Sapien Loop 3 - Chapter 68: The Little Miracles

Chapter 68: The Little Miracles

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In the Downs Region, Benny and Hermon had decided to hide in a small hotel room. Hermon was sitting on the bed holding his electronic tablet while Benny was trying to barricade them in with every bit of furniture he could move in the room.

‘I was thinking,’ said Hermon as he looked over at Benny, who was trying to drag a dressing table across the floor. ‘Today’s events might be a good thing.’

‘Please, stop,’ panted Benny. ‘You’re about to say something silly.’

‘I think we can say Miro isn’t the Dictator any more,’ said Hermon.

‘Of course not,’ said Benny, waving his arms up and down. ‘He had his head bitten off.’

‘So there’s a vacancy that needs filling,’ said Hermon as he leaned forward.

‘Go for it and you’ll be eaten,’ sighed Benny as he leaned on the dressing table.

‘Not necessarily,’ said Hermon as he grinned a little. ‘I have a theory.’

‘You always do, and they always make no sense,’ replied Benny as he went back to pushing the dressing table.

‘I think it’s all your fault,’ said Hermon as he thumped the bed with his left fist. ‘You badmouth me all the time. I expect you did the same to that monster. That’s why he went mad. I think he wants to kill you, not me.’

‘Surely you’re not being serious?’ asked Benny.

‘Maybe I am and maybe I’m not,’ teased Hermon. ‘I have you stumped again.’

‘This is all just so shocking,’ remarked Benny as he finally positioned the dressing table behind the door.

‘I think I’ll call room service,’ said Hermon as he reached for the phone. ‘I fancy a chilli dog.’

‘I just blocked the door,’ gasped Benny in disbelief. ‘What’s wrong with all this food?’ he added as he pointed to several boxes of food and three dozen packets of fruit juice.

‘Sorry, I feel I wasn’t adequately consulted,’ chuckled Hermon as he picked up the handset.

‘That’s too bad,’ said Benny as he snatched the phone away from Hermon. ‘This time I’m putting my foot down. You’re not getting your way this time.’

‘I see,’ said Hermon slightly nervously as his eyes began to dart. ‘I have a fun Sapes game on this tablet. Do you want to take turns playing with me?’

‘Yes, that’s better,’ said Benny. ‘We need to keep the volume low.’

‘The speakers don’t work,’ said Hermon as he pressed the game on the screen.

Benny sat next to Hermon on the bed, and the two of them began to play the game.

In the Downs Agriculture Zone. August, who had recovered from his broken bones, was carrying Henders, who was still recovering from his injuries. They were both invisible. August was following Polly, who was heading to the hole in the wall to reach those who were hiding in the Central Agriculture Zone.

As they reached a forested area. August became visible in front of Polly. ‘I need your help,’ said August. ‘I want you to take him to the others.’

‘Wouldn’t it be better if he were here so that the technicians can see he’s alive?’ asked Polly.

‘Probably, but I don’t care about that,’ said August. ‘He’s an executive council member. He’s a prime target. I’m not risking his life.’

Henders pointed at his chest as his eyes darted between Henders and Polly.

‘Eat some of the seaweed,’ said August to Henders. ‘It’ll heal you quicker and help with the pain.’

‘You really care about him,’ said Polly as she squinted her eyes slightly while looking at August.

‘Just tell me if you’ll help him,’ insisted August.

‘Yes, of course,’ said Polly. ‘I’m sure the others will welcome him. He’s very nice.’

August handed Henders over to Polly. She placed him on her shoulder.

‘I need to go and check on the little miracles,’ said August as he rubbed Henders’ cheeks.

‘Surely that thing wouldn’t harm them,’ said Polly.

‘I really hope he wouldn’t,’ said August. ‘I don’t want to take that risk. I’ll meet you back here in an hour with them. Can you make that?’

‘Yes, I can,’ said Polly, nodding.

‘Great!’ said August as he turned to leave.

‘Be careful,’ said Polly.

August nodded as he turned back to look at Polly and then Henders, who looked terrified.

August jogged into the town square. He could hear Tiberius chuckling. He tried to ignore him as he tried to avoid the bodies lying on the road.

‘While I’m waiting for the next act, do you think you could send me up a bag of popcorn and a fruit slushy?’ shouted Tiberius. ‘I’m starting to feel neglected. That’s no way to treat an Emperor.’

August continued to ignore him.

‘I gave him directions,’ shouted Tiberius. ‘For that epic performance, he deserves some nice young meat.’

August briefly looked up at Tiberius as he made it to the other side of the town square.

‘Even from here, my love radiates to all!’ shouted Tiberius.

August reached the little miracles’ apartment building. He ran to the floor where they were staying. To his horror, two of the carers were lying dead in the corridor. They had been badly mauled. A little further on, there was a blood trail. It led to the door of the main apartment. The door was covered in blood.

