06-17-2020, 06:14 AM
June 16th
Xochiatipan
The march began at noon.
The Xiomeran Empire was, and had always been, a country where people just didn't protest. The one time people had tried it in the modern era, in 1977, had resulted in a crackdown so harsh that it was seared into the memories of a generation. Few cities in the Empire remembered the events of August 1977 more clearly than Xochiatipan, the largest city in southern Xiomera. Xochiatipan had been the second city where the protests had spread that year, after they began in Tlālacuetztla. One wouldn't have known that from looking at the city itself: successive Xiomeran regimes had worked very hard to cover up and remove the physical scars on the city itself. The bullet holes and the scorch marks on the walls had all been carefully repaired, the tread marks from the tanks and APCs plastered over, the shattered doors and windows replaced. There were no plaques, no monuments.
Only the people of Xochiatipan that had been around in 1977 when the Imperial Army and Imperial Police, backed by civilian "patriots' groups" loyal to the government, came storming through the center of town like manifestations of the angry Xiomeran gods themselves, remembered. And that generation of Xochiatipanicos was of two minds. Half of them, when they saw a new generation of Xochiatipanicos taking to the streets with signs and shouts, quickly ran inside, barred their doors, and closed the shutters over their windows. They knew what was about to happen, and wanted no part of it. Not again.
The other half quickly grabbed signs of their own, and added their own shouts to the rapidly growing crowd marching on the city center. Like their frightened contemporaries who were hiding, they too were driven by their memories of the past.
The crowd swelled as it proceeded down the Avenue Ilcocan towards the center of Xochiatipan, flanked on either side by rows of Imperial Police and soldiers. The marchers were surprised that no one had stopped them yet, but continued on their route. The signs and shouts made what they wanted clear: the restoration of the Empress, the removal of Xochiuhue and the junta, the end of the new regime.
As they reached the Plaza Henalca at the center of town, they found their way finally blocked, but not by the police or the Army. A phalanx of black-clad civilians, with a familiar red-and-gold logo on their shoulders, blocked them from the steps of the Municipal Palace.
"What do we do?" one of the protesters asked Huitzilhuani. "Keep moving. Don't stop or engage anyone until we are on the plaza," she replied. Tlālzixiuhxa nodded, staring straight ahead at the people in black ahead of them. Next to her, Tlanextia looked nervous for a moment, but nodded and resumed a resolved pace.
When they reached the Municipal Palace and the line of GCL members, a voice echoed out from the loudspeakers next to the Palace. "This is an illegal assembly. By order of Mayor Tlahueypec, under the authority of Emperor Xochiuhue and the Imperial Government, you are all ordered to disperse at once. An immediate ban on assembly within the central business district of Xochiatipan is in effect until further notice. Leave the area at once."
In response, the crowd began shouting and chanting various things: repeating their demands for an end to the regime, creative suggestions on what Mayor Tlahueypec could do with his ban on assembly and order to disperse, calls for Yauhmi's restoration. The loudspeaker echoed once more: "You are all ordered to disperse at once. This is your final warning." That threat led several from the crowd to begin climbing the poles holding up the loudspeakers, trying to bring them down.
Inside the Municipal Palace, the Mayor looked at Tultepec, the commander of the Imperial Police in Xochiatipan. "We warned them. Do what you have to do," the Mayor said. Tultepec picked up his walkie-talkie, issuing commands.
As Tultepec's voice crackled over their headsets, the black-clad GCL activists began moving forward, already reaching for the collapsible batons at their waists. The snap sound of hundreds of them opening echoed out over the plaza. Then, the whistle of tear gas canisters being fired over their heads, landing in the crowd of protesters. As the smoke billowed out, the GCL line advanced, using sheer force to begin pushing the protesters back.
