believed that I was the killer. However, the commander’s pale face and ashen body told a different story. The White had murdered her.
But why kill the commander? It was all I could think, as the room filled with people. Both Trigon and human guards helped move the dead body to another room, but I remained frozen in the same
position, still thinking, trying desperately to get my head around what had just happened. The death of the commander was a shattering event. It would affect all of us, whether we let it or not. I
was still in a daze when the boy ran into the room.
“The Pure One,” he said and I knew he understood.
The boy ushered everyone out of the room, save for himself and me, and closed the doors. I still hadn’t moved from my spot by the bed.
“What happened?” he asked.
I shook my head, telling him I didn’t know and explained that I had found the commander in that state.
“What were you doing here so early in the morning?” he asked. His tone wasn’t accusing and he spoke no differently than he would utter any other sentence.
I told him about my dream, but deliberately left out the section where I became part of the White.
“So, you dreamt up the Pure One?” he muttered, thinking aloud. “It’s almost as if you have some sort of connection with it.”
I sucked in a breath, as he came dangerously close to the truth. “And now The Pure One knows everything,” I finished for him, “where we are, what we’re doing, absolutely
everything.”
The boy glanced back to where the commander’s body once lay. “Why do you suppose it killed her and not us?”
“I was wondering the same thing,” I admitted. “After all, if the prophecy is right, we’re of greater use to the cause. If it really wanted to harm the Red and disrupt the
rebellion, it could have killed one or both of us.”
“Unless that wasn’t what the White was after,” the boy replied.
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. If the White went to all the trouble of locating us and breaking in without anyone knowing, they could have easily brought their armies here and launched a surprise
attack.”
“We would have been unprepared and instantly killed,” I continued, following his train of thought.
“Yet, but they didn’t do that and, instead, they chose a high official as their target.”
“Do you mean to say this might just be a warning from them?”
“Exactly,” the boy confirmed. “We are now in the middle of a game where the victor wins all.”
“And the loser loses their life.”
C HAPTER 9
The commander’s death accelerated the plans for the rebellion. We were all still in the initial throes of panic following her death, but we were also dealing with the
biggest question in everyone’s mind: Who would take over now that the commander was dead?
We hadn’t discussed announcing the appointment of a new leader before and now that the commander was dead, we decided the news could wait until she was at least buried. In the meantime,
rumors broke out amongst the people concerning General Gerrard or General Devonport ascending to the leadership. Everyone knew that now was the time to pick sides to make or break their
fortunes.
Due to her being in the service of the commander for the longest, support for General Devonport was especially evident. People of all different ages and reasons camped outside her quarters at
night to be the first to hand her requests and other forms in the morning. The boy suggested that Devonport keep silent about the real happenings, and though she wasn’t happy about it, she
managed to do so.
I recognized the pain it caused her to see the cause so divided between potential candidates for the leadership. I knew she wanted to tell everyone that the matter had already been decided. She
believed that making the announcement would solve everything and end the chaos, but the boy and I knew better.
Instead, the boy and I spent the time planning the cause’s future.
But why kill the commander? It was all I could think, as the room filled with people. Both Trigon and human guards helped move the dead body to another room, but I remained frozen in the same
position, still thinking, trying desperately to get my head around what had just happened. The death of the commander was a shattering event. It would affect all of us, whether we let it or not. I
was still in a daze when the boy ran into the room.
“The Pure One,” he said and I knew he understood.
The boy ushered everyone out of the room, save for himself and me, and closed the doors. I still hadn’t moved from my spot by the bed.
“What happened?” he asked.
I shook my head, telling him I didn’t know and explained that I had found the commander in that state.
“What were you doing here so early in the morning?” he asked. His tone wasn’t accusing and he spoke no differently than he would utter any other sentence.
I told him about my dream, but deliberately left out the section where I became part of the White.
“So, you dreamt up the Pure One?” he muttered, thinking aloud. “It’s almost as if you have some sort of connection with it.”
I sucked in a breath, as he came dangerously close to the truth. “And now The Pure One knows everything,” I finished for him, “where we are, what we’re doing, absolutely
everything.”
The boy glanced back to where the commander’s body once lay. “Why do you suppose it killed her and not us?”
“I was wondering the same thing,” I admitted. “After all, if the prophecy is right, we’re of greater use to the cause. If it really wanted to harm the Red and disrupt the
rebellion, it could have killed one or both of us.”
“Unless that wasn’t what the White was after,” the boy replied.
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. If the White went to all the trouble of locating us and breaking in without anyone knowing, they could have easily brought their armies here and launched a surprise
attack.”
“We would have been unprepared and instantly killed,” I continued, following his train of thought.
“Yet, but they didn’t do that and, instead, they chose a high official as their target.”
“Do you mean to say this might just be a warning from them?”
“Exactly,” the boy confirmed. “We are now in the middle of a game where the victor wins all.”
“And the loser loses their life.”
C HAPTER 9
The commander’s death accelerated the plans for the rebellion. We were all still in the initial throes of panic following her death, but we were also dealing with the
biggest question in everyone’s mind: Who would take over now that the commander was dead?
We hadn’t discussed announcing the appointment of a new leader before and now that the commander was dead, we decided the news could wait until she was at least buried. In the meantime,
rumors broke out amongst the people concerning General Gerrard or General Devonport ascending to the leadership. Everyone knew that now was the time to pick sides to make or break their
fortunes.
Due to her being in the service of the commander for the longest, support for General Devonport was especially evident. People of all different ages and reasons camped outside her quarters at
night to be the first to hand her requests and other forms in the morning. The boy suggested that Devonport keep silent about the real happenings, and though she wasn’t happy about it, she
managed to do so.
I recognized the pain it caused her to see the cause so divided between potential candidates for the leadership. I knew she wanted to tell everyone that the matter had already been decided. She
believed that making the announcement would solve everything and end the chaos, but the boy and I knew better.
Instead, the boy and I spent the time planning the cause’s future.
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