Mind Games - 1. Chapter 1

Mind Games by Ieshwar

“How was your date last night?” Sharon said as she took a seat next to Brandon.

“Disastrous!” he sighed dejectedly, “The guy was using me as a guinea-pig in an experiment. Apparently, he wasn’t sure if he was gay and wanted to try something. I didn’t need to know that on my first date. I don’t think I’ll be able to date properly Sharon.”

“It’s going to be okay,” she said sympathetically.

“You said that last time too. Sometimes, I feel that being able to enter someone’s mind can be such a curse, you know. Can you believe it? On every date I go on, I sense all the things the guy is trying to hide. They try so hard at hiding those things that they keep thinking about them and that just makes it easier for me to pick up. It sucks. Yesterday, I put up the maximum barrier that I can so as to cut off all the information yet it happened again!” Brandon said, feeling a bit of anger creeping in, “Can’t I even think that this guy is okay for at least one night?”

“I understand what you’re going through. I went through it too. But there’re guys out there who are good at concealing their thoughts. If both parties try, there can be some sort of privacy; like between me and Bill. He's been following that yoga thing since we started dating. And as long as I keep myself out of his mind, it works. And if you’re so worried, why don’t you date someone from here?”

“These jackasses? No thanks,” Brandon said sarcastically, “Speaking of jackasses, that reminds me of one. Our break is almost over and if we’re a minute late, Kendall is going to jump on our necks. Let’s go.”

Brandon and Sharon stepped into the pink booth, which teleported them from the canteen to the main building where all the offices were found. Brandon could see many people looking at them and one needn’t be a telepath to notice the awe and fear in their eyes. Members of the Telepath Police Force (TPF) had this effect. They were, after all, very powerful and had a lot of influence in the government.

Fifty-five years ago, the TPF was founded. It was considered as the most important turning point in modern history. It changed the face of security forces completely. These Telepath Police were born mutants who could easily detect any secret thoughts. The cause of this mutation was unknown, but there was no such thing as a secret to them. Investigations no longer required the long research and the hunt for evidence and proof. Cases in courts were settled much quicker, as the real culprit as well as the circumstances of the crime weren’t hard to find. TPF soon spread from a few clumps of individuals to a network of very capable security officers and then to the judicial system and eventually the parliament itself.

“Mr. Ullman,” a deep voice said.

Brandon turned around and met a pair of the most beautiful gray eyes he had ever seen. Gray eyes had become very rare these days and these particular ones reminded him of gray cloud… just before a storm. With a small tinge of sadness. And as if on cue, a fringe of black hair came in front, veiling one of those mesmerizing eyes.

“Hem hem!”

The little cough shook Brandon out of his reverie. Slightly embarrassed, Brandon looked properly and saw that the eyes belonged to a young man who was grinning rather cockily.

“You wanted something?” Brandon asked with as much dignity as he could.

“Hello, I’m Mr. Williams. I need to talk about the security of my museum. The receptionist told me to come here,” he said in that same deep voice.

“Okay, come in,” Brandon opened the door and entered his office, followed by the gray-eyed man, “have a seat, please.”

The man seemed to be in his early twenties, perhaps the same age as he was: twenty-two. Brandon couldn’t remember having seen someone so handsome for a very long time. He could have sworn that the man came out of his most intimate fantasies. Those mysterious eyes, silky black hair that covered half his face, that small upturn at the end of his mouth, those pink lips, which were moving…

“Mr. Ullman?” he said, shaking Brandon out of his reverie for the second time.

“I’m sorry. I was lost… somewhere,” he excused himself.

“I was telling you that next month, the Museum is planning to exhibit a few artifacts from Egypt. We need approximately a dozen TPF security officers,” he said.

“A dozen?” Brandon asked quite taken aback, “That’s quite a lot.”

“Well, we’re having the sarcophagus of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamen himself. In fact, we’re having ten artifacts which sum to a total of about four million dollars. That’s quite a lot too,” he said indifferently.

