The Compromise

The machine guns of the Dragons were still firing on the people below. It didn't matter if those were enemies or friends, they were all dying the same way.

In the murderers' ears there was only the buzzing sound of the engine.

A jamming sound started coming from the weapons.

"What's happening?" asked the captain

As the guns were losing power, the ones who were handling them turned toward him and shrugged.

"Shit! I can't believe it"

"What do we do, sir?" asked one of his subordinates

The captain looked around then found what appeared to be the highest building of the block.

He redirected the aircraft toward it.

"Prepare to get off" told him as he was landing it on top of the structure, even though the landing spot was a little tight for them.

The engine's throbbing reached the 'Birds captain in the attic.

"Sir, we're not alone" told him one of his comrades

He nodded.

"No one enters here. Keep your eyes open" ordered him

"You can't fight here"

"I hope that it won't be necessary."

"Don't bring this war here, not to him"

"Surely. Meanwhile, can you please tell me again what happened to your husband?" asked him

She looked at his partner then back to the captain

"One day he went to his usual job. He used to be an operative at the DIYU. He…never came back"

"Did you ask the Whiskers to help you with that?"

"Yes, I did. Unfortunately, after five or six years they stopped looking around for him"

"What is his name?"

"Klic Lykill"

"How did you find him?"

She was in tears.

"He showed up at our door. He was drenched in blood and his clothes were wet. We knew that something was wrong, but he didn't tell us"

"Then you noticed his skin, didn't you?"

"We saw it. It's scaly and grey. We asked him but for a long time he wasn't able to tell us"

"What he said?"

"That he was brought to a lab underground. They tested on him, people with the same face. Gehenna was overseeing it"

"Is that why he needs to be kept in the dark?"

"One day he went outside for a second and the sun burnt his skin. Since then he never saw any kind of natural"

"I'm sorry, miss. Your husband didn't deserve that" told him while hugging her lightly.

"I…It's…hard for me…but I think that my…husband never came back."

He sighed.

Powerless.

Someone knocked at the door.

The Whiskers were bulked around the Aokigahara. They were surrounded but their strength and will weren't dwindling.

Multiple waves of Hummingbirds and Shaxes were putting them through hell.

Blood was being spilled and the dead were piling up, forming a crown, a natural wall of death and rot.

Tithon was looking at them, from his unreachable throne.

He was quivering.

His eyes were running all over the place.

"Sir…"

"Sir we have to…"

Fanon was trying to talk to him, but he was deaf.

"We have to go…"

His words started flowing back in his ears.

"Sir…"

"Shut the fuck up, Fanon" said him

His general lowered his head.

"What…what should we do, sir?"

He looked out of the window.

"We're going to hold our ground. No matter what I'm…going to stay here"

"But sir, we can fly away. We can leave this city"

"To go where? To do what?"

"I…I don't know. At least we wouldn't die by their hands"

Tithon shook his head.

"We…we're going to hold. I don't care if we lose at this point. If my whole life was about that, I would die for it. My…choices brought me here. I did…well, I changed the city. I will stand for it no matter what."

"What if we gave ourselves in? What if we tried to reach ana agreement with the enemy?" asked Fanon

Tithon grinned. Tears were covering his face.

"Surrender…"

"And compromise. We should do it, sir."

Tithon looked at the sky outside the window.

It flickered.

Then he looked back at the men on the ground.

"Why don't you say his name?" asked Malsumis

"It doesn't matter. The only thing we can do right now is stop. We need to find peace"

"I don't think that we can. We're beyond that threshold" stated Malsumis

"I'm not sure about it. We can still find a way" said Gluskap

"Brother, how are we supposed to forget?"

Gluskap didn't know what to say.

"Time will heal our wounds."

Someone from the two factions shook his head.

A lot of them were muttering.

"It doesn't look like that"

"Whatt abbout uss?" asked the Shaxes Elder

"You can come back to the city, live underground when the sun is up and emerge when light goes out. We've a huge system of sewers which can be accommodate for you"

"Alls off uss?"

"Yes"

One of the 'Birds scratched his left ear.

"Shaxes, Hummingbirds, Whiskers…we're all part of this city. We all live on this planet."

Another passed his hand on his ears.

"This is our home"

More of them started doing it.

"What…" started Malsumis but stopped to rub his ears too

"What if it doesn't…" stopped again.

Gehenna was looking at them. She wringed her eyes.

Gluskap noticed it too.

The Shaxes jolted their heads.

Gehenna's hands were shaking.

A sound.

"Can't you hear it?" said Malsumis

Gluskap's eyes enlarged. He looked at the Shaxes behind him.

Pyramus told him about it.

The frequency became stronger.

One of the Shaxes screamed.

"What's happening?" asked one of the Whiskers

The Shaxes skin was throbbing.

Gluskap moved toward Gehenna and started threading toward his opponents.

"What are…you…doing?" asked his brother

It wasn't stopping.

"We should…go" stated Gluskap

"Why…what is…?" asked one of the 'Birds

Then.

It stopped.

The Shaxes eyes were red, and their mouths were open. Their chests were expanding and compressing quickly.

The Elder roared.

