Immortalys III: The Revelation

Chapter Twenty: Blainey's Friends

Snow sprinkled softly from the grey spread of clouds clustered against the mountaintop; wet, white mounds began growing higher in the yards in Blainey's neighborhood, and she noticed several children building snow sculptures outside when she left to go shopping. Blainey parked her dad's speeder at the edge of her favorite shopping center and walked the snowy streets in her long winter coat. She turned on a playlist from her Surface and nodded to the beat of the opening song as she searched for the store she needed to visit.

A song came on next which Friction had introduced during one of their sleepover parties, and Blainey let it play, although she wasn't sure if it would have made her happier to turn it off. This would mean three and a half minutes of having Willow and Friction at the forefront of her mind again.

She had decided that she was going to forget all about them. They had used their knowledge and experiences to work against their own government. And she wasn't going to be fooled again; anyone who wasn't originally from Immortalys would not gain Blainey's respect or trust until they had proven their loyalty to their new home. She could not stand to be so disappointed a second time.

Once Blainey had checked everything off of her grocery list, she made her way to the ladies' shop to see if there were any new clothes she liked. In the middle of one of the busiest intersections, she glanced up at the huge screen on the nearest building, curious about the daily news. The largest headline announced that the rebel base had been emptied and all of the rebel leaders had been apprehended and imprisoned, except for one, who had apparently escaped with a few other Expurge members. They would be captured soon, Blainey figured, and that would be the end of the Rebellion.

Blainey perused the newest imports at the clothing store and indeed found a pair of shoes she would enjoy wearing. Just as she finished paying for them with her Surface, Blainey saw a text come in. She hastily thanked the cashier and exited the store, pausing to read her new message beneath the gently falling snow.

It was from Willow.

"Hey Blainey. You can ignore this message if you want, but we thought we'd give it a try to change things between us. We know an apology isn't enough, but we'd like another chance to say sorry and explain ourselves. We won't ask you to come to our house if that makes you nervous, but we'll come to yours. You've been our best friend since we first came here and we don't want to lose you. Love, Willow and Friction."

Blainey hesitated, her fingers tapping on the edge of her Surface. That familiar lump had risen again in her throat. Although she had trained herself repeatedly for when this moment would come, the reply she had previously determined would be proper now sounded shallow. It was obvious they were sincere, and it completely diminished Blainey's resolve against them. It wouldn't take her long to drop this merchandise off at her house and return their text...

As Blainey sprinted southward along the busy streets with her groceries, her mother's words suddenly came back to her, as if she were whispering it in her ear: "...Your compassion will help you in the future in ways you will never expect. I know you will do great things, my little kind-hearted Blainey."

Once she had put away her groceries, her mind so fuzzy the whole time that she couldn't even listen to her father's show, Blainey sat in her room to await Willow and Friction's arrival. She hoped her reply to Willow had been polite enough...

The knock sounded at the door at last, and Blainey sprinted out to answer it. Willow and Friction stood at the threshold, her face pale and his eyes downcast. Blainey invited them in with a silent gesture, pained at how nervous they were.

Cecil completely ignored the fact that there were two more people in his house; he kept on watching the Screen and munching on popcorn. Blainey brought them into her bedroom, where they took a seat awkwardly on her bed while Blainey sat on her hammock hanging in the corner. She found her hands shaking as Willow and Friction glanced at each other, at a loss of what to say.

"We made a stupid, naïve decision," Friction croaked finally. "We let people's words scare us, we followed a confusing prompting, and they led us to commit a crime we wish we hadn't done. And now we're paying for our mistakes."

Blainey nodded, but suddenly couldn't reply because of that weird hot taste in her throat which couldn't seem to leave her alone this past week.

"We want to make it up to you, somehow," whispered Willow. "It's our friends we should have cared about, and what is around us right now, not the craziness of the world's opinions. We've realized that everything that Immortalys has given us has been what we've really wanted all along. Family, friends, stability... a home."

"We've lost interest completely in the Rebellion, Blainey, and it is out of our lives now." Friction squeezed Willow's hand as they shared a glance, and he added, "We've needed our friends more than ever, and I'm sure you have too. I promise we will never let our relationships be less important to us than politics."

Willow met Blainey's gaze and whispered, "...We're so sorry, Blainey."

Blainey shook her head, and found a smile forming on her face. Suddenly she realized she did not need to hear their apology—she had already heard everything she needed. "...It's alright, Willow."

"But—"

"Apology accepted," Blainey replied simply. "There's nothing else to it." Her heart experienced rapid pulses of warmth as smiles lit up Willow's and Friction's faces, and Blainey leapt up from the bed just as Willow did and they wrapped each other in a tight hug.

As Blainey hugged Friction next, Willow said, "So... does this mean we are friends again? Despite Friction and me being traitors?"

"You aren't traitors anymore," responded Blainey. "I heard it from your own mouth that you have no more interest in the Rebellion. You have proven your loyalty to me. Therefore, we are friends again, and you'll always be part of Immortalys."