Ember Heart: The Revival

Chapter 4 - Crux

Isa's heart was beating dangerously fast as she drove. She was sure at any moment, it would burst in her chest. Nonetheless, she kept going.

Finding her way in the dark streets was challenging. She couldn't see street signs until she was practically on top of them, and had to pull over several times to look at the pamphlet.

The third time she pulled over, she stayed at the side of the road to fully catch her breath. Her mind kept wandering back to her parents. What were they doing right now? Isa felt a twinge of guilt for the first time about leaving, and especially for stealing the car. She decided that she would give it back when she could.

Isa drove the entire way in silence. Whenever she saw another car, she would duck down as far as she could in her seat. For all she knew, her parents could've called the Militia to search for her. She gripped the steering wheel and pressed firmly on the gas.

According to the clock on the dashboard, she exited the highway at 3:49 am. The pamphlet only showed major highways, so getting to the guild itself would be tricky.

After a myriad of wrong turns and turning around, Isa found herself driving on a long, narrow, dirt road. There were no streetlights, the only source of light coming from her headlights. Either side of the road was thickly encased with trees. Her gut told her to follow the road until its end.

It took almost ten minutes to get to the end of the road, but the time was well spent. The dirt road narrowed even further to just a path. The path's destination was a building that sat unlit and surrounded by forest. A sign just by the door was marked with a large X.

Isa shut off the car and climbed out. The building was modern, made of various gray and black squares stacked on top of each other. She was certain that this was Crux's guild hall. The building didn't look like a house, or any other kind of establishment and the air around it felt charged. She shivered as she stepped closer to it.

The sun was just beginning to peek over the tops of the trees, so Isa didn't find it odd that there were no other cars. She looked back at her car. Maybe she should wait until other people showed up. If anyone caught her snooping around, they would never let her join.

But then again, it was quite early in the morning. Perhaps she could find a book on how to better control her magic inside.

Isa promised herself that she would be quick and that she wouldn't touch anything she didn't need.

Curiously, the front doors were open. Isa stepped inside, hesitant. The inside of the guild hall was lit by the moonlight through the windows. The front doors led to one large room with tables and chairs strewn throughout it. Except these tables and chairs were more haphazardly placed than ones that people would have casually sat in. These looked like they had been thrown about. Shards of broken glass were scattered on the floor. Slightly alarmed, Isa crept in further. She half expected to find a body sprawled on the ground.

In the center of the room was a tall spiral staircase. Isa carefully picked her way over the wreckage and climbed it, her hand resting lightly on the metal handrail.

Upstairs was another large open room, this one with couches, comfy chairs, and a large TV mounted to the wall. There were large tears in the couches that looked suspiciously like an animal had clawed them. Isa gulped.

On the far side of the room were three doors. The farthest to the left was labeled "Ike" and was locked. The middle door led to a small bathroom. The last door slid open to reveal a small library.

Though she didn't read that much anymore, Isa could still appreciate the silent beauty of a library, especially an empty one. It was just her and the books, completely alone. The spines were old and worn, but the bookshelves were clean, white, and sleek. The air was still as if someone had paused time.