She gripped the rungs of the ladder, climbing the seemingly endless tower that the control center sat on. Her sword thumped against her side as she cursed whoever had designed this city.
The Dictator's words replayed in her mind as she quickly ascended.
"I can't risk sending the people into a state of panic until I'm absolutely sure we're in danger here. We also can't let any infiltrators know that we suspect them."
The woman looked at him in confusion, "Infiltrators? The other districts were attacked by some kind of explosive devices. You mean to say we have traitors?"
"Yes and no," the big man ran a hand over his thick, black mustache, "We might very well have a traitor, but it wasn't a bomb that destroyed the minor cities," he sighed, looking at the woman with a dark expression, "The defensive missiles within the cities were the ones that detonated Those alone were enough to kill everyone within a mile radius of the control towers."
The swordswoman's jaw clenched as she gripped her hilt.
A knock was heard from the door to the private office and Dictator Riggs cleared his throat, "Come in."
A nervous head poked in, and the woman recognized him as Advisor Jow.
"Sir," he glanced at the woman, openly shuddering.
"Speak."
He opened his wide mouth, "Sir, there has been another detonation. This time one of the major districts."
The Dictator growled, "Which one?"
"4 sir."
"Dismissed."
And with that, Jow was gone.
The woman turned silently back to the Dictator.
The man spoke again, his voice rough, "They're working backward. First the two minor cities, and now the smallest major city."
The woman stood silently, keeping the turmoil in her mind to herself.
Dictator Riggs looked at her with pleading eyes, "Can you handle this?"
Her hand tightened on her hilt, "Of course."
The swordswoman was nearing the top, ready to face whoever dared to betray the Empire that had been built from the ashes of humanity.
By now, District 3 had probably already fallen as well, leaving only District 2 and District 1.
District 1 was her home.
The woman's grip tightened on the ladder as she hardened her heart. The Empire had saved her. She'd kill anyone who tried to destroy it.
She reached the top rung, glancing down at the city, barely able to make out the moving dots of unaware civilians below.
The wind whipped her dark hair as the woman prepared for the worst. She looked briefly to the horizon, noting how one of their three moons had already risen on the horizon as the sky began to prepare for night.
She reached up, unlatching the handle of the trap door before pushing hard, roughly opening the entrance.
She paused, waiting for a sound.
When she heard laughter above, her eyebrows furrowed in slight confusion. That didn't sound like the murder fest she had been expecting. The traitor must still be waiting to show themselves.
She gripped the ledge and pulled herself into the room with ease, landing as soft as a cat, easing the trap door closed behind her.
The woman rounded the corner of the control room, spine tense and ready.
The laughing abruptly stopped as the four men on duty gaped at her for a few seconds before jumping up and slapping their hands to their sides in attention.
The highest rank in the room acknowledged her, "General," his eyes glanced at the mess of a board game on the table in front of them, "we weren't expecting you."
The General's eyes swept around the room briefly, before she spoke, "At ease."
The men relaxed slightly, but their eyes held both awe and fear.
It didn't help that she was somewhat of a legend among the people of the Empire.
"I came to check up on the control room," her eyes caught the game board again, "I see you are staying busy."
The men nervously watched as she stepped closer.
The swordswoman observed each man individually, attempting to find the rat. She pondered for a moment before proposing, "Why not entertain ourselves with a duel? Four on one, of course."
The eyes of the men lit up instantly. The General briefly wondered how men could be so simple and predictable. She was slightly surprised to see no fear on any of their faces.
Maybe the rat was a good actor.
"Would that be fair, General?" One slight man spoke up, "Maybe two-on-one would be more even?"
A ghost of a smile played on the woman's lips as she raised an eyebrow slightly, "You doubt my abilities?"
His eyes widened at the realization of his mistake, fear flashing on his expression, "No! No, of course not! I was just-" His eyes darted to the uneasy man next to him, "My apologies General, I wasn't thinking."
The swordswoman hummed, "Arm yourselves."
All the men took out their own blades before the General.
Then they watched in awe as she gripped her sword handle in a strong, callused hand and swiftly pulled the weapon from its sheath at her side. The simple movement briefly displayed her skill and familiarity with the blade. It glinted, the fading sunlight from the windows reflecting on its polished surface. Clearly, the woman took care of her sword.
"Shall we begin?"
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The fight was over as quickly as it had begun. The General had displayed both her wrath and grace in a dance that few had ever seen and lived to tell the tale. She twirled and swung, dodging and blocking as if she'd trained from birth. Although, she very well may have. Nobody knew of her past. Nobody even knew her name. Well, nobody except for the Dictator himself who had taken her under his wing only a few years earlier.
