The Maze of Existence

Episode 9: Kindred Ordeal

When Adria's arms were wrapped around me tightly, my mind registered fully that this was my sister. Who I've been worried about. Who just now saved my life. Who was now with me.

    "Rowin," she gasped in my ear. She rocked me back and forth as we held on to each other. "You're safe."

    "You're alive," I sighed. I smiled as I drew back to look at her. Her dark curls framed her face as she gazed at me with satisfied brown eyes and a smile. Just like I remembered.

    A noise came from behind and I turned to see Lincoln pulling himself up on the grass. Water streamed off of him as he stood.

    "Well, we made it--"

    He stopped short when he saw Adria. For a moment, he just stared, then he broke into a familiar smile.

    "Who's this?" he asked.

    "My sister," I answered, looking at her again.

    A shout was made in the streets nearby, causing us all to jump.

    Her eyes grew wide as she whipped her face toward the sound, clearly not expecting it. She grabbed my arm and began dragging me toward a narrow bridge.

    "I just found you, I can't lose you again," she whispered, quickly crossing the stone pathway. Lincoln bumped into me from behind as we sped up.

    "Adria, please don't let us get caught," I said as we rounded the corner of yet another building. This plot of land seemed a little bigger than the first.

    "The city isn't what you think it is," Lincoln added in a hushed whisper.

    "What about me makes you think that I would be in the majority?" she stated. "Especially you, Rowin. I thought we knew each other."

    Lincoln and I exchanged looks. Adria glanced around the street, then hurried to the next bridge.

    Already, there were people walking up and down the sidewalks, coming from various buildings and houses.

    Adria kept her head down as she weaved her way through the crowd. I looked to Lincoln to see he had the hood of his jacket pulled over his head and his eyes downcast.

    I glanced around as we walked and spotted a variety of posters. I paused for a brief moment to look at one. 'WANTED' was spelled out in huge red letters with a picture underneath.

    My eyes grew wide when I recognized the person as Seth. I stared and my heart almost stopped. I looked to the poster next to it and saw Lincoln's photograph, who grabbed my arm to keep me following Adria.

    A realization struck me in the gut right then: we really were outlaws here. Even if we were to find Seth, what were the chances that he was alive? Cassius was out to get us and he ran the place.

    Was Cassius even here?

    He didn't have the ring, so he couldn't travel through the realities. Seth couldn't have been found if there was no one who wanted to find him. There was a chance everyone was okay. I suppose there was always that chance; I was just too realistic to think about it.

    We came to a section of land that was filled with apartment buildings. Here, hopelessness seemed to glaze over everything. Trash was in the streets, unlike the other places we passed through. It was truly a sketchy neighborhood, causing me to look over my shoulder every few steps.

    Adria turned abruptly in front of a plain apartment building. Lincoln and I followed her into the dark space, up the staircase, and down a hallway. The narrow halls were lined with doors, all of them shut tightly.