Amity and Enmity

Chapter 69

Day: 1831

Days Left: 3649

Lives Saved: 9

"What's he doing?" asked Lili, her hand reaching for her electric taser.

"He's stopped now; I think he sees me," said Alfreda, her fire demon body ignited in the darkness.

Corinna motioned something to Lili, and the Captain of the Guard nodded.

"Let's try and solve this peacefully if we can," Lili agreed. "He hasn't made any hostile movements yet."

The three of them hesitantly left the post, and headed out into the open field, meeting Kipling, standing at a distance, close enough to talk but far enough to be safe. They stood quiet for a moment, waiting. Lili's eyes glanced around, wondering if it was just him, when she noticed the slight indent in the grass, resembling the shape of a pair of shoes.

Tall Rachel, the invisible woman. Lili feigned knowledge of her presence but kept a wary eye to track her movements if she dared to sneak past.

Alfreda kept her chin up in an attempt to steel herself, but she could not bring herself to look at the man directly. He looked so haggard, his scruffy clothes torn in places, caked in dirt and grass stains, and then there was his constant shivering, either from cold or perhaps nerves.

Corinna retrieved the whiteboard around her neck and wrote a message, asking Kipling what he was doing here.

He was quiet for a moment, then replied, "please, I want to go back."

Lili straightened herself. "I'm afraid we can't. The vote-"

"I can't survive out here! I don't know how! Please!" Kipling got on his hands and knees and begged. "Please take me back!"

Corinna wrote down a message, and Lili read it out for her as Kipling's head was bowed.

"It has been a long enough time since everyone has been exiled," read Lili. "We can hold another vote to see if you can be accepted back-"

"No! No! They won't want me back! They'll vote no! Just let me stay!" Kipling crawled forward on his hands and knees, attempting to grab Corinna's dress as an even more pitiful act of begging, but Lili stopped him, barring the way.

"We will hold a vote," Lili repeated sternly. "But if the verdict is no, then you must respect it."

"No! Just let me back in! I don't remember doing any of my crimes! I don't remember murdering any of those people!" His hand reached to the back of his neck, and Lili saw the bloodied skin from excessive scratching to the brand. "Please!" Kipling screamed, looking between Lili and Corinna, and then his eyes fell on Alfreda. "You! You get to stay! After what you did to me! To the others!" He pointed at the fire demon accusingly, then looked to Corinna and Lili. "You exiled us because you thought we were threats! Because of crimes we can't remember! But what about her!"

Alfreda froze up; the fire in her veins scattered around her demon body dimmed and almost grew colder.

"It was out of self-defence," said Lili, raising her voice.

"So it's fine in self-defence, huh?" Kipling scoffed, though he almost choked as tears welled up in his eyes. "How do you know if I did too? We don't! We don't know if any of the murders we committed were justified! Or if we truly committed them! We could have been set up! Or falsely imprisoned-"

"We have already said that we will hold another vote," said Lili. "In the meantime-"

"You're only safe because you're their friend!" Kipling spat at Alfreda. "If you had been part of our group, you would have been exiled just like the rest of us, thrown out like you should have been, you fucking monster-"