EVA STRATT DRABBLE ft. @lasthail's Ryland Grace
It happens in a moment. One minute, Grace is asking her what she's doing for the next 20 years and Stratt's imagining what it would be like with him. The next, she's dragging herself up off the ground, ears ringing, body aching. She's running, running as fast as she can, tripping over herself but unable to stop moving. She forgets that Grace is even with her in her desperate attempt to figure out what just happened.
The research center is gone. Sixteen employees. Her two scientists. She hears the report, but she isn't quite listening. She stares off, brain running a mile a minute. The implication is there already, she hears it in their voices. She closes her eyes but all she see's is Grace on the back of her lids. "I need to make a call."
Stratt walks away from the eruption of voices asking questions, looking for answers from her she isn't ready to give. She goes to her office, instructs security not to let anyone enter under any circumstances, and closes the door to envelop her in silence.
She nearly collapses, arms propping her up against the desk. There's a high pitched ringing in her ear, her hands trembling, her heart pounding so hard she thinks it might burst from her chest. Her fingers curl into her palms, nails biting at her skin. No. No no no no NO.
Stratt can't control herself. She swipes everything off the desk in a fit of rage, grabbing what she can and flinging it across the room. She screams and cries until her throat is raw and the room around her is completely devastated. Only then does she find herself on her knees, clasping her hands together in prayer. Eva Stratt believes in a God, because it beats the alternative. But why... Why this?
"There has to be another way..." She pleads, staring up as if waiting for a response. "It wasn't supposed to be like this! He can't go.. He can't..." He was always the third and final option. The back-up to the back-up. She just never thought they'd ever have to rely on that. And now, now that her heart is in it, she needs to find some other way. They can't delay the launch. They can't train another group of scientists. There is no time.
"Please.. Please tell me there's something else that can be done.. Please?" She squeezes her hands so tight her knuckles burn white. She's begging through ugly, body wracking sobs that she reserves for empty rooms. "Please... Don't.. Don't take him away... I just started to believe in something more..."
She hunches over, hands unfurling to lay flat against the ground. Tears fall from her face, pooling on the linoleum. She knows her pleas will go unanswered, that she has no other choice. She is the operator, the one who calls the shots, and every single road either leads to devastation... or to their Hail Mary... full of Grace.
Stratt swallows hard, choking back another round of sobs that bubble up her throat. Slowly, she stands, dusts off her clothes and stares at the destruction. She's sick to her stomach, knowing the choice she needs to make. "I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry Ryland..."
She opens the doors, avoiding eye contact with the guard. "Get someone to clean this up," she orders as she disappears down the hall.
