Rebel Stronghold - Deep Underground
Five months prior to the games
January 7th 2427
For as long as she can remember, Tatiana has lived a double life. At the age of fifteen, she masqueraded as a career, attempting to get rid of the old Capitol regime. She succeeded, and Saskia and The League are in power. Now she's masquerading as a rebel - that one isn't hard for her to do. She's been a rebel her entire life. The irony of it forms a smirk across her lips. Kate, Darrah, Grey… she never let herself care for any of these people, not when Saskia will order her to execute them, when the time comes.
And the time has come. In two weeks, she - along with every loyalist that she's recruited into the rebellion - will burn their entire base, and everyone in it, to the ground.
Finally, the time has come. She's tired of lies. She hates them. The truth has been bubbling up for over five years like a dormant volcano and at last, it's going to erupt.
She glimpses around her to the clueless cannon fodder, strolling through the tight, underground corridors. They're all going to die.
Then, her final task will be complete. She will get her seat at the inner table, and soon enough… Saskia will die too. The thought is a stab wound in the heart, but the President has a rare, hereditary disease. Incurable. Since the day Tatiana met her in that antiques room, Saskia has been her only true friend in this world. It hurts her but at the same time, Tatiana will get everything she's always deserved. She'll become President, and that sends a warm feeling through her chest, fighting against the cold stabbing feeling that Saskia's impending death has caused.
Tatiana has failed in one regard, however. She allowed herself to get close to one person, from the very beginning, their destinies have been linked and she genuinely sees him as a friend - Conrad. She's held many secrets over him for the last few years but once she reveals who his parents really were, she's hoping that he'll see the light. He'll join the League… just like his parents.
Tired and weary from their little adventure, Tatiana, Conrad, Darrah and Grey are escorted to the Headquarters where the Rebel Leader is waiting - Kate Wakai.
They take a shortcut through the dull but noisy armory. Grey walls broken up by the occasional yellow and black stripes surround them. When they discovered this place, it was an ancient underground bunker, protecting the old inhabitants from the nuclear fallout outside.
Tatiana's eyes shift between the people in visors, melding metal, to the motionless mech suits at their stations, to the gigantic tanks rolling past. A lot of it is equipment from The First Renegades and other rebel factions helping to fund them.
Once out of the armory, they slip left to a tighter corridor, locked by a concrete door at the very end. Grey takes a card off from around his neck and scans it on the door. The door slides upwards, revealing a large circular room. Multiple wide screens hang behind a planning table in the centre of the room.
There is a woman leaning against the desk. Kate Wakai. She's wearing her signature brown leather jacket. Talking to her on the screen is an older man in military uniform, but the meeting comes to an abrupt end, and the screen switches to darkness.
Kate lets out a deep audible sigh and runs her fingers along the desk before turning to face Tatiana and her companions. She appears exhausted. Tatiana's never seen the rebel leader sleep, but even with Kate's weary eyes, there's still a fire behind them.
Not long after the 95th games, after they escaped from District Seven, Tatiana discovered the location of Kate's family and revealed it to the Capitol Director of Intelligence - Estaban. Kate's entire family were killed that day in the hopes that it would demoralise the resistance and dissuade anyone from joining. However, it seems it only made Kate's fire burn brighter.
Everyone stands straight up at attention. Kate never has to say anything, she always gives off a natural authority.
"At ease," she says and everyone relaxes. She places her hand on Grey's shoulder with a subtle smile. "Good to have you back."
Grey smiles and plods over to one to the screens, inserting a chip just below it. "I wasn't totally useless while I was locked up, ya know," he chirps.
He brings up an image of New Alexandria, the capital of District Three. There is a gigantic drill carving its way into something under the city, near the great library.
"I… overheard the guards talking about some kind of control room… to an ancient weapon," Grey explains. Tatiana's jaw clenches tight. Those stupid guards. She's going to have to act quickly before they can have a chance at meddling with Saskia's plans… all of their plans.
Kate's eyes flutter to Tatiana, fleetingly, and the double agent hastily relaxes her jaw.
"This is bad news," Kate states. "Whatever weapon that they're after, they could use it to wipe us all out." She shifts firmly to Tatiana and Conrad and they stand at attention again. "Emery, Martell… I have a new mission for you. You have one week to gather a team. Then, you leave for District Three and beat the Capitol to this device," she orders, her hands behind her back. "You're dismissed."
One week? There's no way Tatiana's going on this mission. Her insurrection of this place is going to have to come a lot sooner.
After leaving the headquarters, she scurries down a flight of stairs into the boiler room, the heat from the steam quickly causing sweat to drip from her skin. After briefly scanning her surroundings, she produces her secret comms to the Capitol in her hand - more specifically to Estaban, the director of intelligence. A cruel and ruthless man. One of the most feared Capitolites. In less than a week she's going to have to burn this place to the ground.
5 days later.
Tatiana is staring at Conrad. Her fingers curl together on the railings that she's supporting herself on. Conrad is asleep in one of those icy chambers, in the pitch-white cryosleep room.
