Beatrice

The stench. That was the first thing one noticed when walking up to the once-occupied gas station just off the interstate exit. The smell of still-burning gasoline, fiberglass insulation, and week-old potato chips. The building itself hadn’t been in the best of conditions the day before, but it was miles ahead of what it was now. All windows had been shattered, their glass shot out in every direction. The entire interior of the building had been charred and repainted with a new ashen color. Anything inside had either melted or burned from the heat that had been generated inside. Including anyone who had been unfortunate to be inside at the time of the incident.

That is, everyone except for one.

The girl sat in the back corner of the main room of the gas station, cradling herself with her knees up to her chin. Her hair was long and ratty, her body covered in dirt and scum, and her skin clung to her bones as though she hadn’t had a good meal in weeks. She couldn’t have been any older than eight years old. Nobody on the outside of the building could tell, but there was no doubt that she was crying. Her hands placed such that they covered her face, the girl sobbed into them. She’d hoped, prayed that this wouldn’t happen. Not again. She’d been good lately, no outbreaks for a few months and nobody had gotten hurt in nearly a year. But of course things had gone wrong, they always do. Right at the worst possible moment, she felt herself flaring up again. She’d tried to run, tried to protect everyone, but she was too slow. And now she was the only one left, the only one spared from the horrors that had unfolded in that gas station that day.

Though the girl didn’t know it, the cops and firefighters who sat outside were currently bickering with each other. The firefighters wouldn’t begin to clean up the building until the cops dealt with the problem inside, and the cops wouldn’t deal with the problem until their specialist had arrived. Luckily for them both, the specialist was only a few moments away from arriving, and when they did they would handle the situation for them both. The girl remained in her corner, her throat burning and her lungs struggling to breathe.

Suddenly, the broken and mangled door that clung to the entranceway of the gas station swung open. The bent frame of the door caused it to scrape along the floor, signaling that someone was opening it. The girl slowly lowered her hands and lifted her head. Expecting to see a tall, scary looking man in a cop uniform, or armored swat outfit, or even a dark business suit, the girl was surprised at the sight. The man was skinny, only a bit of muscle added on to his bones. He also wore a blue shirt which hung loosely on his frame, as well as baggy sweatpants. Whoever this guy was, it looked as though he had just woken up and slipped on whatever he could find.

It took a few seconds for the girl to realize that the man was walking towards her. When she did, though, she quickly moved her legs even closer to her torso, tightening her grip on them with her hands. “Stay back!” She screamed, her voice hoarse and breaking.

The man promptly stopped moving, held his hands up and began to speak, “Okay, it’s okay.” The man said, his voice was smooth and calm, a perfect reflection on his current demeanor. “I’m not going to hurt you.” He explained to the girl as he slowly began to walk again.

Tears welled in her bloodshot eyes once again. She opened her mouth, struggling to push words through the growing tightening in her throat. “But… I-I’ll hurt you.”

The man stopped dead in his tracks, his back stiffened, and his eyes widened. He took his right hand, its index finger pointing up into the air, and moved it around in a slight circle, gesturing towards his surroundings. “Did you do this?” He asked, his voice remaining calm despite the clear fear in his eyes.

“I didn’t mean to!” The girl snapped, her voice almost giving out towards the end of the sentence.

The man loosened his body a bit in hopes of calming her down, “I know.” He said as he took a slight step forward, slowly bridging the gap between the two of them before repeating, “I know.” He began to bend his knees, lowering himself down to her eye level.

The girl noticed this and began to pull herself away from him, clearly afraid that she would hurt him again. “Hey, it’s okay. Look,” He said as he moved his hand so that his palm faced the ceiling, but bent his fingers to make a claw-like shape. A split second later, the sight of bright blue sparks of electricity began to shout out from his fingers, connecting to their neighbors in a spectacular show. The still and silent air was now filled with the buzzing and crackling of small bolts of lightning encircling the man’s fingers.

The girl’s eyes lit up at the sight. Her body loosened, allowing her legs to straighten out. “Woah!” She exclaimed, a slight smile forming on her face. The man had now fully bent down, sitting on one knee he was only about a foot or so from her face. She turned to look him in the eye, “You-you’re like me.” She said with a large grin.

“Yes,” The man stated, his mouth also tightening to form a slight smile. “There are many of us out there. And they can help you.” He explained. His closed his hand into a fist, stopping the sparks that had once lit up his hand. A few seconds later, he opened his hand again, holding it out towards the girl. “I can help you.”

The girl’s hand moved ever so slightly, signalling that she was tempted by the offer. “No,” She said sharply, pulling her hand back towards her body. “I’ll hurt you. I don’t want to hurt anybody.”

“I know,” the man said, moving his hand slightly closer towards her. “And if you come with me, I promise that you will never hurt anyone again.”

The girl loosened up a final time. She raised her hand and slowly began to move into the man’s opened palm.

“What’s your name?” The man asked, as their hands finally met.

“B-Beatrice.” The girl answered.

“Beatrice, that’s a pretty name.” The man complimented.

“Th-thanks, mister.” Beatrice replied.

The man chuckled to himself before continuing, “Please, call me James.”