Beneath the Glass Dome

Chapter 45

The night seemed to drag on far longer than Aimee felt it should've. Or perhaps it was due to her lack of sleep it seemed to last forever. She tossed about on the cot and stared at the ceiling. Faint light from the fire outside entered the building through the cracks in the wall and nearly broken wooden door. She looked over to her right and saw Narit asleep on the cot, curled up to where her legs were nearly under her chin. At least she wasn't entirely alone.Even so, it felt as though no one else was on the same level of concern as she was.

She returned her attention to the ceiling and felt as though it were ready to drop upon her at any moment. Her heart began racing and she sat up, dropping her legs over the side of the bed, and breathing quickly in and out. This was becoming too much for her. She tried to act as though she understood what was happening around her, and how she knew to handle things, but instead she felt like a spool of thread being quickly unraveled.

She stood from her bed, her feet hitting against the ground as though made of lead. Maybe a little warmth from the fire would help her sleep. It was worth trying.

She opened the door leading into the common area and quickly noticed she wasn't the only one who seemed to have trouble sleeping that night. Several people were crowded round yet none of them were talking to one another. At least that was something comforting –she wasn't the only one concerned about everything happening.

"Surprised you're up," Gaspard said as she approached.

She looked at him slightly confused, not expecting to see him awake as well, and gave a little nod as she sat. The small rock she positioned herself on felt cold even being in close proximity to the fire. "Can't sleep. I have a thousand things racing through my head and all of them seem to only offer unpleasant eventual scenarios."

He went back to staring at the fire in front of them. The orange flames seemed to flick upwards every once in a while, yet it didn't seem to make the place feel any warmer than she had desired. "Seems like you're getting accustomed to your impending role. Making decisions which influence the lives of thousands. Something that never comes easy."

She folded her arms against her chest and leaned forward slightly. If there was one person she could talk to about what must be done and who understood how she felt, it would be him. After all, he spent years she assumed in service of Stanton. Likely in charge of dozens of guards who at this moment were on assignment because of him, not knowing he had plans to overthrow Stanton's rule. "How did you do it?"

"It's a lot of pushing aside what you feel and going with what you think."

The way he said it made her understand considerably his decisions. When he would tell them how they were going to overthrow Stanton, it wasn't based on what he felt would be the best way to deal with the people involved in the situation. It was solely based on a scenario he felt would get the end results they desired.

"You don't believe there's any way of reconciling the two? Can't we find some middle ground so everyone walks away with what they want?" There had to be.

He lifted his eyes and looked at her. When he did, she could seethe years add to his face rapidly. Although he only looked slightly older than her when they first met, it seemed by the light of the fire and the stress he had managed to age nearly thirty years overnight. There was a somber sadness to his facial features.

"If you try to find it, you're going to spend far too much time. Time which could've been spent on going after your main target. The end goal is to remove Stanton and establish you as the rightful ruler of the Glass Star. Nothing else. It's not to do this without bloodshed, not to peacefully get her to surrender. She never will. What's going to happen will hurt everyone for a moment."

Aimee felt the sting of his words and knew he spoke the truth. There was no chance of Stanton peacefully abdicating her position within the government. She considered herself to be the utmost authority and had already attempted to kill Aimee so she didn't have to worry about competition.

Still, there was some part of her which hoped the woman would be sensible and leave without complications.

There was another lingering thought which crossed her mind. "Do you think, if the chance arises, that you'll be capable of harming your fellow guards? I know you've been a member for quite a while and that complicates things."

"If they stand in my way, they will be felled." He punctuated each word as though he were repeating it from some text he memorized years earlier. There was no indication of his emotion. It was all training he endured over the years which manifested itself.

"You have no compassion for them?"

"I've argued for their safety which a suitable plan has been concocted to save those who wish. If they remain after being given a chance, there is nothing more I can do." He paused. "For many, I know I started them down this path. I brought them aboard the guards and taught them how they should be willing to dedicate themselves to its service. What it is now – it's no longer about honor. The majority of the mechanical men within its ranks used to be friends of mine, yet now they no longer show any sign of recognition."

"I'm sorry to hear that. It's never easy to lose friends."

"We all lose things. Some losses are harder than others. That's something you must be prepared for."

She didn't like the way he worded that. "You're not thinking of voluntarily throwing yourself headlong into their path?"

"I'm not foolish like the others. However, if there is a situation in which the mission could potentially fail if something happens to myself or one of the others, you must promise me you'll continue. Don't let anything stand in your way."

She looked down at her feet and tried to think of a suitable answer. There was none. "I will." She lied. It was better than telling the truth. At no point would she leave someone behind, even if it meant Stanton had the chance to regroup. They worked together. They were a team. No one was to be left behind.