I stood on the edge of the cliff. The wind whistled past my tall, thin figure, picking up my long white hair and swinging it around my face. My pale eyes stared out over the landscape below.
A man came up behind me. His voice was deep and gruff as he spoke to me. The voice was one that was familiar and one I would never miss.
“You can’t run anymore Selene. You will have to stop now. Come back with me and we can talk things over.”
I knew he didn’t mean it. He would just take me back to that place. I couldn't even say its name. They had made us do unspeakable things. I didn't want to think about it. I didn’t want to go back.
“No.” I told him, “I won’t ever go back with you,” and with that I threw myself off the cliff.

The strong winds blew past me as my body fell through the clouds and towards the fast approaching sea below. I threw off my coat and I unfurled my wings. They caught the wind and I stopped falling.

I will tell you a story. A story of adventure, of danger, of love. A story of a girl who is finding herself.
A story, my story.

I will start from the very beginning… when nothing was more than enough…

***

I try to remember what happened before the dark, or is there is nothing to remember?
My mind seems to want to forget, no matter how hard I try to make it do otherwise.
I knew nothing but the darkness that surrounded me, even time was not significant.
I knew not why I was there or how I ended up in that place.
I would just sit and wait and darkness would wait with me.

Then light came and interrupted my darkness.
In darkness I found peace but in light I found fear...

The light pierced through the blanket of darkness that had fallen. It danced over to me and illuminated the area. Darkness disappeared and with it my security.

When I came out of that darkness, I knew barely anything about myself.
I did know this though. My name was Selene and I was ten years old.

I was different from any other human girl, although I’m sure I’ve already made that impression.
There are things about me that are strange. I guess you could say they aren’t human.
For one, I have wings and not small ones either. I also have strange talents. It was because of these talents that Drake Carter first found me.

Something pulled me out of my darkness and landed me into this world. I may have already been on Earth before the darkness, but how I got here in the first place I do not know. I can’t remember.
When I came out of the darkness I knew I didn’t belong in this world, I didn’t fit in.
My memory of my first weeks out of the darkness are hazy, I cannot remember much. I was taken from my peaceful darkness and left by myself in the wild and strange world of humanity, not knowing where I was or how I got there. I made a lot of mistakes, but the one that I regret the most was letting myself fall under the control of Drake Carter. In my mess of a memory I do remember that day clearly.

I was staying in an orphanage at the time. I had been wandering the world aimlessly when humans found me and placed me in the orphanage to be looked after until they found somewhere for me to stay. I remember the news report at the time: ‘Abandoned child found beside Lake.’
Nobody wanted me. I was just another child in the system, more work for the adults.
I was a recluse, a stranger from the time I was found. It didn’t help that I stood out from the others. I couldn’t just blend into the crowd. I un-nerved people, they didn’t like to be near me.

The colour of my hair was enough to set me apart. It’s the colour of snow, pure white, with strands of silver that shine in the moonlight.
If that weren’t enough my eyes seem to put people off. The best way to describe them is pale, almost without colour. Someone once told me it was as if I could see right through people. In a way I could, but that comes later in the story. I used to sit by myself for hours, staring into the distance, trying to make sense of everything that had happened to me.
Nobody wanted me. Nobody wanted anything to do with me.

I was sitting by myself, staring out the window on one of the days I spent at the orphanage. Mrs Matthews, one of our supervisors walked in.
“Get your things,” she told me, “There is someone here to take you to a new home.”
My heart started to beat faster. I had never been chosen.
‘Don’t get your hopes up,’ I told myself. They would probably back out of the adoption once they met me. That’s what everyone else always did.
I rummaged under my bed, grabbing the small suitcase that carried all my belongings, not that I owned much.
I stood up and hurried over to the door where Mrs Matthews was waiting.
I followed Mrs Matthews down the stairs to the foyer where a gentleman stood, clearly waiting for me.
He had black hair and dark eyes. He wore a suit and tie that made him stand out as a business man. 
He looked over at me as I walked into the room. I met his eyes and shuddered as I did. One of my talents that I mentioned earlier is that if I look straight into someone’s eyes I can see things about them. You’ve probably heard the saying ‘the eyes are the window to the soul’, in my case it’s true. I can’t control what I see, or when I see it but I get glimpse into the person’s life, or sometimes what they’re thinking or maybe, just a feeling. Like when I looked into this man’s eyes. There was something ‘off’ about this man, something evil.
“Selene,” Mrs Matthews said, breaking into my thoughts, “This is Mr Drake Carter. He has come to take you to your new home.”
I said nothing, just stared.
“You’ll have to forgive her,” Mrs Matthews continued, “She doesn’t talk, and when she does, she only says a few words.”
“That’s alright. I’m sure she’ll warm up to me eventually,” Mr Carter said. He had a deep voice, one I wanted to trust. “Well, we had better get going. Come along Selene,” he said. 
He turned to talk to Mrs Matthews, “and thank you once again for being so helpful, Carol.”

Mr Carter took my hand and led me out of the orphanage. I picked up my suitcase and glanced back at Mrs Matthews. I smiled at her and she smiled back.
Somehow I knew I wouldn’t see her or the orphanage again.

We drove for a long time. I just stared out of the window. I couldn’t believe that this was actually going well. Mr Carter hadn’t walked out of the adoption, but had taken me with him. I should have been overjoyed, but a bad feeling hung over my head. I had not mistaken what I had felt when I looked into Mr Carter’s eyes. Something bad was going to come of this but I couldn’t place what it was.
Mr Carter stopped the car and I climbed out, pulling my suitcase out from the boot of the car.
The house before me made my eyes open wide and my jaw drop open. It was the largest house I had ever set eyes on. It was a three story manor house that looked like it came from the Elizabethan era.  Mr Carter walked up to the front door and went inside with me trailing behind him. He took my suitcase and handed it to a maid who had come over.
“See this gets to her room,” he said.
We walked into an office of some kind. It was a well-furnished room with a large desk covered in neat piles of paper. There was a chair behind the desk and two more in front of it.
“Sit down Selene,” he told me as he sat down in a chair behind what must have been his desk.
I sat down in one of the chairs.
“Do you know why I picked you? Out of all the children at the orphanage?”
I shook my head. Why had he chosen me?
“I chose you because I saw potential in you, special potential.”
Potential to do what? I wanted to ask but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.
Mr Carter looked over at a clock on the wall.
“This is going to be your new home now, Selene,” he told me, “It will probably be a lot different to what you’ve been used to. You will be expected down in the dining hall at seven for breakfast. I will have a tutor come at nine for you so that you can continue your schooling. You will be with your tutor until the midday meal is served at twelve. In the afternoons I expect you to come and help me with my work. Dinner will be served at six.”
“Excuse me sir,” I said quietly. “What is your work?”
“I’m glad you asked.” He smiled at me, a warm smile. “I work for an organization called Black Diamond. We work with children, children with special abilities, like you.”
What? Had I just heard that? How could he know? No-one knew what I could do.
I must have looked shocked at his comment because he continued, “We have been keeping an eye on you since you were found and we saw that you were different. You don’t exactly blend in.” He smiled.
I smiled back. Something inside of me wanted to like this man. I hadn’t liked anyone before. I usually withdrew before anyone had a chance to get to know me. I couldn’t risk someone finding out. Somehow I knew it wouldn’t end well. One thing I had learned in this world was that difference wasn’t something people cherished. But then this man had taken me in because I was different.
“That is why I brought you here, so that I can work with you to build this potential, monitor your progress.” He stopped speaking and looked at the clock again. I followed his gaze. 5:50 PM.
“Right now, I would like you to join me for some dinner.” He tapped a bell on his desk. “Maya will show you to your room to change. You will find some dresses in the wardrobe that I hope fit you. Dinner is in ten minutes.”
He stood up and showed me to the door, where the young maid I had seen earlier was waiting. She took my hand and walked me up a staircase and down a corridor, before walking another staircase and down another corridor. I memorized the layout. I guessed I would need to know this route. We stopped outside a door which she pushed open. As the door swung open, my jaw dropped.
“I hope you like it, Miss,” Maya said to me, “if you need anything, just tap the bell on the wall and I’ll come.”
She smiled at me and turned to walk back down the corridor.

I continued staring into the room that had just been opened for me. This was mine? All mine?
I walked inside the room and looked around. My suitcase was sitting on the floor beside a double bed that sat in the middle of the room. The walls were cream in colour and the floor was carpeted in a rich blue. The room was divided into three sections. The bedroom, the bathroom and the lounge? Well, what I thought may as well have been a lounge. A set of table and chairs sat in the middle, a couch and a bookcase lining one wall. A large window sat against one of the walls. I walked over to it and looked out. Miles of countryside lay before me, endless blue sky above. It was beautiful. I turned around and walked back to the bed and lifted my suitcase onto it, clipping it open. I pulled out my only other change of clothes and a pair of old socks. An old worn out notebook completed all the belongings I owned.
I remembered why I was in the room and walked to the wardrobe. I threw open the double doors and gasped. It was full of about ten dresses of different styles and colours. A few pairs of shoes sat along the bottom.
I looked around me, taking in the rest of the room. This was bigger and more wonderful than anything I had ever seen. All I’d had in the orphanage had been a small hard bed in a dorm full of other girls. I couldn’t help thinking if this was too good to be true.
I chose one of the dresses and quickly changed into it. The clock that hung on my wall chimed, alerting me that it was six o’clock. I was late for dinner.

I was about to leave the room when I realised I didn’t know where to go. From what I had seen, this house was huge and I would get lost easily. I tapped the bell on my wall. Within minutes Maya appeared in front of me.
I told her what I wanted and she smiled at me. I think she thought I was funny.
She led me to the dining room quite quickly, where I took a seat around a large table that could easily seat fifty people. It was weird just having Mr Carter and I to fill the seats.

The dinner was mostly in silence. Mr Carter making idle conversation, which didn’t last long since I didn’t want to say anything. I just nodded or shook my head to answer his questions which mostly consisted of questions wondering if I liked it there, which I did.
At one moment throughout the dinner I caught Mr Carter’s eyes, like I had earlier that morning. I was filled with the same feeling I had before, the one that warned me of bad things coming, the one that warned me to stay clear.
But I didn’t want to listen. I didn’t want to think that there was anything wrong with Mr Carter. I wanted to stay in his house, with my large room of luxury, the good food and the endless service, but oh, I should have listened. 

I found out Mr Carter’s intentions within the next few days.
He earned my trust easily, almost too easily. Now I look back on it, I should have seen it coming. But he blinded me with his kindness, his friendliness, his luxurious life.
He let me trust in him, until he coaxed me into helping his work, the work that he needed me for.
His work was enrolling children in a programme run by Black Diamond. A programme that worked with children with special abilities, inhuman abilities, testing them, enhancing them, training them. How do I know this? I know this because I was enrolled in this programme by Mr Carter. I was one of those children with special abilities.

For the next year, I lived with Mr Carter. Spending time with my tutor in the mornings, with Mr Carter in the afternoons. In what I had called ‘work sessions’ we would cover things like basic fitness, archery, clay pigeon shooting and computer skills.  Some afternoons I would have free time, while Mr Carter spent time doing his other work, running an international security firm. In this time I would horse ride, using gear and horses from Mr Carter’s stables. At first I had a tutor, but as I grew better, I could go riding by myself. On these rides I would go far into the countryside that surrounded Mr Carter’s estate, spend time by myself, where I could do anything I wanted without being worried people would see me. It was on these rides I would dismount my horse, tether him to a tree to graze and throw off my coat. I would unfurl my wings and let the country wind rustle my feathers. I would lift off into the sky, stretching my wings, cherishing the feelings of strength and power they gave me. I would fly over beautiful landscapes that only the middle of nowhere has. It was only there that I could be away from everything, only there that I could be truly free. Those were the best days.
But all good things must come to an end and I would have to come back down to Earth sooner than later.
I would ride back to the house and no-one would ever know where I had been- just me and the horse.

Another thing I did in my free time was swim.
Mr Carter had a massive indoor swimming pool that was hardly used. I would use it whenever I could, if I wasn’t horse riding. I taught myself to swim. It was quite hard though. If you’ve ever tried to swim with two heavy water-logged wings on your back, you would understand. I liked the methodical patterns of swimming; being alone in the water, giving me time to think.
I lived like this for a long time, continuing this routine. I didn’t mind. I enjoyed my own company, better than that of other children, or other people in general.

I built a strong relationship with Mr Carter as one builds one with their father. One day, in one of my ‘work sessions’, Mr Carter told me of a ‘boot camp’ that was being run by the programme I was a part of, a fun week out for all the children in the programme, a break from our studies and work sessions. I would leave in a week.

***

The next week passed quickly. Before long I was packing a small bag with the things I needed for the trip. To be honest I was excited. I hadn’t ever been on a trip like this before. The part I was looking forward to the most though was that I would get to meet other children like me, children with special abilities. For once I wouldn’t be the ‘freak’. I would fit in. I would be equal. I couldn’t wait to leave.

***

I walked down the steps leading from the plane onto the tarmac. Bush surrounded the small landing strip on all sides. Mr Carter walked ahead of me. He looked out of place in this foreign setting, out of his usual outfit of suit and tie but dressed in outdoor gear, ready to take part in the boot camp.
Seeing the environment I would be living in for the week, I was glad I hadn’t been tempted to bring along a dress- the sweatshirts, t-shirts and track pants I had packed would suit me fine.
I followed Mr Carter over to a small wooden building on the edge of the landing strip. I was surprised to see a number of people standing inside. Other children stood dressed in similar outfits to me, with their bags sitting on the floor next to them. There were some adults there as well, also dressed like Mr Carter, ready to take part in the boot camp themselves. I took my place among the other children there. For a change I didn’t receive weird looks, but curious ones, trying to suss out who I was, not what I was.
“Looks like we’re all here,” Mr Carter said, grabbing everyone’s attention. It looked like he was in charge.
“If everyone is ready, we’ll head off,” Mr Carter continued, looking around everyone for confirmation before walking out the door. Everyone followed, picking up their bags and heading out the door.

Mr Carter led the way up a small forest track that ran through the forest and up into the mountains that surrounded the area.

***

Our group emerged from the forest four hours later. It had been a quiet, subdued trip but it hadn’t been unpleasant. The scenery had been beautiful.
We emerged in a large, flat clearing that housed a campsite. In the middle sat a meeting hall. Beside it, one on either side, sat an eating hall and gymnasium. Small wooden cabins ran around the outskirts of the camp. Mr Carter made his way to the meeting hall and went inside. Everyone followed.
Inside were rows of chairs set up in front of a raised platform that looked like it was used as a stage. Silently everyone took a seat. I copied their actions. Mr Carter walked onto the stage.
“Welcome to Camp,” he said.

