The wind changed, bringing with it the distinctive smell of burning flesh. It was a smell that Sedom was not likely to forget. A smell that followed her nightmares from when her own city was aflame and the bodies of her people were burned in mass numbers.
A golden orb buzzed next to Sedom, its crystal-top glowing red. “Sortec, danger! Return to the city for shelter.”
“Good idea,” Sedom said, dropping her hammer into the tool box. She rose from the decking she was hammering then turned her eyes to the sky. Two short-range fighters released cannonball sized bombs upon the city. The bombs collided with the ground. Even from as far as she was from the city she could feel the earth quake with the impact.
“Sortec, danger,” the orb insisted.
The sky grew dark with smoke, leaving her no option, but to run for cover in the tunnels, near the base of the tree. Within the safety of the tunnels, Sedom took a heaving breath of stale air. Stale air was far better than air contaminated with the embers of burning flesh.
Within the tunnel Sedom paused, watching out the opening. Outside, small white and gray flakes fell from the sky. For a moment she thought it was snow, except it was the middle of summer. She pushed herself away from the tunnel wall and held her hand outside. Within her open palm, she gathered several gray flakes. Satisfied with the amount she had collected, she pulled her hand back inside the tunnel.
Her golden eyes grew wide with horror as she looked into her hand. In her palm sat an adult’s bloody, charred molar. A flick-jerk reaction sent the molar tumbling to the ground. The molar bounced against the rock flooring with a high-pitched clink.
For a long, bewildering moment Sedom’s golden eyes peered down at the tooth, unsure of what she should think. That morning it most likely was helping its owner chew a meal, unbeknown that it would soon be nothing more than a piece of waste; no more special than a pebble on the bottom of a lake, destine to live out the rest of its days without an owner. What of the tooth’s owner? What fate became of him? Considering she was now in possession of his tooth, it was doubtful there was little left of him.
Sedom turned to the forest, searching the now still trees for answers. Ash and softly glowing embers gathered in small mounds outside and slightly within the opening of the tunnel.
“Huh,” she grimaced, her top lip nearly touching her thin nose. “Well, I guess I better update my maps.” She shrugged bitterly, knowing it wouldn’t be the last time she would have to update her maps or redraw them entirely.
Another tremor caused the molar to rattle on the rock floor. It rolled to her foot, resting against the toe of her right boot. She reached down, picking up the molar. She wasn’t certain why she picked up the molar save that she felt guilty leaving it there. It was a piece of a whole, a whole that would never know the full of its parts again… much like her. She shoved the molar into her pocket and started towards home.
The underground city of Gathow was eerily silent when she returned. So quiet that Sedom could hear her eyelashes rub against one another when she blinked. With only seven people present within a city meant for millions, it was bound to be filled with deafening silence. Sedom hated the lack of noise. Without noise, her ears hurt her worse than someone screaming.
When she lived in the forest, if it was too quiet it meant someone or something was about to attack. Thankfully the internal light source was changing from day to dusk. The generators that provided the energy for the light source produced a gentle hum during the times when the day faded to night. The hum was at least something her ears could focus on.
“Sedom!” called a woman's voice.
The sudden noise caused Sedom to jump. She spun around to see her new friend, Cidele, running towards her. Her long blond hair was whipping around her throat as she ran towards her. In her right hand, she was waving a computer pad. Her expression was taught and determined as she approached.
“Sedom, something is happening outside,” she exclaimed out of breath, her light blond hair shielding the left side of her face. She pushed her hair away from her throat and her face. She grabbed Sedom's shoulder as she gained her breath. “Father... father sent me to find you. The Marisheio are attacking. Should we evacuate Gathow?”
Cidele offered Sedom the computer, but Sedom refused to take it. There was no need to read what she had already seen.
“And where would we go?” Sedom asked amused. “Tell Lolum and the others not to worry about it,” Sedom said, noticeably unnerved by the fighting above as well.
“But--” Cidele followed close as Sedom walked away.
A rumbling from above caused a cloud of dust to shake away from the cavern’s ceiling. Both paused. Cidele paused from fright. Sedom paused, wondering if the cavern was going to hold, even though she knew it would.
“Go home. The orbs will protect Gathow,” Sedom barked.
She turned with a jerk down a row of buildings she knew Cidele would not follow her down. The street had little light and was hard to navigate unless you knew where you were going, which she did. When the city was in full production, the street served as a red-light district. Streetlights were not necessary. Now the street was nothing more than abandoned bars, nightclubs, and gambling houses.
“Sedom, are we in danger?”
