Second Life: A Second Chance

They Follow Only Apollo (VIII)

The buildings around me are burning with blue flames erupting from an unknown fire, seeming poised to erode whatever has yet to be touched by the fire's roaring flames. The scenery is full of heavy smog and debris present every three meters, with loudening booms and clouds of smoke running about. Suddenly, I hear a loud WHOOSH from above me. Two aircraft of unknown origin seem to be flying above me, appearing heavily damaged from an unknown cause. As the dying aircraft make their way to an unknown location miles away, I find the ground rising in debris and broken glass count. Looking below to avoid the pieces of danger before me, I find myself soon stumbling onto a leg sized object. Backing away from the huge chunk of blue cement, I look around for similar pieces of the blue cement. To my surprise, I find not one but two more pieces of blue cement lying about. Two of the three cement pieces before me are blue curved lines, with the farthest block resembling a long straight line. Quickly, I come to the conclusion that all the cement pieces, when put together, form the Piscetic Faith symbol, with the far straight cement line block completing the symbolic "H." This is all very odd. Where am I?

I hear a loud shriek ahead in the distance, bringing chills down my spine as the sound calls my immediate attention with its sudden sound. Following the loud shriek heard from afar, an immense explosion is heard from a half mile away, sounding that of a trajectory crash as I continue my slow stroll throughout this war-torn city. Soon however, past a large cloud of smoke that has blown my way, do I see a small framed black girl of about eight years that stops me dead in my tracks. The young barefooted girl seems to be covered in soot, seeming to be running away from the center of the explosion with tears running down her soot surrounded eyes. As she comes closer to my position, I notice the full extent of the soot's grasp on the poor girl's skin. Coming closer to me, standing at within a meter away from me, does the girl begin to run towards me, with cuts and signs of blood present all throughout her skin. If she were any more covered in soot, I would likely mistake her for a ghost and fearfully stay away from her. Now proceeding to hug my torso, the young girl appears to be beyond terrified, with never-ending tears flowing down her face, creating dirt from the soot that once stuck to her skin with her watery drops of sorrow.

"Help!" she cries out to me, hugging my body tightly as to avoid her fear inducing shaking. Allowing her to hug me without question, I willfully ignore any doubt I may have of her attempting to manipulate me. Even so, I am still prompted with a few a questions about the young girl as I am hugged by her. Who is she? Why does she smell like singed flesh? Why is her hair mostly gone? What has happened to cause her to look so distressed and in need of attention?

"Are you okay?" I face her and ask worriedly.

"No," the girl bluntly answers.

Within a matter of seconds, the girl begins to cry once more, prompting me to hug her small body tightly in response to her overwhelming sadness, hoping my hug will be of some assistance in alleviating her pain.

"What happened to you?" I cautiously ask her.

"Amadan, Amadan did this to me!" she bitterly replies, breaking away from my hug after uttering his name, before backing slowly away from me.

"What? What did he ever do this to you? He probably does not even know you little girl," I say, sounding completely in shock from her words. The girl's voice soon becomes much deeper and louder, as she begins to utter a word I have not heard since I was debriefed of my mission back in town.

"Sorelyn knows everything and she is not playing around," the girl discloses to me, sounding very apathetic in her tone.

Did I hear her say that correctly? This no longer seems to be part of the simulation. Anxiously, I politely ask her to clarify her words.