It was—
Dark.
Cold.
Nothing was near the air.
A faint—
Pulse.
Outlined the surroundings in white.
A steady stream of sand and dust poured into the large crevasse stretching beneath the rocky surface.
Small rocks crumbled down to the ground below, some resting on the red skin of her cheek.
Art's eye—
Opened.
Looking through the small hole above her.
The moon's illumination rested in her dark pupil, stretching its light to her yellow eyes.
Her body was numb, flowing with a steady stream of adrenaline.
What…happened?
Her eye—
Blinked.
A flash—
Blinked.
Showing knuckles surrounded in a dark red hue.
Art's breathing staggered as she tried to compose herself.
Each breath was sharp like a knife stabbing into her torso.
That woman…I can't let her reach them.
She struggled to turn over on her front side, beginning to push herself up to her knees with the help of the rocks nearby.
Art's ears—
Twitched.
Listening to the sounds around her.
It's back to normal…but the surface is silent.
A slight cough came from her lips, spitting blood on the rock beneath her as she slowly climbed towards the night sky.
Her hand—
Reached.
Grasping the surface ground.
Art shimmied herself up, crawling up with her right arm.
She stood hunched over, holding her left shoulder.
What is this?
A storm of destruction swirled around a centralized point having clouds of dust fill the space around it.
Art's eyes—
Narrowed.
Trying to see beyond the threshold.
It was—
Warped.
Blurred as if she had weak vision.
I need to get closer.
She began limping towards the center, tumbling down the short slope as she landed on her side.
Art picked herself up, resting her hand along the crater side as she moved towards the center.
The air—
Shifted.
As she inched closer.
Art stood unsupported from the rock wall, holding her left shoulder.
Her senses—
Recognized.
A familiar presence.
A person—
Stood.
Aligned with her shoulder.
They faced the central city district, tilting their head towards the clock tower.
Art's head—
Turned.
Trying to face the figure.
"...Ka—"
The distance—
Widened.
Before she could even begin.
Art faced the air next to her, feeling as if she couldn't reach it.
The figure—
Gone.
Their path—
narrowed
To the central district.
Art's right hand twitched as it continued to support her shoulder.
He's gone…
She closed her eyes, steadying her breathing as she turned towards the center.
…I can't reach him anymore.
Art continued limping towards the middle of the destruction, listening to the wind pick up pebbles across the ground.
Clouds drifted over the night sky, fogging the moonlight's silver illumination.
She had—
Paused.
Standing near the origin.
Her eyes—
Widened.
Focusing on the clump before her.
Did Kane do this?
Stripped wires lay dormant, fraying out from the ends of torn pieces of flesh.
A broken body crumbled on the top of different pieces having a missing piece in their chest.
Art's ears—
Twitched.
As a breath sounded before her.
A dark red—
Glow.
Flickered from the fog before her.
The dust cleared as the outline of someone familiar was before her.
Art's body—
Reacted.
Trying to raise her guard.
I can't…not now.
Veera remained—
Motionless.
Looking towards the collapsed pile.
Her broadsword remained stuck in the ground, fluttering as it slowly went dim.
A smile—
Stayed.
As her lips quivered.
Veera's palms instinctively turned towards her face, slowly rising towards her mouth as they began shaking.
Her pupils—
Narrowed.
Drifting her inward.
A dark red outline, shaped like the silhouette of Veera stood on a singular diagonal cut.
Another—
Immerged.
Standing mirrored her side.
Their body—
Gray.
Cracks ran along the figure.
The dark red shape reached for the small slit in the air, placing their pointer finger on it.
The other—
Followed.
Raising the opposite arm.
Their arms touched side by side as they pressed onto the slit.
A memory—
Flooded.
Showing her first foundation.
The cold, desolate room sat tucked away in a dark stone hallway, far beneath the surface.
Cheering and screams echoed from the bloated door at the end, mixing in with the sounds of a bell chiming.
Violence took place in the underground area, entertaining the high class people of the western district.
A young girl sat—
Alone
Surrounded by a storm of diagonal cuts.
Steel reinforcements separated the hallway from her cage, having only a small window for information to enter the cell.
The tab—
Slid.
Opening towards the outside.
A hand—
Reached.
Moving into the cell.
The young girl stood to her feet, moving towards the bolted door.
A calm voice spoke to her, having a small cloth bag in their hand.
"Here, try some of these…It'll help you calm down."
The young girl hesitated, grabbing the small cloth.
"What is it?"
A set of lips could be seen through the small window.
"It's candy…don't eat too much or you'll get cavities."
The young girl—
Reached.
Pulling out a red piece.
