The Insurrection

Chapter Nine

"Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime." ~ Mineko Iwasaki

My heart stops beating. I walk slowly towards Nicodemo, "Where are the kids?" I ask quietly.

His hands wrap around the weapon that is always holstered at his side, "It was supposed to be you," he says before pointing the gun to my head.

I hear cries behind me but I am in too much shock to really understand what is happening, "What was supposed to be me?"

He snarled, "You were the ones supposed to be in that vehicle, not the kids."

"What the hell are you talking about," I growl so low and grab the collar of his shirt, not caring about the metal digging into my skin.

"You weren't supposed to come back. Zhong took the wrong vehicle, the idiot, he took the one that all you 'Insurrectors'" he says mockingly, "were supposed to be in, the one that would diffuse some Valerian acid."

I lost it. All I see is red. I don't care if he pulls the trigger and kills me as long as I kill him too.

"Lose the gun," someone says coolly, standing right behind Nicodemo with a gun of their own, pointed at the back of his head.

Shock and fear mix to mar his face.

"Now, Nicodemo, or I swear I'll blow your brains out."

"Okay, okay," he says placatingly before lowering his gun to the floor.

He turns around to face the stranger, "How do you know-"

"We know everything," the girl says coldly before flashing a UniFed badge. She continues, "And you have no use to us right now," she shoots him right between his eyes before any of us can blink.

His body thuds to the ground, and the girl spares me a look before whistling twice. All of a sudden, a flock of boys and girls around my age come out and stand directly in front of the rest of us. They must be about fifty in total.

"Who the hell are you?" I ask.

She tsks, "Did nobody teach you how to welcome your guests?"

I glare at her before she sighs, "Did Taika not tell you? We are sons and daughters of UniFed Chiefs."

Betrayal cuts me so deep my insides feel like they are tearing themselves apart into millions of tiny little pieces. That is two in one day. First Nicodemo and Zhong, now Taika.

I shake my head and run out of there, I have to find the vehicle the kids were in.

"Alan, wait! This is not what it looks-" I hear Taika behind me.

She catches up with me and grabs my arm, I pull hard out of her grasp and face her, "I will deal with you later." I say numbly before backtracking the route we took to the river.

I run and run and run. As fast as I can, as hard as I can. Hoping against hope that they are still alive.

Finally, I spotted it. The ignition is still on. I try opening the door but it's locked. I bang, and I scream, and I call for help. I call their names. I scream for Alex.

Dad, Leon, and Zahra catch up with me. We eventually break the lock open. The inside stinks of Valerian acid. I cover my nose and carry every kid out of there. My heart seizes when I see Alex, his little body covering his friend, Dani, like he was trying to protect him.

"Alex!" I shake him. "Alex! Alex!" I scream nonstop. Dad tries to pull me away but I can't. I can't let him go.

"Alex?" I whisper brokenly, "Please, Alex, please wake up." Silent tears roll down my cheeks and fall onto his angelic face.

Valerian acid. Whoever inhales it goes to sleep, and never wakes up again.

We had funerals for all of them. Fifteen children. Fifteen young and innocent lives that deserved a better future. They were my reason. They were my reason to keep going and to continue fighting for a better World. Alex was my reason. Now my reason is gone. Forever.

It is so easy to see how ugly and dark this World is now that Alex is not here. Somehow, he always saw the better and brighter side. He taught me how to see the better and brighter side too. I don't know if I can do that anymore. If I even want to do that anymore.