The Resistance

Chapter 6

        I looked around again from our hiding place in the shadows, tapping my foot impatiently.

        “Where is she?” I asked. “She should be here by now.” I complained for probably the tenth time. Although I tried to keep my tone light, worry edged my voice as well as my thoughts. She really should be here by now. Did she get lost? Did something happen? I wished there was some way for me to find out what was going on.

        “C’mon Ethan, we should just start the plan without her.” One man whispered. “If we stay here too long, we’ll all be caught.” Murmurs of agreement rose from the crowd. I bit my lip. Yeah, they were probably right. We needed to start the plan soon, whether or not Anna was here. The longer we waited here, the more time they had to find us and capture us all. Then all hope for humanity would be surrendered with us. I wouldn’t, I couldn’t, let that happen.

        Shaking my head slightly, I stood up a little higher in my crouch. “Okay, let’s do it. Remember, we’re only freeing the prisoners. Try to make as little noise as possible.” I exaggerated the last sentence. “Move out!” I commanded in a harsh, but quiet tone.

        All at once, everyone jumped up and ran out from our hiding place. The door leading to the cell blocks was firmly locked. Lucky for us, we had found the key earlier. Snatching it up out of my pocket, I unlocked the door and pushed it open. It was surprisingly heavy, and I had to use all my force to make it swing open.

        I stepped inside first. Waving my hand, I signaled for the others to follow.

        As soon as the prisoners saw us, they all cowered into the farthest corners, trying to get away from us. You could clearly see the fear in all of their eyes. The poor people… I thought sadly. This isn’t humane, they’re completely terrified!

        “Hey, don’t be afraid of us.” I started in a voice just loud enough for all of them to hear. “We’re coming to free you. But you have to be as quiet as possible, or else they’ll hear us.” I prayed silently they would understand. The whole operation depended on the outcome of this.

        The silence in the room seemed to stretch on for hours. None of us dared to move until the prisoners said something, anything, to see whether they believed us or not.

        “It’s a trap!” One person yelled. “They’ll just kill us anyway, they aren’t here to save us!”

        “No, please!” I replied calmly. “We’re the Resistance. We really are here to help. We’re against the government and their pointless killing, I swear.” Numerous voices began to break out all over the room.

         “Can we trust them?”

        “What should we do?”

        “I don’t want to die!”

        “Why is this even happening to us?

        “Everyone, shut up!” a woman's voice rose above the others, it’s origin unknown. A few minutes later, the voices died down. She cleared her throat. “So what if this is a trap? Either way we’d die. But, I’d rather trust them and have a chance of escaping then none at all.” she finished, authority clear in her voice.

        Again, silence filled the room. Soon, murmurs of agreement were heard.

        “Yeah, I guess she’s right…”

         “We’re all saved!”

        “I still don’t trust them, though…”

        “Okay, well if we’re going to help you, you need to stay quiet!” I yelled. “And we need to hurry, also.” I nodded towards my group, giving them the signal to start unlocking cells. One by one, people streamed out of cells. Some with happy faces, some with more apprehensive faces.

        “Is everyone free?” I asked once we had cleared the room. There must have been at least thirty prisoners, a staggering amount for the small space. They were all clustered close together, staying a few feet away from me and the rest of the Resistance. After another few minutes, we came to the conclusion that no one else was left. Now for the final steps. The anticipation was making my heart race. We had already got so far, hopefully we stayed at the advantage until the very end.

        “Now, one final thing.” I started. “If any of you want to join us in taking down the government today, please step forward.” Shocked outbursts rose up from the crowd.

        “So they really weren’t lying?”

        “Of course, or they would have killed us already.”

        “You can’t possibly think we can actually win!”

        “Calm down everyone.” I replied, slightly exhausted. This was a lot of work already. “Yes, we do think we can win. But, if you hate their methods and tests as much as we do, we would greatly appreciate the help.” I continued, keeping my voice calm and steady.

A few people looked around, then stepped up. I gave them a smile.

        “Thank you, really.” I tossed them all a weapon each from a bag that was slung over my shoulder. Already, more people stepped forward. This was amazing, everyone coming together to stop one common enemy. I never thought I could start something so powerful. Nor did I think that I would be able to convince anyone to join us, even though it wasn’t even a fourth of the people here. “Anybody else?” I asked. “Last chance before we leave.”

        “Leave this to me.” a man in ragged clothes said, stepping forward. “This guy and his group just saved us. We’re free, we aren’t doomed to certain death towards a pointless cause.” the man’s voice rose in intensity. “Don’t you think we should owe him for that? Even something as simple as helping them get rid of the one reason why we’re here in the first place?” The man’s words moved me. I was thankful for his willingness to try to get everyone to help. His determination made mine rise up even more. Once more, murmurs broke out of the crowd.

        “Yeah, he’s right. Let’s do this!” one person exclaimed.

        “You don’t have to. It’s not going to be easy.” I explained. I didn’t want to lead them all to something they weren’t willing to deal with.

        “Yeah, we’re all sure.” another said, glancing at the various faces in the room.

        “Okay, everyone. Grab a weapon, and let’s go change the world!” I exclaimed, raising my fist high in the air. Yells and cheers of excitement quickly followed as everyone surged forward at once.

        Today would be a day that no one would forget in a very, very, long time.