The Fallen

by Anne Schlea

  There’s a murmur in the room that is silenced quickly.

  “The location of a rebel Fallen city was discovered last week.” Riley looks over the group of gathered officers. He briefs them on their visit to the city, that they were welcomed inside, and that there was no hostility detected by Anna’s empathic abilities. “I know many of us have lost comrades to what we believed were Fallen blades. We now believe those deaths were the result of demon attacks. One of the original Thirteen is holed up in a stronghold nearby. This demon is Discord and it will do anything to create chaos among us. It is believed Discord has been ingrained here for at least ten years.”

  Riley pauses to let the information sink in. Anna sees many officers sink back in their seats. She knows exactly how they feel. They’ve been living a lie, fighting battles based on a lie, for a decade. For some, their entire military career has been shadowed in false truth.

  “Tomorrow a group from the new city will join us here at Orasul so we can start to make things right.” He looks around the room. “You will recognize some of them. I’m here today to make it clear no one should engage these Fallen in anything but friendship. They’ve agreed to come here to meet with us and should be treated as our guests.”

  The meeting continues for quite a while with questions and answers. Riley does his best to give as much accurate information as possible, but he’s forced to answer, we don’t know too many times. It’s well after lunch when they’re finally dismissed. Many of the officers fall back into their seats after the dismissal, the reality of their new world sinking in.

  “Anna.” Keagan had been sitting a few seats down from Anna in the meeting. She turns toward his voice and nods in greeting. “It’s nice to see they finally decided to make you official.”

  “Thank you.” She shakes the hand he offered, warmed by the growing feeling of friendship she has for the archer.

  “You knew about all this yesterday?” He nods toward the front podium where Riley still stands in conversation with two officers. Power point renditions of Anna’s map disappear from the screen overhead while it retracts back into the ceiling. Around the room, groups of Fallen talk quietly together or sit in stunned silence in their seats.

  “I did.” Riley’s report detailed their visit, including Anna’s assessment of Corrine’s intentions.

  “Then I was right.” He shakes his head in dismay. “You really did deserve that win. You were solid as a rock in that range.”

  “I got really good at pretending nothing was wrong when I lived out in the world,” Anna confides. She hugs her binder to her chest; out in a world she’s going to have to go back to soon. How strange that the idea of going back makes her so uncomfortable now. “I shouldn’t have won.”

  Keagan chuckles and starts to move past her. “I look forward to an opportunity to serve with you, Lieutenant.”

  Anna looks to Kurt who stands a few steps away waiting for her.

  “You need to head straight down to supply and have yourself measured. I want my officers to look crisp for tomorrow’s meeting.” He hands her another packet. “The seamstress said she’d get your casual uniform done by the morning if you can get down there right now.”

  “I’m on my way.” Anna tucks the packet into the pocket of her binder and makes her way out of the auditorium. Several other officers stop her to congratulate her on her win at the festival, but she eventually makes it out of the facility and into the main hallway.

  The trip to supply takes less time than Anna expects. She’s in and out quickly and the seamstress promises to have her new uniform ready and delivered first thing in the morning so Anna would be ready for the one o’clock meeting with the rebel Fallen. Walking out of the shop, she receives a text from Marissa, shopping. Anna replies and slides her phone back into her pocket.

  ∞∞∞

  Where r u?

  Anna looks down at her phone and smiles. She’d gone to grab some lunch after she left the supply shop and ended up wasting away most of the afternoon with a book and her lunch up on the roof of Orasul. There were cleaners up here with her picking up after the festival, but the crisp cold of December feels good.

  She looks at the time and realizes so much time has passed she should be thinking about dinner. Her fingers quickly type. On my way home. Be there in a few.

  The cell phone goes back in Anna’s pocket, she picks up her lunch left overs, and tucks her book under her arm. It amuses Anna to know she uses a cell phone more since the move back to Orasul than she ever used one out in the world. Here she’s more plugged into life. She has an important job and Marissa has more friends. And, of course, now she has Riley.

