Glitches {Thank y'all!}

Ok, it's decided! It's Glitches {I liked ''You Promised'' slightly better, but that's okay. :)}! I know I'm going off of the Protecters, but I got to a boring part. And it still needs to be done. So I've been working on Glitches more than I should be {I have 5 current stories}, but I thought I should give y'all some more. Hopefully I left you hanging.

One year ago

‘’You Promised’’

It didn’t happen like this. I swear. Everyday I lived without fear, only looking with pity at the poor souls who knew what would happen to them. But I was certain it wouldn’t happen to me. Because the man whom I never knew to tell a lie promised. But so much good that did. Would it all be easier for me to tell you? I suppose. It’s not a story which was weaved to tell, but humans weren’t made for lying. So here goes nothing:

       That man? He was my father. My protecter. The only family member I had left. My mother had been taken, and my sisters and brothers, too. But every month I was checked, they said I wasn’t ready. I was too fragile for ‘’that world’’.  When we watched my mother being taken away, he made a promise. ‘’Kate,’’ he said. ‘’I will never let you go. Remember that. Whatever happens, remember that.’’ Then he hugged me for a long time, and I felt like he would always keep that promise. He hid me, and things normal children need to grow strong he didn’t give me. ‘’They can’t take you if you aren’t healthy.’’ He never let me out. ‘’Playing will strengthen you,’’ he said, giving me a quick kiss and a chocolate. I had a thin and lean body frame, and perhaps that helped, also. I never grew much. I was short for my age, but Father always promised I’d be tall and beautiful like my mother one day. Well, it’s been 9 years, and nothing has happened. My hair is thick, but whether I liked it or not my eyes burn angerly. Nobody would want to play with me, anyhow. I seem to be the image of despicable.

       There’s a beast. One that’s slimy, and rather like an octopus. It lives above the main control room of the Computer House. It’ll wrap a leg around your head, and you will be shocked. It’ll shout out an order, either ‘’next month’’ or ‘’he’s/she’s ready’’. There has never been any other order, that we know of. But nobody knows much about the Computer House. It’s the sort of book you put in History books, not the places you’d want to go.

       I was always to thin, or too short. Or just plain ‘ole not ready. But then there was a day. Father said I was getting prettier. True, I did get a few curious glances, but once they saw my eyes all curiousness vanished. It had chuckled and said, ‘’she looks about ready.’’ It wrapped It’s leg around my head, and my body shuddered. I fell to the ground, shaking. I thought I heard the door open. But maybe not. I was certain this wouldn’t be the month. All the other girls my age were much bigger. ‘’She’s ready. She’ll do as a pretty one,’’ It’s voice sounded out. I was roughly grabbed, and taken blind-folded to another room. The next step of being taken is being transformed. Where ever you go, you go with a job if you’re old enough. Or you’re prepared for your future job. For example, if you’re a McDonald cashier, you’ll need to be pretty. The humans whom have betrayed us will study you and write down what you’ll be on their clipboards. Then they’ll knock you out, and robots will transform you. Whether it’s just a new hair color of a whole new transformation, you’ll never know until the end of the job.

       Let me tell you one thing: it’s painful. When you get less done, it’s not as painful. Sadly, the humans seemed fit to change all of me. My red hair was replaced with carmel hair, my nose smaller, instant redish color to my lips, and my eyes were a mix of green, blue, gray and brown. Then they walk you down a hall, and into a room. The floor is tilted, and it sucks you down into a black hole. You won’t remember anything after that. But the funny thing is, I remembered everything.

‘’KATE!’’ I heard screaming coming up the stairs. I glanced around my all-purple room. Before I thought about anything, I thought, I’ve got to make this more of an teenager room. Besides, I am 14. Then I gasped at myself. Wasn’t I in the Other World just yesterday? I looked at myself in the mirror. I had changed. Things like this didn’t happen over night. I was taller, prettier, and as big as a 14 year old girl should be. ‘’Kate!’’ Mom’s voice came again. But wait . . .  wasn’t Mom dead? I rushed downstairs, and practically flew into Mom’s arms. ‘’I missed you,’’ I sighed. ‘’That’s nice,’’ Mom said, not hearing what I had said. I laughed. Mom looked at me, then handed me a frozen waffle. ‘’Sorry, hon, I’ve got to go. Job appointment,’’ Mom said, kissing me on my forehead.

