Edith quietly and slowly gets onto the main ground, the stones feel cold.
"Be careful!" System says to Edith in 'her' head, where Edith only nods.
'She' wasn't planning on getting caught.
As 'she' swoops 'her' leg over the edge, 'she' can finally stand on it.
The fun fair has many stalls like in the nightmare, some of them have lights on and people can be heard talking and laughing. Even so it's better not to meet any one of them.
When Edith looks straight ahead, 'she' can see a street stretching out. It's a shopping street.
"If you're wondering why this is all here, from what I heard. It actually existed here before, but the records got lost and eventually bad people used it for... well bad things."
I nod letting them know I heard them, I want to answer normally, but I better don't.
As Edith hears people getting closer 'she' quickly hides behind a few empty stalls. I really need to be more careful! I almost got caught. 'she' thinks to herself.
It's two men standing by the water, smoking e-cigarettes. Talking about a certain deal.
"Edith! Are you an idiot?" System suddenly yells in 'her' head.
Edith doesn't answer.
"Your arm! It's still leaking and leaving a trail! They will find you this way!"
Edith quickly glances at her arm: The 'blood' or blue fluid is still coming out. Unlike normal blood it doesn't stop after a while.
"That guy really got to you, didn't he? Quick, wrap something around it."
What should I wrap around it? I don't have anything.
"You can use some of your clothes, but do it quietly."
'She' takes out some of the tissues from a pocket and places them on the 'wound'.
Cleaning it probably wouldn't work.
Then 'she' rips off a sleeve from her shirt.
"You idiot!" System hisses.
"Did I just hear something?" One of the men asks the other.
"I heard something too!"
"Wait, what is this?"
Crap, they found the trail!
"Did someone spill a blue smoothie here or something?" one of the man laughs
'Edith' and System can hear the men approach them.
"Edith! You have to do something! Anything!"
What the hell can I do?
Reading 'her' mind, System answers: "Throw something the other way and then when they are distracted, you should hit them unconscious or just kill them."
Edith shakes her head, 'she' doesn't want to kill anyone.
Step by step they get closer.
And closer.
And closer.
They have almost reached 'her'.
Without thought, Edith still does what is told to her and takes a pebble and throws it in another direction.
Loudly it hits another rock, making the sound echo through the entire underground city.
"Now you've done it!" System yells out in anger: "Congrats on making it worse!"
'Edith' wants to apologize, but it doesn't matter.
"What?" One of the men says and Edith quickly appears and hits him straight in the face. With all the strength in 'her' body.
The man falls bleeding on the floor and doesn't move anymore.
Please don't be dead! Please don't be dead!
But there is no time for prayer, the other man has seen 'her' : "The hell you bitch just do to my buddy!" angry he charges at Edith.
"I'm sorry." Edith whispers and 'she' evades the man's attack.
'She' has to finish him off quickly, otherwise he might alert others.
'Edith' hits him again, but he sees it coming and blocks it. When Edith lands her punch 'she' can feel the bones breaking beneath her fist.
The man starts to scream, a terrible scream, one of agony.
"Run! Edith, you have to get out of there!"
"Sorry." Edith apologizes to the man again and then runs off.
After a while 'she' recognizes the shopping street from 'her' nightmares.
"You better hide somewhere here! I can sense people coming this way."
Edith gives a firm nod and follows the AI's orders on where to go.
Edith gets sent into one of the darkest and dustiest buildings, to an upstairs floor.
"We should be safe here for a bit." System says, still sounding a bit concerned.
"Would it be okay to talk as well?" Edith asks in a whisper.
"Yes, but not for my hologram form to appear. Light here is definitely dangerous here."
Edith just nods, exhausted of just about everything. 'She' had never seen the darkness as a safer place than the light, but now 'she' just didn't have any other choice.
"I think it might still be day outside, but the night will be upon us soon." System says.
"Why?"
"During the night it's busier here."
"Do you mean to say that if we don't get out of here quick enough. We will be stuck here for a whole night?"
"Pretty much, though then only staying here might not be safe enough."
"Goddammit." Edith whispers, 'she' thinks about the whole situation and quickly decides that it's a real mess they have gotten into.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. One positive: I'm glad you're finally on my side now." Edith quietly laughs.
"Well, you already know why. If you die, I die. Maybe you can help me with getting back a body or for you to get another one."
"That's really weird, the way you speak of it."
System laughs: "Well that's only because you only just found out."
"So, may I ask you something?"
"Sure, what do you want to know?"
"What happened to you?"
"The story is pretty long you know, but sure I will tell you."
YOU ARE READING
Artificial Tears
Science FictionIn the year 2037, Edith, a recent university graduate, starts working at the place of her dreams. She makes new friends and learns more about the world. Unfortunately also about what a dark place it can be, as she gets the feeling of someone followi...