  Riley’s already waiting on Anna’s sofa when she lets herself into her house. He has a tablet in his hands and is reading through something. Anna raises an eyebrow. While parts of the military of the Fallen are very high tech, she’s never seen a personal computer, laptop, or tablet the entire time she’s been at Orasul.

  “A tablet?” She shuts the door behind her and puts her lunch dishes in the sink.

  “I borrowed it from the office.” He saves whatever he’s working on. “We have a lot of toys down in the military offices you can’t find up here. I heard Mia was teenager sitting tonight.”

  “So it would seem.” Anna turns around and leans on the counter. “I’m not cool enough.”

  Riley chuckles. “There’s a pianist playing downstairs in the auditorium tonight. Would you like to go?”

  “That would be nice.” She looks down at herself, still dressed for work. “I need to change first. Can you give me a few minutes?”

  Anna looks in her closet and pulls out a casual dress she hasn’t worn in a while, then shoes and a little jewelry. She can hear Riley’s voice in the living room. “Kurt told me you’ve been given your rank.”

  “How much did you have to do with that?” She runs a brush through her hair and goes back into the living room.

  “Absolutely nothing, it’s all Kurt’s call to decide what to do with you. I didn’t want it to look like I was playing favorites.” Riley looks up from the tablet, his eyes going soft. “You look beautiful.”

  “Thank you.” She kisses him on the cheek. “I don’t believe you.”

  “That you’re beautiful?” He grabs hold of her waist and pulls her in for a better kiss. “That’s completely the truth.”

  “No, the part about how I get magically promoted from private to Second Lieutenant.” Anna leans back in Riley’s arms. “You can’t possibly make me believe you didn’t have anything to do with that.”

  “I truly didn’t.” He looks like he’s honestly telling her the truth. He shakes his head, eyebrows raised. “When you came back I placed you under Kurt’s command. I haven’t had any input since. I even need him to sign off on assignments if you and I go out of patrol together. As you have pointed out on more than one occasion, it might otherwise be a conflict of interest. Kurt thought you needed to be a leader. The only way to do that is to make you an officer. You earned those bars because you work hard with the students; you take initiative with the line, and hold yourself together when things get tough.”

  Anna smiles when Riley leans in and kisses her on the mouth. “Fine, I believe you. Now I don’t want to talk about work anymore tonight.”

  “Sounds fantastic.” He reaches down to power off the tablet and then sets it carefully on Anna’s dining room table to pick up later. “Normal night out?”

  “That’s the plan.” Anna leans into Riley, absorbing some of the energy of his body. It’s like a drug, she can’t ever get enough. Several minutes and more kissing later, she pulls back and laughs. “We’re not going to get to the out part of the evening if we don’t get moving.”

  “I don’t see a problem with that.” Smiling, his kisses start to trail behind her ear.

  “Marissa’s probably already on her way home.” Giggling, Anna gives a half-hearted attempt at pushing him away. “She could walk in the door at any moment.”

 
Making an unhappy sound in the back of his throat, Riley pulls back far enough to look at Anna through narrowed eyes. “You’re playing dirty.”

  “Alas, it’s the truth of my life.” Giving Riley one last kiss on the cheek, she steps away and grabs her purse and phone. “The good news is that you have a place of your own that’s completely child-free if we have anything we need to talk about after the concert.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Anna’s new uniform is delivered to her door at seven the next morning. The crisp black pants are neatly pressed and the perfect length for her heeled black dress shoes. Her black polo shirt has her name embroidered careful onto it with her rank and her bars. She feels a surge of pride as she looks into the mirror, her hair twisted into a bun at the back of her neck.

  Even though it’s early, she picks up her binder and heads for Riley’s office.

  There’s a flurry of activity in the military’s main headquarters. Dozens of officers and admins are bustling about, all in their casual dress uniforms. Anna approaches Riley’s office and glances through the open door. He sees her and waves her in.

