Counterfeit

-seventyone--

—seventyone-

MIKINLEY WAS NOWHERE to be found at dinner. I looked all around the Mess Hall, watching closely at everyone who came in or left, searching every table, but no sight of him. I couldn't imagine where he had gone. When I asked Patrick, he insisted he didn't know, and even Ava and Thea hadn't seen him since The Harvest.

I was worried for him, and lonely, and desperately sorry. Shattering with every breath. Aching every minute that he wasn't close.

After dinner had ended, we all snuck along to the Grey Range. I was the last one to arrive, foolishly hoping to find MiKinley waiting for me by the creek, which I made sure to stop by on my way. He wasn't there. I hadn't seen him all day. The sea of hope I thought I once had was now like a drought inside of me, vaporising every time I blinked. My eyes stung from the sight of his absence.

Approaching the Grey Range, I noticed Charleston leaning outside against the door, waiting for me. He looked as though he had been crying.

"Hey," my voice was flat, but I tried to make an effort for Charleston. There he was trying to save my world, whilst all I could do was watch it crash and burn. He took all the flames and rocks in my path, but for some reason, I was always the one feeling wounded. I had had this thought before: you can be so selfish without even realising it. I wish I could say I had changed.

"You take your time." He laughed a little, perking up when he saw me.

I was honest. "I was looking for MiKinley."

"Oh." There was nothing that could be said anymore. Nothing to make it right, make the pain any less noticeable. But what he did mended me a little, at least just for the night. Charleston held his out, waiting for me to take hold of him. Once I had, he led me inside. No matter how many times my world seemed to end in here, at least I never had to face it on my own.

This was everyone. For the first time, we were all here, all knowing our fate. All twenty four of us.

Between the group, there were 10 custodians: Charleston, Alistair, Gus, Blaze, Zeke, Hudson, Kristel, Alden, Niobe and Calandra.

There were 14 residents: Patrick, Ava, Thea, Billie, Fortello, Griffin, Savion, Mal, Ivy, Martha, Raya, Delano, Lexus, and myself.

And of course, there were the few working from outside The Dormir: my dad and my brother - Thelonius and Martin, as well as a guy named Larkin who Charleston had briefly explained about. So, twenty seven people in total, and we were the ones who would break this place to the ground. There was a power among us that we all felt in that room that night; in spite of the outweighing numbers, victory would be ours. But not everyone would receive the liberation...

"Now that we've all made it this far, and picked up a few along the way - Ava, Thea," Charleston teased, calling their names in between coughs. "I can finally confirm that tomorrow is Evacuation day."

I closed my eyes at his words, trying to shut the world off for a moment, needing to register what it meant. Someone laced their fingers with mine, and then the same happened with my other hand. I didn't need to open my eyes to know that it was Thea and Ava.

A head rested on shoulder. Sweet Thea reminding me that the world was never as dark as when my eyes were closed. Charleston continued because we had no time to waste, but mainly because he could see that I had the strength I needed right beside me, to be able to listen through the entire meeting.

"Marvis has already left, so he won't be here when things begin, but that doesn't mean that he won't return. We can't let our guard down, not even for a second. Thelonius will be sending triggers to other Dormirs. Hopefully this will distract them before our big finale. Everyone clear on what that is?"

Without a unified response, he explained it one more time. "All security will be on lockdown. They'll have no access to any weapons, technology, or communication, excluding their walkies. In terms of guards, we match them. Okay? 10 to each side. They'll be more alarms throughout the day. It's gonna be loud and relentless, and it won't stop until it's over. We have to remain focused... Blaze, do you wanna lead?"

Charleston looked to Blaze, one of the new custodians brought in at the Harvest. He seemed confident and powerful and completely fearless, stepping up in front of the room, assigning everyone to their duties for tomorrow.

"Okay, tonight Alden, Kristel - you two are in charge of all the wiring and the bugging. Destroying radios, computers, data - anything that they can communicate to the outside with, and anything that could potentially ensure the possibility of a rebuild. You guys have gotta leave 'em with nothing. But be careful about it. Don't let 'em realise the damage until the last second. Clear?"

"Clear." They answered together.

"Hudson, Fortello, and Alistair. You guys gotta get to the Medic Centre by dawn. They'll be someone in there - there always is. Gus, this is where we need you. You gotta get it clear so these guys can come in and do their thing. If it means you take someone out, then you take 'em out. Lock 'em in a room, do you get what I'm saying?"

Gus laughed, lighthearted about the situation and amused by his instructor's language skills. "I hear you. 'Take 'em out!'" Gus confirmed, the room brightening with a moment's laughter.

"Raya, Delano, Mal, Calandra, along with Zeke and myself will handle the other custodians. We'll keep 'em out of your way, do what we have to to make sure you guys have no interference."

"We got these easy part compared to you guys." Zeke laughed. The irony was that his group consisted of the toughest seeming individuals in the room, and even though their roles had to potential to be the more violent ones, if my group didn't succeed in our mission, then everything would collapse.

"Savion, Niobe, Lexus: you three need to be manning the gates. The minute an outside team arrive, it is your responsibility to alert everyone. If all goes to Plan, we'll have The Dormir evacuated before anyone from outside is even aware. But if something goes wrong, you gotta stop 'em from getting in. Heard?"

"Heard." "Heard, sir." "Heard."

"Gus, once you're finished in the Medic Centre, which should be early hours of the morning, I'll need you and Billie to round up all the IRs into the Mess Hall. We've asked Billie to try and form some connection with as many IRS as she can since she arrived. A lot of 'em should trust her already, and you're their doctor, so use that. Charleston will give you the signal. It'll be when he's in control of all the INs and RDs. You gotta keep 'em calm. Everyone else will be leaving, they won't wanna stay if the place is on fire, because they won't be aware that they won't feel anything. You gotta let 'em know, but don't tell 'em they're dying. Some of them could still be saved."

Blaze took a breather, collecting all his thoughts into one place before he addressed the final group. "Everyone else: Patrick, Thea, Ivy, Martha, Griffin, Charleston and Pip. You guys have gotta make everyone listen while their world is falling to pieces... Good luck." Blaze laughed.

I liked him, and I had decided that within the first few seconds of knowing him. He was authoritative and confident, yet lighthearted and warm in all the right moments. I knew I remembered him, but there was too much going on for that to matter right now.

He concluded the meeting with one final message. "You just gotta remind these people that they're human, and that it means more than just survival. They've been deprived of human contact for too long. Some of 'em months, some of 'em years. When they feel, they will believe. All you gotta do is make 'em believe." 

-seventyone—
A long chapter for you guys!

I stayed up so late to write this, and I'm so excited with the result. The next chapter will be quite a sad one (I don't think you'll be expecting anything like it).  I think I might need some tissues when writing it. I've got it mapped out in my head, and written parts of it down, and I hope it means as much to you as it already does to me.

God bless you.