The Unknown

Cage came too to the muffled sounds of people talking. He was on a firm yet cheaply made bed; that was; quite a bit more comfortable than the sleeping mat he usually ended up sleeping on.

“We found him all wounded and needing medical attention. Plus, we heard about that bombing on the lower side of the city and thought he might have something to do with it. I thought it was best to notify you before we do anything else.” The familiar voice of the middle-aged man from earlier seeped into his ears.

“You did the right thing.” A more distinct and gruffer, sounding voice followed. “I’ll take him to the precinct and ask about what he knows.”

There was an ominous tone in the sound of the visitor's voice, and Cage slowly sat up, trying to stay as quiet as possible. The bed slightly creaked with his movements, and he gingerly pushed himself up onto his feet. His body hurt like crazy, but his grandfather had always cautioned him about not trusting anyone; except the people in the secret order; of the Olympian Gods. He gritted his teeth and silently made his way toward the only window in the room. He had to get away before anyone came in, and that was not going to be easy, in his current condition.

Reaching the window after what seemed like forever, Cage took a quiet, shaky breath and prepared himself for the muscle strain that may come with opening the window. He was unsure what; he expected his body to feel, but it certainly was not the intense pain, stiff muscles, and strained lungs. Sweat beaded on his brow, and he rested his forehead on his arm for a moment as he should have been; prepared for this. He had been blown up, drowned, and then suffocated all in a short time. Of course, his body would feel stiff and disobedient.

Knowing time was short, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled before he strained his muscles with the task of opening the dirt-covered window. He slowly inched the window upward. Taking a brief break; every few inches to re-catch his breath and push down the pain it caused.

“So; where is the boy?” The man from the precinct asked the other one.

“Just down the hall in the spare bedroom; he is still out.” The farmer answered. “The room is this way.”

Cage heard; footsteps and knew; that they would be in the room soon and clenched his teeth, giving the window one final push upward. It seemed to have zapped him of his energy, and he had to reclaim his breath. The doorknob began to turn, and he knew that he had to go now or fall into the hands of the enemy. So, he tumbled clumsily out the window, groaning as he hit the ground below.

“Hey.” He heard the man shout as he stuck his head out of the window. Cage stumbled to his feet and dashed the trees that lined the field behind the house.

A whirlwind of thoughts and possible outcomes raced through his mind as his feet hit the solid ground, carrying him as fast as they could; toward escaping. Cage was unable; to think straight enough to know how fast he was going or if the guy was gaining on him. All he knew was that he needed to getaway.

If nothing else, he was a prime witness to the bombing and murders of his family. If the man was in the pocket of those who had done the job. He would most likely end up dead if he failed to getaway. He let the desperation fuel his steps until he could not go any longer without catching his breath.

He slowed down and leaned against a tree for a moment while he glanced behind him. He cursed under his breath when he noticed that a man in a suit was racing toward him. He assumed that it was the guy from the precinct and forced himself to continue running. He would not be able to keep up this pace for much longer. So, he started glancing around for other means of vanishing. At this point, slowing down to get a good notion; of his surroundings was out of the question, so he racked his brain to remember his training. His Grandfather was one of the fabled ninjas, and he had trained him since he was a child. Now he needed to tap into that training. It was his only hope.

(Stop thinking and just let your body do the work for you!) His grandfather’s voice; echoed in his mind, sliding to an abrupt halt. He closed his eyes, pressed his fist to his palm, and cleared his mind with a slow exhale. He felt the tension seep away, and his senses became more aware of the things around him. Cage's energy flowed, through the area, painting the scene of the trees and animals in his mind.

When he could see the forest clearly in his mind, he mentally visualized his training with his grandfather and pushed the threat he now faced out of his mind. He felt his body move and gave it full reign. Mentally seeing himself using; the bushes, and the trees like stairways, he was carried by the wind until he was high in the branches of a tree. Then he opened his eyes and looked around from his crouched position. Everything seemed to take on a bluish-green hue as if he was looking at it through the water. All fear fled, and a peaceful sense of serenity claimed him. Then he was able to think clearly. He had heard his grandfather speak of; this sort of thing, but he had never been able to reach it until now.

