REM

Security Breach

I think they found out what we did. It was the only explanation for why they deceived us; we allowed them willingly inside like a trojan horse, then all hell broke loose.

The wall where the men climbed and were crucified played in my mind. Standing at the bottom of it like an innocent bystander, I didn't argue, I just did what I was told. Each rectangular piece was slit with an X, allowing the men who climbed the wall to hook their fingers inside as they angled their feet to gain leverage to the top.

Many were successful in completing the task, but there was no where for them to go. When they arrived at the top, their only option was to go down, back the way they came. On the way down many slipped, falling to their death. Those few who actually survived, or weren't badly injured, were then nailed to the wall with their limbs stretched wide. They were left there with no hope of getting down. We used ladders to get them high enough for all to see. Whoever passed by was to be instilled with fear by our display of dominance.

My superiors forced me to be security. I mainly watched and subdued those who tried to run away after completing the wall challenge, but that was it. Dreams always turned into nightmares, the foreign people coming at me with spears and arrows, saying I was the devil, the one to blame for their deaths. Even though I wasn't directly responsible, I still helped in some way. I couldn't wash my hands clean of their blood.

It took months before a treaty was presented to us by letter mail. Leaders in city agreed to have a meeting at one of the homes.

On the night of, I was head of security; dressed in a black suit, I patrolled the halls outside the main room. Our leaders and their leaders were inside the cocktail room. There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach – something didn't feel right. I heard voices through the open doorway as I walked to the end of the hall to an empty room with large chairs and slightly open blinds. The moonlight passed through the window as I peered outside to the balcony, checking for any signs of movement. My stomach was in a knot, but I didn't see anything, so I headed back to the cocktail room.

Upon arriving, the eldest leader stumbled out; graying hair receding, a look of shock on his wrinkled face.

"Is everything okay, sir?" I asked.

He clutched his chest as if he was having a heart attack. Still saying nothing, I peered back inside the room, one of the foreigners with long black hair laughing as he held a drink in his hand.

Before I could step closer to see further inside, he finally replied, "The children." Wheezing, he stumbled around the corner and down another hall. The children?

A siren soon sounded and I knew there was a problem. I pulled my gun from my holster inside my suit jacket as the door to the cocktail room was closed. Twisting the handle, I found it locked and knew I had to check other parts of the building.

Rounding the corner, I saw the old leader slumped against the wall, the alarm bar activated. I checked his pulse, but he was dead. Without a second thought, I knew I had to secure the floor I was on before I was dead as well.

I stood up, then went back towards the cocktail room. The door was still locked, so I quickly checked the balcony view again from the other room. With no signs of intruders, I turned left at the main corridor, heading into the large lobby where elevators remained silent. No one would be using them since the alarm went off; stairs were the only option now.

As I ran towards the stairs with my gun held loosely at my side, it burst open with men in black suits, their faces covered by masks. Instantly I was shot, crumpling to the ground without a chance to defend myself. The pain I felt was excruciating, but nothing compared to what we had done to the foreigners. Karma seemed to be setting the record straight as my world went dark and my eyes closed.