9/15/2017 0 Comments Voice in the Darkness - Part 1
On September 8, 2041, the following message was received by local citizens:
To the city of Falcon Gulf: You are in great danger. An army of Stellarians led by Lord Ahdrit are approaching your town. You must guard your hearts immediately, and stand united with each other against this fearsome force. The Lunar Army The authorities responded to this mysterious message immediately, but today they are no safer than before. September 8, 2058 Shouting echoed through the bunker. Not again, Halley thought to herself. Another old government official had tried to bring the sect to order. But order would never come back. Not now. “Ms. Tanner,” a quiet voice approached her. She turned her head to see a fair, young man holding a jar of olives. He sat quietly next to her as the shouting around the corner continued. “This is all they allowed us to have.” He clicked open the glass jar and held it toward her. “I’m not hungry, James,” she said quietly, waving him away. “Eat.” He didn’t move his hand, but looked at her, worry filling his face. “Please. For me.” She sighed, listening to her empty stomach, and picked out a green olive. “You’re the one who needs it. You have all your life ahead of you,” she said jokingly. “We both know that you do, too,” he said grimly, searching her too-wrinkled face. “You’re only forty.” Halley popped the olive in her mouth, looking across the dark hall, lit only by a few dim lightbulbs. The arguing had died away now, and families moved from the main chamber to their own “homes.” “We need to do something.” James leaned over in his chair and whispered to her. “Don’t you see?” He indicated to a couple walking past them. A faint, silvery figure floated close behind them, bent toward their ears as they conversed in tense quietness. “I see,” Halley sighed. “But they don’t.” “That’s why you need to do something.” Halley turned and faced the young man sternly. “You know what will happen if I do. You’ve seen it happen a hundred times.” She saw him look past her. “There’s one on me, isn’t there?” she sighed. James nodded, expressionless. “I wasn’t going to say anything.” Someone else should lead them, she thought, leaning back in the cold, metal chair. Someone more confident. I’d rather follow them. “Ms. Tanner, please.” This time he looked into her eyes. “Think about it.” Silently, she nodded. Her eyes moved to the jar full of olives still in his hand. “Aren’t you going to eat those?” “I’m… I’m not really hungry,” he lied. She checked to see if there was a Stellarian behind him, but there was none. This was him. She laid a hand on his shoulder. “Fight it, James,” she said, pretending there was a silvery figure behind him. “Eat.” His forehead wrinkled as he closed the jar. “Only if you fight, too.” It took her by surprise, but she should have seen it coming. “Fine.” She stood up and sighed. “We will talk about this in the morning.” August 20, 2017 A young-looking, blue star shone just before the Moon. They spoke softly, and several others looked on. Halley was one of them. When the star and the Moon began to approach the others, she looked away nonchalantly. “Fellow stars,” the small, shining one spoke up. Halley turned her face toward them. They took more human-like forms, and the others did the same, glowing their individual colors. The moon shone the brightest, his light too unbearable to look directly at. “My name is Crystal, and I have spent the last seven-hundred years on earth. When I gave myself up to Ahdrit, his army was immediately given reign of the earth without restraint.” Halley looked at the grim faces of the others. Some of the younger ones drew back in fear. “Therefore, we must join to fight for humanity and all the goodness left on earth. The humblest of you will be soon be sent as human children, but will not regain your memories until the time is ripe where you are.” She stood with a straight posture, calmly looking around at the host of light around her. Halley could only imagine the weight of the situation on Crystal’s shoulders. “Remember, a Stellarian must always be humble and obedient.” After Halley watched the others softly chatter among themselves, the meeting was over, and they returned to their places in the galaxy. Before she could watch another full rotation of the earth, it disappeared into colorful light, swirling around her, the fire of many other stars blazing around her. July 9, 2021 “Daddy, look!” Halley cried. Her heart swelled with pride at the finger painting she had made. He looked at the colorful paper, her messy fingers, and the table, covered with smears of rainbow. “What have you done?” he asked, astonished. “I made this for you,” she replied, beaming. Her four-year-old hands still held up the paper. “Do you like it?” “No, I mean, look at this mess!” He walked past her, into the dining room, where the new amish-crafted table stood. “Oh.” Her smile faded. She turned and backed against the wall, watching his fingers curl