GOLDEN AGE | ON HIATUS

0 | PROLOGUE

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FOR A LONG TIME, the families had been safe, at least they hoped so. Tucked into two little houses, right next to each other, in a sloping alleyway that was so crammed that it was hard to breathe, let alone move.

The children were safe, at least they hoped so. Tucked into two little rooms, right next to each other, in sloping corridors that were so crammed that it was hard to breathe, let alone move.

So they didn't.

Instead, they sat deathly still, waiting till it was the middle of the night to dare step downstairs, a cold sandwich resting on the table, bread stale from days that they hadn't been able to sneak outside. Each bite was savoured, along with every moment that they were in human company. Loneliness was a dreadful thing that crept up on the children in the middle of the night, vast and empty and unwelcoming. It was like an unwanted visitor - staying for far too long, only stealing their energy and offering no joy.

There was no joy in their lives, all cooped up, with no friends to turn to and families that were too focused on staying hidden and therefore, alive, to have the luxury of caring for their happiness. Food was on the table, beds were lumpy and stiff, but there, and they had hot water. For them, that was enough - until it wasn't, and they had to find other ways to live. In two mirroring kitchens, the mothers announced, in very different manners, their plans.

"We need to stick together," said Alexa Garcia quietly, resting a hand on the worn kitchen counter. "And most importantly, give Narcissa the best life she can have. Stay safe."

"Ok, listen up!" Karen Johnson clapped her hands, curly hair bouncing around her as she paced the room. "No worries. We just do what we've been doing all this time."

Both women were equally concerned for their children, though they didn't want to alert them.  As meagre as their lives may've been, an uneasy peace had settled on Durwick Road, East Semper, near the border with the North side, but not close enough. The South was grim and grey and dangerous, and although they were in an Eastern area, nothing ever seemed to happen.

Until, one day it did.

The children had gone to sleep, leaving the adults downstairs to discuss their real worries.

"I've heard that there's a new project," Felix Corvus was saying to his wife, looking around as if scared that Ciss might overhear.

"Really?" Alexa asked, her voice a shaky whisper. Her tanned skin was paled and pockmarked, stress having created dark crescents under her eyes.

Those eyes, a brown so dark that there were almost black, were rubbed numerous times as she forced herself to stay awake, trying to comfort and convince herself that the erratic peace would remain for a little while longer. A blanket of quiet had clothed the neighbourhood, but even a fool could've seen the terror painted so obviously on their faces. They were waiting for the spark to arrive, and with it, the blaze.

And it came, so literally that it was almost laughable, in the form of a young boy. He was dressed in normal clothes, with a normal face and normal everything. With the appearance of any other four-year-old, no-one paid him any attention as he walked with the crowd of children returning from school, a backpack slung over his shoulders.

As he reached the two narrow houses on Durwick Road, he stopped for a fraction of a second, sliding the back off his shoulders and setting it down where the two houses met. With a little exhale, he joined in the crowd, waiting till the street had cleared before he stopped properly.

After a few minutes, once the street was empty, he sprinted away around the corner and out of sight.

A moment later, an explosion shook the air, engulfing the two houses.

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