The New Dawn – Part 1

The food wasn't the best but at least there was something to eat. Their plate was mostly made of leftovers found by the Shaxes in the abandoned control rooms of the graveyard. Kurban knew that he didn't need it to sustain himself, but he ate what he got nonetheless. Lunekin wasn't satisfied but he still tried to put some of it in his stomach. Kera wasn't eating. He was just thinking.

"What's on your mind old guy?" asked Lunekin

"Do you think that the Hummingbirds understand them?"

"Who?"

"The mutants. Do you think that they ever asked themselves who they were fighting against?"

"I don't know really. I just know that they're not the ad guys"

"Are you sure about that?" asked Kera

"Yes"

"Why? You've never heard about them before"

"That isn't true. Do you remember Alusta's bombing?"

"Yes. How is it connected to them?"

"They did it. I saw their symbol and two of their members"

A subtle sound, like rolling tires in the sand, started far away from them.

"Are you telling me that a group of bombers is on our side? Are you insane?" said Lunekin

Sand's granules started coming down from the roof.

The mutants were looking around.

The elders were waiting.

"Yes"

The roof started shaking.

"And who were they? Those two you saw during the bombing"

"I don't…"

One of the mutants cut him short.

"Theys ared hered," shouted him

"Who were they?" asked Kera again

They got divided and went to opposite directions

The one who presented himself as the leader was taking him and Lunekin to one of the gates

"What are we going to do?" asked Kurban

"Youd'll helps usd defyend they grayveyard," said the King

"I'm not a fighter"

The Hummingirds troops were moving closer.

They reached the gate and went outside.

The sky was dark. All the stars were shining as bright as ever. A purple blinking star among them. It wasn't his first night in the desert but, to him, felt like a special one.

Other mutants appeared after them.

He moved his eyes to the side and saw a long thick line made of mutants. They were all wearing a light armour, which made them look like cockroaches.

In front of them were approaching the Hummingbirds in their loud vehicles.

Their banners high and proud.

The mutants's King looked at him. His eyes reminded him of his long-lost friend.

"Ares youd readdy?" asked him

He tilted his head.

The sand was floating in the air, pushed by the fast-rolling tires of the Hummingbirds cars.

A sandstorm was coming.

Gluskap opened the door.

His brother was standing on the other side.

He noticed his gaze.

"What's going on Mal?" said Gluskap as Malsumis moved in

His brother didn't answer immediately. He checked the room and the windows. It was like he was expecting something.

"Mal, I'm here. Why are you here?" asked again

"Mabdil has found out who is the mole"

"How? And who is it?"

Gluskap was trying not to show any kind of tension. It wasn't the first time.

"Do you remember our lead?"

"Sure…He was called Pyramus…something right?"

"Exactly, we tracked him and tried to get him"

"Did…did you…manage to seize him?"

"No, your lover seems stronger and more skilled than I remember" joked Malsumis

"How…how…do you know that?"

"After all the reboot we went through, do you really think that I would forget about him?"

"But…you weren't supposed to know about…"

"I wasn't but leaving behind a mask of yours doesn't look like the best plan" bashed him

A short moment of silence came after his statement.

"Do you want to kill me like you did all the other times?" asked Gluskap

"I never enjoyed it and you are aware of it"

"Then why are you willing to stay on Lady Gehenna side?"

"It's the only way to survive in this society"

"It wasn't like that when we got cloned the first time. It was…"

"Different. Our world was dying Kap"

"What about now? Are we thriving?"

"I just think that there's no need to fight anymore. Cloning will keep our race alive"

"And who wants to live a life like that? Slave of unfair system which deprives you of your rights and time. Do you know that there are people who are not able to enjoy an evening with their partner in Haguel? Or people who are entrenched in debts because their job is underpaid? What about them, are they truly living?" said Gluskap with a desperate and angry tone

"We were like them. Do you want to be downgraded in the next reboot? For now, we are ok"

"We're just ok, that's what worries me. You used to be part of the resistance"

"Are you talking about the Hummingbirds? We already tried; it always ends with a loss. You need to move on"

The intercom ringed.

"Were you waiting for someone Kap?"

"No, you?"

Alastor was checking the box which was sent to him long ago. All the things were still there. The mask, the tactical suit, the dagger, and the pyramids. All of it was still set like the first time he saw them. He used to check them every evening. To be sure.

When he was done doing it, he pushed the cubical object back into the drawer, behind all his suits. No one could have ever looked there. No one would have never found it.

He felt at ease.

Then he closed the drawer's doors and left the room. Back to his work.

He whipped his eyes with his hands. He was tired of the project. It was taking too long. Sure, Tithon, wanted to finish it as sooner as possible to reach his fiancée but to him it felt like nothing.

Years, more than a century, after an idea which was more like a dream than an actual plan.

He opened the PC and got back at his graphs and designs. They looked like a mazy tangle of wires and pipes. The numbers were crowding the screen like bees on flowers.

He tried to do something, anything, but his right hand was stuck on the mouse.

The virtual mayhem on the screen was overwhelming.

One minute. Nothing.

Three minutes. Nothing.

Seven minutes. Still nothing.

Fifteen minutes. Zero.

Thirty minutes. Absolute zero.

One hour.

One hour and twenty minutes.

He gave up. It was too much. He couldn't do it alone. An idea was forming in his mind.

He took his phone and typed a number.

A picture of Tithon appeared on the screen.

He pressed a green icon and put the phone close to his ear.

A high and dense smog's pall was pushing itself toward the blue starless sky. Only the violet star was watching them. She couldn't feel the fire's heat, but she knew that the burning building wasn't far from her.

The city wasn't quiet and composed as always. It wasn't a storm like the one which was raging in the desert.

She was wearing a simple and cozy dress and her hair weren't tidy as always. She couldn't sleep.

"Are you feeling alright my dear?" asked her mother, hovering like a black hooded phantom on her side

"Yes, I was just wondering about my future"

"You can't have doubts about it. You know your purpose"

"I know. But…what if I'm supposed to do something else? What if I can choose my future?"

"Dear, you can choose. The fact is that we can't act merely for ourselves. You're a great mind but you can't be selfish. You can't be like our forebearers"

"You have always told me that what we do is to avoid another genocide. Is that the reason why we can't go beyond Drekavac?"

"Yes"

"What's there?"

Her mother didn't answer.

"What?" asked Lilith again.

"Death. Only death"

The girl felt uneasy. That word scared her.

"Am I the only one?"

Her mother didn't flinch.

"Am I?" asked again

"Follow me," said the hooded woman

They moved from the window to the elevator.

Lady Gehenna pushed a button, and the elevator went down.

The city was rising as they were reaching the ground. She felt small.

The sun slowly faded as they plunged in the ground.

Then, they stopped.

The door opened.

In front of them a gate guarded by two whiskers. On the door's archway there was an ancient symbol. A cross with a circle on it.

She showed her hands and eyes to a scanner and the door unveiled what was behind it.