“Okay, I’ll talk to Ryan about your case. We’ll require having exact details of the artifacts, the date and other details,” Brandon said with his ‘official’ tone, “A letter from the Mayor will be highly useful. And that’s it. If everything goes okay, we’ll be able to provide you with up to a dozen TPF security officers.”

“Thanks,” he said, standing and shaking Brandon’s hand, “its Brandon. Right?” Brandon nodded. “I’m Seiran. Well, are you free tonight? I wanted to try that new Italian restaurant.”

-*-*-*-

“Am I really that beautiful?” the same deep voice said.

“Sorry. What did you say?” Brandon said as he saw those lips moving.

“You have been staring at me for last fifteen minutes. You haven’t even touched your food,” Seiran said with his signature cocky smile, “I know I’m good-looking but not that good-looking.”

Brandon felt his cheeks heat up and as he tried to change the topic, he asked the question which he had been trying to ask, “How do you block your thoughts? I never sense your thoughts.”

For a moment, Seiran looked surprised but soon, a smile appeared, “I thought you’d never have enough courage to ask me this so directly. I’m impressed. You must know Mr. Gregorovitch, the famous yoga master? Well, he’s my grandfather. Since I was a small child, around five or so, he taught me to meditate and helped me control my thoughts. I might not be a mind-reader like you guys, but I do know how to arrange and block my thoughts.”

“Got something to hide from us?” Brandon grinned.

“Nope. Don’t want to disturb you guys with my genius ideas. You’ll be confused,” he laughed.

They chatted; Brandon shared a little of himself, without going into great details. He told Seiran about his family, his hobbies and his pet peeves. Seiran was very interested in ancient pieces and artifacts. It was amazing how he made boring stuff like history seem so fascinating. Apparently, he also liked dancing.

“Would you like to dance with me?” he asked.

Brandon couldn’t refuse and he was glad he didn’t. Seiran was such an amazing dancer. His steps were perfect and damn well coordinated with the music. And he was so much more beautiful up close. There was not even a tiny blemish on his skin. His hair looked so silky and irresistible. And those eyes, twenty-two years of existence yet Brandon couldn’t find any words to do justice to their beauty, mystery and magnetism.

-*-*-*-*-

“Do you know why Kendall called us here?” Brandon asked as he took his seat next to Sharon. Drake was already present, engrossed in his report.

“Nope, he just called us all urgently,” she whispered.

“Okay,” she said after minutes of silence, “out with it. Tell me what happened.”

“What happened?” Brandon said innocently as he tried to hide his grin.

“You've been grinning in Kendall’s office, Brandon,” she said as if he had just admitted his belief in Santa Claus, “Either you’re demented or you got laid finally after months!”

“Shut up!” Proving her right, he grinned embarrassedly.

“Agents,” a deep voice barked as the man in his late forties entered his office, “this is an utter confidential and secret meeting. I demand that whatever is discussed here shall not leave this office! Understood?”

Their attention drawn to the uncharacteristic demeanor of their boss, the three agents were surprised, as Kendall was renowned for his resilience and cool temperament. He had never before appeared so disturbed, so they immediately knew that what he was about to tell them was serious

“Agents, the School of Gifted has been attacked,” the man said followed by signs of shock and horror on the face of the other three.

“But how…” Brandon spoke for all of them. He couldn’t believe it. It was impossible. There must have been some kind of problem with the information. The School of Gifted was the institution where the potential Telepaths and future TPF were trained and educated. Brandon had studied there for three years. The place was kept top-secret. No one knew where it was located, not even the teachers, the students or the staff. They were brought there psychically blindfolded and everything was kept secret from them. Only Unspeakables were allowed to know the location but then, these guys couldn’t say or convey any information.

“I have just been to the site;” Kendall continued gravely, “Almost everyone is dead. Students, teachers, guards… I believe that a few managed to flee but I don’t know what happened to them.”

“But who…” Sharon asked the question which had been in Brandon’s mind too.

“We don’t know!” Sector Commander Kendall said, obviously angry, “We don’t know anything. There is some indication that it’s the work of the Nova Roma gang. But I don’t think so.”