Cage silently watched the man pursuing him jog to a stop and look around. The guy was upset when he could not find out where he had gone. The guy cussed and tore off his jacket throwing it hard against the ground in his rage. Resting, his fist on his hip, he ran his other hand, through his hair. He; looked around once again, pulled out a cell phone, and called somebody.

Cage did not wait to find out who the man had called. Instead, he used this opportunity to race across the tree branch with the silence of a ghost cat. He smoothly cleared; the gap between the branch he was on and the branch of the neighboring tree without a single rustling of the leaves.

He had traveled the branches for quite a long time before the trees began to grow further apart and field took over the landscape. Landing on the ground, he slowly stood up, exhaling once again. His vision began to clear up some, but for some reason, it kept the bluish tint on everything he; looked; at. The pain that he had been experiencing seemed like a distant memory to him, and his body had become limber. He; could not imagine how, but he was grateful for it. He waited only a moment before he began his long trek toward the concrete that cut through the field. It had once been a road, but it was; cracked, and weeds were beginning to grow through it. In the distance, he could see the outline of the city and realized that the sun was hanging low in the sky. He must have been traveling for quite a while since it was already approaching the twilight hours.

His stomach growled, confirming the late hour, and he sighed. He was a boy on the run and being hungry was probably going to be a big part of his new existence; he might as well get used to it. Resigning himself to his new life, he continued his journey with a sense of hyper-awareness. He suddenly stopped when he heard a vehicle speeding on the road and his gaze shot in the direction of the sound.

The second a vehicle came into view, he dropped into a low crouch using the tall grass as cover. The beams of the headlights lit up the area, but he was confident that he was far enough away from the road. That he remained; outside the lit-up area.

He watched with narrow eyes as the vehicle drove by. He immediately noticed that it was the man in the suit driving it. There was no way he was a good cop. To be able to afford a high-priced vehicle, he had to be dirty. Cage was sure he had made the right choice and remained; perfectly steel until the guy had passed by his location. Then he let out the breath he did not realize that he had been holding.

He plopped down on his butt and rested his arms on his upraised knees. He was not sure he was ready for this kind of life, and the gods knew he did not want it. Running his hand through his hair, he laid his head on his other arm and closed his eyes. Exhaustion was returning to him. The dull ache in his muscles had gone unnoticeable until now. He felt overwhelmed and was not sure what to do at this point. He had never been on his own or had to fend for himself. How was he going to do it? His grandfather had pushed hard to prepare him for this, but he did not want to listen. He had wanted to be a normal kid with a normal; life, but that hope was long gone now.

“Why did I not listen?” He quietly asked himself. He felt distant and isolated, lost and confused. Not to mention, he still had not had time to properly, mourn his family. Sure, he cried some, but he refused to face the reality of it all. Now he had to if he had any hope of surviving. He would never get to be a normal kid now. He would always be on the run or fighting for survival in the streets.

He will always be wandering; where his next meal was going to come from, or if he could find shelter for a night. The only thing he could think of that would make all this struggle worth it was to find those responsible for taking everything from them and return the favor. Revenge was never a good thing, but what did he have to lose by making his enemy pay for all that they had done. His life, well, that was pretty much over anyway.

Making; his mind up; on the matter. He laid back in the grass and stared up at the darkening sky. The stars would be out soon and just for a moment, he could remind himself there was beauty in the world. Using; his arms as a pillow. He let his mind; wander back through his childhood, figuring that now was as good of a time as any to remember the lessons his grandfather had taught him. Once he had gotten his vengeance, he could mourn his family, but for now, he would hold onto the pain to accomplish what he, needed to do.

