To say the ride to wherever it is Kalen is taking me is uncomfortable is an understatement. Kalen is focused on the road in front of him, not opening his mouth once to try and start a conversation, which leaves me fidgeting in the seat behind him, not knowing if I should try to talk to him or if I should just look out the window. We've been driving for over an hour now and as much as I love to watch the scenery, seeing how all the buildings and trees seem to blur together, the silence is starting to get to me.

"So, where are you taking me exactly?"

There is a tense minute when I think he will just ignore me, but he speaks up before I can add even more jerk points to his current streak.

"To the Elite compound. We call it HQ," He says bluntly, not taking his eyes off the road.

"Oh. And where is that exactly?"

He looks at me through the rear-view mirror.

"The one that we are going to is in Landa, but we have other bases stationed all over the country. It's mostly labs and security, but our training facilities and dorms are located there, and it's where young Elites are taught how to..."

"To harness your Gifts and use them for the good of society," I cut in. "I know that. Everyone does."

He stares at me for a second longer before redirecting his attention to the surrounding cars.

"Well if you knew already, then why ask in the first place."

"I didn't ask what it was, I asked where it was," I huff, crossing my arms in front of me and refusing to look at him.

I know I'm acting like a child, and not like the seventeen year old that I am, but I can't find it in myself to care. If he's going to be cold towards me and act as if I'm not even in the car, then why should I try to be nice?

"Well now you know," He answers, impassive as always.

He really gets my blood boiling.

After another tense few minutes he eventually breaks the silence, playing around with the radio and settling on a pop music station. Well, at least he has good taste in music.

"So, no Gift. How is that even possible?"

I know he doesn't say it with bad intentions. I just don't like it when people bring up the subject. It was bound to happen eventually; everyone always asks questions when they find out I have no Gift. Although the questions are usually along the lines of 'Are you sick?' 'Have you always been Giftless, or is it just a temporary thing?' or my personal favorite 'But it's only you right, it's not contagious?'

Yes, you will lose your Gift if you touch me, or breathe the same air as me. But I know that Kalen just wants to understand, so I try to keep a leveled head and answer him as best as I can. Although it isn't much of an answer really.

"Nope, never have," I say, popping the p at the end. "And before you ask," I intervene when I see him opening his mouth to cut in, "I don't know why this happened, or why it happened to me. I mean, both my parents had Gifts, so I doubt it's a genetic thing."

I don't want to see his reaction. Most people stare at me with pity after I tell them about my 'condition', and pity is not what I need right now. But when I look up the only thing I see shining in those stunning gray eyes is... understanding. No pity, no disgust, it looks like he knows firsthand what I'm talking about.

For a second it seems like he wants to add something more, but then decides against it, clearing his throat and averting his eyes first.

"I'm sorry," he says eventually, "that must be hard for you."

"You have no idea," I want to answer, but because I'm not so sure anymore I just settle for a simple thanks.

The silence that falls over the van is still awkward, but this time I'm able to relax a bit, pulling the jacket I grabbed last minute around my shoulders. I start to doze off, the buzzing of the motor and the rocking of the car lulling me into a peaceful slumber, when the van suddenly comes to a stop. When I look out the window I have to rub my eyes a couple times to make sure that my sleep muddled brain isn't playing tricks on me. When I'm certain that I am most definitely awake, my jaw practically hits the floor with how fast it drops.

You have got to be kidding me.

I've seen pictures of this place in our history books, but like all the other old buildings, I thought it had been torn down or rebuilt somewhere else. Instead I'm left staring in shock at the structure in front of me.

"Is this the Pentagon?"

There's no mistaking it, the shape kind of gave it away.

Kalen looks at my slack jawed expression and laughs. He actually laughs! A genuine human laugh! I thought the only emotions this boy felt were anger and annoyance. He nods, but doesn't elaborate further as we both step out of the van and into the mid afternoon sun.

We make our way past the heavily armed gates, Elites with zap guns strapped to their backs lining the perimeter.

"It's changed a lot over the years, so this probably isn't the same exact Pentagon that you've learned about in school," He says as we make our way to the center of the compound. "But we kept the original structure. We just changed a few things here and there."

Another Elite comes strolling down the hall, and I nearly jump out of my skin when I realize that he is turning translucent, letting me see the background through his body. He blends into his surroundings with every step, almost as if his body can't decide to remain visible or not. A chemical or energetic Gift I suppose, probably something to do with camouflage. He's typing away at his TekPad, too busy to notice us until he practically walks right into me. When he sees Kalen standing beside me a mischievous smirk graces his angular features.

"Well if it isn't Kal, back from another mission. How are you man? It's been a while since I last saw you."

