That’s the way we won the rebellions. That’s the way we’ll win this.
If we live...
I’m not doing too well. The concrete broke my fall, as well as my left leg. The radiation doesn’t have to be permanent, but the only med-bay pod I’ve seen work is on planet Ferän. If there is one in the current vicinity, I wouldn’t know where to look.
Sentinels search the streets of Empire City. I can’t take too many chances. I hide in an empty building, trying my hardest not to scream out in agony.
Glancing down, I finally get a good look at my leg’s condition. Through the sentine
l mask, I can see the bone inside my flesh, broken from impact. My vitals flash before my eyes. I need a fucking doctor, but there’s no time.
I know what I have to do. It’s not going to be pretty.
Inside the vacant building, I crawl, searching for something long and sturdy. When I reach the corner of the room, I find the tool I need. It’s a long, metal beam, strong enough to withstand another storm. It’ll have to do.
“Now comes the fun part,” I whisper.
As I take my leg in my hand, sharp jolts flash through me. Every time my heart beats, the pain spreads. This is going to fucking suck, but I’ve been through worse.
Losing Emma broke me harder than that fall.
Quickly, I reach down and tear my pants around the break. Draping the cloth inside of my mouth, I bite down.
With my hands cupped around both sides of my leg, I grip tighter and breathe erratically. “Okay, you can do this.”
Sweat runs down my forehead as I shift my bone back into place. I bite down harder, closing my lips as tight as I possibly can. “Agh!”
Snap!
The bones crack back into place, but I’m laying on the ground, absolutely floored with pain. Tears run from my eyes, and I can feel the cool trickle of blood trace down my ankles.
This is hell. But I can get through it. I can get through anything.
I place the metal beam against my leg and quickly fasten the cloth around it. When it’s nice and tight, I pull myself up and stand, stumbling into the door.
Breathing, I close my eyes and whisper, “This is going to be one hell of a night.”
I’m not going to let Slain get away with any of this. When I see him, I will make sure to end his life, even if it means ending mine.
It takes minutes to get through the door. Once outside, I slide against the wall and groan. I have to keep pushing, but a sentinel craft flies by, forcing me to duck into the shadows.
I can feel my bones rattle, and every muscle seizes. My body wants me to give up and rest, but I am a wicked and changed alien.
I want my woman back.
There is a building not so far away, the tallest of them all. It looms like a dark mountain, a tower of pure evil and destruction.
But I know the truth. Its appearance is merely a way to suppress our people’s hopes and dreams. It stands purely to keep us down. When that darkness covers your world, you have to make a choice.
Face your dark towers and fight, no matter the cost.
When I’m near Slain’s tower, I stare at the flaming scepters, fueled by the Resnyx their slaves have mined for them. They have pitted us against each other for far too long.
I enter the building and hear voices. I follow the noise, reaching a narrow entryway. Darkness shrouds the bodies of those inside, but I recognize those voices.
I’ve found Rekker and Lök. But I have also come across the Emperor alien that rules over this destitute planet. Slain.
As quiet as I can walk, I hobble toward a giant mothercraft in the building. There’s no time to marvel over its architecture, but I notice the Resnyx extractor in the center, resting alongside the multitude of turrets. This is a war craft with the capabilities of mining.