A voice snaps her out of her daydream. "Why does he do that?" Q asks. The inquisitive boy's eyes move between her and Conrad as he leans on the railings next to her.
"It's the only way he can rest," Tatiana murmurs in response. She then shifts to face Q. "Do you need something?" she questions.
He nods. "I'd… like to talk to you in private, if you don't mind… ma'am."
Tatiana rolls her eyes impatiently but leads the boy into her private office to speak. It's a large office, secluded too, where Tatiana has been hunting for new recruits to join the rebellion ever since she was promoted. She makes sure to discreetly lock the door behind her. Then, she perches casually on her desk. "Shoot," she says, pointing her fingers in the shape of a gun. "But make it quick, I need to get ready for the party later. Talking to the officers of the First Renegades is always taxing," she smirks.
Q lets out an agitated sigh and pulls a small headset out of his pocket. "I know everyone around here thinks I'm an idiot but…" he pauses. "After we got back, I discovered this in the boiler room," he finishes, pointing to the headset.
Tatiana lifts it gently and examines it in her hand. "It's a broken pair of comms," she shrugs, playfully twirling it on her finger.
"Yeah… I found it a bit odd, so I'd been working to put it back together over the last few weeks and guess what? It's a direct line to Estaban," he exclaims.
Tatiana's fists clench anxiously, her left hand secretly travels to her draw, and she slips a small blade into it. A deep, vicious breath runs through her lungs. She's been getting careless lately because she knows the rebellion's time is numbered. She'll soon be able to reveal herself, and right now, every bone inside her is itching.
Q is looking down at Tatiana, smugly, like a detective that's just solved a case. "Now, Grey is the only one that I've ever seen going into the boiler room regularly… I didn't want to accuse him… I-I really didn't but it all makes sense to me. He's a Capitolite and they've been one step ahead of us at every turn…" Tatiana raises her finger to halt his droning voice.
A sly smile appears on her face. "It didn't belong to Grey," she informs him calmly.
"It didn't? How do you know?" he questions, furrowing his eyebrows.
She calmly rises up off her desk. "I know… because it belongs to me," she says.
Q's jaw drops in agonising confusion. He looks dumbstruck.
"Ah… sorry. I guess I should explain," she continues. "I've been sending key information back to the Capitol since the very beginning - that's how they're always one step ahead. I've been recruiting other double agents into the rebellion to tear it apart from the inside, and the real rebels… I've been sending them to die," she explains dispassionately.
Q is silent. Frozen in shock. Shaking. He's staring through her eyes, to try to see if this is some elaborate prank, but he only finds sincerity staring back. "Why… w-why are you telling me all this?" he swallows.
Tatiana chuckles, tutting afterwards. "You silly boy… what makes you think you're leaving here alive?"
Then, in one fell motion, she brings the blade across his throat. His eyes widen in shock. He gargles as blood bursts from the front of his neck. Fear and confusion is the last thing Tatiana sees in Q's eyes. He collapses to her office floor, still clutching the gaping wound in his neck. She's seen that look before: it was how Marissa looked at her before she set her on fire, back in the arena.
(Killing changes a person.)
He takes his last breaths, and then Tatiana steps over his body, blood still erupting from his mouth. She glances momentarily at the blood on her shirt. "Damn it! You got blood all over my fucking shirt," she groans, gritting her teeth.
Her finger then goes to the mic on her desk - her communication to her private army within the rebellion. "I'm gonna need a cleaner in here immediately," she calls into the mic.
Seconds later two people arrive in Tatiana's office. Their eyes instantly fall on the gory sight of the body lying at her feet, but their eyes stay emotionless.
"Hurry, clean this up, yesterday," she orders. A taller man inhales to speak. "Yes ma'am but we're not gonna be able to hide this from Kate for long."
Tatiana shakes her head with a smirk. "No need to worry. By tomorrow, there will be no one left to find him."
While her cleanup crew disposes of the evidence, Tatiana leaves to change into new clothes, then quickly washes the blood off her hands. She scrambles out into the hallway, maintaining her composure and smiling at her passing 'allies'.
An excited voice calls out her name from behind. "Tati!"
It's Darrah. She bounds forward as usual, giving Tatiana a quick hug. Tatiana returns the hug. "You okay?" Tatiana smiles.
Darrah nods slowly in response but her eyes fall down. "I guess… it's just… you know I get nervous about parties… too many people and all." Ever since the arena, Darrah has told Tatiana that she prefers to stay away from large crowds.
"Don't worry, I'll meet you before it starts, and we can go in together. How's that sound?" Tatiana smiles, patting the younger girl on her shoulder. Darrah's eyes return upwards and she gives the older girl a reassuring grin with a nod.
Tatiana breathes a sigh of relief when Darrah is about to turn away, but then something seems to click in the back of Darrah's memory. "Oh, I actually came to tell you that Dr. Hand wants to see you for an assessment."
Tatiana rolls her eyes to the ceiling and sighs. "I'm a little busy today, can't it wait?"
"It's just a routine assessment, ya know? She just has a few questions for ya," Darrah answers. Her excited eyes then go to the badge around her neck and she holds it up to Tatiana. "I just did it… you even get a cool, brand new badge," she smiles.
