[ featured on @beyondsol and @undiscoveredbooks, a youngblood awards 2018 winner ]
In a world divided in two and dominated by lies and truths beyond one's imagination, will peace ever prevail?
The impending war between Solars and Darks threatens the...
"So a little bit of background information before I officially start the tour." Alex leans against the wall, allowing the slant of his throat to be tinctured by the lemon pigment that capsized the grey area of the tunnel.
"Our group is called the Salvation. We fight against the Resistance and most of what they stand for- instilling violence and fear within the Solars' society. We share a mixture of beliefs that the government and the Resistance have."
"This is one of our safe houses or underground bunkers. They're mostly scattered along various places and we operate as a unit so that we don't have overwhelming numbers in each safe house."
Alex marches down the passage to the door closest to where the ladder stops and tugs it open. It creaks open to reveal a spacious area that is filled with long rows of white tables that are narrow and span along the length of the room. Sensors dot the edge of the tables, each one glowing with a different colour and for specific functions.
"Each unit which occupies a safe house is named after a constellation- this unit here is the Circinus unit. All units have five teams and five Solars for every team. This is where the Solars who do research do their stuff."
"They call themselves Techies- it's the worst label anyone can give themself but they love it."
Alex troops over to the table and punches a random button that is installed along the panel of the table. As his fist makes contact with the button, the surface of the table lights up and a purple stretch of eletric field darts across it, creating a thin film.
Seeing the delighted look that spreads across my face, Alex smirks.
"Cool, right? It's all high-end stuff that we just got in recently. Luna is all over it and especially with today's incident, it's gonna assist the Techies with their research. This feature is just to make sure no one touches their precious research."
"You aren't in part of the research group?" I question, wishing to run my fingers along the slim panel and feel the texture of the shiny buttons along the surface of my skin.
Alex laughs, almost amused by my question, "I do belong to the Techies but we aren't grouped according to our fields. That is, each person from the same field or specialised area aren't in the same group."
"I highly doubt the efficiency and productivity of Fighters if your organisation is such a mess." Luke watches from the door, eyes bored as they flick over the equipment.
Alex sways from his comment as a visible tide of anger flushes through his body. Clenching his hands by his side tightly, he draws in a shaky breath and levels his gaze to Luke.
"And what would you know about organisation?" His voice is a low sneer that is drenched in contempt and underlined with an almost teasing suggestion.
All the colour drains from Luke's face as he drapes himself against the door, the hinges on the wooden rectangle squeaking with his weight.
"Let's move on." Luke regains his composure swiftly and turns away from the room, heading out. I start to follow his lead when I hear Alex's voice- serious and pinched with warning.
"Better look out for that guy, Edward. I don't trust him at all."
The next room we enter is what i instantly identify as a training area. In the middle sits a large ring, fenced off with thin plastic string that is flimsily laced. At the corner of the room is a gigantic dashboard where mutiple buttons and knobs and levers are installed along.
"Fighting area. While all of us are encouraged to train and be prepared in the area of arena, only a few are selectively handpicked to go out on operations. They're called Agents."
"Most of us come here to watch but the area along the ring allows for space to practise. The weapons room is separate, along with the rooms we use for education."
Slipping in and out of more room, exploring the special rooms and equipment that I have never seen or was capable of imagining before. The experience is one with a limitation that is uncapped and I wonder why I never thought the Solar system was so complex- groups co-existing and fighting, secret locations where Solars resisted the Resistance.
We learn the terms that the Solars from other groups go by- Scouts for those who travel across both sides of Atlanta to hunt down members of the Resistance and recruit Solars for the Salvation, Devisers for those who draw out operation plans and Insiders- Solars that infiltrate the Resistance and government to gather information from everywhere, including the Darks' system.
"Usually newbies won't get their label just yet. We keep track of them for the next few weeks and once the higher-ups have made their decision, they are officially integrated into the unit." Alex pauses outside one of the many doors by the end of the tunnel, watching me carefully as he speaks.
"Since you're a special case, the higher-ups have already reached a decision regarding what you'll do here, which will be revealed to you tomorrow. As soon as we get Teddy back, you can go home."
A surge of desire and relief rushes through my body and I feel my spirits lift.
"As for you," Alex turns his gaze towards Sebestian, his voice suddenly twisting into something dark and manipulative, "I get to decide your fate."
Alex's gaze is hard as steel and the kindness that was present just moments ago is gone- replaced with an iciness that ruffles me.
Luke rolls his eyes as if he's not scared but I catch the way his legs wobble slightly, the way the panic he emits seemingly pulls at the cords of lights and how they almost wobble as he sways.
"Now that I'm done with the tour, the two of you should wash up and get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day." Alex motions towards the room he stands before, acknowledging for me to enter.
"The group who takes this room will be your temporary group." Alex steps aside to let me slide in front of the door. Trying to ignore the fear that tightens inside my chest, I push open the door and walk in.
Word Count: 1072 Words
A/N: I know is a lot of information to take in, I'm really sorry for that. Drop a comment to let me know what you think or how you feel!
Every read, vote, comment and share is encouraged and appreciated! <3
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