Reborn Heart of Steel

The kind of scene last observed was that of the Brighton City streets, appearing more like a battleground. When Zoe drove her car through the confusion, I could hardly recognize the familiar scenery with the nightmare that was happening in front of me. Thick plumes rose from several points; the screeching of fire trucks heralded smoke. ‘We need a plan,’ Chase said from the backseat, his tone steel edged, but clear.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

“Where do we even start?” Zoe’s hands had gripped the steering wheel tightly and her knuckles had turned pale white. “City Hall. If The Raven has the mayor and city officials, that is where he should be,” she said. I couldn’t get in the car fast enough, my adrenaline threatened to overpower me ‘It’s agreed, but we can’t go in blind. We need information and workforce. ‘ “The whole thing is compromised,” Zoe had to remind us in a very serious manner. What we got there is not reliable in a way that we can count on backup from there. An idea came to me all of a sudden. “But how about Detective Morris? He has been investigating this case since the very beginning and, I suppose, he understands everything that is happening. ” Zoe’s eyes lit up. “Well said. Last time I talked to him, he was working with the FBI at some undisclosed location. I think I should give him a call. ” Meanwhile, I saw Zoe make the call and thus glanced at Chase.

‘How are you?'” He tried desperately to look cheerful and all that he could muster was a very feeble smile. “Could’ve been worse, at least my sides not bleeding. I don’t plan on losing this round. You? Your parents…?” “I called my dad,” I said, and it is apparent my voice was concerned. ” ‘That is why I told them to get out of the city. I hope they listen to my advice. ‘ Immediately before Chase had time to reply, this statement had enraged Zoe, who immediately proceeded to utter a string of curses. “Bloody hell, Morris is not picking up his phone, we are on our own. ” Another bang went off, much nearer this time selecting the car as its target. In a nearby office building, I could see the windows blown out and the walls with flames flickering through the windows. “Wait!” yelled Zoe as she maneuvered the car to dodge what was in front of her car. The car swerved dangerously, much like a fish oscillating left and right with grayish black asphalt sliding against the rubber of the tires before she managed to bring the car under check. A great HG welling up in my chest. I looked one way and saw this: Opposite us grim, dull cafe life. There were cars on the right side of the road completely wrecked, streetlamps that had fallen, and large sections of the pavement which had crumbled to form a dam that could not be crossed. We will have to proceed on foot,” Zoe stated, bringing the car to the side of the road. She looked at the glove compartment and pulled out another gun, “Take this. ” She said as she handed it to me, adding, “And both of you, stay close. ”

I had no idea Zoe was capable of all she was doing. As soon as my feet touched the asphalt when we got out of the car, the realization of the severity of the situation came over me; thick smoke filled the air, the smell of burning chemicals in the atmosphere. From time to time, gun salvos blended with the loud sound of the police siren and the cries of the scared citizens went ringing in my ears. We advanced as fast as we could without sticking to the darkness all the time we could. I had this eerie feeling that somebody was following us as we moved around the streets full of debris. “Look,” Chase whispered, indicating to a group of people in front. They strode with intent, wearing plain outfits that were black like all the people from The Raven that we had faced before. Zoe signaled to us to hide behind an upturned bus. “They are going in the direction of City Hall,” she noted. “We could follow them, use them as a path to get closer. ” I kept silent, but something like a small voice inside my head told me that something was wrong. They don’t feel the dog is working at the level she previously did, and there is something that feels a bit too easy, as if they are watching the dog’s behavior being managed. “Well, maybe we are,” Chase growled. “But we do not have any other choice. ” He was right. In any case, we couldn’t afford to stay still anymore. Squatting down, we followed the group while keeping a safe distance from them, thanks to the confusion created by the general commotion. The closer we got to City Hall, the closer we found ourselves to actual reality. A great stone structure which once represented the pride of the city was here partially in ruins. Broken glass lay on the front steps and dark uniformed guards with guns strolled around the grounds. “This is crazy,” I said under my breath. “How was The Raven able to do this? It’s as if he has got an army of his own. ” Zoe’s expression was grim. Instead, she sighed and said “I get the feeling that we are going to discover soon just how far up this plot goes. ” We waited anxiously as the group that we were observing got closer to the guards. Much to our amazement, they were allowed through unfettered on that front.

