Archive Mutants & Masterminds: The Magisterium - [Fiction] Flashlight

[Fahrenheit]

(Time and date indeterminable - sometime in the not so distant past.)

Days turn blue to gray…

Sascha stared out of the tiny window in her cell. Clouds gathered and darkened the sky and she felt today was a special day.

She turned around and her gaze fell on the high-security door just across the room… or cube, as she referred to it. For the last 4 years it was the only space she knew besides the “walks” she had to take in the asylums park. It was a beautiful park for sure if it wasn’t for her being literally imprisoned there.

Her daily dosage of sedatives and medications had been already administered to her but somehow the full effect didn’t deploy today. Instead she felt her just underneath her skin… waiting patiently to be unleashed. It was a long time she felt her… it was a long time she heard from her… it was a long time she felt the urge…

The red light in her cell turned on and almost as if it was a automated process she turned around to face the wall and put her hands on her back. Then she slowly slided into a crouching position with her knees balancing her against the wall. As her head brow settled on the cold wall she spoke out monotonously “Ready when you are, Dr. Silberman”

The door opened with a heavy clacking sound and in stepped two guards and an elderly man in a Doctors apron. He nodded to the guards who proceeded to lay Sascha in chains, making sure that both her hands and her feet didn’t give much space but for little steps to walk. One guard behind her and one guard to her left she started to walk outside of her cell and turned to the left down the hallway which led to the asylums Park.

“No, Ms. Kindler… the other way, please” objected Dr. Silberman and took the lead down the hallway to the right which led to a simple white door – Dr. Silbermans office. Sascha wasn’t sure if yet another year had passed and she was due for her psychological exam but she turned nonetheless and followed Dr. Silberman.

“Take your seat, Ms. Kindler.”, said Dr. Silberman, pronouncing the last syllable as he sat down himself. “You know the procedure, so lets get this started.” He took a small sip of his glass of water and opened a file folder containing Saschas medical history.

“Do you still believe that there is an entity in your subconscious mind, waiting to be released in a blaze of fire?” his voice sounding mockingly.

Sascha knew the procedure all too well and she knew no matter what she said, she could never convince Dr. Silberman of her mental stability. Today it didn’t seem to matter, though. She knew the truth, she felt it.

Fade out...

Fade in...

The constant dripping of water on cold stone echoed through Sascha’s mind. Her body ached all over, even breathing felt painful and exhaustive. The cell was dimly lit and she could hear the squeals of rats scurrying around. She felt an odd itching pain on the back of her head and reached with her hand to feel for it and realised that she was shaved bald.

She tried to stand up but the pain in her legs was unbearable. Gritting her teeth she managed to pull herself across the floor to her bed tears running down her cheeks both of frustration and pain. Obviously she was thrown forcefully into the cell and not taken care for where she landed. Bloodstains gave the floor an eerie sense of doom… as if she would never make it out of there alive.

Almost screaming from the pain she managed to drag herself on the bed before she lost consciousness and oblivion darkened her mind.

Visions of flame and fire coursed through her subconscious mind. Fire was virtually everywhere – in space, on the streets and in the darkest corners of her soul. Encircled by lashing flames Sascha tried not to be burned and to her surprise the fire didn’t harm her. The dancing flames slowly formed a face vaguely resembling hers and spoke just one word. "Burn"

Fade out...

Fade in...

Maybe she was getting crazy. Sascha remained on the floor and looked at the ceiling. She barely felt the cold stone floor or the bruises of her encounter with the ‘caretaker’. Though her body ached all over she couldn’t remove the smile on her face. Her breaths got interrupted by uncontrollable fits of chuckling and laughter. It felt like an out-of-body experience. The same thing people who lay in a coma described. Sascha registered the world around her through an odd haze of dreamy fog. Her movement strangely delayed from the decision to the actually motion.

From the distance she could hear the alarm and the clacking of boots. Something has happened… something that had spared her from getting raped. She wondered if all this was making sense. If the dream she had was connected to this. Her mouth was dry and she bled from her nose but she didn’t cared. The rhythmic sounds around her carried her thoughts away and she remembered a song she heard years ago.

She's not a girl who misses much.

Do do do do do do, oh yeah

She's well acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand

Like a lizard on a window pane.

The man in the crowd with the multicolored mirrors

On his hobnail boots

Lying with his eyes while his hands are busy

Working overtime

A soap impression of his wife which he ate

And donated to the National Trust.

I need a fix 'cause I'm going down.

Down to the bits that I left uptown.

I need a fix 'cause I'm going down.

Mother Superior jump the gun

Mother Superior jump the gun

Mother Superior jump the gun

Mother Superior jump the gun.

Happiness is a warm gun

(bang, bang, shoot shoot)

Happiness is a warm gun

When I hold you in my arms

And I feel my finger on your trigger

I know nobody can do me no harm

Because happiness is a warm gun.

Yes it is

Humming its melody she smiled to herself "Yes it is..."

(OOC:Lyrics taken from Tori Amos - Happiness is a warm gun)

Fade out...

Fade in...

The disjointed feeling did not go away. She didn't know how long she sat there, humming and interrupting herself with laughter, but it felt like a cleansing eternity. She rocked back and forth, and hugged her secrets tight.

The vision came to her again. Not suddenly, like usual...it just sort of drifted up. Her other self, wreathed in fire, walked toward her. The air pressure in the room seemed to change when Sascha saw her. The finger pointed. The woman spoke as always, said the only thing Sascha had ever heard her say.

"Burn!"

Sascha thought about it for a moment. While she thought, the door clanged and began to open. Her attacker had returned.