Over the last five decades, there had grown a lot of resistance to the ascent of the TPF. The TPF also earned itself lots of unofficial names too, sometimes out of awe and sometimes out of hatred. They had been called ‘know-it-alls’, ‘psionic knights’ or even ‘mind-rapists’. But the latest one that Brandon heard was ‘voyeur’, relating TPF’s ability to sneak into people’s minds and look at their most intimate memories.

They, the Nova Roma, were the ones who gave TPF the title of ‘voyeur’. They were the closest competition to the TPF, but they had all been captured. They used to tell people about TPF being too ‘interfering’, branding them as 'Government sponsored voyeurs’. Brandon had thought that the gang was finished…

Sector Commander Kendall spoke of a few theories that could explain this happening but they all were just speculations. This event was going to be kept secret so as not to create a real pandemonium in the country.

“I still can’t believe it,” Sharon said in low voice as they came out of the room, “And I don’t think it’s the Nova Roma group, as I was in the unit that cleared that group. I know we got the last of them. I’m sure of that. This doesn’t say anything good, Brandon. Something’s not right here.”

“Then, how do you explain this?” Brandon asked as he entered her office.

“Leak,” she said seriously, as she gazed into his eyes, “Someone’s getting the information. We are being spied upon. Don’t worry, my office has my personal wards which no one can breach.”

“Even we don’t know the location of the school…”

“We know about Unspeakables. Only senior officers know about this group,” she said, “they must have been getting access of our personal data or investigations… I don’t know what else it could be.”

“Are you suspicious of someone?” Brandon asked as he watched her pace.

“Yeah,” she said as she stopped and looked at him, “Seiran! Listen to me, Brandon. This is not the time to go on emotions. Don’t you see it? You meet him and now we were attacked.”

“Sharon…” Brandon said.

“Look, I’m not sure but I think you’ll have to break into his mind,” she said, so quietly that Brandon barely heard her.

“Sharon! That’s the golden rule,” he gasped, “We’re not allowed to break into the mind of others. It’s…”

“Urgent!” she hissed quickly, “Look, please do it! I’m going to do it too with Bill, though I hate to do this. We have to do this. Someone close to the top officers is leaking the information to the wrong person. And we need to find who it is.”

-*-*-*-

Thoughts wrestled in Brandon’s mind as he tried to decide what to do. He didn’t want to break into Seiran’s mind. But if Sharon was right…

He looked at Seiran’s figure next to him as he was busy watching the movie. He didn’t want to do this but he knew he had to. He would ask for forgiveness later. He just hoped that Seiran understood.

He closed his eyes and psychically detached himself to enter Seiran’s mind. But something was wrong. It felt like he bumped against a huge metal barrier. This wasn’t right.

“What are you doing?” he heard an outraged Seiran shout at him.

When he opened his eyes, he realized that his boyfriend was no longer sitting next to him but was rather standing in front of him. Brandon had never seen him like this, he was fuming and trembling in anger. And those eyes now held a fire…the fire of anger.

“I can’t believe you could do that to me,” he spat furiously, “You’re despicable, Brandon! Everything is finished between us. Everything!”

Before Brandon could say anything, Seiran left.

-*-*-*-

As Brandon entered the office the next day, he met a very disturbed Sharon.

“He met his ex,” she said mournfully, “Bill met Jean. I looked in his mind. They kissed last week. They have plans to meet this week too.”

Brandon watched as tears appeared in the brown eyes of his friend. He had thought of venting his anger on her but after seeing her state, he didn’t have the heart to do it. All he could do was console her. After all, she was his best friend and had always been there for him. After a few minutes, when she calmed down, Brandon told her about his last encounter with Seiran.

“How did he know it?” she asked shocked.

“I told you. He had been practicing yoga since childhood,” he said defensively. He thought of apologizing to Seiran. He just hoped that he hadn’t ruined a perfect relationship.

“But…” she started but a shrill sound covered her voice.

“The alarm!” Brandon stated as both of them leapt up and went towards the briefing room.