I sat on the edge of the bed in my cabin. After the debriefing of camp, I had gone directly to find my room. I would be sharing it with a girl named Emelia but I hadn’t met her yet. I picked up the package that we’d each been given. I ripped it open to see what was inside. I pulled out a timetable, paper and pens, a pack of sweets and a black wristband, lying each on the bed beside me.
I had been told about the black wristband. It held a tracker that we had to wear at all times, for our own safety, in case we went missing. Everyone had one. I clipped the band around my wrist. It fitted perfectly.
I looked up to see a girl come in. She was almost the opposite of me as far as looks went. She had mid-length brown hair, tanned skin and dark brown eyes.
“Hello,” she said. “You must be Selene.”
“You must be Emelia,” I answered.
“You disappeared quickly,” Emelia said. “Didn’t you want to meet everyone?”
“I’ll meet them eventually,” I said.
“I guess you’re right,” she replied, lying down on her bed.

A bell went off signaling our first activity. Camp had begun.

***

We all met in the meeting hall. I counted all the children there. Nine others stood in the room around me. If you counted me, that added to ten.
“Okay, everyone.” A woman stepped on to the stage. “For the duration of Camp, you’ll be split into two teams. In all the activities, you’ll need to work in this team. Every activity you complete well, you will be rewarded a certain amount of points. At the end of camp, the team with the most points will win a prize, and trust me when I say that it is one worth dying for. Right now, we have prepared a few activities so that you can get to know each other. And the two teams are: Isaac, Larissa, Selene…”
I stopped listening at that point. My mind had moved on to other things like what sorts of activities we would be doing and the thousands of possibilities that the prize could turn out to be. My attention was brought back to the task at hand when everyone started moving, trying to find the rest of their team. Emelia called me over to where she was standing with three other children.
“So this is team one?” a boy said.
“I guess we should introduce ourselves to each other if we’re going to work together to win this,” a girl said.
“You think we are going to win?” another boy asked.
“With me on your team? Of course,” the girl answered.
The conversation was stopped by the woman on the stage telling the groups to head to different areas for the first activity. Our group had to meet outside Cabin Six. On the way there, the girl who had been speaking earlier walked up beside me. She was an average girl with light brown hair tied in a long plait that ran down the length of her back.
“You’re a quiet one,” she said to me. She thrust her hand out towards me. “I’m Larissa.”
I took her hand and shook it. “Selene,” I answered.
We came to a stop outside Cabin Six. The other three members of our team slowly joined us. A man was waiting. When we had all finally arrived, he announced our first activity. One of the boys was handed a bag that held all the things we would need. Our activity was to go into the forest and make lunch. We had two hours.
Once we were in the forest, Larissa called a team meeting.
“How do we plan to go about doing this?”
“We could build a campfire out of the wood off the forest floor,” Emelia suggested.
“How would we light it to cook the food though?” one of the boys asked.
“I can manipulate flame so that won’t be a problem,” Emelia said.
“Good then,” Larissa said. She seemed to have elected herself team leader. “We need to gather as much kindling and useable wood as we can find.”
Everyone spread out, trying to gather whatever we could find that would burn well.

Ten minutes later we all met in a small clearing with what we’d found.  Emelia brought all the wood together and built a campfire. She reached into her pocket and brought out a colourful lighter.
“Do you always carry one of those around with you?” one of the boys asked.
“Always,” Emelia answered. “I’d be lost without it.”
She flipped off the lid, flicked the trigger and let the flame bounce into sight. She pushed the flame away from the lighter and let us all see what she could do.

***

We ate our lunch in one of those comfortable silences that always form when everyone is content with the food they are eating. One of the boys sat next to me. He was a short, fair-haired boy who looked about twelve.
“I haven’t met you yet,” he said to me, nudging me and smiling. I knew I was going to like him.
“Selene,” I told him. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Jacob,” he replied. “But I prefer Jay.”
“Jay,” I said, repeating his name. “I like it.”
He smiled. I smiled back. I was liking this team already.

***

Camp went well.  Our team completing our activities quickly and precise. We hardly even saw the other team at all except for meals in the eating hall. I became good friends with Jay and Emelia, who insisted I call her Em, and that she call me Ellie. (She had a thing for nicknames. She would have given Jay one two if he hadn’t have already had one.) I didn’t mind. I liked Ellie. It was a nice nickname, better than those I’d had before.
By the third day of camp, my back was starting to ache. My wings had never been kept closed for so long. I had always had a chance to stretch them, a place where I was by myself, but at camp I was consistently surrounded by people and at night we weren’t allowed to leave our cabins.  I hadn’t had a chance to disappear and go flying. That night, the sensation to go flying was intense. It was like something in me was being pulled outside, towards the sky. I had to obey or I would tear myself apart. I slipped off the black wristband, hiding it under my pillow. From what I had found, Em was a deep sleeper. Getting outside wouldn’t be a problem.
I knew I couldn’t show anyone my wings. I didn’t know exactly why but I knew only bad things would come if people saw them. I had never shown anyone my wings so why would I start now.
I left the cabin at midnight, going to the edge of the forest. I looked above me to where the pull was coming from. A full moon shone brightly above me. Looking at the moon I felt complete. The moment ended and I opened my wings, stretching them wide, relishing the freedom I felt from having them out. The moon shone down over me and I felt natural, like I was where I was meant to be. The pain disappeared instantly. I lifted off, flying over the forest.
As I was caught in the moment, I didn’t see a face watching me from out of a window…

The next morning, I got up feeling better. For having been out all night, I was surprised I wasn’t feeling at all tired. The tugging sensation had ceased but I was afraid it would start again. I slipped the black wristband back around my wrist. According to my tracker, I had never left my cabin.

That day was different to the other days we had spent at camp. In the previous days we had completed activities around the camp within our team. That day we were going off site and completing a competition against the other team. We left the campsite early and walked for an hour down a small bush track to a mountain lake. The site of the lake, as we emerged from the trees, was beautiful. The morning sun hit the water, making the light dance and sparkle across the surface. I was instantly reminded of the lake I had been at a few years earlier, the lake at which I had been found and introduced into the human world.
Like the other lake, this one was surrounded by forest. An empty wharf ran from the shingle covered beach and out into the vast area of water.
Larissa confronted me while we were setting up for the day.
“You don’t look very tired this morning,” she said to me.
“Why would I be any more tired than I usually am?” I asked. I knew why I should be more tired, but she shouldn’t.
“Oh, staying up late might do that to you,” she said.
I was confused. How would she know that I had been up late?
She walked away. I caught a smirk forming on her face like she knew something that I didn’t.
Unless… The horrible possibilities formed in my mind. She wouldn’t know that I had been up late, unless she had been up too. She had looked out of her window and seen me outside last night, which meant that she had seen my wings. The thing that nobody else had ever seen, the thing that separated me out as not being human, the one thing I didn’t want anyone else to ever see. I brought my hands up and rubbed my face, feeling suddenly tired. If she told anyone… I couldn’t even think of the things that could happen. I saw her look in my direction and see my despair. The smirk on her face got even bigger.

The rest of the day was just like the other days we had been at camp. We did activities and races against the other team. In the end we tied, coming up side by side with points. At the end of the day we were allowed some free time. Jay, Em and I decided to walk up to a lookout point over the lake to see the view. It was meant to be spectacular. The climb to the lookout was quite hard, a steep winding slope through the trees. It took us a while to reach it but the view from the top was worth the climb. The lookout had a view of the whole lake. The rippling, sparkling blue surrounded by the mountainous green. Em went right to the edge of the cliff and looked over.
“You shouldn’t walk so close to the edge,” I told her.
“I’ll be fine,” she answered. “You worry too much.”
Jay was about to say something when the section of cliff that Em was standing on, gave way beneath her feet.
One minute Em was there, the next her hands had disappeared over the side screaming.

We rushed to the edge to see Em hanging from a branch jutting out of the cliff two metres down. It was too far for either Jay or me to reach.
“Ellie? Jay?” Em called. “A little help here?”
I looked at Jay. “What do we do?”
“I’ll go get help,” Jay said. “We can’t reach her from here.” He ran to the edge of the trees and disappeared.
“Ellie?” Em called again.
“Jay’s gone to get help. They’ll be here soon. Just hold on.” I answered.
A creak was heard from down the side of the cliff. I watched the branch give way slightly. Em’s hands slipped. She screamed.
I knew I could save her. I knew what I had to do, but I couldn’t do it.
“Help!” she shouted. Her hand slipped again. “Hurry up!”
I felt like I was up against a brick wall. I couldn’t make myself do it. I couldn’t reveal myself and yet it was the only way to save Em. I looked past Em, to the water below, to the rocks that sat around the edge of the water, the rocks Em would fall onto.
Em screamed again.
I didn’t delay any longer. I tossed my jacket onto the ground beside me and ran off the edge of the cliff, leaping into the air. I caught the wind and flew down to where Em hung off the branch.
“Grab hold of my arms,” I said to her as she turned to face me.
She looked me up in down, shocked as anyone would be seeing a girl with six foot wings flying beside them.
The branch slipped again and Em jumped into my arms just as the branch fell away, crashing towards the water below.
With Em safe in my arms, I flew back up and placed Em gently on the ground.
“How did you do that?” she asked, taking in my appearance. I can see why she asked me that; my white hair, pale eyes and wings still fully extended. I quickly folded my wings back down.
“I don’t know.” I answered quietly as I picked my jacket up and put it back on.
“But when did you learn to do that?”
“I can’t remember…” I said, my voice trailing off. I didn’t want to discuss this, not now.
The conversation was ended by a figure coming through the trees.
“I found Mr Carter…” A breathless Jay broke through the trees. His voice trailed off as he saw me standing with Em.
“How did she… She was just…” Jay looked confused as he glanced between Em and the cliff before turning back to me.
Mr Carter emerged from the trees behind Jay.
“Emelia seems fine,” he said, looking at Jay.
“She was hanging off the cliff… over there…” Jay pointed to the cliff. “I wasn’t making it up.”
“I believe you Jay,” Mr Carter said. “The question is how did Emelia get saved?”
“Ellie saved me,” Em said.
“And how did she do this?” Mr Carter asked.
“With her…” Em started.
I turned and stared at her. She couldn’t give my secret away so openly.
‘Please stop talking,’ I thought. ‘Don’t give my secret away.’  She seemed to get my silent message and stopped talking.
“Her…” Mr Carter said, urging Em to keep talking.
“Her… um… I don’t know.” Em finished.
I silently thanked Em. I didn’t want anyone else to find out today. Two was by far enough.
“There’s something you’re not telling me,” Mr Carter said. He paused, stretching out his arms in surrender. “But, if you don’t want to tell me what happened here yet, then you don’t have to. Come and find me when you’re ready to tell the truth.”
He walked back into the forest to begin the walk back down to the lake. Something about the way he had talked to us made me want to tell him the truth, like he had a right to know. Jay and Em followed him, disappearing from view.
Silence filled the air. I wanted to rewind time, to when nobody knew. I, myself, didn’t even know how to answer the questions that were guaranteed to come, like the ones Em had asked. I sighed and began the walk down towards the lake, where the awkward questions and confusing explanations sat waiting. Why was life never easy?

***

 “Selene,” Em called after me as we walked back towards our cabins, having come back from the lake.
“Selene,” she called again when I failed to stop. “Selene, we need to talk.”
I stopped at the door to our cabin and turned to face her.
“Not out here,” I said, looking around us before going inside.
“What are you afraid of?” Em asked following me into the cabin. She shut the door behind her and sat down on her bed. We faced each other, me on my bed and Em on hers.
“What are you afraid of?” she repeated.
I didn’t have an answer. I knew bad things would happen when people found out but how could I tell her that. It was only a feeling, a sixth sense (if I could call it that). She wouldn’t understand. Nobody would.
I looked at my feet, not wanting to catch her eye. I could feel her looking at me, her questions burning a hole in my head.
“You’ll have to tell Mr Carter at some point.”
Silence.
“I don’t know how much longer even I’ll be able to keep this a secret. He has had his eye on me the whole time since I covered up for you earlier.”
Silence.
“I don’t know why you’re so touchy about it anyway. Everyone here has something that makes them a little weird.”
Silence.
“Have it your way.” Em got up and walked to the door. Before she left the room she hesitated and turned around.
“What I was going to say was thank you, you know, for saving my life.” She looked like she was going to say something else but decided against it. She walked out, shutting the door behind her.
I was left by myself like I had been numerous times before. It was less complicated this way. Em didn’t understand. What I had wasn’t something that made me a ‘little weird’; it was something that made me inhuman, a freak, an alien.
I lay down on my bed, crawling under my covers. I couldn’t deal with anymore of this today. I slowly fell into a fitful sleep. It was that night that the dreams began.

A city was burning, burning, falling down around me. I was young again. There was a lot of shouting, crying. The city was familiar. Maybe it had been in one of my dreams before, maybe I had been there. A woman took my hand. She was also familiar but I couldn’t place who she was. She was like me with white hair and pale eyes. She was very beautiful. She took my hand and pulled me away from the window that I had been looking out of. She crouched down on one knee beside me and wrapped a violet-coloured shawl around my shoulders. She said something to me but I couldn’t hear what it was. She looked around suddenly, standing. A frightened look in her eye. She rushed to the window and seeing something, hurried out of the room, my hand still in hers. We ran through the house which had also started to burn. It was a big house. The woman stopped at the front door and looked around again, with the frightened look still in her eye. I looked around too, not sure what we were looking for. The woman went out the front door and pulled me along behind her as we ran down the footpath in the burning city. People were everywhere, some with water, other hurrying children behind them. Men who looked like soldiers stopped the woman in her path, stopping me also. They said something to her, to us, gesturing violently to me. Again I couldn’t make out the words, like I wasn’t actually there. The woman pulled me closer. She answered them back, wrapping her arms around me in a way of protection. I felt scared. I didn’t know what was happening. One of the men pulled the woman off me, taking me from her arms. The soldier’s arms weren’t warm and protective like the woman’s, but cold and armoured. I was picked up around the middle and hauled away. I kicked and screamed, trying to get loose of the soldier’s grip but no matter how hard I wriggle and thrashed about, I couldn’t escape. I could see the woman restrained by the soldiers, trying to reach me. I kicked and screamed harder, trying to get back to the woman. The soldier carrying me turned a corner and I looked back. The last thing I saw was the woman. She had slumped onto the ground, a sign of resignation. Her face looked tired, her eyes full of sadness and pain, as if she had lost her strength to fight. The last thing I noticed were the shiny wet trails of tears running down her face as she looked at me one more time. I didn’t know why but I needed to get back to her.
The dream ended and I woke up. I was surprised to find that tears were running down my cheeks. My dream confused me. Why was everything in the dream so familiar? Like I had been there before. I sat up and looked around the room. A dim light shone out from behind the curtains, not quite making its way into the room. It was silent apart from the sound of Em’s muffled breathing. It was peaceful. There was something about night time that comforted me. Maybe it was the fact I could see in the dark. Darkness provided a cover where I could feel safe, like I could hide away and nobody could find me. At night was the only time where I felt completely in control, like I could do anything, go anywhere, like I could conquer anything that came across my path. But once the sun came up in the morning, I went back to being the silent reclusive girl who didn’t know where she belonged. Movement from the other side of the room brought me out of my thoughts. I realised I had pulled back the curtain and was looking outside. The moonlight was shining in. I was sure that it was brighter than it had been but it was probably just my imagination. I withdrew from the window and closed the curtain before the moonlight woke Em. I lay back down and closed my eyes.

