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Alatheia was curled up in bed reading a book late one evening when a set of knocks sounded at her door, breaking her focus.
“Come on in!” Alatheia called out, getting up. Who was at her door this late?
Slowly, the door creaked open, revealing the person on the other side: Audrey. She stood at the doorway, shoulders slumped in shame, eyes red and puffy, and her face damp with tears.
“Can I… talk to you for a bit?” Audrey asked in almost a whisper, her voice so fragile, it sounded like it was about to shatter like glass.
“What’s the matter?” Alatheia asked carefully. She’d noticed Audrey hadn’t seemed to be doing the best as of late.
When Lana had first formed the Herd, Audrey had been a bright and bubbly young girl. She brought a little bit of joy into what usually felt like such a dreary place.
But over the past few days, Audrey had grown quiet and withdrawn; she was far from her usual self. Lana had made some snide remarks about how Audrey was “on much better behavior than usual”, but Alatheia honestly just felt bad for Audrey more than anything. She had the feeling she knew what was upsetting Audrey, but she’d been too afraid to ask Audrey about it.
“I… I know I probably shouldn’t be feeling this way, but…” Audrey said, giving a small pause before she added in a slightly quieter tone, “I’m worried about my sister, Nelly.”
Audrey took a breath, as if trying to hold back a sob as she continued, “I know she’s a traitor… I know she probably deserves any sort of punishment Lana intends to give her, but…” she paused again, wiping a tear from her eye, “I’m scared. What if she gets executed…?”
Audrey tried to wipe away another tear, but more tears began flowing down her face.
Alatheia felt horrible seeing Audrey so distraught. Alatheia had guessed that Audrey was concerned about Nelly’s safety. After all, the day Nelly and Nathan were captured by the Herd marked the start of Audrey’s gloominess.
God, that poor girl was probably going through hell right now…
Sure, Nelly was considered a traitor.
But at the end of the day, above anything else, she was Audrey’s sister.
Audrey didn’t deserve to have someone so close to her ripped away so mercilessly.
“Come here,” Alatheia whispered, gesturing for Audrey to come over. She wanted nothing more than bring Audrey a little comfort. She wanted to help.
Audrey seemed hesitant as she stepped inside, approaching where Alatheia stood.
Finally, when Audrey was within arm’s reach, Alatheia pulled her into a hug. At that point, Audrey just began sobbing. She clung tight onto Alatheia’s shoulder, uttering incoherent words as tears streamed down her face.
“Oh God, what’ll I do if she dies… what’ll I do…?” She asked breathlessly between violent sobs.
Alatheia gently patted her back, softly whispering, “I… I don’t know what’ll happen to her yet. None of us know what Lana and Agamemnon’s plans for her are. But I promise, I’ll be by your side, no matter what happens.”
Audrey just kept sobbing. Between her cries, she muttered a few sputtered words:
“Thank you. Oh, thank you for being here for me… I didn’t know who else would listen…”
“You’re welcome,” Alatheia said softly, gently stroking the girl’s soft blonde hair, “Feel free to stop by whenever you’d like. I’m here for you, Audrey.”
*****
Audrey walked through the empty fortress, tears stinging her eyes. It had been hours since the questionnaire had ended; all the patrons had left the fortress already. And yet those fateful words Lana had let out during the questionnaire still echoed clearly in her brain:
“Alatheia is dead, and it’s all because of Nelly’s doings.”
First, her own sister had been dragged to God knows where to be a part of Agamemnon’s cruel experiments.
And now Alatheia, the one person who’d been by her side the entire time, was dead.
Ever since Lana had revealed Alatheia’s death to the Herd, Audrey had held in her tears. She had to appear strong; she couldn’t let her emotions get the better of her.
She’d tried to sleep that night, but she found that she simply couldn’t. She just kept tossing and turning, unable to get any rest.
So now she found herself aimlessly wandering about in an attempt to soothe the grief deep in her heart.
As she passed by Alatheia’s room, she stopped.
Carefully, she stepped forward and slowly opened the door. Part of her hoped that she’d see Alatheia standing on the other side, alive and well, smiling brightly.
And yet no one was there. The room was empty. And silent. Eerily silent.
Audrey entered the room, looking around. She used to find solace in coming here to talk to Alatheia about whatever was on her mind.
Everyone else tended to ignore her. Lana would’ve screamed at her. Jasmine and Kayden wouldn’t have cared. And Agamemnon… well, he was Agamemnon.
Alatheia was the only person in the Herd who genuinely cared about Audrey’s well-being. She listened to each and every word Audrey spoke. She’d do anything to help cheer Audrey up. She’d braid Audrey’s hair, she’d teach Audrey how to skate, and sometimes the two would even watch shows together.
Alatheia was almost like a big sister to her, in a way.
But now the one light Audrey had to guide her through this dark time was gone.
Audrey laid eyes upon the portrait of Alatheia and her parents hung on the wall. Just the sight of Alatheia’s cheerful face sent shockwaves of sadness coursing through Audrey’s blood. Alatheia was a literal angel, she was so kind. She didn’t deserve to die.
And yet now she was gone.
An innocent soul had died, and all because of this cruel cult Lana called the Awakening.
Audrey collapsed onto the bed. Unable to hold back her cries any longer, Audrey began sobbing into a pillow, staining its fabric with her own salty tears.
She wished she would feel Alatheia’s gentle arms wrap tight around her, hear Alatheia’s voice softly whisper in her ear, feel Alatheia’s hands carefully weave her hair into a braid.
And yet Audrey had none of that to cheer her up anymore.
She was all alone now.