  “Busy morning?” She asks as his secretary hurries out with a stack of folders.

  “Very.” He shuffles another stack of papers from the middle of his desk into a drawer. “I wish I could give up the paperwork part of my job. I’d much rather be fighting than filing.”

  “Comes with the territory, General.” Anna grins at him, secretly sympathetic for his feelings. The paperwork for her job at the school isn’t terrible, but it’s also a duty she’d like to do without. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “No.” Riley looks out his open door and into the central office. “I expected to be alone when I got down here. All I really want is a few minutes to clear my head.”

  Well, if that doesn’t make a girl feel wanted. “Do you need me to leave?”

  “No, I was just about to walk down to the Floor of Justice anyway.” He arranges the items on his desk one more time. It seems like a nervous movement juts to give his hands something to do, maybe to kill time. “Come, walk with me.”

  “Don’t you think we’re going to be really early?” Anna watches Riley close his door behind him. They walk into the main hallway and set out toward the stairs, a pair of secretaries rushing past him.

  “I’d rather be early than the last one to arrive.” He holds the door to the stairwell open for her. She can see the tension in his muscles and around his neck. It’s obvious he’s anxious over the arrival of the rebel Fallen.

  Anna tries to correct the thought in her mind. They aren’t really rebel Fallen. That’s only what the Committee let them believe.

  “Looks like we’re not the only ones who wanted to be early.” The hallway outside the Committee Chambers is crowded. Kurt stands with Mia near the railing overlooking the grand atrium. Keagan is a few steps away deep in conversation with Putere’s secretary-guard, Isabel. The contingent from the other city is there waiting, too. They stand in a tight group near the Committee Chamber doors, watching the room with warry eyes. Maxim meets Anna’s eyes from across the room and she sees shock ripple across his face.

  He must not have been expecting her to be there.

  He breaks away from his group and approaches her carefully. His movements are slow and measured like he’s proving his intent. Before he reaches Anna, Riley steps in front of him and holds out a hand. “Maxim.”

  Maxim looks at Riley like he isn’t sure if the General is serious. When he doesn’t draw back, Maxim shakes his hand. The tension drains out of the room in an instant. Maxim nods at him. “I’m sorry, I’m at a loss. I don’t think I know you.”

  “Of course not, I’m a good bit younger than you. I’m Riley Wares.” Riley looks back over his shoulder at Anna. “This is my partner.”

  Maxim’s eyes lock back on Anna. He shakes his head in disbelief. “You look like your sister.”

  “You should see my daughter.” Anna swallows the last bit of her unsettled stomach and reaches out to shake his hand. She’s the General’s partner. It’s her duty to put her best foot forward and do the right thing.

  “I had heard you disappeared.” He looks relieved she doesn’t shy away from him. All around them other Fallen are closely watching their interaction. Together they are setting the precedent.

  “I heard the same about you.” Anna smiles lightly. Now isn’t the time to get into the details of the last ten years. Especially not with Maxim in front of half the military leadership of two cities.

  “Fair enough,” he nods, half a grin on his face. His face changes and grows serious again. “I’m truly sorry for what happened to Lily. It wasn’t my intention or my desire to harm her and had I another option I would have taken it.”

  There’s nothing like throwing all your cards on the table at once. Anna fights her body and doesn’t take a step back. She keeps her outward calm while she shakes with shock on the inside. In truth, what could any of this change? Lily’s dead. Neither Anna’s anger nor Maxim’s regrets can alter that. “I believe you. But what’s done is done and cannot be changed.”

  Maxim looks like he has a reply, but Putere emerges from the Committee Chamber doors. “Since we’re all here, why don’t we get started. Please follow me.”

  Anna looks over at Riley. He nods to her once and then looks at Maxim. “After you.”

  All twelve Committee members are seated in their positions around the Committee Chambers. Anna has a moment of hesitation. The last time all twelve members, as far her memory knows, were in this chamber together was the day Lily died. She remembers her place and keeps moving. She stops to Riley’s left, a step behind his shoulder. Kurt is to Riley’s immediate right and the rest fill in around them.

