Neytopia › Part 2: Noon › Chapter 46

Circuform

Two weeks before the lightbringer killed her and burnt the ships in the island, she had met with one of the watchers. She had hated them from the day she learned they existed. But when they locked her up in a prison for two thousand and twenty four years, well, then she started to really hate them.

After breaking out she knew they would never stop looking for her. So when the lightbringer talked about turning themselves in, she knew what she had to do even before she admitted it to herself. She wrote a message in the watchers’ circuform script on some farmer’s crops, which the watchers could see from the sky.

One of them came down to investigate during the night, so she captured it and dragged it to a secluded location, where she spoke to it,

I want to make a deal.

Her emotionless hostage replied,

We don’t negotiate with terrorists.

I think you will make an exception with this terrorist. I started the revolution. People already know about you now, and if you don’t leave me alone, I’ll show them where you are. I’m willing to fuck up your little experiment.

The hostage looked into her eyes and spoke calmly,

Go ahead, see if we care.

Oh, but I know you do. I know the last thing you would like right now is for people to find out about you. Your overlord has plans for us, its little experiment isn’t over yet.

The hostage lost its composure,

How do you know all—Then it realized it had shown emotion and tried to fix it—Well, it doesn’t matter that you know.

She smiled at the hostage and said,

Oh, but it does. I only have one request. I’ll stop my political activities, but you have to do one thing for me—

If you want them to take you seriously, you also have to turn him in.

No, that’s COMPLETELY out of the question!

But she had gone into the negotiation knowing that was the price she would have to pay.

If you turn him in and cease all your political activities, we’re willing to let you free to carry on your life. Afterall, you are a fundamental part of the study. Having to incarcerate you was a tough call. But we have to lock away your little… abomination.

She doubted, struggling with the horrific betrayal, refusing to acknowledge she had already accepted the deal. She muttered,

He… He’ll be there when the capital falls to kill the Tyrant. Just take him after the Tyrant is dead, let him have his moment.

We thought you knew that—But the hostage stopped, smiling—Nevermind, it will be interesting to see your reaction. After all, the Tyrant was your fault, in case you have forgotten. We have it on tape. We can show you if you’d like.

She felt the strong urge to kill her hostage right then and there. But she had greater goals in mind, so she kept calm and said,

Now listen, I only have one demand. You have to tell this to your superiors: we thought we had stopped The Thing, but it’s back and stronger than ever. You have to stop it before it’s too late—

The Thing has been dead for thousands of years thanks to you, when you sent us to destroy its city. Remember?

No no, you don’t understand. It’s back, operating right under your noses. You have to guarantee that you’ll stop it, for good this time. I fear It has something terrible in store for us—

You’re delusional, woman. The Thing was destroyed. Sad!

No, listen to me. Whatever it’s planning, it’s big, you have to—

She heard the buzzing sounds in the distance of other watchers searching for her hostage, so she ran away.

The entire trip back to her mansion she spent going over what she had done, mentally flogging herself, as she was so used to doing by then. Once home, she noticed the lightbringer was acting weird. It broke her heart having condemned him, but she couldn’t help herself. Throughout the day she did her best to avoid him, even though what she wanted to do was to spend those last few days together. She realized how miserable she had made him for so long. But now it was too late to apologize and guilt tore her inside.

During dinner he poisoned her, and she knew it was because he suspected her betrayal. He believed she had betrayed him to save the Tyrant, but he was wrong. She had made the deal to stop The Thing, it was the only thing that mattered. But still she tried to warn him because she finally understood that a life in peace wasn’t worth it if she had to sacrifice everything else for it. After all, the watchers didn’t believe her warnings about The Thing, so she would have to take care of it by herself. No, she couldn’t do it alone, she needed the lightbringer’s help.

But cyanide killed her before she could explain herself. The next morning she revived with the first rays of dawn, as she had so many times before. She ran outside, only to find all the boats burned. Just as the lightbringer, she could fly no more, as the time of magic was long gone. She swam to the continent to find him before it was too late, determined to tell him the truth.

She searched everywhere for him, and it didn’t take long to find him. He appeared in all the newspapers, the mysterious man with sand for blood that was a great revolutionary in a past life. His quick rise in popularity accompanied the decline of the failing empire’s army. After only four days, a soldier told her the news:

Tomorrow we march on the capital.

Now she knew exactly where she would find him: prepared to meet his fate.