The Circadia Chronicles: Omnibus: The Complete Colonization Sci-Fi Series by Heather Heckadon (books to read to get smarter .txt) 📗

"What can we do though?" Jane asked.

"We're here to spread the word. Right?" I directed my question to the brothers.

"Absolutely. The more people that surrender to the Divinity, the fewer armed citizens we have to fight for our cause. We have to make people see."

Smith shifted in his seat. "But they already see, right? Why else would they be fighting?"

The brothers exchanged a look, then Phillip answered. "It's difficult to hold your conviction when there's temptation." Ross grabbed the TV remote and turned on the flatscreen. "Check this out. It happened today right before we landed."

I focused on the screen mounted to the wall. The news cut to a scene with a crowd of people. They looked disheveled and starving. Hundreds raised their protest signs high against an organized line of well-fed uniforms. Their chants roared until one of the men in uniform stood on top of a truck with a microphone. "Stop now. Join us, and you can eat. Now," he yelled. He lifted a tarp from the back of the truck to reveal a pile of MREs and junk food. The chants quieted until they stopped altogether. Signs dropped to the ground, and people proceeded to grab the food. They left with the uniformed soldiers.

The screen powered off, but I continued to stare at it. How do you fight that? How do you convince people to stand their ground when it's so much easier not to?

"Aella." Phillip sat after turning off the television and held my gaze. "I know you're probably wondering how you could help that situation, am I right?"

I nodded.

"You were willing to lay down your life for your people on Circadia. We need you to inspire others to do the same. It's in you. You only have to share it."

Smith spoke up. "What's in it for you guys?"

They exchanged glances the way they always did and smiled. "We have power here. We have worked for years to gain our type of freedom. We have things the government cannot touch that give us power, and we're not ready to give that up."

"What keeps you from doing the same bad as the Divinity?" Jane asked.

"Nothing, but we're not asking anything of anyone. We only want to keep what's ours." Ross shifted in his seat. "It's outrageous to work your life away to hand your life's work over to someone because they asked. Taxes are bad enough." He rolled his eyes and sat back.

"All right then." I stood and extended my hand to the two brothers. "Where do we start?"

CHAPTER FOUR

"We thought we should start with the news outlets. Show people what you've done for freedom. Play the clip and let your actions speak for themselves, then relate it to their problem." Phillip grabbed his phone. "I've placed calls to some organizations, and there are a couple who have called back. I figured we would start there."

I glanced at Smith and Jane, who looked worried. I was a bit nervous too. I'd never been on TV except for Grow. The idea of a formal interview was intimidating. What if I couldn’t think of an answer to their questions? What if I looked ridiculous? What if I wasn’t the one people wanted to see?

"We thought about getting you an interview coach, but we want you to be real and honest on air. It's something they won't expect," Ross explained. "If you're agreeable, I can have an interview set up for tomorrow evening."

Tomorrow evening was awfully soon. "Okay, on one condition," I said.

The brothers stared back at me with confusion. They obviously hadn't anticipated a negotiation. "What's that?" they asked in unison.

"I want you to take me outside the walls."

"Aella, it's dangerous."

"I know. I don't care. I need to see it. If I'm going to speak to the people and inspire them, I need to understand what they're facing. Right? I’m not going to be like every other blind politician. I want to know what they’re going through. I want to feel what they’re dealing with. I need to know. Fully."

They nodded. "Guess you're right. Let's rest now. We can go out tomorrow morning," Ross said.

"I want to go now."

"Aella..." Smith grabbed my arm. "Why are you so difficult?"

I jerked my arm away and shot him a dirty look. "I don't want anything to be censored. I'd appreciate it if you didn't censor me, as well. Thank you."

"I'm sorry." He held his arms up in defense.

"It's more dangerous in the evening," Phillip advised. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"All right then. I guess, put your things in your rooms, and we’ll go. We’ll get a crew ready to go with us. Sound fair?" Ross winked at me.

"Yes. Thank you." I'd gotten pretty good at standing my ground but wondered if I should have. I was a little scared to go out into the city.

ONCE WE’D PUT OUR THINGS away, we all met back where we had talked before. When I walked into the room, I immediately noticed four extremely large men with black automatic rifles at their side. The Herrolds stood among them.

"What's this?" I motioned to the men with artillery.

"Your protection, and ours too, of course. We told you it's dangerous."

Just then, Jane walked out from the hallway into the room and yelped. "Yikes! What the hell, guys?"

"Jane!" I chided. "They're our protection. Calm down." I couldn't help wanting to laugh so I turned away. She was always one to say what was on her mind. No filter.

Smith entered the room soon after and acted like he didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Typical Smith.

"Everyone's here. Are you all ready?" Phillip asked.

I answered with conviction. "Yes." But to be honest, there was no confidence there at all. I figured earlier that they didn't want me to see all the horrors, but it was clear now I was putting us in danger. Maybe it was for the best. I needed to understand fully, and I had a feeling