As shouts and screams echoed out, the protesters tried to hold their line, but soon began to give way. As they began retreating back down the Avenue Ilcocan, from side streets on either side a new group of people emerged. This group was wearing civilian clothes, but wore red berets with a distinctive logo of the Xiomeran flag with a mācuahuitl on it. "The XSPA. Shit. Fall back, quickly," Tlālzixiuhxa shouted. "Try to regroup at the university!"
Huitzilhuani, Tlanextia and the other leaders of the protest began rallying people back down Ilcocan, towards the imposing walls and gates of the Imperial University of Xochiatipan campus. Their hope was that if they could get inside the university grounds, they could regroup and perhaps push back towards the Municipal Palace.
They wouldn't make it inside.
As the line of protesters fell back to the university walls, they saw another group of people blocking the gates. They appeared to be students, but also appeared to be armed with various objects. "What the hell. XSA?" Huitzilhuani asked Tlālzixiuhxa. "Probably so. Damnit. Get everyone to disperse through the side streets, we're going to have to retreat - "
It was then that Mayor Tlahueypec's plan became apparent to Tlālzixiuhxa. I'm an idiot. How did I not see this coming?
As the lines of civilian counter-protesters blocked the way north or south, the Imperial Police and soldiers that had been flanking the road into the city emerged to block the side streets east or west. We're trapped. What now? Tlālzixiuhxa thought. Then she had no more time to think, as the groups on all four sides of the protesters converged on them. As they began beating and detaining the protesters, Tlālzixiuhxa snapped into desperate, defensive mode. She kicked one Imperial Policeman in the chest, sending him flying. A soldier tried to grab her arm, and suffered a broken wrist and nose for his efforts. Another Imperial Policeman unwisely tried to swing a baton at her, which resulted in him having several broken fingers and no baton. Tlālzixiuhxa began laying into the lines of attackers around her, trying to free up space for people to flee. I'm doing surprisingly well at this, despite my age, she thought. Then, as she was whacking another soldier with the baton, an Imperial Policeman finally got smart and reached for a tazer. The sudden electric shock brought Tlālzixiuhxa to the ground.
As she struggled, several soldiers and Imperial Policemen rushed up to her, restraining her. As Huitzilhuani and Tlanextia watched in shock, Tlālzixiuhxa turned to them. "Run. Run," she shouted.
As they ran, taking several bands of straggling protesters with them, the soldiers and police pulled Tlālzixiuhxa up from the ground. "Take her to the Municipal Palace," a sergeant shouted.
At the steps of the Municipal Palace, Mayor Tlahueypec and Commander Tultepec looked down at the mopping up below on the streets. As Tlālzixiuhxa was dragged to the steps, Mayor Tlahueypec pursed his lips. "You're the old spokeswoman for the former Empress. Where in the world did you learn to fight like that?"
"Where, indeed," Commander Tultepec mused, his expression thoughtful. Tlālzixiuhxa glared up at him, remaining silent. "Take her to the nearest ASI facility. There is much to learn here, I suspect," Commander Tultepec said, waving to the soldiers to carry Tlālzixiuhxa away.
---
The Cauhloc
One hour later
"So we captured Tlālzixiuhxa finally. I would have expected her to leave the country, not show up on some fool's errand like this in Xochiatipan." Security Secretary Calhualyana smiled slightly as General Xōchhuitl read the initial report. "But do you see now why I have been saying that leaving these former Auroras around is a huge risk - especially since Kerlile is now siding with the enemy?"
"You are correct. We should have listened to you. Clearly, we need to account for the whereabouts of the other Auroras in Xiomera, and their intentions. I know of at least one - back when Yauhmi was insisting that we 'rescue' them, Xochiqui and I interviewed one calling herself Huatli. She's an Army major now. We'll have to pick her up. And not just her, I suspect."
"Not just her, indeed. Any Aurora still in Xiomera has to be considered suspect, now. They all have loyalty to Yauhmi, or to Kerlile. Either way, they are a threat." Calhualyana looked at the General. "I assume you'll help me run them to ground?"