August rested his hand on the wall and then gulped as he slowly moved his other hand to the door handle.

With a deep breath, he opened the door. The little miracles were crowded together at the back of the room. A carer was sitting to one side of the room; she had one of the children on her lap.

‘What happened here?’ demanded August.

‘You mean, what’s happening here?’ replied the carer as she shapeshifted into Julio.

‘This is what it’s come to,’ said August, breathing slightly heavily.

‘I’ve heard you call these children your little miracles,’ said Julio.

‘They’re the heart and soul of the Downs Region,’ replied August.

‘So loved by all that not a single enforcer was here to defend them,’ said Julio aggressively as he pushed the child to one side and then stood up.

‘These enforcers do not represent the Downs residents,’ said August.

‘So loved, that your Emperor told me to help myself,’ continued Julio as his eyes glowed red.

‘He’s been removed,’ said August as he approached Julio. ‘He only represents himself.’

‘Well, that’s suddenly very convenient,’ said Julio. ‘Everyone was jumping to his tune when they thought he was their legitimate leader, and they still would be if he hadn’t been exposed.’

August remained silent as he bowed his head slightly.

‘There’s no repentance,’ continued Julio. ‘To this mad Empire, his only crime is pretending to be an Alset. Mass murder is acceptable when committed by the right Linap.’

‘It is not that simple,’ replied August.

‘It is very simple!’ said Julio as his face began to twitch. ‘My tribe was brutally slaughtered by the enforcers who had no problem following the orders of your Emperor.’

‘I’m sorry that should never have happened,’ replied August as he began to shake a little.

‘I delivered most of those babies,’ continued Julio as tears began to well up in his eyes. ‘I saw them when they took their first breath. I saw the joy in their mothers’ eyes when they held them. They were so precious. Just as precious as your little miracles. Then the enforcers came, tortured them, killed them, and displayed their bodies as lumps of meat,’ continued Julio as he raised his voice in rage. ‘They photographed them, celebrated their butchery, and then returned here for a parade like they are some kind of fucking heroes.’

‘I ask you to spare these children,’ said August.

‘You want me to grant them mercy when the shits of this region care nothing about life,’ said Julio.

‘I do not ask you to grant them mercy,’ said August forcefully. ‘They have nothing to do with the slaughter of your tribe. They are the Downs children. Their parents have nothing to do with any of this. They are being held captive by the Empire you hate.’

‘The very Empire that you created,’ shouted Julio as his head partially shapeshifted into a Sentray.

‘Then that grievance is with me and not them,’ shouted August.

Julio turned to look at the children huddled together at the back of the room and then turned back to look at August. He paced up and down twice and then looked at August again. ‘I give you two hours to get them to safety,’ he said. ‘After that, my hunt begins. I will show no mercy.’

‘Understood,’ said August, nodding.

‘We were called terrorists long before I was even born,’ said Julio. ‘Our only crime was not submitting to the Alset dynasty. Now everyone will truly understand what terror really is.’

Julio stepped backwards and became invisible.

‘Children, hold hands,’ said August as he watched the slight shimmer leave the room. ‘We must go. Aunty Polly is going to take care of you.’

The children slowly and hesitantly stood up. As instructed, they held hands. August reached out and grabbed the hands of two of the children. They quickly left the room. August took them in the opposite direction to where the dead carers were lying. They took a longer route to the meetup place with Polly to avoid the town square where Tiberius could be heard singing.

Polly saw them coming and became visible. ‘They’re okay,’ she said in an excited tone.

‘Yes,’ replied August as the children surrounded Polly. ‘I couldn’t save the carers.’

‘Was he there?’ asked Polly.

‘He was there,’ sighed August.

‘What now?’ asked Polly.

‘He’ll do whatever he wants,’ replied August.

Polly’s eyes darted from side to side.

‘You need to get them out of here,’ said August, looking at the children. ‘He hasn’t given us much time.’

‘Yes, of course,’ said Polly as she started to herd the children towards the wall.

‘How’s Henders doing?’ asked August.

‘He cried a bit after you left, but he’s fitting in well with the others.

August nodded and then became invisible.

Sapien Loop: Worlds Collide

Sapien Loop: Worlds Collide is the final book in the Sapien Loop trilogy. It continues directly after the events of the second book. The world above and the world below merge into one world. The conflicts in the underground world are brought to the surface. The new ruling elite attempt to crush any resistance from above and below in an attempt to create a new global empire.

Currently, three books from the series have been published on Amazon; see the links below:

• Sapien Loop: End of an Era
• Sapien Loop: Frozen in Time
• Sapien Short Stories: Missing Links

All individual chapters can be found on my @captainhive account.

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