Her eyes were once again filled with disbelief. If the floating red boxes, that had appeared out of nowhere, weren't shocking enough, something more unbelievable was happening in the sky.
A semi-transparent force field with a green-ish hue had begun to engulf the sky, or rather the city, causing the sky to be blocked out. From the center of the city sky it was rapidly enclosing the city.
Sia gasped at the sight, her face full of horror, frozen in a state of utter shock. All the while Kai descended into a daze. Lowering his head, he was seemingly lost in thought.
In the meantime, their art teacher, Angelica Anderson, was also shifting her eyes everywhere to check on her students. There was a tinge of worry in her expression, but overall she seemed to be collected.
On the other hand, the other girls were all panicking. They were freaked out by the voice they heard.
One of them, Tanya Singh, a girl wearing a pink blouse and a black high-rise, scrambled through her purse to find her phone. She wanted to contact her parents. When she finally found her phone, she tried to dial their number but noticed that her whole body was shaking. The poor girl couldn't even hold her phone properly.
Next to her was Sarah Jackson, a girl in a green t-shirt tucked in her short jean shorts with a sweater wrapped around her waist. Her right hand was on her chest trying to calm down her heart rate as it had shot up from hearing the voice in her head. She was slowly trying to get her breathing under control.
While the last girl, Shirayuki Sasaki, who was in a black dress with a gold buckle belt, had tears in her eyes and was ready to burst out crying at any given moment. She grabbed her long jet black hair and was close to curling up into a ball to cry.
Thankfully, they were all grouped up together. They seemed to be safe much to Angelica's relief. Then she turned to look at Kai's group.
Kai, Sia, and Jack were actively discussing something in a relatively calm manner. It seemed like they were not panicking and were in a much better state than the trio of girls.
It looked like she didn't have much to worry about with their group, so she went to Sammi first since she wasn't grouped up like the others. She had to be prioritized.
"Sammi."
Angelica called out to get her attention.
"Uh… um… Miss Anderson…"
Before Sammi could say anything else, Angelica placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Are you okay?"
Concern and seriousness was written on her face.
"Yeah, I guess so… Do you have any idea what's happening, Miss Anderson?"
"No, but it's good that you're okay. I'm glad that you're okay."
Angelica's voice quivered slightly as she said that second sentence. It seemed as though she was trying to reassure not only her student but also herself as well. But Sammi did not catch onto it as her mind was preoccupied.
"What should we…"
"Sammi, listen to me. Before we try and figure out anything, we need to get everybody in one place. I need you to get Kai, Sia, and Jack," Angelica gestured towards their direction then looked over to the girls to their side. "As you can see these girls need my help."
Sammi's eyes followed Angelica's gestures and understood her meaning. Of the two groups, it was obvious that Kai's trio was in a much better state of mind. Thankfully the 3 panicking girls were all grouped up and nearby.
"Um… uh… okay," Sammi hesitantly agreed.
"Thank you."
Relieved, Angelica gave Sammi a meaningful look, then she took a deep breath before walking to the girls. Seeing this, Sammi turned to take a step towards Kai's group.
As Angelica approached the terror stricken girls, she overheard the same melodically robotic voice that resounded in her mind a few moments ago, coming from one of the girls' phones.
[ All communication and information will be restricted to those within the mega city you are currently residing in, until the Ascension Trial is cleared. ]
"!"
Upon hearing this, Shirayuki could no longer contain her tears and started crying. This message. This single message had poured cold hard water on her. It was now beyond a doubt that the voice they had heard mere minutes earlier was real.
"No no no no no! NO! This… this can't be happening…"
"What!"
Sarah and Tanya exclaimed in a mixture of shock, fear, and utter confusion. This was no audible hallucination, no illusion. It was reality, and now, all they can do is let it sink in and accept it. But whether or not they will accept it is the real question.
Realizing this, Angelica rushed over to them and instantly tried to comfort them, "Girls it's okay, I'm here with you. Don't panic, we'll find a way to get out of this situation…"
Though she had said this, even she couldn't fully believe in her own words. Her mind was also filled with similar thoughts and worries. But she was an adult. She needed to show them that they could rely on her.
Angelica could not fail here, she can't crumble under the stress of this crisis. No, she had to rise to the occasion. It was her responsibility. She had to take care of them. No matter how nervous she actually was, Angelica could not show it in front of her students.
Luckily her words were effective, as Sarah, Tanya, and Shirayuki began to calm down. They all turned to face Angelica, a light of hope could be seen. In their eyes, Angelica stood straight and confident. That confidence made them gravitate towards her. It was as though they could lean upon her for support.
Angelica continued to coax the girls with her words. With each passing sentence the girls began to regain their calm, much to Angelica's relief.