(Vengeance is not the answer. If you seek it, you will become the very thing; you seek to destroy…...) His mother’s voice echoed in his mind causing him to open his eyes. He sat up and ran his hands through his hair, wondering when he had fallen asleep. Instead of the sun setting, it was now rising, and he had missed seeing the stars.

“Dammit!” He growled, slamming his fist against the ground. He had intended on entering the city under the cloak of darkness. Getting to his feet, he looked around. Where had all the tall grass gone, and why were there not, any weeds in the road anymore? “Maybe I am still asleep. I am in one of those dreams that feel real.” He told himself, noticing several other things that were not the same.

Such as the field he was; in. It stretched out as far as the eye could see, and there were no trees. He glanced towards the city and noted that it seemed a lot bigger, or at least it; was above ground now. Where the hell was he? How did he get here? Was this even real? “Wake up, Cage!” He told himself, slapping his face to snap himself out of it. “Ow!” He hissed when the pain of his strike felt very real. He had always heard that you would not feel extreme pain in dreams because it usually forced your brain to wake you up.

“What the hell?” He breathed as panic began to churn in his stomach. The supernatural beings that he; was told about; had they found him? Did they send him into another world or time? If, so, what did he have to face in this reality? How was he going to face it? How would he get home? The questions were like rapid-fire in his mind.

(Calm your mind and emotions, and you will discover what you must do.) His Grandpa's voice sounded in his ears. He screamed in frustration and then took a deep breath. He had never listened; to any of his family sayings; when they were alive.; so why were they haunting him now that they were dead. He was already beginning to realize that they might have known what they were talking about in the first place.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly exhaled, forcing himself; to quiet his nerves and mind. He needed to come up with a solution. Exhaling for the last time, he looked towards the city again and turned toward it. He would have to venture into the unknown to find a solution. He needed more details of what he was facing, and the only way to get that was to enter the space that rattled his nerves. To do that, he was going to need; to suppress any of his emotions that centered around fear. That was going to be the real task he would have to face.

Cage walked for most of the day, and his feet were starting to show signs of blistering, but he pushed it from his mind. The sun was high overhead and beginning its downward shift, and his stomach painfully reminded him that he had not; eaten for a while. Enduring it all, he entered the busy streets of this reality of New Orleans. He looked around as he continued down the cobbled streets. Vendors of all kinds were calling out about their foods and materials. Music was playing around every corner. His version of this city was never so lively, and there was no longer a question in his mind that he had found himself in another reality somehow.

He had seen ships sitting out on the river, and the only time he had asked about it. The person had informed him that they were cruise ships that would return to port in a week or two, depending on the cruise they were conducting.

He had thanked the individual for the information but kept the accumulating questions to himself. He probably stood out already, and more questions would only increase the risk of detection. In; his reality. Cruises were a thing of the past. In this reality, they were very prominent.

He was almost certain that; he had landed himself somewhere in the past, yet their clothes did not seem like the clothing described in the history books. That is where his doubt came in. Those doubts brought him to the version of this being a different existence altogether. He needed to find out what the date was. Then he could be sure. Once he had the date, and it proved a past date, he would at least have an idea of what he; was going to have to face, but if it was; the same date, then things would be different. He would have to learn how to survive in this environment.

“Are you homeless?” A Cajun-looking female asked from behind him, causing him to spin around, startled. He looked at her for a moment, searching his mind for the appropriate answer deciding that some of the truth was better than a complete lie.

“I wasn’t, until the other night. My house burned down with everything in it.” He blankly answered, using fire as the cause of his appearance over being bombed and surviving.

“Here, you look like you are the same size as my brother, and I just got back from a cruise and thought I would buy him some things as a gift. But, you can have them. You look like you need them more than him anyway.” She sweetly said, handing a yellow plastic bag that contained a shirt, pants, socks, a coat, and some shoes. However, there was no underwear, and he blushed slightly, deciding that he wouldn’t say anything about that.

“Thank you. Can I have your name so that I might return the favor in the future?” He politely asked, accepting the bag she held out to him.

