The Awakening

Inside The Gates

It was an unpleasantly cold, bitter, night; pitch-black, mystifying, the moon was sheltered by the murky looming clouds. She felt anxious and uneasy it was just a little past eight and Caitlyn, her older sister, was gripping her hand as tight as she could.

She gazed at Caitlyn and her mind began speculating in all directions. Treacherous alternatives and possibilities of what might conceive to the both of them enthralled on top of her mind and she started to withstand an ill feeling in her stomach. She couldn't evoke the things that were going on in her head.

          She breathed in laboriously trying to amass herself. She gaped at the black ivy that was submerged and intertwined around the entrance; it began to rustle, as monsoon winds rampaged against it. The gate, remised with decay and rust creaked like bonds of silver weighted chains. ​​​​​​​​​​

"I don't think I can take this." Caitlyn muttered. She reciprocated her squeeze and gave her an inspiriting look, "You and me against the world, or at least, against evil forces." Caitlyn snickered, "We said that when we were 6, living fantasies, role playing with our blankets as hoods or capes. This is the real world now."

Her eyes fell weak and they both knew that they were prolonging the agony. They couldn't stand outside in the frigid streets anymore. They couldn't hold hands and reassure each other that everything was going to be okay, because honestly, it wasn't; and they both knew that from the moment they stepped down and onto the city.

They couldn't impede any longer, they had to go inside the perfidious capital even if they liked it or not. There was no other choice.

They entered through the colossal gates of Terran, home of the people who belonged to the dark Crux, ruler of the city. The black steeled swing gates that had been magnificent once upon a time squeaked as the soldiers opened it with a substantial amount of force. What was left of the fancy designs and iron bars was tarnished, but the gate was still hanging on to its hinges.​​​​​​​​​​

There it was, long dark and menacing. It was just a gap between two old terraced houses built many years ago but it was cold and uninviting. It was like a cavernous moth just waiting to gobble up anyone who dared enter it. You couldn't see the far end as it had been blocked off by a hefty heavy metal gateway many years ago to stop the rebels and rallies of the area from getting anywhere near headquarters or Crux himself.  ​

          There were a lot of macabre stories that surrounded the capital but over the years these stories had become more horrific so the real story was lost in the tale. No one liked it here.  It smelled strongly of stale iron and things scuttled underfoot as you carefully trod its length. The walls ran with vines which covered the now long forgotten brickwork. There were so many bricked hallways going to different parts of the place. Everything was based-built on cold painted metal and bricks. ​​​​It gave her Goosebumps especially in the nape of her neck.                                                                                         
One of the soldiers escorted a pack of newbie's like Caitlyn and her sister to a dark opened fighting arena. The only illuminations visible were the torches that hanged equidistant from each other on the walls surrounding them in a ring. They were standing on dense cement and around them were benches for audiences. There sat the citizens of Terran, and on the highest balcony were three golden engraved thrones.

They were asked to array themselves in 5 rows and in 5 columns alongside people who were complete strangers to them. It was so congested it was difficult to see anything. Her sister was still restless and she couldn't blame her, everyone around her was, including herself.

She tried to scrutinize the surroundings; she tried to get a deduction out of the scene.  ​​​​​​​​​​​​Before she could infer anything, a screeching volume blasted in their ears. They all ducked covering their heads as if something was about to loom and hit them. She searched the area squinting with her doll eyes; she saw a girl who had a black, dark, pixie hair cut, standing on a lofty platform in the middle of the arena.