She nodded, opening the door quietly. Eyes looked up at them from the sleeping mats, blinking in the light from the open room. Dirty, exhausted face squinted up at them. The room was cramped, like their ones back home, filled to the brim with too many bodies.
Eliza hesitated, clearly shocked at the capacity of the room before speaking. "We are the only survivors of Colony A6D," she told them in a hushed tone, her dark green eyes shadowy in the darkness. "We are leaving this place behind - all of it - and fleeing to the Center. We have stopped here to see if you'd like to join us." They all stared at them, their eyes dull and unresponsive until one of them stood up. An old woman, bent over with age, squinted at them, her white hair torn and in disarray. "No, child," she croaked. "None of us will be joining you."
The woman coughed into the crook of her arm, a threadbare blanket over her shoulders that shook with the effort. After a minute, she caught her breath and looked up, her eyes harsh with age. "We are not foolhardy with our lives," she replied. "We will not risk our lives for this." "Are you truly living?" Eliza retorted, sounding a little irritated. "You're pressed in here together like rats. Why not risk your lives for something?" The woman's gaze turned sharply to Eliza again. "You do not get to arrive here and make such accusations. Live a difficult life, but still live. That is the hand we have been dealt."
Sona frowned, squinting at the people before she spoke, maybe sounding a little disappointed. "They've made their decision. Following this woman and her actions is their choice, but if anyone else wishes to speak their own mind against hers, they are welcome to join us."
They were greeted with silence, the tribe watching them almost warily now. Eliza glared, her eyes dark. "What a waste of time," she muttered, turning on her heels and heading back the way they had come.
Vaughn was behind her, looking mildly upset. Sona frowned, her eyes scanning the group before turning to follow as well.
Jude seemed to have little to no reaction, his brow only slightly furrowed. Amazingly, they managed to make it out without interference. The lack of Enforcers may have been due to the heavy rain they encountered upon leaving. Eliza didn't seem to notice, moving out into the rainfall, her face as stormy as the sky.
Vaughn looked back at the colony before looking ahead. He didn't say anything, though. Seeming at a loss for words. However, he hesitated, feeling as if he already knew the answer to his next question as he looked to Eliza. "Are you okay?"
She didn't answer him for a long time. In fact, they had walked for about ten minutes before she responded, her voice low and harsh and angry. "This is why things will never change," she muttered. "This is why our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents were all doing the same things that we were doing just days ago. *squee!*ing... *squee!*ing cowardice."
"We are the only ones," she replied harshly. "What we just saw is evidence that we are the only ones. We are alone. It's just us."
Vaughn frowned, going quiet again. Sona looked between the two, as if expecting more. "That's.. I mean.. There are more colonies. We can be the only ones who want to do this."
Eliza had come to a stop, turning to the others, her brown hair plastered to her head from the rain. "We are not stopping at any more colonies," she said stiffly, her gaze sharp. "We got lucky this time; they didn't call the Enforcers. But we're no longer stopping."
"If you wish to," she replied, "you may. I will not do it. They are not willing to take the risks you want them to take."