Kalen pats him on the back and smiles in return.

"Fine. Still haven't made it to the top of the board, but we'll get there eventually."

Transparent guy gives him what Cassie likes to call a 'bro hug' and nods.

"I know you will."

He finally seems to notice me standing there and extends his hand for me to shake it.

"And who might this be? The name's Jordan, and it's always a pleasure to meet beautiful young women."

I feel the tips of my ears get hot. Who would have thought that an Elite would compliment me? Not until recently my image of them had always been of stuck up rich kids that thought themselves better than the rest of society, but everyone I've met so far has proven me wrong. Maybe it's because they don't know I'm not an Elite, or even a Norm for that matter.

"Brianna."

He looks at Kalen with a smirk, who just rolls his eyes and pushes Jordan away. I try not to notice how he seems to stand between the two of us.

"She's here on official business, nothing more, and I really need to get to her to Christian, so if you don't mind," he gestures down the hall.

Jordan backs up and puts his hands in the air in mock surrender.

"I didn't mean any harm. I won't keep you then, have fun meeting the big boss little lady," He says, giving us one last salute before disappearing down the hall we just came from.

Kalen pulls me along, spurring me into motion, and he talks calmly as we pass more groups of young Elites.

"Jordan is the head of the arms department, also one of the lead researchers at the compound. The cuffs you were looking at while we restrained Simon Says? They were designed by him. Pretty much all of our equipment has been handled by him at one point or another, and he decides when they are ready to be used out in the field,but don't let his title fool you. He is a complete geek. He loves old world science fiction movies; he could probably tell you all of them in alphabetical order without missing a single one."

He adds that last part as if it were a bad thing, but there is a softness to his expression that tells me he cares about Jordan. And anyone who manages to break through Kalen's seemingly impenetrable walls is a pretty decent person in my book.

We reach a big set of double doors, and I watch as Kalen scans his fingerprint and inputs his safety code. I look away for this last part, so he doesn't have to worry about me trying to steal it or use it in the future. The doors open with a loud 'woosh', and I'm hit with the strongest sense of deja vú I've ever had. Where have I seen this place before?

I think back to my classes with Mr. Roscovic, anything that would give me a clue as to why I feel like I've been here before, when suddenly my episode at the smoothie shack hits me like lighting, and I remember the dream I had while I was passed out. The FBI looking place. That's where I've seen this, in my dream.

But how is that even possible? First, Simon Says' voice in my head, and now this? Standing in the physical representation of my dream?

Mom had been trying to tell me that dads Gift involved something like prediction, could that mean... no. I squash that thought as soon as it pops into my head. I am not going to get my hopes up over something as far fetched as that. I don't have a Gift, I've already accepted it. It's time to move on.

Jeez Bri, stop living up in the clouds and come back down to earth for once.

I come back from my thoughts to find that Kalen has disappeared, but after looking around I spot him in front of one of the large desks, looking at something on one of the computers. I'm just about to go to him when I hear the tale tell noise of the door opening again, revealing a...

"But sir, I'm telling you the truth."

A large man dressed in a green suit.

"You will have to be more specific," answers the man, voice deep and scratchy, as if he swallowed a piece of sandpaper.

And he is followed by Mara.

Okay, now this is where I draw the line. There is no way this is normal. Snippets of my dream are coming back to me: Mara walking into the room, talking to a tall man wearing the same suit she did, his being a deep shade of green instead of black.

Kalen looks up from the computer and starts to follow them, so I guess I have no choice but to trail behind him. They enter the adjacent room, this one much larger than the last, and I realize that I had been mistaken. This was the room from my dream, not the other one. The two were practically identical, but there is one important feature in this one that the other one didn't have: a large glass screen that occupies the entire back wall, showing different parts of the world at rapid fire speed. It's making me dizzy just from staring at it.

"She says she doesn't have a Gift, yet she was able to predict Simon Says' words exactly, doesn't that sound like..."

I come back to myself when I hear Mara talking, and find the man she's with staring right at me.

"And who is this girl?"

I jump a little before I process his question, startled by his steely gaze.

"My name 's Brianna sir, Brianna Acero."

When they hear my name Kalen and Mara, and who I can only assume is their boss or mentor, stop dead in their tracks. I come to a halt, narrowly avoiding a nasty little introduction with Kalen's back, the owner of which is staring at me with wide eyes.

"Is there something wrong?" I ask, unnerved by the way they are all staring at me.

Mara is smiling, still just as shocked as Kalen, but with a glint in her eyes that I can't really put my finger on.

"Acero," says the man, being the first one to snap out of his stupor. "Are you by any chance related to Thomas Acero?"