The Real Villian

Year: 4055; Day: 285

{Song of the chapter: Too Much - Magic Man}

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I blinked. Greon said this with such confidence, yet my stomach was void of any sinking.

"Uh," Lake started, his voice hesitant and confused. "I'm not quite in favor of that."

The president's eyes grew harder while his smile grew wider. "And why would you be? Don't worry. You two may say your goodbyes. I'll give you an hour."

I cleared my throat, all confidence and anger in me stirring up again. "Sorry to break it to you, Mr. President Greon, sir, but you can't kill Lake. Only I can kill him, this is my City, after all."

"And that's where you're wrong, my young queen," said Greon, pulling out a gramlet of his own. His hand swiped through the hologram appearing above the device. "You see," he mumbled, "Earth laws say that any Authority, regardless of City loyalty, gender, age, and reason, can dispose of any citizen transgressing upon a law. Therefore, yes, Kara, I can kill your absolutely adored Lake here."

"That's a dumb law," muttered Lake.

Groaning, I sunk my face into my hands. "Galaxies, galaxies," I mumbled into my fingers. A low, maniacal chuckle emitted from the president. The sound made my stomach churn with distaste.

Common sense shot through me. I reached across the arm of my chair to hold Lake's hand. I squeezed it and told Greon, "Well, you can't kill him as long as I'm with him, right?"

Greon's wrinkled hand flew through the air in dismissal. "Of course I can. I'll just have to use a little more... force." My grip on Lake's hand tightened.

"Then I'll just have to be stronger," I murmered, subconsciously leaning closer to Lake.

"Hm," the president mused, "I don't think that's likely." He stood from his chai-- my chair and marched towards the door. He swung it open, but paused before leaving. "You have exactly 2,700 seconds," he said. With that he walked out of the door-- letting it softly fall shut behind him.

Once the room was full to the brim of silence, I sighed and turned towards Lake. He looked ill-striken, but quite alright for someone who'd just been told they were going to die. His eyebrows were furrowed together creating a few soft wrinkles in his brow. His eyes were dark and full of thought. He noticeably gulped, and while still staring into space, he whispered, "What're we going to do?"

"We're going to do whatever it takes to keep you alive," I assured him, but the assurement was for myself just as much as it was for him.

His head tilted towards me. "I don't think you have a choice, sweetheart. You know he'll find a way to hurt you no matter what we do."

A humorless laugh choked out of me. "Well, that's definitely the spirit," I mumbled with a snort. I shook my head and shifted my body completely towards him on the small chair. "There has to be something we can do."

Lake softly chuckled. "There isn't, really. But, Kara, why does he care so much? Why does he feel the need to harm you?"

Lake's question was the same one I had been asking myself since Jove was found dead on my office floor. What was his obsession with our society remaining the exact same for hundreds of years? What was a little change? It was a lot, apparently, to him.

"I don't know," I told Lake through clenched teeth. "I don't know why he's so vexed by me, by what I'm doing. I don't understand, and that fact is pestering at me like a forsaken house fly!" I rambled, frustration seeping in through my words.