Obliterate

thirty three

SOPHIE WAS A bit disoriented when she woke up the next morning. She rolled over onto her side, away from Eli's resting form that stretched out beside her, and rubbed at her eyes. A relentlessly blinking light caught her attention.

Her cellphone balanced precariously on the edge of the bedside table next to her. She reached out and grabbed it, squinting at the small light that flashed at her from the corner of the screen. She tapped the home button.

There were fifteen missed calls from her mother.

The sheer amount of notifications on her phone stirred a cluster of panicky butterflies within her stomach. "Oh," Sophie said. Her voice sounded distant to her own ears. "Oh no. That's not good."

Eli shifted around behind her. He groggily looked around and asked, "What? Who do I have to fight?"

Sophie's lips twitched into a small smile. "My mother," she answered him. She rolled over onto her back and fully unlocked her phone. "She called me fifteen times."

"That's excessive," Eli muttered under his breath. He grabbed his own phone and threw a small, decorative pillow at the lightswitch. The hard, ribbed corner of the pillow hit the lightswitch just right and light flooded through the bedroom.

She turned her head toward him. "Really?" she asked him, an eyebrow arched.

He smiled sheepishly at her, his gaze focused on his phone. "We have a staff alert email," he told her.

She watched his smile slowly fade. "Holy crap," Eli said.

A frown tugged at her lips and her eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "Did Aelia spam you with a lot of calls too?" she asked him.

"Five students have gone missing," he said.

Sophie shot upward in the bed. "Oh my gosh, are you serious?"

Both Eli and Sophie bolted from their bed. Each rushed around their bedroom in a blur, moving fast to throw some clothes on and some shoes. Sophie grabbed her keys to the apartment and they zipped out the front door.

Police officers and armed guards littered the hallways like ants swarming atop their own newly-crushed mound of dirt. It was a daunting sight — it caused a chill to trickle down the length of Sophie's spine. Her hand found Eli's and squeezed tight. Together, they weaved through the crowds toward Aelia's office, walking as fast as they could without appearing inhuman.

Both slowed down to a somewhat normal, slow walking-pace as they approached the door to Aelia's office. Sophie stepped forward and lightly rapped her knuckles against the ornately engraved wooden door. A quiet "come in" floated through the tiny cracks in the doorframe.

Eli pushed the door open and held it for Sophie. She ducked inside the room, her gaze scanning over the office space. Dark wooden shelves that lined the walls, overflowing with books. Aelia sat behind her desk. Her back was ramrod straight, hands clasped in front of her atop the old wooden desk.

She did not smile at them. "Hello," she said. Her voice was hoarse.

Sophie moved closer. Her stomach twisted into knots. "I'm sorry that I missed your calls. We just woke up," she explained quickly. "We came as quickly as we could."

Eli moved beside her. He crossed his arms over his chest. "What happened?"

Aelia closed her eyes for a moment. Her hands tightened, clasping together even tighter, and her knuckles turned bone white. Then she heaved a sigh and lifted her hands to her face. She rubbed at her eyes. "I honestly have no idea," she told them. "I don't know what happened. We have been doing headcounts for the students at each mealtime and throughout the night — yet it wasn't enough. Somehow, five students went missing between six and eight this morning. We have no clue how it happened."

"Do you think that they snuck out?" Sophie asked. She and Eli shared an uneasy glance with one another. "I am sure that they're all really bored right now, having been cooped up in their rooms."

"I do not know," Aelia admitted. She lowered her hands and sunk back into her seat. Her shoulders slumped downward, as if a heavy weight balanced atop them. "I do not know how they managed to sneak out. Each room has an armed guard at the door. But it is possible."

Her gaze shifted upward and landed on Sophie. "I am sure that you both noticed the increase in security on campus," she said. "I have brought in reinforcements and have also contacted old friends of mine in the FBI. It still does not seem to be enough."

Eli frowned. "What can we do to help?"

"Nothing," Aelia answered swiftly. Her eyes narrowed at them. "You are not to do anything at all. The entire campus is now on complete lock down. This was announced at an emergency meeting that I held this morning with all staff and faculty. Nobody is to leave their rooms or apartments."

Sophie made a face at that. "Well, that explains the missed calls," she muttered under her breath.

"We were not stopped though," Eli pointed out. His head tilted slightly and his brows furrowed with confusion. "We were able to leave our apartment without issue."

"Yeah," Sophie added. "I don't think that anybody even spared us a second glance. Are you sure that everyone is being monitored?"

Aelia nodded. The corners of her lips tugged back into a ghost of a smile. "I alerted them to your situation," she explained. "They were expecting you to leave at some point this morning. Though once you return to your apartment, you both need to stay there."

"What about Aubrey and Wolfe?"

Aelia grimaced at that. "I am sorry. But your safety is the utmost priority here. The same rules apply for your sister as well. She is not to leave Wolfe's room in the infirmary. I have also instructed the nurses to take extra care in making sure that Aubrey eats."

Eli scowled but said nothing in protest. Sophie frowned and shook her head. "I think that we should at least be able to visit them," she said. "Even if it is just for an hour."

"No," Aelia said. "It is just not safe anymore. Until we are able to make some sort of advancement in securing the campus from these creatures, I don't want to risk anybody. Even if it is just walking from one apartment to another. It is too high of a risk right now."

She leaned forward again, her elbows propped against the wooden tabletop. Her fingers rubbed at her eyes again. "I know that this is not ideal," she said. Her voice was soft — almost broken. "I just don't know what else to do to protect everyone. We have lost too many people already."

Eli and Sophie shared another look. A frown appeared on both of their faces. "We understand," Sophie said slowly. She returned her attention to her mother. The woman seemed to have visibly aged the span of a century within the last twenty seconds. "Is it safe for us to return to our rooms now?"

Aelia nodded. "There are two armed guards waiting for you outside. They will walk you back to your apartment."

Sophie's hand found Eli's again. Both thanked Aelia and bid her a goodbye. As Eli opened the door to the office, Sophie's phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and glanced at the screen. "Aubrey texted our group chat," she announced quietly.

Eli frowned at her but stayed silent. Two armed guards stepped forward and greeted them. As they were guided back toward their apartment, Sophie's eyes scanned over the message from Aubrey.

"Call me as soon as you can," it said.