The man draped in a long white toga stared into his own eyes. He held out his hands, waiting for an answer that didn't reach him:

"I'm sorry. But you don't have a third choice. Only two offer themselves to you, either you lose them or you accept your duty.

- There's got to be a way! It can't be like this!

- Nothing is random in this world, you know that. Now, make your choice."

The young person in the dilemma of the person wondered how she came to this result the ...

A pair of eyes opened with a startle at the sound of a strident alarm clock. A young girl with curly and battle-haired hair stood up on her bed with difficulty after turning off her alarm clock. She looked at the time: 5:30.

A few moments passed before she opened her eyes wide and rushed out of her room:

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!

Good morning madame gras' mat'.

-It's 5:30?!

-I got up at 4:00."

A tall, light-skinned man stood in what must have looked like a fast-food kitchen.

The windows overlooked the beautiful sunrise clouds from the peaks of the Jura Mountains.

"- How could I miss my daughter's last wake-up call of the year at her shelter! Come on, sit down. I made bacon and eggs with homemade farmhouse bread!

- Ooooh! You're the best dad!"

She threw herself into her father's arms and held him tight. He hugged her back.

After this show of affection between father and daughter, they sat down at the shelter table and discussed what they did while she was out of the house:

-And you'll never know, but a woman got scared one morning when she came face to face with a mouflon, it really surprised me when I heard a scream coming from the toilet, I ran outside quickly to find her running to the shelter and hugged me like I was a lifeline. I learned that at breakfast she met a bighorn sheep on her way back to the shelter.

-Wow! My little Kim has become a lady's saviour, I hear!

-Daddy, please! You know I don't like to be noticed...

-Yes, sorry. -Yes, sorry. Oh come on, don't make that face. I was only joking, besides, since you're leaving the shelter today there's nobody here anymore!

-I know. -I know. Well, why don't you clear out and I'll get the helicopter started?

-Why don't you do the opposite?

-Because you're making me sick, and wham...

-All right, but don't mess with the chopper. It's not ours. -I'll call you back.

- Yes, sir!"

Kim was rushing her stuff back to the chopper so she could load it up. She got on it and started it up. Her father came out of the hut, locked the door and climbed up to the pilot's seat.

Then a helicopter sound was heard in the nearby valleys.

30 minutes later the helicopter landed at a small airfield and Kim and her father got off. they unloaded and put the stuff in a van. Kim's father returned the keys and greeted his friends at the same time. They left shortly afterwards and headed for their house 15 minutes from the airfield, further up the mountain...

When they arrived, Kim rushed to the house. No sooner did she open the door than they were already throwing themselves at her:

"-TAPE HER!

-Huh? but... what?..."

She didn't have time to realize she was already locked in the garage and locked in a car. To her surprise, her captors in the car were none other than Rika and Mae.

"Come on, we're taking you for a ride, madam, I'm going to be bludgeoned in the depths of the mountains! Rika smiled, showing all her teeth...

-But, Rika, I just got home! -I just got home!

- And the hello? Rude, go!

-You don't say hello to Rika either.

-Mae! Traitor!

Mae is 25 like Kim, she's shorter than she is. Her hair is black and straight, and it goes down her lower back. As always in her eternal black sweater and baggy black jeans. She pulled up her glasses and smiled.

When it comes to Rika, she is slightly taller than Kim and the hair that used to reach under her shoulders is curly and dark brown. Dressed in a short sleeve t-shirt and blue jeans. Her sulky look makes her look like a child who has been refused candy.

"-Good... You're taking me away or else, because I was kidnapped, I have the right to know where we're going...".

- Tell me, are you sure you're not from Brittany? Rika laughed slightly at Kim's impatience

- No, I'm Scottish. Kim got impatient.

-Come on, Kim, smile a little, she was just kidding around.

- Mae, I went to bed late to pack last night and this morning I got up very early, so I'm easily irritable.

-All right, let's stop it. Don't hide behind your mask first thing in the morning... Rika sighed.

-Great start to the day...

Two hours later, the trio parked in a parking lot. They got out of the car, in front of them, the houses of Strasbourg stood in all their splendour. Kim opened her eyes wide, surprised at the destination her two dearest friends had chosen. Mae opened the door and walked towards downtown:

"- we know you love this city so we thought we'd spend a day with you before we go home. After all, we haven't seen you for four months and you just got back, there was no other time that came up. We'll be home on Friday, which is two days from now."

Kim remained silent, she didn't know what to say to her friends who had thought of her. It must be said that she doesn't receive much affection outside her family. She lowered her head, and put the hood of her sweater over her head. Mae and Rika exchanged a look and a smile. They both took Kim in their arms for a big hug.
"Don't cry, mechanical genius! Rika rubbed her hand on Kim's back...
- I'm sorry I got mad at you earlier. I shouldn't have... Kim sniffed
- Don't worry, we don't blame you. You had your reasons. Well, we don't have all year, either, so let's get our heads up and run to the store!"
Mae took kim's hand and started running down to the mall.