“They cannot be exempted from having some form of identification,” Chase speculated. “If only we could lay our hands on it …” It was the only way in which, before a thundering sound broke out, we could start developing a strategy. But looking up, Boon and I saw numerous helicopters flying above the ground with the searchlights on. “Federal response,” Zoe said with a disposition of slight relief in her tone. “Perhaps it would be better not to go too fast, and it turns out that maybe we are not alone after all. ” Yet just as the helicopters started approaching, something was beginning to bother me. Their creation was much too tactical, their actions too procedural to be of bedlam down below. All of a sudden, the lead chopper started firing not at the fully-armed men encircling City Hall but at the handful of police cars that arrived at the scene. “No,” Zoe said the last word slowly, and she could almost physically see the realization spread across her face. “This is not our job to do. They are involved in it. ” I had this sinking feeling, and it was as though someone or something had punched me in the chest. The Raven had an impact on many aspects of our lives which we never could have envisioned. Well, how in the world could we ever plan on stopping such a large-scale event? Before I could finish that thought, my telephone rang, exactly as if it was responding to my musings. The number was unknown, but I recognized it, but I still picked up the call and put the call in speaker mode. “Hello, Brianne. ” The chill of the voice reached up to touch my neck before that cultured voice came through the static of The Raven. “Frankly, you have great spirit fighting for it. I must admit you must also realize now that it is useless. ” “What do you want”? I asked, trying hard to make my voice normal. “Why? An invitation, of course, to you and your friends. There is a place for you in the new society I am planning to create when I am the ruler of this city, and it is possible that you will follow my directions, and you will get a chance to work for me, to serve the new order, accompanying me through the main doors of this City Hall. ” I looked at Chase and Zoe and asked them, ‘You never thought that you would be wrong, right?’ Was this another trap? Or would it be our last opportunity to come nearer so that we could prevent him from going on with his mission? “And if we refuse?” Chase asked, and the harshest tone filled his words. The Raven’s chuckle did not sound like a pleasant one. There is no way to allow anyone to be mistaken for me for doing the same, because they, too, were to join the rest of this city in its dying moments. I had ten minutes to make my decision. There was silence after I heard the person at the other end of the line saying, ‘is this line dead? ‘ “We can earnestly be proposing this?” Zoe asked, and I noted she did it more for argument’s sake than out of genuine disbelief. I looked at the City hall building in front and tried to get my bearings. “What if… what if this is our opportunity? To infiltrate, to discover his motive. .?” Chase nodded slowly. Being rather ambitious, it has been considered by employees as the only viable, but still very dangerous, option. Zoe stood in-between us, looking fiercely at me; the battle ready etched on her face. Finally, she sighed. “I do not like it, but you are right. We do not have any other course to take. ” With a spirit that can only be described as grim, we stepped out from the shadow we had been cowering in and started to make our way towards City Hall. The armed men followed our path with their guns pointed upwards. I felt the tightness in my chest as we ascended the stairs one by one. This could be walking into certain death, or it may be one shot to put an end to all this horror. Finally, when we got to the top of the stairs, doors big enough to let chariots pass through opened. At the entrance door, standing with two bodyguards, was a man I had seen in his ads, campaigns, and news magazines Mayor Richard Hartley. But something was wrong. His eyes were rolling; he was staring blankly And his speech was slow and monotonous. “Welcome,” said Romen, whose face was stuck in a grin that looked more like a snarl. “Tomorrow is another day and The Raven is here to greet you. So, do come in and celebrate the new you”. When we crossed the entrance, the doors of the place shut with a sound that gave me an eerie feeling in my inner beings. It is important here to use the term ‘belly of the beast’ since it would have been impossible for us to escape. , Mayor Hartley showed us doors opening to non-existent rooms and corridors. It was different from the normal feeling of City Hall, there was a heaviness in the air that we could only hear our own footsteps. Lastly, we came face to face with a pair of gilded, elaborately carved doors that resembled a huge pair of two twenty-four inch tall golden peacock eyes peering at you. The mayor forced them and opened, and then he saw something which he could not believe. The large room across the door had changed into a technologically advanced central operational room. Sheer frosted screens were located on the walls close to two-sided sides that presented the live stream of the city. And right at the heart of it was The Raven sitting on what could be best described as a throne.

He stood up as we came in, his eyes hidden by the mask he wore were unreadable. “Little did I know the man of the hour was preparing to arrive, ‘Bless you, my dear guests. Welcome to the future, you young people. ‘” He was a few steps away and suddenly the floor seemed to shift under my feet. Chase and Zoe were also unsteady on their feet. “What? What did you do to us?” I was able to stammer out. My tongue felt oddly heavy in my mouth. The Raven’s eyes literally twinkled in what could have been a smile behind the mask. “It is just an additional, you know, insurance. You can, you have roused the masses and stirring things up. ” He flicked his fingers and next thing I knew was that my body had rendered me useless. Even my limbs seemed to be out of control because my body did not follow my instructions. “Now then,” The Raven said, getting into a trance-like state. “You should know by now that you have your place in the new world order. All things considered, I believe that my offer is going to be difficult to refuse, no matter how much you want to. ” As he spoke I found myself gradually losing even the last remnants of spirit. Suddenly losing my sight slowly and quickly, I observed Chase and Zoe’s eyes turn dull, similar to the mayor’s expression. In my last moment of clarity, a terrifying thought crystallized in my mind: We never got to the point of becoming able to say that we had infiltrated The Raven team. So here we’d just give him exactly what he wanted. The screen went off and with it the hope of stopping our city, and us from turning into pieces of ash.