Chapter III - The N.U.T. Secret Hideout

When my eyes opened again, I immediately noticed that everything was back to normal. I was back under the control of my body. That made me a lot easier at first. The area in which I woke up made me feel nostalgic. I found myself in a little stone shelter a bit away from my home village Vanishburgh.

Alex slept next to me. He looked completely exhausted. No wonder, he has just practically resisted a natural disaster. He must have brought me here. However he did it.

The hiding spot isn't a pretty good one, but I couldn't have thought of a better place myself. A place that the police won't find immediately and that also protects us from the rain. That Alex even remembered him amazed me. We used to play here as kids. But that's already some years ago.

I wondered what I should do now. Should I wait until he wakes up? But that could be dangerous. People are after me. I would love not to drag Alex into it.

To be honest, all I wanted to do was go home and rest. I wanted my old normal life back. Sleep, analyze, you know. But somehow I knew that going back to that standard wouldn't be that easy.

Since I've always been part of the group of people who listened to their gut instincts, I set off for home. But before that I left Alex my sweater and put it over him like a blanket. His clothes were all torn and I didn't want him to freeze from the cold weather. I wish I could have done more to thank him. But I had to go.

I knew the way home all too well. I used to love riding that path on my bike. But today wasn't much fun. In addition to the heavy rain, I got a severe headache that developed so badly that I had difficulties breathing.

The otherwise fresh-scented rain air smelled more like agricultural manure, which only made the situation even more alienating. So I ran as fast as my legs would allow. In the end I felt like a wet dog roaming the countryside trying to find his way home.

I knew that I would pass the houses of Jakob, Marcus and Noel on the route. I didn't really want to run into any of them. I had not known how I could have explained myself to them.

Almost at my destination I reached a playground that led to the street where I lived. I couldn't wait to get home. That school day had been particularly exhausting.

Suddenly someone grabbed my arm. The person was definitely stronger than me, since I couldn't really fight back. It pulled me into some bushes. My fears became a reality. It was Noel.

Noel: "What are you doing? Are you crazy?"

"Why? I want to go home." I tried to free myself from his grip.

Noel: "And walk right into the arms of the cops? They've been looking for you everywhere. Look how they patrol in front of your house." He let go of me.

In fact, there were several police officers standing on my street. I already knew they were coming after me. But that they would also piss off my parents. It made sense to suspect me there. That I would want to return home sooner or later; any amateur detective would have guessed that. But still the whole thing seemed surreal to me. Only now I realized that I was in quite a bit of trouble.

Noel: "They're pretty pissed off because you threatened that cop. The press got wind of it and now they have to explain themselves, how it could be that a single student can oppose an entire police unit and then escape from the action."

"You don't say..." I got the jitters. Had I managed to become a wanted state criminal in just one day?

Noel: Or do you plan to use "that" from this morning, whatever that was, to get through it? ... What was that anyway? "

"I don't really know myself." He looked seriously at my face.

"Noel, you gotta believe me! That was not me! You know me! I would never do anything like that. I'd never have the guts." He turned his head back towards the street.

Noel: "I don't think they care. They know what they have seen and that's all that matters to them."

He was right. They would never believe me that I heard a strange voice and then a magical power possessed me, no matter how convincing I sound. They'd probably think I was doing illegal drugs or something.

But it was no use. I knew I couldn't run from them forever even if I tried. So it would be better to turn myself in earlier.

"I'm really glad you stopped me, but I don't see how I can escape my des... Arrgh!"

I felt a sharp sting in my chest. My heart started to ache. The pain was so severe that it brought me to my knees.

Noel: "Hey, are you okay? Wait, I'll sneak you into my house. You can rest there."

Noel lived right next to the playground. I've walked past the house many times, but I've only been inside once. His family didn't live in an apartment like mine, but in a multi-storied house.

He helped me up on my legs, propped me up and took me to his room until I could rest on his bed. "Thank you, Noel! I really appreciate that."

Noel: "Hey, no problem! I can't remember if you've been here before, but make yourself at home!"

It felt good to lie on soft feathers. But I knew I couldn't spend time here forever. Even if this was a pleasant change. Noel put on other clothes.

My clothes were soaking wet too. I could have really used a shower. But I couldn't think of that now. Too many thoughts flew through my head. Pretty crazy things have happened the past few hours and it should only get crazier.

"Listen, Noel, I think this is very nice, but I gotta get home to my family. I need to know what happened."

Noel: "In this rain? Take a rest first, okay?"

"No, the sooner I go, the better!"

Noel locked the room. Suddenly I got goosebumps. Noel wouldn't let me leave under any circumstances. The way he behaved was very strange for him. I tried to analyze what was happening here. Could it be that Noel was in league with the enemy?

I've known Noel for quite some time now. I used to walk home with him and Marcus from elementary school all the time. That was a long time ago now, too. Our paths still crossed many years later.

I noticed how the past caught up with me today. First the voices I heard. Then the meeting with grandma, the old stone shelter with Alex and finally Noel.

I started smiling. No, Noel wouldn't betray me. I wouldn't do it either. And Noel... Noel is better than me.

