[OLD] The Supers Experiment (#1)

Thirteen

Ivy stared at the mailbox with her last name on it. Her gaze moved to the house the box belonged to. A brick, one story home. It was in decent condition, compared to most of the other buildings.

Without saying a word to the others, she ran up to the front door. Or at least, what remained of it. The door itself was torn in half, with one side still on its hinges and the other on the ground.

Ivy stepped inside, looking around. She felt like she should recognize the home, but nothing seemed familiar. Then again, there was a massive crack running from one side of the house to the other, and all of the furniture was knocked down. Paper and debris littered the floor.

To the left was a living room. The window was gone, and sunlight reflected off the glass scattered across the floor. Ivy entered slowly, dodging the shards as she made her way to the fireplace.

Lying facedown on the mantle were several picture frames. Ivy picked one up and turned it over. The glass was broken into several large pieces, and the photo was torn. Ivy carefully removed the picture and examined it.

It was a family photo. The top half of the image was in shreds, making the mother and father unrecognizable. There was also a boy, barely visible, who looked five or six years old. Next to him was a girl who looked about four. Ivy stared into the girl's eyes. Her eyes.

The boy... was he her brother? Had he died in the accident, or was there a chance that he was still alive? He'd be, what, seventeen? Eighteen? Ivy flipped the picture over. Written lightly on the back in pencil were four names. John, Linda, Benjamin and Ivy.

"Ivy?" came a voice from the doorway. Ivy turned to see Claire at the door, the others right behind her.

"Did you find something?" Summer asked.

"Yeah." Ivy held up the photo. "I lived here." She folded up the photo and slid it into her pocket.

"Do you want to look around more?" Claire asked.

Ivy shook her head. "Let's go find the labs." She was afraid that if she stayed much longer, she'd lose control of her emotions. How awful would it be if she burned down her real home?

It took nearly forty-five minutes to reach Tyche Laboratories. Ivy was out of breath when they climbed the last hill between them and the labs. She breathed a sigh of relief. They did it. They were here.

The laboratories consisted of one main building, surrounded by a few smaller ones. The main building was still standing, but the others had only one or two walls left. The one closest to Ivy and the others was nothing more than a pile of rubble.

They jogged down the hill and into the parking lot. Twisted metal skeletons were the only remains of whatever cars had been there, and the ground was littered with broken glass. Ivy looked up. Other than a large chunk missing from the top of the building, it was in good shape. Black letters that spelled out 'Tyche Laboratories' hung above the door.

As she grabbed the door handle, Ivy caught a glimpse of her reflection in the dark glass. Her hair was a mess, and she looked exhausted. She sighed and pulled the door open.

Ivy entered the lobby, the others right behind her, and gasped.

The first thing that caught her attention was the red and black graffiti covering the back wall. Cracks ran along the floor and walls, destroying the sterile, clean feel the building seemed to have had before.

"What on earth?" Summer asked as they approached the graffiti. Angry, capital letters spelled out vague and ominous messages.

THEY ARE WATCHING.