At some point I fell asleep again because I woke up to sunlight in the morning.
The morning went on. I noticed Jay was keeping his distance from both me and Em. It must be because of what happened yesterday. I couldn’t tell him the truth though; I couldn’t tell anyone the truth.
Breakfast was at six AM and our first activity started at seven. Larissa confronted me as we walked over to our first activity. As soon as she stepped in front of me with her lips twisted into a smirk, I knew what she had done. It was written all over her face. Her next words confirmed my greatest fear, “Mr Carter wants to see you.”
She turned around and walked off. The way she was walking showed she was proud of herself.
My heart sank as I turned around and headed towards the meeting hall, to where I expected Mr Carter would be.

I didn’t have to look for long. Mr Carter came to me.
“Selene,” he called out when he saw me walking his direction.
I had an urge to turn around, to run away. One half of me told me to leave now; he would never have to find out. But the other half of me knew that running would only make it worse. It would make it obvious I was hiding something. Maybe I could make him think that Larissa had made it up. She didn’t actually have evidence.
“Is there something you would like to tell me?”
Mr Carter and I stood face to face.
“No,” I answered, looking him in the eyes.
I was instantly filled with a familiar feeling. My mind switched to the first time I met him and the bad feeling that had filled my mind when I looked into his eyes, a feeling I had forgotten. Those were the same feelings I was getting now.
Suddenly images and sounds overcame me and before my eyes I could see the scene that had happened maybe five minutes earlier. Larissa stood in front of Mr Carter telling him everything like we had been taught. Nothing was allowed to be kept a secret. I could see Larissa spilling everything I had spent years keeping secret, hear her voice filling my ears. I had never experienced this before. I sometimes had seen images in people’s eyes but never anything this vivid. The scene changed and I could see Mr Carter sitting at the head of a long table. Men and women sat around it discussing something. I couldn’t hear what was being said but the images on the wall behind Mr Carter were enough. The pictures were of me. Mr Carter pointed behind him and I strained to hear the words being said. A pain filled my head and the pictures began to fade. I clutched my head in my hands and sunk to the ground. Why was nothing making sense? How had I seen those pictures? Had I seen inside Mr Carter’s mind or had I seen the past? Or the future? Mr Carter caught me before I hit the grass.
“Selene?” Mr Carter was asking. “What just happened?”
“Just a migraine,” I lied, straightening up and using one hand to rub my temples. My head still hurt but I didn’t know where the pain had come from.
“Larissa told me that there’s something special about you,” Mr Carter said.
“What did she say?” I asked, avoiding his eyes.
“That you could fly… She had seen you… and your wings.”
His last words hit me and my eyes snapped up to look at him. There it was. He had said it.
“Is it true then?” Mr Carter continued.
I nodded slowly. There was no way to hide it now. My last reaction had given it away.
“Can you show me?”
I found myself nodding again. “Just not here.”

Mr Carter followed me as I walked to the edge of the forest. I checked around me to make sure no one else was looking. I didn’t know why I was being so careful. I was sure once Mr Carter found out, everyone would.
I slid my jacket off my shoulders and it fell in a pile on the leaf-covered ground. My wings sat against my back. I slowly extended them until they were at their full length. I felt strangely naked, standing in front of the one person I had told myself never to show my wings to. Mr Carter circled me, his eyes wide in awe.
“They’re spectacular,” Mr Carter breathed. I couldn’t help but feel proud.
Mr Carter faced me and looked straight at me. “Why have you kept these hidden? Your wings aren’t something you should have to hide. They are something to be awed, to be shown off.”
I looked at him in confusion. No one had ever said things like that to me. No one had ever been in awe of me.
He bent over and picked up my jacket. I folded my wings back down.
“I don’t think you need this,” he said, smiling at me. He looked me up and down one more time and lent over to whisper in my ear. “I knew you were special the moment I found you.”
A smile spread over my face. He turned and walked back towards camp. For the first time in my life, I followed him with my chin up, and my wings in view for everyone to see. I didn’t need to hide them from anyone here. I pushed all the bad thoughts I’d ever had of Mr Carter to the back of my mind. He had just given me back my freedom, a confident freedom. I wouldn’t have to hide again, as long as I was with Mr Carter.

Those small thoughts still niggled at the back of my mind, where I had hidden them away, where I wouldn’t stumble upon them. The thoughts that told me that I had made a bad decision…

By day six of camp the two teams were tying in points. Both teams had taken part in various activities using the skills we had all learned- archery, orienteering, team building, shooting. The adults announced our final activity- the ultimate challenge. This activity should take three days. Both teams would have a base set up in the forest. Three people would be assigned to defend and the other two would attack. The attackers would be given a compass and a map to find the other team’s base. The aim of the challenge was to capture the other team’s flag which would be located in the middle of the ‘enemy’s base.
Each team grouped together. We got to choose who was sent on attack and who stayed behind to defend. I was surprised when the others chose me to be one of the attackers. I guess it was because I was small, agile and fast. The other attacker with me would be Jay. That left Em, Larissa and the final member of our team (whose name I found out to be Isaac) to defend. We were told that the adults would joining in as well. They would roam the forest and if you were caught by one of them you were taken out of the challenge- to a ‘prison’ of sorts. The ‘prison’ would be located in the middle of both bases. Once you captured the flag, you needed to take the flag to the adult base and have the rest of your team meet you at the adult base as well. Our team was given all the things we would need and we were then sent out to find our base in the forest that surrounded camp, but not before we were each handed a paintball gun. If we were hit by someone else’s gun we would be ‘arrested’ and taken to the ‘enemy’s base.

We found the base easily enough. Larissa shared out the gear between us and we added it to the backpacks we had been given. Jay and I were also given bedding and a tarpaulin and rope to make a shelter. Each member of our team also put on a headset so we could communicate with each other at all times. When we were ready to go, Em set our yellow flag flying. Once both flags were flying, the challenge would start and the adults (who also had headsets so they could hear everything that went on) sent out the message to every team member.  That message was sent out very soon after we had raised our flag. Em hugged Jay and I before we set out.
“Good luck,” she said smiling at me.
I hugged her back and I turned to Jay who was waiting for me. We turned around and set out into the forest. Who knew what could happen in the next few days? 

***

The light was fading when we finally called it a day. The last beams of sunlight filtered through the trees hitting the tarpaulin tent we had strung up between trees. The day had been uneventful. I guessed it was because the other team was only starting out as well. We had covered a lot of ground and from looking at the map we had been given we couldn’t be far from the adult base. We would have to be very careful tomorrow if we passed it.
I sat under the cover of the tent where Jay was trying to find something to eat. We couldn’t risk lighting fires so this trip’s menu consisted of cold food. Jay pulled out some bread and cheese and shared it between the two of us.

“Come in, Ellie and Jay. You still okay?” Em’s voice crackled through my headset.
“We’re both fine. How about you?” Jay replied.
“Pretty uneventful here.” Isaac’s voice answered this time.
“Yeah, same. Check back in the morning?”
“Yeah. We’ll do that.”
The line went dead.
“We should probably get some sleep. I have a feeling it’s going to be a long day tomorrow.” Jay said, packing everything back into the backpack from which it came.
I nodded. Night had fallen and outside the tent was now pitch black.
I climbed into my sleeping bag and took off my jacket, rolling it into a pillow. Jay followed my lead. As I lay down, his quiet voice broke the silence around us.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
I sat up and turned to face him. “Tell you what?”
“About your… your wings.” Jay seemed to hesitate at the words, like he couldn’t quite believe it yet.
He continued, “Why didn’t you tell me about your wings? Why didn’t you tell me about what happened with Em on the cliff?”
“I don’t really know,” I started. “There wasn’t really anyway to tell anyone. I mean who would have believed me if I’d gone up to them and said Hey, I actually have wings.”
The edges of Jay’s mouth lifted into a smile.
“I guess so. But on the cliff you could have told me or at least told Mr Carter. Why didn’t you?”
“I didn’t want anyone to know. The fact that even Em found out was bad enough. I couldn’t face more people knowing. I thought everyone would look at me differently. Start distancing me as they have my whole life. I couldn’t bear more solitude when I had just started fitting in and making the first friends I had ever had. But I guess now everyone knows. There’s no turning back. At least I don’t have to hide anymore.”
Jay was silent for a while and all I could hear was the soft rustling of trees and somewhere nearby I could hear a river running through the trees. The soft light that glowed in the tent flickered as a small draught blew past the lantern we had lit.
Jay spoke again, “You should have known none of us would think any differently of you. Those other people never found out who Selene was inside. They only saw the quiet outside Selene I first met. They didn’t see the normal, lovely, smart girl that Em and I have. Wings or no wings, we are still your friends and will stick with you through everything. Good or bad. Everyone here is weird anyway, like Em with her fire habits. That’s what I like about this camp. No one here is a freak. We can embrace our differences. I think you should too.”
I was silent as I thought over what he had said. Something warm came up inside of me. No one had ever told me things like that before.
“Thank you,” I said finally.
“For what?” he asked.
“For helping me believe in myself again.” I replied.
I lay down and tucked my arms under my makeshift pillow.
Before I closed my eyes I saw Jay smile.
“Goodnight Selene.” I heard him say as he blew out the lantern.
If he had said anything else I didn’t hear him because I was already asleep.

***

Another dream came that night.

I was in a large bedroom. I could see the younger version of myself reflected in the mirror I was sitting in front of. My long white hair flowed down my shoulders, standing out against the dark blue dress I was wearing. The woman I had seen in the last dream sat behind me, brushing my hair. She leaned over my shoulder and whispered something in my ear. This time I could hear what was being said.
“I’m so proud of you,” she was saying. “I want you to remember that. No matter what happens I’ll still be proud of you and still love you.”
I smiled at her words and turned to look into her face. I was distressed to see her eyes were red and wet.
“Mamma? What’s wrong?” I heard myself ask.
She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
“I just don’t want to lose you. You mean everything to us. And you look so beautiful today.” She smiled.
I wrapped my arms around her.
“Don’t worry Mamma,” I heard myself speak again. “I’ll be with you forever.”
She smiled again and held my hand in hers. I felt her drop something into my hand and closed my small fist around it.
“I know that Princess,” she said smiling again.
She laid the brush, that she had been brushing my hair with, on the dresser below the mirror.
She stood me up and got me to turn around.
“Beautiful,” she said. “Wait here and I’ll find Papa.”
Mamma turned and walked out of the room.
I remembered that I had something clasped in my hand and slowly opened my fist to reveal a small brown package.
I eased open the wrapping and found a note that sat inside. I recognised my mother’s tidy script.
“To Selene,” It read. “We were going to give this to you on your thirteenth birthday. But we thought now was as good a time as ever. If you are ever feeling alone or scared remember that we will always be there, that we were never really gone. You will always be in our hearts and we hope that we will always be in yours. You are an incredibly special girl and never let anyone make you forget that. Look to this as a reminder and if you never remember anything else, never, ever forget who you are. We will love you to the end of eternity.
Love Mamma and Papa.”
I removed the note and saw that a small locket sat in my hand. I lifted it up, watching as it spun around, dangling on the silver chain. The locket itself was silver with a pair of wings etched into the front. Small words were engraved around the edge reading ‘Fly free forever’. I opened the locket and inside sat two pictures. One was of Mamma and the other was of Papa. I knew his face immediately even though I could never remember meeting him. I clipped the locket shut and secured it around my neck. I looked up as Mamma popped her head around the door. “It’s time to go.” I walked out of the room after her as the dream ended.

I woke up still in the tent. Jay was sleeping beside me. I felt a tear drop onto my hand and realised I was crying again. I wasn’t normally someone who cried but these dreams were making my eyes run every time. It was then I came to the realisation that these weren’t dreams but memories and that made me cry harder. Why could I only remember the tiniest snippets of my childhood? Of my life before Earth? The previous dream made sense now. I knew why I had to get back to the woman, why she was crying, why I fought so hard to no avail. The woman was my mother, my own flesh and blood. I had a real mother and father who had loved me and cherished me and called me ‘Princess’.
The tears were running faster now. What had caused me to lose them not only in person but also all my memories of them? I was only eleven years old but I felt years older, like my whole childhood had been snatched away from me.
I thought back to the last dream or memory, to the locket I had been given, something to remind me of them when we were parted. Where was that now? When I needed it the most? I cried the hardest when I thought back to where I had told my mother that I’d be with them forever, and where the little note told me to never forget who I was. I cried until I didn’t think I had any tears left and then I cried harder still. I had been told to never, ever forget who I was and I had done exactly that.

I fell asleep that night still crying.

The sounds of rustling woke me in the morning. Or at least I thought it was morning because Jay was up, busily packing his belongings. He looked over and saw I was awake.
“We need to get going early if we want to get there by today,” he said. I knew he was right.
I climbed out of my sleeping bag and joined him. I peered outside the makeshift tent. The sun had just started to rise, creeping slowly through the trees. The morning sun gave everything in the area a pink and orange glow.
“Breakfast?” Jay asked.

After another meal of bread and dried fruit, we disassembled the tent and set off.
Shortly after we started walking, I heard a crackle come through the headset once again.
“You still safe?” It was Em again. “We said we’d check back in the morning.”
“Yes, Em,” Jay answered. “We have just started out for a second time. We’ll keep in touch if anything happens.”
“Okay,” Em said. “We’ll do that too. Just make sure you get that flag for us.”
The radio silenced again and we kept walking.

