The Man In The Midnight Blue Suit

Chapter Three

"I suppose I'll start from the beginning. My Awakening. It was six years ago, but I still remember it like it was yesterday. I'll never forget the day that changed my life for the better. You remember, how on that day, I was going out with some friends? We went to a pizza place downtown. It was the place we always went to. Maybe you've been there? I don't remember it much. I don't even remember the names of the friends I was with. It doesn't matter - they're not important now.
"I had left my phone at the friend's place. I was walking down the road to a pay phone so I could call you and Mum to tell you that I'd be home later than usual. One of my friends had got the lead role in a school play, so we were celebrating. As I was dialling the number, this man came out of nowhere, snatched the phone out of my hand, and hung it up. Being naive as I was, I was outraged. I had already paid for that call! The man was dressed up in a crisp midnight blue suit. He seemed too fancy for his own good. Just as I was asking him what his problem was, he turned and walked away. I was appalled. I wasn't going to let him get away with being so rude, and I wanted him to pay back the money I had lost, so I followed him. No matter how fast I walked or ran, he always seemed to stay a few meters ahead of me.
"By now we were far from the pizza place. I had made it clear to the man that I wanted him to turn around, but he just kept walking. I was considering letting it go and going back when the man abruptly turned into an alleyway. I almost thought he had walked straight into a wall. Intrigued, I followed him in.
"There were a few boxes and trash bags scattered carelessly around. But not so few that the toxic smell of trash didn't wrinkle my nose. The man was standing near the end of the alleyway. For the first time, he turned and looked at me. He grinned as if he knew I wouldn't get to him. This angered me even more. I started to walk towards him when I noticed a passage, partly hidden by the darkness. The man stepped into it with a confident manner.
"That fuelled my determination to reach him. I walked down the alley and stood outside the passage. It looked like something out of a Harry Potter movie: It was hard to see until I got close, and although it had no visible door, I couldn't see past the darkness to what was inside. I wondered if my money was worth this. It could lead to anything. But as I turned around, the reality of regular life hit me. Looking back at it now, I know that the man already had a hold on me. I had no choice about entering the passage. Back then, I turned around because a part of me wanted adventure. I wanted a break from being perfect all the time. It was stupid, I know. But surely, you understand that feeling? The feeling of wanting more from life, something that wasn't school or friends or anything. I wanted something else.
"Entering the passage, the man was nowhere in sight. I looked over my shoulder, only finding darkness where the entrance was. The only light was hanging from the ceiling. The walls were a harsh cold brick. I forced myself to be calm. The man had knowingly lead me here. And he had come in here through the same way as me. He had to have gone somewhere. So I carefully took a step forward. Peering into the darkness ahead of me, I saw that the passage continued. I had nowhere else to go, so I continued forward.
"I hadn't gone far when the walls started to sweat. Water gathered in puddles around my feet. My shoes were getting soaked. I couldn't imagine the man coming down here, wearing his sleek midnight blue suit. I kept walking. There was no sign of him ever coming this way. I wondered if there was another pathway that led off the passageway that I had missed. I was second-guessing myself. Resenting my earlier intentions. The walls were closing in on me. My mind was in as much of a spiralling maze as my body. I thought of you, Casey. You were only ten back then. I remembered earlier that day when you came home from school. I was already home, as my school had finished earlier. You had raced in the door and dumped your school bag on the floor – something unusual for you. It's always made me smile thinking of how you would carefully place your school bag on the floor, making sure not to harm anything inside it. But that day you just left it there. You came running into the kitchen, where I was, saying, 'Look Jonathan! Look!' You waved a colourful certificate in front of me. It was for good class work from your teacher. The certificate wasn't anything special, more like a two-dollar shop kind of thing. You thought it was the highest honour you could get. I was so proud of you.
"It was that memory that kept me going. I knew there was no point in going back now. For hours, I walked through that tunnel. My legs were tired and I was hungry, having left the pizza place before eating. I stopped and slid down the wall. The cold brick was soothing to me, in my distorted state. I told myself that I'd only sleep for a few hours. Long enough to gather myself before continuing.
"I woke to find myself lying in a bed, similar to the one you're in now. I was shocked, wondering how I'd got there. I looked over at a table beside me to find a plate of food. There was potatoes, a bread roll, and corn beef. My hunger kicked in again. I didn't bother waiting before I dug in. Food never tasted so good. Once I'd finished I walked over to the door. Turning the handle, I was surprised to find it unlocked. I stepped out into a long corridor with many doors, all identical to mine. Except one. One was a deep midnight blue.
"I padded over to the door. I put my hand on the handle, half expecting it to give me an electric shock. Before I could open it, it opened for me. Behind it was the man from last night. He still wore a midnight blue suit, with no signs of ever going through that tunnel. He looked at me as if he knew something I didn't. The moment passed, and he stepped aside, gesturing for me to enter. The room was large compared to the one I'd woken up in. There was a big window lined with lace blue curtains on the far end. Through it, I could see vast green fields, and closer to the house tall hedges and flowers, all well-kept. Facing the window was a dark oak wood desk with an old fashioned high backed chair. Bookshelves lined one wall. Opposite them were two luxurious blue couches.
"The man walked over to the desk and sat in his chair. He had not said a word to me. On the desk, there was a thick, dusty book, its pages splayed open. I walked over to it. The loping words were handwritten. I stared at it like it were a dead animal. I asked the man if I was meant to read this, but he only smiled. I picked up the book. That, I suppose, was the moment everything changed.
"The book told me of who I am. Who you are, Casey. Our names were there, blended in with the history of those like us. This may seem hard to believe at first. But trust me, it's real.
"We are not like everyone else. We are different. People like us do not belong in a normal society. Not after we're trained, at least. Our people are called Elites by those who know of us. We prefer to not be called anything, but we have to have a name. There are very few of us around the world. It would be dangerous to have too many.
"Although they believe differently, normal humans only use part of their brains. We, Casey, have the potential to use the entirety of our minds. Our power, while not quite human, is massive. We have the potential to do anything with intellectual ability. Not everyone has this capability. Only some, born with a hyperactive mentality, poses the potential. Even then they may not harness it. They must be trained to control their own mind. Many renowned scientists, artists, writers, may have possessed this potential but were never aware of it. They were not chosen. Even in the most intelligent of people, there is an elite race above them.
"Elites are picked as children. Although it is rare to have 2 siblings both with these abilities, as in our case. The children who are picked live a normal life until 16 years of age. They have an experience where their lives, as they know them to be, change. This is an Awakening. They learn of the wonder that is intellectual potential – beyond what we are taught in school. They leave their normal lives behind. After that, they are trained to use their power. Of course, they have to leave everything of their past lives behind. They can never contact anyone they knew before their Awakening. Their futures more than enough make up for it.
"I've been waiting all these years for you to join me. I could have started my training, but I wanted you here with me. Casey, we could do anything together. Be anything. We are Elite."

