lyssa [https://imgur.com/VUePKrs.png]

Alongside Abel, Lyssa ran down the straight streets. The hubbub of the panicked crowds grew distant behind them as they headway towards the train. As the sounds faded, she started to focus her attention on the quiet city around them.

In a strange way, it was beautiful. Totally unnatural, yet perfectly in proportion, the top floors of the skyscrapers all lined up as far as the eye could see. Giant rectangles of maybe thirty floors at equal distances from one another. She felt like an ant scurrying between the huge shapes. Beautiful, but terrifying.

There were no cars. She’d heard something about the city not needing them, somehow, using new forms of mass transit, but she couldn’t force the information to the surface of her mind. As she had over and over, she found herself wishing she had paid more attention when people had spoken about the city.

They made no turns as they left the train, which was fortunate now that they were backtracking. They shouldn’t have had to. Annie always did this.

Her lungs heaved about halfway to the train, and she called out to Abel to slow down to a brisk walk.

“Sorry,” she said in a pant. “I’m not in that great of shape.”

“It’s okay, I was about to do the same. I haven’t actually ran in years. Not since I was on the track team.” He looked over at her uniform. “That was three years ago for me.”

She peered at the dumb outfit clinging to her body, unzipping the skirt and stepping out of it as they walked, leaving it behind in the street. Beneath the skirt she was wearing a pair of black shorts, more than enough to cover herself.

Abel gave her a wide-eyed look as she stripped herself of it. “What are you-”

“I hate skirts. I’m not in high school either. None of us are, all three of us are in college.” She picked her speed back up to a jog, feeling a second wind of energy as frustration gave her a shot of adrenaline. “It’s because of Annie.”

“Why are you wearing uniforms?”

“Annie wanted us to. She was sick during our senior trip. We stayed home so she wouldn’t be alone. Now, two years later, she says she wants to go on her trip. I didn’t mind it, until she says she wants us to wear our uniforms the whole time. Sarah had to lose weight just to fit in hers. It’s just...Annie is...”

She stopped her words, realizing how the situation was pulling them out of her. She shouldn’t be telling this person anything. “Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize,” he said, panting. He really was getting exhausted as well. She slowed down again and he followed suit. “If we’re in this together, I guess I need to know more about all of you,” he said. “Is Annie sick?”

“Always,” Lyssa sighed, lifting a hand to count. “She has asthma, diabetes, arrhythmia, Crohn’s disease, you name it and she probably has it.”

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“She sounds like a lot of work,” Abel said, a polite smile.

“She is. Sarah and I are more like her keepers than her friends. And she always drops or forgets her purse. Sorry again for making you run with me, especially...in a situation like this.”

The words brought the quiet streets back into their minds. Lyssa looked around as they passed intersections, seeing the occasional movement of people, their bodies looking as small as she felt.

Ahead of them, the train grew near.

“This...this thing can’t last long,” Abel began just before they reached the train car they had been situated in. “This Karma game. There is no way it can last more than a few days. Someone will shut it down and we’ll be free to go.”

“Yeah,” she agreed quietly.

A moment later they were stepping up into the train, and began the search for her purse. “It’s small. She carries a few medicine bottles in it and her inhaler. It’s red and blue. It has to be here.”

Lyssa crawled across the floor, checking under the seats, feeling suddenly vulnerable each time she heard a sound, a distant yell, a clicking in another car. The hairs on the back of her neck stood when Abel spoke a minute later.

“It’s not here.”

“It has to be. She left it here. She always leaves it laying around.”

“Could it have been dropped along the way?”

She pursed her lips. “It could have. Let’s look one more time.”

As she padded down all the seats for a third time, molesting the cushions, a child’s voice spoke. “Lyssa.” A cold finger went down her spine.

“Abel.” It said next.

She looked over at Abel, whose white face was a mirror of her own.

“What is that?” she whispered, heart pounding.

“It’s me!”

A young girl leapt inside the train with a big smile. She had long blonde hair tied up by a red ribbon, a white summer dress waving around her as she jumped inside.

“How did...” she stopped herself before she could finish the question, relief blowing over her. She had forgotten about the HUD Commands. “Have you seen a purse around here?”

The girl pulled the purse from behind her back, brandishing it with a grin. “This?”

“Yes!” she knelt down, holding her hand out. “It belongs to my friend. She’s sick and she needs it.”

“Eh?” the girl hid the bag behind her back again. “But I like it.”

Lyssa bit back her temper. It was an emergency but she wouldn’t rip the bag out of the girl’s hands. Not yet at least. “She really needs it. She’s very sick.”

“Is she in high school too?”

Lyssa nodded.

“Lie.” The girl took a step backwards, towards the open train doors. “If you lie again, I’m not giving it to you.”

Lyssa stared at her. The brat couldn’t even be in middle school yet, and she was calling her out on a white lie? In this sort of situation?

“Where are your parents?” Abel asked.

The girl turned to glance up at him. Uninterested, she turned back to Lyssa. “Why are you wearing a uniform if you aren’t in high school?”

“I can explain later,” she pleaded, extending her outstretched hand. “My friend needs that purse. She might die.”

The girl took a step closer, whispering under her breath. She reached out, grabbing Lyssa’s hair, holding it gently in her hands. “You have pretty black hair. Why do you cut it?”

“If you don’t give me the purse,” Lyssa said, looking over at Abel, “we’re going to take it. Okay?”

“Why would you do that?” the girl asked, looking hurt. “Why is she the one who gets it? Why does she need it more than me? It’s pretty.”

“It’s not about the bag. You can keep the purse. We just need the things inside of it.”

“Inside?” she unzipped the bag, glancing at the contents. “I can keep the purse?”

“Yes.” Lyssa cupped her hands. “Just pour it all. I’ll catch everything.”

The girl did so. The pill bottles and inhaler tumbled out.

“Thank you,” she said to the girl, putting on a sad excuse for a smile and patting her on the head. “My friend is going to be happy.”

“Lie,” the girl said again, before turning to Abel. “She’s a liar. Be careful, Abel. She’s going to lie and trick you. Don’t believe Liar Lyssa.” Then she jumped off the train. Lyssa handed half of the bottles to Abel. They shared a look but didn’t speak. She felt her face grow hot. They started to jog again, towards Annie.

Lyssa glanced over her shoulder several times. The girl remained at the train, watching them run. She wondered if she saw the girl’s mouth moving, whispering to herself under her breath again, or if it was just her imagination.