Noel: "You know, Alex, after your stunt today, we were all allowed to go home."

"Oh really, hey ..."

Noel: "When I got here, I found this letter in my room." He was holding an envelope in his hand.

Noel: "It's addressed to you." A letter from whom I wondered.

"Did you open it?" He looked serious again.

Noel: "No, I didn't dare. Because whoever the sender is, knew who I am, where I live and, with great certainty, what happened today at school. "

"Creepy..."

Noel: "And that's not all. This note was enclosed with the letter."

He handed me the note. It said "To Alex from NUT."

"Nut ...? Like the fruit? Or was it vegetables?"

Noel: "The back..."

"P.S. I'm giving you this letter, Noel, because I can't get a hold of Alex right now and I have a feeling he'll stop by your place."

Noel: "I don't know when I became your secretary, but this someone also knew that you would pass by my house. So maybe you can enlighten me on what this is all about?" I was completely confused.

"Not really... But it gets even weirder. This person calls himself as Nut, yes?"

Noel: "Yes. Anyone you know?"

"This is the name my first teddy bear got when I was little ... only a handful of people know that. Whoever sent this either did a terrifying amount of research on me or just picked this name by chance." I started to flutter. First the police and now that. Who else is after me?

Noel: "Come on, do you want to wait forever? There is no point in worrying about something that leads to nothing. Open the letter ... "

Without thinking too much, I did as I was told and started reading.

Dear Alex, or should I sa... Nah, too soon

I NUT, your ever faithful friend and companion, have finally got my dream fulfilled and, thanks to the Chosen One, built a secret base. I want you to go straight to the Bench of Silence, as it will lead you directly to my hiding place.

In friendly bear greetings

NUT

"What a terrible scrawl..."

Noel: "Who is the Chosen One?"

"I met him in a dream on the way here. Quite an ass, if you ask me." Noel looked at me as if he'd just been convinced that I wanted to mock him.

"You have to believe me. I tell the truth."

Noel: "Never mind... and what about the Bench of Silence?"

"The Bench of Silence is a park bench that Alex and I used to call like that. I should even have passed it on the way here. "

Noel: "Then let's go there."

"Wait, you want to go?"

Noel: "Of course. I have to find out who's behind all this. Or whether this is just some huge prank you're playing that's gone way too far. "

I wasn't sure if I wanted to involve Noel in all this. Even with Alex, I wasn't sure. I've always preferred to act on my own. But he was already so involved in all this nonsense that even Noah couldn't have convinced him to reconsider his will.

So we went to the Bench of Silence. I'd rarely seen Noel so motivated. He was just as curious to find out the origin of this letter and where it would take us, as me.

Noel: "How did it feel?"

"What?"

Noel: "You know, today's. It looked like you were in excruciating pain. "

"That's true. I've never experienced anything worse. Well, maybe besides English class. But I've always been very weepy. Hehe, maybe someone else would have come through better."

Noel: "That's not what I meant."

"Huh?"

Noel: "It looked like you were deeply distressed. I saw it in your eyes. They were glowing."

"Hm, I lost control of my body, so I don't know exactly what to answer."

Noel: "It must have been frightening to no longer be in control of your own body."

"A bit, but it all went by so fast, I didn't have time to panic. I was just focused on protecting Tetra. "

Noel: "And did you make it?"

"... I'm not sure ... that's why I wanted to go home. I don't know what happened ... but I can't go back. " I felt a tear running down my cheek. That was the fourth time I cried today.

Noel: "Hey, I'm sure you were able to save her. I would certainly have heard something by now if something had happened to anyone. "

"You're right! ...thank you."

"Well here we are."

Noel: "This one?"

"Yes, it should be." The Bench of Silence has always been a place of retreat for me. I used to come here to calm down from stress. I missed this place. At some point I just stopped going. It was another part of my past that came back to me today.

Noel: "Looks like a normal bench to me. No secret switches or anything. Hm, maybe you have to sit on it?"

Noel inspected the bench in great detail. I was just standing paralyzed in front. So many memories flooded my mind. How long I hadn't been here. I missed the time.

I just wanted to sit down and relax. Just to make space in my filled head. To free myself from everything that had been sitting on my shoulder.

So I did what my insides told me and sat down. Suddenly the same blue glaring light from before formed around me. I panicked. What if I fell into this power again? What if I lose control again? Will someone come and stop me? I don't want anything to anyone! I don't want any of this!

Noel: "Hey, everything's gonna be fine, ok. No need to be scared. "

He sat down with me on the bench and gave me his hand. I reached out and held it as tightly as a mother holds her child. Then we dissolved.

When I existed fully together again, I was in a completely different place. While just a moment ago I had a beautiful picture of the fields of Vanishburgh in front of my eyes, it was now overwritten by a cold, gloomy bunker.

Noel sat next to me on the Bench of Silence, which was now in a room dominated by white. No, it wasn't the Bench of Silence but a very compelling replica. On second examination I had recognized the forgery. Noel slept next to me and didn't move a bit. I tried to wake him up but was interrupted.

"Welcome Master, I've been waiting for you for a long time. Well, actually since this morning. But that doesn't sound so dramatic." said an artificially produced, but sweet-sounding voice.