The Shaxes started attacking everyone, enemy or ally, Whisker, or Hummingbird.

To them it didn't matter.

"What are they doing? Aren't they…supposed to be on our side?" said the 'Birds captain.

The Whiskers were confused too.

Under the huge tower the military clones were bewildered and scared.

The Shaxes were attacking all of them without stopping. Brutal and primitive. Monsters with no mercy, emotion, or rational thought.

The soldiers were perishing quickly and brutally. Bitten and eaten alive. Their flesh crushed like paper. Innards and guts everywhere.

The captain was losing all his men. The abominations were all around him.

One jumped on him, shoving him to the ground.

It was surmounting him, its mouth, drenched in blood, was trying to reach his neck. Its weight was making his defensive attempt hard. He was trying to hold him back with all his strength.

His arms were losing grip.

He screamed.

A shot went off.

Another.

Another one.

The creature growled ass it started collapsing on him.

He swiftly crawled away.

Someone showed him their hand. He looked at his arm. He was wearing the Whiskers uniform.

His enemy nodded at him, while smiling.

He wasn't sure.

The Whisker moved forward his hand.

The men in the attic were still discombobulated by the strange sound which pervaded their ears, while the cries of pain of the owner's husband were resounding all over the place.

The people outside the door were still knocking at an increasing pace.

"Whoever is inside, please open. We need to get in."

The 'Birds captain exhorted everyone to stay shut. He slowly threaded to the door and looked through the peephole.

"Sir,…"

"Shhh"

"Please, let us in"

"Sir, the Shaxes…"

"What?"

"The Shaxes are…killing everyone"

"No way" said one of his fellow 'Birds

As he went to the window, he shuddered.

"Sir…"

"Fuck, there're Whiskers. Prepare yourself…"

"Sir, there's a bigger problem now."

"What?"

"The fucking Shaxes are savagely murdering everyone. It doesn't matter to them if we're Hummingbirds or Whiskers"

"As long as we're here they can't reach us"

"Sir, I doubt it. They're already rushing in" said another 'Bird with a scared voice

"Let us in. We beg you" shouted the Whiskers which were standing at the door.

The soldiers were looking at the captain.

"Why aren't they opening the door?" said one of the Whiskers

"I don't know. Please open" said the Whiskers ranking officer.

A trampling sound reached them.

"We must do something. In a moment they will be here"

"Open, it's a matter of life or death"

No one answered.

Then.

"How can we trust you?" said the Hummingbird on the other side.

"We're part of this city like you. The monsters which are coming here will destroy you too if you don't let us in"

A murmur.

"You stand with Gehenna and his dog, the Supreme Leader. Why should we help you then?"

"Because…"

"Because it doesn't matter now. You can follow your order or act like a decent person, like a human being."

The Shaxes were closer.

"We're clones"

"So, what…We're still humans"

"They won't help us"

The main officer didn't know what to say.

"I can't believe it" said the old woman while pacing toward the door.

"No, what are you doing?" said the captain while getting in his way

She didn't stop.

"If those guys came in, there will be bloodshed"

She moved his arm and rushed to the door.

"This is still my house. I don't care about what happened before and the fact that you like to execute mindlessly the order of someone else" told her.

"Please, don't"

She opened the door and the Whiskers rushed in.

Tension and embarrassment felt on the attic.

"Thanks" said the Whisker's officer to the 'Birds.

No one answered.

As the chaos outside was reaching its apex, all the soldiers in the apartment disposed themselves all over the place.

Everyone by himself. Reflecting on their life or looking at the carnage which was raging on the ground.

Both armies were being annihilated. No one was safe.

"Why are they attacking everyone?" asked Malsumis

He didn't get any answer.

"Gluskap, you knew about it, didn't you?"

"It happened once, I thought that it was a random occurrence."

Malsumis shook hus head and rolled his eyes.

Meanwhile different were attempting to jump on them.

"We need to reach the elevator" said Gehenna

"You're not…in a position to suggest anything" remembered her Malsumis while disposing of a mutant.

"She is right. We must flee"

They started running.

A few meters were separating them from the way out.

Around them 'Birds and Whiskers were fighting side by side.

"If we get there, we will let them overwhelm the tower. We need to avoid it" said Malsumis

"We need to close the gate" said Gluskap

"We can't leave these people behind"

"If we don't…lookout" said Malsumis

A Shax threw himself over Gehenna and Malsumis.

Both felt on the ground.

Gehenna's veil detached itself from her body and revealed her skin beneath it.

Dark and rough.

Gluskap looked at her.

She didn't say anything and stood up.

"I will explain. Run" told her

Gluskap kicked the Shax away and raced after her.

They were closer.

Closer.

Finally, they arrived at the gate.

Gehenna went through the security process and unlocked it.

It opened.

Malsumis and Gluskap got in.

Gehenna was waiting. The gate wasn't completely open.

"What are you doing? We have to go" screamed Malsumis

She was looking at all her clones, mutant or not.

Her eyes were glassy.

The Shaxes noticed it and were rushing toward them.

Malsumis started locking the door.

"Come with us now or we will let you die here with them" said him

When she was done, she quickly threaded beyond the gate.

