"Killing one person makes you a murderer. Killing a million people makes you a King. Killing them all makes you God."
A group of three miscellaneous teens are thrust together by the hands of fate and misfortune. Together, they must combine forces wi...
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Neasa hated meeting new creatures. It always made her heart stutter with apprehension and her mind whirl with the confusion of trying to be social. She guessed it must have been from her Svanhidlra roots, but maybe she was just naturally stupid and incapable of talking to anyone except her family. She loved silence-it was welcoming and warm and comfortable. But, most importantly, it was safe. She knew silence like she knew the back of her hand, and she wrapped it around her on the coldest days to keep herself warm. The common misconception was that silence was bitter or bleak, but it wasn't. It was cozy and snuggly, like a toasty fireside or a cordial smile.
Neasa especially didn't want to come to this war meeting, but her brother, Yunu, had insisted. She didn't want to make him sad, he was one of the few people in the whole universe she could talk to without hyperventilating. The sad truth was that she was shy. Terribly, devastatingly shy. Most Svanhidlra simply didn't like the company of others, but she was scared of it. It terrified her. She didn't want it, and she didn't need it. She might have been mostly alone, but that didn't mean she was lonely.
"Neasa! Pay attention!" Yunu scolded. He was peering up at the stage and his eyes were steeled with concentration. Neasa followed his gaze, her eyes settling on a girl about her age strolling up to the stage with a subtle smirk plastered on her face.
She was obviously a Svanhidlra, yet she was also obviously not a Svanhidlra. Perhaps she was a mixed breed, but hadn't that been outlawed years ago? If she was one, surely she'd be dead by now.
The girl looked Neasas way, eyes sparkling and smile in place.
Neasa felt her heart jump, thudding in her ears like the steady beat of a drum. Her chest tightened as if it were a rope being stretched until it was taut and ready to break.
"I need to go," she whispered hurriedly to Yunu.
"Don't you dare leave," he warned, his eyes narrowing apprehensively. But it was too late. Neasa darted away from the crowd, jostling Svanhidlra and Cynesig alike with her clumsy movements. She felt as if the walls of the room were closing in on her, and her brain was smothered under an ocean of panic and dread and could no longer breathe. She ducked out of the main room and into a secluded little corner with a sofa and a few comfy throw pillows. But it wasn't enough. The air was stuffy and reeked of chemicals and wine and drugs. She wanted to feel the morning breeze against her skin and smell the welcoming aroma of nature shifting in the wind.
How could the other species survive like this? How could they live a life trapped inside metal boxes and stimulate their happiness with the use of chemicals?
"Um, are you okay?" a voice called out.
Neasa heart jolted in shock, and she hurriedly buried herself in the shadows cast by the dim lighting.
A Cynesig stood behind the curtains, velvety silk catching in his wings. He was quite plain, but his wings were like that of birds and his legs were covered in blue scales. A puddle of water was collecting at his feet, drenching the carpet and turning it a dark crimson color.
"Don't worry, I think the speeches are boring as well. I just came to hide here so Rina can't murder me," the Cynesig said in an affable manner.
Neasa gulped, twisting her hands together and rubbing them against the thin material of her dress.
"My names Greyson. What's yours?" the Cynesig, or Greyson, asked.
Neasa shook her head, praying furtively that he would go away and hide somewhere else.
"Are you shy? Or are you mute? Blink twice if you're shy."
Neasa blinked hurriedly, feeling her body temperature flare and her cheeks redden.
"Oh! So you're shy? I know a lot of people that are shy as well."
"P-Please g-go," Neasa stammered, lowering her head in embarrassment.
Greyson didn't seem the least bit bewildered. Instead, he nodded his head considerately as if heavily debating the decision.
"I would go, but I'm only on my seventeenth year and I don't think I want to die just yet," he mused.
"O-Only the s-seventeenth?"
"Yeah. What about you?"
"I'm not sure, but not that many?"
"She talks!" Greyson gasped, his face a mask of mock surprise.
Neasa blushed, instantly regretting her prior outwardness.
"I-I'm sorry I didn't mean t-to be rude," she murmured softly under her breath.
"Greyson! Where the fuck are you? I fucking swear I'm going to wring your scrawny neck when I get my hands on you!" a loud voice screeched.
Greyson flinched.
"Hide me," he whispered worriedly, edging to the far wall of the room and crouching down behind the sofa.
The curtain that separated the small room from the main stage was flung open, revealing a pretty girl with ebony black hair and iridescent wings. The girl's eyes widened in shock as she spotted Neasa, but the look of bewilderment was soon replaced by a kind smile.
"Hi! I'm Rina, have you seen Greyson anywhere?" Rina chirped merrily.
Neasa stared at her, unable to make her tongue form coherent sentences. The silence that hung heavily between them was so thick you could cut it with a knife.
"I'm not here!" Greyson yelled from behind the sofa, causing the uncomfortable silence to flicker and die out.
Rina let out a bark of laughter. She sauntered over to the sofa and dragged Greyson out of his hiding place by the roots of his flaming red hair.
"Ow, you're such a bully!" Greyson whined. Rina's face suddenly turned serious, all prior hints of amusements fading to give way to a stone mask.
"I'm being serious, Greyson. We need to talk," she murmured in his ear.
Greyson's eyes widened as he peered up at her.
"You mean-"
"Yeah. It's happening."
"Who-"
"I heard it from Tamara. Trust me, she's a genius. If anyone knew it would be her."
"There's no proof!" Greyson insisted, throwing up his hands and looking frustrated.
"Tamara knows."
"Why should I care what she knows?"
"Come with me," Rina insisted.
The pair got up and left, leaving Neasa standing alone in the darkness. She buried her face in her hands. Sometimes she felt like just a mere wisp of a shadow and not a real person at all. Maybe that was why nobody noticed her presence in the room or cared if she left. Why couldn't she be charismatic like Greyson or Rina or the girl on the stage?
She leaned heavily against the wall, sliding down until she was bent over in a fetal position. I'll stay here, she thought, until Yunu comes to get me.
