BULLETS ⚊ divergent

TWENTY FIVE

Eric exhaled through his nose, stopping for a few seconds to allow the brunette to catch up to him. It took him a few seconds to respond, and his voice was uncharacteristically low when he did, "An honorable position in her new government," the words had barely left his mouth and Lilith was already prepared to call bullshit. However, she figured it would be better if she held onto her bitterness, at least for now. After all, they were on a mission. He continued, "She promised us a voice, something that we've never had before, and a future of prosperity and inovation, for everyone."

"Except Abnegation."

He nodded once, "Except Abnegation," he repeated. Silence fell over them as they trudged down the sidewalk, before Eric decided to continue, "It wasn't until we'd allied ourselves with her that Jeanine made her intentions clear. She would give the Dauntless leaders a voice, but the rest of our faction, those who wouldn't comply, were to stay under the effects on the simulation serum permanently. Marching around aimlessly and fighting Jeanine's fights for her," his tone was harsh and bitter, with an undertone of rage for the leader of his birth faction, "Granger and Siobhan would never agree, much less you. I don't care about any of the shit Jeanine says she'll give me, if I can't keep those I care about by my side."

His reasoning for wanting to put an end to Jeanine's skill was, at minimum, selfish. Still, Lilith was glad that there was something strong enough to pull him away from the edge of the precipice, and make him see that this whole situation was wrong. His selfishness was clashing with his hunger for power, and she could see it in the way his knuckles turned white as he gripped the handle of his pistol, trying to reassure himself that this was the right thing to do. After he faced Jeanine, there would be no going back. Erudite would target the both of them, but at least their faction wouldn't be made up of mindless attack dogs any longer. 

However, there was still one last thing that she didn't really understand.

"Eric," his name left her lips in a somewhat hesitant tone, that made him look down at her instantly, "Why am I not in the simulation?"

"Oh, right," he mumbled, scratching his neck with one of his hands, "I didn't inject you with the serum. Not all of it, anyways. I extracted the neurotransmitters, after Jeanine shared the process with me." 

Lilith wouldn't admit it in a million years, but just the thought that Jeanine placed enough trust in Eric to share the details of her plan with him made her whole chest burn. She'd never been a particularly jealous person, but the notion that they were closer than they appeared pissed her off. The corner of her lips twisted upwards, forming a bitter smirk, "You seem close with her."

"Not the way you're thinking," his tone was disgusted, "And certainly not by choice."

"I don't really care about it," it was a lie, and they were both sure of that as they walked. Lilith could feel that Eric was about to make some sort of comment about the way she'd reacted and, having no patience to deal with anything relating to her love life, at that moment, she raised a hand to make him stop walking, as she pressed herself against the wall. The leader looked quizically at her, and she gestured to the corner they were about to turn, "We're here."

He nodded once, "Right," he muttered, grabbing his pistol and checking his ammunition. Once he was done, his eyes flickered to her again, "There's two guards outside, one pulled from the simulation and the other one still under. If we have any hope of getting into the building, we need to take them out silently. Rhiannon posted four more soldiers on the ground floor, and I have no doubts that they'll come running out if we make too much of a mess."

"Okay. I'll take the unaware one."

"Deal."

They took a few more seconds to prepare themselves, before finally turning the corner and doing their best to sneak up to the two guards standing in front of the building. Eric stuck to the shadows as best as he could, hiding behind pillars that decorated the entrances of other surrounding constructions, while Lilith could afford to conceal herself behind trash bins and bushes that didn't look like they'd been watered in months. As soon as she was close enough to distinguish the faces of the guards, it was painfully clear which one was which. Her target was the one standing closer by, while the other one whistled lowly to himself, his fingers tapping against the side of his leg.