abel [https://imgur.com/gfZpXk6.png]

Bernard had told him everything before Lyssa had begun barking out at them. He’d been brisk and abrupt. “Annie is dead. Let them be."

With a strong arm helping him, the two of them had taken some steps away from the three girls and turned the opposite way. There was no reason to ask what had happened. Annie had seemed on the verge of death since the ear-shattering sound. Unable to walk and unable to breath. He bit his lip, imagining how the two were feeling now that the third of their group had passed. They only had each other.

Abel didn’t let his mind stew on the fact that he was even more alone, with no one at all. At least the two of them would have each other to lean on.

Their sobbing continued. They were too quiet for him to make out words. A few people passed down the sidewalks, staring at their group with wild eyes, like frightened animals searching for a way back to safety.

With the glowing blue aura of the city’s wall surrounding them and the plentiful streetlights, it hardly seemed night at all. He’d heard that Agona was notable for its nightlife, and he now understood how that was possible.

“Abel.”

Lyssa’s voice finally came from behind them, calm and sane. Abel turned to her.

“Does this city have any dirt?”

He opened his mouth to answer, hesitated. His grandfather had talked about the city so many times. Surely it had it...and then the memories returned to him. “The north side of the city has some plots of land, parks and gardens. There should be plenty there.”

“We have to bury her,” Sarah said.

“What?” Bernard asked, turning around.

“We have to bury her,” Sarah repeated. “We can’t just leave her body in the middle of the street.”

“She’s dead,” Bernard said. “Move her into an alley. We need to get somewhere safe, otherwise we’ll end up like her.”

“Abel,” Lyssa said, sorrow creeping into her voice again. “How far from the north side are we? We need to bury Annie.”

He didn’t know where they were in the city, but he knew it had to be quite a distance away because he couldn’t see a spot of foliage as far as his vision stretched. “I’m not sure.”

There was a long silence.

“If you’re going to cart a corpse around, Abel and I may be better off breaking away from this little group.”

Abel gave Bernard a look of confusion. Since when are the two of us sticking together? He wasn’t about to ditch these girls after their friend had passed, and he had words for Bernard if he was planning to do so.

“What? You’re going to make me go off by myself?” Bernard asked, seeing his face.

“How can you even suggest that?” Abel asked, giving him another ludicrous look. “Their friend is dead.” He pointed to Annie on the street. Sarah dropped her head, fresh tears falling at the straightforward reminder. “If you had come here with someone, do you think we would leave you to carry them all by yourself? The five...four of us need to stick together. The worst thing that could happen is for one of us to be left all alone. We have to protect one another, because right now, we are all we have.”

Bernard turned away from him, eyeing the girls still kneeling beside their friend. In the distance, a quiet siren rang out, swinging between pitches. Warm air blew past them.

“Well said, Abel,” a new voice said.

He turned and saw three men were now standing several paces behind Bernard and himself. Neither had heard or seen the men approach, an eerie portent which Abel felt was intensified by their knowledge of his name.

Abel mouthed the word Check three times.

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On the right, Byran Simpson. Kara 2. Bara 0. A short man with a thick and neatly trimmed beard.

On the left, Timothy Garr. Kara 2. Bara 0. The tallest of the three, lanky, kind-faced.

In the middle, Daryl Brown. Kara 4. Bara 0. Buzzed gray hair contrasting his tan skin, his arms were crossed over the tightly fitted suit he wore. It was his voice that had spoken, and he did so once more.

“We have lived in this city for years, and we are just as aghast at this turn of events. But some of us have decided we can’t just sit around and let the worst come to pass. We’ve set up a quarantine of sorts, a place where we’re bringing those without any levels in Bara, until we can get a better picture of how this stage was set and how we fit into it as actors.”

Bernard nodded, taking a step forward. “Good. I’m glad to hear it. That means you’ll be taking us in?”

“We’ll be taking in those without any levels in Bara,” Daryl repeated. “As well as the dead who are no longer part of this sick game.”

Abel found himself staring at the back of Lyssa’s head, her short black hair motionless beside Annie.

“Great,” Bernard said.

“We’ve set up several buildings to the West which will act as receiving areas for visitors to the city. We have others going out to buy as much food as possible so that if need be, we’ll be able to stay in those buildings for a long time.”

