The Meaning Of Eternity (TMOE #1)

Chapter 9: But you're still remaining

Lucius' knees buckled. He couldn't believe it. After all this time the guards had decided to raid the entire Hydrina at once? All the people he'd lived with these past years, and they were all being brought to the town square, to...

No! No, this can't happen!

He tried running after them, but a hand soon took a firm hold around his wrist. Lucius looked back.

"Sam," he whispered, any other attempt at words choking in his throat.

"You can't just run out like that, they're still looking for us." Samueli's voice was a whisper yet he might as well have yelled. Lucius' ears couldn't handle it.

"Why—Sam, what do we do?" He looked after the group, tears stinging his eyes. "We... We have to do something, right?"

Samueli shook his head, and to Lucius' great dismay he had tears in his eyes as well.

"I don't... Know what we can do. We can't show ourselves like this. I'm trying to gather up as many as I can so we can escape, but..." He shook his head and squeezed his eyes together, breath trembling as he inhaled. "But we can't do anything. They're too many and we wouldn't stand a chance. I'm—I'm sorry, Lu—"

Lucius wouldn't hear it. He couldn't. He absolutely refused to. So he dashed forward through the crowd, hearing Samueli yelling after him but he ignored it. If he'd have to save them alone then that's what he'd do.

But how?

It wasn't easy getting through the crowd. He tumbled over on multiple occasions and scraped his knees. Why was an arrest such a spectacle? Didn't people have anything better to do than gloat at the poor people they'd already shoved off into the Entrails so they wouldn't have to see them? Why were they so interesting now?

He finally reached the town square, eyes widening as people were gathering around the gallows. A vividly dressed executioner had gone up there to speak to the crowd, amusing them with dark jokes and mockery of the captured group like the entertainer he was.

Disregarding any form of manners or fear of what people might do to him Lucius elbowed his way through the crowd.

"No," he whispered, but he knew whispers wouldn't help now, so he raised his voice as he pushed through the crowd. "Wait!"

Spotting Claudia and Mabel lined up and bound with the others Lucius' body almost froze, and he gasped for air while still trying to increase his speed. People glared at him and he barely had to struggle to get through. They didn't want him to touch them after all, so they moved out of the way.

"No, please!" He tried yelling louder, and Claudia looked over at him. Her face was scrunched up and Lucius guessed she was crying.

Claudia never cried.

Her shoulders shook as she drew a trembling breath and shook her head in his direction, but Lucius wouldn't have it.

"Stop it!" he yelled to anyone who would listen. "Claudia! Ma—"

"Oh, look," a woman said and grabbed hold of Lucius' arm with a gloved hand. "Here's another one."

Lucius struggled to get loose, but his arms had never been strong. More people turned their heads to look at him.

"Well, I'm relieved you volunteer to join your friends up there." The woman smiled, and while Lucius was sure she wasn't actually that wicked looking it was impossible to view her as anything but at the moment. "Here, let me help you with that."

"Stop it," he repeated and tried pulling away, but he knew he was surrounded. Just how disgusting could these people be? Why would they do something like this just because he happened to be less fortunate than them? It's not like he'd chosen to be. "Just—Just someone tell them to stop! Please!"