Chronicles of the Fall- #1- Empty Night

Chapter 16: Calm Before the Storm

"Is this how it's gonna be now?" Faith asks, casting her eyes down to her untouched food. Laken looks up at Faith, confused.

    "What do you mean?" she asks. Faith jerks her head towards the picnic tables that sit slightly off the dirt path on the edge of the woods. Sitting and eating in silence is Tripp and the rest of his following. Cora sits next to Jackson, Lucas beside Tripp, with William and Todd on the ends.

    "Why are they over there? We all always eat together, around the fire. Yet here we are eating and there they are over there," Faith elaborates, her eyebrows furrowing.

    "Maybe they just wanted to eat over there," Laken says with a sigh.

    "Don't lie to her Laken. They're over there because they support the Council. We're over here because we're the Elites; we are smart and see straight through their bullshit," DJ mutters vehemently; the recent tensions have really gotten to her, sending her on edge. Her eyes seem to always be searching for another attempt of overthrow.

    "I thought I'd done a decent job at making friends with them," sighs Hampton, staring at Todd and William. "I tried to stick up for them, help them out when I could, and yet they still chose for things to be like this. It's not like I want us to suddenly be on rival gangs."

    "Tell me about it," Laken says, gazing over at Lucas and Cora. She likes those two, more than the others of the Council. They are decent people; at least, she hopes they still are. She doesn't want to be at odds with them, but the way tension seems to be rising, conflict must be imminent.

    Hampton gnaws on a piece of overcooked deer, one of the few animals that are still in their free-roam enclosures. His eyes glint thoughtfully. "It's obvious they want Tripp as a leader; he's so smart, that he's convinced them all that him 'officiating' the Council is a good idea. Those dumbasses can't see that it's just a ploy for him to rise to power," he sighs.

    "We can't let somebody like Tripp be in charge," Laken agrees. She throws a stick into the fire. "It'll be chaos."

    DJ shakes her head bitterly. "No, it won't. It'll run real well, since it'll be a dictatorship. You really think Tripp will actually use the Council idea? No, he'll talk it up, say whatever he can about it to make all his followers be completely on board. They'll trust him, they'll let him 'officiate' the Council, and therein lies their mistake. They'll be willingly be putting the power into his hands, and they're so brainwashed they won't even realise it."

    Over at the picnic table, Tripp, Lucas, and Jackson have began discussing their idea.

    "We have to get the rest to submit to the Council," Tripp says, his icy eyes roving the rest of the commons area, eventually falling on the Elites.

    "Faith's the weak link; she impressionable. We can talk to her," Lucas suggests.

    "Why not Laken? She isn't that strong willed, and with Luke doing the talking, she'll agree in no time," Jackson pipes up.

    Tripp chews on his lip thoughtfully, running over scenarios in his head. DJ is far too stubborn; she'll never bend to Tripp's will. She's a dead end.

    Laken is strong, but not nearly as much as DJ. There is some leeway in her attitude, something that Tripp can utilise. Laken can be finessed, but it will take time that Tripp doesn't want to spend.

    Faith is nothing but a puppet to Hampton, DJ, and Laken. She'll do whatever they want her to do because she can't survive without them. However, Faith isn't smart, so none of Tripp's arguments will make sense to her. Which brings him to Hampton.