Witchhunt • Prequel ✓

the prophets of troy.

[SIX MONTHS BEFORE]

The sun hurt. 

Jonah's hands shook as he passed out plates of rations. He'd been told to halve them yesterday, and had to check constantly to make sure nobody was taking seconds. They were miles inland, but the smell of rotting meat was all-consuming -- the smell of deadwater. Everything tasted of it. His lips were chapped and peeling and his headache hadn't left him for months and everything hurt. He wasn't even close to warranting a break.

Rows of tents were slotted under the freeway. The net of raised streets barely provided enough space for the camp of over eight thousand. 

A hand fell on his shoulder, nearly making his knees buckle. Jonah looked up. Adam frowned down at him and wordlessly pushed him aside. The taller boy grabbed a set of plastic gloves and went through the repetitive motions of passing out food -- which was an unrecognizable mash of vegetables and/or meat. Nobody was really sure.

Jonah collapsed into a chair behind the tables. He peeled his gloves off and let them drop, putting his head in his hands and closing his eyes. 

His headache was a constant blare -- the product of dehydration, most likely. Most of the camp suffered from it since the ocean had leaked into the rivers.

"J!" He lifted his head, only to be smacked in the face by a curtain of yellow hair. It smelled like flowers. The first thing in months that didn't smell like deadwater. He wrapped his arms around her and breathed in deeply. Abby giggled and pulled away. 

Her eyes were bright and healthy, lips glossy like she'd just put on chapstick and she was grinning. Jonah's brow furrowed as he struggled to process it. 

She pushed something against his lips and water filled his mouth. He almost choked in his haste to swallow, pulling away after two gulps. It tasted fresh. But that was impossible, because the natural sources were heavily guarded by whoever happened on them first.

"Abbs -- that's --"

"We found a source," her grin was almost manic, her blue eyes glowing brighter than the sky. "That's where I've been, we found a source. It's big enough for everyone here."

He smiled with her and hugged her again, breathing in the smell of her hair.

[FOUR MONTHS BEFORE]

"Jonah!" Adam's scream split the air, silencing the lazy morning bustle. Jonah's heart leapt to his throat as he abandoned his post and sprinted toward the sound. Adam's massive stature stood out in the crowd, even more so when Jonah spotted Abby writhing in his arms.

His first thought was that she'd gotten in contact with deadwater.

He didn't remember his second thought.

He nearly bowled them over when he skidded to a stop in the dirt, eyes wide on Adam. "What happened? What's wrong?"

Abby lashed out, cleaving long scratches into Adam's cheek. He yelled and dropped her. Abby was moving immediately, sobbing and screaming as she ran to the tent. To her tent. Hers and her fiancé's. 

Jonah followed on her heels, stopping her with an arm around her middle. "Abbs! Abby, stop! What's --"

She sagged against him, muffling her sobs against his chest. Jonah puffed her hair out of his mouth and craned his neck to see the tent. 

At first, he didn't see anything worth noting. The flap was zipped shut, everything looked to be packed inside as it should be. Then he saw it: the bottom half of the nylon tent was a glossy red-black, as though someone had poured blood into it. Blood dripped sluggishly through the fabric and onto the dirt. 

Abby didn't have a drop of it on her.

Jonah turned back to Adam and the audience that had accumulated. What happened? he mouthed.

Adam shook his head, eyes wide and his cheek bleeding freely down his neck. His rifle dangled off his shoulder awkwardly. We don't know.

Jonah nodded and pulled his sister closer, kneeling next to her. She didn't stop crying. Didn't even notice the change of position. Adam quietly gathered a few volunteers and they carried the tent away. Between their legs, Jonah spotted the sagging shape of a corpse.

When Abby finally fell asleep, Jonah curled around her and whispered apologies into her hair. It didn't smell like flowers anymore. 

[THREE MONTHS BEFORE]

Abby almost didn't have enough urine for the pregnancy test.

"False positives are very rare," her voice cracked. "We shouldn't do another one."

Jonah didn't know what else to say but, "okay."