I stared at Jonathan. He reached out and held my hand, smiling enthusiastically. We are Elite. He really believed this ludicrous story. Jonathan didn't have any proof that it was true. I half expected him to start laughing, saying that he'd made it all up like he used to do when I asked him how his day was. The story was full of holes. Right now, we aren't part of some secret society. Right now, we are in serious danger. Jonathan may believe this fantasy, but I wasn't going to take any of it. I pulled my hand away.

"Jonathan," I asked, slowly, carefully, "What has this man, the man in a midnight blue suit, told you? You say you read this from a book. What did he tell you about the 'Elite's'?"
"Well, he's never actually said anything," Jonathan replies. He stumbles over his words, sentences leaping out one after another. "He... he doesn't like to deal with me. No, he keeps to his study. I don't see him, much. I mean, he's showed me some things, but most of what I know, I've read about. In books. There's this huge library... you'll love it when you see it. It's... It's been hard, not having anyone to talk to. But now you're here. I've missed you so, so much. And now we can train. Together. Like it should have been, from the start."

Oh, Jonathan. He's been here, alone, for six years. No wonder he believes in this story. He's had nothing else.
"Jonathan," I say, "Why didn't you come back? I missed you too. Everyone did. Why did you abandon us to this... loneliness?"
"Casey, I didn't abandon you. I left for the better. My life changed. I know what I'm capable of now. It's like... like a Garden of Eden. When you learn everything that your life could be... I could never have left it. The Elite world has... changed me, yes. But I'm still your brother. I waited for you. I waited for my sister. Nothing else matters now. Not Mum, not our friends, not school, nothing. It's all behind us."
"You don't even realise, do you? You don't realise what I went through. You don't care that I thought you were dead. I'm your sister, Jonathan. I'm real."
"You'll understand soon. I know you will."

It hits me like a dead weight. He was right when he said he's changed. He's gone insane. As far as I can tell, he's been alone in this place for six years. Hell, I don't even know what this place is. That's enough to break anyone. For all I know, he could have made up this tale to keep himself happy. Jonathan was so great before he disappeared. He's just been left to deteriorate, all on his own.

I have so many questions. Where am I? Who is the man in a midnight blue suit? Have you ever met another 'Elite'? Why was my name on the wall? I can't ask Jonathan any of them. He could just make up another story. I wouldn't get the truth. Even after what he told me, I know nothing.

I was crushed. Jonathan, my older brother, my childhoodhero, just accepted being kidnapped. We weren't good enough for him. He led theperfect life, yet he still wanted more. He believed this, this fairy tale. He believedit and had left me to grieve over a brother who was as good as dead. Heabandoned everything, all for a meaningless illusion.