Bury all your secrets in my skin

19. Coping mechanisms

Ava hated travelling by teleportation. The unpleasantness of being sucked into the void-like vacuum that existed between the place Lilith was just at and the place she wanted to be was almost worth the longer trip on foot, or car, or plane.

Unfortunately for her, Ava didn't have a choice in the matter. On finding Bea gone she'd been left with only one option, and that was to return to the OCS. She needed resources, manpower, and this was the best place to find it.

She hadn't not really known what to expect when they arrived at the Cradle, materializing directly in Mother Superion's office. But then to find out Lilith had told the OCS next to nothing about what was happening with herself and Bea the entire time they'd been gone, well, Ava was entirely caught off guard.

"Let me get this straight, you found Beatrice possessing someone that day and have been hiding out in a hotel room since?" Mother Superion wore an impassive expression as she sat, her spine ramrod straight, behind her desk. The brief surprise at their appearance had long since vanished.

"I mean, it was a room above an inn..." Ava said, even though it was pointless. She just didn't want them all to think she'd been having a relaxing holiday or something. "But yeah, that's about the gist of it." Ava's teeth worried at her bottom lip. "Bea was scared and I... I didn't know what to do."

"And then you left her alone, despite knowing she was struggling to stay in control?"

I left her alone...

Regret tugged at her stomach; Ava bowed her head. "I thought I had time."

"Time for what?"

"She was meeting me to come up with a plan to bring Beatrice in." Lilith answered for her, shifting slightly where she stood and brushing her shoulder against Ava's, like she was reminding her she was there.

Ava blinked in surprise at the show of support, looking over to see Lilith's usual scowl was unchanged.

She had been doing that more and more since their return to Earth, being supportive. Ava knew Lilith would hate it if she pointed it out, but it was almost like they were becoming friends...

Ava was hunting wraiths in the wilds around the city when she first saw her.

Lilith.

She walked slowly, almost aimlessly, not towards the city or away, she just kept on going, and Ava couldn't help but follow. Where was she going?

Ava shadowed her silently, catching glimpses of the ex-sister warrior between the trees, because there were trees here, in the wilds, like this place used to be an ancient forest, but those trees were withered with rot or looked to have been burnt with fire from the inside out. The resulting landscape was dark, shades of blood red and the darkest black, making it difficult to pick out Lilith's form, but she walked loudly, uncaring of the snaps of twigs under her boots, like she couldn't give a fuck who heard her.

She didn't understand why Lilith was here, so close to the place Ava had found herself after passing through the portal, but it couldn't be a coincidence, she had to be up to no good.

Up ahead Lilith tensed, her steps hesitating, and Ava froze.

Had she been heard, sensed? Ava's heart rate spiked.

She was absolutely sure that she'd been noticed, but no, Lilith's attention never turned back. The ex-sister warrior was focused on something in the distance. A wave of goosebumps prickled across her neck and Ava caught a hint of red smoke curling around the trees in the distance.