Revenge

The sky itself cried at Caspian’s funeral. Raindrops poured on my skin, sliding loosely on my black silk dress. Even Iero itself couldn't help but weep.

It’d been five years, five whole years since the last unexplainable murder had occurred within our so-called impenetrable walls, and how could it? Cameras covered every inch of the public view, artificial robots roamed the streets at night with police, even the people were analyzed to see if them committing a purposeful crime was possible. Yet, one by one those safety measures had failed.

According to the police, all the cameras had, ahem, inexplicably, gone offline around four in the morning. Those artificial robots? Sudden change of parol times. And analyzing someone willing to commit a crime required a culprit.

I’d met five year olds willing to call this out.

How did no one see them? Was the police office so incompetent they couldn’t notice a blackout at the greatest university in Iero? Every second left me with another question, one they wouldn’t answer with a gun to their head.

“We gather here today to welcome a new chapter in our lives. One not filled with sorrow, but with nostalgic memories and bright futures ahead of us.” The funeral director sat on his pedestal in a little black suit below his prim and proper gray mustache. “Caspian King was a great man, brother, friend, and even president at Protel, a grand legacy that will go down in the history books. Our gathering is to mourn him, yes, but also to celebrate a life lived to the fullest.”

“To the fullest…” I scoffed, turning away. One more moment of this old man droning on about how he lived this grand life would make me puke. Yeah, he did, until someone murdered him for asking questions!

Over the week since his body was dumped on the campus lawn, my fury had only grown. Excuse after excuse, the police kept coming up with more excuses.

More fuel.

Caspian’s death had attracted half of the entire school to come out, something I couldn’t help but be a bit grateful for. Even most of my professors had taken the trip. Yet I could still see those same still, emotionless faces buried in the crowd–watching every inch of the funeral for the slightest hint of disobedience.

Kat and Sky both sat next to me, neither crying yet faces somber. This was the first time I’d seen Sky without a screen floating somewhere nearby since we’d met. That was the power Caspian had.

“I for one know his family are more than thankful for everyone that has come out today in this weather, letting Caspian King have the sendoff he deserves,” the funeral director continued. “Memories are a beautifully tragic thing. When Caspian and his sister Asta were ten, they lost their mother to a tragic accident, causing them both to re-evaluate their lives. When asked about this during the student council elections, Caspian affirmed that this moment was where he forced himself to change, and become that great man that so many of you hold dear.

He was a great president, great mentor, and great brother. I hope everyone today can take his lessons and sacrifices to heart, and use those to build a better tomorrow for everyone; a better Iero!”

As everyone applauded, I started at the ground, unwilling to give his noble sacrifice the mockery the crowd was so willing to heap on. Sacrifice? Sacrifice for what? It's as if everyone had conveniently forgotten the sign impaled through his chest!

Or more so, refuse to acknowledge that something of the sort could happen in Iero’s ironclad walls.

“Forget it.” I spat on the ground, quietly removing myself from the ensemble. Caspian wouldn’t have wanted me to waste my time mourning him. I reached for my umbrella, pausing as Kat held it shakily. Whatever, her or me one of us would be wet and miserable, might as well take that burden myself.

The graveyard was a shallow cut in Kivo, more a holding center than anything else. With a city of Iero’s size, actual personal graves were a near impossibility space wise for all those but the most impactful. Cremation was a lot more economical.

Past the rows of trees the facade started to fade. Concrete paths consumed the well trodden dirt, neon lights overcasting the simple lanterns and fireflies behind. Barely five minutes was all it took to run into the first skyscraper.

I didn’t have much, barely a clue to act on. Yet they’d screwed up. In whoever killed Caspian’s attempt to ward me off, they’d given me evidence of their existence. I couldn’t hide behind hope, not anymore. The funeral was proof of that. And even then, giving me a warning before dumping Caspian’s body on the streets the next day? Whatever Project Prometheus was, whatever Caspian had been researching, well all they did was give me ammo.

My feet dragged across the sidewalk. In this ponding rain, the cameras could only do so much, not that I had any grand plan.

I only had one hope. Surely they could tell all the efforts hadn’t unbridled me one bit, and someone this desperate wouldn’t give up. They hadn’t gone after Sky, they hadn’t gone after Kat. Just me.

As the sun hid for one last hour, I entered Kivo’s nightlife street. Ten o'clock sharp, right on time. “Hey girl, damn didn’t think I’d be seeing you tonight!”

“Of course! You know I’d never miss a weekend.” I said, putting on the fakest smile in the city. The red neon club lights escaped through the door as a familiar face opened the club’s door; The club’s bouncer, the exact same club where me and Harper had danced the night away just last week. “It’s been a week, you know how things change.”

“True that,” He grinned, “Well be safe in there. These days everything feels so tense.”
“Tell me about it.” I said, waving goodbye. If they felt confident enough to approach me here, then this was always going to be my destination.

I’d just have to hope lightning would strike the same place twice.