1 The end and a beginning (1)

A young lizard man is running down alleys and roads. The city around him is run down, decaying. The sky is an eerie red and cracks follow up on the ground, molten magma flowing in them. The young lizard, out of breath, finally reaches his destination. A giant auditorium looms over him as he walks closer. When he gets closer to the entrance, two soldiers, lizardmen, cross their spears in front of him.

"HALT" the soldier to his right exclaims.

The young man extends his arm to reveal a bracelet. The soldier extends his arm and hovers his hand over the bracelet. A holographic screen appears in the soldier's bracelet and he examines it. After a while, he nods and retracts his arm. The other soldier follows.

"You may enter, citizen 5511"

The young man nods and continues to enter. Once inside, the lights are held low and the stage is the only lit place, everyone talking in hushed whispers about the upcoming event. The young lizard makes his way to an empty seat. He can't help but smile with excitement. He's been waiting for this moment for his whole life. He's studied and trained until he collapsed in hopes to be chosen on this very day.

After the collapse of all the other cities, it was obvious the decision the Emperor was going to make. Everyone was excited about the new future, even if they stayed or left. A new future on a new planet. Maybe even a new galaxy. Only the Emperor knew.

After a while, a middle-aged lizard walks on stage, and everyone immediately hushed down. The middle-aged lizard waited patiently. When it was quiet, the lizardman spoke.

"As you all know, the end of our planet is onto us. The Emperor has chosen four promising people to take the future of our species on their shoulders."

The crowd, even though all of them would die except for four people, cheered. They knew of their fate and were willing to receive it with open arms. The lizard waited for the crowd to calm down before he continued.

"These four parasites will fight for the survival of our species. They will conquer the next planet that the future generation will inhibit. These four parasites are academically and athletically talented. I will now call out to these four parasites. When I call you, please come to the stage."

The lizard bent his arm in front of him and a holographic screen popped out.

"Citizen 556"

A young lizard man stood up and elegantly walked down to the stage while the crowd cheered.

"Citizen 4526"

A middle-aged man stood up and proudly walked towards the stage. The crowd cheered.

"Citizen 5120"

A young lizard woman stood up and gracefully walked down to the stage while the crowd cheered.

At this point, the young lizard was growing anxious. He trained and studied for this moment but, it seemed as if there was no hope.

"Citizen 5511"

The young man looked up and a smile crept upon his face. He got up and ran towards the stage, the crowd clapping. When he got there he lined up next to the other lizardmen that were standing in a line facing the crowd.

"These are the parasites chosen to support the weight of our future. Let us give them a round of applause and wish them good luck."

Everyone starts clapping and cheering. 5511 smiles and waves. When he turns, he sees that the others are just standing there, so he stops what he's doing. After the crowd starts filing out, the lizardman turns to them. He's a dark green lizard with a hunched back and seems to be tired.

"Follow me," he says with a smile.