"Of course. We have to protect this government," the General replied.
Xochiatipan
The march began at noon.
The Xiomeran Empire was, and had always been, a country where people just didn't protest. The one time people had tried it in the modern era, in 1977, had resulted in a crackdown so harsh that it was seared into the memories of a generation. Few cities in the Empire remembered the events of August 1977 more clearly than Xochiatipan, the largest city in southern Xiomera. Xochiatipan had been the second city where the protests had spread that year, after they began in Tlālacuetztla. One wouldn't have known that from looking at the city itself: successive Xiomeran regimes had worked very hard to cover up and remove the physical scars on the city itself. The bullet holes and the scorch marks on the walls had all been carefully repaired, the tread marks from the tanks and APCs plastered over, the shattered doors and windows replaced. There were no plaques, no monuments.
Only the people of Xochiatipan that had been around in 1977 when the Imperial Army and Imperial Police, backed by civilian "patriots' groups" loyal to the government, came storming through the center of town like manifestations of the angry Xiomeran gods themselves, remembered. And that generation of Xochiatipanicos was of two minds. Half of them, when they saw a new generation of Xochiatipanicos taking to the streets with signs and shouts, quickly ran inside, barred their doors, and closed the shutters over their windows. They knew what was about to happen, and wanted no part of it. Not again.
The other half quickly grabbed signs of their own, and added their own shouts to the rapidly growing crowd marching on the city center. Like their frightened contemporaries who were hiding, they too were driven by their memories of the past.
The crowd swelled as it proceeded down the Avenue Ilcocan towards the center of Xochiatipan, flanked on either side by rows of Imperial Police and soldiers. The marchers were surprised that no one had stopped them yet, but continued on their route. The signs and shouts made what they wanted clear: the restoration of the Empress, the removal of Xochiuhue and the junta, the end of the new regime.
As they reached the Plaza Henalca at the center of town, they found their way finally blocked, but not by the police or the Army. A phalanx of black-clad civilians, with a familiar red-and-gold logo on their shoulders, blocked them from the steps of the Municipal Palace.
"What do we do?" one of the protesters asked Huitzilhuani. "Keep moving. Don't stop or engage anyone until we are on the plaza," she replied. Tlālzixiuhxa nodded, staring straight ahead at the people in black ahead of them. Next to her, Tlanextia looked nervous for a moment, but nodded and resumed a resolved pace.
When they reached the Municipal Palace and the line of GCL members, a voice echoed out from the loudspeakers next to the Palace. "This is an illegal assembly. By order of Mayor Tlahueypec, under the authority of Emperor Xochiuhue and the Imperial Government, you are all ordered to disperse at once. An immediate ban on assembly within the central business district of Xochiatipan is in effect until further notice. Leave the area at once."
In response, the crowd began shouting and chanting various things: repeating their demands for an end to the regime, creative suggestions on what Mayor Tlahueypec could do with his ban on assembly and order to disperse, calls for Yauhmi's restoration. The loudspeaker echoed once more: "You are all ordered to disperse at once. This is your final warning." That threat led several from the crowd to begin climbing the poles holding up the loudspeakers, trying to bring them down.
Inside the Municipal Palace, the Mayor looked at Tultepec, the commander of the Imperial Police in Xochiatipan. "We warned them. Do what you have to do," the Mayor said. Tultepec picked up his walkie-talkie, issuing commands.
As Tultepec's voice crackled over their headsets, the black-clad GCL activists began moving forward, already reaching for the collapsible batons at their waists. The snap sound of hundreds of them opening echoed out over the plaza. Then, the whistle of tear gas canisters being fired over their heads, landing in the crowd of protesters. As the smoke billowed out, the GCL line advanced, using sheer force to begin pushing the protesters back.
