Opium Diamonds:

Simone’s Notes:

Opium is the dried latex obtained from opium poppies. Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an opiate alkaloid, which is most frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids, such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine. The latex is obtained by lacerating the immature seed pods; the latex leaks out and dries to a sticky brown residue. This is scraped off the fruit. Meconium historically referred to related, weaker preparations made from other parts of the poppy or different species of poppies. Modern opium production is the culmination of millennia of production, in which the morphine content of the plants, methods of extraction and processing, and methods of consumption have become increasingly potent.

A young couple was walking around the quiet city morning in the snow. He had just come home with studying abroad in Eastern islands. She had just longed to hold him in his arms. In fact, she was leading him to her secret place in the morning.

“Baby,” her boyfriend said. “Where are we going?” His girl giggled at him.

“You’ll see,” she said. They walked through a narrow alleyway. The boyfriend felt his heart racing in excitement. This was going to be good, he could tell. The couple made it to the back way of the military apartments. The boyfriend looked around confused.

“Babe, why are we here?” he asked. The girlfriend turned to him and put her finger over her lips.

“Shhh!” she whispered. “It’s okay.” The girl picked the back locks open and pulled the heavy door open. She led her boyfriend through. He went along with her uneasily.

“This is breaking in and entering,” he pointed out softly.

“I know!” she replied. “That’s what makes it more exciting.” She kissed him on the lips. He tried his best to resist at first.

“But we could get arrested for this,” he pointed.

“Not if we keep quiet,” his girlfriend whispered back. She kissed him again on the lips. This time, he kissed back. His girl smiled to herself as she kissed him again.

“There, you see?” she asked. “Nothing to worry about.” The girl put her arms around his waist as he didn’t answer her. They slowly crossed into first base. He kept a close eye on the hallway ahead of them. So far, no one was coming. Probably still asleep this morning, he assumed. But, something else stopped the fire dead in its tracks.

The boy stopped kissing when something caught his eye on the ground. The girl broke off the kiss, disappointed.

“Baby, what’s wrong?” she asked. Her boyfriend didn’t answer. He only pointed out ahead of them on the floor. His girlfriend turned her head and looked on with him. Her face went pale with terror. Sixteen-year-old Alex Shepherd was lying cold on the floor. His skin looked whiter than an actual corpse. He didn’t seem to be breathing either.

“Oh my God!” the girl gasped. The boy rushed over and felt for Alex’s pulse. He looked a little relived.

“He’s barely alive,” the boy replied. “But we need to get him to help right away.” His girlfriend nodded.

“Right,” she said. Then, she ran to go get help at the front lobby. In moments, Alex was rushed to the hospital with Mustang, Syd, Ella, and Yasmine at his side. Ella held his hand the whole time.

“Hang on, Alex!” she pleaded. “You can’t die on us! You can’t let them win! Stay with us!” The lamb couldn’t respond to her mentally. For, the slaves had locked him in a coma-like mental prison.

I:

Grey waves washing above. There was no direction in this place. Alex slowly opened his eyes and looked around. “It hurts…” he thought. The lamb slowly looked all around him. He couldn’t tell if he was dead or alive still. He couldn’t tell what was going on or where he was. Alex didn’t even know what day or time it was. He knew that he was lying down—somehow. Lying down in pain that he couldn’t escape get there. Alex tried to get up, but found that he couldn’t move.

“So cold…” he thought. A soft haze swirled over his body for a moment and puffed into the thin air above. The lamb tried to look around again. Nothing and no one in sight.

“Hello? Is there anybody out there?” he tried to shout. But, no words came out. In fact, Alex couldn’t hear anything at all. Dead silence like as if someone muted out the sound as well as drained this place of any color. But yet, Alex knew that he were there. He could fell his chest rising and falling with each breath that he took. He could feel the air going in and out of his lungs along with the pain. It was a sign that he was there. But was he dying or still alive? He couldn’t tell in this cold, grey, silent bleakness.

Suddenly, the lamb felt a little warmth on his cheek. Like a hand was stroking him to calm him down. Alex slowly relaxed and shut his eyes. When he did, he vision cleared a little bit. He could see the hand rubbing on his cheek. A small warmth began to blow up in his chest. Soft memories filled his head.

“Mother?” he thought. “Mother, is that you?” No answer came to him. Just the feather-like rubbing on his cheek. The air in his lungs began to feel warm as well.

But then, the warmth faded into cold metal. Automail-like to be exact. Alex began to panic. Fear took over his thoughts as painful memories chased away the warm ones.

“Get away from me!” he panicked. “Don’t touch me!!!” He could feel the automail moving from his cheek to his neck. The air in his lungs became cut off. The hand was choking him. Panic and fears of dead raced around in his brain.

“I… can’t… breathe!” Alex thought as he felt a panic attack coming along with the choking. “I… don’t… want… to… die! Please… help… me… somebody!” The cold metal around his throat closer tighter and tighter. Black began to mix with the grey and get bigger with each passing second. And then, it was grey no more.