“The Parliament is under attack!” General Kendall’s voice boomed over the heads of about twenty officers, “We need to get there at once. Everyone head out at once with your units. Except you, Mr. Ullman!”

“Me?” Brandon asked bemused as the others, including Sharon, left the room quickly.

“Yes, we need someone to send messages to every other SMF centers, national and international. You’re the perfect person for this. We don’t know how many people will be there. We need maximum reinforcements!”

Before Brandon could even say “unfair”, Kendall left the room.

“Connect to the international network, Fred,” Brandon ordered as he paced in the information room, “We need to send an urgent message to the French and Germans. They’re the nearest! And if possible, try the Americans too. These guys can drop anywhere anytime! And Terry, send a SOS message to the Manchester and Bristol branches. Tell them the parliament is under attack.”

“Sir, we can’t send any message,” Fred said, “All connections are cut!”

“That’s impossible!”

“Sir, it’s the same case here also!” Terry said urgently.

“But how… They can’t,” Brandon said as he tried to ignore the rising panic inside him.

“Sir, we have just noticed about twenty-five unidentified strangers entering the town on the radar system,” a guard said as soon as he opened the door, “They are all heading toward the TPF building. And it looks like they’re heavily armed.”

“Oh shit,” Brandon cursed as he realized that they had all been tricked. He was sure that the attack on the Parliament was just a fake, to distract the TPF officers. The connection was cut and he wouldn’t be able to contact his colleagues. He was alone!

“Ok, how many men do we have below?” Brandon asked urgently.

“Three, including me!” the guard said.

“Ok, activate all security levels. It is a level-5 danger. So activate all of them! You two,” he said pointing to his two assistants, “Find the maximum of weapons and share it between yourselves. Both of you wait for me in the car park in front of the building. The three guards go to the roof to cover us. Your arms will suffice. Quick!”

Brandon rushed to his office. He had his usual weapons but at the moment, he would have liked to have more. All he could do was hope that it worked! But he knew that he wouldn’t be able to stop them alone. He sat down Indian style and tried to clear his mind. It was really difficult considering that twenty-five strangers were about to strike and that he could hear his assistants running around in search of some weapons. He wasn’t even sure if it would work but he had to do. Either this or nothing!

“Help!” he shrieked in his mind with all his might!

Brandon felt vibrations propagating around him; any telepath will hear him. He hoped that his colleagues would be able to recognize his psychic voice. Brandon could feel half his energy drain out with only that one word. Now if only someone heard him…

-*-*-*-

Brandon crouched behind a silver hovercar. They were right- the strangers were coming directly toward them. He removed his red laser gun and started aiming at the visitors. Immediately, he was on the receiving end of similar guns. He ducked in time, feeling the heat of the laser swish past him. As he peeked through a slit, he saw all of his attackers encased in a greenish-blue transparent sphere- a laser shield. ‘Shocked’ would be an understatement to say about Brandon’s state of mind; he couldn’t understand from where they could have gotten a TPF laser shield. It was restricted only to TPF officers! Unfortunately, this also meant that Brandon’s laser gun would be futile.

Thankfully, he had brought paralyzing darts. They were big enough to pierce the shield, which was effective only against lasers. Mounting about a dozen of the darts on his gun, he just hoped that there would be enough. He could feel them coming nearer. He activated his own shield and rising, started targeting the enemy. He had to be very careful. A missed target meant one additional deadly enemy.

The darts were efficient against the shield and Brandon could see a few dropping like mosquitoes in front of wing-binding gas. He was still looking ahead when from the corner of his eye, he saw a fiery ball up above him. He ran as fast as he could and indeed, he heard the silver hovercar, where he was seconds ago, explode. His shield managed to keep him safe from the raining attacks of lasers. When he stopped behind a white hovercar, he saw his two assistants, lying dead ahead. They hadn’t managed to find a shield…

It was then that he realized that his supply was darts was gone. And there were still no signs of other TPF officers. He could hear the enemy approaching. There were still about ten left and all he had was a laser sword. At the utmost, he could take four or five at a time but ten?