***

We heard the first sounds of other people not long after the sun had risen.
“Shhh.” Jay turned to me, placing a finger to his lips in warning.
We each hid behind a large tree.
“Who is it?” I mouthed. Jay peered out from behind our hiding place.
“Adults,” he mouthed back.
I froze. I didn’t think we were that close yet.
“Where is their base?” I replied.
Jay shrugged as if to say ‘I don’t know’.
We couldn’t keep walking out in the open anymore. We would need a plan.
“What do we do now?” I asked. It was a pointless question. I already knew the answer and Jay did too.  This was where our practise kicked in. Over the duration of the camp we had been doing activities that involved silent movement and sneaking around. We had been taught how to move with the shadows to avoid being seen. This was where we would be able to show off what we had learnt.

We crept out from behind our hiding place. The adults were facing away from us as we darted from shadow to shadow. The morning sun streamed into the area leaving long shadows trailing behind the trees. We were lucky that we were small and nimble. We passed the first set of adults with ease.
We continued walking carefully through the trees, keeping a sharp eye out for anyone else.
More adults were just around the corner and right behind them was their base. Now that would be harder to get past but if we struck now, we could catch them unaware. None of the adults even knew we were there. That was one of the advantages of being a child. We were small and light. It was said that if you got inside the adult base they would reward you with extra ammunition and supplies.
“We have to target the adult base,” I whispered to Jay.
“Are you crazy?” Jay exclaimed, raising his voice.
“Shhh,” I replied. I turned to peer around the thicket of undergrowth that we were crouched behind to see if the adults had noticed. They all still had their backs turned.
“Now or never,” I said.
“I guess it is a challenge after all,” Jay replied.

***

We moved a little closer, taking cover behind a large tree.
“This is where it gets interesting,” I said smiling.
Jay stole a look around the side of the tree. He whipped his head back around, eyes wide.
“You wanted interesting?” he asked me.
“What?” I replied. “What’s wrong?”
“They saw me, they’re heading this way.”
I breathed out slowly. I didn’t need to worry. I knew what I had to do.
The first shot came whistling past. Only just missing us. We couldn’t risk getting shot. Getting shot meant getting caught.
Jay and I grabbed our paintball guns.
“Ready?” Jay asked me.
“Ready,” I confirmed.
We poked our heads around the corner and let loose. For a few minutes, the only sound in the air was the ringing of shot after shot being fired from both parties. The adults taking cover inside the fort and us behind our tree.
“Go now,” Jay said. “I’ll cover for you.”
That was all the assurance I needed. I dashed from tree to tree. I could feel shots being fired after me but I didn’t stay in one place long enough to make a good target. I don’t think they even knew where I was. Every tree I hid behind got me closer to my destination. I had surveyed the area earlier and I was sure my plan would work. They were expecting us to come from the front or the back. What they weren’t expecting was for us to come from the top, to jump through the roof. That was my plan.

I arrived at the tree I wanted. I shimmied up the trunk, sliding hands then feet, hands then feet. I reached the lowest branches and slid my foot out onto one of the branches, testing the weight. I had been right when I had looked at the tree earlier. The branch would definitely hold my weight. I moved onto the branch and swung my legs over the edge so I was sitting over the top of the fort, barely a metre away.  I could see Jay still shooting at the adults. I hoped he wouldn’t run out of rounds. I could see him shooting out from both sides of the tree.
‘Smart boy,’ I thought. He was making them think that both of us were still behind our tree, to confuse them.

It was time to make my move now. I slid off the branch catching it with my hands and dangling down until my feet touched the roof. I gently let go, hardly making a sound. It was probably an unnecessary precaution as the guns were making enough noise on their own. I walked over to the middle of the fort and knelt down next to the skylight. I slid open the skylight and lay on my stomach, poking my head inside. It seemed nobody was around. Satisfied that I wouldn’t get caught, I dropped through the roof. I was in, and right in front of me was cupboards stashed full of supplies. Supplies we needed. I opened my backpack and started to load stuff inside. More food, water and a cash of slug rounds. I zipped up my backpack and looked for a way out. The most obvious way was back through the roof. I knew I wasn’t meant to use my ‘special abilities’ but no one was watching, so I used my wings, getting just enough height to grab the edge of the open skylight and pull myself through. I pulled myself back up onto the overhanging branch and back down the tree. Jay saw me and stopped shooting. The adults noticed that the firing had ceased and cautiously walked over to the tree to find no one there. Jay had already come over to me. We looked back at the confused adults as we ran further into the forest.
“So did you get the stuff?” Jay asked as we ran through the trees.
“Yep,” I said, smiling. “Now we just have to find the other team.”

We had been half walking, half running since we left the adults’ base, trying to cover as much ground as possible. The light had started fading. But from the map, it looked as if we were close. I noticed Jay faltering.
“Come on. It’s not much further,” I urged. I wouldn’t rest until we were near the other base. There was only one day left of the challenge and we needed to get their flag back to our base within that time. I was certain we would be able to do this.
“Please slow down Ellie,” Jay pleaded. “I don’t know how you have so much energy left. Anyway, it’s getting dark. We can’t go very far once the lights gone.”
“There is a way we can,” I said.
“How? It’s not like we can see in the dark,”
“But I can,” I replied.
“What? See in the dark?” He said. He started to laugh as if he didn’t think it was possible.
“Yes,” I answered. “Always have been able to.”
He stopped laughing. “You serious?”
“Yes!” I said, exasperated. “Is it that hard to believe?”
He shrugged. “Well, I guess since you have wings… anything is possible.”
He paused. “So how are we going to make this work?”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” I admitted.
There was silence for a few minutes as we walked while we both though over different strategies.
“I know!” I finally exclaimed. “We’ll use the rope.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll tie the rope between the two of us and I’ll lead you through the dark.”
Jay nodded. “I think that might just work.”

A few minutes later, Jay had pulled the rope from his backpack and we were busy tying it around each other’s waist so we wouldn’t lose each other. I looked around us. The sun had disappeared by now, making the forest dark and the shadows long. I knew that it was dark when my vision changed, as it did every night. It was as if as soon as my eyes were exposed to full darkness, they changed. It was as if my eyes gave off their own light source with which I could see clearly. But then the light wasn’t like Earth’s sun that let you see colour but one that worked in shades and shadows. Blacks, whites and greys. The forest turned into a different world. At night, all my senses came alive. I could think clearer and for some reason I never got tired. Every night I slept, but it was as if I never needed to. The night seemed to rejuvenate me.
We walked through the dark for a long time. The moon continued to rise higher into the sky showing the time that had passed. Jay was walking slower and slower. I could tell he was getting more and more tired. I didn’t know what the time was but I was sure it must have been at least midnight by now.
“Ellie? Can we stop yet? I don’t think I can go on much further. We’ve been walking half the night.” Jay called to me.
“Okay,” I agreed. “But we should start again really early. We only have one day to get the flag to the adult base within a day.”
We decided that we wouldn’t bother with a tent. Instead we just pulled out our sleeping bags and slept on the forest floor.

***

I woke up in the forest. It was still dark but the moon had moved down towards the horizon line. There were only a few hours of night time left.
“Jay.” I shook my team member awake.
“What?” he asked, waking slowly.
“We need to get going. We need to get to the other teams base before morning. I was thinking and if we strike while it is still dark, they might not be expecting us.”
“Alright, but can we have some food first? We forgot to have dinner last night.”
I smiled. It was just like Jay to think about his stomach first.
We both rolled up our sleeping bags and ate some more of our bread. Soon, we set off. We tied the rope around us again since it still wasn’t light enough for Jay to be able to see.
We weren’t walking for long before we saw a light coming through the trees.
“Do you see that?” I asked Jay.
“How could I miss it,” he answered.
“You know what that is, don’t you?”
“The other team’s base,” Jay said. He let out a large breath. “We actually have a chance at winning this.”
I smiled at him. “I knew all along we’d do okay.”
He smiled back. “So how are we going to go about doing this?”
“I guess we’ll just go and take it,” I said.
“That easy?”
“We’ll see.”

We walked closer. This time I noticed that Jay’s steps were renewed. When we got close enough to see that actual base clearly we started to walk slower, quieter. Sneaking and creeping around in the dark. I could make out someone on watch. They had a torch that they were using to swipe the area.
“Do you want to use the same trick you did last time?” Jay whispered to me while we were both stopped behind a tree, only metres away from the base.
“It worked last time, didn’t it?” I replied.
“I’ll keep watch here. Turn your headset on and we’ll talk through that. Go and do what you do best.” Jay said, smiling encouragingly at me.
I crept out from behind the tree. I had to spend a few minutes working out how to get onto the roof, but then I finally saw it. A large tree had a branch that hung over the roof of the base. It was going to be harder than the last time. The branch looked higher and the tree trunk was a lot bigger. I crept to the base of the tree and put my hands against the side of the tree, digging my fingers into the rough bark. I grabbed onto a small knot in the tree trunk and pulled myself up by that. I kept going higher and higher, grabbing onto small knots and branches. Anything that I could use to manoeuvre my way up the tree. I finally got to the branch that I wanted and cautiously slid out onto the branch, making sure that the branch wouldn’t snap under me. I brought out the rope that I had carried up the tree with me and tied it securely around the large trunk. I tested my knot and then moved out along the branch and slowly let myself down the rope. I had to be careful when I hit the roof. The night was so silent and I hadn’t realised before but there was someone on the roof, keeping an eye on the area around the base. I dropped onto the roof as silently as I could and immediately dropped to my stomach. I hoped that she wouldn’t shine her torch in my direction. If the light hit me, I would be a goner. It was one of the downfalls of having white hair; it reflected light like nothing else. While I was sure that the girl with the torch wasn’t looking, I flipped up the hood of my black jacket, hiding as much of my white hair as I could. I was instantly glad that I had brought the jacket with me for the challenge. I slowly moved into a crouching position so I could move towards the flag more easily. I cringed when one of the roof boards creaked as I moved over it. I dropped quickly to my stomach again. Just as a light beam came in my direction. As I felt the light move over me, I was surprised she didn’t see me.
“Did anyone else here anything?” the girl asked her other team members.
“Don’t see anyone,” someone said. “Anyway, none of the other team would be able to see in the dark without a torch or something. We’d see their light.”
“You’re probably right,” the girl said. I felt the beam of light move away from me and I felt myself let out a large breath. I hadn’t realised I had been holding my breath.
“Just keep thinking that,” I thought to myself. I began to move again. I was so close.
I finally arrived at the flag. I pulled it silently from its hold in the roof and began to make my way back to the tree. I could feel the sun beginning to rise slowly. Soon the clearing where the base was would be full of light. I had to move quickly. I pulled myself up the rope and into the tree. It was harder this time with a large flag in my hand. I climbed up onto the branch and hugged the trunk while I pulled the rope up from under me. I undid the rope and tossed the coil of rope over my shoulder. I put the flag under my arm and was about to start my climb down the tree when I heard cries going up.
“The flag’s gone!” I heard the girl cry.
“Weren’t you watching over it?” a boy asked. “That was your job!”
“It was there one minute but gone the next. I only turned around for a second.”
“It can’t have gone far!” someone else shouted. “We have to get it back.”
I heard a crackle through the headset. “Good job, Ellie.”
Then Jay started to talk to everyone else, “The cat’s in the bag. Head to the adult base. Take the flag and keep hidden. We can’t risk our flag getting stolen.”
“Copy that. Well done guys. See you there,” Larissa’s voice.
“I knew you’d do it,” Em’s voice.
I smiled. But my smile quickly faded. I need to get out of the tree before any celebration happened. I looked around. I probably only had a few minutes of half-light left before the sun broke through the trees. I looked around me. I had an idea! I would hop between the trees. I didn’t know if it would work but I had to try. I slid out on the branch, holding onto one of the smaller branches above my head.
When I look back on that day, I don’t know how I actually did it but somehow I got to the ground without any of the other team seeing me. I had moved quite a distance away from the base. I wasn’t sure how I would find Jay.
“Looking for me,” I heard Jay whisper behind me.
I spun around. A smile stretched from cheek to cheek.
“I followed your tree walking. Good effort by the way,” Jay said, also smiling.
“Ready to claim this win?” I asked.
“Definitely,” he answered.

***

We moved quite quickly through the trees. Following the map back towards the adult base. We had to keep a watchful eye out for any of the other team but it didn’t look like they were close to us.
It was midday when we got to the adult base. Our team was already there. From the looks of it, they had basically run. A cheer went up amongst them as we arrived, flag flying high above our heads. Em raised our flag above her head. I couldn’t believe it. We had got there, we had won. A message was sent out on our headsets by the adults.
“Team One. Please report back to adult base. Team Two has achieved a victory.”

“I wish we didn’t have to go,” Em said. It was the last day of camp. We had spent the morning packing up our gear and we had walked back down the mountains to the air strip below, where we were waiting on the tarmac for our planes to arrive to take us home. In the end our team had won Camp. The points from the final challenge boosting our total considerably. For the prize, each member of our team had been the latest model of hunting bow and a quiver of arrows. We also got to choose from a range of sweets and chocolate. In my opinion the two prizes couldn’t have been more different, but I couldn’t wait to try out my new bow once I got home and I’m sure the other children were thinking the same.
“I know the feeling,” I said. “But I’m sure we’ll see each other again.”
“I hope so,” Em replied.

“Time to leave,” Mr Carter called over to me. Our plane had arrived. I turned to Em.
“I’ll miss you,” I said, giving her a hug.
“Me too,” she said, hugging me back.
“Selene!” Mr Carter called again, getting impatient. I picked up my bags and hurried towards the plane, climbing the stairs to the plane’s door. I hesitated at the door. I had never like planes. They seemed so small and made me claustrophobic. I turned to wave to Em one last time but when I turned, she was busy with her guardian. I turned back to the plane, going inside. I wished we didn’t have to fly. I always felt so unsafe. I would fly myself back home and not have to feel constricted the whole way. But I couldn’t. Mr Carter would never allow it.
I mentally pushed all my nervous thoughts aside and walked briskly down the aisle of the plane, finding a seat and stowing my bags. I sat down, readying myself for the trip home. At least I had a window seat and a view.
The plane finally started moving, taking off and flying over the landscape below. I started the countdown until the plane would land at home.

***

It had been three weeks since camp and life had gone on as normal. In some ways, it was better. Now that Mr Carter knew about my wings I didn’t have to hide anymore. I guess it was a renewed sense of freedom. But in other ways, I wasn’t sure. My classes had intensified after Camp. Mr Carter worked me harder in the areas of skills, strength, academic and agility. Mr Carter even trained me while flying, using my wings to my advantage. Before camp, the classes with Mr Carter had seemed to be preparing me for something but I hadn’t realised or noticed. I had thought that they had just been for fun, life skills. But after camp, when the classes had got harder, that was when I had realised that Mr Carter was training me. It wasn’t until another week had passed that everything came together.