  Maxim and his people stand on the other side of the chamber.

  Putere takes his seat in the center of the chamber. The female Committee member Anna had seen at the other city sits beside him. They both look like they’ve aged a decade in the last few days.

  The woman looks at everyone gathered and then starts to speak. “For those who do not know me, my name is Sarah. Ten years ago, a squadron of Fallen soldiers tracked a den of demons into the city to our south. They faced the demons in their own nest and without knowing it they fought one of the original demon Lords released from Pandora’s Box. One of our own soldiers was infected with venom from this demon. It took many weeks until Jonathan began to show the signs, but eventually those close to him could not deny something was wrong. In a moment of madness, his own friend was forced to kill him.”

  “Jonathan’s wife declared vengeance and went after the soldier. She was killed and Orasul was divided in two – the city of Orasul and the city of Hope.” Sarah stands from her seat and looks directly at Anna. “The Committee divided with the city and we kept it a secret to protect the people.”

  “Yesterday was spent in conference with the Committees of all other Fallen cities. What we will tell you now we tell you with the full confidence of all leaders of the Fallen nation.” Putere pushes up from his chair and came to stand beside Sarah. “Over the last ten years the demon population around the demon Lord’s nest has grown. More of our own population have been killed by demons in the last five years than in five decades. Similar events have happened in other Fallen cities. It is our belief at this time the demon Lords are building an army of immense proportions.”

  “We will respond with our own warriors, unlike any seen among the Fallen in almost a thousand years.” Sarah moves to walk among the gathered soldiers. “We have a history to lead us to what we believe is the prison that will hold the demon Lords for an eternity. We believe the time approaches for our people to return home.”

  “No offense, madam Committee member, but we’ve been told that same story for two thousand years, ever since the Greek’s gave us the job.” Maxim turns to meet Riley’s gaze. When Riley nods in agreement, he asks, “Why should we believe this is any different?”

  “Would you care to
answer him, Mia?” Putere moves his gaze to Riley’s sister.

  “I’ve read the history and several of the prophecies about such a prison. I think I can find the hidden prison built by our forefathers.” Mia’s voice is calm. She sounds completely confident. Anna is struck by how alive Mia looks. “If the building specifications are what it says they are, I believe it will hold them.”

  “We just have to capture them.” Riley raises his eyebrows at his sister. “That will take an army bigger than any one Fallen city.”

  “That’s why we work together.” Sarah returns to her seat. “All Fallen cities, here and around the world. We coordinate under one General, fight under one banner. We will be victorious.”

  “There’s more to show you. Riley, Kurt, Anna, and Mia, please come forward.” Putere holds out his hands.

  “Maxim and Ariel, you as well.” Sarah steps back to stand beside Putere. “If the rest of you will wait, we will return soon.”

  ∞∞∞

  Putere turns and starts to walk toward the doors at the back of the Committee chamber. “Please come with me.”

  Riley exchanges a look with Maxim and Anna. “Who are you expecting to follow you?”

  “All six of you.” Sarah smiles gently at them. “We want you to enter the inner sanctum of the Fallen with us. A quest is laid at your feet. Come.”

  The six soldiers, a divided group from each side of the divided city, follow Putere through doors that are only meant to be used by the sacred members of the Committee. They lead into a dark stone passage lit not by the gaslights as in the outer hallways, but by torches affixed to the walls. The passage way takes them to a narrow stone staircase diving deeper into the heart of the earth. Even Riley, who lived his entire life in an underground city, starts to feel a little uncomfortable. He wonders for a minute if this is actually a passage to the center of the earth.

  Putere says nothing; he keeps moving slowly down the stairs, each step measured. Riley’s fully aware of the other Committee members following close behind. It seems absurd and frightening all at the same time: the twelve Committee members together again for the first time in almost a decade, top ranking officers from two cities fighting a war, and a tunnel that leads into the darkness.