Hey everyone! Back at it again with a short chapter. This won't be a long one but I hope you enjoy it! After WAR posted a new chapter, I was so excited! We're almost near the end guys!
As per usual, I don't own anything.
Enjoy!
If you were to drop a pin, the sound of it will echo loudly throughout the small room. That's how quiet it was. Small noises amplified to startle anyone. The only sound resonating through the room was Erica's breathing. She was lying on her bed, staring at the metallic ceiling. There had been nothing to do. No mission. No training. No recon. Nothing. As if Markata had forgotten about her. It was a silly thought, she had to admit. Who could forget about the only human in existence? Aside from Markata, of course. She still wasn't sure if he was considered a human, seeing how he can change from human to Mumm-Ra.
Occasionally, her eyes would fall onto the door, expecting it to open and have Markata fill her in on a new mission. Normally, she was fine with any mission. Except, for now, she wished for them. Whether it be recon, or even straight up attacking the Thundercats, she needed something to take her mind off of Sunny.
Just even thinking about his name dampened her mood. As if it wasn't already bad enough. It had been two days since Sunny was killed. She failed to grab all the pieces. If only Grune hadn't taken her away, she could've gathered them all. Maybe even fix him. She'd done them before. Fixing his mechanical paws, rebooting his system, anything to make the Berbil function at his best. Only this time, there was nothing to fix. No Sunny. Her little ball of sunshine.
Even if she didn't like to show it, she did care for the little Berbil. If Sunny wanted to be carried, she would pick him up. She didn't do it as often when he lifted his arms, but she would pick him up on occasions to calm her nerves. Or when he would roll into a ball, he would hop onto her bed and sleep next to her. At times, she was annoyed by this, but she didn't mind. She would even cuddle him. Now he isn't here anymore. She wants nothing more than to feel the fur against her cheek. How she had taken him for granted.
Sighing, she pushed herself off of her bed and stood up. Across the room, was the vanity with the broken mirror. How long had it been since she had punched it? Pieces of the glass were still secured to the edges. Dried blood had stained part of the vanity. She could still feel the pain when she shattered the glass. The illusion of her in the mirror breaking into pieces. She wondered…
Using her power, she lifted a piece of glass from the vanity mirror and held it a couple of inches away from her face. She'd expected to see remnants of Echo in the reflection. A ghost haunting her. But the mirror only reflected Erica. And she looked tired.
Sleep hadn't come to her in the last two days. Fits of tossing and turning to starting at the ceiling. Her nightmares consisted of Sunny getting slashed. She was running on short naps at this point. And her reflection showed. Dark circles under her eyes, hair disheveled. Even her skin was paler than usual. She was a mess.
Was this the face the Wily Twins had looked at when she told them to go? The tears streaming down her face, the tiredness of her voice, the trembling of her body. What's worse, the words Kit had said remained with her. She loved her. Even after everything she had done, Kit, and even Kat still loved her. In their minds, she could still be saved. They even called her Echo.
What made it hard was that she still loves them. Deep in the black hole she calls a heart, there's still love for the twins. The twins believed in her. She was still their friend, despite circumstances.
Still looking at her reflection, she took a deep breath, exhaled, and spoke.
"Am I worth it? Am I worth saving?"
… Silence was the answer.
A part of her expected some ethereal voice to say something. Hell, she would've even preferred if Ghost Echo had said anything. But there was nothing. Just the eternal silence of her room.
She let the glass drop to the ground, shattering it. Settling down back onto her bed, she lay her head down onto the pillow and closed her eyes. A lot has happened. And more was to come. Now is the calm before the storm.
Tomorrow is a new day. For now, she slept.
She was sitting on her bed in her uniform when Markata had stepped in.
"Good morning, Riley. I hope you slept well last night."
Erica nodded in response. Last night was the best sleep she had ever had. She was now energized, ready for the day.
Markata smiled at her. "Good. Your next mission will be a difficult one. I hope you got over your fear of the ocean."