“And you’ll take Annie with us?” Sarah asked, then added, “Our friend.”

The squat man on the right nodded. Abel had already forgotten his name. His eyes weren’t leaving Lyssa. “There is a graveyard a block away which is going to be under constant surveillance. Even so shortly after the new rules were called out, several women were already found trying to increase their Bara by digging up and defacing corpses. Your friend will be able to rest peacefully.”

“Lyssa?” Sarah asked suddenly. Lyssa had gotten to her feet. A dagger sat in the palm of her left hand. The Little Secret she and able had discovered. Sarah’s mouth moved. Then she suddenly seemed to understand, scooting backwards a pace. “Lyssa, you have a level in Bara?”

Two of the men in the trio spoke. A trident, giant and glowing blue, appeared in Daryl’s hands. The other seemed to have an outline, a white aura surrounding his body.

“I’ll go alone,” Lyssa said, “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

Abel tried to speak, but the girl had known a protest was coming and she spun on her heel, pointing the knife towards Abel. Her face was stiff, no emotion being allowed through.

“I said I’ll be fine. You will take care of Sarah. You said all those big words just now about staying together and protecting those around you, right? If anything happens to Sarah, I’ll make sure you regret it.” She turned her knife to Bernard and the three men who he had already migrated towards. “Protect Sarah with your lives.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Sarah was on her feet, taking a step closer to her friend, but stopping just out of arms-length, keeping an eye on the knife. “I’m not going to leave you, Lyssa. If they won’t take you, then you and I will be by ourselves.”

Lyssa turned her knife to her friend. It hung in the air for a few moments, only a foot from Sarah, then Lyssa lowered her hand to her side. “I have a plan, Sarah, don’t worry. You go with Abel. Go where it’s safe and stay there.”

“A plan?” Sarah demanded, “What in the world are you talking about?”

“I’ll go with you two,” Abel offered, taking a step forward.

“No.” Lyssa shot an icy gaze towards him. “I’m going alone. I’m going to get rid of my Bara and then I’ll be back.”

“That’s not possible,” Daryl said, tapping the end of his trident on the street with a clang. “You cannot lose points, only gain them.”

“I had a level in Kara,” she said, lifting the dagger up. She opened her hand and it vanished into the air. “Now I have a level in Bara. Something happened.” She looked at Abel. “And I think I know what.”

His mind quickly figured out the single variable she was referring to. The strange girl in the train, whose mouth had seemed to continue moving even while she wasn’t audibly speaking.

Lyssa embraced Sarah in a hug, squeezing her tight. “I’m sorry, but I have to go. I’ll be back soon.”

“How soon?”

Lyssa knelt down and gave Annie one last kiss on the forehead. “I don’t know, Sarah. But I promise, I’ll be back.”

And then her legs were taking her away, down the street. She was jogging and then she was sprinting. Abel watched Lyssa’s back fading away. Back to the trains. Back to the beginning of it all.

“We’ll take you presently,” Daryl said in a low voice.

Abel had half a mind to run after her, to drag Bernard and Sarah with her so that they could truly stay together. There was no reason for her to be alone. He was against it.

But Sarah stood wordlessly, eyes fluttering between him, Annie and Lyssa. The girl seemed helpless. Lyssa had known her friend. Known that the two of them couldn’t survive by themselves in this new paradigm.

And Lyssa had known that she could survive if she was alone.

Abel walked over and silently lifted Annie onto his back. Bernard watched him with a bored look on his face. And then they were walking the opposite way down the street, West, towards the future.

“If she doesn’t come back, we’ll go looking for her, right?” Sarah whispered to him quietly. “Promise?” He nodded in mute agreement.

They were led down a few shorter streets and towards a building which had a number of friendly looking people loitering outside. It shocked him they could look so positive, knowing they were trapped in the city.

“We will bring your friend to rest soon enough, but for now, bring her inside.” Daryl placed a hand on Abel’s shoulder, rustling Annie’s hair. “Find a chair and try to calm down. Don’t be afraid to socialize. We all may be here a long time.” He motioned to the door. “But for now, the most important thing for you to do is familiarize yourself with the new system in play. If this calamity ends tomorrow, you won’t have lost anything having spent the night memorizing its Commands.

“Man’s mind is the key to his survival.”