Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story

- Text Size +

Endenantes
Confronting The Past

pretender_gurl




SL-21: Sydney's Office
The Centre
April 12, 1994 ~ 10:42


Sydney was watching the DSA of the morning's simulation. Jarod had finally finished the SIM, but the Tower would not be pleased with the time it took to reach a conclusion. He sighed as he continued recording the findings for the Tower Review Board which oversaw every simulation performed in the Pretender Program.

Other Notes:
Subject #PP6063 had difficulty completing experiment due to psychological trauma. Subject #PP6063 was informed of new project with Subject #PG8787B prior to experiment. Scientist believes this caused inner conflict for subject. Scientist walked through crisis with subject, enabling continuation of research. Time lost was minimal in relation to significance of findings. Scientist advises TRB to consider this fact before passing judgment on Subject #PP6063.


Sydney paused a moment before adding one last note.

This scientist would also like to go on record to advise the Tower against pairing Subjects #PP6063 and #PG8787 due to conflicts of interest between subjects.

Sydney hoped his plea for benevolence would save Jarod from another T-Board. Both he and Jarod had sat before the Triumvirate a few months ago when Jarod refused to complete a simulation that he considered unethical. Of course, Jarod had no idea why he was refusing, other than that it didn't feel right. This had puzzled the Triumvirate since Pretenders were to have no morals or ethics. Unfortunately, the results of the T-Board indicated that Jarod had both.

Sydney had been afraid of that happening, due to the close contact he had with his protégé. As a Pretender, Jarod could not help slipping into Sydney's skin at times. Sydney often pulled him back from pretending to be Sydney. But those moments, however brief, showed Jarod what Sydney considered right and wrong. As the only paternal figure in Jarod's life, Sydney was the young man's role model and he had obviously adopted many of Sydney's own mannerisms and sayings. It seemed that now Jarod also had Sydney's conscience. Luckily, the Triumvirate didn't suspect Sydney to be the cause of Jarod's growing sense of humanity. If they had, Sydney would no longer be assigned to the Pretender Program. He would be six feet under.

Sydney was shaken from his morbid thoughts by a knock on his office door. Through the open blinds, he saw that it was Miss Parker. Clearly surprised by her presence, Sydney hurried to open the door.

"Miss Parker! This is a surprise. Please, come in!" he gestured to a chair.

Miss Parker entered the office, surprised by how little it had changed in the past fifteen years. Her eyes swept over the bookshelf filled with psychological texts and mystery novels that Sydney read late at night. He still had the same black office chair behind his desk and the picture of he and Jacob sat prominently on the file cabinet. She allowed herself one glance at the ventilation shaft and noticed that it was still missing a screw. A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she remembered sneaking into the psychiatrist's office with Jarod and dropping the vent cover. The screws went every which way and they could only recover three. They had searched for the fourth as best they could with a flashlight, but the screw still eluded them. Strange that it had not been replaced after all these years.

Finally, she turned to the desk where the DSA player was still flashing scenes of the morning's simulation. Sydney noticed Miss Parker flinch as she watched Jarod pace the screen. He crossed the room and ejected the disk.

"Can I help you with something, Miss Parker?" he asked.

She blinked and looked up at the psychiatrist. "Um, yes. Well, I mean…"

Sydney recognized her hesitation and interrupted her. "Why don't you take a seat, Miss Parker? I was just about to get a cup of coffee. Would you care for some?"

Miss Parker knew that Sydney was trying to get her comfortable so as to worm his way into her psyche, but for the first time, she didn't mind.

"No thank you, Sydney."

Sydney poured himself a mug of steaming coffee and rolled his chair out from behind the desk so that it was opposite the proffered chair.

Miss Parker allowed herself to relax into the overstuffed armchair. She looked at her polished nails as she felt the psychiatrist's eyes watching her.

"Are you glad to be back in Blue Cove, Miss Parker?" Sydney asked, trying to make small talk.

Miss Parker shot him a scathing look. "What do you think?"

Sydney chuckled. "So what are your plans?"

Miss Parker sighed and looked away.