       I couldn’t wrap my mind around it. Obviously something had changed. But I couldn’t remember what. Whatever I had remembered this morning, I could remember now. I spent all of English class thinking about it. ‘’Kate, if you refuse to listen to me, then I shall report you to the Principle!’’ My short, squeaky Effie-like {from the Hunger Games} squealed. She got up and started wagging a ruler at me. ‘’Now, what is Jane Austen’s most famous book!’’ Ms. Hurk asked, already turning away. ‘’Um… Emma?’’ I asked. ‘’WRONG!’’ Ms. Hurk squealed. She ran to the black board in her high heeled pumps. And so that was how I spent the rest of my year. Every day, listening to Ms. Hurk squealing on about something else. She never liked me. But perhaps that’s because she was a spy for one of them . . . wait, what was I talking about?

Six months ago…

An angry slash. In some ways, I could understand her. She was angry, obviously. The curtains were ripped off of their hooks, half of the wall paper ripped off, all the kitchen knives were gone, the books dropped out of their shelves and the book shelves dragged away, and practically anything of value was gone. ‘’I may have failed, but it doesn’t mean you can do this!’’ She looked like a punk rock star, with spiky dyed red hair, a spiked collar necklace, and ripped jeans with long black boots. ‘’You. Did you help them?’’ She asked angerly. ‘’C’mon, Cinnamon,’’ I say, slowly backing away. ‘’We weren’t supposed to turn out this way. They're angry. It’s okay,’’ I purr. ‘’It’s not!’’ Cinnamon bursts out. Cinnamon curls up with her knees to her chest, crying. It hurts me to see her like this. She has been strong, stronger than I, and it’s normally me when this happens. The families whom don’t know us take us in, and this is what happens. Every time. But it’s the cost for freedom. Only truly, how much of it do we have? 

This isn't the end of ''Six Months Ago...'', but it's all I got. I also don't want to pile you up with too much. How do you like it? :)

~Madeline 

P.S. Just so you know, I may be posting the whole story on here, as well as the Protecters. That's why I gave it it's own label.

Prologue to ''You Promised''/Glitches

First of all, read the prologue then tell me if it should be ''You Promised'' or Glitches. Second of all, The Protecters aren't doing much currently. They seem to be stuck in place. ;)

Prologue:

‘’I think she’s going to find out, the Glitches are coming… no, not the normal ones. The worst ones, Master,’’ a short, skinny boy of only 12 said. You couldn’t see it, but you knew it was there. Waiting for you. To pounce. To devour. A bit of slime drops down and lands on the girl’s shoulder. She’s careful not to shudder. It chuckles. ‘’Send her in deeper, then, I don’t care if she doesn’t come out,’’ it says, still laughing.

       ‘’She’s breaking connection. Send her in deeper. It’s orders,’’ a cool, female voice says. They all start typing furiously. The people between any age of 7-79. They stare at the screens, never taking their eyes off. ‘’It has been done, by It’s orders,’’ they all chant, and begin to type normally.

       Between these times, though, the carmel-haired girl is screaming. ‘’No, take me back! You told me this wouldn’t happen! You told me I wouldn’t disappear!’’ Her last drowning words were: ‘’you promised.’’

       The very words which could destroy a nation of perfectly programmed humans. 

What do you think? If it was a published and sold book, would you want to buy it/ read it just by reading the prologue? I don't care if you're a reader, guest, or an author, I want to know!! {That includes:

elf, pixies, Santa Claus,  tissue boxes, and chairs {did you know chairs kill more people than sharks do every year?!}

~Madeline

The Protecters

First of all, for those who are frustrated with all the posts:
Don't worry, once more people get into the grove of school it'll die down. :)

Second of all, I didn't finish the chapter in the post before, so it's going to be the end of the last one and the start of the second. ;) Sorry if that confuses you.

But it’s good not to dwell on that. Ha, I sound like a bitter old grandma. Let’s just get back to the story.

We were there in an instant. Within a blink of an eye, the roads transported us above ground. I stuck my arm out of the window, enjoying the warmth on the sun on my skin. ‘’Just because you have a cat suit doesn’t mean you need to act like one,’’ grouchy Chrissy said. ‘’Just because you are grouchy doesn’t mean you need to act like one,’’ I spat back, frowning. Chrissy was always like this, or at least around me. Once I heard her laughing with everybody else, but that was before I joined. She had tried to lose me when we were in Egypt, which plainly showed her dislike for me when I came back.

