Chapter 6

The days passed by in a blur. It was a constant routine of hammering down on the dark rocks, getting hit, screamed at, mining coal and repeat. Even the reprieve that sleeping had once brought her was now a constant mix of nightmares and memories.

She would dream of her mother's indifferent gaze, the disgust in her father's eyes. All the while screaming, "I didn't mean to! I didn't!" Blood was splattered on the ground where she sat wailing.

She would wake up with a sharp pain in her chest. Curl in on herself, filled with agony at the constant reminder of who she truly was. It was something she had long pushed to the back of her mind, yet in a world like this, the memories emerged unbidden.

It was another night like the rest; exhausted from a long day of mining, Arilla collapsed onto coal covered ground, alongside the other children. Her mind slipped into another memory; however it was different from what she knew.

She could feel warmth, she was gently held in a woman's arms as she gazed down at her. The woman's eyes were filled with fascination.

Gazing back into the woman's dark eyes, Arilla saw herself, well the original owner as a baby. Startled, she failed to notice the glow of her eyes through her reflection.

As sudden as it came, the glow disappeared, causing the woman to be startled. She gently rocked Arilla as she moved to sit somewhere. The lighting was dim, and it seemed to highlight a dark glow in the woman's eyes as she started to gently hum.

"Beautiful eyes…Just like your father's" she sighed, brushing her fingers lightly on the corners of Arilla's eyes. Her gaze was focused firmly on Arilla, yet it seemed distant.

The arms that were gently holding her started to tighten, pressing into her delicate flesh. She let out a whimper, as tears blurred her gaze.

"Shhh…My lovely baby, we have to be quiet, so no one hears us!" the woman's eyes turned menacing, as her gentle gaze turned obsessive.

"We don't want them to take you away from mommy right?" her voice was lulling yet her eyes only planted fear in Arilla's heart as the woman's fingers grasped her neck painfully tight.

'Monster!' the thought rang in Arilla's head. It was as familiar as it was distant, the word bridging the dream with her memories.

The blood, her parents, the lifeless body beside her…

Startled she shot up from her bed, once again, only to be met with the darkness. Not a single star could be found in the sky above her.

All that surrounded her was the silent snores and whimpers of tired children, and the putrid smell of excrement.

Making sure no one saw her; Arilla snuck off to find the little plant she had been taking care of.

Carefully placing her palm over the device wrapped around her wrist, trying to muffle the low beeping sound.

She headed toward the rundown buildings, following a path that would keep her out of view from the rooftops.

After she slipped into the building, she waved about in the darkness, feeling around for the walls. Using them as a guide, she ignored the rough texture on her sore palms and headed closer to the center of the room.

As she crouched by the plant and grabbed the canteen that she had left there, she realized that she was trembling. 'It's only a dream…' she tried to convince herself as she hugged her knees.

She hummed a melody, the song that Arden had written for her. Biting her bottom lip, she realized that she was truly alone, alone with the silence, alone in the dark.

She rocked back and forth as the melody fell out of rhythm. Slipping into a blur of memories; her first award, her perfect report cards, her old friends, her business partners…And her boyfriend.

Choked back sobs, wracked her body, shaking it violently. She lost balance and fell, as her face was tickled lightly by the brush of a leaf.

At that instant, the tears she had been holding back flooded out, like a broken dam. "I'm scared…So scared!" her whimpers barely reaching her ears.

It was something she had not admitted to herself for a long time. She had been scared of losing her family's love, scared of being alone, scared of not meeting standards. It was that fear that had kept her going but also kept her shackled for so long.

Limply lifting her arm, she brushed the stem of the plant with her fingers, gently tracing the delicate lifeform. A slight smile lifted the corners of her lips.

It was a frail plant, left alone in a world where there seemed to be no hope for its kind. Yet it continued to thrive, it continued to grow, "And I will make certain that you grow."

Sitting up, she screwed open the canteen and dripped water onto the bottom of the plant. Taking out a piece of dried meat, she softened it with the water cutting a piece of now moldy bread.

She gently pushed the food into the soil around the plant, hoping that they would decompose fast enough to feed the plant.

The beeping of the device started to get louder. Sighing, Arilla knew it was time to get back. Getting up, she dusted herself off and tucked the canteen into a corner of the room, before heading back to the mines.

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A short moment after she returned to the tangle of sleeping children before a long loud beep came from the devices on the children's wrists. Uniformly blaring the morning alarm for the children.

"Rise and shine, we've got a new pair of hands!"

The slave driver boomed, as he walked into the cave with a small figure trailing behind him. A few rays of the sun fell on the figure highlighting a head of bright pink hair, hair so thick that it hid the child's face from view.

As the light streaming in from outside grew brighter, Arilla's doubts began to form.

The little pink-haired girl was wearing high quality clothing, different from any she had seen since she got to this world. It was a frilly white satin dress, there were multiple pink flowers stitched onto it and delicate white embroidery on the lace sleeves.

Gasps of awe and admiration echoed in the dank cave. The girl's outfit was a stark contrast to the dark and dirty environment she had walked into. Even with her dress sleeves stained by the black coal dust, she was an object of fascination to the weary children.

'How can a child like this get here? Was she kidnapped?' Arilla pondered. A strand of hope began to form as she thought further.

'If she was forcefully taken, there's no way her family wouldn't search for her.' It was only a matter of how powerful the little girl's family was. Of course it didn't stop Arilla's disdain of how irresponsible they were.