"My father has offered me a position at the Centre. I'm to begin the day after tomorrow."

Sydney said nothing, but continued to sip his coffee and waited for a reaction from Miss Parker. She gave no outward signs as to her feelings concerning the assignment.

"And you have accepted his offer," Sydney stated.

Miss Parker looked back at him and nodded slowly.

"How do you feel about working for the Centre?" Sydney asked.

"I don't know, Syd. He said my mother always wanted this for me, but…"

Sydney struggled to keep his own emotions under control. Damn him! The lies are bad enough, but using Catherine to bend his daughter to his will? How does he sleep at night? Sydney silently cursed Mr. Parker.

"You doubt him?"

Miss Parker sighed. "Yes. I doubt him. I was very young when my mother… killed herself… but I don't think she would have done it if it hadn't been for this place. I'm not sure that the Centre is where I want to spend the rest of my life."

"Then don't, Miss Parker," Sydney said with a sudden intensity. Setting his coffee on the table, he reached for Miss Parker's hand. "Go to Paris like you dreamed of. Get out of Blue Cove!"

The young woman before him was surprised at his outburst and pulled her hand away.

"I can't, Sydney. It's too late…"

"No it's not! Go to your father and tell him that you're leaving! I can help you! I have funds at the ready," Sydney urged. He looked fondly at the beautiful woman he had helped to raise. He was enraged that the man who called himself her father was causing her such anguish! And at the same time, he was delighted that she had turned to him in this time of need - as she had ever since Catherine died.

"Miss Parker, don't sell yourself to the Centre. This is no place for a gentle soul like yours."

She looked into his creased face with sorrow. "I'm sorry, Sydney," she whispered. Then, collecting her things she left his office.

Sydney watched her go and with each click of her heels, his heart fell with the weight of her decision.

Words from the past floated back to Sydney as he walked over to his desk and unlocked the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet.

"You've been missing for three days, Jacob. I can't keep covering for you with Mr. Raines."

Pushing all of the files back, he lifted out a metal lockbox. His stomach twisted into knots as he turned the key and lifted the lid.

"I've had personal business."

Reaching into the box of mementos, Sydney pulled out a black and white photograph.

"You've never kept secrets from me."

Tears welled up in his eyes as he stared lovingly at the three figures in the picture. Catherine was sitting on a swinging bench, her head tilted back in laughter. She was leaning against a man's shoulder.

"Open your eyes, Sydney!"

Sydney's vision was suddenly blurred by a cascade of tears. The man next to Catherine Parker was Jacob, and he was holding a baby girl.

SL-15: BioDome 8
The Centre


Jarod held the dropper carefully over a Petri dish that he had just swabbed with pollen from a new hybrid. He gingerly applied pressure and allowed the smallest drop to land in the center of the dish. Jarod place breathable parafilm over the dish and set it under an artificial sun lamp. Smiling with satisfaction, he removed his gloves and safety goggles and placed them on a shelf beside the door. He made a few calculations in a red notebook and swiped his keycard, unlocking the door to the room.

Working in the BioDomes was the one privilege that Sydney allowed Jarod. He was able to work in the BioDomes unsupervised, save for the ever-present video surveillance. Jarod enjoyed this work, and Sydney was able to use that as incentive for Jarod to complete simulations and cooperate in experiments. When Sydney had time, he and Jarod liked to work together - not as mentor and protégé, but as equals.

Jarod walked happily down the corridor towards the stairwell that would take him down the six floors to Sydney's office. He was skimming the red notebook as he walked. He was completely engrossed in derived functions when a familiar voice caught his attention. He looked up and both his jaw and notebook dropped to the floor.

Walking towards him and chattering away on a mobile phone was the little girl he had been trying to forget for eight long years. Now she was a grown woman, staring back at him with the same awestruck expression. Jarod's mind was working in overdrive, trying to analyze the situation and force himself to say something. But all he could do was stare, remembering the last time he saw his one and only friend…

His left hand was spread across the small of her back and his right hand held her head as he kissed her. Her fingers were playing with his hair as she returned the passionate kiss. Neither was aware of anything else in the world except each other.