It was a Thursday morning. I remember that clearly. I was sitting at my desk in the study. My tutor had just been in for the morning’s lessons so I was looking over my chemistry homework when Mr Carter came in.
“I have important news to tell you,” he said.
“What is it?”
“As a part of my work, a new programme has been established, the Omega programme. Selene, your name has been put forward as one of the leading candidates to start in Omega. For the first part of the programme, all the candidates will live at the Omega training base and be put through their paces in a series of training exercises over a course of three months. After this, the highest achieving candidates will be selected to move into the next stage of the programme, but that will be explained at a later date, once your place has been confirmed, that is, if you get in. I need to know if you are willing to enter the programme. If not, your name will be withdrawn and someone else will be selected.” Mr Carter looked at me, expecting an answer.
I thought over it. It sounded like a good experience, but three months? And then maybe longer? I didn’t know if I wanted to be away for that long. I weighed up all the options. If I didn’t go, would I regret the decision? Would I be making the right decision? It did sound like fun. I would be around a whole lot of other ‘candidates’ who I guessed were other children around my age. I would probably gather new skills as well. Mr Carter was still waiting for a decision. I needed to make mine fast. I finally came to some sort of decision.
“Yes,” I said to Mr Carter, who had been standing patiently and waiting. “I’ll go.”
“Great,” he said. “The programme starts on Monday but the training base is two days away and I thought you would like some time to settle in before the programme gets underway. We will have to leave tomorrow. I’ll give the rest of the day to gather all your things.” He turned and walked out of the study.
I sat there for a long time after he left. Tomorrow? I had one day to pack and say goodbye. Who knew when I would get back? Omega. The word rolled off my tongue. I wondered what it would be like. Would I know anyone? Would anyone from camp be there? Would I like it? Or hate it? I wondered if I would come back here, to this house, and if I did come back, would it be the same? I got up, piling my books into my arms and headed to my room. As I walked I pondered my decision. Had it been the right choice? Was it a good idea to go to Omega? I didn’t know it at the time but I would ponder those questions for years to come, for that one small decision that I had made as an eleven year old had changed my life forever.

That night I had my third dream. It was the same as the first one. Well, mostly...

The city was burning again with the same anguished cries filling my head. The dream played out the same. My mother coming into the room and the two of us running out, down the footpaths of the city. The soldiers came like they had before and started to gesture to me, but something was different this time. I could hear what was being said. It was like I had somehow remembered what had been said that day.
“Give us the girl,” one of the men said.
“No,” Mamma said. “She belongs with me.”
“She belongs with us,” the man said.
“The last place she belongs is with you!” Mamma spat at them.
“You are wrong. She is a Lunair and shall be taken with us. It is for your own safety. We don’t know what she could do. We have our orders.”
Mamma pulled me closer, wrapping protective arms around me. “But she is so young,” Mamma’s voice faltered.
“Orders are orders and Lunairs and Lunairs,” the man replied. “There is no exception, even for… you.” The man looked away. “Take the girl!”
The other soldiers pulled Mamma away from me and roughly carried me away, as I kicked and screamed.
I looked back to see what I had in the first dream. Mamma slumped against the ground, sadness filling her eyes.
The soldier went around the corner and I kicked again, harder, and this time I caught the soldier by surprise. He dropped me and I scrambled away, running around the corner to where Mamma had been. I had to get back to her. But when I got there, she wasn’t there. I looked around quickly to see her being led away by some other soldiers in the opposite direction to me. I started to run after them when the soldier who had dropped me turned up behind me, grabbing me by the collar of my dress and tossing me over his large shoulder. He joined the other soldiers again.
“This one has fight in her,” he said to the others. “Always like to see a little fight in a Lunair. Not many of them have any.” The others laughed at this and they kept walking. I struggled and kicked one more time but it was useless. I wasn’t going to get away again.

I woke up as the dream ended and lay in bed with my eyes open, just staring at the ceiling. I felt frustrated. Sitting up, I dangled my legs off the side of the bed. Why did these memories never give me the answers I was searching for, but only bring up more unanswered questions? It was clear that I was something called a ‘Lunair’ but what was that? What did the man mean when he said ‘Always like to see fight in a Lunair. Not many of them have any’? Is being a Lunair a bad thing? What did it even mean to be a Lunair? So many of these questions swirled around in my head. I got out of bed and threw open my window. I climbed onto my windowsill and jumped, my wings opening up behind me. I needed to clear my head and a flight in the night air always worked. I searched for the largest tree I could find and settled in its branches, wrapping my wings around my small figure. This spot was one of my favourites. The air was always so clear above the forest. It allowed me to think about everything. I didn’t know if I would ever work out who I was. Sometimes I wished I could just be human. At least they knew what they were. Even a bird knew who it was. Then there was me. I didn’t even know how I had got to Earth or even what my parents’ names were. Maybe this new programme, Omega, would be a good start. I sat in the tree, staring at the stars and the moon, breathing in the pine-scented air. I eventually made myself go back to the house. I would have spent all night outside if I could, but I had to get back. I stood up on the branch and flew back to my room, climbing back through the open window. I passed my mirror on the way to my bed. I was still wearing my white silken nightdress and with my wings still half extended, I looked like a creature out of a story book, slightly unreal. I turned around to see the sun had moved higher into the sky, spreading its pink and red light into my room. It must have been about six in the morning. There was no point in climbing back into bed, so I decided to get dressed and ready. Breakfast would be soon anyway and then we would start the long trip to Omega. I was nervous but excited to get there. What would be waiting for me? Would it be good or bad? For some reason I couldn’t wait to find out.

***

The car drove towards the large iron gate. A tall fence ran from the gate, stretching as far as I could see in both directions. The car slowed down until it came to a stop in front of the metal barrier. Mr Carter wound down the window and leaned out towards one of the brick pillars. I saw that a key pad was inserted into the brick and watched as Mr Carter pressed a four-digit code.
“Please state name and reason,” an electronic voice came out from the key pad.
“Drake Carter with Selene Carter, candidate for Omega.”
A few seconds passed before the voice gave us an answer.
“Voice identification verified. Please proceed.”
The gates swung open with a loud clanking sound. Mr Carter wound up the window and moved the car forward. We continued up the long driveway. Trees lined the road, limiting my visibility of the area but from what I could see, this was one massive property.
A minute later, a house came into view. It was a large three story building that could have been at least three different houses all joined together. Mr Carter drove the car around the circular driveway that ran in front of the building, pulling to the side of the drive and parking the car.
He climbed out of the car and came around to my side.
“We’re here,” he said, opening the door for me. I stepped outside, my legs a little wobbly from the long drive. We had been travelling for the past three days and I was glad that we had finally arrived. I didn’t know if I would have able to cope with more hours in a stuffy car, with my wings cramped and squashed against the seat. It was good to stretch my legs and give my wings a little more room to breathe. Even though they were still under my jacket, at least I would be able to stretch them soon. I turned and stared up at the large building. Was that were I would be staying for the next three months? I had thought Mr Carter’s house was big but this building had to be at least twice the size. Mr Carter came up beside me, passing me my suitcase. We walked up the front steps to the door. Mr Carter knocked on the door a few times and the front door of the house opened with a man standing in the doorway.
“Please come in,” he said. “Miss Dunn will be with you soon.”
I followed Mr Carter into the house.
 “Drake.” A woman came towards us. She wore a deep red dress that pooled around her feet like blood. Mr Carter and the woman shook hands. It was obvious they were friends.
“Selene,” Mr Carter turned to me. “This is Miss Dunn. She will be overseeing Omega.”
“It’s wonderful to meet you Selene,” Miss Dunn said, smiling at me.
She turned to Mr Carter, “Why don’t we move into my office?”
Then she turned back to me, “I’ll get Miss Lane to show you to your room to unpack and get settled. Dinner will be at six for everyone who is here. Miss Lane will be able to show you where it is. All the formal introductions and tours will be tomorrow when the programme gets underway.”
Miss Dunn called a young woman over from another room. She looked like she must be in her twenties.
“Miss Lane,” Miss Dunn addressed the woman. “Would you like to show Selene Carter to her room and help her settle in?”
“Certainly,” Miss Lane replied smiling. Miss Dunn smiled in reply before walking off with Mr Carter in the direction of her office. Miss Lane waited until they were gone before looking down at the clipboard she was holding.
“What was your last name again?” she asked, looking up at me for the answer.
“Carter,” I replied quickly.
She looked back over the sheet of names on the clipboard. It didn’t take her long to find my name and room.
“Carter,” she said out loud, tapping the clipboard where she had found my name. She walked off, gesturing for me to follow her. I picked up my suitcase, from where I had left it at my feet, and hurried after her.

My room was the first door down the left corridor on the second floor. Miss Lane showed me to the door.
“My room’s at the end of the hall if you need anything. The candidate sharing your room with you won’t be here until tomorrow,” Miss Lane told me.
“I think I’ll be fine for now,” I said. “I just need to get settled in.”
Miss Lane nodded her approval, walking back down the corridor. I turned around and walked into my room, throwing my suitcase on one of the beds and pushing all the windows wide open. I stuck my head out the window, taking large breaths of the fresh air. The view from the room was of the back of the property. A planted garden lined the edge of the building and some chairs were set out along a stone pathway. A clear area of grass that resembled a playing field lay out across the back of the house. Beyond that was a vast expanse of forest. It was almost like home. I pulled myself back into the room and turned around to take in everything. The room was small but cosy. Each side of the room was furnished with a bed, bedside table and wardrobe, each side exactly identical. The off-white walls were bare and the carpet was a light blue-grey colour. I walked over to the bed I had thrown my suitcase on and sat down, opening my suitcase beside me. I pulled out all my textbooks and writing equipment, placing it in my bedside table drawer. I pulled out the clothing I had brought with me, hanging each item in my wardrobe. I shrugged off my jacket, throwing it on my bed. I stowed my now empty suitcase in the bottom of the wardrobe and walked over to the windows, leaning against the window frame. I turned and made sure that the door to my room was closed before I stretched out my wings. They had been tucked under my jacket for so long; it felt good to let the breeze blow through the feathers.
Someone knocked on my door. I quickly pulled in my wings and turned around as the door opened slightly and Miss Lane stuck her head in. I walked over to her, making sure I kept my wings out of her line of sight.
“Dinner’s about to be served in the dining hall. I’m going to tell Abigail next door and then go to the dining hall if you want to follow,” she told me.
“Okay, I’ll just get my coat,” I told her. She nodded, turning around. I saw her knock on the door across the hall. I closed the door and quickly picked my jacket up off the bed, throwing my arms into the sleeves. If I could prevent people finding out about my wings, I would. I walked into the hallway as Miss Lane brought the girl named Abigail out of her room. The three of us walked in silence to the dining hall.
Dinner went quickly. Everyone sat in a silence. No one wanting to make the first greeting. We would all get to meet each other tomorrow anyway. I headed straight to my room once dinner was finished and slipped out of my t-shirt and shorts and into a loose fitting shirt and pair of trousers. As I crawled under the bedclothes, I looked over at the empty bed on the other side of the room and wondered who would be filling it tomorrow night. Would I like them? Would I know them? These questions were still circling around my mind as I fell asleep.

***

Breakfast was another semi-silent meal. A few people had obviously bonded overnight because there were a few murmured conversations. I went back to my room as soon as I could. I decided that I’d rather be by myself than with a whole group of strangers. The programme was due to start at eleven in the morning. I looked at the clock that hung above the door to the room. It was just past nine which meant that I had two hours to waste. My roommate still hadn’t arrived judging from the empty bed. I decided that I didn’t want to sit around and wait so I left my room and wandered around the building, making my way outside.

I walked around the full perimeter of the house and then the property. No one seemed to mind because no one stopped me. I walked to the edge of the property, right next to the expanse of forest. The trees towered above me but they didn’t make me feel small. They made me feel at home. They reminded me of the forest around Mr Carter’s house. I climbed over the fence that separated the property from the forest and walked over to a tall tree, one that was good for climbing. I was about to start the ascent up the wide tree trunk when light ricocheted off something buried in the dirt at my feet, hitting my eyes and grabbing my attention. I inspected the ground where the light had bounced from to see a small metal object poking out of the soil. I crouched down on my knees and dug at the dirt around the object. I got my fingers underneath it and pulled at it. It was a little silver chain attached to something. But whatever it was attached to was still under the dirt. I continued to dig away at the dirt, pulling at the chain to try and dislodge whatever it was attached to.
The dirt finally gave way and I could tell that the object was a necklace. A silver chain with a circular pendant swinging from it. I wiped my thumb against the dirty metal to reveal a silver surface. A picture was engraved into the metal but I couldn’t make out what it was. I would have to wash the dirt off before I could find out what the picture was of. I pocketed the necklace and stood to my feet, dusting the dirt off my hands.

I walked back in the direction of the fence, climbing over the top and walking across the property and back to the house. Miss Dunn owned a massive estate and from what I could see, there wasn’t a neighbour in sight. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she owned all the surrounding properties as well. I made my way up to my room and opened the door. A girl was standing by the other bed, unpacking her suitcase. My roommate had arrived.
“Hello,” I said as I came in and stood beside my bed. I was sure I recognised this girl from somewhere but I couldn’t see her face. She turned around about to introduce herself when we linked eyes. A smile instantly spread across her face copying my exact expression. I couldn’t believe it and I don’t think she could either.
“Ellie!” she exclaimed, letting the shirt she had in her hands drop to the floor. She moved quickly across the room and gave me a big hug.
“Em!” I said, as I returned her embrace. I stepped back. “It’s so good to see you. I didn’t expect that we would be roommates.”
“I know. It’s the last thing I expected. I thought I would be with a stranger and then I turned around to see you,” Em replied.
Judging from the expression of excitement on her face, I was surprised that she didn’t start leaping up and down where she stood. I wouldn’t have minded if she had. I would have joined her. I just couldn’t believe my luck. I had been given my best friend as a roommate.