She spent the day shopping and laughing at the stories each of them had lived through. Kim even annoyed her friends for going into a hardware store for the 10th time. Nothing can stop a person when her greatest passion is in front of her. They rented a room for three in one of the hotels in the city.

The next day's alarm clock didn't go very well... Firstly, Mae couldn't sleep at all because of a horrible sound like an ultrasound, secondly, the room neighbors decided to make as much noise as possible when they arrived and thirdly, the shrill alarm clock bells were turned up loudly in the rooms upstairs. You can't imagine how the trio felt when the church rang the 8 o'clock bells... Completely exhausted and not to mention Mae, a real walking zombie, yesterday was exhausting, but fatigue couldn't get rid of the shrill sounds she heard, preventing her from sleeping. At breakfast a cup of tea is spilled on Mae and she gets soaked. Then their things disappeared from their rooms, only the coats were left. You can imagine they were at the police station all morning. Things started to settle down about 2:00:

"- Are the stars misaligned, or what's it like? Rika screams.
- Rika, I have a headache...
- you mae,you're too quiet! You ain't had no reaction since we spilled tea on you this morning! And when we got to our room and found out our business was gone, you were too quiet! So don't tell me you got a headache.
- It's called cold-bloodedness, darlings.
-Wha...
-good STOP!
Rika and Mae turned to Kim, who was sitting on a bench.
-We're in the middle of a park, and it's been a hard day, so don't make it any harder! -We're in the middle of a park, so don't make it any harder! The police are already on the case so don't mess with us!
Kim got up and walked to a phone booth, she dialed her father's number.

BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP the number is unavailable for the clack

Kim sighed after hanging up the phone. She's exhausted, scared of that robbery and her father not answering, it's really the worst day she's had.
She was quickly joined by Rika and Mae who offered to take her home.
She gladly accepted. So she took the road towards the juras.

1 hour of travel had already passed and the mountains were already taking shape at least. Mae parked the car on the side of the road.

"How about a walk, just to unwind a bit before we hit the road?

-Why not... -Why not...

-It will do us good."

Kim was the one who led the way, since she knew the area well, she led them for ten minutes.

"-Kim... Shouldn't we be at the car here?

-... Yes, we should...

-Don't tell me you've lost us? -Yes!

- I didn't say I was, Rika!

- THEN WHY AREN'T WE AT THE CAR THEN!

- Rika calm to...

-Shut up, mother! HOW COME YOU LOST US WHEN YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO KNOW THE PLACE!

- If you don't trust me to find the car, do it yourself and don't fuck with me!

- That's it, I'm out of here! Yesterday already you ruined our reunion! Today we get our stuff stolen, and now YOU LOSE US, BRAVO CHAMPION! Rika, turned and walked away from the other two.

- Sorry Kim, I'll go get her and calm her down and we'll find the car...

She started running in the same direction as Rika, leaving Kim alone in the middle of the forest. She doesn't have a problem with this since she knows the area well considering the time she spent visiting everything after school.

Kim had been walking for about ten minutes now, she was dragging her feet so she didn't go well, only, even though there is only about ten difference between now and the place where she left Mae and Kim, the place is completely different, the sound of a small waterfall has even burst into the silence of the woods.

She was intrigued by it, she never heard a small waterfall in the area the last few times she was there. She was all the more surprised when she discovered a small pond surrounded by trees where a mist covered their roots. Her vision became blurred as she approached it. Nothing pushes her towards the glow, but nothing holds her back either, and her vision eventually disappears, plunging her into darkness.

For Mae, it's very simple. She's lost. She couldn't find Rika and fear took over as she realized that with her poor sense of direction, she had no way to find Kim once she found Rika. She decided to keep moving forward by calling her friends and hoping they could hear her. The minutes went by and the rest that had been missing since yesterday gradually gained ground and was replaced by the call of sleep. Mae finally sat down, yawning more and more. She looks around... See? Were the trees in bloom before? Mae was not able to reflect and search through her memories. Eventually she fell asleep, leaning against the trunk of a tree...

Rika has been running ever since she left her two friends, she stopped after a good quarter of an hour. She turned around and saw no one, she who would have hoped that at least Mae could come and pick her up and bring her back. Tears were running down her cheeks as she took her anger out on Kim, one of her two best friends. Guilt came over her. Rika decided to turn back and go back to her friends to try to make up for losing her temper so quickly and violently. Only, even with a better orientation than Mae's, she couldn't find her way with the recent memories of her visit. Lost, she crouched down in a sort of small cave formed by rocks and put her head between her knees, closed her eyes and prayed that someone would find her in this forest where the fog is setting in. To help all this, the rain fell, hiding the sound of her sobbing, which disappeared as the rain intensified. Letting her lose consciousness

On Friday evening, a week after the incident, Kim's father came home and just after he had finished eating, the anguish on his face, someone rang the doorbell. He went to open it and saw a police officer standing at the bottom of the door.

"Mr BERRIQUAT, I presume?

-That's right, yes.

- I regret to inform you that your daughter and two of her friends have been missing since Wednesday afternoon."