Her night had been sleepless — a continuum of shadows that danced across her room’s walls and ceiling, monsters calling out her name and laughing at her demise. Thera didn’t know what possessed her to do it but she rose from her bed, tapping the electronic button to open her door. Just across from her were her district partner’s quarters; one of the few people she had yet to come into contact with. She balled one of her hands into a fit and rapped gently on the metallic entrance. “Ash?” she called out. “Are you awake?”