The mutants were getting closer.

They were almost there.

Almost.

The gate closed and sealed.

Those three looked at each other while moving toward the elevator.

Screams of pain and fear blended with savage roars were still audible behind the metallic wall.

The Whiskers under the tower stopped holding the Shaxes back.

There were too many of them.

The monsters overpowered them and rushed into the building.

Tithon was looking at it.

Fanon was still shaking.

The moon was still shining in the sky, but twilight was going to show itself in couple of hours.

One of Fanon's men walked into the room, panting.

"Sir, what should we do?"

Fanon was trying to think straight.

Fear was blinding his reason.

"Stay" said Tithon

"They're going to kill all of us, sir"

"We'll face them. We're still the protectors of this city"

The Whisker shook his head in disbelief.

"What about the others?" asked Fanon

"We already considered their death" stated Tithon

"What…what just happened?" asked Malsumis

"I…I think something in their head"

"You don't happen to know what's behind it, don't you?" told him to Gehenna

"I don't think that you're supposed to know about it"

Meanwhile the elevator was shaking a little.

"Right now, is the best moment, my lady" said Gluskap

She puffed and passed her left hand on her head.

Part of her skin showed in the process.

Gluskap's pupils enlarged while Malsumis frowned.

"They…they were the first iteration of what you're today. Perfect creatures…"

"Are you sure about that?"

"With the ability to age slowly. Their bodies were perfect for battle. They would've been our army against Agaklythos"

"Why are they attacking us then?"

"Someone is tampering with the chip which was intended to control them"

"Always like that, huh. You can't let people be what they want" stated Malsumis

"The issue is that those mutations are way more powerful than all of us. They are like loaded guns"

"But I've talked to them, planned with them…their minds don't look so feeble. At least I thought"

"I suppose that this isn't the first time for you. You too, knew about that"

"I undervalued it but now…"

"You shouldn't have used them as your main army. You wanted to free the people but now they're all suffering because of you" accused Malsumis

Gluskap looked at his feet saddened.

"Is there a way to get rid of those monsters?"

"There is one. One little flaw which makes the mutants weak."

The two captains were standing one beside the other.

The Hummingbird was trying to look disinterested.

The other was puffing and nodding without a reason.

Meanwhile the old lady was looking at them. Then she chuckled.

"What?" asked the 'Bird.

"I find kind of funny the fact that you don't even try to get along. I can't believe that there isn't anything which you too agree about."

"Well…"

"Look, we can…"

"Please, lady. This door is going to be smashed. I don't know when or how but we can't think about that"

"In a way or another we're going to die. Do you really want to hate each other?"

"I mean…," said the Whisker.

"I don't care. In fact, why would you've joined this war?"

"I thought that I was doing it to defend the city. My girl now is proud of me" stated the Whisker.

"I wanted to free it" added the Hummingbird.

"And fighting was the only way?"

They looked at each other.

A sudden Shax's roar shook them all.

"You did what someone told you to do it, didn't you?"

"It isn't true, we joined voluntarily" added one of the Whiskers

"We were forced into it" said one of the 'Birds

"And what did you get?" asked her with disappointment.

None of them tried to answer the question.

"Where are they now?"

"Who?"

"The people who pitted all of you against each other"

Silence.

The door quivered.

All the eyes moved there.

She moved to the center of the room.

And his sight ran over all the soldiers in the apartment.

"Do you think that they care about you?"

The elevator was still shaking. It looked like the system which was holding it together could've shattered anytime.

Finally, the door opened.

They were on the last floor. A couple of Whiskers saw them and didn't know what they were supposed to do.

Gluskap, Malsumis and Gehenna walked past them with a quick pace.

Fanon and Tithon turned toward them.

The Supreme Leader was frowning while his commander looked anxious.

"Why is she still alive?" asked Tithon

"You still need me. We have to stay together right now" said Gehenna

"Why? What do you know which should help us?"

"I shouldn't say it. They're listening to us but…at this point"

Tithon was waiting.

She told him about the Shaxes chips and the deal she had with the Empire.

They were all listening carefully.

When she finished none expressed his opinion.

Too much information all at once.

"Why didn't you tell everyone about that? We've been slaves for you and for the Empire the entire time. This is…"

"I know but what would you've done in my position? I was rebuilding the planet and they wanted to destroy it again. It was the best deal."

"Are there other survivors on the planet?" asked Gluskap

She shook her head.

"I can't believe that this was your best option. I'm not buying it"

"You're free to but I'm the one who can give us a chance to survive it"

"Show me the Empire then" asked Tithon

"I…I…"

"As I imagined. You told us lies about everything and now you want us to trust you…" said Tithon while caressing the Shax statuette.

"I agree. Are they supposed to be in the sky, like hovering over us? It sounds like bullshit" added Malsumis.

Suddenly one of the Whiskers which was guarding the door intruded the discussion.

"Sir, they're trying to tear it down" said him scared

Tithon detached his hand from the statuette.

"How long will it hold?" asked him

"It won't" told Gehenna while he was looking toward the horizon.

Shades of purple and scarlet were dying the few clouds in the sky.

The metallic door cracked.