“Adanna, I need him,” Eden said. “He’s like you. He’s my third piece.”
Adanna’s mouth dropped open. She raced to the second floor. Eden recalled the sounds she had heard earlier and started to run too. As she moved, she looked behind her at the others and shouted, “Everybody search for General Yuri. I refuse to leave until I have him back.”
She had never been one to give orders, but this was just so important.
Chapter Eight
The prison was dark as Eden peered down the hallway and crossed her arms over her chest. Yuri was gone. She bit her bottom lip and wondered whether she would ever find him now. What if he disappeared into the cracks, like an ant? No, Eden thought. I’ll find him. I’ll find him and I’ll fix this. There is no such thing as an impossible task.
With a sigh of frustration, Eden slid down the wall, pulled her knees beneath her chin, and stared straight ahead. Lately, she had been feeling sad a lot. She threw back her head and shut her eyes. She thought of her parents. She remembered a day when they had been happy, a day she always thought of when she tried to remember why she had loved her dad to begin with.
They were at the beach at the Santa Monica pier in California. The ocean spray filled the air and smelled of salt. Eight-year-old Eden leaned out over the side of the railing and looked downward, into the ocean below. The water was dark brown and cold, yet a big part of her was tempted to toss herself into the icy waves below, just to feel the air whistling through her hair. But then her dad grabbed her arm, drawing her away.
“Eden, don’t get so close to the edge,” her dad said. “You’re so skinny, I swear you could fit through the guard slats.”
Eden backed away and her dad grabbed her hand and squeezed. He sighed.
“I met your mom here,” he said, appearing whimsical. “I saw her standing right over there.” He pointed at the corner of the pier where a thin, wiry fisherman reeled in an empty line. “My own personal goddess, fresh off the shoot.”
Smiling, Eden looked at the corner of the pier and found it easy to think of her mom being here, looking into the water. Her mom’s eyes were the color of the waves down below, greenish-brown and shimmering. Her mom had always been so beautiful. Eden sighed.
“I went over to talk to her. She turned around and gave me this large smile,” her dad said. “Then I asked her out and she told me not on her life. She walked away, and I watched her go.”
“But if she told you no, how come you’re married now?” Eden asked eyes wide.
“One of the fishermen said she always came here,” her dad said. “He said she stared at the water appearing sad or something like that. The next day I came back, and she was here again. I went up to her and said, ‘Why won’t you go out with me?’ and she stared straight into my eyes and told me, ‘Because I don’t feel like it.’ Then she walked down the pier again and disappeared.”
“Wow,” Eden said. “That doesn’t sound nice of Mom.”
Her dad shrugged. “Well, I came back again the next day and asked her, ‘Do you feel like it today?’ and she said ‘No!’ and left. I came back to the pier every day the entire month and asked her the same question, and then one day, she said yes. We went to a restaurant and had dinner, and about two months later, I found out she was pregnant with you. That’s when we got married.”
Staring at her dad, Eden’s mouth dropped. She had never heard this story before. “I thought people got married first, then had babies.”
As Eden looked at her dad, she saw a blush come over his plump cheeks.
“I probably shouldn’t have told you that,” said he said, ruffling her hair. “Sometimes things get out of order, and...”
Eden continued to stare at him, thinking, I don’t understand. How could things get out of order?
“Oh, boy,” he said, running his hand through his hair. “I guess what you could say is I was so eager to have you I wanted you before I got married. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, anyway.”
“What about Mom?” Eden asked. “Was she happy to have me around, too?”
He stared at her. This time, his face drained of color instead of filling with it. Then his mouth split into a grin again and he poked her thin stomach. He poked too hard and it hurt a little, but Eden didn’t mind. Her dad was usually too busy working to spend much time with her. This vacation was like a dream. Maybe, if Rebecca had gone on vacation with them instead of staying at home with the man her dad called the “pool boy,” then she could have taken part in this too.
