by Drew Avera
Chapter 25
Click. That was the only sound that I heard. I winced at what I thought would be the outcome. Was it over? Was I still alive? What was happening? I still felt the heavy weight of boots press against my chest and neck. The blood was rushing to my head so that all I could hear now was the sound of my beating heart. I was afraid, but I opened my eyes and looked up to see White standing over me with the Thom’s gauntlet held in his left hand. I was shocked that he had not fired upon the policemen or Sorell. White was still standing unscathed as he walked over to one of the policemen. He said something to one of them that I could not hear and I felt the pressure ease up off of my chest. I was confused as White extended his hand to me and helped me up.
Everything was surreal. I could not believe my eyes, I was in shock. Was my brain so overloaded that I was now hallucinating? White led me by the arm away from the group of policemen. We walked until we were out of earshot of the men and Sorell who was on the catwalk above the ranks of policemen; perched fifteen feet above the rest of us exuding an air of authority.
"Things have changed," White said to me. The expression on his face was solemn, almost grief stricken.
"How so?" I asked, half expecting him to turn on me and stab me in the back. I still questioned whether or not I could trust him even after he allowed Kara and me to stay at the palace.
"We are surrounded and we are out gunned. Our only hope is for us to make a sacrifice," he said. My heart sank. If I stayed here then I would die, and with the rush of emotions that I had been experiencing lately that thought caused me to dread what was about to come. Also if White escorted Kara to Earth then how was I going to know if she were safe? He didn't have the training and skills that I had. He was an old man, and no matter how much he intended to do right by her, he was already going to be at a disadvantage when trying to protect her adequately. I had to go, it was my duty, and it was my responsibility!
"I owe it to Kara to go and try to protect her," I said. "She is all that I have left!" I spoke urgently. My heart was beating more rapidly with each passing moment. Fear was the leading emotion that was feeding me at the time.
White stepped back for a moment and I could see in the reflection of the streetlight that he had wiped a tear from his eye. Was this some kind of surrender or betrayal? I didn't know. I couldn't read his thoughts. I was still dealing with the confusion that stemmed from moments before.
"Look, Serus. I know that we had this planned out, but even the best laid plans can fall apart." His words were quick and low.
I could feel the anxiety building to the point that a bead of sweat grew upon my brow because of it. "White, please." I interrupted.
"One of us has to stay," he said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the lottery ticket I had given to him when I killed Harling. The hard plastic reflected the light that was shining around us so that it almost appeared as a small red flame in his hand. I was mesmerized by the inherent beauty of it. White looked up at Sorell and then back to me. "You take this ticket and this gauntlet and you swear to me that you will kill that son of a bitch. I don't want to hear a maybe. You do it. Just promise me that you will do whatever you have to do to bring down the Syndicate. Bring their entire world crashing down on them. Do you understand?" The tone of his voice was fierce and without remorse.
I gasped as he handed me the ticket along with the gauntlet. I couldn't believe it. I flicked the hard plastic with my fingers and dragged it across my skin. It was real. The man I had thought was a puppet to the Syndicate was now sacrificing himself for the better good of others! For the better good of me. "How can I repay you for this?" I asked, emotion was welling up inside of me and I felt like I might lose my composure.
"By promising me that you will do as I have asked," he said. "I'm putting my faith in you. I'm laying my life down for you. You're the only person I know who has what it takes to set things right, to make a real difference for the future," White choked up a bit and wiped another tear from his eye. This was a side to him that I doubted that anyone had ever seen since his wife had been killed along with their unborn child.
"Thank you," I said. I couldn't think of anything else to say or anything else that I could do besides take his hand and shake it; this was the final show of respect for a man who had given his life for mine. He shook my hand with a firm grip and after he let go he turned away and walked off. Was he right? Could I set things right?
"Hey! Where are you going? What's going on?" Sorell screamed as White walked off. He looked down at me and could see the lottery ticket White had given to me. The expression on his face turned from a stoic dictator glaring down at his people into a cowardly expression that better represented who he was as a person. Without another word he darted off to who knows where. To my relief the policemen at the gate accepted the lottery ticket and allowed me access to the transporter that Kara had gone to. This was actually happening; Kara and I were leaving this planet and its inhabitants to die. My heart was troubled at the dire need for the people to be saved.
The only retribution for those people would come as I killed each member of the Syndicate. I had to kill men like Sorell who so easily disposed of other people. I would dispatch him easily enough. He and every single board member I came across from now until my dying breath. I walked through the complex with Thom's gauntlet in my hand. Its weight was a reminder that I was alone in this endeavor, but I would not have to suffer its burden alone. Kara would be by my side, and I would walk through the fires of hell to defend her.