From Darkness Comes - Book 2 in The Dissonance Series

War

It's quiet when we finally make it to the outpost. I don't want to step inside. Part of me considered not returning. I don't want to see his lifeless body whether it be from the breath having left his lungs or the beasts that got to him first. I want to remember him the way he was. But I can't do that, because I love him. I have and always will.

I step tentatively into the building. My gun hangs at its side, but Wyler and the guard stand on either sides, weapons poised and ready. I push open the door. I stare at the spot where I left him last. The spot where I made love to him. Where I abandoned him without saying goodbye. The spot that is empty. He's nowhere to be found. My head droops and I close my eyes, trying to steady my heart.

My eyes fall to the floor where a trail of blood streaks across the surface.

"Maybe he made it out," Wyler suggests, gently laying his hand on my shoulder. "Let's keep searching," he suggests. "We'll keep searching," he says with resoluteness.

But I know better than that. We make our way outside to the vehicle.

An enormous explosion erupts in the distance. We all instinctively throw our hands up to shield ourselves. Luckily, we're perfectly safe...for now. I stare at the glowing light in the sky, transfixed by the embers that fall like lava to the ground.

"Ever, we have to go," Rona orders as she sucks down her last pack of oxygen and chucks one to both the guard and Wyler.

"Yeah," I nod. "Let's go."

I force myself to leave the building and get back into the vehicle. It's what I need to do for the others. I won't let anyone else lose their life on my account.

***

We arrive safely to the dome, but there's nothing safe about the place we've returned to. Citizens fill the streets, running hurriedly to their homes. It feels chaotic and strange, unlike the forced tranquility of when I last was here. There is definitely nothing "pleasant" about what we have walked into.

"We have to find Aero...NOW," Rona instructs.

"I'm not sure we should get anywhere near the Envionettix headquarters," I suggest.

"It's ok," she reassures me. "It's safe.

"Just how deep does The Sect go?" I whisper to Wyler as we make our way through the city.

"I'm not sure, but I trust Rona." He grabs my hand and links his fingers in between mine. I look up at him and realize that even though I'm still in danger, for the fist time since I left the bubble, I finally feel safe.

When we enter the headquarter's building, it's eerily quiet. There's no one at the front desk to question us or stop us. Ionically, Rona's face and voice greets us on the large sceen in the entry way, the way it did the first time I came to this place, calmly welcoming us.

Rona takes the gun from the guard and fires at the screen, stunning it and messing with the electronic system just enough that it fizzles in and out, blurring her image and making her words come out in choppy disconnected sentences.

"There, that's better," she says.

We head up the stairs, taking them two at a time. It's not long before I realize where she is taking us and my blood pressure rises. She bursts open the doors to Cassius's office without asking permission and I have to remind myself that he's dead. The last time I was here, I wasn't sure I would make it out alive. A wave of relief washes over me, realizing that he can never hurt me again and knowing that I won't have to spend my days being a slave to that vial human being.

I see Aero standing by Cassius's desk. He's surrounded by another man and woman, giving them instructions.

"General Attwood," Rona says, getting his attention. He looks up from the desk and makes eye contact with me. He sets down the paper in his hand and strides over to us quickly. He wraps his arms around me, without abandon.