Redemption

Chapter 20

I open my eyes to the same dull walls, the same windowless room, the same nightmare. Meghan sits upon her rickety chair as her thick blonde hair falls over her shoulders and rests upon the decomposing wood. I open my mouth, like I once did before, except this time I could feel my voice. I scream her name only to find that every word that I said, my mouth would fill with pebbles. I desperately spit them out, but they keep restoring like an avalanche that never stops.

I kick my skirt, just as I had done many months ago, walking towards my sister. My feet fall to the ground like lead. I struggle to reach Meghan, pebbles choking me with each sound.

Once again, I reach the chair.

Hesitantly, I reach out, brushing her fallen hairs away from her delicate face. I close my eyes, daring not to see my dream-stricken sister. I bite my lip and look down at her face.

She isn't smiling anymore.

Her eyes are pitch black, swallowing all light into the dark abyss. Her cheeks aren't streaked with blood, as they once were.

She moves her head and her cold gaze matches mine like planets aligning. Meghan reaches out her hand. I reach out to greet it, but I find that I pull it away.

This isn't my sister.

I look down at her porcelain skin. Curiously, I touch her face. The second I touch her, she cracks. A spindly, black line forms across her soft face. I jump back in horror as the crack expands. Meghan stands up, she plants her foot out in front of her. With one step, she buckles, landing on the cold concrete. She shatters like the stars die.

I scream. Pebbles fall from my lips, falling upon the ground. I run, but there isn't anywhere to run to. The ground filling with pebbles, I feel myself begin to drown.

I can't breathe.

Darkness.

~

I wake up to a cold sweat. It's still dark, but the faint haze of pollution adds a touch of light. I get up, ignoring the ache in my bones. I step silently, avoiding the eerie creaks in the floor board. I touch the metal rail above the staircase. Slowly, I walk down.

The stairs creak slightly as I step. I hold onto the winding rail and drag my other hand along the wall. I step onto the final step and walk briskly out of the lighthouse.

The crisp air reaches my nose. I breathe it in, but as always, I feel the sting of acid slip in. I don't notice it after awhile, but sometimes when the wind blows, I pick up a substance that wasn't meant to be there.

I sigh, letting the wall of the lighthouse guide me to the ground. I sit with my eyes closed, listening to the high waters splash alongside the sand.

It's almost peaceful, but we are still at war. I find it funny how this war is so much bigger than any of us actually understand. The society is planning to take us down. The society is planning on exterminating the world.

A voice pulls me out of my thoughts.

"Are you having trouble sleeping too?" Mac asks timidly.

I nod, "Yes."

We sit in silence.

I draw in a breath, "Did you have a nightmare too?"

He nods, "Yes."

"I'm sorry." I look down at my lap, shuddering in the breeze.

"Don't be, the world's a nightmare."

I lay my head back, resting it upon the wall. On the other side of the lighthouse, the waves fall violently on the rocks, unlike the soft rolling upon the sand.

"What are we going to do?" I ask, tears brimming.

"We need to get to Alaska, no matter what. From my understanding, there are other rebel groups in the nation, but Alaska's is the only one to suffice."

"The society rules them all?"

He looks at me as he stands up from his side of the lighthouse. He walks over to me, sitting down to my right.

"I don't know. Our last contact with the outside rebels was eight months ago-"

I cut him off, "Who were you getting the information from?" 

"As I was saying," he looks at me solemnly, "we had a spy, who slipped through the society's grasp. He would deliver messages from the other rebel group."

I sit, dazed in confusion. "What?"

"Avery, they killed him, but before he was caught, he delivered a note." Mac reaches into his pocket, pulling out a crumbled piece of paper. He hands it to me.

I open it tenderly, "There is no one left. Run." I read out loud. The scrawled handwriting stains in my memory. "Why are we even going to Alaska then?"

Mac looks at me with concern in his eyes, "Avery, there has to be someone up there! How was he to get the note?"

"How far are we from Alaska?" I say, dodging the question.

"Around 914 miles." Mac says. 

"Where are we?" I ask, doubting the answer.

He pauses. "Where is the map you found?" he asks.

"I'll get it." I say. I stand shakily and hurry up the stairs, quiet as a the shadows that dance upon the walls. I reach my satchel and take it out, rushing down the staircase. I hear someone stir above.

"Here it is." breathlessly, I hand him the map. He unfolds it.

"This is a map of the United States of America. In other words, what once was." he says, smoothing the creases. "This, this is where we are." he points to a dot on the map.

"Washington?" I stumble through the word.

"Washington state, and our city that the society powers over, is the capitol."

"How do you know this?" I ask, reading over the dot, Olympia.

"Adalene knows more history than you think." Mac says, a smirk tugging from his lips.

"Where is Alaska?" I ask. Finally, I find it, placing my hand on the landmass. Mac does the same, casually touching my hand.

"Sorry," he says, pulling it away.

He points to another dot named Juneau. "This is where we are headed." he pauses.

"There, we will seek Redemption."