The Church

|PRELUDE|

Prelude stared with sad, almost blank eyes at the other children. Her small, pale hands pressed against the glass as she tried to read the expressions on their faces. She softly counted them in her head, making sure no one was gone. She sighed in relief seeing they were all, present and accounted for. Well, at least the ones she lived near. A few other names popped into her head. Her fingers left the glass, as they closed into a powerless fist.

She shook her head. She wasn’t going to think negatively. Faces started disappearing. Children slipped back into the safety of their homes. Prelude stepped away from the window, and her long blue dress swayed with the movement. She turned and walked back into the church her steps quiet and gentle, almost as if she were just that fragile. Her eyes gazed over the area around her. Huge stained-glass windows and tall pillars made up the sides of the church. Flowers twisted around them, hugging them in such a beautiful display. Rows of wooden pews sat symmetrical on either side of the church, separated by a single faded red rug. It was a place that may have once held beauty but now, like most places in Project 21, it was impossible to preserve.

A patch of yellow flowers replaced the area which would have held an altar. Prelude had been given them as a gift from her young friend Ewan. They lasted longer than the average flower, and were blessed by the boy’s magic. She stared fondly at them, before slipping past them into a nearly unseen room. This was her living space, although she had to admit, lying amongst the blooms was very comforting. The room consisted of a small bed, with a shelf built into it and a chest at the end, for holding personal items. Prelude never asked for much, and this little suited her well. There were no pictures; pictures were not allowed in Project 21. The only other thing in the room was a small rack for holding clothing that was not meant to be folded.

She leaned over the bed and gathered a few things from the shelf. She carried them over to the rack and removed a bag from it. She packed the items from the shelf into it and slung it over her shoulder. Then she pulled a large piece of material from the rack and slipped out of the room, without a glance back. Prelude walked quickly to the front of the church and flipped the cloth, which turned out to be a large coat, over herself. She flipped up the hood and covered her face in order to combat the terrible air of Project 21.

She locked up everything checking once, twice, three times to be sure everything was completely secure and hidden. Then returned to the front door and slipping out proceeded to lock that up tight. Sealing it with a prayer and a touch of her clothing, she turned swiftly and immediately disappeared into the streets. The winding paths were the best place to hide if you knew where you were going but then again no one really knew where Project 21 ended or started or even every path in it. There were no maps made for them, as if the Adults wanted them confused. Or, perhaps not even they knew exactly the way Project 21 was laid out. Really all anyone knew was the path to their home and their friends. Lucky for them that never changed.

Prelude's white hood popped back up into view as she neared a house that looked as if it was a giant tree with all the plants that surrounded it. Her eyes sparkled behind her face cover made of a special cloth that would protect 68% of the time and had great vision. It was probably an invention of Dex's, from a while back. Prelude didn't upgrade because she didn't mind it much. Still smiling she wound around the bend that led to an entrance of the greenhouse, and then froze. Panic welled up inside of her as she saw that part of the greenhouse was missing, as if blown apart. Worry surged through her and she picked up her pace.

"No!, No! Not Ewan. Please dear Father, not Ewan” . From the other side she could see Stephen, a child with the power to manipulate the earth, who served as a sculptor for Project 21. Her body flooded with relief that he was safe for a moment, but quickly returned to worry for the youngest Child she knew in their home. Stephen seemed to have the same concerns as her as he made his way towards the damaged building. She shot him a worried look and then turned towards the greenhouse and she called out, "Ewan!~ Are you in there?!" . She lifted a hand from the tresses of the large coat and traced the wall pleading. Please tell me they didn’t take him. Tell me he didn’t get taken away.