“Don’t worry about it, my brother is a jerk anyway, and I don’t know why I bought him gifts.” She joked a little before turning and walking away. He gave a quiet laugh and imprinted her image in his mind, deciding that he would return the favor in the future if she ever needed it. He glanced at the bag and then back toward her as she jogged to rejoin the group she came with and seemed to be friends as they continued on their way.

“Huh…” he sounded, giving his eyebrows a bounce. This; was strange indeed. From his experience, the popular girls; were the worse sort, but this girl seemed well-loved by her friends. She was also quite a bit kinder to others than any had been in his reality. “I, bet she has a dark side too.” He mumbled and turned away from the group to find somewhere that he could change. Although, he would remember how she looked and how she had helped him. His thoughts about her ended there, and he made his way into a narrow ally, deciding that he would change in the shadows it provided.

Once, he was dressed in the current style; of clothing and had shoes on his feet. He put his hands in the pockets of his coat. Then continued walking the streets to gain his bearing. Around mid-afternoon, he found himself wandering the streets of the older portions of the French quarters, where the activity was not as busy. His mind streamed; with directions, and the images of his day ran through his mind. He casually tuned out everything else and ended up lost again. It was getting dark before he came out of his thoughts and stopped under a streetlamp to look around. He was trying to see anything that would hint at a way back to the areas he knew.

Cage leaned back against the post of the streetlamp. He closed his eyes and silently cursed when he could find nothing. He had allowed his thoughts to distract him to the point, of missing landmarks. Bouncing the back of his head off the lamp post, he tried to think of what to do now. He opened his eyes on the verge of deciding to sleep right there under the light. To find that his sight lined up perfectly with a narrow passage between two very-old houses.

He scanned the appearance; of each house to get a better idea of what he was now facing. The dark gray paint on the outside of the worn-down wood was peeling. But, for the most part, they seemed to be in good repair. As far as he could tell, they were at least two stories high, maybe three depending on the distance of the ceiling from the floors. They appeared to have been extravagant in their prime. Most likely belonging to people of power. The old, iron fence that surrounded the houses; was slightly rusted. Their design was unique in comparison to what he had seen so far. There was a faint, orange; glow of light peeking out of the shutters and white smoke coming out of a few chimneys.

He briefly wondered if these houses still ran on the ancient ways of fireplaces and candles for heat and light. He would have loved; to see them on the inside, but tonight he only wanted to make sure that the residents did not see him.

He did not move as a shadow paced in front of a window in the house on the right. The shadow was one of a man reading a book and pacing in his study. He seemed engrossed in whatever he was reading. He turned to the left, noting that no one was near the windows. Listening to the silence of the night, he could pinpoint the faint sound of music drifting from the lower regions of that house. However, it looked like he could get into the passageway to scale the walls of one of the buildings to get a higher vantage point.

Giving; a firm nod, he pushed off the light-post and shot across the darkened road into the alley. He ducked low; to use the bushes for additional coverage. He never thought he would have to be a ninja before now and almost laughed about his current situation. Who would have thought that his training would be necessary?

Cage crouched down behind one of the bushes that lined the sides of the houses and quietly exhaled as he scanned the small area to find which one would be the easiest to scale. The one he was currently against had a balcony covered in; vines of ivy, and he was sure that he could; make the climb, but it would be hard. The other one had windows with outward trimming that were close together. Again, it might prove to be difficult having to zigzag between them. He sat on his knee and contemplated the whole situation for a moment longer. He had just decided to go up the one he was closest to when the headlights; of a vehicle pulled up to the house.

He paused his actions and quickly ducked back into the cover of the bushes to watch the strange vehicle. It had no tires and seemed to run through the air about two feet above the road. He could see the energy compressed between the road and the vehicle and, his mind, went blank. Was he in the future? Or was he in another reality; he could, confidently, say that he was not in the; past. That explained the strange style of clothing as well. Like the material, the clothes; were made from, and of course, the subtle ways they were put together.

