Third Eye | Sentinel

1 - Too Much

Cold evening rain lashed at her face.

The girl stumbled through the grey streets, illuminated by a faint, flickering yellow glow that came from the rusting lights. Mountains of garbage stretched on for miles without end, only disturbed by the odd rat scurrying by. Then there were the houses. They were eerily discarded, and cast long, ominous shadows over the landscape. It was very quiet here. There were no people. The feeling of not having too many people...it was so strange.

A strike of lightning flashed across the darkening sky. Distant beeps could be heard, piercing through the chilling air, and thundering crashes as buildings ahead crumbled under the force.

Her footsteps echoed in the emptiness. She was nothing but a bundle of skin and flesh, wrapped in torn patchwork clothes, a discarded jacket and a dirty fur blanket. Yet she forged on through the storm.

Another lightning strike, and more beeping. The only place it could have come from were the Domes. They were activating defensive mechanisms again.

Still, despite all the background commotion and the weather still raging on, the girl felt nothing but confusion.

Where were all the people? This world was supposed to be too much. Always had been, maybe always will be. Yet the overwhelming lack of presence was also too much. The girl was used to getting squashed, tossed and thrown about amongst a sea of things, regardless what time of day it was. There was always so many people, so many bots, so much food, so much junk, so much chatter, so much...

Now so little was present. Odd.

"Yuri? What are you doing out here?" A figure loomed over the girl.

The girl looked up, her face even paler in the streetlight, like a sheet of paper. Her eyes were a dull and lifeless green, her hair a rusty brown. "Juru?"

"Yuri. It's dangerous out here. The people have all gone. You know what that means." The figure moved into the light. She was a tall, sturdy woman with a muddy apron that was dripping from the rain. Her short hair was plastered downwards. "Get inside. Now." Her voice was hard.

"What does it mean?"

"Have you forgotten?" Juru sighed in exasperation. "No matter. Follow me quickly, Yuri. Or the Venators will find you."

Somehow, even more blood drained from Yuri's face. "The Venators? It's time already? How-"

Her sentence was cut short, for Juru had lifted her up by the collar of her jacket. 

"Stop asking questions out here in the open!" Juru hissed. 

Yuri fell silent.

Juru brought both of them to one of the houses that lined the street, and wrestled with the iron door until it finally gave up and opened. Yuri was instantly struck by the familiar stench of rotting meat, and no matter how much she had experienced it, she couldn't help but gag.

The house consisted of only one floor, since the second storey had been blown apart, probably by some bomb or other explosive. So Juru had blocked off the stairway (it was more of a hole in the ceiling at that point) with a few layers of tarpaulin she had found in the dumps.

There was a living room, kitchen, bathroom and study, but the study was converted into a bedroom. They were all pretty similar - bare, with the exception of some mouldy furniture. Dark red stains were the only decorations, and they covered many of the walls. They gave Yuri the chills every time she looked at them. Some 'decoration' they turned out to be. Yuri had a sneaking suspicion that the stains may or may not have been blood.

Juru threw Yuri onto the antique sofa, which squeaked upon impact. Juru then shut the door and bolted it with some makeshift locks, trapping the thunderstorm outside.