Tatiana hesitantly concedes, nodding her head. "Fine."
That evening, the party is in full swing. They're in a large room in the centre of the underground complex, usually used for storing armoured vehicles. However, tonight was a special night to celebrate the recent victories and the successful rescue of Greyson, but mostly to serve as a morale boost.
All around Tatiana, loud voices and chatter fills the dimly lit room. Her movements are becoming more and more frantic as her eyes scan the crowd for Conrad. He hates parties, just like Darrah. She knows this.
Tatiana only just passed the assessment earlier with Dr. Hand. She faltered on a few questions, but that's irrelevant now. By the time she's found out, every single one of these people will be dead, except for Conrad, she hopes.
A hand taps Tatiana's shoulder from behind. It's I - Q's twin sister.
"Emery, ma'am, have you seen my brother today?" she asks, her voice drowned out by the noise of the crowd. "I haven't seen him all day and he's not at the party, which is unusual for him."
Tatiana just shrugs nonchalantly. "Why don't you try Kate or Grey? They'll have a better idea," she responds.
The girl glances over to the direction of the headquarters, where Kate and Grey are deep in discussion with Admiral Holland of the Fleet of the First Renegades - a virtual discussion, with the admiral's face on a huge screen. He's going to lead his sky fleet to attack District Fourteen in a few days, with another army in the north. A new rebel faction that they are going to have to contend with.
"They've been busy all day," I says, and she begins fidgeting nervously with her hands. Concern for her brother is beginning to build in her eyes.
Tatiana knows more than anyone else exactly what happened to her twin, in fact, some of his blood is still underneath her fingernails but she just shrugs again. "Sorry, I can't help you."
Then she spots Conrad darting through the crowd to one of the exits at the end of the room.
"Excuse me." Tatiana splits from the twin and trails Conrad to the exit. She twists open the metal door, finding Conrad leaning against some railings on the edge of a dark chasm above the boiler room. She watches him toss the contents of his drink over the edge, and then she approaches the tall guy and leans next to him on the railings, staring down at the gigantic boilers.
"Something's troubling you," she observes out loud.
He shifts towards her, taking a deep breath. "Yeah… what else is new?" he responds.
Tatiana chuckles.
"I know what it is, even if you don't or won't see it. You don't trust Kate, do you? You never have, and she doesn't trust you. She thinks you're reckless. You know deep down that they'll all turn on each other… at any given chance," she says, glancing back to the party.
Conrad furrows his eyebrows with confusion and concern. "What are you saying exactly?"
"Just what we've both been thinking for some time… I'm tired of all this hiding from the truth" Tatiana answers, rolling her eyes. "You're destined for greater things than Kate or any of these people. We both are."
But Conrad's eyes fall downwards in despair again. "I was destined to die in that arena, you know that. It's what me and Beckett agreed, to die in the moment together," he says.
Tatiana sighs deeply because she knows the truth. "But what if that wasn't true? What if he had changed his mind?"
Conrad's attention is fully on her now, glaring into her eyes with newfound interest. She's let the truth slip. There's no point stopping now.
"There was this note you see… he wrote you this letter before he died, saying that…" she pauses nervously. "Saying that he was going to end your alliance to protect you from yourself…because he didn't want you to die for him."
Conrad's fists are clenched tight, all of a sudden. "What note? Where? Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"
"Because I destroyed it," she answers, plainly. "I thought that lie was… was the only thing holding you together… I did it for your benefit."
He's glaring at her now - his jaw is clenched and his face is flushed red. Buzzing butterflies of nerves fill Tatiana's chest.
"How dare you," he sneers.
Just then the door swings open, filling their ears with the sounds of the party and with it, relief for Tatiana. Dr. Hand is standing at the door.
"Emery, I need to speak with you, urgently," she commands.
Conrad is still glaring at Tatiana, dumbfounded but she places her hand on his shoulder, comfortingly. "Just remember, in life, sometimes the most straightforward choice isn't the right one," she says.
Then she leaves with Dr. Hand, Conrad's shell-shocked eyes following her the entire way.
Tatiana and Dr. Hand push through the party, in a hurry and exit into a white corridor.
After a few moments, they arrive at Hand's office.
"Your assessment yielded some quite worrying results, I'm afraid," the doctor begins, setting her notepad down on her desk. "Before we rerun it, I'm going to ask you this once - do you have anything you want to confess now? Do they have something over you?" she questions, her calm, sympathetic voice suddenly gone.
"No… nothing to confess," Tatiana smirks, turning and bolting the door behind her, whilst preparing a garotte wire in her hands.
Tatiana is about to kill her second person of the day. She had made many sacrifices. She sacrificed her humanity in the arena and she is about to sacrifice her friends, because she knows deep down that they are worthy sacrifices. A better tomorrow will be achieved, soon, and these sacrifices are part of the journey to get there. They will not be forgotten. Just like Franz.
Prologue 3! A lot happened here in subplot. Subs close soon and I'm planning to realise one more subplot prologue before we move onto your wonderful tributes!