Perfection [On hold - changing a lot of the story)

5║the way they provoke

Ⅱ For Locks, who is genuinely amazing. Ⅱ

Ⅱ New cover at the side, it fits the story perfectly. Ⅱ

        A feeling of eeriness washed over me as I stood there, alone at the demolished grounds, desperately rubbing my arms for the warmth that my body failed to provide for me.

        I was unattended as everyone who was once by my side had mysteriously disappeared, not giving me one clue as to where they went or why they specifically requested for me to meet them here. I spun around, stumbling across the scattered rubble as I attempted to get as far away from this depressing atmosphere as possible.

        It wasn't exactly a place where people wanted to spend the majority of their time. It was an ex-warzone and one that held no happy memories whatsoever. I still pondered on the very fact as to why the government hadn't obliterated it; it happened to be the only remaining warzone that hadn't been replaced by something of greater beauty. All the others sites had been replenished by fine buildings or structures that had gained superior statuses within the first few weeks of being built.

        Noises began to rise in volume before slowly diminishing to their normal clamour as I walked further out of the place I most needed not to be in.

        Feelings started brewing inside me and I stopped in my tracks, nearly stumbling to the ground as the size of rubble began to increase the further I treaded. Why was I leaving? There must have been some genuine reason as to why I was requested to be here, something special, or serious.

        I turned around and scanned the area behind me, watching out for any sudden movements. Nothing. I looked down at myself before turning back around. They wanted me and something deep inside me informed me that it wasn't just play, it was much more than that. I needed to stay and find out exactly why I was wanted. My mind demanded it even if my conscious reprimanded me.

        I moved back to my initial position I was stood in before they disappeared and resided there, awaiting until something happened or someone appeared. I inhabited that spot for a while before a whistle emerged from somewhere within the fog, offering the place a sense of tune. It wasn't long before a figure appeared too, presenting the source of the melodious harmony.

        Stephan stepped out of the fog and stumbled closer to me, his warm breath once again triggering sensations within my body. It wasn't long before his accomplices arrived, assembling a sort of a formation that presented Stephan as the ruler of the group.

        "She's passed the first test," he said, giving me the feeling he was talking to everyone but me.

        He took a step away from me and Esther stepped out of the fog, as if it was some kind of enchanted habitat that only they could step to and from. There was a moment of stillness in which nothing but the whistling of the air could be heard. I observed my breath as it danced around in the air, the cold breeze causing it to divert and divide into their respective directions.

        "Listen up," Stephan shouted as if he was addressing a large group of spectators, far more in number than there was actually present. "You need to pass three tests, one of which you have already succeeded in completing. Once you have done that, we will explain -"

        "How do you expect me to readily accept a task when I have no clear intelligence of the motivation behind it?" I asked, the words rushing out of my mouth without any clear thought.

        Once the words escaped into the air, I desperately longed to take them back, to reverse the process. In unison, their faces contorted into looks of discontent, giving me the sense that they may have been startled by my sudden outburst, clearly not expecting such a sudden surprise from the girl who spent the majority of her school-life preventing making contact with people who held social superiority over her.