His neurons were buzzing with tension when a blinding red light appeared in front of him. At first, he thought they had dropped another ‘Burst Ball’ but he soon recognized a humanoid figure. When the red light dissipated, he realized that it was a man, dressed in a very strange outfit. It reminded him of the Japanese Samurai which used to fight in wars millennia ago.

Before he could realize what was happening, the Samurai went flying in the air, leaping on the cars and vans. Long ornamental swords appeared in his hands, which he started brandishing all over. Neither the swords nor his feet wavered when he severed heads apart from bodies. Lasers and ‘burst balls’ rebounded against his golden armor.

After the short killing spree, the Samurai returned to Brandon but had barely taken a breath when his neck met Brandon’s sword.

“Who are you?” Brandon asked with venom dripping in his voice, “The truth!”

Brandon had recognized those black locks in which he used to draw his hands and those gray eyes he used to look at the whole night.

“Brandon please,” the voice pleaded, “Not here! Let’s go home. Please? We’re not safe here!”

-*-*-*-

“So what do you have to say?” Brandon said as he closed the door.

They had returned to his place. Seiran was still wearing that Samurai outfit and Brandon still held the laser sword, prepared to strike anytime. One abrupt action and those gray eyes would be lifeless. On the way to his house, he tried to enter Seiran’s mind but met the same result as the last time. He couldn’t believe it, Seiran had lied to him. Sharon was right. He felt so…wrong. As if someone had played with his feelings.

“Brandon, I…” Seiran started as he looked at his boyfriend, “I…I’m from the Telepath Intelligence. I’m here on a mission. We had information that there’s someone in here, deep in the system, who is trying to break the TPF. It’s from the London branch itself that the enemy had known about the School of Gifted. There is a traitor amongst you.”

Brandon felt those words pass by him and he barely grasped them. Telepath Intelligence? They were like the bosses of TPF officers. But was Seiran one of them?

“I had to infiltrate in and know about you guys. You were one of the suspects,” Seiran said and saw Brandon’s eyes widen, “I said ‘were’. I had to get to know you, without revealing my identity. And that’s why I started dating you. But I’m sure the traitor is still amongst us.”

“And how come you have all these great weapons?” Brandon asked as he eyed the Samurai’s costume, “We have the most sophisticated ones!”

“That’s what we say to everyone!” Seiran sighed, “There are some special weapons and shields which are kept just for the TI!”

“So you dated me just for the mission?” Brandon asked as he stared in those eyes.

“Yes, that was it at the start, but then, I…I really like you, Brandon. Believe me.”

“Why should I believe you? Everything you told me was lies!”

“I know you can’t believe me after what I did. That’s why I want you to enter my mind.”

“But…” Brandon objected.

Before he could say anything else, a pair of lips silenced him. He felt Seiran’s hands get tangled in his hair. He shuddered when he felt those hands touch him. There was something in that touch. A request, a feeble attempt of appeal. Then, he did it.

Entering someone’s mind was something not only very intimate but also delicate since a mind was a place very private and fragile. Altering or tampering with their thoughts and memories could lead to disastrous consequences. People were known to go insane or even die because their mind had been played with. That’s why it was a golden rule to never enter a person’s mind unless it was an emergency.

All minds weren’t the same; it depended on the person. Some minds were literally dirty with disgusting thoughts and real grime. These were the kind which Brandon mostly dealt with- those of criminals and perverts. Minds of children, sick or stressed persons were usually a mess and were usually very difficult to search. Thoughts were strewn here and there and looking for evidence in them could be complicated because the thoughts have to be kept intact and in the same place. There are very few who disciplined and controlled their minds. Otherwise, most fall in gray areas since moods and temperament play a very important role in the mind’s state.

