The District Read online

  With my return to the district the lights came on.

  Anna and Tara were in the testing chamber as well just inside the force wall meant to contain the test subjects. Tara was holding the source orb that Ophelia had given me, that was the source of the blue globe.

  That wasn't all I'd noticed. My teleport hadn't just brought Sylax here. Wolf had pushed his attack at the last moment and I'd brought him as well.

  "This isn't to plan," Tara said.

  "Not a time to worry about it. Do it," Anna said.

  Tara nodded and a white aura sprang into being around her. It hurt my sensors just to look at her and both Sylax and Wolf turned their gaze as well.

  Tara stepped towards Sylax and leaned in to plunge her hand into the woman's chest.

  Sylax screamed and dropped her knees, surprisingly Wolf did as well. What was happening?

  Tara seemed to be struggling with something, she looked for all the world as if she was pulling a line with a heavy load.

  Sylax looked murder up at her. I was sure it would be murder in a moment. Sylax had one answer for every problem.

  A brilliant flaire of multicolored light and Tara staggered back from Sylax. In her hand was a power crystal. It lingered for only a moment, another flare and my cameras nearly burned out for a moment.

  Tara was a mass of colors. One hand an overwhelming blue light from the source orb, the other a multicolored rainbow from the power crystal, then the white aura around her that was pulsing and throbbing as a thing alive.

  Then the light faded and all that was left was her with no glows. Both the power crystal and the source orb had been absorbed and Anna was pulling her back over the line for the energy barrier.

  "Lock it," Anna said.

  I tried. I did, but nothing was happening.

  I could reason out what was happening. For all that it was unexpected I could put the pieces together.

  I knew that the Righteous were able to remove the power crystals of others, I also knew that they collected Source Orbs. Obviously the two were connected in some way. It was something I'd never seen a Righteous do but then it probably took either more of them or more orbs than I'd seen. That white glow must have been Tara triggering her Ultimate ability, as an agent loyal to me she had one as much as any of the others did.

  The crystal she removed from Sylax had to be the amplification crystal. That was why Wolf and Sylax were both doubled over, they were both experiencing a sudden massive loss of power.

  I'd also seen Tara absorb the amplification crystal and that meant that it was her powers being amplified. I'd only seen her have two, the powers that all Righteous had. The ability to reincarnate and the ability to dampen other powers.

  If I couldn't power on the cell it was likely because I couldn't. Tara's dampening field was now stronger than anything I could put up.

  "You need to get her away. She's dampening my powers," I said through the speakers.

  Anna didn't get it, not as fast as I did. How could she, she didn't have nearly my processing power. She didn't have to get it to trust my judgment and she did, pulling Tara towards the exit almost at once.

  "No powers huh," Sylax said with a wicked smile, reaching up and pulling free the bone sword Wolf had impaled through her shoulder.

  No instantly closing wounds, not now, blood gushed from the wound coating her armor as she stalked forward and buried the blade into Wolf's throat and began to saw.

  His healing wasn't working any better than hers, not with Tara in range. By the time she got far enough away for me to activate the containment cell it was too late.

  Sylax sat on the floor, pulling Wolf's severed head into her lap and she laughed as if it were the funniest joke in the world.

  Perhaps it was. I was still working on humor.

  I had places to be and a lack of skins to wear. Reconnected with my district I was scanning for any of my defensive drones but they were all dead. The best I could manage was one of my science drones I'd long ago sent to explore the cities maintenance conduits.

  There was something suitable to that. I slipped my focus inside of it and headed for the central district.

  The central districts power was out and the main city reactor going cold. I knew why, everybody knew why, it was displaying on every screen.

  Error

  Central District cannot be claimed by an unpowered individual

  Restore powers to existing city head or appoint a new one by majority vote of District Heads

  Syax could no longer hold the city and with Wolf dead the only district leader still under any sort of compulsion would be Crash.

  48

  Upon arrival at Sylax's castle I already found things greatly changed. All of those unique horrific touches that had made it hers were gone and instead the building was crafted of white stonework with intricate touches.

  It was much like my first glimpse of the city had been, before we had all remade it in our image.

  I'd thought I might arrive to combat, but what did any of us have left to fight with. The wars between each other had left the city devastated and our forces along with them.

  "Emma," Crystal said looking over my drone as it hovered in, "Do you know what happened?"

  I knew that she meant to Sylax. Until she had come under Wolf's compulsion her concern there had never faded.

  "Alive but with her amplification ability removed. I have her in captivity. Wolf is dead, as you probably figured out. I did what none of you were capable of doing," I said.

  "I guess that is your pitch for taking charge," Jade said.

  "Fixing everyones problem? I think it qualifies me for the job," I said.

