Zodiac Story

Brown Vines, Shield Me From The Abyss Part 3

"I'm so sorry..." Amalia apologised.

"It's fine, I've had worse."

"How did-"

"Did you know that an innocent little girl looking for medicine to treat a scrape works extremely well? These guards may be cold to you, but they certainly weren't to a child. I managed to persuade a sympathetic guard to allow me inside, and then I borrowed his clothes."

What did that mean?

"Don't worry, they're alive. I think I left them in a storage closet."

Did she know why everyone was here?

"Unfortunately no. There are no paper archives, and their computers just got wiped. I drugged the coffee, so don't drink it. Thankfully, at least most of the guards liked espresso. The rest I sent a message saying that there was an urgent message at Site Alpha, but after that all of the electronics shut off." She waved at the computers. "I don't know what happened there to be honest, but I did find out why I couldn't read Elias' mind."

Clytemnestra grabbed a hold of some pink coloured curtains and shoved it out of the way. Elias was hooked onto a ventilator and was completely still, the machines around him slowly beeping as his vitals remained stable.

"The notes here say that he has been in a coma for a week. Apparently he did try to escape, and got four bullets in the back for his trouble."

Amalia dropped her shield, letting it clatter on the floor. She wasn't close to Elias, but she knew that Laura was fond of him. Elias didn't move. Why had they all been taken prisoner, and why would they...why would they—

"Here, put these headphones on. They're industrial grade, and I found them in a drawer. Are you able to put any shields around the rest of your colleagues?"

Amalia shrugged, until she remembered the plants. If her dream was real and she could see through plants, then she could use them to protect everyone. She closed her eyes, imagining a shield around herself and Elias. Once she opened them, she was high above the facility like her dream.

We are not a dream. We are real, like you and Castor and Pollux.

How did you know those names?

We sense our siblings on the other side, and they tell us everything. Now imagine the shields that will protect your colleagues.

Amalia pictured it. Soon, she found eleven light brown coloured domes surrounding some of the structures, and far below, Clytemnestra was walking in front of the wall, and opened her mouth.

We will not be long for this world. Thank you for giving life to us, and we know what we were here for.

What do you mean—

Amalia's mind was shoved out of the gestalt consciousness. Before she could react, the entire building was shaking. Only her and Elias remained motionless. Everything was vibrating and she heard something collide with the ceiling, until it stopped. Peeking outside the door and taking off her headphones, she found Clytemnestra sighing.

"Whoo, that was...a lot...of screaming. At least...it's broken now."

Sunlight shone upon Amalia's face and outside there was grass and the dancing of birch trees in the wind. The wall was broken, shattered into a million chunks that surrounded Clytemnestra. Amalia sensed her colleagues were awake inside the shields. Outside, there was a teenager running towards them with yellow twintails dangling in the breeze.

"Castor!" The girl on the horizon shouted. She sprinted into Clytemnestra and hugged her.

Amalia looked back and forth between the two of them. They were twins...most likely fraternal. Those were the majority of twin births. Amalia blinked. The girl looked like a teenager...but they spoke like adults in her head. Sensing that her colleagues needed to exit, she let down the shields. She picked up her own shield, as all of her colleagues rushed towards her.