Jarod had never felt so complete in all of his life. When they held each other, he was at home in her arms. It was a feeling that he had almost forgotten before now. Jarod never wanted to leave her, never let go of her. He was going to spend the rest of his life by her side.

As if reading his thoughts, a large hand was suddenly around his arm and he felt Miss Parker being pulled away from him. He screamed out to her, seeing a Sweeper dragging her away. Then something behind Miss Parker caught his eye and he froze.

When the faint glow from the tip of a cigarette grew enough to light the face of Mr. Raines, Jarod's heart skipped a beat and his survival instincts kicked into high gear.

"Hello children. Are we having a good time?" Mr. Raines growled. He stepped into the light and Jarod recognized the Cleaner Garr standing behind Raines.

Neurons all over the Pretender's body were answering the brain's query of fight or flight. Jarod lunged at Mr. Raines, ready to tear him apart for letting a Sweeper lay hands on Miss Parker, but three pairs of hands held him back. Mr. Raines gave a cruel smile and began to advance upon Jarod. The boy's terror grew with each step the man took. Closer, and closer, until Mr. Raines was blowing smoke in Jarod's face.

"Well, well. A Pretender out of the Centre. Now what's wrong with this picture? Garr?"

Before Jarod could process what was happening, his head was thrown to the left by a blow and he felt the air sucked out of him with a whoosh.

From somewhere in the distance Jarod could hear Miss Parker's cries becoming hysterical screams for help. "Let me go! You're hurting me!"

Jarod noticed that he could only hear out of his left ear and that his right ear felt like something warm was dripping from it. He could feel the Sweepers on either side holding him up, so Jarod decided to fake them out with a little case of weak knees. As he hoped they would, the Sweepers loosened their grip on the boy, assuming him to be little threat to them.

The Pretender twisted his left arm and brought the other down in a knife hand that cracked the forearm of one of the Sweepers. He kicked the second in the shins and landed a heel in the third's groin. Ignoring the nauseous feeling in his stomach, Jarod ran toward the blurry image that he assumed to be Miss Parker and her captor. Jarod tightened his hand into a fist and managed to land a punch, but he couldn't tell who he hit.

Miss Parker screamed his name and he assumed that he had accidentally hit her instead of the Cleaner holding her. But before he could apologize, his whole body began to hurt with such intensity that he couldn't move. Jarod fell to the ground and lay there as the pain grew so much that Jarod didn't know if he could bear it much longer. Through such terrible pain, he never felt the needle enter his arm.

The next thing Jarod remembered, he awakened on his cot four weeks later with Sydney standing over him. Swallowing a few times to wet his parched throat, Jarod was able to croak, "Parker… Where's Miss Parker?"

"She's gone, Jarod. You won't see her again," Sydney answered. There was no emotion in his voice. Nothing to tell Jarod how much Sydney knew about his relationship with the chairman's daughter.

"Is she… all right?" Jarod asked, still unclear as to what happened.

"She's safe," Sydney answered cryptically. "Jarod, I specifically told you not to see Miss Parker. Why did you disobey me?" Sydney asked, allowing his disappointment to show.

"I… I can't… I'm sorry, Sydney. I'm so sorry!" Jarod turned towards the wall, unwilling to show Sydney his tears. In a small voice, he choked out one last question. "Will I... ever see her again, Sydney?"

"No, Jarod," Sydney replied vehemently.

Jarod gave a small nod as he continued to silently grieve for his friend, his one love, and his only light in the bleakness of the Centre.

Two weeks later, Jarod was sitting at his desk, unable to concentrate on his exercises. He was twirling his pencil absentmindedly and dropped it to the floor. Sydney was monitoring his progress and bent to retrieve the pencil. When he stood up, he found Jarod silently crying.

"What's wrong, Jarod?"

"I don't know, Sydney! I can't do anything - can't concentrate, or eat, or sleep… I don't know what's wrong with me. I just can't stop thinking about Miss Parker. She got hurt because of me, and I never got to say I was sorry!" the boy exclaimed.