‘’Where are we going?’’ Jack asked, breaking me out of my trance. ‘’8^th Avenue, West Wall, four blocks down, to the right. Barge into the gate, or get little miss catty to get it open for us,’’ Chrissy snarled, looking perfect in her Greek goddess outfit. ‘’No, that’ll be fine. I’m sure, if anybody can, I’ll get it open,’’ I say. Liam sighs and throws potato chips at us. ‘’Stop! Or feel the wrath of BATMAN!’’ He screams, closing his eyes. ‘’Oh, Gosh no,’’ Chrissy says sarcastically. She ducks under the curtain that is covering the girls’ room. The only time Chrissy and I have ever ‘’bonded’’ is when we decided to hide candy there {it’s a no-boys zone}.

The Blue Moon stops abruptly at an newly built house, still reeking with the smell of paint. ‘’Do your magic,’’ Jack says, pushing me out.

My senses tell me what to do first: climb the gate. Iron – it’ll hold me. Wicker – harder to find foot holes. Never the less, I tell myself, it’ll be easy. I climb determinedly up the wall; only once or twice to I falter.

The gate is high up, and it takes me a good half hour to even reach the half point. I place my foot in a foot hole, only to lose it. I am left, dangling, with only one hand on the gate. My muscles are screaming, and my mind is burning with a single thought:

I am going to fall.

          CHAPTER TWO: LILLIAN: {RETIRING RICH IS WORTH SOMETHING, AFTER ALL}:

‘’Here, grab this,’’ a husky, male voice says, sending a rope sliding. I clutch to it. ‘’Thanks, and um… who are you?’’ I mumble. Either he doesn’t hear, or he pretends not to. He drags me up, and I settle on the slender top of the gate like only a cat would. ‘’I never imagined robbers to look like cats,’’ he says in a quaint, quite voice. I felt like pushing him off. ‘’Never mind, only how do we get down?’’ I ask. ‘’Oh no, that would never do. Introductions first, if you don’t mind. I am Robert Downey Jr., the third,’’ he says, trying hard to bow.

If you’re wondering what I was wondering: Does Robert Downey Jr. time travel, too? No, we, or at least, I, were wrong. He had grayish blueish eyes, and dark black hair. But that supplies us with the question: How much of a jr. is Robert Downey Jr. {the famous one}? Never mind. Back to the story.

‘’I’m Queen Elizabeth, future queen of England. Let’s move on, shall we?’’ I say, not bothering to curtsy. ‘’Fine, but I believe girls shouldn’t make it obvious they haven’t had any schooling!’’ Robert says, waving his hands wildly in the air to prove his point. To his mistake. He plummets down to the ground, screaming ‘’I hide the money under the…’’ 

Apparently I'm not the only 'slightly' sarcastic one, after all. ;)

~Madeline 

The Protecters

Hey, y'all!
I'm trying out a little twist on my new story, please comment about what you think of it!
1. Different members of the Protecters will write chapters
2. I'm adding pictures!!!! :D

Are ya ready? Cuz' I sure am.

The Protecters: Greece {''Book'' 1}

 

Chapter 1: Lillian:

‘’What are those,’’ Jonathan asked, staring at my ‘’elvish’’ barefoot sandals. I sighed. Boys never knew anything. Thankfully, I was spared the expense of explaining when Chrissy walked in. ‘’We’ve got a mission, troop. We’re going to Greece. Lillian, get your cat suit on,’’ Chrissy said. I almost squealed with excitement. Since I was the newest member to the ‘’troop’’, I had just gotten my suit. After our designer side-kick noticed how fascinated I was with the Egyptian cat god, Bast, {when we went to Egypt – but that’s a different story} he made me sort of a ‘’cat woman’’ suit. It could do all kinds of things:

For one, I had claws. They were fashioned out of real gold, with only little points sticking out. But if I chose so, five inch claws could come out. I had a beaded belt, which held little bags all around it. Jonathan joked it was for my diamonds and pearls. I had a mask/hood, with cat ears at the top. One ear held a speaker, and another a small light projector. Need a picture? Here ya go:

