The Steam | ✔️

Chapter Eleven

"I have a plan." Logan says, pulling a map out of his back pocket. "But it involves going down to the ground."

"I'm in. Whatever it takes, I'm on your side. Let's give those Leaders a taste of their own medicine." I say, grimacing at the thought Marcella Chillwit.

"You need to act like you're on their side still. Go down and make up something about being ordered to form a circle around a group of Rebels. Those Rebels will just happen to be all of the people whose loved ones have been turned into Leaders and gone Machine. This is all based on theory, but I think that if we can get the Leaders to show emotion, it will reverse the machine effect. And nothing is stronger than love."

"Sounds perfect." I tell him with a small smile. "Why don't you gather up all of those Rebels that I'll lead down, and make sure everyone else is safe and hidden."

"I'm on it." He says, pulling some sort of radio device out of his front pocket and pushing a button. "Plan A is a go." He whispers into the device. "Meet in main in five."

"What does that mean?" I ask Logan as he gathers some supplies and throws them in a small backpack.

"It means that the Rebels who you'll take down will meet us in the main fort." He replies as we walk out the door. I try to make my face blank and emotionless, and I hold Logan tightly by the arm as if I am taking him as prisoner. (In the off chance that any Leader would see) This is happening. We're finally rebelling. Together.

...

I lead a large group of sullen faced rebels down a ladder to the area below. Leaders stop fighting and gaze up, awaiting orders.

"Circle up. Now!" I bark at them, and every Leader hastily follows my instructions. This was supposed to be done during wave one, so nobody questions it.

"Drop your weapons." Again, they immediately follow my orders, though some shoot me a questioning glance.

The Rebels filter in and I close up the gap. Please let this work. Please let this work.

A woman holding the hand of a young girl speaks first, making eye contact with one of the wave one Leaders, Henris. I don't know his first name.

"John, honey, do you remember me? It's Agnes. Your wife? We had just found out I was pregnant when they took you. We were preparing to join the Rebels, so our baby could grow up free. Remember? This is her, John. This is our daughter. I named her Lily, after our special flower." At these words, faint recognition begins to show in Henris, I mean, John's, eyes.

At these words, little Lily steps forward. Her white-blonde hair is pulled back in two braids, and her pink cheeks are covered in dirt. She twirls around in her lilac colored sundress before running up and hugging her father's legs.

"I love you Daddy." She says in a small voice. "I watch you almost every day on the monitor. I'm almost five, and Momma said that by the time I turned five you'd be here. I'm happy to see you, Daddy. I'm your daughter, Lily." She looks up at him, her large doe eyes locked on his machine-grey ones. Then slowly, slowly, his eyes begin to turn blue. Color fingers up from the outside edges, and veins of it spread until tears are flowing down his face and a smile appears, and John sweeps his little girl up in the air, holding her tight.

Slowly, the other Rebels begin talking to Leaders, until every single one has turned human again. Marcella Chillwit thinks she knows everything, but there's a downside to being so heartless.

Love always overpowers evil.

...

The end.

(and now for the epilogue!)