Akhile noticed it first because the Estate was never quiet during the day.
Neilelis Redcliff Industrial had never experienced a moment of stillness. Even when everyone was asleep, and there were simulations of nighttime, there was always motion.
It was like the machines were breathing in the dark. Motion sensors were switching on, the intercom whispering routines, and the lights anticipating footsteps.
So, when there was silence, it didn't feel peaceful. Something was amiss.
Akhile was halfway through brushing her hair when the lights in the bathroom began to flicker. They brightened soon after, like a blink.
She froze with the brush still in her hand. The red light on the intercom also went off, followed by the simulation of the day sky in the ceiling.
A moment later, the whole apartment stopped flickering and then…Nothing.
Then the Estate was in pitch darkness.
The systems were off.
Akhile became frightened. She felt alone, and nothing was watching over her. She held her breath.
One. Two. Three…Sixty.
Nothing.
"Do they even have torches in this estate?" she thought to herself.
She didn't move, hoping to hear Tobias checking in on her from the corridors.
Time stretched thin and eerie.
Suddenly, she felt pressure at her temples.
Akhile massaged her head while she sat on the bed. Of all the times she felt discomfort in her temples, she had dismissed it as stress or exhaustion. This time, it was as if something was inside her head.
It was listening in.
Akhile kept her fingers at her temples instinctively and felt the faint, rhythmic pressure beneath her skin.
She hadn't noticed when the lights went back on.
The intercom clicked back with a red light.
"Good morning, Princess Cora," it whispered.
Akhile's body jolted, as if she were being shocked out of a possible migraine headache.
It was a relief for everyone in the room.
She hurried outside, and the motion sensors turned the lights on. The flash spread out brightly, almost blinding her. Her temple ache was not getting any better.
The sky was also strange. Across the maroon haze, there was a dark red fracture or a crack. It was as if the glass dome had shattered somewhat.
"What the-?" she whispered.
"Princess Cora."
It was Tobias. Finally, another human being.