In the Ruins of Hope (Centauri Asaris: Book 1)

In the Ruins of Hope

The early hew of Sunday's dawn began to dissipate while we ran on the cobblestone streets. The hour was approaching nine when we raced out of my neighborhood into the city. The geometric design of skyscrapers raced to the sky. The modernized buildings along with the medieval road gave the district its beauty. Our breath and steps became synchronized with one another. Sweat threatened to form on our faces. In an unusual sight, Alisa, Alex, and I ran to a deserted school to consult with Headmaster Oden.

"What exactly are we going to tell him?" Alex asked referring to Oden.

Alias, the most knowledgeable and rational among us, answered, "Like I said before we left, we need to inform the Headmaster that you don't plan to join Dain; you're with us. He knew about the letter and allowed us to act as we please. There were only two conditions, however. One: make sure our actions don't harm ourselves or others around us. Second: inform him of anything concerning Dain. Considering his tolerance, we shouldn't do anything that would make him distrust us. After we tell him, we'll leave and investigate the warehouse where Willow's parents attacked Michael. We shouldn't tell him anything about Michael until we're done investigating; it's dangerous to investigate, so he would probably stop us."

Her speech lasted until we were halfway through the city. The town was busy with the hustling of workers, but something was different. Even considering the time, there was an inadequate amount of noise in the air. I studied the people around us. There were more than several workers from Department 4. Midland's government was separated into ten departments. The first five departments are associated with the military. The sixth through eighth departments dealt with the government. The remaining two departments monitored the citizens. Department 4 managed the militaristic actions outside of the wall as well as the consequences from those missions. They were also Dain's support. Wanting to conquer the Midland Empire, Dain wants to start something big. A week ago, right after the school's testing, there was a demonic attack on our walls, and Dain and Department 4 probably constructed the terror. Dain has power and influence along with my parents.

I stared at one of the Interrogator's until they spun around and met my eyes. There were about twenty people between us, but I recognized her. She was short of stature and wore a menacing grimace. She was about thirty years old with deep wrinkles beginning to form around her eyes and forehead. She had a flat nose and tight lips oddly close to her nose. She was the same Interrogator that took Michael the day of the opening ceremony. As her eyes met mine, recognition flashed across her face and rage flamed in her eyes. She began to race after our three man cell.

I began to sprint hoping that Alex and Alisa noticed. I turned to face them to see that they caught on but were confused all the same. I motioned to the Interrogator and both glanced. Alisa's head snapped back recognizing the woman whom she stole the letter from. Alex stared at both of our faces looking for an answer. However, he never asked and matched pace with us. We expertly laced ourselves through the crowd. After a couple minutes, I turned to see no one chasing us, so I slowed followed by Alisa and Alex.

"Who was that?" Alex finally asked.

Before Alisa could answer I blurted, "Long story short, that was the Interrogator we, I mean Alisa, stole the letter from."

"Seriously. Just put all the blame on me," Alisa remarked showing a faint prideful smile.

When Alex received his answer, he developed a slight smirk and said, "Makes sense."

In order to regain our breath, we walked. The buildings of the district became more sparse, signaling that we were about to head into the next district; the National Midland School for Magic's district.

As expected, the district was deserted, so we hastily wondered to the building. The school was, without a doubt the biggest building, or set of buildings, I have ever seen. There were only three visible, but there were six buildings in total. All buildings had four floors and seemed to be a mile long. This massive building would become my school tomorrow.