07-01-2018, 10:51 AM
"Hello, Suleman," said Leanna Walker. Before he could respond, she drew a small pistol hidden in her belt and shot him in the chest. For a fraction of a second there was silence, and then all the noise in the world.
Walker found herself face first on the ground, a man's hands holding her arms behind her back. She saw with satisfaction that Suleman Chaher was lying on the ground, unconscious or dead. A puddle of red grew beneath him. She had fulfilled her mission. She had slain the dragon, and all would be well.
She let the commotion wash over her, the screaming and running people, a crying baby, the endless wails of the sirens. She heard the country she had once been President of descend into chaos, but in her mind, it was a more hopeful chaos than that which had come before.
Someone hit her on the head and she grew dizzy. In her last moments of consciousness, she saw Laura Moore's children being pulled away by an unknown woman, as they stared at Chaher's body in... was it horror? Or delight? Walker couldn't tell. The world spun around her and she slipped under.
-------------------------
Fifteen minutes earlier
Laura Moore walked through the streets of Buttercity, hood pulled down over her face. The streets looked so familiar, and so different. She knew it was a cliché but walking down the roads she knew so well she could see all that had changed.
No children played outside, there was nobody sitting inside the cafes along the streets. A shop had a sign up in the window informing customers of the restrictions to purchases under the Emergency Rationing Act (2018).
Moore shuddered harder. She knew that Chaher was holding some kind of rally and headed towards the area. She would find some way to get inside and confront him. As she walked through the streets she was reminded of the history textbooks she'd read about the time after Mateo Villanueva's coup.
People had been nervous about leaving their homes, propaganda posters littered the streets and shops had been forcibly closed by the government. In the present day, she was walking down a street on which several shops with "closed until further notice" signs on the door, bearing the government logo, stood. A picture of Chaher's face, the text faded, blew from side to side hanging off a lamppost. A couple hurried past her, avoiding eye contact.
She had almost reached the area of Chaher's rally when she heard screams. A lot of screams. Suddenly, several people appeared, running towards her away from the rally. Several people turned into a crowd, and she pushed against it as they cleared the area.
When she reached the barrier, it was chaos. The police ignored her, crowding around a figure flattened against the ground. An ambulance was parked on the street, and paramedics were lifting Chaher on a stretcher into it. The figure stirred awake and the police lifted it up and Moore recognised her immediately. Leanna Walker. Walker caught her eye, and recognised her, then nodded almost imperceptibly towards an alleyway further down the street. Moore followed her gaze and saw Kelli and Jamey being dragged away by a woman.
--------------------
Kelli Moore kept trying to pull away from the woman holding her, but her grip only tightened.
"Come on now, be a good girl for Auntie Constance," she hissed, lipstick on her teeth as she smiled an obviously false smile. She dug her nails into Kelli's arm and Kelli bit her lip to keep from screaming. Jamey was crying.
Constance continued to drag them down the street. She tried to move fast but Kelli struggled against her with every step. She'd overheard Constance talking on the phone one night, she had said that if anything happened to Chaher then "˜those two brats would suffer'. Two months ago, all Kelli had known was playing and joy.
And now she knew nothing but the need to get away from Constance.
They had almost reached the car when suddenly the pressure on Kelli's arm disappeared. She almost fell to the ground as the force holding her vanished. She spun around. Her mum stood there, holding a bit of old pipe, as Constance lay on the ground bleeding.
"Come on," said her mum, and ushered the two of them into the waiting car. The driver wasn't present, but when Kelli looked out the window she could see him tied up behind a rubbish bin, struggling. She squealed in delight at the sight of the horrible man helpless. Her mum got into the driver's seat and the drove away, fast.
------------------------
A few hours later
The man finished whispering in Sonja's ear and left. Josephine watched from across the room as Sonja placed both palms on her chest, a Kerlian religious gesture her wife only performed when she was truly frightened. Josephine's heart beat faster. Sonja walked over to her.
"They have Leanna Walker," she said. Josephine blinked.
"What? How? I thought she was in Laeral? Don't tell me Chaher's kidnapping people off foreign soil now?"
"Walker made her own way into Lauchenoiria. I don't know how, none of us do. As far as we knew, she was safe in Laeral."
"But why?"
"To attempt to kill Chaher, it appears."
The two women sat in silence for a few moments. Eventually Josephine spoke.
"Did she succeed?"
"It is too early to tell. He's in hospital, they can't say if he'll recover or not."
"I... forgive me for such horrible thoughts but, isn't this good?" asked Josephine, tentatively.
"It's too early to tell that either. If he dies, they will no doubt kill Walker too. If he lives, he will crack down even harder. This isn't a one man show, no matter what people are saying. It was too fast, too organised. All of the IDU talks of Chaher like this war lives or dies with him, but I don't think so. I think someone else is pulling his strings."
"But it was Chaher who..."
"I've seen these tactics before, Josie. You worked with Chaher, you said yourself he was emotional and prone to snap judgements. That's not what I've seen here. At least, not alone. These tactics, well, if I didn't know any better I'd say they were Kerlian," shuddered Sonja.
"Honey... I know how much this reminds you of things you'd rather forget. You went through a lot when you were young, things nobody should go through. I think it's clouding your judgement," Josephine took Sonja's hand, "and besides, his random crackdowns, his complete lack of strategy for winning the war... it's all very him. The only reason he seems remotely competent is Gonhog's support."
"I hope you're right, I really, really do."
