Cataclysm

0.6

Leo spent the whole day singing softly to Braken and absent-mindedly brushing through his friend's hair, just as the silent Unnatural had done to him. I didn't interrupt them, not when I knew this could very well be the last day they ever got to see each other again. Braken could be killed out there.

For some reason, he didn't seem nearly so worried about this. He just let Leo do his thing, never interrupting, never moving. He sat as silent as ever, barely even attempting to communicate unless Leo asked him a question.

I watched them for a while and then sat down and closed my eyes, listening to Leo sing. He and Braken finished his song and he sang it a few times so he would remember.

"You can lift your head up to the sky,
Take a deeper breath and give it time.
You can walk the path among the lines
With your shattered frame of mind.

Or instead you could always stay.
We can wait right here and play,
Until somehow you can find
A slightly better frame of mind."

The words were truly amazing. Even though I tried to keep myself separate from them, every moment, every bit of emotion told me that they were just as human as I was. They were just ... different.

"When they say 'you will fall,
You can reach nothing at all.
Hide your tracks beneath the rind
Of a different frame of mind.'

Is that what you heard?
Broken words in the dirt
Yelling out into the sun,
Here we come, here we come."

I wanted to remember these words forever. These feelings they brought made me rethink my entire life. I was raised just like everyone else, but that didn't made it right. The way they treated these Unnaturals, these people, as if they were animals or objects was completely unacceptable. Everyone in our world had been so concerned with feminism, LGTB rights, racism, et cetera, that we neglected to notice another problem, a far more destructive one. Not to say that any of these others aren't significant, by any means, but these people here, these Unnaturals - they weren't even treated like humans. They had no rights - not even the right to live. They were born different - just like all these others - and yet the world thought they weren't as human as the rest of us.

These thoughts haunted my mind all day, causing deep feelings of guilt and anguish. I suppose I was grateful for the paradigm shift - for the different frame of mind. If I hadn't had it, I would have been the same as all the other humans, thinking just as I was taught.

"And when daylight comes through,
When the day is anew,
Then it will be time
For a new frame of mind.

When all eyes are on you,
You will know what to do,
Since you will have found
Your new frame of mind.

When you lift your head up to the sky,
Take a deeper breath and give it time,
You can walk the path among the lines.

But always know that you'll be safe.
I'll be here throughout your days.
Come find me, and we will play."

And suddenly, the sun was setting, and the games were upon us.

The soldiers came slowly down the halls, starting from the other end. "Michael Parsberg," one of them called. "Tonight, you will compete against Braken."

"You here that, silent boy?" another called. "Mikey here is finally gonna put you out of your misery!"

Braken stiffened, and Leo gently squeezed his hand. "You'll be okay," he whispered. "You always are." They both glanced up as the soldiers came closer. Leo licked his lips nervously held Braken's hand a little tighter. "Braken," he said quickly. "Promise me something. Promise me you'll be okay."