The sudden slamming of a door woke Adriana up. She startled and almost fell off the couch, managing to just barely hold onto the armrest."Again? You always sleep in the afternoon then complain about it in the evening." Chiara walked up to the living room table and placed the groceries down. "Come help me." She demanded, annoyed at Adriana's laziness.Adriana sighed and got up, groggy. Her hair was a mess. Whatever, not like she had a job to go to. Not after… No, better not think of that.Chiara began to sort what she'd bought, handing Adriana stuff that needed to be put into the fridge."Did you buy the cereal I wanted?" Adriana asked, trying to peek at what else her youngest sister had purchased."Bea told you to stop eating that stuff. It's unhealthy. At least try out local products!""Did you buy it?"Chiara sighed and took out exactly what Adriana had asked her to buy. Without a moment's hesitation, she opened the cereals and took out a bowl, Chiara openly frowning at her."If you tell Bea she's going to kill me. Please don't skip dinner today.""Okay.""Promise?"Adriana nodded then began to pour the cereal. No matter what Beatrice and Chiara thought, cereal went before milk. It's just how it worked. She loved her sisters dearly but they were on the wrong side of history… I'm bored. I get dramatic when I'm bored…"Did Bea tell you when she'd be back?" Chiara asked."Mphf mphfmp" Adriana tried answering between shoving spoonfuls of cereal in her mouth."God, don't talk with your mouth full! Mom always told you to mind your manners."Adriana tried to ignore her. Not only because she was being annoying, but because Chiara knew very well that Adriana still wasn't comfortable talking about mom. Or dad.She felt like she'd never be."...she's coming home late. Maybe we should leave something for her, so that she can have dinner when she's back." Adriana finally answered." 'We' should?" Chiara chuckled in a fake sort of laugh, while continuing to sort groceries. "I don't think I've seen you cook ever since you moved in with us. Yes, I'll make sure Bea has something to eat when she gets home.""What are you making?""I was thinking-"A siren. An emergencyIt pierced the air like a banshee's shriek, deafening the two sisters.Fear. Terror.No. It can't be happening again. Not so soon. It's not fair.Chiara was screaming something, pushing Adriana to move. She felt numb, unable to think clearly. Her clothes were soaked... When had they left the living room? She didn't remember getting her coat on. She didn't remember walking into the flooded street.Is it him again? Why? What did I do to deserve this?Adriana didn't, couldn't resist as Chiara dragged her along. But neither could she fully understand what was going on.Until the water reached them.The two were dragged away by the current.
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"Calm the fuck down!" Beatrice, Chiara's older and Adriana's younger sister, kept yelling over the panicking crowd. "It's not Leviathan!" She desperately tried to get a handle on the situation.Adriana and Chiara had just barely managed to get to Bea's workplace - the bank - amidst the flooding rivers that were now filling the streets. But there was no rain. Nor any tidal wave in the distance.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.This isn't him again. Adriana thought. What is happening?Bea kept trying to yell over the shrieking crowd, to little success.Until she walked up to one of the security guards.A loud 'bang' quieted the room. Bea stood there, arm raised, with the gun pointed toward a now shattered window."Okay. Listen to me! It's not Leviathan. The heroes will take care of this. The bank's vault should keep us safe in the meanwhile." She glanced at the room, quickly counting heads, "...but there's not enough space for all of us. Someone needs to stay outside. Two people."A quiet heartbeat passed."One other aside from me will have to stay out." Bea decided, volunteering herself.No. No. Fuck that. NO!Before Adriana could say a word, Chiara stood up and shouted:"Everyone, get in the vault!"No.Nononononononononono.This couldn't be happening again.Images of Leviathan's attack flashed through Adriana's mind. The last time she saw her parents.The moment they shoved Adriana and her sisters into the shelter. Not enough space for mom and dad. It was already so crowded that Adriana had felt like drowning amidst the tide of people.She almost shouted. Tried to gather the strength to volunteer herself, to chastise her younger sisters. Tried to speak out and convince her sisters to try and fit inside. No words came out.Bea was right, there wasn't enough space for all of them. Two would need to stay out. But what was she supposed to say? 'Bea, go in.'? 'Chiara, take my place'?In either case one of her younger sisters would die. It wasn't fair. She couldn't make that choice. No elder sisters should ever be forced to make such a choice.It wasn't fair.But the moving crowd suddenly stilled. A figure tapped against the glass. Tall, muscular and naked. His hair was long and black. His face was locked into a creepy smile. And his eyes…Adriana wasn't religious, but glancing at those eyes full of malice she felt like looking at the devil himself.Something in that wicked smile shifted.A high-pitched sound rang out, like a shriek except not. Blood splurted from the crowd as people fell all around. Cut in pieces. The concrete walls were also sliced open. The room began to fall apart.Then the room flooded.
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When Adriana opened her eyes again, Beatrice and Chiara were standing over her. Eyes wet with tears. Bea's face was covered in blood.But she's not wounded. Adriana noticed, though her thoughts came sluggish. Unclear.Her sisters were saying something. She glanced down.Oh.Her legs were missing. From slightly above the knee.At least Bea and Chiara looked unhurt.There, not too far back, standing over the shredded corpses of people Adriana had met once or twice, the man stood. That same wicked smile on his face.Adriana wanted to scream out. To shout. To tell her sisters to run away. To leave her behind.The words wouldn't come out. Once again.Beatrice was the first to turn around and notice something was wrong. Her shriek of terror sent chills down Adriana's spine, soon followed by Chiara's own screams as she, too, noticed that the monster was so close to them.At least, Adriana thought, faintly, at least they don't know the mistakes I've made.The world fell away.What took its place was the quiet stillness of the void. Space. Planets passed by. Two beings made their way to somewhere far in the distance. To Earth.Their Destination.