Nillium Neems Read Online Free PDF Page A

Considering the orderly I was dealing with,
Copley seemed in an unusually good mood. He hadn’t shoved me once
yet and seemed pretty content to just let me lead the way.
    I heard the crunch of a pretzel as he walked
behind me, one hand clasping a little Ziploc baggy full of the
salty treats. Unfortunately, being me, I just couldn’t keep my
mouth shut forever.
    "You know all that salt is bad for your
health," I said mildly, still walking.
    "Shut up."
    "And all the highly processed ingredients in
the pretzel dough? Ugh. That’s asking for trouble."
    "I said shut up."
    "Mind if I have some?"
    "What?" he replied, stopping in his tracks
in confusion.
    "Mind if I have some pretzels? I know
they’re bad for me, but you’re making them look awfully tasty
nonetheless."
    Copley snarled and reached into the bag,
grabbing a handful and throwing them at my face.
    "Enjoy! Now shut up and keep moving."
    I decided it was probably wise to stop
pushing the boundaries for the day, and walked the rest of the way
in silence. You may think me foolish, but please believe me, I did
have a plan in mind other than the mild satisfaction that came with
annoying a disliked orderly. The instant we reached the door
leading out to the Yard, Copley opened it, shoved me out, and then
closed it behind me, stomping off to go angrily munch on more
pretzels.
    Now I could be assured that the man wouldn’t
bug me during my time in the Yard, leaving me in at least some
semblance of peace.
    This time I avoided going near the Tree. I
loved spending time under it, but not now. Not so soon after being
attacked by the Hooded Man. I wanted to stay in sight of the other
patients and at least one warden. I doubted the wardens would ever
do much to defend me, but the Hooded Man generally seemed to stay
away from them, so I figured it would be a wise move.
    The disadvantage to my plan, was that I had
to actually spend time with the other patients. I looked around for
Harold, thankfully not spotting him anywhere, and decided to sit
down next to Lana.
    She was drawing on one of the paved pathways
that ran throughout the Yard with chalk. We’re not allowed to have
pencils. I have one anyways, which is what I’m writing this with.
Aren’t I the sneaky one?"
    Lana is a fairly peaceful sort, who just
likes to sit and draw all day. To be honest, I think that’s what
her life consists of, is sitting and drawing. I watched for a while
as she drew some kind of flower. It was beautiful and I could tell
at once she was a master.
    Most artists start with a basic sketch or
outline of what they want, and then slowly fill it in and perfect
it. Lana just went straight for perfecting it. I don’t know much
about flowers, but I think she was drawing a mum. Whatever it was,
it was pretty and made me happy.
    "What do you want out of life, Lana?" I
asked, kneeling down beside her.
    She didn’t answer, just kept drawing.
    "Do you want to be out of this place,
Lana?"
    I wasn’t even sure she’d heard me. I gently
took the chalk from her hands. She looked up at me, meeting my eyes
with her pale, slightly glassy yellow ones.
    "Lana? What do you want out of life?"
    Her brow furrowed as she considered my
question.
    "A pencil." She said at last.
    I stared at her.
    "That’s all you want?"
    "I can draw better with a pencil than with
chalk." She daintily took the chalk back and went right back to
drawing her flowers, as if I’d never spoken in the first place.
    With a sigh, I fished out my stolen pencil
and placed it on the ground beside her. If I could make one
person’s dream come true, however small, then it was worth the risk
of having to steal another pencil from one of my doctors. I’m not
even sure she noticed its presence. But sooner or later she would,
and then Lana’s weird little dream would come true.
    Of course, as my luck would have it, it was
then that I glanced up and saw one of the Monsters approaching. I
have only touched lightly upon the subject of the ‘Monsters’