Stone has more empathy than people do.

Can a single word warm a rock?

No? How about another? No, then how about another? And another? At one point you would have to agree that a single word could warm stone, that a single word could mean the difference between an object being cold or being warm.

The same could be said for money, will a single coin make a man rich? No? Then how about another? And another? At one point you realise all it takes is one word.

One action, to do or undo much of what you’ve created.

Deep underground, Sera realised this as well.

She gripped the stone tablet, trying to push away the memories of the facility, her prison.

Her lungs held little oxygen as her body repulsed, and her sight was flushed by a flurry of colours, her senses were lying to her just like they used to. But now it was because of a deficiency rather than a permanent… problem.

Her mouth opened by reflex and air was simply sucked in before being shoved out. The lack of oxygen was making her world spin and by extension was slowing her down, helping her fall and making it easier to give in.

Not that her body would ever stop her, at least not in this life.

Sera stalked as fast as she could manage towards her new source of sustenance, in her previous life it would’ve killed her to breathe it in, but now it was the only thing that could save her.

Moving past the runes made into the floor rather than etched into it, Sera still gripped onto the rock unnaturally, as if it froze her fingers.

Her lips moved as her hair swayed forward, damp but still long.

Her eyes looked bloodshot, but it was simply their natural colour after the incident.

Legs grated against the flawless black metal floor, scales clattered as her clothes brushed against each other, within an edge of her life she let herself fall into the water as the day’s events played in her eyes.

Despite her wishing, they instead hid deep within, and never getting the attention such memories thrived on.

“You can’t run away!” A screech, a scream resounded despite the natural insulation doing it’s best to stop the shrill noise.

Her feet bare, she sidestepped past the familiar oval bush and towards the renovated exit to the facility, leaving the grassy veneer her feet touched the solid pavement before brushing off towards its owner’s whims.

“Again-again and again…” Sera mumbled to herself, her lips rambling despite her focus being elsewhere, a common problem with people who had too much spare time alone.

The garden had dyed her pant legs a green and brown mix, a penalty when I’m caught. She thought to herself getting closer to the facilities’ familiar white and dizzying halls, “But only if caught, by the keepers or the stalkers.”

Her eyes traced the garden but saw no movement as she approached the automatic door and burst through the entrance into a long hall.

Door after door, she passed them all while ignoring the chlorine like smell she had gotten used to over the years, until she saw passed the halfway point.

She needed keys, and for that it was time to search-

The moment she had the thought her body went into overdrive, even after years of trying to control it the slightest thought would send it into action.

At least I can direct it if I focus. With that, Sera’s thoughts were on the endless doors and her body was already on it.

White room.

People.

Blue room.

Stalkers.

Smelly room.

Cleaners.

Damp room.

Empty.

“Perfect.” Her arm scratched at the itch on her arm as eyes erratically danced across the room. Looking for a key, or a way to force open the lock, to escape the prison keeping her, holding her and trapping her, until he would come.

Shivering at the image of him, she couldn’t remember the reason, only the emotion.

Fear, pain and guilt.

Looking down at the shelves Sera realised she was throwing anything that didn’t belong, or she didn’t like on the floor, it didn’t matter, she wouldn’t be here much longer, as long as she could find-

“ahaAHha.”

Her voice broke as it normally did when she laughed, the spare key card was already in hand.

She struggled to put the fabric hoop around her head, after a few attempts she got it on before her mind took her elsewhere, when she was young the stalkers-the nurses were nice, they let her play with them and move around the rules, but now they forced her to sit and listen to boundless talk.

Talk she understood then wanted to move past and at other times completely forgot.

Who could blame her after all she-

*Beep*

Her hand already let the card go as her feet carried her down the hall, closer to leaving the prison for at least a day, an hour.

She needed it, needed to get away.

The one who blamed, always came on the sixth day, if she could escape him-

Her feet lost their grip on the marble floor, which made her face meet it with a bounce rather than feeling a crunch.

The lack of feeling that came when I’m in my episodes can be used, she thought to herself.

Running towards the exit, the sign always above her, Sera could already see the people ahead.

People, not keepers, or cleaners.