It was eleven in the morning. All the candidates and the guardians had congregated in a large room that had been set up to make an assembly hall. I sat next to Em amongst all the other candidates. All the adults stood around the back of the hall.
Miss Dunn stepped up onto a raised platform at the front of the hall that acted as a stage.
“Can everyone at the back hear me?” she called across the room. I was surprised at how far her voice carried in the large space.
The children in the back row of seats nodded and waved their thumbs in the air to show that they could hear Miss Dunn clearly.
“I’ll get started then,” Miss Dunn said smiling. “Welcome to the first section of the Omega programme. For those who have not met me, my name is Miss Dunn. I will being overseeing the whole programme. First I will go over some housekeeping, then I’ll pass you to Mr Carter. When you arrived either yesterday or today you were given a room. This will be your living quarters for the next three months that you are with us. We will have routine room checks every now and then, so keep your room tidy and your bed made. The boys are on a floor in the west wing and the girls are on one in the east. Under no circumstances should a girl be found on the boy’s floor and the same goes for the boys. Here at Omega, we believe that phones or electronic devices are just distractions. We ask that all phones, laptops or any other devices you brought with you to be handed in to your floor warden at some point today. He, or she, will have a box to collect them in. If you do need to send an urgent message to your guardian or caregiver, we do have a landline that you can use. Otherwise, you will be able to collect your items for use on Sundays. Also, if you have problems or questions about anything at Omega, you can ask your floor warden. For the girls, you can talk to Miss Lane and for the boys, your man to go to is Mr Rodgers.
 As we will have training classes at Omega, a training uniform will be provided for you that will allow you to train comfortably.  At Omega, the same daily routine will be maintained from Monday to Saturday. You will be expected down on the training field at 6 am sharp. When you wake up to be able to be ready in time is up to you. Everyone will be put through an exercise regime until 7, when breakfast will be served. During the day there will be four two hours slots with a lunch break in between. Lunch will be at 12pm. Your individual timetable will determine whether these slots will be training or academic classes. Your timetable will also let you know where your class will be held. These classes will be finished by 5pm. You will be given an hour of free time to relax after class before dinner is ready at 6. We ask that you don’t wear track pants or training gear to dinner. After dinner, you have free time until you need to be in your rooms at 8. Lights out is at 8.30pm. 
On Sundays though, the daily routine will be a different story. Breakfast will be served later at 8am to allow everyone a little longer to sleep in. You will then have a whole day free to do whatever you would like to. Other meals and curfew will be at the same times as the rest of the week.” Miss Dunn finished talking and looked over a piece of paper in her hands. Coming to the conclusion that she had nothing more to say, she looked back up at the attentive audience and introduced Mr Carter to the stage.

“Today, three months from now, everyone will be sitting in this same hall being spoken to by the same people. What will be different is that each of you will have gained new skills, extra knowledge in multiple areas and an increased fitness ability. I know most of your stories, your backgrounds and I know that most of you didn’t have the happiest childhoods. You don’t think you’re anything special. But believe me when I say this; you are incredibly special. You are unique, set apart even. Omega presents an opportunity to everyone here. An opportunity that isn’t given to just anyone. You were handpicked for this programme and there is no mistake that you are here. In three months’ time, another opportunity will present itself. An opportunity to move into the next sector of the Omega programme. Thirty-two candidates will walk through those doors, but only eight will move into the next sector. The candidates who perform their very best in all areas of the programme and get the best results in their examinations. Those will be the candidates who move through. And I assume that everyone here wants to be one of those candidates. So I will give you a tip; work to the best of your ability and use your time wisely. You never know if you’re being assessed,” Mr Carter told the assembly. He glanced down at his watch and continued speaking, “Right now, we’ll split into four groups of eight for a tour of the grounds. The candidates sitting in row one can go with Miss Tomas…” A woman standing at the back, who I presumed was Miss Tomas, waved her arm in the air to alert her group to where she was. Mr Carter continued speaking, giving the groups instructions. Row two was to go with Miss Dunn, row three with Mr Rodgers and row four with Mr Carter. Em and I were in row two so we would be following Miss Dunn. At Mr Carter’s request everyone stood up and filed along the rows of chairs and towards their chosen teacher or trainer. 

***

“…and here we have the training grounds…”
For the past half an hour Miss Dunn had walked our group around the large estate. First we had been shown through dining hall, the candidate lounges, the classrooms, the library, the gym, the study hall and the nurse’s office. Then the group moved outside where we were shown the swimming pool, the tennis courts, the playing field and the archery and shooting range. The last place on the tour was a large grass area next to the playing field that Miss Dunn introduced as the training grounds. That was where we would meet every morning for the exercise regime and also for a few classes. Eventually the tour came to an end and we were allowed back to our rooms for an afternoon off. The programme would start first thing in the morning. We would be given our timetables and our training uniform when we went for dinner.

As I sat down on my bed, I felt something hard press against my leg. I reached my hand into the pocket of my shorts and pulled out the muddy necklace. I had forgotten all about it. I walked back out of the room and down the corridor to the bathroom. I was glad the bathroom was empty. I didn’t want anyone asking questions about where I had found the necklace. I hadn’t even been allowed across the fence. I placed the locket under the running water and watched as the now muddied liquid swirled down the drain. With a bit of rubbing, the mud came off completely. I was surprised to see that the metal hadn’t been rusted or damaged from the dirt it had lived in. I turned it over and saw that a picture was etched onto the small surface. My hand flew to my face, covering my mouth as a gasp escaped. The door opened and a girl walked into the bathroom. I quickly shoved the necklace back into my pocket and walked back to my room. Em still wasn’t there so I sat down on my bed and took a closer look at the necklace. I didn’t know why but I didn’t want anyone seeing it. I ran my finger over the small pair of wings imprinted onto the metal. Those small words were there as well, exactly how I remembered them. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Was this a cruel trick or did I really hold the lost locket in my fingers?  I clipped the locket open and my gaze fell on the two small pictures inside. Mamma and Papa’s faces as clear as day. My eyes watered slightly and I blinked back the tears that threatened to escape down my cheeks. I remembered Mamma’s words when she had given me the locket, “Look to this as a reminder and if you never remember anything else, never, ever forget who you are”. I had found the locket Mamma had given me. Since I had arrived on Earth, I had wondered who I was and now for the first time I had something to go off, proof of where I came from, who I was. It was evidence that the dreams I had were real. My mind wasn’t just making things up. I ran my fingers over the wings again. It gave me hope. I would find out who I was, and somehow my necklace held a key to solving the mystery. I secured the locket around my neck, tucking it under my t-shirt so that only the thin silver chain could be seen. As I walked out of my room to see if I could find Em, one question niggled at the back of my mind. How had my locket found its way to Omega?

5:30 am. The alarm Em had set cut through my deep sleep. The beeping alarm continued to assault my ears as I threw off the covers and rolled out of bed. I was not a morning person. Em finally woke up, turning her alarm off. I rubbed my eyes and stood up, reaching for the pile of clothes that I had noticed sitting, folded in a neat pile, on my bedside table. They hadn’t been there when I had fallen asleep so I assumed that the pile was our training uniform that Miss Lane had said she would deliver. I looked over and noticed an identical pile on Em’s table. I unfolded the clothing, looking at each item. There was a plain black t-shirt, a pair of loose black trousers, a pair of loose black shorts and a black jumper. It looked like the trousers and jumper were for training in the colder weather, seeing as we would be out early in the morning and it was coming up to winter. I changed out of my pyjamas quickly and slipped on the t-shirt and shorts. I found my sneakers in the bottom of my wardrobe and put them on, lacing them up. Em mirrored my actions, both of us silently preparing for the day ahead. Soon, we were both ready and I headed for the door.
“Ellie,” Em said, her quiet voice making me stop in my tracks. “You forgetting something?”
I spun around, looking around the room to work out what I had left behind. I became confused. Everything was neat. The bed was made and my clothes were tidied away as Miss Dunn had instructed.
Em saw my puzzled expression. “Your wings, Ellie,” she said quietly. I looked behind me and sure enough, stretched half open behind me were my wings- in full view for others to see had I walked into the hallway. My hand flew over my open mouth. It had felt so natural to have them open. I had spent weeks not worrying about my appearance that I had temporarily forgotten that nobody at Omega knew about my wings yet. I couldn’t believe I had been about to walk around Omega with them in everybody’s sights. I would have to be more careful in future.
“Thank you, that was really close,” I said to Em.  Em smiled. She waited while I found the jumper that had been given to us and slipped it on. Making sure my wings were covered this time, Em opened the door of our room and we made our way to the training grounds together.

***

Our first morning of Omega started at exactly six o’clock. All thirty-two candidates ready to start. From the beginning it was clear that every aspect of Omega was to be taken seriously. A man by the name of Mr Wood would run our morning exercise programme. He was a small man but made up for his lack of size with his voice. It was a loud, deep voice that resonated through every person on the training grounds. Every order was understood clearly and obeyed at once. For the full hour every candidate was put through their paces; stretching and running and jumping. It was hard but satisfying work and by the time Mr Wood blew his whistle to announce that the hour was up, everyone was worn out, walking silently to the dining hall to have a well-earned breakfast.

At Breakfast, we were given our timetables. Everyone would be taking the academic subjects of Physics, Mathematics, English, Chemistry, Engineering, Computering, Linguistics and Drama. We would also be trained in Self-Defence, Outdoor Survival, Stealth and Agility, First Aid and Weapons Handling. There was also a class labelled ‘Special Ability’ on my timetable. I didn’t know what it was but I had it once a week. I guessed I would find out soon enough. All the classes circulated on a weekly timetable. Our first class of the day would run from 8 until 10 and the next from 10 until 12. Lunch was before the third class which started at 1 and continued until 3 and the last class went from 3 until 5.
Each class had eight students/candidates in it. This meant that you got a lot more done in each class and there was a lot of one-on-one teaching. Even though the classes were small, everyone seemed to keep to themselves, only focused on completing what the teacher or trainer had asked. This suited me fine as I was used to solitude during my studies.

That first day I had Chemistry, Mathematics, Drama and Self-Defence. I found that the group of candidates I was with changed for every class. I was disappointed to see that Em wouldn’t be in any of those classes with me. At least I got to see her for our lunch hour and then once classes were finished.
At 5, when my last class had finished for the day, I went back to my room to change out of the training uniform that I had worn for Self-Defence. Em wasn’t there when I arrived. I had hoped she would be there so I could discuss everything with her. Most of all I wanted to compare timetables, to check if we had any classes together. I really hoped we had at least one. When I was dressed, I went to find Em. I found her sitting in one of the candidate lounges talking to another girl.
“Hey Ellie,” Em looked over as I walked in. “Come sit down.”
The candidate lounge was one of two rooms that acted as rec rooms- rooms where candidates could go to relax or hang out with the other candidates. In each there were a few couches, a television and either a pool table or a table tennis table depending on which lounge you were in. This lounge had a pool table.
“This is Mackenzie. Mackenzie meet Ellie,” Em introduced the other girl to me as I sat down on the couch beside Em.
“Nice to meet you,” Mackenzie replied smiling. I smiled back. Mackenzie was a small girl with light chestnut hair tied back into a short pony tail. She wore a loose t-shirt and track pants, sitting cross-legged on the couch. The relaxed air that surrounded Mackenzie made me like her instantly.
“This may seem a little forward,” Mackenzie said, addressing me. “But what is your power?”
“What do you mean?” I queried.
“You know, a power, a ‘special ability’? Everyone here has one,” Mackenzie told me.
“How do you know everyone has one?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“Because if I’m around someone who has a power, I can sense what it is and mimic it. Like for instance, I know that Emelia here can control fire,” Mackenzie replied.
Em looked shocked but didn’t say anything.
“Shouldn’t you be able to sense what my power is then? If you can sense everyone else’s?” I inquired.
“That’s the problem,” Mackenzie said. “I’ve been trying to sense your power since you came in but every time I come up blank. I’ve never sensed anything like when I’m around you.”
“What makes you think I even have a ‘power’?”
“I know someone with powers when I see one and I have a strong sense that there’s more to you than meets the eye,” Mackenzie answered.
I said nothing in reply. There wasn’t anything more to say. I definitely wasn’t about to tell her just how right she was.