The candy—
Tossed.
Into her open mouth.
"I'll just…"
Her teeth—
Slammed.
Shattering the candy.
"...cut them out."
A diagonal—
Slash.
Ruptured the playing memory.
The figures returned to their starting point, turning towards a second slit.
Teeth seethed behind the rising trembling hands of Veera as she continued to look towards the collapsed pile.
Her sword—
Flickered.
As her voice began to mumble.
"...Dropped…"
Veera's sharpened teeth chomped down on the flesh of her hands.
Blood ran through her teeth, dripping down her lips and onto the ground below.
Art's head—
Collapsed.
As it violently shook.
She became dizzy, watching Veera in the state she was in.
What is…happening?
Her vision—
Blurred.
As her white hue faded.
Veera continued to tremble as the sword slowly began dissipating from the hilt.
Art took a step closer, feeling the immense pain across her body.
Another—
Word.
Came from veera's lips.
"...Couldn't…"
Art's body paused as she flinched back.
The bandages around her body began to loosen, showing a scar towards Veera's eyes.
Two fingers—
Reached.
Towards the second floating slit.
Another memory—
Exposed.
A leather boot, resting on an older woman's foot, stomped on the soldier before her pressing into their limp side.
Her head turned around the silent room, looking at the collapsed people covering the entire limestone floor.
This is pointless…
She looked down towards her clean, exposed skin before turning her attention towards the people watching.
"What."
The people—
Shuddered.
As they all took a step away.
A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she walked off towards the exit door.
She followed the pipes lining the ground next to her, moving down the cold, mechanical hallway.
Her hand—
Reached.
Opening a lone door.
The room was—
Clean.
Having only the bare necessities.
She sat down on the bed, letting the afternoon sun rest on her skin.
Her eyes—
Narrowed.
"If I looked weaker…"
A dark red hue surged through her veins.
"...then I could fight more."
Her arm—
Cut.
Being slit at a diagonal line.
Blood ran out of the twitching flesh, dripping down onto the gray bedsheet.
The memory—
Slashed.
Splitting into two even parts.
The figures—
Returned.
Facing a final slit.
A series of bandages began to fall to Veera's sides, slowly exposing the cuts along her body.
Art continued to observe Veera trembling as she ignored the world around her.
She's in no condition to fight anymore.
She began steadying her breathing as another word escaped from Veera's lips.
"...Attained…"
Blood continued to run down the peaks of her teeth as they pricked the flesh of the fingers.
The figures—
Reached.
Touching the final slit.
A last—
Memory.
Echoed inside her mind.
The solitary room was filled with the sounds of persistent ticking, having the light from fluorescent bulbs outline the room.
A woman wrapped in bandages sat in the center of the room, looking towards the large screen before her.
Why do I have to go through with this?
A series of information flowed across the screen, flooding her pupils with rules and regulations.
She exhaled through her nose, splitting the screen in two even pieces.
The door—
Opened.
As heels slowly clicked towards her.
Another figure—
Stood.
Standing at her side.
Her voice echoed through her mind as the woman held a small box in her hand, reading off the screen above it.
"Veera…watchman candidate number 12004."
Veera's tongue clicked as she reached into her pocket.
"What do you want?"
The woman reached into her lab coat pocket, pulling out a small metal box.
Let's see… age, eighteen…Unsubordiante
She stretched the metal box towards Veera.
"I'm your assigned mentor Selena…I heard you liked candy."
Veera's hand—
Reached.
Touching the metal box.
The memory—
Slashed.
Sending the figures back to their space.
A veil—
Stretched.
High above them.
The dark red figure's chin lifted trying to look towards its peak.
A shiver—
Pulsed.
Moving through its body.
It felt—
Helpless.
Like a prey facing its death.
The bandages wrapped around Veera were almost completely undone.
Her sword continued to dissipate as the process reached beyond the hilt.
Veera's lips continued to quiver as another word slipped out from her.
"...Peak…"
Art continued to hold her arm, trying to steady the dizziness in her head.
Her ears rang as the pain shot through her torso with each breath.
I wanted to ask her what happened here…it doesn't seem like she can talk.
The veil—
Gone.
Never acknowledging their presence.
A sea of red cuts flowed beneath the figures' feet, leading in the same direction.
The dark red figure began walking along the path, having the cracked silhouette follow alongside.
Anchors, holding the foundations of the dark red figure, began orbiting around her, looking like specs of red light.
Words from familiar people flashed into their mind filling them with a distant warmth.
The orbiting—
Increased.
Pushing out beyond the dark red.
It had—
Blocked.
Separated it from the cracked figure.
