The Lost Paradise

Chapter 10

I am a lazy person, very lazy and one of the reasons I didn't want to go to this gathering was because I knew they would make me wear something decent that would be appropriate for a gathering, and I didn't have an experience of dressing up good for anything ever. Stela was already dressed, Reek had gone out leaving us girls alone to get ready.

"Why can't I come in these?", I pouted, pointing at my comfortable clothes. "Come on, it won't make a good impression of you amongst people", Vanya explained. "But I really don't care", I ran my hand over my hair, a little annoyed at that moment.

"Okay these will look good on you", Stela pulled out a navy blue dress from my closet. "Hey that's good", I said, staring at it. "I know", she looked proudly. I got myself dressed in the blue dress that she pulled out from my closet. I have never before stared at my own reflection in the mirror, for reasons unknown even to me. Twenty years of my life and I felt like I saw myself for the first time, I've never studied myself before.

I felt beautiful at that moment, something I've never felt before. Maybe it was the ragged old dress that I always wore before that made me feel good for the first time I wore a better dress, or maybe it was the happiness that sparked on my face, that made my dark eyes look lively for the first time. "You look great", Vanya studied me. "You too", I said, staring at her magenta dress that wrapped her curves so perfectly. Vanya was beautiful, and the way she held herself up made her look even more attractive. We three left our room soon after that.

Reek was talking to someone outside his room in the gallery. He noticed us coming and they both stopped talking immediately. "Is there something wrong?", I asked him, sensing a thick air around them. "No, you guys move ahead. I shall join you soon", he said. We left him with the other guy and started making our way towards the dining hall. "Do you know who that guy is?", I asked them curiously. "I have no idea", Stela replied, shaking her head negatively.

We feasted on the delicious food, and as more food filled my stomach, I realized that I was getting more animated.

"And then what happened?", I laughed hard. Vanya was telling about an incident that happened in her training hub. "Then what? I was thrown out, they won't take me in for a week", I choked on my juice as I laughed. "Your parents didn't say anything?", Stela asked her, shaking with laughter. "No, they were fine. I think they wanted me to get into trouble sometimes so that they would have a chance to resolve problems for me", she chuckled. A tight knot formed in my chest, just like the last time when she mentioned her parents. I internally craved a happy family too, a family that I never had.

After dinner one by one everyone starting moving towards the small door that sat right opposite the main entrance, the same door where I witnessed the two strange people's conversation yesterday. "There?", I asked, pointing." yups", Stela nodded. I followed them behind quietly.

My fellow faction members were all gathered there in that beautiful golden room that was lighted up brightly in colorful candles. The strong fragrance of flowers hit my nose. I wasn't interested to go there at the beginning, but soon I found myself laughing and talking to as many people as possible. Many uriches belonging to our previous batch were also present there. I spoke to as many seniors as possible, trying to catch in, and get some tips on how to pass these tests that I will be taking.

"I didn't see many of them but", I asked Unia, one of my seniors curiously. "No, we had to stay back, because we couldn't pass the tests along with the others", she told me, "Are they...?", I couldn't complete my sentence.

"It's all within you, Eliza. It's our own internal struggle that comes as the biggest hurdle in passing these tests", she tried to explain. "Ohhh", is what I could say, as I had no idea what kind of struggle she was talking about.
We sat there like that silently, drowned in our own thoughts amidst the loud chattering. "I have another thing to ask you", I said, hesitantly. She gave me a nod, encouraging me to go ahead.

"Do you believe in the life that they want us to believe in...after leaving this place?", I asked slowly. She looked surprised by what I said. "You doubt whether it's worth your fight, don't you?", She observed. I didn't answer that question, but she already understood my answer.

"We all live by hope Eliza. Tell me about your life before this place", she said, and I looked at her intently. "Was it better than this?", she asked me, and when I couldn't answer, she smiled. "It's either you going back to the society as what you were before, or back as a fully reformed, more powerful person than you came here as. Going back, to a fulfilling life that they promised us", she said. Her words were convincing. I smiled at her in understanding. But, it was just not yet fully convincing for me. I had questions, and I shall go behind them, I decided at that very moment.

Stela and Vanya were in between a deep conversation with some guy. "Can I leave now?", I whispered in Vanya's ears from behind. "It's a big thing that you waited for so long", Stela who heard me laughed. "Yes Eliza, we will come back soon", she said. I gave her a bow in a dramatic fashion and started to leave, leaving a round of laughter behind me.

The main dining hall was empty as it was almost midnight by now. I walked down the hall thoughtlessly when my zarkis started burning suddenly. I raised my arm to have a look at it. It was the central black strip that was glowing deeply, and before I even realized I found myself in a haze, my surroundings moving behind me at a speed that my body couldn't interpret.

"You all are here?", Was the next thing that I heard. I had lost my balance and fallen down in an awkward position. "You fine?", Someone tried to help me. I took their hand and helped myself up. "What the... hell", I swore, looking at the four not familiar, but yet not so unfamiliar faces under the faint light of the moon.

"Is this the way...this thing works?", I asked them, not to anyone specifically but. "Yes, it works well", Lianna observed, adoring her wrists. "Really? Is this the time for your test drive?", I questioned them, infuriated by the way I was summoned here, against my will.

"You need to calm down, little bird", The guy, who belonged to the trams said. "What did you call me?", I asked loudly, not liking the way he called me a 'little bird'. "little bird", he repeated. "you are so tiny", he said, showing how tiny looks with his fingers, as if I didn't know what tiny was. "Do not call me that", I told him, rolling my eyes. "I cannot promise you anything", he said, with a smirk. I exhaled deeply, trying to calm myself down. "Don't do this again, it isn't decent to summon someone like this without their consent at this point of time", I tried to explain to them, in a calmer tone. " whatever it is, it can wait for tomorrow", I said and started walking back.

"Wait", the boy belonging to the trams stopped me. I turned back, expectantly. But he didn't say anything, just stared at
me back. "What now?", I asked him vexed.

"This", he extended his arm out and passed a small note to me. "Professor Fyun, wanted me to pass this to my flocc members", he said. I took it from him and shoved it into my dress pocket. "Are you some kind of leader now?", I asked him curiously. "I don't know", he answered seriously. "But if I am, then shouldn't I know everything about my flocc members?", he said, with a sly smile. "Everything as in?", I asked him puzzled. "Isn't it past curfew, why are you so dressed up?", he asked me studying my dress, and then studying me.

I laughed out loud. "Are you serious? You yourself. We all are standing here past the curfew time", I reminded him. I wasn't annoyed anymore. I had relaxed a bit now. "Yes, but we aren't dressed up all pretty, are we?", he questioned me, with a smile. "I really don't think, I have to answer that question", I told him and started walking back, with a smile on my face.