Killed Killers (NaNoWriMo 2015)

Chapter Forty

    Hey you guys! Sorry about the really long wait for a new chapter. I went off for a month and then got back for a week before leaving again with my family for another week and coming back to an invitation to go somewhere for another week with a friend. It's been a crazy summer and I have had almost zero free time. It's a crazy life, am I right? Anyways, I'm back now and I hope you guys enjoy this next chapter. Soundtrack that I'm listening to as I'm writing this is Hamilton musical, and I highly recommend it. I'll stop wasting your time with this author's note now. XD

"I think I have someone in mind. How would you like to be a leader in the society?"

Gem's request echoed in Ere's head for what seemed like forever before the full force of his question hit her.

"You're kidding me." She replied, hoping that she had just heard him wrong the whole time. She was not at all ready for this, Gem had to know that. She was brand new and was apparently doomed to die before too much longer. Not only was she inexperienced, but she couldn't bring herself to believe he had just asked her to be his partner when they were standing no more than ten feet away from his father's dead body.

    "No, I'm not." Gem replied, his voice low. It was clear that he was too tired to make up a witty comeback for her stupid remark.

    "Gem-" She began, but he cut her off.

    "No don't answer now. You and I have both just gone through something traumatic. Give it some time. Think about it."

    "Okay...." She responded, almost positive that time wasn't going to change her feelings about taking the position she had just been offered.

    Gem stared at her for just longer than was comfortable before moving across the room towards the door.

    "Gem?" She called out, causing him to turn around suddenly. "How long do I have to think about it?"

    "Twenty four hours from the time the original founders die." He said, turning back towards the door and exiting.

    She followed him slowly, still trying to wrap her mind around what had just happened. In the span of no more than twenty minutes, she had gone from her very first mission to a brutal attack on her new home which ended in her finding two brutally murdered leaders and being asked to take over one of their positions.

She followed Gem down the stairs and into the cave, forgetting to avoid the puddle where the water from the broken fountain was pooling. She hardly even noticed when it soaked through her shoes and into her socks.

They walked up the stairs, seemingly in no hurry to get anywhere. Ere had no idea what they were headed to do now, and she didn't have the presence of mind to ask Gem. She was too busy thinking about the last hour.

As they reached the top of the staircase, the smell of smoke once again assaulted their senses, and Ere finally snapped back into the present moment. She listened closely for sounds of fighting as they headed back the way they had come, but only silence reached her ears.

As they neared the room that had been the center of the fight Ere glimpsed only still forms through the door. When they finally reached the room and stepped inside, Ere immediately felt like throwing up. There were bodies everywhere. She did a quick head count of the few Hiltzaile that she saw standing around the room and found that there were no more than twenty remaining, out of what had seemed like hundreds as they passed through just minutes ago. She closed her eyes and leaned into Gem heavily, her stomach a knot of grief. She didn't recognize the faces of the bodies laying on the ground, but she didn't have to in order to feel the grief that their loved ones and friends would feel at their loss.