"I promise you Sonja, I won't let Kerlile get their hands on you."
Walker found herself face first on the ground, a man's hands holding her arms behind her back. She saw with satisfaction that Suleman Chaher was lying on the ground, unconscious or dead. A puddle of red grew beneath him. She had fulfilled her mission. She had slain the dragon, and all would be well.
She let the commotion wash over her, the screaming and running people, a crying baby, the endless wails of the sirens. She heard the country she had once been President of descend into chaos, but in her mind, it was a more hopeful chaos than that which had come before.
Someone hit her on the head and she grew dizzy. In her last moments of consciousness, she saw Laura Moore's children being pulled away by an unknown woman, as they stared at Chaher's body in... was it horror? Or delight? Walker couldn't tell. The world spun around her and she slipped under.
-------------------------
Fifteen minutes earlier
Laura Moore walked through the streets of Buttercity, hood pulled down over her face. The streets looked so familiar, and so different. She knew it was a cliché but walking down the roads she knew so well she could see all that had changed.
No children played outside, there was nobody sitting inside the cafes along the streets. A shop had a sign up in the window informing customers of the restrictions to purchases under the Emergency Rationing Act (2018).
Moore shuddered harder. She knew that Chaher was holding some kind of rally and headed towards the area. She would find some way to get inside and confront him. As she walked through the streets she was reminded of the history textbooks she'd read about the time after Mateo Villanueva's coup.
People had been nervous about leaving their homes, propaganda posters littered the streets and shops had been forcibly closed by the government. In the present day, she was walking down a street on which several shops with "closed until further notice" signs on the door, bearing the government logo, stood. A picture of Chaher's face, the text faded, blew from side to side hanging off a lamppost. A couple hurried past her, avoiding eye contact.
She had almost reached the area of Chaher's rally when she heard screams. A lot of screams. Suddenly, several people appeared, running towards her away from the rally. Several people turned into a crowd, and she pushed against it as they cleared the area.
When she reached the barrier, it was chaos. The police ignored her, crowding around a figure flattened against the ground. An ambulance was parked on the street, and paramedics were lifting Chaher on a stretcher into it. The figure stirred awake and the police lifted it up and Moore recognised her immediately. Leanna Walker. Walker caught her eye, and recognised her, then nodded almost imperceptibly towards an alleyway further down the street. Moore followed her gaze and saw Kelli and Jamey being dragged away by a woman.
--------------------
Kelli Moore kept trying to pull away from the woman holding her, but her grip only tightened.
"Come on now, be a good girl for Auntie Constance," she hissed, lipstick on her teeth as she smiled an obviously false smile. She dug her nails into Kelli's arm and Kelli bit her lip to keep from screaming. Jamey was crying.
Constance continued to drag them down the street. She tried to move fast but Kelli struggled against her with every step. She'd overheard Constance talking on the phone one night, she had said that if anything happened to Chaher then "˜those two brats would suffer'. Two months ago, all Kelli had known was playing and joy.
And now she knew nothing but the need to get away from Constance.
They had almost reached the car when suddenly the pressure on Kelli's arm disappeared. She almost fell to the ground as the force holding her vanished. She spun around. Her mum stood there, holding a bit of old pipe, as Constance lay on the ground bleeding.
"Come on," said her mum, and ushered the two of them into the waiting car. The driver wasn't present, but when Kelli looked out the window she could see him tied up behind a rubbish bin, struggling. She squealed in delight at the sight of the horrible man helpless. Her mum got into the driver's seat and the drove away, fast.
------------------------
A few hours later
The man finished whispering in Sonja's ear and left. Josephine watched from across the room as Sonja placed both palms on her chest, a Kerlian religious gesture her wife only performed when she was truly frightened. Josephine's heart beat faster. Sonja walked over to her.
"They have Leanna Walker," she said. Josephine blinked.
"What? How? I thought she was in Laeral? Don't tell me Chaher's kidnapping people off foreign soil now?"
"Walker made her own way into Lauchenoiria. I don't know how, none of us do. As far as we knew, she was safe in Laeral."
"But why?"
"To attempt to kill Chaher, it appears."
The two women sat in silence for a few moments. Eventually Josephine spoke.
"Did she succeed?"
"It is too early to tell. He's in hospital, they can't say if he'll recover or not."
"I... forgive me for such horrible thoughts but, isn't this good?" asked Josephine, tentatively.
"It's too early to tell that either. If he dies, they will no doubt kill Walker too. If he lives, he will crack down even harder. This isn't a one man show, no matter what people are saying. It was too fast, too organised. All of the IDU talks of Chaher like this war lives or dies with him, but I don't think so. I think someone else is pulling his strings."
"But it was Chaher who..."
"I've seen these tactics before, Josie. You worked with Chaher, you said yourself he was emotional and prone to snap judgements. That's not what I've seen here. At least, not alone. These tactics, well, if I didn't know any better I'd say they were Kerlian," shuddered Sonja.
"Honey... I know how much this reminds you of things you'd rather forget. You went through a lot when you were young, things nobody should go through. I think it's clouding your judgement," Josephine took Sonja's hand, "and besides, his random crackdowns, his complete lack of strategy for winning the war... it's all very him. The only reason he seems remotely competent is Gonhog's support."
"I hope you're right, I really, really do."
"I promise you Sonja, I won't let Kerlile get their hands on you."
LIDUN President 2024 | she/her | Puppets: Kerlile, Glanainn, Yesteria, Zongongia, Zargothrax