Each mind projected an image to the reader and when Brandon entered Seiran’s mind, it looked like a library- a huge library. Untitled dark books filled the mountainous shelves; the shelves where so huge that he couldn’t see the ceiling. Everything was clean and immaculate. Brandon chose one book and carefully removed it. Opening it, he met a mini television or rather some moving images. It was their first date. It felt strange looking at it in this book; it felt like looking at it from Seiran’s point of view. Brandon never knew he could look so beautiful. His hair looked more curly and golden and the scar which he had on his neck had disappeared. As he stared at it, he felt vibes of happiness, care and love surge to him.

Smiling, he closed the book and put it back in its place, just like it was before. These were Seiran’s memories and his thoughts. Brandon walked deeper in the library. The scene never changed. Huge shelves still adorned both sides but the light became dimmer. It was quite strange. Even memories forgotten by the individual were visible to the readers but here… Was it possible that Seiran wanted to keep this part dark? Perhaps he didn’t want him to read this part. For a while, Brandon felt like not reading but he had to.

It had become very dark now; he had to strain his eyes to be able to see. He removed one book and opened it. At first, he didn’t recognize anyone but shortly he recognized the gray eyes. It seemed to be from a funeral. Two persons were being buried- Mr. and Mrs. Lance Williams- his parents. Seiran was just a child and must have been around eight. An old man stood behind him, with on hand on his shoulder. Brandon couldn’t help but feel the immense sadness in this memory and there was a bit of hostility between the two family members and the other relatives. Others didn’t like the Williams family because of its telepathic gifts.

Brandon closed the book and placed it back on its shelf. The mind was a living thing; it did miss certain things if it was removed for a long time. It was time for him to return. When Brandon came out, he saw Seiran completely still, with his eyes still closed and his fingers still laced in his hair. He leant in once again and planted a small kiss on his lips. It felt right.

“You believe me now,” Seiran said slowly, gaining his composure once again, “I’m really sorry that I had to hide this from you.”

“It’s ok. Seiran…”

“We have to find the culprit and soon!” Seiran said as he rose from his seat, “It has to be someone from the high officials, perhaps, in your circle of friends or colleagues. What do you think of Kendall?”

“Kendall?” Brandon said surprised, “I don’t think so. He seemed to be genuinely affected by the news of the attack of school.”

“Brandon, telepaths are great actors! Never go on their appearance. I’m suspicious of him since you told me about everything that happened this morning. Do you know that there was no attack on the parliament? I checked while coming here in the hovercar.”

“What?”

“Yes. It’s possible that he has some confidential source, which gave him some false news, but I find that quite far-fetched. Such high officials never take such actions only on the basis of one source.”

“I don’t know,” Brandon muttered as he found the news hard to digest.

“Do you know someone who seemed to know more than was needed? Or something that piqued your curiosity?” Seiran asked.

Brandon didn’t know what to think. His head seemed to be at a loss. Someone close to him was a traitor and he never knew. Who could it be? Kendall? Or… Sharon? Brandon mentally scolded himself for even thinking about it. It was impossible. In fact, she was telling him about capturing the traitor. She can’t be the guilty one. Perhaps, Drake? Brandon didn’t know much about him.

It was then that Brandon heard an intense psychic shriek! He fell to his knees and saw Seiran leaning against the wall for support. There were no words, just raw emotions of horror and pain. And he recognized the mental voice; it was Sharon.

-*-*-*-

“Are you sure it’s not her husband?” Seiran asked as he controlled the hovercar.

“No!” Brandon said anxiously, “She scanned his mind and didn’t find anything wrong. If she had, she would have told me.”

Brandon couldn’t shake off the unpleasant feeling in his stomach. What could have happened that she couldn’t even shape a word? And so much pain? His mind was still a bit numb from the psychic call. Sharon was one of the most powerful telepaths TPF had. If she herself was down…

“Here we are!” Seiran said as he stopped the hovercar above the parking lot and made it land.

Brandon had been to Sharon’s place many times but he had never seen it in such a state! Everything was broken or in pieces. There were definite signs of a struggle. Brandon gasped as he entered her bedroom. If it weren’t for Seiran who supported him, he would have surely fainted. Bill’s corpse was laid on the bed. His head was severed in two, exposing his brain. His left eyeball was dangling. On the white wall, in blood, it was written: Bloody Voyeurs!