Someone shakes me awake. A girl crouches beside my bed. She couldn’t have been more than a few years older than me. She looks familiar but I cannot name her.
“We have to go,” she tells me. “We don’t have much time.”
I sit up, half awake and let the girl help me pull a warm coat over my nightgown and put my shoes on. I notice that the girl has wings like mine, half open behind her. She grabs my hand and leads me out of the room. It’s dark but that doesn’t worry me. I can see through the darkness. I assume that the girl can also see in the dark because the darkness doesn’t stop her. We move briskly through multiple passageways and rooms. I hear a few gun shots go off in the distance. I don’t know how close they are to our position but they scare me. I think they scare the girl too, because she pauses. 
“They’re here,” she murmurs to herself, fear in her eyes.
“Who’s here?” I ask quietly. The girl doesn’t answer. I don’t think she heard me.
A woman comes running around the corner. She stops when she sees us. This woman also has wings which makes me think that everyone here does.
“Come with me,” she tells us. A panicked expression passes over her face. “We have to get Selene somewhere safe before it’s too late.”
“What’s happening out there?” the girl asks.
“We’ve been surrounded. I don’t know how they found us but they’re here now. Ace’s team has been holding them off so far, they’re starting to break through our defences. I don’t know how much longer we’ll be able to last against them.”
I didn’t know who ‘they’ were, but somehow I knew they had come here for me and that they wouldn’t be leaving until they had me in their sights.
Another set of gunshots go off. They are louder this time- closer to our position. The girl and the woman both turn their heads toward the sound. The battle that was taking place is moving towards us. 
We start running again. The woman leading the girl and I down corridor after corridor, going further and further down through the complex. The building is confusing with its endless corridors of windowless walls and closed doors. If I hadn’t been being led around, I would have gotten lost a hundred times over. I don’t know how the woman manages to navigate all the identical twisting passageways. There is no light in any of the corridors that we pass through, which is a lot different to what I have grown used to on Earth where the humans make light everywhere. The people I am with don’t seem to need any light to go anywhere. I suspect that everyone here is like that, like me.
We eventually stop outside a large metal door. Bringing a key out of her pocket, the woman unlocks the door. The door opens inwards automatically, displaying a large room. Glancing behind and around us, the woman ushers the girl and I into the room. The door swings shut behind us, locking as it closes. The room that we have come into looks like someone’s living quarters. A man sitting behind the desk looks up when we walk in. It must be his room. He stands up and walks over to the woman. “Yvette,” the man says, greeting the woman warmly. They must be friends.
“We need to talk,” Yvette states.
The man nods. He turns to the girl and tells her that she can get us both something to eat from the kitchen. The girl gets me to follow her and we walk into the little kitchenette that comes off the room like an ensuite. The girl finds us both a small biscuit. We don’t want anything bigger. Neither of us are very hungry.
I can hear the two adults arguing with each other. I can’t hear every word they are saying but I know they are arguing over what to do with me. Yvette wants to use something called ‘the tunnels’ to smuggle me out of here but only the man knows how to open the entrance to it and he thinks that it’s too risky. They are arguing about how little time we have to get me somewhere safe, about where I could go if I left here, about how they haven’t prepared properly for an attack like this and about how they have to keep me away from ‘them’. For some reason, these people want me desperately and from what I can hear they wouldn’t hesitate to kill to get to me. The man eventually, and somewhat reluctantly, decides he will open the tunnel for Yvette.
The man walks over to where a bookshelf lines the wall. He pulls a book halfway out of the bookshelf. It must be the trigger to open the doorway because a mechanical grinding noise fills the room as the wooden bookshelf slides away from the wall, revealing an open passageway- the tunnel. Yvette goes through first, thanking the man as she walks into the opening. I follow her and the girl follows me. The man closes the door behind us, the bookshelf grinding across the floor noisily as it slides back into its original position. Yvette tells me the plan as we walk through the silent passageway. I think it is more for her comfort than my need to know. The tunnel is making us all nervous and her voice filling the air around us makes everyone feel a little better. I can see why the man had thought that the tunnel was a risky path to take. If ‘they’, who I assumed were an enemy, found us in here, there would be no escape, no exit. Because of this, we move quickly through the tunnel.
“At the end of the tunnel,” Yvette explains. “There should be a house. I have sent word ahead of us so the small team of people who live there should know we are coming. A shuttle has been prepared for us to leave in. It will take you someplace safe, where they shouldn’t…”
Suddenly voices can be heard behind us. Yvette stops speaking mid-sentence. We can only guess who have followed us into the tunnel. I can’t work out how they have managed to get in though. Worst possible scenarios run through my head and I remember what the man had said. That these people would kill to find me. I push the possibilities out of my mind and focus on what we have to do right now. We have to run.
The tunnel’s floor starts to slope upwards and soon we find ourselves at a small room at the end of the tunnel, a dead end. We look around for options. A ladder runs up one side of the room, into the roof. We are lucky we have managed to get a large head start, otherwise we would be in their hands by now.
Yvette directs the girl to climb the ladder first. The girl does as she is told and pushing her hand against the roof, opens a piece of the roof, like a trapdoor. She goes through the gap quickly and I clamber up after her. Yvette stays behind a little longer making sure that we get all the way up safely before she follows. We climb into a house like Yvette said we would. A man and a woman rush to help us when they notice us climbing through their floor. As soon as Yvette has come through the trapdoor we warn them about the people following us. They quickly lock the trapdoor to buy us some time. We are ushered through the house to a massive shed of some sort. A strange, large vehicle sits in the middle of the room. I am told that it is the shuttle that will take the three of us somewhere safe. A loud explosion can be heard from back in the house. The adults look at one another. Everyone knows what is happening without having to say a word. The people who are in the tunnel are trying to blast the trapdoor open. Soon they will succeed. The urgency surrounding the situation intensifies as everyone works even harder to try and get the shuttle ready for take-off. The adults from the house move to the back of the shed, opening a weapon’s cupboard. They pass around guns and ammunition to arm themselves for when the enemy breaks through the trapdoor. One of the adults quickly explains that the shuttle is on autopilot so we won’t have to do any steering. He explains how the shuttle will work and about the pre-set coordinates telling the shuttle where to go. Another explosion rocks the house. Smoke comes out of the lounge, where the trapdoor was and I can picture the whole room on fire from the explosion. One of the adults runs to a control panel on the other side of the shed and starts the take-off sequence. People emerge from the house before we have time to get inside the shuttle. The trapdoor has been blown open and those people down there are now up here. They begin shooting at the group protecting us. Everyone ducks for cover. The enemy is advancing. The entrance to the shuttle is about two metres away from where I hide with the girl and Yvette. We only have a short window to get to the shuttle before the enemy completely cuts off the entrance. We run from behind the shuttle to try and get to the open doorway. We won’t make it.
“Get inside the shuttle!” Yvette yells at the girl and I. “I’ll hold them off.” She provides the chance we need to run inside. The girl follows closely behind me.
“Come on Yvette,” I yell. “You can still make it.”
“Just go,” Yvette yells back. “Leave while you can.”
I don’t want to leave her there to face the enemy alone. She senses my hesitation.
“Leave me! Stay safe and stay alive. If you die, they win,” she tells me, a determined look written across her face.
I know I won’t be able to change her mind. The door of the shuttle closes and the shuttle starts to rise into the air. I watch out a window at the chaos taking place below. Yvette and the other adults have managed to pick off many of the enemy but more keep coming. As the ground and the house are left behind, I see the enemy start to target the shuttle. A few shots get lucky and hit the shuttle. The girl and I are thrown around inside. We scramble to find a seat and buckle ourselves in. I look out the window again. Flames and smoke pour from the house, the enemy the size of black ants stand in groups outside. No one is picking them off any more so I can only fear the worst. Everyone on the ground is dead, taken out by an enemy’s fatal bullet. A red light flashes on the control panel. Something is wrong with the shuttle. By now the shuttle is out of the enemy’s range which means the girl and I aren’t being thrown around as much inside. The girl manages to leave her seat and find out what the red light is saying. She turns off the red light and gives me the bad news. The navigation system of the shuttle was hit by the enemy meaning the co-ordinates that were set by the house members have been destroyed. The shuttle is now veering off course to an unknown location. The girl doesn’t even know if the shuttle will take us anywhere anymore. I look out the window one more time as the ground disappears from beneath us and clouds cover our view. The girl and I sit back down and buckle up, hoping that we will end up somewhere safe, if we end up somewhere at all.

I woke up. It was night time. Em was sleeping in the bed across the room. I wasn’t on the shuttle any more. The girl wasn’t beside me. That had all been a dream, a memory. I couldn’t remember every detail that had flowed through my mind as it remembered the tragic events of that day but I could remember that day now. Well, most of it. My memory was cloudy around what had happened after that. We had ended up on Earth but what then? What had happened to the girl or the shuttle? How come I had ended up alone? And who had those people chasing me been? I felt frustrated at myself and strained to remember but no matter how hard I tried my mind stayed blank. I noticed that my fingers had moved to my neck and were fiddling with the locket. It had become a sense of security, something to link with the memories of home, if I could call it that. I got out of bed and moved to the window. I didn’t think that I should go flying tonight, not after having just arrived at Omega. I feared that someone might notice. But at least I could stand in front of the open window, soaking in the moonlight that came through the now open curtains. The moonlight cleared my mind, eased my worries. I felt that soon my past wouldn’t be a mystery any more. I was remembering more and more. Maybe it wouldn’t be much longer until I could remember everything.

By week two, I had settled into the routine at Omega. The early morning exercise programme became easier as we got fitter and the classes were hard but fun. Every night we would be so worn out from the classes and training sessions that we would have dinner and go straight to bed. My favourite class was outdoor survival. We learnt everything from making a fire to building bivouacs. Being outside every lesson was as close as I got to flying but just being in the fresh air was enough. I don’t know what I would have done being inside all day, every day.

As there were only thirty-one other children at Omega, we all got to know each other fairly quickly. Of course not everyone was best friends with each other, but at least we knew everyone’s name. I soon found out that while on the outside the other children appeared friendly, the reason we were here was always at the back of their minds, mine included. It was a competition, and nobody let you forget it. I did manage to make some friends, even with the competition always looming over us. The first friend I made was Mackenzie. Even with our first, rather strange, conversation, Mackenzie and I got on really well. As she knew I wasn’t going to tell her what my ‘power’ was, she didn’t ask again. Kelsey joined our small group of friends shortly after Mackenzie had. Kelsey was Mackenzie’s roommate and the two of them had become fast friends. They were both easy-going and fun to hang out with. Mackenzie, Kelsey, Em and I spent nearly all our free time together. The fifth person who joined our group was Jay. I had encountered Jay on the sixth morning of Omega, as I was entering Linguistics- a class that I found out we shared. It was a welcome surprise to find that both my friends from Camp- Em and Jay- had joined the Omega programme. We worked out that as the boys and girls were separated for basically everything, it was no surprise that we hadn’t bumped into each other before then. The last person who joined our group was Luke. He was Jay’s roommate and it seemed that every pair of roommates across the whole of Omega had become friends. Everyone seemed to come in twos. Another thing I found out was that nearly every candidate at Omega was an orphan, adopted or one of their parents was one of the guardians or a staff member. This was one of the facts that brought us all together even closer.

It turned out Mackenzie was right about ‘Special Abilities’ or as she liked to call them ‘powers’. Everyone did have a power of some kind. We weren’t meant to use them around the school so unless someone told you their power, you didn’t really find it out. There were a few candidates that couldn’t hide their powers though. A girl named Michelle was one of them. She was completely blind but if you glanced at her you couldn’t tell. Kelsey told me that Michelle had ‘enhanced senses’ helping her to do everything that others could. What surprised me was that she didn’t just do what everyone else did, she went further. Even in the self-defence classes, which other candidates found hard, she excelled. Not being able to see the opponent, or anything for that matter, didn’t hinder her in the slightest. Another candidate’s power which became known belonged to a boy named Benjamin. He had the power of a photographic memory. But it wasn’t like most ordinary photographic memories, because if Benjamin saw, heard or read something, he never forgot it. This ability was most obvious in Linguistics when he could pick up entire languages in about three days while the rest of us struggled to memorise all the new words.
What I found the best about Omega was that, when somewhere else these abilities would have been strange, alien and even sometimes outcast, at Omega nobody gave strange happenings any thought but viewed them as normal. Everyone was seen as equals.
I found out what the ‘Special Ability’ class on my timetable was by the end of the week. It was a timeslot where we worked with our powers, learning to control them and ultimately get stronger. I worked with Mr Carter, mostly with my wings. I was glad that he had been assigned as my tutor. I didn’t want anyone else to find out about my wings. My ‘Special Ability’ class became one of my favourites. It gave me a time to stretch my wings and fly. I somehow managed to only let Mr Carter find out about a few of my abilities. My wings being one of them, my night vision being the other. I don’t know why but I didn’t feel I should tell him of the last one. My mind sight- at least that’s what I had come to call it. Nobody knew about that ability of mine and if I could help it, nobody would. I could feel it getting stronger though. Only slightly, but it was getting stronger nonetheless. I used to only see things occasionally when I looked into someone’s eyes, something little or insignificant, but now it was all the time. I would also see more than I had before. But I didn’t want this to happen. It was like going inside the other person’s head, a secret place that I wasn’t meant to enter. So far I had avoided seeing anything I didn’t want to but I began to avoid eye contact with everyone, just in case the next time it happened, I went somewhere that I didn’t want to.
 

Thirty two children sat in the assembly hall, murmuring between themselves. Miss Dunn stepped onto the stage and silence fell. A scene that replicated the one that had taken place three months earlier. Anticipation filled the room. After three months of intensive training, this was the announcement that would secure our place in Omega. That would make all the hard work we had done pay off. Everyone wanted this but everyone knew the chances. Everyone was aware that they might not be chosen, that they might not have done enough, that they might be leaving Omega. I sat between Em, Mackenzie, Kelsey, Luke and Jay, the six of us waiting nervously for the assembly to begin. I thought about how close the six of us had become and couldn’t help smiling. I remembered back to our final examination, the test that would secure our place, the test that meant everything. Thirteen different stations were set up around the school, one for each subject that we had studied over the three months. We had half an hour for each exam. There were the written exams of Physics, Chemistry, English, Mathematics and Linguistics; Practical exams for Computering, Drama, First Aid, Outdoor Survival, Stealth and Agility, Self-defence and Weapons Handling. Although some of the written papers were quite boring, the practical exams were exciting. In each we were given scenarios that we had to unravel and solve in the half hour we were given. Each individual test was graded and the total scores were added up at the end. No one had been told their final result. That was probably what made people the most nervous, no one knew where they ranked in the whole scheme of things.

My attention was brought back to the assembly by Miss Dunn starting her speech. “Welcome. As you all know, today is Graduation Day. All of you have tried your hardest to secure a placing but sadly, we can only take eight of you. When I read out the names, I don’t want anyone to leave here upset if your name isn’t called out. You should be proud of yourselves. You have managed to master numerous skills during this three month programme from speaking another language to learning self-defence, and I hope that you can take something away from this. Also because this programme has been more successful than we had expected, Mr Carter and I have decided to run the programme again next year. This means that there will be an opportunity for all of you to re-apply for the programme.
With that said, I know you are all eager to know the results so I will move quickly to the next section of this assembly. If your name is called, could you please come up onto the stage?” There was a slight movement in the room, as everyone shifted forwards, leaning towards Miss Dunn as if they were scared that by being further away, they would miss the announcement.”
“The candidates going through to the next section of the Omega programme are Benjamin Freeman, Noriaki Toyama…”
Excited murmurs went up around the room, friends congratulating each other on the placement.
“Jacob Wilson, Luke Chapman…” Jay and Luke looked at each other, a smile breaking out across their faces. We all congratulated them quietly as they walked past us. I watched the stage as Miss Dunn shook hands with each candidate as they walked onto the stage.
“Skyla Robinson, Emelia Thompson, Selene Carter and Michelle Beaumont…” Em and I looked at each other and smiled, just like Jay and Luke had done previously. Mackenzie and Kelsey patted me on the back as I walked past them to join the others. Miss Dunn shook my hand as I took my place next to Em. I looked down the row of candidates. Luke, Jay, Em and I had all made it into the next stage of Omega. I couldn’t believe it. All the hard work I had put in had paid off. Applause erupted around the assembly hall. Miss Dunn paused until the clapping died down before continuing, “Congratulations to the eight who made it through and to the rest of you for putting your best foot forward and taking part in the programme. I hope to see some of you again next year.” She turned to the eight of us standing on the stage. “As for you eight, we will be seeing you again in a few weeks for the next section. We would also like to invite everyone here to share in an afternoon tea with us to say farewell.”

***

Two weeks later a black car arrived at Mr Carter’s house to pick me up and to take me to the next section of the Omega programme.