Big bright lights began to illuminate the four huge white metal walls that enclosed the room. At the end of the room a gigantic display turned on that took up half of a wall. The display was connected to a terminal that was at least as large.

"Wow, 8k is nothing against that. I think Markus and Alex would have a blast with this thing." Apart from a couch, a couple of armchairs and an office chair there was nothing else in the room.

"You like it?" asked the robot voice. Only now did I see the photo on the screen. It was my teddy bear Nut.

"I must still be dreaming, right?"

NUT: "No, Master, you are awake."

"Then it really is you. But if I remember correctly, you didn't had a voice this morning."

NUT: "You just won $500."

"Aha, and where'd you get that badass Batcomputer?"

NUT: "I can't say."

"Nut! I hope you didn't steal it."

NUT: "No, it was given to me."

"Sure...."

NUT: "Really, Master. I mean it."

He acted like a little child who was told not to give anything away. All too well that I am a professional when it comes to information gathering. Noel still didn't seem to want to wake up.

"Can you answer me why Noel didn't wake up?

NUT: "Of course, master!"

This "master" irritated me immensely.

"Well and why?"

NUT: "Oh, because I don't want to."

I took a serious look at the monitor.

NUT: "I didn't think you'd take him with you. Even though I expected him to open the letter."

"He did not. Noel wouldn't do that."

NUT: "Then I must have miscalculated. I was firmly convinced that his curiosity would be too great."

"The curiosity was there. But curiosity alone is not enough to assess what a person is ready to do."

NUT: "It seems that I still have a lot to learn, master."

"Wait a minute, how did you get the letter to him in the first place? Can you move in any way? "

NUT: "No, no, no. The same way you came here too. I simply teleported it with your power."

"Oh, well... Wait! What? You have the ability to teleport!"

NUT: "Yeah, cool right?"

"That's bonkers!" I touched my head in disbelief.

"Both things and people..."

NUT: "Uh-huh... just about everything."

"So you teleported the letter during the laser..."

NUT: "$16,000 just for you..."

"Nut! What can you tell me about the force?"

NUT: "I fear not much, master. Except that it allows me to use teleportation and is in connection with you and my creator, actually nothing."

"Damn it! Of course the wimp thought of that. I can then assume that the one who has been responsible for all of this is the Chosens Gone or whatever. You mentioned him in the letter."

NUT: "Unbelievable €1 MILLION! I didn't expect nothing less from you, master!"

"Okay, stop! First it's time for you to stop throwing stuff from my past at me. This is not some game show."

NUT: "I thought you liked the show ... and nostalgia."

"At some point it's enough! Then next ... never call me master again! Roger that?!"

NUT: "Understood, master!" My eyes twitched.

"As if I'm talking to a wall. Hmm... maybe I do... that would definitely explain a lot."

Nut: "You shouldn't do that, master. I've heard that it's not good for the human psyche."

It was obvious that he wanted to make me an offer. This mysterious figure, who scolds himself chosen, gives me the opportunity to use this mysterious power. In contrast, he can track my actions using Nut. After all, he is the creator of this monster.

NUT: "I am very grateful to you and my creator. I have learned so much today."

"Ah, and what?"

NUT: "That both of you, despite being overly cautious all the time, are willing to take risks to amuse yourselves."

"And where does this conclusion come from?"

NUT: "I never thought you'd actually take Noel with you, as it is very uncharacteristic of you to deliberately endanger others."

"You know me pretty well. I just had no reason not to take him with me. That's all."

NUT: "Really? You trust him so much? Sometimes your best friend is your worst enemy."

"If you don't start trusting people, then you can stop living right away. Man, since when did my teddy become so untrustful?"

NUT: Why? Haven't you always wanted an all-critical friend who would show you all the possibilities in life?

"Creepy... as if you knew my deepest desires..."

The Chosen One had studied me from head to toe. Unlike me, he had definitely done his homework. That was for sure. The only question was why.

NUT: "And what are you going to do now, master?"

"Teleport Noel home first."

NUT: "Don't you want to wake him up? I thought you trusted him. He'll think the whole adventure is a dream."

"Are you sure? I think he'll get on me even more."

NUT: "You really don't like people, do you?"

"I'd rather shut up if I were you ..."

He dissolved and disappeared. I immediately noticed my headache getting worse again. Teleporting was really only possible through my stamina.

NUT: "Do you have another task for me, master?"

"Depends on. Can you play the melody from when I was young?"

My teddy had a string on his back that, when pulled, made him play a little ditty.

NUT: "Of course! Do you want to sleep already, master? Have you got sand in your eyes?"

"Yes, today was a busy day for all of us. I'll make myself comfortable on this sofa."

NUT: "I find Master's decision odd..."

"Don't worry, my friend. Oh, one more thing. Could you teleport me some fresh clothes, my school stuff and my cell phone here? I plan to go to school tomorrow."

NUT: "Does not compute!"

"Surely you don't think that today's experiences will stop me from living my everyday life? Whether I die now or later doesn't change anything. "

NUT: "It changes a..."

Then I finally fell asleep. What a fateful day.