Chapter 10: Riot
Ethan gawked at Shadow. He wanted him to weaponize his entire army? "But that would-"
"Yes, yes, I know. Possibly kill all your friends. Blah blah blah I DON'T CARE." He snarled angrily. "But you will do it or I swear I will go over to your precious little city and kill your precious little Emily right in front of you. Understand?"
"But wouldn't you just kill her anyway with your army?" Ethan asked bitterly.
"How about this. You create the weapons and I promise I won't kill Emily. How's that?"
"But-"
"SHE WILL DIE IF YOU DON'T." Shadow yelled. "You have five seconds to make a decision. 5… 4… 3… 2…"
"Fine, fine!" Ethan agreed frantically. "I'll weaponize your army." He sighed.
"Perfect!" But little did Ethan know, Shadow had plans, big plans for Emily. And this army was just a start.
… … … … …
Emily left her apartment for the first time in a month, finally willing to deal with everything. She was still devastated, but her tears were spent. She wouldn't be physically crying for a while.
She had left Nalla in charge while she was "occupied", and from what she said when she got home each night it was going well.
Emily had spent most of her time either in bed, mashing her face into her pillow, or in front of the tv watching movies and nature documentaries. Nalla would join her each evening, usually bringing dinner.
But Emily was tired of hiding in her apartment, so she steeled herself and left. All she had to do was keep her precious Ethan out of her mind and she'd be fine. Perfectly fine.
Ugh what was she thinking? She was gonna blow this entire thing. She turned and started back towards her apartment then stopped, steeling herself. No, she could do this. She could face them. She just had to hide her emotions. She had been good at that before, hadn't she?
Taking a deep breath, Emily entered the city proper. But of course in the first few minutes someone approached her. "I'm sorry for your loss," she said, smiling sympathetically.
"Look," Emily said, closing her eyes. "I don't want to sound rude, but I really don't want to talk about it. I won't be able to keep myself together if anyone else says anything about what happened. Would you please spread the word?"
"Yeah, sure, anything for our leader." The girl scrambled away, speaking to anyone she saw. Emily sighed, holding her head. She was beginning to get a headache.
As she neared the center of the city, there began to be more and more people. But in the center, there was a humongous group of people, and more was joining them. They were gathered around the central platform.
"Emily!" called someone, running up to her. It was Nalla. "You have to help! The people are panicking. They're listening to some idiot who says you're dead and I'm just trying to take control! He also says that I killed Ethan."
"But what about those scouts?" Emily asked incredulously. "They know you weren't there."
"They won't speak. The man must have bribed them. But the people are about to revolt and I can't stop them." Emily's depression seemed to melt away. Ethan melted from her mind. These were her people.
She started forward, towards the gathering. The people closest to her parted for her, eyes opening in shock. Emily walked through the sea of people in the aisle that was opening for her until she reached the platform. She stepped up into it and turned, facing the crowd.
She didn't scold them. She didn't explain the situation. Instead, she got right to the point. "Where is the man that started these rumors?" The crowd quieted, and there was nothing but a low rustle as the people moved back, revealing a single man standing in the middle of the empty circle of people.
"I-"
"Don't even TRY to explain the reasons for what you did." Emily shouted, eyes blazing.
"My lead-"
"What you did was wrong. How DARE you accuse one of your own people of killing another? How DARE you assume that I was dead. Nalla explained EVERYTHING. And yet you led MY PEOPLE astray. What do you have to say for yourself?" Her voice was calm and serene, but that made her seem even more dangerous.
"I- my liege- I- I'm sorry-"
"Don't apologize. Explain."
"I- was foolish." The man admitted. "I thought that if I could get the people to follow me, I would be a leader. I was wrong." He knelt, head down.
"You and you," Emily pointed at two strong looking men. Lock him away until I decide what to do with him." They nodded and led the traitorous man away.
"Now," Emily said. "You all deserve to know what happened after I sent you back home." And so she explained everything that had happened, and why she had been missing for so long. By the time she was finished, the crowd was in complete awe.
"You faced Shadow himself?" one woman exclaimed.
"I did."
"And his zombies, the ones that killed Ethan, were definitely evolved from the undead we fought before?" Another asked.
"They are. We must be prepared for what is to come. Shadow will undoubtedly send his minions to attack us again."
"Then why don't we just close the portal?"
"They can open it from their side."
"Break it?"
"Then we'd be stuck here. And we'd all change back to what you were before. Any more objections?" Silence. "Good. You're all dismissed."
The crowd dissipated quickly, leaving Emily alone to her thoughts. She had done it. She had actually done it! "Emily!" Nalla exclaimed, running up to her. "You did it!"
"Yeah, I don't know what came over me."
"My lady!" Someone called. It was one of the wall guards. "We're being attacked!"
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meganbcatgirl
meganbcatgirl After this chapter, we have flashbacks from both characters. This will explain their stories a little more, especially Ethan. Happy reading!
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