a thousand instincts (#1)

Instructed to Terminate (38)

Aeress

     Jonathan. Rolanda. Kisa. Frida. 

     Jonathan. Rolanda. Kısa. Frida. 

     My children.

     Aeress woke up from her slumber unwillingly. She felt nauseous and at any moment, she would vomit. She laid her cheek on the edge of the cot and waited to see what would happen. When the sickness finally subsided, she ran a hand over her sopping hair from the sweat and sat up. 

     The feeling of dizziness threatened to return, so Aeress moved a little more gingerly. She sighed in both frustration and exhaustion, examining the area around her. Her senses informed her that Warrick was there. "I'm sorry," she suddenly whispered, refusing to make eye contact with him. She pulled the sheets over her body, as if she could somehow hide her shame. 

     His voice was blank, but she knew better. "Sorry for what?"

     "Listen, I may be a bitch a lot of the time, and I still may think you're an asshole all of the time," she responded, still not looking his way, "but I could feel... I know watching me do that was hard. It was hard for me too." 

     "Did Godhead tell you to say this?" Of course he would avoid providing a true reply. 

     She shuddered at his question. "No. She's gone."

     A confused silence followed. "Gone where?"

     Aeress rubbed her forehead before placing her hand on her chest. "Where she belongs." She shrugged away the pain banging at her heart. "Now, I'm really alone. For the first time in months. I can have peace in my own mind, yet... I've never been more miserable."

     "Aeress?"

     His voice was closer. It brought shivers to her physique just as it always did. Shamed or not, she would always want him. His fingers brushed against her jaw, teasing her, yet the reassurance she precisely needed. Her eyes followed the trail of his fingertips. He stood before her and she felt so suddenly vulnerable. One harsh swipe from him and she was sure she would crumble.

     Warrick saw this and it must have troubled him. "Your agony," he crouched in front of her, "it's so smothering." He closed his eyes briefly. He shook his head. "I can't..." He shook his head again as if to rebuke himself for his own words. "It doesn't matter. You've excelled beyond everyone's expectations. I have faith you'll do just the same in these next ones..."

     Her eyes widened in surprise. She hadn't expected him to say what he did, and sure as hell didn't expect any form of sympathy. "I just wish this was over already. I'm not sure how long before I break." 

     She shakily let out a breath when he leaned over and pressed his lips to her cheek. This entire moment almost felt like a dream. But perhaps he knew that the last thing she needed was the robot version of Warrick? He shook his head at her. "Don't hold your breath."

______________________________________

     "The instructions for the third trials are quite concise," Guide Amal said from above. "You are to survive the next hour." 

     Aeress shouted in alarm as the floor began to shake and before she could apprehend or react properly to anything, walls shot up from underneath, shoving her and scraping against her hard enough to draw blood. They resembled the tan floor, ancient and endless, cracked and weathered by so many years. The shield which separated the audience from her had fogged out. She felt entrapped, but pushed down her panic, and awaited further instruction. She remembered Godhead's words.