dream. “Again, if I’m following,” she continued. “You’re telling me that I’m supposed to rid the world of at least some kind evil?” She again looked around at those gathered, the laughter inside her beginning to fade out. She was really worried about what was going on and what these people might believe – that is, in case this wasn’t a dream. She could, after all, now read minds and move things without touching them and she had already witnessed others doing things she couldn’t explain; she didn’t have a witty rejoinder for that.

The others watched her. Professor Craven seemed unbothered. She resumed her hopes that everyone had this reaction when he gave them this speech. Maybe he read it in her mind before she even voiced it.

Finally, “We don’t control human emotions or the way they react to things. What you will help is the senseless, uncontrolled violence that you may have noticed has started to pick up. Miss Ryan, there is an evil that threatens our world. This evil force has been around since the dawn of time.” Professor Craven drew her attention back, his demeanor no different from when he was teaching a class about proper grammar usage in papers. “Christians know him as Satan. Since the beginning, someone has always been selected or most times, volunteered, to stop it. Some have been killed, others just never succeeded. Only one in history has ever kept the evil force at bay and only you can do this now.”

She rubbed at her temples. “Does this evil have a name?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No, Miss Ryan, this evil is Unnamed.”

“How long has it been around and it doesn’t have a name?” Part of her knew this wasn’t really an issue. A drop in an ocean. She was just trying to find some semblance of rationality right now and after being told that she had real powers to chase after something that at the moment was lacking a body…well, it was getting more and more ludicrous by the second.

When no one answered her question, her mouth dropped open, and she stood up. “This….this is all well and good, but…but I…” She stopped. She didn’t really know how she’d been planning on ending that sentence, she just knew she was extremely confused. “I have to go to work.” She finally said. “Oh, and I’m in a History class – violence hasn’t suddenly picked up, we’re just paying more attention to it.” She didn’t know why she felt the need to add that last bit, it just felt disingenuous to all of history to assume that just now in the 21st century would it suddenly cease because Liadan Ryan woke up one day and could brush her hair without touching the comb. At any rate, she was beginning to accept that this wasn’t a dream and it wasn’t going to go away just by ignoring it, but she wasn’t so sure she was ready to accept that she was any more special than anyone else. Though whether she believed what she was being told or not, she wasn’t sure she had a choice.

Professor Craven’s eyebrows went up, but all he did was nod. “One more thing before you go, Miss Ryan.” Liadan didn’t budge from where she was. “What was it that made you realize you had abilities?” Professor Craven asked, calmly watching her. It made her pause, caught off guard by the simplicity of the question.

“I made my paper stop,” she replied, hands down at her sides. “I was walking into school on my first day, and somebody knocked into me. My registration papers flew out of my hands and went everywhere.” She moved her arm up and down in a small circle, weakly demonstrating what happened. “I chased after them, the wind blowing them all over the place, and I thought to myself how wonderful it would be if they just stopped. And then, they did.” Liadan looked up at Professor Craven, not really knowing what to say after that. When the event had occurred she had rationalized it away. Maybe gum had stuck it, or it had reached the point where the wind wasn’t blowing as hard – something. She’d been in such a fluster from trying to make it to class and carry all of the books she discovered she probably wasn’t going to use that she hadn’t put much thought into it until later, when the voices started.

“Thank you,” her professor said. “Aaron will be happy to take you home. I understand that you are very tired.” On cue, Aaron rose and began walking the path back to the parking lot.

Before she disappeared into the woods, her professor called after her, “You should view this as a gift. It helps.”

Liadan didn’t take a moment to think about it. “Oh, I’ve settled on curse,” she yelled over her shoulder, trotting to again keep up with Aaron. “

We will speak again, Miss Ryan,” her professor’s words carried over.

She didn’t acknowledge his words, again feeling as if she were a lost child. This time, however, she really was.