The System

Prologue

By Dustin

            Divide and conquer.

            The phrase was in all their heads. The idea consumed all their waking moments. Even hers. It made her sick.

            “How are your preparations coming?”

            Her gut clenched, but she answered calmly. “They’re coming. Most of what we have left to do is wait.”

            “Good. Waiting is never easy, but our patience will pay off.”

            Divide. Conquer.

            Their voices, the discussion, the very room reeked of the idea. She could hardly stand to be here, to sit at the long, mahogany table with the well-dressed, well-mannered monsters around her.

            You’re just like them.

            I’m not. I’m doing what is necessary.

            “The day is not far now,” said a deep voice, one that seemed to resonate deep in her chest, penetrating her very soul. She suppressed a shudder. It was he that filled the room with the oppressive odor of the idea, the stench of conspiracy.

            “I’ve seen organizations rise and fall like the tides, some lasting thousands of years, but all doomed to fall,” the voice continued. “The Earthsphere Unified Nation, like all the governments before it, is simply a stepping stone in the transient nature of human existence, all leading up to the definitive moment that you are on the verge of reaching, on the verge of creating, bringing all mankind into fulfillment. It will be a proud day for me, as it should be for you all.”

            She felt his gaze on her and she forced herself to look up. His eyes seemed to fill her vision, shrouding the room around her with golden mist.

            Are you ready? his voice said inside her head. Are you ready, Kaldea Orchid?

            She closed her eyes. Yes.