“I never want to see you again!” A young woman screamed at the driver as she slammed down the door that had opened upward. The driver exited the car and came around to her side.

“You can not be serious. What reason do you have?” He demanded of her. His answer was a slap to the face and a furious look on hers.

“Go find that trollop you were ogling.” She growled and spun around on her heels, flipping her hair over her shoulders as she stormed up the porch to the house he was across; from the flinched when the door slammed shut, then glanced at the guy who stood there stunned with his hand on his red cheek.

“Well, that happened.” Cage whispered and looked away from the poor guy as he climbed back into his car and left. Deciding that he should probably wait until things cooled down, Cage slid down the building wall and sat on the ground behind the bush. It would be foolish to attempt what he was about to do now. Once he started climbing, he would not be able to hide. Not to mention most people who had just been through a confrontation like that would repeatedly look out their windows to see if the other party involved came back or not.

He resigned himself to sitting there, dozing off for a little bit. He woke up just before dawn and was about to attempt his task once again. This time he was delayed by two black vehicles. They were similar to the one he had seen earlier came squealing around the corner of the road and started shooting up the two houses as they sped by them. Cage dove toward the ground covering his head as bullets ricocheted off the building and others whistling through the air in the narrow ally where he was. Fallowing them was the sirens of police officers and more gunfire coming from within the houses.

Cursing, he scrambled to his feet and shot toward the back of the houses, staying low to avoid getting shot. He dove around the corner; of the house, he was next to just as a bullet splintered the wood where his head would have been if he was any slower. He hit the dirt with; an oomph and scrambled to press his back against the house, shielding his head. What the hell kind of war zone did he end up finding? His heart was racing from the adrenaline, and the gunfire was deafening. He was having trouble collecting a single thought as he fought down the fear and panic that rose within him.

It seemed like forever before somebody shouted about being out of ammo there was the rubbing of engines and the whistle of speeds followed by a loud crash from vehicles colliding. The streets: were suddenly lit up with flashing lights and men in uniform aiming weapons at the drive-by shooters, shouting at them to surrender. Laying his hand on his rapidly beating heart, Cage took several deep breaths to calm himself as he tried to clear his thoughts. It felt like; violence was following him everywhere he went these days.

Deciding that scaling these houses was too risky, he ran toward the darkened trees behind the buildings and hid behind the largest one he could find. He was going to have to rethink his plan of action. For now, he left the chaos deciding he would let it die down and then attempt to find his way back to the busier parts of the city. He slid down the tree trunk. Pulling his knees up to his chest, he rested his head on them. He would listen to everything around him and remain alert while resting his eyes. At least the rising fear had replaced his hunger.

“Hey, what are you doing here, boy?” A gruff voice asked as somebody kicked his foot, waking him up. Cage lifted his head to find himself staring down the barrel, of a gun.

“Um….” He gulped, turning his wide eyes up towards the wielder of the gun. I was a rough-looking guy that you would most generally find in the bayou. The man was about thirty years of age and sported many scars, which added; to his intimidation factor. He could not think of a reasonable excuse for being on somebody's land without permission.

“Answer me!” The man growled cocking the gun and laying his finger on the trigger. At that point, instinct kicked took over, and Cage pushed off the ground knocking the barrel of the gun up before, shoulder checking the guy and shooting off into the trees once again. Was everyone in this reality crazy? Who the hell threatens a sleeping childlike that without cause?

The guy must have regained his balance because he got a shot off that hit the tree Cage currently darted behind. Then he heard cursing and angry shouts about never coming back. He kept running until he ended up on the banks of some swampy waters. He slid to an abrupt halt and looked around for any signs of Alligators or Crocodiles in the murky liquid. He was not; sure, which one was in this part of; this realities world. He did remember after the devastating hurricane of his, reality, both species; lived in the murky waters of the bayou. Then again, neither might exist, and there might be something more dangerous in these waters. He had no way of knowing at this point.