Or stalkers and teachers.

This close to-

“Sera!” Slighted from her daydream with the voice that envied, blocking the way out, they were off to the right where she always looked last.

Already Sera was off.

Boundless halls could keep them away, the bright white lights of the LED's and the sunlight with each open window slowed her down, but it slowed them down more, hopefully long enough for him to leave.

Sera thought to herself trying to smirk but instead a large smile forming in its place, she began laughing before coughing as exhaustion caught up to her.

Seeing brown doors, an indifference in this place, Sera raced forward to the double doors, pushing them both open with a burst of energy only a lack of communication to her body could allow.

Her eyes instead of looking at the hallway looked at the ceiling as her steps slowed to a halt.

Blackened, burnt and melted.

Looking down from the small hallway’s ceiling the way ahead looked crowded and clustered, with unmoving objects rather than people, and unlike the normal facility it looked abandoned.

Knowing the exit was past it, Sera’s body moved before her mind processed it.

What it did process was the two stalkers standing at the double doors.

“Sera!” The light blue one with the higher pitched voice stepped forwards with her palms out.

Trying to grab, Sera thought to herself, her body already buzzing with energy to avoid the hands deceitful in their placating looks.

“Listen this is the third time during your visiting hours, your old man is really try-” At the mention of him her body froze, unwilling to move despite her mind pushing at it to respond.

To the left a clear window stood with her reflection in it, her clothes ripped and torn, hands and feet covered in cuts. Most of them were from ages past and only scars remained, the only hint of the incident that had caused all of it.

In the background, Sera began looking at the mess as objects rather than a collective and saw a path through.

Just as, a dark-blue suited keeper pushed past the stalker and grabbed at Sera!

Air filled her as she leapt to the side and into the mess.

Dodging and weaving past forgotten gurney’s, their rusty wheels marked the halls along with the blasting of boots and wooden heels behind her.

Vaulting over a table, Sera felt a piercing sensation in her foot followed by her shriek as she quickly pulled out the offending screw and continued pushing through rather than dashing over the objects.

Her episode was coming to an end-

Her heartbeat raised and she could feel her body almost burn uncomfortably, if I don’t escape in time-

The thought left unfinished as a plethora of noises was met with each shove and push.

The gurney’s, tables, and forgotten sharp objects scattered behind her as she continued leaping forward, each time she passed a window she could see the two behind her slowly fall behind.

Their frustrated sighs and growls of annoyance only fuelled her, showing her it could be done, she could escape!

Passing by a metal shelving unit, she shoved it behind her, hearing the clatter of whatever loose objects remained before seeing a door in the distance.

“Finally.” Her lungs were almost wheezing, but she didn’t stop.

Hands grabbing the door frame closest to her, she pulled herself forward, pushing past the forgotten billboards and newsletters.

Pushing them to the floor in hopes of slowly or forgetting those chasing her, just for one moment she wanted to be in her own world.

Closing in on the doorway she vaulted over another gurney, this time seeing the screws plain in her feet’s path she told her body to move, but it didn’t listen, with her foot coming down there was only one thought on her mind.

A high-pitched squeal shrieked as the screw felt like it hit the bone, scrambling to her now bloodied feet her hands were desperate to pull the foreign object out.

With each pull, so did the pain increase, and in her body disobeying her.

Flinging the metal scrub to the side, Sera pulled herself up.

Turning around, she couldn’t see the two in sight, but she could hear the opening and closing of doors-

They had given up!

Pushing forwards past the blood still leaking from her body, she pushed past two large windows and a steel door before getting to the green exit door.

Reaching for the handle, she pulled.

Only to notice that the door hadn’t budged, in fact the handle couldn’t move at all.

Standing back, Sera felt the same crawling feeling on her back when she realised it the first time.

Her hallucinations, they had lied to her again.

Looking at the metal shelve high on where the ‘door’ was, she followed the furniture piece down until she found the bracket, the door handle she was pulling on.

“I-it can’t-”

She felt the realisation hit her as she looked at her feet.

There was no blood.

There was water, flowing from the nearby water carton.

