Wings of the Walker - CoraLee June Page 0,259

end of the month. Cavil is hosting an event for members of the Elite.”

I half-expected the room to lighten up a bit, but it didn’t. Tallis continued, “We won’t go too much into detail on the execution, the fewer who know, the better. But at midnight of his party, the Resistance will riot.”

Tallis' words hung over the crowd like an angry fog.

“So what is expected of us, exactly?” a younger man asked while scratching behind his neck. He looked around the room, gaining confidence as people shifted forward in their seats to listen.

“Flood the streets of Galla. Fight Cavil’s guardsmen,” Tallis replied as if it were simple. Jules gave him a sideways glance, opening her mouth to speak then closing it again as if thinking better of it.

Another man, who was burly and wore an unimpressed scowl upon his unmasked face, stood up. “You expect us to fight men with Heat? I'm assuming that you plan to kill Cavil. But killing him won’t stop his armed men.”

Louis then stood, eyeing Kemper with a smile before heading towards the podium. “We might have a way to disable their weapons.”

Almost immediately, the mood of the entire room shifted. Men sat on the edges of their seats.

“I’m working with a member of the Dormas Leadership Council on creating an electric pulse that will disable any of their weapons within a certain radius. I think we should have it running within a week.”

“You think?” the burly man asked. “I’m not risking my life unless we have some certainties.”

I glanced at Jules. Her small arms were crossed over her chest as she stared at the Walkers arguing amongst themselves, and I briefly wondered if this was how most of their meetings went. How did anything ever get done?

“There are never any certainties,” I said to mostly to myself while staring ahead at the podium. But the arguing man heard me and responded.

“What did you say?” he spat with malice while twisting to stare at me.

Huxley growled next to me, and I felt Patrick stiffen on my other side. I wasn't expecting him to hear me, but having his unnecessary fury directed my way had my blood boiling. The angry Walker stared pointedly as if waiting for me to back down, so instead, I stole some false bravado from Jules and continued. “What I mean to say is, if you’re looking for the perfect scenario, you’ll be waiting forever.”

“Who even are you? Are we just letting anyone into these meetings now?”

I wanted to answer, but Madam B intercepted the attention of the room before I could.

“This Walker has been behind enemy lines. She was on stage the night Lackley died. She fought for her life and escaped Ethros with Cavil on her heels.”

A hush filled the space, and shame filled my heart. I didn’t save myself. I wasn’t a hero. I was a girl that got incredibly lucky. My entire life was one big coincidence. A positive happenstance of fate. Immunity. The Stonewells. Dormas. The stars aligned, and I was gifted with what others were not—luck.

“This little Walker was tortured in Cavil’s ivory room. Shocked within an inch of her life,” Madam B's voice went low and dramatic. “Despite being tortured and abused, she overcame that and joined the Resistance once more. She has seen the consequences of defying Cavil first hand and yet is gracious enough to help us.”

Madam B got off the podium and headed towards the crowd, her face had a scripted softness about it that made me squirm in discomfort. Bypassing Huxley, she stood in front of me, only a breath away from my face. I shivered at her nearness, and it wasn’t until she cupped my cheek that she spoke. “If an innocent Walker, a victim of the society thrust upon her, can overcome her fear and do what is right for her people, then why can’t we?”

I swallowed back the bile that rose in my throat at her theatrics. She pulled away and spun around to address everyone once more. With each word, her voice rose in volume and intensity. “At the end of the month, my army of Companions, led by their queen,” she gestured to me, “will end the divide between Walker and Elite. There will be fire in the streets of Galla, and riots in all of Dasos.”

Madam B clenched her fists and punched the air above her. Claps reverberated around the concrete basement, and I watched her rally the troops. Was I the only one that