Disclamier: Blood/gory, Cursing, and Physical violence

Even with Felix’s reassurance I still had a bad feeling about this whole night. I pulled out my pocket watch from the back of my trousers. The watch weighed heavy in my hand. The image of a phoenix rising was etched into its black metal. This watch was the last gift I received from my mother on my eighth birthday. I checked the time. One thirty - seven in the morning. Eight minutes left until the patrol bots and their guard passes. 

“How much longer?” Ah, Daphne must’ve been watching me still. 

“Eight minutes. We should start to get into position” I close my watch and put it back. I look at Daphne and then Felix. They nod. I see Daphne guide Celeste, who swam in her cloak, to hide in a corner. She was close enough to the ladder if she needed to run on our call. Felix stood by her ready to rush down after Daphne and I dumped the acidic lemon water on the robots. 

I grabbed the buckets and began to line them up on the opposite corner. Daphne joined me. Once the ValBots got close enough to the building we would tip them over on them, them and the guard by surprise. The cloaks Felix got from his saviors should keep us out of the bots scanners even as they approach. Once the robots short curiet from the acid in water, I’ll jump down and strike the knight with them so that they can’t call for backup. I felt like this was easier said than done. 

I crouched in the corner, Daphne next to me, and kept an eye on the road below us. My hood covered my face. I soon heard the metallic footsteps of the bots. Every step I heard made my stomach turn with anxiety. This was it, this could be the end for all of us. I looked back to Daphne then Felix and Celeste. This was my makeshift family, if this was our last night together then I was happy we were together. 

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked at Daphne. She smiled at me. I didn’t smile back. I turned to look at the road again. 

CLANK CLANK CLANK

I saw the first ValBot appear. I felt sick, I wanted to vomit. What were we doing here? 

CLANK CLANK CLANK

More robots soon appeared, the knight was in the middle of the squadron. They grew closer to the building. I felt like my heart was going to burst from my chest. 

CLANK CLANK CLANK

They were one building away from us. Their scanners should have picked us up by now. They continued to draw closer to us. I felt relief start welling up in my chest, the cloaks worked. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. 

CLANK CLANK CLA-

Silence. I opened my eyes and peeked out. The bots were stopped. The knight was looking in our direction. No no no, this couldn't be happening. The seven ValBbots simultaneously turned their heads in our direction.  

Everything felt as if it was put into slow motion. The knight yelled something to the robots  and raised his sword. They began to raise their arms. My stomach sank with terror, I was going to vomit. I turned around and screamed.

“RUN”

The pelts from the bots rained upon us and made a thud sound as it hit the building. 

“Felix, get Celeste to safety!” Daphne yelled over the roar of bullets. “We’ll be right behind you!” 

Felix and Celeste were closest to the ladder, they would be able to escape faster while Daphne and I were on the other side of the building. Felix nodded and grabbed a cry and scared Celeste. They quickly disappeared down the ladder. 

I felt myself hyperventilating. We were going to all die. Felix had been lied to. I should have pushed harder to change his mind about this plan. We were never going to make it back home. They’ll find us no matter where we hide or how far we run. 

I closed my eyes and buried it in my hands. My face was wet, when did I start crying? All I heard was the onslaught of bullets. This was it, I would be seeing my mother and father again. 

“-celie! Marcelie, please!” My hands were removed from my face. I opened my eyes and Daphne was crouched in front of me. She was yelling at me, I couldn’t hear her very well over the sound of pelts and my heartbeat. 

She noticed I was staring at her. Again she yelled something I couldn’t understand. She grabbed my hand and forced me to start crawling next to her. We were heading to the ladder Felix and Celeste used. 

There was no way that we would be escaping this. We got to the ladder. I felt a sharp sting on my face suddenly. I gasped as if I was awakened suddenly. 

“Good, that worked” Daphne had slapped me. 

I nodded and looked at her. “W-we’re going to d-die” I felt myself starting to tremble from fear. 

“No, we’re not. Now come on.” She started to descend down the ladder. I followed her lead. Fourteen feet and then we’ll be on the ground. 

I was trembling violently as we climbed down. Daphne was directly below me on the ladder. A little less than halfway down I felt my shoe slip. Daphne reacted to grab it and she fell 8 feet. She landed with a sickening thud. 

I don’t remember the rest of the climb down, but suddenly I was at Daphne’s side. Her head was bleeding from a temple and she was unconscious. I was screaming for her to wake up. I turned around and vomited. Damn it this wasn’t supposed to happen! 

I felt a small hand rubbing my back. I turned around and saw a crying Celeste trying to comfort me. Felix was at Daphne’s side. 

“She’ll be okay, she’s breathing. But she’s going to need a doctor.” Felix looked at me seriously. 

“What are you doing here, you were supposed to run” 

“Well Celeste didn’t partially like that idea. Did you know that she has a mean kick? She took off running back to you guys before I could grab her again and thankfully she did” Celeste nodded along to what he was saying.

Felix began to maneuver Daphne on to his back. “A little help would be nice, you know? The ValBots could be coming this way any time now.”

I jumped up and helped him secure Daphne to his back. I grabbed Celeste’s hand. “Felix, I’m not sure we can outrun them.” 

“We can tr-”

CLANK CLANK CLANK 

Too late. The ValBots moved in on us without us noticing. They stood in the front exit, the only way out was to run out the back way. There would be no cover in our run, it made it guaranteed that we would be hit by the robots bullets. 

The knight walked to the front of the ValBots. He was cladded in the typical knight uniform of the kingdom. Light chain mail armor with an emerald cape that bears a basilisk in gold. A golden basilisk was the symbol of the Valotire kingdom. 

He chuckled at us. “It seems like we have some brave common folk here, don’t we?”

We were frozen to the spot out of fear. I felt Celeste hug my side. 

“Well, I’ll have to bring in one of you for interrogation because this is the most unusual thing I’ve seen you people do. With that being said I have no need for all of you.”

I felt my heart sink, he was going to kill us and torture the last person for information. These knights were sick. 

The knight smiled wickedly, “how about we start with the youngest?” He pointed his sword at Celeste. 

Before I could realize what was going to happen, Celeste dropped to the floor next to me. She was just in my grip. She was just hugging me. Now she lay lifeless on the floor, shot by a ValBot. 

The knight laughed like an insane person and I heard Felix curse him out. Celeste was gone, killed right in front of us. The little girl that I knew for her whole life was now gone. I felt anger surge within me. It felt like my insides were being rattled. How dare he kill Celeste. 

I felt myself shaking. “ YOU BASTARD!” I yelled. I felt like those words flew out of me with a jolt taking all my strength with them. I fell to my knees and blacked out. 

The next thing I remembered was Felix yanking me by my cloak sleeve urging me to run with him while he carried Daphne. The ValBots didn’t give chase, it seemed like they were stuck.

“Celeste,” I mumbled.

Felix shook his head. He was crying, “it’s too late.”

I felt tears run down my own face. “W-where are we going?”

“Somewhere safe”

Somewhere safe sounded nice right now.