After graduation day, all the candidates stayed an extra day, packing belongings and saying goodbye. I left with Mr Carter full of mixed emotions. I felt sad that I was leaving the school, and the fact that I had to say goodbye to Mackenzie and Kelsey made me want to cry as the two had become like sisters to me. But the excitement and anticipation of what the next section had to bring made me feel better. I decided that I just had to focus on the future, not the past.
The two weeks of waiting felt as if they lasted forever but as the black car pulled into our driveway I knew the waiting was over. I picked up my small backpack that I had filled with the things I thought I would need. Mr Carter had told me not to take much as everything would be provided for us at Omega but I wanted to take a few things to remind me of home. The car trip took all day, taking Mr Carter and I to an airstrip where I boarded Mr Carter’s private plane, the one we had taken last time, but this time I boarded the plane without Mr Carter. He stayed behind, telling me he would meet me at the Omega programme when the next section started, that I had to go early to get settled in and no, I couldn’t wait to go with him. It was weird boarding the empty plane and taking my seat. The air hostess was nice enough, fulfilling all my needs, but I didn’t really have any company. I didn’t have anyone to talk to, anyone to discuss all my excitement and anxiety with. I still had no idea what to expect there.
I spent most of the time staring into the night sky out the window. The moon was in the sky, shining above everything else, following me. Planes made me nervous and just seeing the moon there, like a protector, made me feel better. The moonlight coming through the window calmed my nerves.

***

When the plane landed the next morning, another black car was waiting for me. My luggage was transferred and I climbed in to continue the journey to the next section of the Omega programme, wherever it might be.
At one point we entered a tunnel. I don’t know how but I could tell that we were underground instantly. Maybe it had something to do with the change in lighting.
We drove through the tunnel for a long time before the driver parked the car and let me out. We were in large, square cavern, parked beside five other identical black cars. I guessed that it was some sort of vehicle bay. A set of steps led to a balcony that overlooked the cavern. On the balcony was a series of three doors. I had no idea what could be behind them.
The middle door opened and a tall woman walked down the stairs towards me.
The driver pulled my backpack out of the boot of the car and handed it to me.
“Welcome to the next section of the Omega programme,” the woman said. “You must be Selene Carter? Am I right?” I nodded in response.
“Good,” she said smiling at me. “Come with me.”
I followed the woman up the stairs and through the middle door. Through the door was a white corridor. There were no windows so the passages were lit up by panelled lights in the ceiling. There were multiple corridors branching out from the main walkway but we didn’t turn down any. We went through one of the doors on the left into a comfortable lounge.
The woman turned to me. “I will leave you here. Someone will come to introduce you to the programme soon. We are still waiting for most of the candidates to arrive.”
She spun around and went back through the door. I walked further into the room and noticed a small blonde-haired girl sitting on one of the couches reading a book.
“Hey,” I said, sitting down on one of the other couches.
She looked up, a smile crossing her face. “Hey.” She closed the book, putting it back in the bag at her feet.
Now that I got a look at her I recognised her from Omega.
“Skyla, isn’t it?” I queried.
She nodded. “And you’re Selene.”
It was my turn to nod. I wondered where everyone else was and remembered what the woman had said. They were still arriving. We must have been two of the first.
“You excited?” Skyla asked after a moment of silence.
“I guess so.” I shrugged. I didn’t really know what to feel. Yes, I was excited but there were also other emotions brewing in the pit of my stomach. Emotions I couldn’t really determine. Was I nervous, scared?
Skyla fell silent again. I wanted to keep the conversation going but there wasn’t much to talk about. We didn’t really know one another. The silence didn’t last for long though. The door to the room opened and a familiar face walked in, led by the woman. The woman gave her the same speech about waiting here for everything to begin before leaving the room. The girl looked around and seeing me, walked straight to me, wrapping me in a hug.
“Ellie!” she exclaimed, releasing me from the embrace.
“Em,” I replied, though not as enthusiastically.
Em noticed Skyla sitting on the couch and turned her beaming face to greet her.

Em started idle conversation with Skyla while we waited. Having Em there made me feel so much better, as if I could deal with anything the Omega programme came up with. I didn’t feel nearly as nervous or as scared about what the next section might entail.
Once Em had arrived it didn’t take long for Michelle, the last female candidate chosen, to join us. After being told to continue waiting, the woman, once again, exited the room. Michelle made her way across the room and sat beside Skyla. Em was about to say something to Michelle when the door opened again and the woman walked back in.
“Everyone has finally arrived so if you would like to follow me, I will show you to the debriefing room,” the woman said, a smile pasted across her face.
We all got up quickly and grabbing our bags followed the woman out of the room. She led us down more corridors of the same white windowless walls before we stopped at a set of large doors. The woman opened them and ushered us through. The room was spacious featuring a large conference table surrounded by chairs. Four people were already seated at the table. They turned to face us as we walked in. I recognised Jay and the other three boys who completed our group.
Skyla, Michelle, Em and I took a seat around the table. Miss Dunn walked in and moved to the head of the table.

“Welcome to the next section of the Omega programme,” Miss Dunn said. “I will start by congratulating you again on making it this far, and that when this opportunity was presented to you, you took it. I am sure you will not regret that decision. This section is not like the last one. In those three months, we gave you one goal; to outperform all your fellow candidates, and all eight of you did this to an outstanding level. But that is no longer your goal. All eight of you have been brought together, chosen specifically for this programme, to become a team. Each of you was chosen for your strength in a certain area so that when you all came together you would make the perfect team. When you go into training you will all find out which area you were chosen for and we will work with you to enhance that skill.” Miss Dunn continued by outlining the course, introducing our tutors and explaining our schedule. To end the introduction, we were taken on a tour and shown to our rooms. I entered my room, throwing my bag on the bed and taking a good look around. This time we only had a single room but I didn’t mind. Everyone was just down the hall and it would be nice to get complete privacy. Apart from the bed, the room had a desk, a wardrobe and, to my delight, an ensuite. Our new uniforms were hanging in the wardrobe like Miss Dunn had said. I got changed, placing the clothes I had been wearing in the laundry basket that had been provided. I unpacked all my things, stowing my bag away. After one last look around the room that would become my home, I joined the others for lunch.

Life at Omega was not unlike what it had been. We kept to the same vigorous schedule of long hours and hard training, each of us trying to do our best. We had the academic classes of languages, chemistry and computer skills and the physical classes of weapon handling and self-defence like we had at the school. When questioned why we learnt to fight, the staff at Omega always told us that they believed that we all needed to be prepared for any situation, even if that situation required firing a gun.
We spent a lot of time together, just the eight of us, like at mealtimes and the few chances we got to have some free time. By the end of the first week, it felt like we were family, like we were all connected. It helped that we had known each other from the three months we had spent at the school. At the school we hadn’t needed, or really wanted, to tell each other what our abilities were but here we were so comfortable around each other that it didn't matter what we could do. We fitted in regardless. Even though I had been hesitant to show my wings to the candidates at the school, I didn’t think twice about showing them to the seven candidates that had become my team.

Two weeks into the programme we found out exactly what area we would specialise in. We were all called together and told information that we hadn’t heard before.
“There are lots of bad people in this world.” That’s how Mr Carter, who had arrived at Omega by now, started and I’ll never forget his words. “These people need to be stopped; they need to have consequences for their actions. Three years ago, Black Diamond came to the realisation that the only way to change the world was to do something ourselves. That something was the Omega programme. Through the Omega programme we would train people to change the world. But we didn’t just want the ordinary, we needed the extraordinary, and we found that in you.
You might ask me; ‘But we’re only children. What can we do?’ And I would tell you that your age doesn’t matter. The fact that you are small will aid you more than it will hinder you. Together, all eight of you will make the perfect team. A team that can take on the worst the world throws at you and still come out on top.”
Skyla slowly put her hand into the air.
“Yes, Ms Robinson?” Mr Carter paused in his speech to answer her question.
“Are we going to be like super heroes? You know, since we have special abilities and all…”
Mr Carter smiled and nodded. “If you like, you can call yourselves superheroes.”
A buzz of energy went up around the room, smiles breaking out on everyone’s faces. For children who had never had anything, who had never had any hopes or dreams, being told that they were going to be like superheroes and save the world –something we thought was only possible in our imaginations- was the equivalent of being given the best Christmas present they could have ever asked for.
Mr Carter interrupted the excited chatter, continuing, “You are now a team. You will do everything together, apart from your own expert classes. There should be no secrets between you because secrets will only break you apart. You must view each other’s lives as your own.
First every team needs a leader. That leader will be Luke.”
We all turned and looked at Luke who was sitting near the back of the room. He looked surprised by the announcement but I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that he was the best for the job and we would all follow him willingly.
“As leader, if anyone has any problems, they will go to you before any of us. You will have the final say on missions and you will be responsible for your team members.”
Luke nodded, taking it all in.
“Benjamin,” Mr Carter continued. “You will be our computer expert. During missions you will stay at the mission base, connected wirelessly to the team in the field. You will be in charge of checking security systems, cameras and satellite imagery, like a watchful eye over the whole mission.
“Emelia will be our ammunitions and weapons expert. Sometimes on a mission, weapons and force will need to be used to achieve our goal. You will be in charge of what weapons we take depending on what the purpose of the mission is. Your ability to control fire will also help you in this area.
“Skyla, you will be in charge of information gathering. On missions, you will be one of the people that goes in first, scouting out the area and gathering as much information as possible before the rest of the team moves in. Another job you will have is with Emelia. With your enhanced strength, you will be able to help her.
“Selene will also be one of the scouts working with Skyla. But other than scouting, Selene, your job will be surveillance. During a mission you will keep an eye on the things that our team behind the computer can’t see. A major part of your area will be working in the dark. With your enhanced night vision, you hold an advantage that no one else has.
“That brings me to Michelle. You will be our linguist. With your exceptional knowledge of the world’s languages, you will be in charge of all foreign exchanges that take place during missions. The fact that you are blind will also work to your advantage as people will underestimate you. You will also work with Selene in some missions, when the team does night work. Your ability to echolocate places you next to Selene when it comes to seeing in the dark.
“Jacob, you will be in charge of infiltration during a mission. With your ability to change your skin colour and blend into your surroundings, you will be able to get into places that no one else can, to go un-noticed. We will also train you further in the art of unseen movement.
“Last but not least is Noriaki. With your incredible combat skills you will be the main man to look to if the team has to engage in hand-to-hand combat. But your other job will be medical. As you have an advanced knowledge in the areas of medicine, you will be the on-site doctor is anything goes wrong during a mission. We would like to hope nothing will happen that will need your services but just in case we have to have someone trained and ready.
“Up until now, your training and classes have covered a wide range of subjects. From now on, you will have much more specialised training focused towards the areas I have just mentioned. Your new timetables will be handed out at breakfast tomorrow morning.”
Skyla raised her hand tentatively again.
“Yes?” Mr Carter questioned.
“Now that we’re going to be super-heroes, do you think we’ll get names?” Skyla asked.
Mr Carter smiled. “If you want.”
He looked around the room, “You have all worked incredibly hard over the last few weeks. You deserve to have a break. Take the rest of the day to do whatever you want. You are dismissed.”

The eight of us met in the shared lounge at the end of our rooming corridor, where we always hung out in our free time.
“So what do you guys want to call yourselves?” Skyla asked.
“What do you mean?” Noriaki asked.
“He said we can give ourselves names. Don’t you want a name?” She seemed so excited about the prospect.
“It would be cool. It could be a code name for when we’re on missions or something,” Luke suggested.
Everyone nodded.
“But I can’t think of anything,” Noriaki said.
“Why don’t we think of names for each other then?” Skyla said.
“Yeah. Like Luke could be Speedy because of his super speed,” Michelle said, smiling.
“I like the idea but please not Speedy,” Luke said. The grimacing look in his eyes made us all laugh.
“How about Jet then?” Jay added.
Luke seemed to think about it. He smiled. “Yeah, I like it. Jet. Has a nice ring to it.”
“What about me?” Skyla asked, almost bouncing in her seat.
“How about Tiger?” Noriaki said.
“I like it. But why Tiger?”
“Because you seemed meek and innocent at first but then once I got to know you I found that you have a confidence that I didn’t see coming. Also no-one expects a twelve year old girl to have the strength of a grown man or more.”
Skyla smiled. “Tiger it is.”
The next few minutes of conversation carried on in the same way. Each of us suggesting names for each other before the person decided on their favourite. Jay chose Chameleon because of his of ability to blend in like one. Em chose to become Firebird because of her ability to control fire and she hadn’t wanted to be called Flame. Ben became Hardwire because of his incredible computer skills and Michelle wanted to be Echo. There was some debate surrounding a name for Noriaki. Some suggestions revolved around his area of medicine like 'doctor' (a suggestion that came from Ben). But the one he liked the best was Shadow because of his ninja-like fighting abilities.
"I know the perfect name for you, Ellie," Jay said when it came to my turn.
"What's that?" I asked curious.
"Angel, you should be angel," Jay replied smiling.
I nodded and smiled.  It suited me perfectly.

***

I stood in a field on the edge of the forest. The moon shone down on me, calming me, energising me. It filled the sky with such a powerful presence it was almost overwhelming, like it was bombarding my senses. Suddenly it disappeared and I became frantic. Where did it go? Why couldn’t I feel its presence anymore? It was like someone had pressed the ‘off’ switch. A faint call came from within me. A quiet yearning for the moonlight that had once flowed down onto my skin. It grew until it was almost as powerful as the moon once had been. I couldn’t focus on anything else. My whole body started to ache, as if it was trying to call the moon back to me. I screamed. The feeling was starting to overpower me. It was unbearable. It was like a pain had been unearthed deep inside of me.

Then the image changed, like someone was holding the remote to the television, flicking the channels on and off, the same way someone had flicked off the moon.
This time I was in a small concrete room. There was one small window through which I could see the sky. I was trapped and there was no way to escape. Then the moon appeared again but it was out of my reach. I pushed my arms through the bars on the window to see if I could reach it. The desperate pull inside of me returned. I needed to reach the moon.

“Ellie. Ellie. Wake up.” A voice broke through my consciousness. It took me a moment to realise that I wasn’t trapped anymore. I was back at Omega in my room. I rubbed my eyes and blinked a few times adjusting my eyes to the light that filled the room. I sat up, trying to clear my head. Em sat on the floor beside my bed, her eyes full of concern.
“What happened?” I asked, my voice groggy from sleep. I tried to clear my head, to think straight. “What time is it?”
“It’s 3 am,” Em answered softly. “I turned your light on when I came in.” She looked away for a second before turning back. “You were having a nightmare. I got up to go to the bathroom and I heard you through the wall. You were screaming, Ellie. It took a lot for me to wake you up.”
I blinked again. I couldn’t remember much about the dream which was strange. I could normally remember everything. Em said I had been screaming? I ran my hands down my face. I could still feel the ache in my chest and remembered the moon and the tug of it. I knew I needed the moon but I didn’t even know why. 
“Did I wake anyone else?” I asked.
Em shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
I gave a sigh of relief and rubbed my face again. I didn’t need anyone else’s questions.
“Are you okay Ellie? Really?” Em asked.
“I don’t know Em,” I answered. And left it at that.