OVERRIDE

Chapter 3: First Time

People die, every day, every hour, every minute and the most intriguing part is, no one knows when they'll be taken next. It could be you. In a few years. Weeks. Seconds.

And it's done.

It was art. It was perfect. The rumor was already spreading throughout Arc-J3 about a child performing the Silent Cry. They didn't believe in the Syndicate, rather, they couldn't believe people were still telling some decade's old fairy tale.

I could turn that fairy tale into reality. 

With all the talk, it would almost be to easy to make it look like Aderr was killed by Blacklist. She was the perfect target. Aderr had quite a reputation and everyone wanted her dead. Though no one would truly act out on it.

Except Neva, apparently.

But he was right, the world would be better off without her.

With how quickly the government covered up crime, I wouldn't have anything to worry about. Nothing at all. I could pose as a member of Blacklist, give Aderr the scare of her pitiful life, and then pull the fucking trigger.

I stared out across Arc-J3 from the window of my far from decent apartment. I made the best out of it, though the complex was no place to keep a child. Sighing, I rose up and made my way over to the bed. It was quiet as usual, and though I knew I wanted to kill her, something was making me second-guess my decision.

I rolled over and slid out the small blade that I kept underneath my mattress. It was the same one I used to cut off Aderr's arm. I had found it on the street six years ago and kept it for a good long year before I finally built up the courage to use it.

"Let me go!" I heard a young voice yell out from the basement. The only time we were allowed down there was when Aderr dragged us herself, usually by the hair. There were already twelve of us and a four-year-old child had been brought in two days ago. Today, it was her first time getting chosen for Aderr's daily assault. 

We sat huddled up together, too afraid to do anything because Aderr's monitors that were almost everywhere. Most of us covered our ears to avoid hearing the screaming and shouting that came from below. I looked up at my closest friend, Wen Novilis. He was cradling his younger brother in his arms, who was fast asleep. He looked tired and worn, but there was a spark in his eyes that kept us all going. Wen took care of us. He raised us more than Aderr did, and despite being the same age, I looked up to him too.

"What's her name?" I asked out of curiosity.

Wen glanced up at me, his gray eyes ready to close. His green hair was half shaved, the rest curled up one side,"Lotus. They found her wandering the outskirts of Arc-Q7, brought her here."

"Why bring her here if she was all the way out there?"

"All the orphanages in Q7 are full," he shrugged.

"Right, because we've got plenty of room," I said sarcastically.

Wen smirked, "I guess. Still, I think Aderr has something personal against her, for her to choose Lotus on the second day."

Another cry was heard from the basement. I winced, and dug my head deeper into my knees. Wen simply closed his eyes and looked away.

"It's her first time. It won't be that bad, Aderr's not drunk enough to really hurt her," I mumbled to myself.

But the cries got louder and louder, and before I knew it a good two hours had passed. I was practically shaking in anger and Wen noticed.

"Ave, where did you get that?" He asked, his voice somewhat stern.