As shouts and screams echoed out, the protesters tried to hold their line, but soon began to give way. As they began retreating back down the Avenue Ilcocan, from side streets on either side a new group of people emerged. This group was wearing civilian clothes, but wore red berets with a distinctive logo of the Xiomeran flag with a mācuahuitl on it. "The XSPA. Shit. Fall back, quickly," Tlālzixiuhxa shouted. "Try to regroup at the university!"
Huitzilhuani, Tlanextia and the other leaders of the protest began rallying people back down Ilcocan, towards the imposing walls and gates of the Imperial University of Xochiatipan campus. Their hope was that if they could get inside the university grounds, they could regroup and perhaps push back towards the Municipal Palace.
They wouldn't make it inside.
As the line of protesters fell back to the university walls, they saw another group of people blocking the gates. They appeared to be students, but also appeared to be armed with various objects. "What the hell. XSA?" Huitzilhuani asked Tlālzixiuhxa. "Probably so. Damnit. Get everyone to disperse through the side streets, we're going to have to retreat - "
It was then that Mayor Tlahueypec's plan became apparent to Tlālzixiuhxa. I'm an idiot. How did I not see this coming?
As the lines of civilian counter-protesters blocked the way north or south, the Imperial Police and soldiers that had been flanking the road into the city emerged to block the side streets east or west. We're trapped. What now? Tlālzixiuhxa thought. Then she had no more time to think, as the groups on all four sides of the protesters converged on them. As they began beating and detaining the protesters, Tlālzixiuhxa snapped into desperate, defensive mode. She kicked one Imperial Policeman in the chest, sending him flying. A soldier tried to grab her arm, and suffered a broken wrist and nose for his efforts. Another Imperial Policeman unwisely tried to swing a baton at her, which resulted in him having several broken fingers and no baton. Tlālzixiuhxa began laying into the lines of attackers around her, trying to free up space for people to flee. I'm doing surprisingly well at this, despite my age, she thought. Then, as she was whacking another soldier with the baton, an Imperial Policeman finally got smart and reached for a tazer. The sudden electric shock brought Tlālzixiuhxa to the ground.
As she struggled, several soldiers and Imperial Policemen rushed up to her, restraining her. As Huitzilhuani and Tlanextia watched in shock, Tlālzixiuhxa turned to them. "Run. Run," she shouted.
As they ran, taking several bands of straggling protesters with them, the soldiers and police pulled Tlālzixiuhxa up from the ground. "Take her to the Municipal Palace," a sergeant shouted.
At the steps of the Municipal Palace, Mayor Tlahueypec and Commander Tultepec looked down at the mopping up below on the streets. As Tlālzixiuhxa was dragged to the steps, Mayor Tlahueypec pursed his lips. "You're the old spokeswoman for the former Empress. Where in the world did you learn to fight like that?"
"Where, indeed," Commander Tultepec mused, his expression thoughtful. Tlālzixiuhxa glared up at him, remaining silent. "Take her to the nearest ASI facility. There is much to learn here, I suspect," Commander Tultepec said, waving to the soldiers to carry Tlālzixiuhxa away.
---
The Cauhloc
One hour later
"So we captured Tlālzixiuhxa finally. I would have expected her to leave the country, not show up on some fool's errand like this in Xochiatipan." Security Secretary Calhualyana smiled slightly as General Xōchhuitl read the initial report. "But do you see now why I have been saying that leaving these former Auroras around is a huge risk - especially since Kerlile is now siding with the enemy?"
"You are correct. We should have listened to you. Clearly, we need to account for the whereabouts of the other Auroras in Xiomera, and their intentions. I know of at least one - back when Yauhmi was insisting that we 'rescue' them, Xochiqui and I interviewed one calling herself Huatli. She's an Army major now. We'll have to pick her up. And not just her, I suspect."
"Not just her, indeed. Any Aurora still in Xiomera has to be considered suspect, now. They all have loyalty to Yauhmi, or to Kerlile. Either way, they are a threat." Calhualyana looked at the General. "I assume you'll help me run them to ground?"
"Of course. We have to protect this government," the General replied.
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