The Future of Eden

Chapter 4

(Lachlan's pov)

Harmonia comes into view as I walk silently with Lark. I don't know what came over me to tell her what really happened. She told me it wasn't my fault and that no one would blame me for her death, but that's not true.

I blame me for her death.

When we reach the village, Lark breaks off to join the rest of the group, presumably to tell them not to bother to try to rescue her. I'm grateful that I don't have to explain why again, once was enough. I have no idea where the hell I plan to go, the Underground has been destroyed for months, courtesy of Rowan. Harmonia tried to kill me, and I doubt I would be welcomed back anyway. Eden will soon be empty, not that I have any reason to go back there. I let out a deep sigh, and look back through the forest. Rowan was home. Wherever she was, I would be happy. Home is where the heart is. I think to myself.

I decide to find Rook, wherever he is. I'm sure he's looking for me. I follow the sound of voices as I pass by small groups of Harmonia citizens, each waving or smiling at me as I walk. They don't know I'm the 'Eden man' who burned down one of their buildings and escaped with three of their people. I walk up a small hill that overlooks a large part of Harmonia. I turn around and what I see fills me with joyfulness, sadness, and a little bit of anger. There, just beyond the hill is a beautiful meadow, huge and green surrounded by trees. And, of course, thousands of Eden people awaiting instruction by the small militia that brought them there. On the other side of the hill, I see one of the apparent leaders standing with his club in front of them, talking with another man.

I walk over to them, hoping for insight on the situation. I can see that the second children have already isolated themselves from the rest of the people. The greeshirts stand in front of everyone, as if their power still matters out here. I chuckle at this thought, which grabs the attention of the two militia men. When they turn, I realize the man with the weaponized club as the man who helped Rowan and me get to the auto loops, well, after he tried to kill her. I look at them, standing taller and stronger than both. The man's eyes grow wide. What was his name again? "Hello there" I say, adding a devilish smirk. "Er, hello... uh, yes?... do you need something?" he stutters. He seems a little worried, if not outright afraid of me. "We did it," I say, trying to hold my composure. "Rowan is... Rowan's gone," I say painfully, as my throat tightens. I won't say it. I won't say she's dead. "Oh... I'm sorry," he says. "What can I do?" he asks nervously. "What's your name again?" I ask. "Erm... uh, Zander," he responds. "Okay Zander. I need to find a few people in this crowd, then I need you to make sure everyone here gets to safety within the next hour. Prepare for the next wave of people. This..." I gesture to the thousands of people before us. "This isn't even the half of it." I state simply. I smile, hoping he doesn't see through my brave front. Zander complies, but I think it's more out of agreement than force.

I begin down the hill, looking through the Green Shirts in hopes of spotting Rook. As I search the crowd, I make my way towards the cluster of second children. Iris is among them, surrounded by the children. The kids are petrified, being surrounded by people, yet some still break away to greet me, including Rainbow. "Lach! You did it! You saved everyone! Look at all the trees and the grass and the flowers and..." her voice is lost is the crowd. I reach Iris, who pulls me into her arms for a motherly hug. She pulls back and holds my face in her hands, her smile brilliantly lighting up her face. "You really did it, Lachlan. I'm so proud of you. You've grown to be such an amazing young man..." she trails off, her smile fading quickly as she looks into my eyes. She looks behind me. "Where's Rowan?" she whispers. I can barely hear her over the chatter. The world grows blurry as tears form in my eyes. Iris holds her gaze as she searches for answers in my eyes. "Rowan..." she repeats. I squeeze my eyes shut and nod.

A stray tear finds its way down my face.

Iris pulls me back into a hug. She honestly probably doesn't know exactly what happened - obviously - but I can guess that she figures she's dead. She's not dead, she's just gone. I'll get her back, for everyone. I remind myself, but it does nothing to soothe the pain. I pull away, quickly wiping any sign of sadness off my face. I squat down to the children, asking them all what they think about all this. I can't really hear anything they say, as they all spatter their opinions about their new world. At some point I retreat, standing up to see Rook next to Iris. He wears the same sad smile as she does and gives me a quick hug. I have no doubt that she told him whatever she thought happened.

Rook and I start off away from the group into the thick forest around the meadow. We walk for a while until I can't even hear the crowd's chatter when he stops and turns his whole body to face me. I don't even look up until Rook grabs me by my shoulders and spins me around to look at him. I can't look him in the eye. "Lachlan..." he says gently, letting go of me. "Tell me what happened... please," he pleads. I don't say a word, I can't. "You're my little brother. I'm not going to judge you for anything. I want to know. I want to be there for you," he says softly. He knows that I hate showing emotion. He knows everything about me. I can't hide anything from him. I cave. I tell him everything.