Legion

New Years Day

"Christina get up! It's New Years Day!" A whisper-yelling voice woke me up.

"It's not even time to wake up yet, Marlene. Go to bed," I mumbled, turning away from the voice.

"Just get up. If what you see isn't cool, you can kill me later. Deal?" She whispered again.

"Fine," I responded, now sleepily getting up.

I changed into my black skinny jeans and a black tank top in front of her quickly. You don't get much privacy here at all, which is what I learned from the last couple of days that I've stayed here. 

The second I finished combing my hair, a grinning Marlene grabbed me by the hand and dragged me over to the outskirts of town, and as we were running through the streets, I realised that no one was out except for us. When we reached our destination, there was a large crowd of people smiling and laughing.

I walked over to a group of guys confused as to why all of us gathered here.

"Hey, um, can one of you guys explain why we're here?" I asked shyly.

"It's easier to just show you," One of them said.

I looked at him with my eyebrow raised, confused. He then picked me up by the waist and lifted me over his shoulder. My surprised squeal and feeble punches to his back didn't faze him but only made him laugh as he walked through the crowd. 

When we finally made it to the front, he let me sit on his shoulders and he grabbed my legs to keep me steady. 

"You see that?" he asked.

I looked around. "See what?" I answered.

He pointed to a dark object in the distance that was almost like a mirage at dawn. It seemed to ripple in the nonexistent heat. I squinted my eyes to see better and noticed the F.E.A.R. symbol, large and prominent on the face of the building.

"What's that?" I asked, looking down at him.

"They didn't even tell you about this in the compound? It's a prison, where they keep our soldiers that they've captured. We come here in large numbers to scare them, and any citizen in the compound that can see us," He told me slowly, careful not to show the anger that was making its way to his face.

Do they all hate me because I was born there? Is Marlene just pitying me?

"Thanks. What's your name by the way?" I asked him quietly as I slipped off of his shoulders with ease.

"Xeno." He responded, looking at me with hazelnut brown eyes.

"Just Xeno?" 

"Just Xeno." He answered, "By the way, you have to realise that you're not going to make it anywhere here. You're an outcast here, from your beloved F.E.A.R." he added before glaring at me and running off to catch up with his friends.

A sudden realisation hit me and I looked at the ground, fighting back tears swelling in my eyes, eventually letting a couple tears fall on the cracked desert ground. 

So pathetic. I don't even know one thing about my 'beloved' compound and I'm about to have a meltdown in public? Pathetic.

I felt warm arms wrap around me. I smiled slightly to see Marlene comforting me.

"What happened?" She asked softly.

"X-X-Xeno h-h-hates me. He probably t-thinks I'm stupid f-f-for not knowing about the p-p-prison," I stuttered out.

"Xeno is a jerk, then. He knows that everyone who lives in that compound doesn't know much about F.E.A.R.'s operations. He had no right to do that to you," She responded firmly.

I nodded, wiping away any leftover tears and smiling because of her serious expression. She noticed my smile and started grinning at me and taking me to the side of the crowd where a person could see the prison more easily.

There, I could see the sun starting to rise in a red-orange hue. It was the first time I saw an actual sunrise. Not like the artificial sun that rises and sets in the compound; an actual beautiful sun right in front of me. I stood there mesmerised by the scene for a good solid minute before five figures passed by me to stand right in front of the prisons view, snapping me out of my daze.

The figures turned around, looking at the crowd that turned completely silent. It was the Mystic, the Destroyer, the Mourner, the Deviant, and the Prophet. I looked over to the Prophet and glared. 

"A new year, a new soldier, a new day," he spoke, his deep voice full of scorn when he mentioned 'new soldier'.

"NEW YEARS DAY! NEW YEARS DAY! NEW YEARS DAY!" the crowd chanted, seemingly automatic.

The other four joined in, smiling and chanting along with the crowd, but the Prophet stared me down with metallic blue eyes. I glared back, with my chocolate brown eyes reflecting the sun's early rays it rose slowly into the sky in the east.

Try me. I DARE you.

"It seems that our new soldier has something to say," he sneered.

I froze up, feeling everyone's eyes fall on me. I felt tears start to form but I looked at him, he was testing me, trying to make me crack under pressure. I could see it in his eyes. I wiped away the tears that were threatening to slip out on the back of my hand and glared back at him, trying to not show my fear.

"All the graves of the ones remembered, in a desert, we call home," I sang out, my voice resonating through the crowd.

"All the slaves of a cold December find a voice to call their own. Stand up, we are united in the eyes of the greatest storm. Line up, we are ignited. This world will be reborn," I continued and started to hear the sounds of people encouraging me to continue.

"In 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!" I sang even louder, and someone picked me up on their shoulders so I could have a better view.

"This is New Years Day! So rise from the ashes! Faith will find a way! Like lightning crashes! We'll keep marching on and on and on!" I sang, smiling and turning to see the Destroyer leading part of the crowd in the song.

"This is New Years Day! So rise from the ashes!" the crowd sang out, making me involuntarily grin.

"Ring a bell so the serpent hears us

Let her know that we're tried and true
No the beasts, they won't get near us
And we're not scared of you

Light 'em up now
Start the countdown in
Five, four, three, two, one
Let's go!

This is new year's day
So rise from the ashes
Faith will find a way
Like lightning crashes
We'll keep marching on and on and on

It's new year's day
So rise from the ashes

Let the eagle fly
Freedom in the night
Let the eagle fly
Legends never die"  We all sang together, even the Prophet joining in smiling.

I heard a violin and looked over to the Mystic who was playing the violin perfectly, the crowd turning their attention from me to him mesmerised by his talent.

"Five, four, three, two, one

This is new year's day
So rise from the ashes
Faith will find a way
Like lightning crashes

We'll keep marching on and on and on
It's new year's day
So rise from the ashes

Ooh
So rise from the ashes"  The crowd sang again along with me.

"WHAT ARE WE?!" I yelled out to the crowd.

"BULLETPROOF!" they yelled back. 

I spotted Marlene in the crowd, who was grinning madly at me and she mouthed

"You're doing great,"