“Look there,” Seiran said after a while. Indeed, next to Bill’s body, there was a piece of paper, on which was written:

If you want to find that voyeur, come to Machine Base. Or else, she’ll meet the same end as this worthless voyeur-lover!

“Machine Base?” Brandon said when he read, “I don’t know such place.”

“I do,” Seiran said as he stared at the paper. “It’s in the suburbs, near the forest. It’s an old warehouse, not used now.”

“Let’s go!” Brandon said as he started towards the door.

“Are you mad?” Seiran asked bemused, “This is a trap! We can’t just go there like that.”

“Sharon is my friend and while we’re talking, she’s perhaps closer to death than she has ever been. I fear if we wait for the TPF to get here, it will be too late. If you don’t want to come, it’s ok. I’ll go alone,” Brandon almost yelled out of anger.

“Ok, I’m coming,” Seiran said as he jogged behind his boyfriend, “But I’m sending TPF a message telling them everything.”

“Make it quick.”

-*-*-*-

Brandon had never been to this place, neither had many people. It was on the border of a small forest where animals and plants, which couldn’t survive in parks or in artificial habitats, lived. And there was no progress in this area at all, reminding him of the last century. Brandon looked to his left and saw only one building in view. It wasn’t even a building. A wreck would be a more appropriate name for the heap of wood mounted one over the over. He was surprised that it was even standing.

“It is a warehouse over hundred years old,” Seiran said when he saw his boyfriend observing the building.

“Is this where we should go?” Brandon asked urgently as he thought of Sharon.

“I think so.”

Seiran and Brandon entered the building. Even the little light from the open door couldn’t lessen the darkness inside and when the door closed, it was pitch black inside. After standing for a few minutes, Brandon was able to distinguish the outlines of boxes and crates.

“Let’s go farther inside,” Brandon said and walked tentatively forward and felt his boyfriend doing the same thing behind him.

The walk never ended. He hadn’t realized that the warehouse was so huge. Now, there were no boxes or other things at all. Just darkness. He was still moving when light poured from every direction. Brandon groaned as he closed his eyes. When he opened them, he found himself in a completely different place from what he was expecting. He was in a big room with metal walls. Light bulbs covered the ceiling and only three people were present - Brandon, Seiran and a stranger.

The stranger was, in simple terms, horrifying. He looked as if a human and a machine had been bred together. The left part of his body was human with the left leg, the left arm and hand and the left side of his chest in flesh and bones. The right side was just metal and bolts. But the strangest thing was that the boundary between the two sides was almost indistinct. Brandon couldn’t discern where one started and the other ended.

“Welcome, Brandon!” the man’s voice boomed.

“Where is Sharon?” Brandon asked with the same vigor.

“C’mon, Brandon!” the man laughed, sending a chill down his spine, “Won’t even ask my name? Let me present myself. I’m Blair.”

“Where is Sharon?” Brandon repeated.

“Oh, you’re adamant on that voyeur bitch,” Blair said as the smile slipped, replaced by an ugly grimace, “Well, she got what she deserved.”

“What did you do to her?”

“Oh nothing. She was quite hot-tempered. So I cooled her a bit… too much!” Blair laughed and pressed a button.

Immediately, the metal wall behind the half-man slid to the left and Brandon could see that a gigantic aquarium, as large as the wall itself, was behind him. And amongst the fish and algae, there was something strange. Brandon gasped as he saw Sharon’s lifeless eyes looking back at him. Her skin was paler than ever and her red hair floated around her head.

“Sharon,” he uttered softly as his tear-filled eyes looked at Sharon’s body gliding around. She was the only family he ever had and now she was gone. The wall slid back into place, blocking his view.

“You’re a monster,” Brandon said with fury in his eyes.

“YOU are monsters!” Blair yelled angrily and his voice reverberated, “You are the one who invade people’s mind and peep into their most intimate memories. You killed my whole family in front of my eyes. The Nova Roma…it was the only family I had and you massacred all of them. You’ve got to pay for it.”