“Am I not good enough for you, Eden?” her dad asked, laughing.
“You’re good enough,” Eden said. “I love you, Dad.”
Smiling, he reached down and took her small hand in his, and the two of them began to walk down the pier together.
The sound of footsteps drew Eden from the memory, and she did not know whether she felt happier or sadder than she had before. She loved her dad and missed him a lot. She missed her mom too. Both of them were so engrained as a part of her, but having them ripped away from her like they were…
It’s because this is important. I was chosen for this. She stood up and stared straight ahead. She thought of what the Earth was probably like now. Her dad was likely in trouble, and who could save him? Her. She could save him. And she was going to find Yuri and she’d convince him to stay with her, because he was one of her five and she needed him.
She headed down the hallway and walked down the flight of stairs to the bottom floor. When she left the last stair, she saw Aaron lingering by the wall. He appeared concerned as he gazed at her and he had a big frown on his face.
“What now?” Aaron asked. “Yuri is gone. There is nothing we can do.”
“I’m going to find him,” Eden said, “and I have a feeling he hasn’t gone far. I think he’s just as eager to get to me as I am to get to him.”
“Oh, Eden,” Aaron said, sighing and shaking his head.
“Please, Aaron,” Eden said. “You know I don’t have much choice here. He is one of my five, and I need him.”
“Are you sure that’s the only reason?” Aaron asked, his eyes narrowed.
“Of course,” Eden said.
Deep down, though, she knew it wasn’t true at all. They were connected now. She wouldn’t have let him go without a fight, even if he wasn’t one of her five.
****
Eden, Adanna, and Aaron stood inside of a prison cell alone on the second floor of the prison. The prison was quiet still, but Eden knew the other prisoners were getting restless. She could not keep them here because of what she had to do any longer.
“I’m sorry, you two,” Eden said. “And especially you, Adanna. I know how badly you want to get back to Thema, but we need Yuri now. It’s the only way to save us. I have to get to him and convince him to stay. It’s a part of my task. Do you understand?”
Eden looked from Adanna to Aaron. Adanna nodded vigorously.
“I… I’ve been thinking,” Eden said. “The other prisoners should move on to Horace, and Sergeant Dale and Don can lead them as long as they have enough lanterns. Maybe the two of you should also head with them, and I’ll meet you in Gabriel, where Thema is. I can find Yuri and the other two souls and I’ll meet up with you then. It’s safer—”
“Eden, stop,” Aaron said.
Adanna frowned and nodded in Aaron’s direction.
“We all helped you before, and we’ll help you again,” Aaron said. “Do you think maybe we were chosen for more than love? Maybe we were chosen because we are the ones who love you and will help you finish this. You are not on your own. I know I can be a coward sometimes, but we aren’t jewels or children you have to protect. We want to help you as much as you want to help us.”
Warmth filled her heart. Maybe Aaron had a point. Back on Earth she had been a loner, but after she had come here, she met the only people who managed to make her feel like she wasn’t a waste of space. Eden loved them too.
“Okay,” Eden said, “then starting now, we�
��ll begin trying to draw out Yuri. Wherever he might be.”
****
Sergeant Dale and Don glanced at each other and then at Eden. Their eyes were wide with confusion. The other prisoners behind them also appeared to be concerned with mouths gaping and eyes bulging.
“You want Don and me to bring these people to Horace?” Sergeant Dale asked.
“Yes,” Eden said. “Can you do it?”
“Well, of course we can,” Sergeant Dale said. “But what about you? I’ve… I’ve… grown rather fond of you.”
Sergeant Dale looked down and shuffled his feet, and Aaron made a grunt of annoyance.
“You will be helping me,” Eden said. “But we have to get these prisoners to safety, and I have to get to Yuri. Fast.”
A moment of silence went by and then Sergeant Dale exchanged looks with Aaron.