Sydney bent down to Jarod's eye-level. "Tell you what: if you can finish your exercises, I'll let you write her a letter. You can say whatever you'd like, and I will send Miss Parker the letter. How does that sound?"

Jarod smiled at Sydney.

"All right, then. Finish the exercise and we'll go to my office and write the letter."


That was eight years ago. Jarod had written that he was sorry that they got in trouble and he would miss her terribly. When Sydney wasn't looking, he had added three words to the end of the letter. Sydney told him that he mailed the letter and Miss Parker received it two days later. Now she was sitting before him, and all he could do was stare at her radiant beauty.

She had changed so much. Of course, Jarod, he thought to himself. Eight years can usually change a person. Her hair was darker, a raven shade of black that contrasted her fair skin. She was taller of course, and her figure now had its feminine curves. But as he looked closer, Jarod realized that much about her was still the same. She still had gorgeous legs and Jarod was sure they could still carry her like the wind. Her lips were as inviting as he remembered and her slender frame gave her an unassuming look of vulnerability, though Jarod had no doubt she was still quite dangerous.

What shocked Jarod the most were her eyes. They were almost like the eyes in his nightmares, but different. For instead of emptiness, Miss Parker's eyes were filled with emotions. On the surface was surprise, but looking deeper, Jarod found anger, hurt, sadness, joy, and relief. He didn't understand all of her feelings, but he was sure that she was as confused by the situation as he was.

It was Miss Parker who finally broke the silence.

"Hello, Jarod," she began.

"M…Miss Parker," Jarod returned. "It's been a long time."

"Not long enough for me, Lab Rat."

Jarod gave her a bewildered look, confused by the hostility in her voice. "I… I don't understand."

"Oh, come on, Jarod. You're supposed to be a genius! Don't tell me you can't remember our last meeting!"

"I… I remember. I'm so sorry that you were hurt, Miss Parker," Jarod said, sagging his shoulders and looking at his feet. He assumed that Miss Parker blamed him for their capture by Raines. After all, he had spent the last eight years blaming himself. Why shouldn't she blame him too? "I never meant for you to get hurt."

"Sorry? How can you be sorry, Jarod? I was betrayed by my best friend! Your apology means nothing to me," Miss Parker spat coldly. He attacked me and now thinks that an apology will make it all go away? Miss Parker thought incredulously.

She walked towards the Pretender until she was standing immediately before him. The moment seemed to last forever until Miss Parker suddenly lifted her hand and slapped Jarod across the face so hard that his head whipped to the side. Red finger marks stretched across his cheek, but Jarod didn't make a sound. He just stood before her, resigned to her anger.

"I don't ever want to see you again," Miss Parker hissed.

Jarod looked up at her with his warm chocolate eyes full of sorrow. He wanted to beg her forgiveness and perhaps renew their friendship. But she was already walking briskly away and he couldn't seem to make his feet follow her. Instead he fell back against the wall of the corridor and pulled his knees into his chest, silently mourning his lost love. Jarod never noticed the pair of pale blue eyes that watched him from the ventilation shaft.

Ventilation System
The Centre
April 12, 1994 ~ 11:53


Angelo stormed through the labyrinth of tunnels that made up the Centre's ventilation system. He didn't worry about anyone hearing him, for no one cared about Angelo. He was not a person to them, only a tool to be used when needed. He could not be discouraged from wandering the Centre on his own, and after years of attempting to restrain, they had finally let him be.

Angelo reached the exit he was looking for and hopped down from the shaft. He was on SL-26 at the manhole leading to the next sublevel. He ran around the boilers, trying to remember the one his things were hidden near. Crouching down in a corner of the room, he dug through some boxes until he found the one he was looking for. Angelo let out a screech of glee and thrust his hand into the box. Each disk his hand touched brought an image to his mind. He wiggled his hand through the container until he saw the image he was looking for. Extracting the disk, Angelo shouted to the emptiness around him.

"Lies! Daddy lies! Daughter hates Jarod, but Daddy lies!"

Angelo opened his mouth and stuck the DSA between his lips. Lowering himself onto all fours, he returned to the air vent and went looking for Jarod.









You must login (register) to review.