Heroes

The Bad News

After I got back up off the street, I headed to Jun's house to clean myself up. Jun was in state. He was nursing a bad hangover.

Eventually we both recovered, and headed to Aria's house. Apparently today, we were going to negotiate with the Feric's. Their family was entirely devoted to equality, no matter the cost. The area they owned was a huge, huge city names Fericia. People dressed in exactly the same white jacket and trousers, every day. Everyone had timetables, curfews and everyone lived together. There was no time for friendship, having fun or anything like that. You had to be the same as everyone else. The head of the Feric family was a woman named Maya Ropés. We were meeting her today, at Aria's house.
The town was still full of life, and I was still amazed at what we'd done to help the country come to peace.
At Aria's house, a large, tinted window car was outside. Inside, Maya and Aria were sat around a table that could fit four people. Maya was a tall woman, who wore the white outfit I mentioned, and had a broad, wrinkly face. She was approaching her seventies. Me and Jun took our places, and Maya began.
"By now the whole country knows who you three are. You're the three teenagers that brokered peace between the Scalleti's and the Coldhearts, something thought impossible. I'm here today to propose some terms between the Feric's and the Scalleti's.
"Go on." I said.
"The three of you must tell your people to respect Feric's laws, and obey them. Equality is the way forward. And your people should know it."
"Are you saying that you're expecting us to just let you take us over?" Aria seemed pissed,
"No. You carry on leadership, but our laws are put in place."
"No." Jun answered for me.
"No? The Feric's have the mightiest army in the country. We can-"
"I don't give a flying fuck about your "mighty army." I want to know how you think you can come in here and tell me that you're taking us over?" Aria was definitely pissed.
"Fine. But you will regret this choice." Mays stood and walked out of Aria's house.
After she left, Jun piped up.
"What a bitch."

Later that day, I was relaxing when a horrifying report hit me. A guard came and told me this.
"Sir, there's been an incident. A car carrying Aria Scalleti and Jun Xiao has been involved in a serious crash."
"Take me to the hospital. Now!" This could not be happening.
A doctor greeted me when I got there.
"Mr Agani. Your friends are in a stable condition. But.."
"What happened?"
"A large, tinted window car collided with theirs. The other car was nowhere to be found, but the one carrying Mr Xiao and Miss Scalleti was destroyed." The Feric's. They'd done this to remove the three of us. They wanted to take over the country, and were going to start with us.
"How are they? Can I see them?"
"Aria is awake, and got away with a large cut above her eye. But Jun....he was driving. And the car hit him head on. He's out cold, and has broken his arm severely. We're waiting on the results of a brain scan, that who'll determine how long he is out for."
My best friend. And now he might be dead. Last night, we were drinking away our sorrows. Now it seemed that I'd have to drink even more. I went to see Aria.
A bandage strip covered her left eye and most of the left side of her head. She still grinned at me when I walked in.
"Bet I look like a badass right now!" She remarked.
"Sure. You should see my scars compared to the one you'll have."
"Mine is gonna be awesome. I guess Jun's a bad driver too, huh?"
"Yeah, you could say that."
We sat in silence for a while, before Aria spoke again.
"How did we get here? A few weeks ago, I was crashing at Lizzy's house, and sneaking out after curfew. Now she's dead, I'm a leader, and were trying to bring peace to this place."
"Just think of a place happier than here. Think of a place where you don't have to wake up in a panic, having to prepare for war. Think of a place where you don't have to sleep with a gun next to your head."
"Sounds too good to be true. But we'll make it through."
"Damn right we will."
She took my hand in hers, and we sat like that for a while. Then I decided.
I was going to pay Maya a visit. And not for revenge, because this time I had a plan. One that might help us bring peace, and bring that place I described to life.
But my happy thoughts were ruined when I stepped outside of the hospital. A black mask was thrown over my head, and I was bundled into the back of a car.

I awoke in a cold room at the top of a skyscraper, tied up in a chair.The room was bare, with white washed walls. Two people stepped in, one of them was Maya.
"Mr Agani. I would ask that you give permission for the terms I stated earlier to go ahead."
"Get lost."
"Oh dear. Beat him."
The other person in the room approached me, and smashed me around the head. A nasty bruise would appear there later.
The next time he hit me, I kicked his legs. He tumbled into my chair, and my ropes came loose. I struggled for freedom, and kicked the man in the head. He was out cold. Maya turned and ran, but I stopped her.
"Maya. I'll kill you. I've killed before. Listen to me now. You Feric's can work with us. You can control the laws, you can help us realise that we can be equal, but you have to let people have their own free will."
"No! That goes against everything I believe in!"
"Maya. Listen. To. Me."
She saw then, what I was capable of. I was a monster. But no one would stop me in my quest for order. My quest for peace.
"Fine. Fine! I'll let my people know. It won't be easy, but they'll accept it. I'll organise a ride home for you. Just leave my city already."

Back in Letti, I let the people know. Three quarters of the way there. Soon, we'd bring order to a country ravaged by war.
Jun's brain scan had come back though, and he was expected to wake up in a couple of days. Life was good. Scalleti's, Coldhearts, Feric's. We were all working together now, and who knew what could be achieved.

Later that night, Aria came to see me in Jun's house.
"Hey Rivio. Things are looking good now, huh?"
"I guess so. Nice scar."
A crimson red scar crossed Aria's eye now. She laughed.
"The doctor said he could remove it, but that was not gonna happen. First scar so far!"
We were sat on Jun's sofa when I heard something, a plane overhead. Planes hadn't passed over since the war started.
That meant we were being bombed.