Skye City: The Darkness of Emmilyn

Eyris' House

No-one answers the door so Bex rings the bell, then knocks harder as we stand on the walkway with colourful fish swimming either side. I glance nervously around the kaleidoscope of flowers in the picture-perfect neighbourhood which is completely empty and peaceful in the late afternoon. Gunfire coming from old town is so muffled, so gentle, you would not believe we are inside a warzone, yet the illusion could come crashing down at any moment.
'Hello, Eyris, open up!' Bex yells, knocking even harder. Still nothing. 'We're not going anywhere until you open up!'
Bex keeps ringing the bell and knocking loud enough to alarm the entire neighbourhood, and I cannot blame Eyris for ignoring her. A thundering fist must be daunting, right now, but anyone who posed a threat would hardly be knocking.

Minutes of idle waiting pass outside this ultramodern house, and I stare at the front door, shivering because dampness and stillness worsen the coldness. Finally I glimpse movement through the leaf-patterned glass.
'I can see you! Come on!' Bex yells and a shadow approaches the door with impressive bravery.
'What are you doing here?' a female voice says.
'Just paying a visit. It's me, Bex. I'm with a few friends.'
'Who are your friends?'
'There's Emmi – Zain's sister, and there's Dynah – the girl I told you about, and Scoop and Oscar.'
'Who the hell is Zain?' I mouth, frowning at Bex who whispers: 'I'll explain later.'
'Who are Scoop and Oscar?'
'They're two of our idiot housemates. Don't worry, they're completely harmless, I promise. Look, if it makes you feel better, you can lock them in the garden shed!'
The front door slowly opens and a stunning young lady clutches the silver handle, frowning. 'Why are you so wet?' The features of her face are sharp and piercing, particularly her enormous eyes. She has straight black hair, glowing brown skin, and is wearing a tight charcoal blouse and navy jeans. The boys seem paralysed by her beauty until they notice me smirking and try to compose themselves, shuffling, shifting their gazes, seeming even more awkward than usual.
'We just swam across a stream to get around the roadblock,' Bex says. 'You've no idea how dangerous it is out there. If you'd seen what we've seen...'
Eyris gestures impatiently for the gang to enter, pulling the door open wider, and we step into a house with gleaming surfaces; our shoes squelching over the tiled floor. The walls of the lobby are glittery blue with navy swirls, a silver staircase descends into the ground and an inactive monitor hangs from the ceiling.
'Okay, everyone, socks and shoes off now.' Eyris closes the front door and we do as she says, slopping dirty water onto the immaculate silver-blue tiles. I feel so guilty. 'Just leave them near the door. I'll get them taken care of... I'm going to lead you to the shower now. Do not touch anything.'

