The Guild Of The Traitor

In Which Everything Goes Wonderfully Wrong

You know what? I really don't like heights. Not being up high on solid ground, that's fine, I like that actually. It's being high up with nothing truly solid and stable beneath my feet, that doesn't settle with me. For example, flying. I mean, I'm fine so long as I don't look out the window of the plane, and tell myself not to think about it, but its a little difficult when I know that there's only a few thin layers of metal between me and a multi-thousand foot drop to the earth.
Cut to me currently gripping the armrests of the seat with all I have and trying not to sweat and grit my teeth despite the plane having only mild turbulence. The woman beside me seemed unconcerned, trying to read a psychology book despite the bumpy ride. I laughed in my head, wishing I had her ability to relax.

I had just wanted to return home from my trip to California to tour a university I was interested in. The school was okay, if a bit expensive. By the end of my trip, I was already looking at other options. A little annoyed that I had flown halfway across the country to tour a school I was no longer interested in, I grumbled for the nth time that day. It wasn't all bad however, my aunt had come with me and we had explored the city that the school was located in and visited some more distant family members. Aunt Maise was like my mother, as my real mother had given birth to me as a teen, and wanted to put me up for adoption. My aunt had immediately jumped at the opportunity to get me. After a lot of grief, she gained full and total custody of me, and happily raised me. She was a lawyer, often busy prior to adopting me. She and her older brother, my uncle Ammon, would switch back and forth taking care of me, whenever the other was working. Together they both had raised me, and I had enjoyed my time with Maise in California. She elected to stay a couple of more days in the town, staying with her cousin. I was flying back earlier due to the fact that I had work tomorrow. I wished that Maise was with me, as she knew how to engage me in conversation and help me calm down when my flying anxiety got bad.

I squeezed my eyes shut as a particularly rough bump rocked the plane, rough enough to cause the woman next to me to nearly drop her book and she gave me a concerned look. She turned to the window and opened the window shade. I didn't want to look, but couldn't help but see the dark clouds and lightening flashes right outside. She turned back to me after closing the shade again. She must've noticed how anxious I was, because she gave me a reassuring smile.

"I wouldn't worry too much, its very rare that planes have issues just because of a thunderstorm. We'd have to fly into a hurricane for anything to happen." She said.
I knew she was right, but despite the expression she had on her face and the attempt to ease my nerves, I knew she herself was nervous. I checked the security of my seatbelt once again, gritting my teeth. We had been experiencing the turbulence for nearly an hour, which to my knowledge, was a longer time than normal.

I gasped as an even rougher bump jerked the plane, and I heard concerned mumbling from the other passengers. It was a smaller craft, only about 200-some people aboard, the isle seat next to me empty. I glanced at the half eaten package of peanuts in my lap, stress increasing as I felt my heart rate speed up. The inside of the plane lit up slightly as a bolt of lightning struck far too close to our aircraft, close enough to see the light through the windows that were open. I yelped in surprise and fear, squeezing my eyes shut and grinding my teeth even harder. I was terrified now, the plane constantly shaking and I was struggling to hold back tears from the irrational fear. I started hyperventilating, my lips going numb. Opening my eyes, I saw the woman next to me had lost her calm facade and was also gripping the seats armrests.
Why couldn't Maise have come with me? I'm so scared, I'm so scared!  I thought frantically, my mind becoming scattered and disconnected.
Then, the deafening sound of a shotgun went off as if it was right next to my head, a flash of light, and everything went dark.

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