Page 24 of The Divide that Binds Us

After all, there won’t be an Ultima or Elite if the world ends.

Onyx looks like it’sstraight out of a wicked sci-fi movie of the future.Everything is desaturated compared to the brilliance of Topaz this morning.It’s a little...jarring.

“Back home,” I murmur, stepping off the train platform before I’m mauled by hyper, hasty commuters.

It’s eerily quiet while still maintaining traffic, houses, apartments, and a standard downtown.Somehow, all the crammed gray, white, or black modern buildings can meet the needs of healthcare workers, alchemists, and scientists.I guarantee I’ll see each one in this fifteen-minute walk.

Hints of color come from the grass belonging to homes or parks.Nothing in between.The occasional alchemist wears a warm brown or terra cotta robe with matching boots, but everyone else seems to hate colors.Ultima’s colors are silver, navy, and black, so it makes sense.

The maintenance of the flora is stiff.Most trees were cut into the shape of a ball rather than their natural form.Same with all the bushes.Everything is controlled here.

I probably inherited some reserved characteristics from Onyx because people are just not approachable here.No waving, no smiling, no eye contact, no physical touch.Most keep their heads down and mumble to themselves as they speed-walk along the sidewalk.The people who do engage are the outliers from elsewhere who will save this wretched island.

The Onyx Island Bus Transit is a disappointing graphite box on wheels, towing away people in white lab coats, scrubs, robes, or aprons with satchels strapped over their shoulders.

Well, would you look at that, I spotted all three.

I wait for the next bus to arrive going in that direction.As expected, the inside is scattered because no one wants to sit next to each other so there are a ton of empty seats next to people.I sit in an open spot between an elderly man and a teenager.They both give dirty looks and turn away.They don’t even care that I’m in my Elite uniform and I serve them.I hate it here.

The bus stops further than I want to go, but I walk a short distance to my old street from my childhood.Seeing an empty lot makes the blistering afternoon sun burn my neck so coldly.

I dig in my pockets to pull out a folded photo.My dad looks to be in his early thirties, crouched beside six-year-old me.I’m cheesing absurdly hard, showing the gap from the tooth that came out.I hold the photo up, blocking my view of the empty lot.How sad a burned down house can wipe all traces of memories this photo can keep.

Istroll out of theneighborhood, wearing through the soles of my shoes in a tireless attempt to not make it to Ultima from fatigue.I can’t apologize if I’m too tired to make it there, right?

What if they’re on high alert because I attacked their members?One look at me through their rumored thermal vision goggles or whatever and they’ll tackle me!I’ll miss Billie’s high-pitched voice drowning me as Ultima keeps me captive.

And yet, somehow, I still make it to their street.

Posted on a busy main road, I stand across the street from Ultima’s headquarters, watching their members filter through the doors, in and out, until there’s a quiet lull.

This is it.They’ve spotted me.

My chest tightens from the tense anticipation.Sweat gathers in my armpits and under my nostrils as I ponder what to do.If they come out, I’ll surrender and apologize.Or maybe I still have time to run away.Maybe I should ask Azul if she told Cedric to expect me so I wouldn’t be perceived as a threat.

Images of birthday candles and flames shudder through my thoughts.

Nope.I can’t.Nope.Nope.Nope.Nope.

I turn on my heels and dash in the opposite direction, right toward the park.It’s the infamous Green Park, well known for its blue grass.It’s a shining example of what happens when scientists and alchemists become besties and do things without prior approval.

Turns out I’m still the same, weak coward I was when I was fourteen.Here I am, begging to be free and I can’t even extend an apology to the organization I “accidentally” attacked.

In my sprint through the park through a blurred state, I flip right over something that hits my legs and land on my side.I cough and roll over, spotting a boy with an awful bowl cut hairdo slowly rising to his feet.My back spasms from the fall as I get to my feet.

“Sorry, kid.You okay?”

Much to my dismay, the boy approaches me, tilting his head once we make eye contact, but he’s looking through me.I was hoping he’d nod and move on.

“Y-You...okay?”I ask again.He blinks a few times, staring absently.I wave my hand in his face, getting his attention again.“Oi!Do you need medical attention?I didn’t mean to run into you.”

He shakes his head.“I can’t find daddy.”

I scan the area of people sitting in their controlled sections of the park grass and benches.The tree leaves and branches are shaved to form triangles, and I just spotted a pink-furred dog.

I look back at the kid in his simple denim overalls.Green, blue, and purple bruises cover his small dangling arms.I find a bruise on the side of his neck.

“So, uh, where did you last see your dad?”

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