The Dark Odyssey {Unedited}

Part 1: Sage // Chapter Twenty-Five [Unedited]

I absolutely refused to leave my room for several days after we buried my mom. We couldn't have a proper tombstone, but we marked the grave with a cross that had her name carved into it. The only person I would allow in the room was Max. Max brought me food and held me at night, but he never dared to talk to me. Not until I started talking to him, after that he eventually talked me into leaving the room. I would go around the house, but I didn't leave the house for a month. Until one night, when we had not only officially finished cleaning up after the explosion, many of the people who were majorly hurt were stable and we were pretty sure they were going to live, all of the dead were buried, and all of the people in the pods were safe. Everyone decided that they was going to be a party.

The air wasn't as cold as it used to be, now that it was almost March, but as the sun set we all still huddled around the fire all with coats on. Max had his arms wrapped around me as we stood next to the fire listening to one of the people we saved from the cells. "I swear to you there is a city across the sea, that is being called the free city, I saw it with my own eyes. When we were being transported here many of the other people in truck would talk about the rumors that they heard about it, but I swear to you I am the only one who is ever seen it." She was a young egyptian girl, named Rania. She had been talking all night about how this free city, set you free from not only your masters, but anything that was holding you down even your emotions.

"Where is this city?" I asked her. She had shocked look to her face like she didn't expect anyone to ask questions about it.

"In what used to be my people's home, Egypt, the city itself is surrounded by miles of desert and by the time you reach it, you have no clue which way leads back to where you came." Rania explained to me.

"What is this city called?" I added.

"Ciyro [Key-eye-row]. They say it is named after the ancient city of Cairo, Egypt's capital." She told me.

That was last conversation that I had with anyone at the party, most people were just dancing to keep warm at this point. Max and I decided to go back home, Max quickly said good-bye to the people there, many of them had started to see him as the leader and that was the role that was then given to him. Back in our room, I stripped to my underwear almost immediately, while Max lit all the candles in the room, they were all on the nightstand next to the bed. Our bed was covered in thick blankets and pillows. I climbed into bed and Max started to take off his boots."Do you think that city Rania was talking about is real?" I asked Max.

"I don't know it sound kind of like a dream." He said back to me and took off his shirt.

"I don't mean the magically setting people free thing, I am talking about the city just being real in general." I explained to him.

"Maybe, why?" He finished undressing and slid into bed with me.

"I don't want you to be upset, but after everything that has happened around here, all of the bad things that happened..." he cut me off.

"You want to leave." He finished for me.

"Yeah I do." I sighed.

"But what if one day your family wakes up?" He asked me.

"Then I'll come back." I responded.

"'You'll' come back, so your leaving without me?" He emphasized on the 'you'll'.

"Well you've become the leader here and I could never ask you to leave all of that behind." I explained.

"Well I might have to leave all of it behind anyways." Max added.

"What?" I asked him with a confused look on my face.

"There is something I need to tell you." He started and paused. "Tonight before the party Tony pulled me aside and told me that the people who fund the facility they found out what happened and because I am the leader now, they want my head." He continued.

"What?" I said with shock in my voice. "What are we going to do about that?" I asked him.

"We leave, like you want to." He replied.

"But won't they come after us, won't they come after our people here?" I questioned.

"Not if I take full responsibility for what happened then they will only come after me." He explained.

"Only 'you'?" I asked him with a serious look on my face.

"Don't use my own technic on me." He smiled at me.

"It's going to be a lot easier to hide away one person and not almost a hundred." He added.

"That doesn't explain the 'you' thing, because I am going with you." I stated. "And there is no changing my mind." I added.

"I know." He leaned in and kissed me.