Fury and Flame | 3

6 | 6

K A N E

The broadcast came out of nowhere. We were communed in Hunt's office—the rest of our friends having joined us, still reeling from Riley's revelation. A crackling static filled the room, making me whip toward the sound. It was the screen on the wall, somehow turned on by itself.

A chill shot down my spine when Imperium's half moon with spiked rays appeared on a black background.

When the voice began to speak, it had a strange echo, and I knew it was playing on every screen in the area—perhaps every screen in the world. "You don't know who I am," it said, unearthly in its deepness. Though I'd never seen nor heard him before, I knew it was Orion. "You don't know where I lie. Let me tell you, I am everywhere. Everywhere.

"You may not see me yet. But you will, for I am undeniable. I am imminent. Looming.

"This world has delved into chaos. Children die of starvation. Criminals roam the streets. Around us, society burns. Your families cannot help you. Your leaders cannot save you. This is why it is time for a new age, a new empire. Imperium has the power to regulate life on earth. It can finally bring control back to a chaotic world. And it will.

"I gave your leaders every chance to peacefully give in to me. They did not. I do not wish to wage war, but I will. One leader to rule all leaders. One war to end all wars.

"I have begun my conquest of the lands of the earth. Romania has fallen. Ukraine will be next. I will expand outwards. Your weak leaders will die at the end of my sword. Every knee will bow, every voice will tremble under the name of the Exalted One."

My grip on my weapon tightened. Romania had fallen. Ukraine was in the process of following behind, leaving surrounding nations weak and vulnerable. Orion would seize them all.

"This message is a warning to the nations that still stand. Accept me, and there will be no bloodshed. Peace will reign. Deny me, and you will fall with the rest. I will bathe entire cities in blood if it leads to the order of the human race once and for all." Someone behind me sucked in a breath through their teeth.

"Some may call me a tyrant, a terrorist, a madman. Simple minds cannot understand my great purpose. I am a visionary. I am willing to do what needs to be done." Beside me, my brother was burning with an animalistic rage—his hands were shaking with it, especially with the sound of the voice that used to command him filling every room.

Orion finished by saying, "This is the beginning of a new age. We will wash our old selves in blood and be made new and pure. The sun will rise on the empire of Imperium. It is inevitable."

With Orion's last warning, the thunderous voice ceased and the screen went black.

      As the screens shut off, I could hear clamoring in the hallway of ONNT agents discussing what just came to pass. Though we'd been expecting this, though this was the only way it could end, I felt the sense of horror in the room. We weren't prepared for this.

We'd all been hoping to cripple Imperium so badly that they could never reach this point. We'd worked for it these past months. And still, it continued to flourish like an epidemic.

      Perhaps Imperium was as inevitable as Orion claimed.

      Hunt looked like he was about to say something, but his secretary knocked on his door and popped her head in the doorway. The first thing I noticed was how the whites of her eyes were visible. And how tightly she gripped the door, like it was her one stability.

"Imperium's army is marching through Ukraine. The invasion has begun," she said, voice shaking. "We're going to war."

▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