“How do you know about Nova Roma? This is confidential…”

“Ha!” Blair barked, “You TPFs, you think you’re perfect and never commit any mistakes. I was right there when all this happened. But I found the solution to your voyeurism- Metalium.”

“Metalium?”

“Yes, Metalium!” Blair said, “Unfortunately, only I was able to use it at that time. I wasn’t even sure if it would work. But it did. While you inspected the whole area with your stupid psychic scans, a helmet of Metalium shielded me and I was able to escape. To avenge my family.”

“But it would be futile now. You can’t escape. We are two against your one!”

“Yes, two against one but we are the two and you the one. Right Seiran? Come here,” Blair smiled.

“What?” Brandon uttered as he saw Seiran walk to Blair and stand next to him, as if his bodyguard.

“Oh, my bad!” Blair said mockingly, “I forgot to introduce you to my most faithful servant, VA-146 or as you call him, Seiran. He’s nice, isn’t he?”

“VA-146?”

“Show him your real face, VA-146.”

To Brandon’s horror, Seiran grabbed his face and pulled the skin away from half of his face, or what would have been his skin, had he been human. Instead of flesh and bones, there were wires and metal. Unlike Blair, it seemed as if someone had slipped half a mask on a robot, a mask with which he had fallen in love.

“Seiran…”

“Isn’t he amazing? My favorite invention. A robot identical to human. Same expression, same voice, same attitude. So real that one can even fall in love with it. Right, Brandon?” Blair laughed.

“Everything was planned, right?” Brandon said slowly as everything fell in place.

“Of course. I had to get some information that only a top officer could have. You were the perfect victim. Young, lonely, without an ounce of cynicism. And in dire need of a boyfriend. All I had to do was to insert a handsome smart guy who would steal your heart and happily spend time at your house. Enter Seiran- hot, intelligent, and rich and the perfect boyfriend. At night when you slept, he slipped out and gathered information from your safe. That’s how I learnt about ‘Unspeakables’ and that great school of yours.

Then, that Sharon almost ruined everything and made you suspicious. Of course, Seiran couldn’t do anything with you doubting him. This stalled my plans. But no one can doubt his savior. Right? So I sent false information to Kendall through one of his most trusted sources. You were alone and got attacked by my men. And then Seiran, the hero, saved you. But I knew you wouldn’t be convinced so I made that ‘mind’ thing. You telepaths are so sure of your abilities. While you tried to enter his mind, all I had to do was place these tendrils in contact with your head,” Blair said as thread-like wires came out of his nails, “Another amazing invention by me. I’m a genius. Controlling the mind of a telepath. These tendrils send a small electric pulse to your mind and make it see what I want. But the greatest thing about it is that when you entered his mind, you opened your own mind, giving me unlimited access to more resources. Now thanks to you, I have enough information to tackle the whole English branch.”

Brandon was the traitor. Because of him, the whole TPF organization was now in danger. He had caused its downfall. Shame and guilt trickled through him as he realized the momentum of his actions. But the sadness he was feeling was overwhelming too. In a matter of minutes, he had lost two people he most loved.

“You helped me a lot, Brandon but your role has ended now. It’s time for you to depart. Bye,” Blair said as he jumped from his seat at Brandon.

But Brandon wasn’t a top officer for nothing. He jumped back as quickly as his half-human opponent and he draw his laser sword. Both of them got to their feet in a flash and started attacking each other. Blair’s mechanical hand transformed into a sharp dagger, which he brandished wildly. But Brandon countered each of his attacks and several times singed the auburn hair of the half-man.

“That’s for Sharon!” he said as he inserted the laser blade in Blair’s left hand and a huge howling noise filled the metal box.

But before he could do anything else, he was swept off his feet. He had barely landed when something pierced his heart. The pain was excruciating in itself. As his mind tried to support the pain, he opened his eyes and met a pair of emotionless eyes. Gray eyes. As his heart bled and his mind tried to avoid insanity, a single tear rolled out of his eye.