Embers of Change

6. Execution

My eyes opened slowly as my mind seemed to reconnect with my entire body. The first thing I managed to process was the white walls surrounding me; the sterile color which was always used by the Circle in its facilities. My heartbeat accelerated enormously and I ended up forcing myself on my feet, even though the dizziness was enough as to make me stumble until a pair of strong hands served me as support. I immediately carried my gaze toward the man holding me. I let out a gasp of surprise when Ed's eyes met mine. Something inside my chest started burning, but it wasn't like the bad emotions that I'd been feeling so consequently during the last hours. No, it was a surge of relief; true relief.

I embraced Ed and started crying. He seemed too troubled as to produce any words. Warm tears fell from my eyes onto my cheeks and then to the sleeve of my jumpsuit. I was shaking uncontrollably; I had managed to evoke how injured Drake resulted during the raid to the base. Also, I didn't know what would happen with us. After all, we had betrayed the most powerful organization in the entire galaxy; although there was another possibility: had the rebels seized control over the base? I didn't know and that uncertainty was pushing my head to its limits. The tormenting thoughts were maddening.

When Ed and I finally separated, we looked at each other for some seconds. He had a couple cuts in his right cheek and the arm on the same side was bandaged from the wrist all the way to the shoulder. Also, his jumpsuit exhibited several rips and holes through which one could see his other injuries, all of them minor.

"You were really lucky" he murmured while nodding a couple times. He then proceeded to sit on a bunk which was located just across the one where I had woken up.

"Do you know anything about Drake and Alex?" I asked. I had just frowned in an expression of pure concern. "What the hell happened out there?"

"The Circle managed to defeat the rebels by cutting their main supply line" Ed explained calmly. After a brief pause, he wrinkled his face momentarily while growling due to the pain of his wounds. "Somehow, they restored the orum barrier and the rest is history."

"It's good to see that you already know what happened" a female voice took us by surprise. In that instant, the only door available slid open and Carmen appeared behind it, accompanied by a tall man attired in the customary white jumpsuit. He had dark skin, thick lips, a big nose and small black eyes. His face was ornamented by a padlock beard and showed no emotion. My heart seemed to skip a beat when the woman greeted us as if nothing had happened. "I'm also relieved to see you so well after such chaotic battle. It is true that you need further treatment to recover, but time is against us. We need to get to the orum reactor as fast as humanly possible or the rebels will find a way to erase the Circle from Centaur-3."

"Carmen, you should grant them some respite" the tall man said while smiling slightly. Still, his expression was extremely cold, as if he was unable to show any emotion at all. "They may know certain details about our last battle, but not all of them. Why don't you take some time to explain?"

"The orum barrier failed due to some software that corrupted the system main code, interrupting its normal function" Carmen started explaining after letting out a deep sigh. My heart was beating really fast inside my chest, making my breathing somewhat heavy. "After we defeated the rebels as Edward said, Caesar ran several tests on the control console and found out the source of the failure."

"At first, we all thought that you were responsible for disabling the barrier, however, as soon as I analyzed the source code of the program, I found out who the real author was" the tall man explained. He then proceeded to clear his throat before saying the name of the person who was going to be killed instead of me. "It was Alexander, the same man that has been serving this base so loyally during the last five years."

"No..." I muttered while shaking my head. Something inside my chest seemed to break and pain invaded me like some kind of powerful poison threatening to take my life away. "That's impossible ... it can't be him!"

"I reacted the same way" Carmen said with a hint of sadness in her voice. She even embraced herself, as if trying to find some comfort amidst the confusion  and uneasiness unleashing around us. "But the evidence found by Caesar points Alex as the true author of the malicious software. He committed an act of treason, and as such, I have no other option but to execute him as the Circle's law commands."

"No! Please, spare him!" tears began drowning my eyes as I stepped forward suddenly. Nevertheless, Ed stopped me and made me stay put. My insides were burning as if hell itself had found a way into my body.

Alex wanted to come with me and find out more about orum; he wished to witness the miracle that Eva had promised me. But in that moment, I didn't know who to trust or what to believe. I had no doubt that the tall man called Caesar was a rebel disguised as a Circle informatics expert, and maybe, he had been sent by Eva herself to save my skin from an ominous fate. However, such acts had brought more weight to my conscience. Alex was going to be killed in order to save my life. Why was I so important? Why was my blood so special that it could allow the safe implantation of orum in a planet? I had so many doubts and no answers at all. The resulting impotence was maddening.

"I'd really like to comply..." Carmen muttered faintly. Still, she maintained her composure despite the pain. "But it has been decided. Alex is to be executed this afternoon, just before we depart to Centaur-3's central orum reactor. I trust you know the procedures to follow, don't you?"

"He does" Ed answered when he noticed that I was unable to speak due to my state. "We just need to get to the reactor."

"Very well" Carmen turned around and started walking toward the door. Just before crossing it, she stopped to give us our final instructions. "You're free to roam the base. Prepare yourselves, for the journey to come won't be an easy one."

"What about Drake?" I asked suddenly. My voice was shaky, but I didn't care to show my emotions. After all, they were burning my insides, slowly driving me insane. "Is he safe?"

"He's being treated by our best medical staff" Caesar responded. He was just behind Carmen, who seemed unable to answer my question. "I can't make any promises. In the end, it will all depend on his willpower alone. Still, pray to whomever you may believe in for his recovery. He'll need that."

After the discouraging words, Carmen and Caesar disappeared behind the sliding door, leaving us alone once again. I sat down on my bunk and braced myself. My heart was beating so fast it made my whole body tremble noticeably. The tormenting thoughts began spinning inside my head, forcing me to relive the recent battle once again. Drake sustained mortal damage; he had been hit directly by the explosion that erased a building without any effort. Still, I needed to have hope. Losing him would surely push me to my limits; the pain would be unbearable.

"Ethan" Ed made me return to reality once again. He seemed shaken by the ominous news too, but somehow, he managed to keep his wits about him. He had always done so. "We have no choice. We must keep going. If we manage to implant orum in this planet, the conflict between the rebels and the Circle will end; we will be able to leave this behind!"

"Don't you care about Alex? Do you really know what just happened?" I asked while carrying my gaze towards his. "They will kill him instead of me! I am the one who disrupted the barrier! I am the one who needs to give up his life..."

"And still, according to Eva, you're humanity's last hope" Ed said firmly while frowning. "You may be asking yourself, 'why me?' Well, I don't have any idea, but you need to keep going. Drake didn't teach you to surrender when things became difficult; on the contrary, he gave the best of himself. He didn't even hesitate to aid you in this battle when he read the letter addressed to you. Now, it is time that you repay him all he's done for you, Ethan. If your blood is the key to implanting orum safely, then, give it up."

Although I still felt uneasy with the idea, I understood what Ed had tried to communicate. It was true that Drake had always given the best of himself to teach me how to be a good person. It was also true that I had never done something to repay him. This all meant that I had no choice. It was my duty to find out the truth about the implanting process. By doing so, I would be able to atone for Alex's involuntary sacrifice and, in some manner, honor what Drake had offered me for so many years.

"I will go" I said firmly.

"That's what I wanted to hear" Ed's expression became somewhat lighter after my words. "Let's go."