Oblivion

Prologue

WAKING UP WAS the hardest part. Just knowing that when she woke up, she would have to face another day in the midst of death, war, and chaos was nearly impossible. She would have much rather stayed in the sheets of her bed all day, despite the feeling of sandpaper that they gave off. She ran her hand over the grainy texture and sighed, wishing things were different. But they weren't. She had a job to do, and she was going to do it.

Slowly, she got up from her bed and made her way to the wardrobe against the wall. She turned her head and looked out the window. The window wasn't actually a window at all, it was more like a well. The sunlight barely came through the hole at the top, the rays shining trough the grate covering it. It was as if she lived in a basement. A dark, depressing basement with treacherous bed sheets.

She slid off her pajamas and threw on dark pants paired with a dark flannel shirt, which was the same outfit she wore nearly everyday. She had no mirror, so she just hoped that she looked presentable, but she simultaneously didn't care about her appearance at a time like this, with a war going on and all.  Reluctantly, she abandoned her somber bedroom and made her way to the even more depressing cafeteria, letting her combat boots clunk noisily the entire time. 

Her heart sank as she saw the people she had known her whole life sprawled out on hospital beds now occupying the main center. The hospital wing had been blown to bits during one of the battles so they were forced to move the medical equipment elsewhere. 

She entered the gloomy cafeteria and was immediately waved over by her best friend, Riley, who motioned for her to take the seat next to him. She did and offered her friends a weak smile as a greeting. Rubbing the back of her neck, she took a moment to look around. When her eyes landed on the back corner, she felt uneasy. She watched as her lifelong nemesis, Lorenzo, spoke to his friends about something that seemed to be of importance. Next to him, was a black-haired boy she knew to be Ashton, who was listening intently. Across from them sat a brunette boy and a blonde girl, the boy tall and mysterious, but far too arrogant and dangerous to ever find attractive. The girl, however, was radiant and pure. It made her wonder if the poor girl was being held against her will, or being used in some twisted game.

"Arabella?"

Arabella was pulled away from her thoughts when her friend, Jocelyn, called her name.

"Hm?"

"Training? You, me Zeke, and Riley?" Jocelyn asked in her posh British accent while pointing to the four friends with a plastic fork.

"Oh yeah, yeah sure." Arabella responded, still absent from the conversation. Jocelyn, Zeke, and Riley exchanged looks.

"You okay, Belle?" Riley questioned with sincere. 

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just didn't get much sleep last night, that's all." She smiled sweetly, trying to get them off her back. Riley nodded, not believing a word she said, but proceeded to eat the scrambled eggs and under cooked bacon that sat uneaten on his plate. 

Arabella waited patiently for her friends to finish their breakfast, scarfing down a piece of burnt toast in the meantime. And when they finally finished, they walked together to the training room. 

Jocelyn and Zeke walked hand in hand, giggling ahead of Arabella and Riley, who were following not far behind. Riley looked at Arabella curiously while she pretended not to notice. Riley and Arabella had been best friends for their entire lives. Everyone believed that they were soul mates due to their closeness. It was obvious that they both had feelings for each other, but both were too scared to persue it, for fear of ruining their long-lasting friendship. Jocelyn and Zeke had hit it off from the moment they first met - when Zeke was brought to the Sanctuary. He immediately fell for Jocelyn's impeccable chocolate skin and mesmerizing accent, and she loved the green of his eyes and the pearly white of his teeth.