“There is another prison by here that’s been abandoned,” Sergeant Dale said. “It’s twenty miles south, but it has anti-Raider lamps and supplies. I don’t know if you’ll find him there, but it’s worth a shot. Yuri is a smart man and he’s not the type to wander around stupidly.”
“Thank you,” Eden said. “And I’ll never regret saving you.”
Sergeant Dale grunted and then nodded.
Chapter Nine
Everything inside of Cantica appeared barren without the other prisoners. Empty. Eden guessed this was a good thing, but at the same time, as she examined the first level of the prison with a hanging lamp in her fist, she felt anxious and alone too. But then Adanna and Aaron stepped beside her, and she realized she wasn’t alone at all. She let out a shaky sigh.
“Are you ready?” Eden asked.
“Yes,” Aaron said.
Adanna nodded in determination.
Eden raised her lantern and light flickered around her, lighting up the bare brick of the cells and the mold growing on the walls. Stepping forward, Eden opened the front doors of the prison again and then crept outside with Adanna and Aaron behind her. Once she was outside, she felt the pressing darkness choke her soul and saw the white mist upon the ground. The moment she stepped into the open plain she noted all of the faces which appeared just outside of her lantern’s reach. They were white female masks of emotionlessness that still caused her heart to feel filled with fear.
As she walked, Eden did her best to ignore them, but it became hard to see beyond her lantern.
“What direction should we be traveling?” Eden asked.
Aaron pointed south, and she began to walk. As she stepped forward, she heard the ground groan beneath her boot and went rigid. What was that? This is just like last time. She stole a frightened look at Aaron.
“What is with these weird Satan Spawn being attracted to you?” Aaron asked. “I have never heard a sound like that before.”
A moment of silence went by and the ground did not move again. As Eden began her journey, heading away from the ocean, she had the strangest feeling she was being watched.
****
A day later Eden saw, apart from the large clouds of mist that surrounded her, a large, dark building with bricks that had tumbled down. A brick wall had once surrounded the building, but now it lay upon the ground in dark brown boulders. The building was completely overrun by smog and white mist, and Eden disliked even looking at it.
Eden turned for the thousandth time and gazed into the abyss, but all she saw was darkness and the white faces of the Raiders who stayed just far enough away to watch her. Nobody would be able to follow us. They would need an anti-Raider light, and I don’t see one around. She shook off her unease and headed toward the abandoned prison with Aaron and Adanna at her side.
When Eden walked up the path toward the prison, she saw there were many remnants of old anti-Raider lamps littering the ground. These lamps were covered with dust and many were cracked. She sighed, guessing what had happened, and headed toward the side door of the prison. She was careful not to make any noise, as she did not want Yuri to sense her whereabouts, if he was even here at all.
“I don’t think there’s anybody around,” Aaron said nervously. “Sergeant Dale must have been wrong.”
“We have to at least check inside,” Eden said, glancing at the door to the prison.
Everyone became silent. Eden didn’t want to go into the abandoned prison either, but she saw Yuri’s face in her mind and felt her heart fill with warmth. Yuri, she had to find Yuri. That was all that mattered. Eden walked toward the front of the prison and placed her hand against the loop handle of the door. The door was old and wooden and the metal was cool beneath her hand. She frowned before she pushed open the door and went inside.
When she stepped in, she saw something strange. The Raiders’ mist is gone, even though there are no lamps. What would keep Raiders out? She saw the doorways both to the right and left were blocked by fallen stone. The air smelled rancid, of the dead and of urine and of some other sour stench she recognized but could not name. She heard the sound of groaning and placed her hand over her mouth in shock, staring at the door at the end of the hallway. Like the door to the prison, it was old and wooden, but this one remained partially ajar. The groaning had come from there. Eden was certain of it.
“What was that?” Eden asked.
Both Aaron and Adanna remained frozen at the threshold. Eden turned and stared at them. She discovered they were truly frozen with fear. She stepped forward, waved her hand in front of Adanna’s face, and got no reaction at first. Finally, Adanna blinked.
