Chapter 257: Traumatic Experiences

While waiting for the armed forces to actually show up, the assembled group stationed at the outpost by the lake.

Therefore, when the alarm officially went off there was no one caught unawares.

Everyone was up and instantly alert, and got dressed and prepped with a quickness that had been thoroughly rehearsed.

Before each of Malachi's girls left the room, they said goodbye to their little bundle of joy that was relegated to the sidelines.

Something that she didn't really seem to be all that happy about.

Camille sat in the corner of the room with her arms folded and her new pet sitting on top of her head.

The two of them wore matching scowls as they stared back at all five women.

"Buu..."

"Don't be like that, little miss. You didn't actually think we'd be the kind of parents who would allow an infant to run onto a battlefield, did you?" Bianca laughed.

Camille looked at Anna and Nadine, who promptly turned away as if they could not bear the weight of her accusatory, yet cute gaze.

"Well, that's why we usually take votes for stuff, so more rash heads don't prevail." Sei added.

""W-We aren't rash!"" Anna and Nadine yelled defensively.

"We can argue about why you're wrong later, but for now we need to go." Luna said seriously.

Everyone took their last opportunity to give Cami a sweet showing of mother's love before heading out the door.

"Go with your grandmother until we get back, okay? We'll pick you up as soon as we can!" Joanne waived.

Once the door was closed, Cami fished out the locket hanging around her neck that was sitting just beneath her onesie.

It was a small golden trinket that very closely resembled a pocket watch and seemed no different from an ordinary heirloom.

But her auntie Aubrey had made sure that it was anything but.

She pressed the clasp to open it and revealed a bulb of stored darkness sitting inside.

She stuck one of her cute little fingers inside and closed her eyes before she felt a gust of wind blow past her cheeks, and her surroundings became slightly colder.

"Oh? Do I have a little visitor?"

Camille opened her eyes and found herself floating within an endless dark night with twinkling stars aplenty.

The space suddenly distorted and became a much more familiar modern home, with luxurious wide open spaces, and better furniture than they even had back at the base.

A familiar woman who seemed like the infinite cosmos personified appeared in front of her, with her hands on her knees and a big smile on her face.

"It seems like I was right, only this time it was my favorite little visitor! Don't tell your daddy I said that though, he might get his feelings hurt." Nyx giggled.

Cami made an unhappy raspberry noise.

"Now what's that for? You know you're a real daddy's girl."

"Awa! Bu!"

"Hey, what's this little red button here?"

Confused, Joanne looked back over her shoulder to take a look.

"Probably just the alarms? Shut them all off and let's get moving."

Shrugging, Serana pressed the button without much thought, and started to walk away when the computer asked a question she did not expect.

{Low level cloaking technology detected. Would you like to see a more accurate depiction of your current surroundings?}

Immediately, the blood of every member of nightfall ran cold.

They paused dead in their tracks and turned back to the holotable while Serana pressed the glowing red button.

Horror showed up on the faces of all members in attendance.

Four large futuristic warships with the emblem of a RR on top of a bald eagle with 'U.S.A' inscribed on it's wings.

Above each warship, there was number that symbolized an accurate headcount of everyone inside.

Exactly two thousand in each.

Though everyone was understandably horrified, none more so than Joanne.

As soon as she saw the emblem on the warship, she had a terrible reaction.

It started off slow, with an increase of heart rate and shallow breathing.

Before Joanne knew it, the simple increase in heart rate turned to actual pain in her chest, followed by similar sensations in her head.

"Mom!"

At some point, Joanne had ended up on her butt, on the floor.

She had crawled away from the holotable as fast as she possibly could, and pressed her back against the wall.

She didn't remember when she started crying, nor did she remember her daughter running to check on her.

Anna's mouth was moving, but Joanne certainly couldn't hear her.

All that she could hear was her own screaming.

Both from the present, and the past where she was locked in that tiny, tiny cell and treated worse than livestock in a barn.

She didn't want to go back.

But they were coming to take her.

And she couldn't pull herself out of the hole their mere arrival had put her in.

With Anna trying and failing to get through to her mother, the rest of the girls rushed to help her, but were cut short by a hair's breadth.

Out of nowhere, a dark hole opened up in the middle of the floor.

A single black hand reached out from the darkness, and dragged it's claws along the floor as it pulled the rest of it's body into the space.