Take Me Back
She opened the hatch and slid in quickly, hoping that she hadn't been seen by a patrol. Once safely inside the sewer, she pressed her back to the wall and slid into a sitting position on the floor, sobbing quietly.
"What is it?" He wheeled his chair over to her. "What did you see?" After three years of being the only two left, they no longer found it necessary to greet each other. And he no longer found it odd that what she saw would torment her for the rest of her life.
"Fifty…" She sniffled. "Fifty of them…strung up in the square."
"Well, we just have to stay strong. If we give up now, their deaths mean nothing." He wheeled back to one of the tables. It was difficult to find anything in the makeshift situation room/armory, but he finally was able to dig out a few bombs. "I need you to plant these at the East Side generator. If we can shut it down we can…" He turned to see her still sitting, giving the floor in front of her a blank stare. "You listening?"
Her voice was quiet and reserved "I can't do this anymore."
"What?" He could feel the sense of betrayal he knew so well rise up in him once again. "So, what? You're just going to give up? People are dying! There's only one way to stop this!"
She stood up and walked towards him. "No. Everyone who's died, all their deaths might mean nothing, but going in could bring an end to the death! Don't you get it! Yes, people are dying," she couldn't hold back the tears any longer. "People are dying…and it's our fault! I can't do it! I'm sorry!" With that, she turned her back on him and unlocked the hatch.
"Can you take me back?"
The question hit her like a ton of bricks. It took everything to maintain the little composure she had regained. She kept her voice quiet. "Not this time. I'm sorry." She opened the hatch. From outside, a patrol could be heard hovering by overhead.
It's monotone message rang out for all who were left to hear. "All rebel agents: surrender, and you will be shown leniency. Resist, and…" The warning faded as the patrol continued on.
"I'm sorry," she said again. She walked out and shut the hatch, leaving him hopelessly alone. She walked into the square, under the hanging bodies, into the Palace. She deactivated herself as a rebel agent, and was held in custody for the usual four hours to ensure that her surrender was not, in fact, a rebel operation. However, instead of being released, she was herded into the square, where she saw all the other agents that had surrendered over the years. They were executed, one by one. That night, the room in the sewers was raided, and the rebellion was at last eradicated.
Five more had let that day, leaving them as the last remnant of the rebellion. He just sat there on the floor, staring off into the distance.
"Can you take me back?" he asked. "Back to when we had hope?"
"Always."