*****

The orderly grinned at the sight of the new girl cowering in the corner. She might have thought he forgot, or was scared. He didn't get scared. Once he saw that the staff was watching the news, all about some satellite, he knew for sure no one would come down here anytime soon.

His lust had cooled, but he felt himself getting hot all over again. He stepped forward.

"Where were we?"

She just looked up at him, a blank expression on her face. He frowned a bit. That wasn't right. She was gonna react to him. He took off his belt, and wrapped the end around his fist. The buckle dangled. He moved closer to her.

*****

Permission, she decided. That is what her other was giving her. Relief flooded her body, and she saw the man standing over her. Over his shoulder, her other self whispered to her.

"burn."

Sascha grinned. She spoke aloud.

"Okay."

Fade out...

Fade in...

Again she felt droplets of water on her skin. It felt alien and her skin didn’t get wet. Instead the droplets which were heralding the rain they’ve been birthed from evaporated the moment they touched her. Reaching for her head images of an inferno and the bright light of the sun flashed through her mind. Sascha tried to focus on her surroundings but only managed to smell something akin to tar.

The images kept disorienting her, as if she was assaulted by flashlights. Eachtime an image burnt into her eyes, the caretaker’s face distorted in agony, melting metal bars and strangely deformed plastic tables. The images seemed to come directly out of a Salvador Dali painting. Sascha didn’t know how she came to her feet and she stumbled around trying to reach out for something to hold on to when she suddenly stopped sobered up by surprise… or was it shock? She stared at her hands which were a crimson red but the color was slowly fading away until it resembled her normal rather pale complexion. Looking around she had difficulties to process what she saw… a huge crater of molten concrete – and she was standing right in the middle of it.

“Oh my god…”, the images flashed again through her mind and as if that wasn’t frightening enough she started to hear voices or screams to be more precise, deathscreams. “It was…”, she couldn’t finish the sentence but the truth dawned on her. She relinquished to the voice in her head and what she saw now was the consequence of it… of losing control. Terrified by the damage she had caused Sascha started to run unaware that her clothes had been burned off her body, too.

Fade out...

Fade in...

Falkenberg? FALKENBERG?!? They’ve actually sent her to the “Karl Bonhoeffer Klinikum” or “Bonnies Ranch” for those who knew what transpired within once you got transferred to it. Sascha felt a strange satisfaction as she looked back at the devastation. She knew she must’ve killed dozens of people – IF it was her doing - but she didn’t feel any remorse.

A car passed by and honked at her and she heard a male voice yelling at her as one of the passengers obviously saw her nakedness. She wasn’t sure if she really understood what he said and decided to don’t bother about it. The ground felt warm and malleable. The asphalt must’ve melted a bit from the intense heat behind her. Knowing that she would be in great trouble if someone found her near the Asylum she ran towards Falkenberg keeping a lookout for any buildings on the road.

Sascha ran like she never ran before. She felt her legs cramping and the pain almost paralysed her but she managed to stay on her feet – then she ran some more. In the distance she could make out a small building and she immediately headed towards it. Her legs were killing her and her lungs almost rattled from the exertion yet instead of collapsing from the strain her body kept her going providing her with enough endorphins and adrenaline.

As she got closer she recognised the building – it was a rest stop, a bit off the road and there were two cars and a truck parked just behind it. Through the windows she could see people sitting at tables and having their coffee or a small snack before they went on with their trip. Deciding against going into the building and causing some major uproar she walked around the building and approached it from the parking lots hiding at the truck and waiting for its driver to come back.

Fade out...

Fade in...

While she was waiting, she heard the sound of a helicoptor. Mentally she subtracted the sound, until she felt the wind whipping her bare skin. The copter landed in the field to the south of the rest stop, at the edge of the parking area. As Sascha watched, two women jumped out of the copter and approached her. One carried a bundle under her arm

"Ms. Kindler?" The one without the bundle shouted above the noise of the helicopter.

Sascha was too dumbfounded to do anything but nod. The woman with the bundle unfurled it to reveal a tee shirt, jeans, and sandals. She gave them to Sascha, who quickly pulled on the clothing. She looked around. People at the rest stop were starting to come towards the copter.

"We want to take you away from here!" the first woman shouted, "Some place safe!" Her German was heavily accented.

"Please," the second one yelled, "won't you come with us? We can help answer your questions!" Her German was similarly flawed.

Fade out...

Dr. Silberman’s office

The elderly man shook his head and closed the file. He was dealing with her since the early 90s and she had managed to escape again and again. Each time the DEHA managed to recapture her before more damage was done.

And each time he had to explain he had things under control – that it was part of her therapy and he had to revaluate her dosage of Kytone.

The latter was getting exceedingly difficult. Sascha responded less and less predictable under the influence of Kytone. While it still had the desired effect and Dr. Silberman could exclude a building resistance to the drug Sascha’s behaviour certainly... adapted.

Dr. Silberman added another report to her file and started to speak.

“Sascha is showing an unusual reaction to the general treatment. While we managed to condition her and get her to do what we want I’m still not certain if we can move on to the next stage and take advantage of her more destructive abilities under controlled conditions. The risks are still too high.”, there was a short sigh followed by this statement.

“If I could only find a way to reach to her core personality. Creating Sascha took us roughly one year until we got a stage to work with but progress has been... stagnating ever since. There are days I feel like we’re making good progress and then she suddenly slips away. Her disorientation increases and putting more pressure on her makes my work near impossible. Maybe my assumptions were wrong but I’ve never encounter anyone like her before. Her adaptability is... amazing. If I could get her under full control she’d be an invaluable asset for the Department.”

Finish recording.