Thinking, the man might be tracking him. He shot off to the left along the dryer grounds. At the edge of the water until he could circle toward where he believed the city was. It was all a guessing game and luck at this point. It was high noon when he emerged from the trees, he, returned to the edge of the city; at a different location than he had exited. Hoping his luck would change. He straightened out his clothes and pulled his coat tighter around him by putting his hands in the pocket. Then he casually headed into town, keeping his head low.

He passed through a particularly shady-looking section of the city when there was a change in the atmosphere. He sensed the rippling energy open, some sort of rift. He stopped and looked in that direction to see the blue haze of a gateway opening to allow someone to pass through.

“We tracked the boy to this reality.” An Asian guy said as he looked at some sort of machine that he was holding. The moment he began to materialize in this reality, Cage silently ducked out of sight before he was seen.

“How did he travel here? We are the only ones that possess this sort of tech?” A second guy questioned in a bad mood.

“We don’t know.” The first guy answered and started moving the machine around as if trying to locate something. “But he was here not too long ago. The machine is picking up on his energy waves.”

“How long ago?” The other guy asked, jerking the machine out of the first guy's hands.

“There is no telling.” The first responded by jerking the machine back into his possession.

“ We need him,” the other grumbled.

Cage did not wait; to hear more. Instead, he silently shot away from them and into a different alleyway repeating the moves a few more times before he was confident that he had lost them. He was not sure how they; were tracking his energy, but he now knew that he was in a whole new reality of Earth, and things were, going to become even more strange the longer he was here.

Right now, none of that mattered, he wouldn’t be able to come up with a plan of action on an empty stomach. The dusk brought with it the starting of New Orleans nightlife and crowds of people that worked to his advantage. Clubs began to grow active and music drifted out into the streets, blending with the street musicians, and some vendors remained open. He adapted by using the crowd to close the distance between him and a vendor that sold alligator jerky. Casually twisting as if he was avoiding a collision of shoulders with someone in the thick stream of people, he prepared to swipe a bag of succulent meat. The Vendor got distracted at just the right moment by a female flashing him for some beads and he smoothly pulled the bag nearest to the edge into his pocket.

Making sure that he remained relaxed, he continued forward for a short time before, quickly doubling back to disappear into the center of another large group of people. He spotted the vendor looking for the missing bag out of the corner of his eye but pretended to be laughing at a joke that somebody told. Nobody seemed to notice that he was not one of them and they turned a corner toward a club. He veered off and darted into an alleyway. Going in just far enough to remain unnoticed he leaned against a brick building near a dumpster and tore open the bag of meat to devour its contents.

He finished his meal rather quickly and felt comfortable enough to start running strategies through his mind. He was working on the fifth scenario when a girl around his age stepped out on the balcony of a second-story apartment across the alleyway.

“Psst. Come here boy.” she purred. There was an aura of mystery around her, and he narrowed his eyes slightly as he pushed off the wall and took a step in her direction. “We have been waiting for you.” She informed him motioning for him to continue toward her as she gracefully went back inside. He hesitated slightly before, finally deciding that if she was telling the truth then he might have just found the key to his problems.

Glancing around to make sure that nobody was looking he shot toward the wall and run up it, twisting as he pushed off it to catch the bottom of the painted white balcony to her home. Rotating again so that he was facing the building he used his upper body strength to pull himself up enough to achieve a secure foothold on the wood. After that, the climb was quick and simple. He leaped over the balcony and leaned slightly to see inside, but all he could see was candles littered the room, casting a reddish-orange glow throughout it.

She stepped back into his line of sight and used a hooked finger to motion him in. He glanced around thinking about turning around and leaving. Ultimately, he couldn’t do that. He had to take the risk if he was going to achieve anything in this cursed reality. Maybe she could give him insight on how he could get home. If he turned away now, he may never know. Swallowing his doubts he forced his feet to move, and he entered the dimly lit room.