Sky Fall

Chapter 1 part 1

“Aleria! Get your little birthday booty down these steps!”

I playfully yelled to my sister still sleeping in her bedroom upstairs while i started to hang the “Happy 14th Birthday” banner. Taking a step back and admiring my hanging work i felt disappointment etch its way across my heart. If my parents had been here they would have hung a beautiful banner they had professionally made, nothing like my crappy cardboard sharpie made banner. But it couldn’t be i helped i reminded myself, supplies have always been scarce since the Iron age. Taking a quick look at the steps i saw my little sister come down in a mess of long curly blonde hair and sleep worn blue eyes. She looked just like our mother had, whereas I was the spitting image of our father; Long and lean, wavy black hair, and an angular face with big green eyes. Yawning my sister replied,

“Jeesh Soul, you trying to bring down the whole iron force on us? I swear the whole world could hear you calling me down.”

Smiling i jeered,

“Well hunny, its not my fault you sleep like the dead”

My taunt brought a small smile to her face. looking around she finally saw my banner and a small present sitting on the only little dining room table we had. Grinning from ear to ear she started to jump up and down,

“Sis! Is that for me?! did you get me a present!???”

She asked in an over excited voice.

“Yes hun, go and open it already.”

I grinned while replying. She was always so adorable when happy. practically running over to the table, Aleria snatched the present away from its surface. With eager fingers she tore through my newspaper wrapping. I saw her face go from happy, to surprised, to crying with a smile. Carefully she withdrew a small silver locket and clutched it while shaking with tears silently streaming down her little angelic face.

“Its moms locket.” She whispered.

Nodding my head i walked over and wrapped my arms around her while she sobbed. About six years ago our parents were still with us. They were helping us run away from the required upgrade, moving us from safe house to safe house. But then, Dad started to lose it. Both my parents had already been upgraded. It was slow, but you could tell; He was losing himself. After about a week my dad was almost completely gone. He started to try and bring me and my sister in, the only thing that stopped him was mom. She had killed him. While Aleria was sleeping one night that week, mom had taken a knife and gouged out dads heart while whispering to herself,

“He was gone, he was gone, couldn't have been helped.”

Of course since dad had the upgrade his robotic side was still alive, just slightly disabled for the moment. before waking up Aleria she grabbed my arms and looked straight into my eyes

“When i begin to lose it like your father did, take a knife and cut right here”
She said while pointing to the area where her heart rests in her chest.
“Cut, and cut until you reach my heart. Then do as i just did to daddy. After you’re done you take your little sister and run. You run as fast and for as long as you can.”

Mom kissed my cheek after saying this and went to wake Aleria. Then telling my sister to keep her eyes closed as we walked out of that house Mom grabbed both our hands and kept us moving forward. She lasted a wholenother two years before she began to lose it. And i did what i was told. Aleria never knew what happened to mom, she just assumed she had disappeared.

“Soul did you hear that?” Sis asked bringing me out of my dazz.

Listening intently i tried to hear what Aleria had heard. Thats when i heard it, the sound of metal clanking against metal and inhumanly voices talking.

Shit, they found us.