Grabbing at her foot, there were two small bumps that hurt slightly but ultimately were less than a fingernail deep.

Dropping her foot to the floor, she looked back at the shelf, finding some scissors, syringes and some bandages.

Grabbing the bandages, Sera began trying to wrap her foot up as if it were a completely normal thing to do after being chased then hallucinating the chas-

“Sera.”

Jumping out of her skin, she dropped the loose bandages before falling into the do-shelving units behind her.

Both the nurse and the security guard were standing there.

Sera couldn’t see anyone’s face except for his, anyone else’s looked the same.

Looked at her pitifully.

Turning back to the shelf, she saw the glint and grabbed the object without a care for her hand.

“Don’t.”

Holding the scissors up to the two, the guard’s hand went to his belt, but the nurse gave him a look which made him huff, annoyed at not being able to use his toy.

“Sera, your father is here. Just like last week and the week before that,” She gave a small sigh before her, she faced Sera again. “The visits can be as short as five minutes as long as you behave.”

“Behave? I’m not a child, he is the one who should be here, not me.”

Pointing the scissors at the nurse, she looked at the window next to her and saw the nurse standing in front of her, seemingly a bit taller.

But where did the other go-

“Got her.” Gripping her arms and pushing them behind her back, Sera screamed before the nurse could come over.

“Thanks, here, hold her steady.” His voice brushed her ear as she pushed against the ground with her forehead.

“WAI-don’t I’ll-I’ll go-” But before she could finish her sentence she felt a pinch in her neck, then the wet floor didn’t feel so wet anymore.

It felt unfair, hopeless almost, I’m trapped and there’s nothing I can do.

The bright lights fizzled out before a soft voice and stale breath met her cheek.

“S-s-s-s-s-e-e-e-r-r-r-a-a.”

Grey thinned out hair, sleeves that were clean but well-worn, making it clear he hadn’t bought clothes in a long time.

Her eyes blared open as she took him in to her sights.

The white sheets surrounded her tucked in, in such a way that she was pinned to the bed and with the sedatives help?

She was immobile.

“E-e-v-v-e-r-y time, I visit you, you do this. It gives me ideas, Sera.” The voice was muffled, still she shivered as each blink he moved.

Further, then closer, wrapping around her bedside to a dark brown bag, a stark contrast to the surroundings.

“T-the incidenn it wasn my-” Her words mashed together as her eyes closed.

“-Yours.” He spoke suddenly from a different location.

Her eyes creaked open, and again he moved from one side to the other in a blink, she was familiar with it but unlike the other times when he held food or water, this time he held… a pillow.

“I’ve been talking to one of the security guards today,” His voice unnaturally lacking any emotion.

“He said that often… it’s a mercy, for more troubled patients to be released early.” His tone shone of guilt but his hands and face twitched, almost excited, as if waiting to act.

“Because of you’re recent incident, they’ve given us a room to ourselves and there are no cameras-”

Her head spun as his words cut off, and the man multiplied into two, then into three mirror images.

Shutting her eyes a loud piercing noise came from her right, but she knew the source was from within, the medicine was wearing off.

“Goodbye Sera, I won’t be joining you and your mother just yet.” Then the pillow came down onto her head.

Paralysed but her fingers and hands twitching as the pressure increased.

Then her feet jerked, and her body tried to contort, but he kept her still.

He still blamed her for the incident, and he would not let her go.

The feeling of sleep was coming, the sedative wouldn’t wear off in time.

Then it all stopped.

It didn’t feel like a long time, but everything felt disconnected, different from how it normally was. The dull thought stayed as everything left her.

My father killed me.

Quiet dominated everything but that thought, until a single whisper came.

“Sera, this isn’t the end. If you want it to be a beginning, don’t stop fighting.”

Her body tried to fight the feeling of oblivion.

But no feeling came.

It was only the void.

A feeling more scary than all the times she felt paralysed within her own body, at least she could feel that she was there.

The tired sagging feeling returned, closing her vision rather than her eyes, she could feel herself drift.

Then silence came, but before she returned to sleep she could hear one more word.

“Genesis, bring her to me, she’s worth more than she thinks.”