Eyris leads us beyond the winding silver staircase and we gather at a doorway in bare feet; the smell of corpses still lingering on us. The back door is close by and I can see the blurred greenery of a garden through the leaf-print glass.
'Go into the bathroom, one at a time. Try not to make a mess. Everyone else can stand here until all of you are clean. I'll have spare clothes waiting when you're done.'
Scoop scurries into the bathroom and locks the door like hygiene is suddenly his thing... Shuffling... Hissing water... A squeal... 'How do you turn this thing down? Never mind, it's cooled now...' Tuneless singing prompts Eyris to gawp, exasperated by Scoop's rendition of some rock song I cannot recall the name of. Some of us tolerate this nonsense every day.
'Jeffrey, I need clean clothes. Bring two sets of my Dad's clothes and three sets of mine...' Eyris yells, then she turns to the group and says: 'To be clear, I'm lending you these until your clothes are clean and dry, then I'm taking ours back, okay?'
'Sure.' Bex shrugs.
A humming, then a hatch which was almost invisible divides open on the blue wall. A wheeled droid emerges, standing chest-height with a cylindrical body and spaghetti arms, but no head. Jeffrey rolls through the passage, entering a room with an automatic door and soon emerges with a neat pile of men's clothes. He passes them to Eyris, then rolls into another room, returns with a neat pile of women's clothes and adds them to the pile Eyris is clutching. She places the merged pile on the floor tiles and the robot disappears into his hatch.
'Finished now,' Scoop says.
Eyris hands a set of clothes through a gap as the bathroom door creaks open, then the door closes and the lock clicks... Shuffling... Thumping... Silence... 'Er, what are you doing in there?' Bex says, then Scoop emerges from the bathroom with a toothy grin, unusually clean and fresh. He looks more civilised than I ever thought possible, wearing jeans and a t-shirt which are only slightly too baggy. Shame about his mop of shaggy hair and mess of bumfluff.
The gang take our turns getting cleaned up, one after another with me going last; the water being wonderfully warm, but the glass cubicle being filthy.
When I am done showering I put on Eyris' awesome designer clothes, feeling amazing. Feeling like a Level Two Citizen. I may only be wearing a green hoody and faded blue jeans, but they are Shingeta, one of the world's most desirable brands. The fabric feels so soft I just want to hug myself.
Eyris leads us down the spiral staircase into a huge living room with wavy wall-sized windows showing the fish swimming in the pond. Silver poles support the ceiling and the plant pots contain trees. Yes, trees. A huge blue sofa in the shape of a crescent is facing a holoscreen, and just before the holoscreen is a blue chair.
'Mealmaker, prepare dinner option eleven for six people,' Eyris says and we slouch on the crescent sofa with drooping eyelids.
The device on the wall beeps, then a plate of steaming food emerges from a slot, and cutlery emerges from a smaller slot. Eyris collects the plate, handing dinner to Bex who eats before the others have even been served. Eyris hands out plates to the gang, one by one, and we eat our delicious meals from our laps. I seem to remember something about a stomach ache earlier, but now I just want to devour every scrap. Pink circles of flaky meat with spicy black beans, orange sauce, green leaves, sliced green vegetables, and a round thing coated in crumbs, and other amazing stuff which you could never taste in old town. Shit, some people have restaurant-quality food every day.
'I assume you lot need a place to stay?' Eyris says.
'Yes, please, if that's okay. Things are pretty desperate, right now, and we can't go home,' Bex says.
'Well, I can't exactly turn you out, can I? The boys can share the spare room and the girls can share my parents' room. For the love of the Goddess, do not touch anything!' Eyris says.
'We'll be on our best behaviour, I promise... This place is so nice. I can't believe you have power,' Bex says.
'I'm one of the lucky ones,' Eyris says. 'I was without power for days, scared, alone, depressed, bored. I had Jeffrey for company at first, but then he ran out of power too. I was rummaging through the garage and found a perpetuator. I've no idea why my Dad even has one of those things, but I'm certainly glad he does.
'At first I was scared to do anything with it, thought if I hooked it up, I'd probably kill myself, but after another night of darkness I took the plunge. You can imagine my excitement when the lights came on. I did a happy dance, played some music, had my own little party, then realised I was alone and that was weird!
'I contacted my parents online. They're trapped out of town. Being able to communicate with them has been a huge deal. It's kept me sane. A couple of my friends have power too so I've been able to speak to them.
'I went from days of loneliness and darkness, trying to figure out how to prepare food, how to clean, all the things I've never done before, then suddenly I was halfway back to normality. But for how long?
'San Teria say their defences won't be breached, that they can keep the fighting away from the hubs, but I've definitely heard gunfire. That's why I haven't dared go outside.'
'You've done the right thing, staying indoors. We don't know where the fighting will be next, but believe me, this area is a hell of a lot safer than old town. And it's not just the invaders that pose a threat either. Even the San Terian troops can be dangerous,' I say.
'What do you mean?' Eyris says.
'Well, some of them don't exactly have regard for civilian life. They wouldn't bat an eyelid if they blasted us to pieces,' I say.
Jeffrey brings us glasses of lemonade, collects our empty plates and cutlery, and disappears through a wall hatch. We fill Eyris in on what has happened recently and she looks terrified, yet we have not mentioned half of it, certainly nothing about the Rebellion or the Enclave or Smig's casual murdering. We discuss the crazies and she explains a nearby friend may have some answers.
'You guys look like you need to rest now so we'll go to Ané's first thing tomorrow. We can sneak through the back gardens to avoid the patrols. It's not like she'll have anything better to do. I just hope her mother doesn't freak out when she sees you lot. Do not mention that you're bottom-levellers, okay!' Eyris says.