She had easily risen through the ranks and gained more of the Dictator's trust than any other. She was spoken of often, seemingly nothing more than a myth to most as she was always off on classified missions. But when she rarely showed her face, she always left people with more tales to tell.
When she had the last man standing at sword point, she silently observed each of them. These soldiers didn't seem like traitors. They didn't fight for their lives. They didn't fight out of fear. They fought for sport and competition. She wondered if she was being a fool.
She looked into the eyes of the man who had her blade a fingertip from his neck. He was not even an inch taller than her and his chest heaved as he watched her with light eyes. Eyes not filled with fear but… admiration.
The General sheathed her sword once again, stepping to the right to offer another man help off the ground.
The silent awe after her win only lasted for a few seconds before the men all broke out in grins.
"Your reputation is not in vain, General. You are truly astounding."
"Even if there were 10 of us, we'd only last a few minutes at best."
The woman held her hand up, not wanting their carefree praise. After all, she would be delivering news that had the potential of being the last news they'd ever receive.
She spoke calmly, "I come under grave circumstances."
The men furrowed their eyebrows, falling still as she continued, "Both minor cities 5 and 6 have been destroyed. Districts 4 and 3 followed soon after," she looked into the widened eyes of the young soldier she'd held at swordpoint, "Dictator Riggs fears that District 2 will fall and District 1 will be lost before sunrise tomorrow. I apologize, men. I have come to relieve you of your positions. Go be with your families."
There was silence. The General found herself avoiding their stricken gazes as they processed the grave news.
She was acting outside of orders, but Dictator Riggs would have to trust her judgment. If these men were truly about to lose their lives, they deserved to at least give a goodbye to those who love them.
She was almost envious that they had people to say goodbye to.
Almost.
After they desperately hounded the General with questions she didn't answer, the men left, one by one, out the trap door.
Only one man remained in the room with her.
The soldier she'd held at sword point.
She watched him carefully, "You're not leaving to bid your family farewell?"
He stood, watching the General, "I have no family."
She observed him for a moment before nodding slightly, eyes softening more than she intended them to. Maybe it was because she might lose everything she'd worked to build. Maybe since she was the same as him. Alone.
She turned, facing the control board before she could feel anything else.
She observed the machinery, not sure what she was looking for.
Since he wouldn't go home and report it to his family, the General told him what she'd withheld from the others, "The cities were destroyed by their own missiles. Most likely by a traitor."
She listened, tensing as the man slowly approached her from behind.
But he simply passed her, looking at the controls, "Or…" he looked at the General over his shoulder, pausing, as if debating something, "the system was broken into."
"Broken… into?"
The man glanced up at the woman again before nervously looking back at a screen emitting a dull light, "It's just a theory I have. Not much to go by."
The dark-haired woman silently observed the man, "Go on."
He began typing quickly into the controls, "If I can switch the computer's receptors to District 2's, I might be able to display their screen on ours. I've never tried it before, but I have a theory they're actually connected somehow," his eyes were glued to the screen as he continued, "I used to work in District 2 and their board had the same kinds of glitches as the one here. The computers even tick the same way. I think I was the only one who ever listened well enough to notice."
The General nodded, hand resting on her hilt, not really understanding anything that came out of his mouth. As long as he stayed away from the red controls to her left, his hands would be allowed to stay attached to his body.
He mumbled a bit to himself and the swordswoman watched the peculiar soldier who was focused intently on some numbers and symbols on the screen that she didn't understand.
"There," the soldier stopped typing, "I actually am able to connect this screen to District 2's," He turned to the General, and she noticed beads of sweat on his upper lip, "meaning that somehow the controls are connected. Even though they're not supposed to be."
The woman paused, processing what he was saying, "And outside forces...?"
"...Might be able to get onto the other District's control screens too."
The General stiffened at the news, "But access to display does not mean access to actual controls," A traitor was much easier for her to believe and understand. All these devices were too confusing to her.
"Unless there is a way to access control remotely too," he looked back at the screen and the General watched his messy blonde hair fall into his eyes. He was almost childlike, "Just watch. We'll be able to see if the detonators have been set off."
She looked at the screen. It looked normal for a bit, and then, "No..."
They both watched in horror as a note appeared on the screen- 'Death to the Empire'- followed by a slow countdown from 10.
The General moved without a second thought, slamming the young soldier against the nearest wall, pinning him with her weight and a fierce glare, "What did you do?"
He looked at her with wide eyes, oozing innocence and fear, "Nothing! I swear! I only accessed their displays. Whatever outside forces that started the countdown had nothing to do with me."