The cracked figure walked on the same line as the other, standing directly next to the dark red figure.
The other walked alongside, being surrounded by the foundations of their identity.
It created—
Distance.
That could never be filled between them.
The conversations of past encounters flowed through the dark red figure.
"You always break the training yard."
A metal box—
Appeared
In its right hand.
"Here is some candy…Now then, the converging endpoint could be attained—"
A loud chomp, ended those words.
The candy shattered in the mouth of the dark red figure.
"The total encapsulation of arriving at the endpoint—"
Another piece broke those words as the figure followed along the diagonal cut.
A second—
Influence.
Intertwined within the deep red.
It began—
Pulling.
Separating the orbiting warmth.
A dark threshold stood before the figure, flickering with a faint blue hue.
The dark red figure—
Crossed.
Following the glow.
The cracked figure—
Stopped.
Turning its back towards the threshold.
Footsteps continued along the diagonal line as the figure approached the blue light.
A singular—
Root.
Ingrained into the floor below.
It stretched its blue color towards the cuts below, fusing its color within them.
The dark red figure—
Reached.
Touching the root.
A command—
Surged.
Flowing into their mind.
Collapse.
The dark red figure fell to its knees, holding its head as the memories continued to orbit around.
A realization—
Flowed.
Into their mind.
The observatory sat silent around the kneeling woman as she waited in front of the stone pedestals.
Her eyes—
Glanced.
Looking towards their surfaces.
There was—
Nothing.
Except for a static feeling.
A faint—
Ticking.
Slowly began to surround her.
Voices talked through the static, flowing their words into her ears.
"That failure won't happen again."
A woman's voice replied.
"And how can you be so sure…our best one escaped."
A second—
Tick.
"I'm always in control."
The woman—
Spoke.
For a final time.
"If that's what you think."
Her thought rang through the kneeling woman's head.
No wonder he failed…besides she's not—
The static—
Faded.
The realization—
Ended.
Bringing the dark red figure back to the root.
It stood to its feet, beginning to turn away from the ingrain.
A final—
Action.
Occurred.
The figure—
Pointed.
Lifting its arm towards the root.
Veera's bandages fully loosened, piling onto the ground around her.
Her sword—
Dissipated.
Removing itself from the ground.
The red glow in her veins flickered as she lifted her arm towards the central district.
Art took a small step back.
What's she—
Veera's veins—
Flickered.
A cut—
Formed.
Slicing the ground towards the center clock tower.
Art's eyes traced the line.
Is she…letting me go?
Veera's arm lowered to her side as her veins lost their red glow.
Art turned towards the pathway, limping away towards the central district.
I should take my chances.
Her stride—
Stopped.
As she glanced back at Veera.
Art's ears—
Twitched.
The dark red figure—
Brightened.
A cut—
Formed.
At the base of the root.
The ingrain—
Uprooted.
Moving away from the cuts below.
The air—
Shattered.
Breaking around the dark red figure.
Its orbits continued to surround it as the cracked figure stood back to back.
The cracked figure leaned its head back, resting it on the other's.
Barbed wire—
Creaked.
A final time.
The cracked figure's arm—
Separated.
Floating with different fragments.
It's pieces—
Slammed.
Colliding together in a random order.
A voice—
Spoke.
Sounding muffled.
"You will never be—"
Reality—
Shattered.
Returning the view back to the dark red figure.
Ruin's pile of fragments sat dormant before Veera as her lips stopped their quivering.
The last—
Word.
Mumbled from her mouth.
"...broken."
Veera had—
Stopped.
Cold.
Her arms—
Dropped.
As her torso was pulled by gravity.
She—
Stayed.
Like a broken mannequin.
Blood continued to drip from the edge of her lips as she breathed quietly.
The dark red glow was completely dim as her pupils fully narrowed in.
Art's eyes—
Widened.
Looking at Veera's state.
She's like…Elaina.
Her view shifted towards the pathway that was cut before her as she began to continue limping towards the city.
Veera was—
Left.
Alone.
…
Citizens sat limp in their chairs outside a small cafe, surrounded by the discontinued churning of gears and tickings of clocks.
Tea cups, full of light brown liquid, rested on the smooth marble surface as they sat on matching coasters.
The road—
Warped.
As if fog rested on its surface.
Kane—
Stood.
Perfectly straight.
The liquid—
Rippled.
Out from the center.
A breeze flowed across the air, curving its path back onto itself.
Kane—
Vanished.
Like he was never there to begin with.
The liquid returned to a still state as the ripples faded.
A steady flow returned to the cold night breeze as it passed through the still city.
Distance—
Narrowed.
To the clock tower.