*

‘’I don’t like the crown,’’ Chrissy says, the moment I step out of the changing room. Of course she doesn’t. Jack {our designer}, was probably having a laugh in the boys’ changing room. ‘’Sorry,’’ I shrug, ‘’it’s part of my cat suit.’’ I could feel Chrissy burning inside. She was use to being the only girl. Well, I thought, change is good. ‘’Here, take this,’’ Jack says, throwing a small thing towards me. Without thinking, I stretch out my claws to catch it. I’m sure I can hear Chrissy grudgingly admit it was impressive. ‘’Lipstick. Really?’’ I ask. ‘’Not just any sort. It cost me about $100. Anybody who you kiss, or kisses you, will be poisoned. For some odd reason, you won’t die if you lick or lips or anything. A twist on the whole Ivy woman thing,’’ Jack says. Chrissy took it from me, and applied it to my lips. The color was a dark, murky brownish red. ‘’I don’t like it. Couldn’t you have gotten it in pink?’’ Liam asks. Liam was the oldest, and basically the ‘’daddy’’ to us all. Me being the youngest, of course he thought this. ‘’If I could have gotten it in any other color, I would have gotten one that didn’t compliment her face,’’ Jack says. I hiss at him. Another one of my ‘’amazing’’ cat abilities the suit gives me. ‘’I’m sorry, I don’t find cats very threatening,’’ Jack coolly says. ‘’Who cares, let’s just get in the Blue Moon,’’ Liam says, sighing.

The Blue Moon is our van. On my first trip, I tricked a man into giving it to me*. Just because he was well known, we re-painted it blue, and knocked one of the window-shields on the back off.

We all did our best to stroll casually into a park, and jump into the Blue Moon without raising any suspicion. Of course, that’s rather hard to do when one of us are dressed as Batman*. All the kids happen to run to you and ask for a picture. And apparently, you can’t say no. Oh yeah, and then there’s Catwoman. One of the littlest kids told me to ‘’hand me your pearls now, and nobody gets hurt’’, raising his tiny fist. I walked away.

Once we entered the Blue Moon, it sank underneath to our own ‘’roads’’. But here’s the catch:

Using our roads, it will take us only five minutes to get to Greece. Using anything above our roads, it would take us a lot longer. This, my dear friends, is the prospect of being a super hero.

I suppose I should have explained earlier. Why we are super heroes and heroins. How we became them. Together, it is a long story, but I guess those are what books are for. Maybe one day I will explain farther, but for today this will have to satisfy you:

Jack is from a different world, or so we believe. No Protecter has ever explained much about themselves, because to become a protecter is a sad, dangerous thing. You can’t force it. It chooses you, and once it does, you don’t have a choice anymore. When we’re asked about our pasts, most of us can only shiver in reply. We know, of course, our own pasts, but prefer not to talk about it. There are better subjects to put into words. Chrissy was an orphan, or so she tells us. Leaders can only give out so much information out about themselves. We all know there are people who will change our words. Liam came from a happy, whole family, unlike the rest of us. Sure, his mom and dad had fights, but they always came back together in the end. He had a puppy. Sisters and brothers. A house full of practically anything he wanted. He talks about more of it than the rest of us do, but when some questions are asked a dark look comes over his face. He never says it, but his parents must have been important people. And that means he is not who he was. Or is. Jonathan says: ‘’I appeared out of dumpsters. I don’t know who I am.’’ Jonathan is the only one who suffers from anmisa. The older protecters almost always never knew who they were, so this doesn’t surprise us. Most of us had something to wish for, something to tear us away from the hard life of being a protecter. Protecters are bound together, their strings woven together. You’re only bound must be with the Protecters. Me . . . Well, I have my secrets, too. The longer you stay with the Protecters, the easier it is to loosen up. But I . . . I’ll never be that way.

But out of our tragedies, the Protecters came together. We swear to protect certain people from all time periods, so the things that happened to us will never happen to them. But sometimes we don’t get there in time. Darkness over comes a person, sometimes faster than it would for another. Then they vanish. When they come back, they crawl, slowly, out of a shell, looking for the Protecters. We welcome them, because like us, they have no life anymore. We help them gain it, and sometimes they are so committed as to joining the Protecters. But sometimes darkness comes back. Because there will always be an empty hole in life*. Where darkness comes, begging you to escape with it. To the things unspeakable. 

TO BE CONTINUED!

 Footnotes from Lillian:

*That's not really what my costume looks like, but hey, I had to use one of these free design thingys. Please don't expect pictures from that place to be correct. 

*Or rather, he just gave it to me. I'll never know why, but now he's saying I took it. DID NOT!!

*Not saying who.... LIAM!

*I don't necessarily believe that, but I believe there will always be a part of darkness in our lives. Because we aren't perfect.

~Madeline 

P.S. if you're wondering why I'm posting, check the side. You'll see. ;)