God’s Cube

Morning sun struggled through high-set windows to send long, pale rays of light across the stone floor of the Academy's main hall. Thesi sat at one of the tables, staring blankly at the steam rising from his untouched cup of tea. Around him, the normal hum of morning chatter was subdued, the energy in the room taut, unsure. Conversations were hushed, whispers darting back and forth like anxious birds.

The night before had passed in a blur. After seeing the stretchers, Thesi went to his dorm in a daze, with the image of those covered bodies burning inside his brain. He hadn't slept. He lay awake in the dark, staring at the ceiling as fragments of his memories from the forest started bleeding into the present. The night's violence and death, a scar he thought had started to patch up, turned into a scar that would never heal. 

Older students, at the far end of the hall, huddled in a close circle. Their faces drawn and serious, their words were lost to the low murmur of the hall as Thesi strained to catch snippets of their conversation.

"They're going to make an announcement soon." 

Amina said softly from beside him, pulling him from his thoughts. Her dark eyes were shadowed with worry, her usual calm demeanor shaken. Lyra sat beside her fidgeting with her hands, her knee bobbing up and down under the table. Eira was on the other side of Amina, staring out one of the windows, her expression unreadable. Vasko and Augusto had stayed back at the barracks for the moment.

“What do you think happened?" 

Lyra asked, barely above a whisper.

"I don't know, whatever it is, it's serious.

Amina replied, her voice firm but strained. Thesi felt Eira glance his way, but he didn't return the look. He couldn't. His mind was elsewhere, entrapped in a loop of unsettling thoughts. The bodies they saw last night, the bloodied and unconscious student, and the missing one. They hadn't said anything about the missing student, but Thesi knew someone was still out there.

Or worse, someone wasn't out there anymore.

He swallowed hard, trying to push the thoughts away, but the cold fear that had settled in his chest just wouldn't leave.

His fingers tightened around the mug in front of him, the heat emanating from the tea barely registering through the numbness now permeating his body. He could still feel the pressure in the air from last night, the weight of the unknown. The big, front doors opened with a soft creak and all the heads turned to Headmaster Orion, who strode in flanked by several instructors. The room was silent for a second. The headmaster's face was as unreadable as ever, but there was a heaviness to his presence, a grimness that made Thesi shiver. Orion stepped forward to the raised dais at the front of the room and stood before the students, his piercing gaze sweeping across them. For one long stretched moment, nobody said a word. The silence just kept stretching out-thick, dense, heavy-like the air in the room had suddenly set like concrete.

Finally, Orion spoke, his voice low and even.

"There was an incident during yesterday’s end of semester event." 

His voice was emotionless, but somehow managed to slice the air. 

"As of this morning, two students were confirmed dead. One is in critical condition in the hospital wing and another is missing."

A murmur swept through the hall, but Orion didn't falter.

“These are the facts. It is a tragedy we did not foresee, and we are fully investigating the matter. However, I urge all of you to remain calm and trust that the staff are quite capable of handling this appropriately."

Thesi's breath stuck in his throat.

Dead.

He had known-known, at least suspected-but the word said aloud was like a blow to the chest. The forest appeared in his mind once more. Thesi could almost hear screams again, feel a hot rush of panic. He clenched his fists, willing himself to stay present, but his mind kept drifting back. Dead-students. His gaze darted to the faces of the other students lining the hall.

Some were pale, others whispered in shock.

“We're still searching for the missing student. Till further notice, all outdoor activities are suspended. I ask you all to remain inside the Academy grounds and to follow the guidance of your instructors. There will be counselors available should any of you wish to speak about this event."

Counselors. Thesi almost snorted at the word. What could counselors do? They couldn't make what happened not have happened. They couldn't take those pictures out of his mind or the cold dread that had planted itself in his chest.

Orion hesitated a moment, his eyes scanning the room one last time. 

"That is all. You are dismissed."

The hall exploded into a chorus of hushed voices when the headmaster had turned to leave: students huddled together, whispering in disbelief. The tension in the room almost became alive-a living thing that seemed to take root in the very walls.

"Dead… I don't believe it."

Lyra breathed, her face pale. Amina said nothing, her lips pressed into a thin line as she stared down at the table. Eira, too, remained silent, though Thesi could feel her eyes on him, as if waiting for him to say something.

But what could he say? What words could possibly make sense of this?

"I need to get out of here, someone also has to tell Vasko and Augusto what happened." 

Thesi muttered, pushing himself to his feet.

"Thesi—" 

Amina began, but he shook his head.

"I just need… air. I'll be back."

Without waiting for an answer, he turned and strode toward the doors. Outside, the hall was empty. All traces of the buzz of voices that had filled the space inside were completely absent. His chest was tight, his breathing shallow. His mind kept circling back to the same thought. It’s just like that day, well not to the same extent, but the thoughts of bodies emerging from a forest crashed him back to that scene. 

The soft sound of footsteps broke into his thoughts. He looked up to see Eira approaching, her face soft, her expression inscrutable.

"You ran out pretty quick." 

she said quietly. Thesi let his breath hiss out; his hand scrubbed over his hair. 

"I just… I couldn't stay there."

Eira leaned against the wall beside him, and her presence was at least calming in a way he hadn't expected. They stood in silence for a moment, the weight of the morning hanging between them.

"I saw them too, the stretchers. The bodies."

Eira said after a long pause, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Thesi nodded, his head jerking up and down as he knew what Eira was getting at. She continued, whispering to him with a soothing voice.

"You are not alone in this, we are all shaken by what happened."

Thesi stared at her, she didn’t know why it affected him more than anything. What thoughts came back to him. 

"Death… it’s not something new. The Cubes, we’ve all seen the outcomes, this just made me relive something I wanted to forget.”

Eira's eyes dampened, and for an instant, Thesi saw in them that perhaps something consoling might be said by her, but instead, she simply nodded.

"Sometimes, the past doesn't let go easily, but that doesn't mean you're trapped in it."

Her words hung in the air, comforting in a way Thesi hadn't counted on. He looked at her, actually looked at her, and for the first time since this all started, he felt an odd sense of peace settle upon him.