~An Era Away~

Vella

Cold metal pressed against her back. She could feel its iciness seeping through her delicate pink dress. If it wasn't for the chill sent through her spine she would be reluctant to believe this was real. She had hoped it might have been a dream. But maybe it wasn't wise to rely on hope. Look where it had got her so far.

She had hoped for a better future: one where Mog Chothra didn't engulf people whole. It would have been the beginning of a new age where people could fight with their own two hands, live how they want, to not live in ignorance. What a broken dream it was.

When Vella had first wrapped that frilly corset around the buzzard's neck she hadn't really thought about her hopes. It had only been a moment filled with a rush of adrenaline, churning blood and a roaring heart. She had acted instinctively, without thinking. Now she recognised that she had been acting upon a hidden desire as well. It was something that had been constantly smothered and buried by her town, Sugar Bunting. Or what was it that Dead Eye God guy had called it... Steel Bunting? She wasn't sure how much she preferred that to Sugar Bunting. It sounded harsh and cruel. But then Sugar Bunting gave off the impression of being practically helpless. Unless her town was to suddenly decide they would fight against Mog Chothra wielding rolling pins and oven gloves.

She laughed lightly at the thought. She could almost picture her grandfather charging towards the beast brandishing one of the baguettes from Levina's ghastly hat. Her amusement faded quickly, the laugh diminishing with it, leaving only a pressing silence that weighed down on her mind.

She was inside Mog Chothra.

Vella was still in a state of disbelief. Could she really be inside of a creature so terrifying and devastating? She wasn't really sure. Where she sat now looked nothing like what she had imagined the inside of Mog Chothra's stomach to look like. Yes. She had imagined that.

There was no acidic liquid melting her flesh or any pointed teeth tearing through her skin. Nope. She was most defiantly alive. So maybe the other girls were alive too. The notion was flimsy and probably far too optimistic but she didn't think it wrong to think positively. God knows she needed those happy thoughts.

Lost. Alone. Indefinite.

Her future was unclear, and she had never liked being left in the dark. Anyone who had ever had even one conversation with her knew just how many questions she would ask. Her natural curiosity was evident.

But now this had stretched a great deal further than curiosity. This was a mystery that had to be solved. How else would she get home? She needed to know her family were safe and for that she needed to figure out what exactly was going on and where she was.

She pushed away from the metallic wall and rose to her feet. She stood tall, determination flickering in her dark eyes. Vella was going to understand everything. She was going to find a way out, she was going to find that boy, and she was going to ask him a hell of a lot of questions.

No matter how long it took. She would make it back. Somehow...