into his palms. “I’m sorry.” Her father shouted an expletive and a heavy fist landed hard on the table, shaking the room. “You used my acrylic paints! On the new table!” “I’m sorry,” her tiny voice squeaked, her eyes filling with tears. “I didn’t mean to…” The soft, wet paper tore in her fingers. He spun around and towered over her. “Never go into the art room again, do you hear me?” Fire crackled in his eyes. “I’m sorry,” she repeated weakly, and looked at the floor. “Answer me,” he boomed. “Do you understand?” “Yes.” She clutched the cold paper, soaking it with her tears now. The sobs were uncontrollable, wrenching her body from the inside out. “Go to your room!” September 10, 2041 I am content here, Halley thought to herself. She sat in a lonely apartment, every loose paper neatly organized and put away in the living room. Another day of work finished. She closed her laptop on the coffee table and leaned back on the couch, rubbing her eyes. A sigh escaped her lungs, but she smiled softly. Alone. Away from the world where I can’t hurt anyone. Something inside resisted like it never had before. Why aren’t you out there? Why aren’t you fighting for them? She opened her eyes and scowled into the ceiling. “Because I don’t have what it takes, that’s why. It’s better that I’m here,” she replied aloud. A pounding on the door startled her. “Police!” Her eyes widened. What did I do? She was frozen. “Open up!” the pounding continued. Shaking nervously, she approached the noise and slowly twisted and pulled the doorknob. She peered around the door to see two policemen standing. “Ca—can I help you?” “Come with us, please.” One of them began pushing the door open. She had made a mistake. In terror, she instinctively pushed her shoulder against the door to close it. “Ma’am, please do not resist.” “I didn’t do anything!” she cried frantically, her legs pushing against the musty carpet. Finally, the two policemen pushed the door so hard that she fell back onto the floor. “Please, come with us. This is for your own safety.” Halley scrambled backwards at the sight of handcuffs. “Please, just leave me alone!” Though she struggled, her limbs were weak against the trained arms of these uniformed man. They managed to get the handcuffs on her, to escort her down the elevator and into the black and white car. She breathed hard. “What did I do?” she cried to the front seat. The men ignored her. “Why am I here?” “I don’t know.” The voice of another woman came from the seat next to her. A young toddler was crying into her sweater, his head resting on her legs. Her face looked tired and strained. Halley froze. She hadn’t seen them there when the men had pushed her in. They were not handcuffed. The car began to move, and in her antisocial nature, she settled for staring out the window, the little sobs slowly fading. How strange, Halley thought to herself. No stores or restaurants are open. There are no other cars on the boulevard. It was almost completely abandoned. Though this was a small town, it was usually busy whenever she ventured out of her apartment to go grocery shopping. They stopped at the Town Hall. The policemen opened the doors and, almost politely now, led the two women and the little boy toward the building. The air was cool and heavy with mist, the streets eerie. Inside, it was simply muggy and hot. Halley immediately began to sweat. Murmuring from a crowd and one overpowering voice called from past the heavy wooden doors. They entered a wide, tall room with marble floors, packed with people of all ages. One man, who must have been the mayor stood on top of a counter, calling out names from a packet of stapled papers. He was in a black suit and red tie, looking nervous and flushed himself. There was no explanation. All Halley knew was that, one by one, people headed for the back door whenever a new name was called. "No. Please don’t make me do this.” “Your name has already been called.” Halley turned to see the woman from the car clutching her son, panicking, looking between two officers who tried to quietly reassure her. “But what about my son?” she asked desperately. “Who will take care of him?” The boy held his mother’s neck, but stared straight at Halley. A wave of emotion flowed over her. “I will.” She stepped forward, before she even knew what she was doing. A grateful expression filled the other woman’s face. “You will?” Halley swallowed and nodded. “If I see you again… What’s your name?” “Laura Albertsen.” She hesitated and held the boy close to her for another moment. The officers were waiting. “This is James. Please,” she sighed, trembling, “take care of him well.” Slowly she moved toward Halley and rested the boy in her arms, giving him one last kiss on his blonde head. He blinked as he watched her walk away. She stared back at him, pain welling in her eyes. “Mommy,” he said quietly, holding out his arm toward her. Halley’s chest tightened. What have I just done?
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