“What’s wrong?” Eden asked.
Adanna pointed at the door behind Eden. Beside Adanna, Aaron stood, quivering. The cross around Eden’s neck lit up, a glowing white light, and she looked down and gasped. The necklace only did this when it was fighting off evil. The last time it had lit up, she had been in the Blood Stone chapel with Satan who closed the gates of heaven. She stared at the door. She did not know what had caused this prison to become empty and barren, but she did not want to find out.
“Let’s go,” Eden said. “Yuri isn’t in here, but something else is.”
The moment Eden made a move to step out the door of the prison, though, the creature in the room behind her groaned again. She paused, turned, and glanced at the door. She watched as the door opened all of the way, without anybody visible pushing it. Once the door was open, she was freely able to gaze into the room beyond. The room was dark and bleak, like the hallway she stood in, but there was more to it than that.
There were broken pieces of wood on the floor and a metal, mirror-like pane lay against the wall of the room. Reflected in the pane, Eden could see Yuri lay tied up on the floor with Jared at his side. She put her hand over her mouth and gasped.
“Oh,” Yuri groaned, and she saw his reflection in the glass move.
Eden didn’t think. She didn’t have to. All she wanted was to save Yuri.
She rushed forward, down the hallway, and ran into the room where Yuri was. When she got there, she looked down into the reflective pane and saw Yuri was no longer there. Instead the only one which remained reflected in the pane was herself, glowing and ghostly. It was one of the few times she remembered she was a ghost. As Eden gazed at her own reflection in wide-eyed horror, she saw Yuri’s reflection being dragged through the next set of wooden double doors behind her. Gasping, Eden whirled around just as the double doors slammed shut with nobody helping them.
Eden charged for the double doors, leaping over similar pieces of metal upon the ground and pieces of wood from the ceiling. When she opened the next wooden doors and stepped inside, she stood in a room full of mirrors and was strongly reminded of the circus.
“Mom, Mom, look,” she remembered saying as an eight-year-old as she spun around. “It’s a room made entirely from mirrors. This must be your favorite place in the entire world.”
“What is this place?” Eden asked, and her voice echoed.
Eden looked up and saw she was in a cylindrical alcove which went up many floors. A spiral staircase wrapped around t
he inside of the cylinder, leading her upward to the top floor. The entire cylinder was covered in the same strange metal mirrors. As Eden gazed around, still stunned by her own pale ghostly reflection, she saw a set of mirrors three stories up. The mirrors showed Yuri being seized by his neck and being pulled upward. Eden gasped.
Eden spotted the beginnings of a staircase. It had already begun to fall apart. The third step up gave way completely to the ground, and she knew the stairs up higher would be much worse. But she had to save Yuri. She wouldn’t forgive herself if anything happened to him.
But what if this is a trap? You see your necklace glowing, don’t you?
Shuddering, Eden gazed down. Demons were tricky, far trickier than she could have ever imagined. Yuri could have been somewhere else entirely, but at the same time, she couldn’t risk not going after him if he had been captured by Satan Spawn. She started to climb the stairs and ran up the flight as fast as her legs could carry her.
She climbed one flight then wound her way around until she was halfway up. Just as she moved to take another step, the step gave way beneath her and she tumbled. For a moment she dangled, her leg stuck through the broken step, but then easily pulled herself up so she remained balanced on her stomach. She gazed over the side of the stairs and looked down. The fall would have sent her back to Earth via reincarnation again. She had no doubt about that.
Eden gazed up and saw, in the set of mirrors on the opposite side of the wall where the final landing was, that Yuri was being dragged through the open door and inside. His eyes were open and his hands clawed at the ground as he attempted to stop his progress. Eden could still not see what dragged him. It was some invisible perpetrator and, in Eden’s mind, invisible meant horrible.
“Hold on, Yuri,” Eden said, getting up and straightening herself. Two more flights left to go. “I’m coming for you.”
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