The General searched his wide eyes for a moment. They were swirling deep blue pools, full of anxiety and a hint of determination. Not a good combo for his case, but she had a gut feeling he was telling the truth. She always trusted her gut.
She eased off him, huffing in frustration at her lack of control over the situation. The woman wouldn't waste time apologizing for being suspicious- they had more pressing matters at the moment.
Dictator Riggs had ensured that everyone left the control tower in District 2 so that no traitors would have access to the missile controls.
But now, she knew that it wasn't enough. It would detonate anyway, killing thousands.
Somehow, an outside force had gotten into the devices. Which was supposed to be impossible but... Then again, seeing District 2's display screen from District 1 should've been impossible too. And here she was, looking right at the impossible.
They stood in silence, watching the last numbers count down. A few seconds after it hit 0, a slight tremor was felt in the tower. District 2 was much closer to District 1 than any of the other cities.
By now, the people must have been warned, either by the Dictator or by the soldiers she had told. She could faintly hear alarms wailing from the ground far below.
The woman closed her eyes, sending a plea out to the darkness behind her eyelids.
She took a moment to compose herself, before turning to the young soldier, "So what can we do?"
He shifted for a moment before quietly replying, "Maybe… we can destroy the entire control board. They can't use something that doesn't exist."
The General briefly thought about the repercussions of such an act without the Dictator's permission.
Then she thought about the lives below.
"Do it."
The command was soft, but the soldier only paused briefly before he began typing furiously again, his hands flying across controls, working in a way the General herself would never be able to.
It was almost amusing how helpless she felt in this situation. Her whole life, she had fought for some kind of power- some kind of control. But now that it really counted, she was powerless. The controls lay in front of her and she had no idea how to even use them.
A few minutes turned into an hour. The general didn't speak as the soldier worked.
He had briefly mumbled to her that he was tearing down the controls one by one. Alarms started to sound around them as the system was torn apart from the inside, and the swordswoman wondered if she was even doing the right thing, trusting in a complete stranger. How could such a weak man save them?
But for some reason, she did trust him.
So she stood stiffly to the side as the evening light began to fade- the blazing star that warmed their planet giving its final rays before darkness took over the desert land.
The soldier was out of breath by the time he finished, his hands shaking from adrenaline and exhaustion. The pressure of so many lives and having the second most powerful person in the Empire watching over his shoulder made him a nervous wreck. But he had finished.
"The missiles should be deactivated since I destroyed the whole control system. Even if they hack into what used to be the board, nothing will happen… except the display screen might change like the one in District 2," he glanced at the General, "Of course, this is all just a theory. I've never shared my ideas with anyone else. People don't like to hear about devices in the way I think of them."
The woman couldn't think of anything else to say or do, so she asked softly, "How do you think of them?"
The soldier's innocent eyes met hers, "Like living creatures. Changing and evolving. Sure you can tweak them, but they are much more complex than we understand," he lightly touched the controls in front of him, "I can almost feel it. Whatever gods made these devices know much more than we do. They're all interconnected. A network of things we couldn't even begin to understand."
The General listened in silence. It was true that nobody knew the origins of the technology the Empire used, but she'd never heard of the devices being compared to living creatures. She'd think it was a silly idea if she wasn't hoping beyond hope that this young soldier was right. His crazy theories might be the only thing that could save them all.
They both stood silently, studying the control board's dull lights and mysterious symbols until a flash on the screen caught their attention.
Death to the Empire.
"It's begun," the General breathed out, feeling dazed.
She turned slowly to the windows, moving to watch the last rays of light over the horizon.
She listened as the soldier followed her, stopping directly to her right.
He spoke in a weak voice, "Yeah."
The General looked down at the city, the people had all gathered in the square, forming a spiral with their bodies. From the control tower, they looked like ants, but she could see they were purposefully forming the symbol of the Great Star. She normally would have disapproved of their blind beliefs, but in this moment, she found herself hoping that it might have some kind of power over the hopeless situation.
She glanced behind her.
The screen flashed, letting out a faint beep.
10
She exhaled, looking outside the city walls to the horizon.
9
She watched as the burning star began to hide, just barely visible over the dunes. She wondered if it was her last time seeing it.
8
She felt a hand brush hers.
7
She listened to the sound of wailing below, unsure if it was the alarms or the people crying out.
6
Her left hand rested on her hilt, feeling slightly comforted by the only thing that had ever given her the power to save herself.
5
Her right hand held the soldier’s. She squeezed his fingers slightly.
4
"What is your name, soldier?"
3
"Titus."
2
She felt his gaze shift to her, "What's yours?"
1
She parted her lips as the last ray of light disappeared, "Nora."
0