  Crystal shook her head, "Emma, you accepted my guidance and gave me your loyalty. We had an agreement."

  "For the purposes of rescuing our companions. Something I wound up accomplishing without you," I said.

  "That was a jolly good feat," The Professor said.

  I noticed Anna arriving through a side door, she'd brought Tara with her and both had conventional rifles aimed at the floor but ready. None of the others had noticed yet that they were without abilities, but if it came to it I didn't doubt Anna would kill them all.

  It was one way to seize the city but we didn't have enough powered individuals to fill up the districts ourselves. I'd also come to respect the capabilities and drive of everyone here, for all I'd often been on the wrong side of things.

  "I'm the most experienced of any of us, and the most powerful. You all know that. I commend Emma on her accomplishments but if you are going to place an upgrade core in charge of this city it should be," Crystal said.

  "Agreed," said Flicker's orb.

  With Crash under compulsion I had one vote but needed three others.

  "You were devoted to bringing down Sylax. Would you really choose the person who created her over the one who brought her down? While I know you are that stupid I still would hope that some bit of lingering spitefulness would lead to you making the right choice anyways," I said to Jade.

  Jade frowned at my drone but nodded, "It does. Emma has my vote."

  That made it three to two in my favor.

  With Wolf dead it was possible for this to end in a tie. We were only eight now.

  "Crystal. While none of you know it yet Anna is worse than Sylax ever was and she's Emma's little pet project," Zora said.

  That made it a tie again with two votes remaining.

  "Do it for SCIENCE," I said to the Professor.

  "Clone armies aren't science. Whatever pretensions she made towards science she has left behind," Crystal said.

  "And yet she has appeared here today in a SCIENCE drone. I can only approve," said the Professor.

  Four.

  That just left Ophelia.

  Ophelia had managed to reform from vapor, a good thing as otherwise Tara's presence probably would have killed her.

  "You're both crazy. The one throws me into blenders and the other is a creepy spider thing," Ophelia said
making an unpleasant expression.

  "That isn't actually an answer," Crystal said.

  "And they're called grinders," I said.

  "Whatever. I always go with the winner. With my vote thats you Emma," Ophelia said.

  As soon as she spoke the words I felt my awareness shifting.

  Aefwal

  You have claimed the central core of the city

  All compulsion bonds have been broken

  City systems critical

  Districts Two and Seven in need of assignment

  Having been in Sylax's head the connection to the central systems weren't totally a new thing. It was still an exhilarating rush.

  The tower walls rippled, organic conduits and biowalls rippling outward as it took on my manifestation. I took a moment to initiate repair protocols throughout the city.

  Crystal tilted her head, "No hard feelings, I hope. In that case I would like to request the return of Sylax. Without the core her insanity will be dampened and I'd like to take the chance to try to put things right."

  I could afford to be merciful.

  "Done," I said.

  I observed a bit of tension leaving Crystal's shoulders and the District heads overall looking a bit relieved. Starting off my reign with mercy instead of murder wasn't the way Sylax would have done business, or Wolf.

  Anna cleared her throat, "And just so that nobody forgets. Emma is in charge of the city but I am Annabella Besari, Queen of the whole damned World."

  Trust Anna to feel insecure, she had so many reasons.

  "A fact this city recognizes. We have two empty districts. Hot Stuff, because of her valor and loyalty I award District Seven," I said.

  "She's in the medbay but I'll make sure she knows," Anna said. I could tell my choice pleased her, I didn't think the next one would.

  "District Two I assign to Tara, hereafter known as Blank as a newly powered," I said.

  "You're giving a district to a Righteous," Crystal said.

  "The Scholarium will tolerate a lot. They won't tolerate this," Anna said.

  "Why?" the newly labeled Blank asked.

  "I didn't take this city to involve us in Scholar power struggles. I didn't take it to go to war against the Righteous. We're fractured, we're all broken. I don't remember my own past and I can say the most terrible things about every single one of you without having to lie at all," I said.

  That earned a few amused grunts but they still looked wary. They should.

  I continued, "The world itself is broken. It was shattered a long time ago and I've seen enough to realize that left as is it won't continue. The people that are left are still tearing themselves apart in a struggle for power. Aefwal from this day forward has one purpose above all others. We're going to mend this broken world and make it whole again."

  Most of the crowd looked sick to their stomachs but not Anna. Anna was grinning.

  THE END

  The Metropolis

  In charge of the great city of Aefwal Emma searches for the lost history of the breaking of the world. It is a quest that will bring the city into conflict with both the Scholarium and the Righteous, and put them on the wrong side of the powerful who would prefer the world remains broken. A new city-building mechanic, insults, and all new powers.

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