//Sae: From Heads Held High

It was as if the world was operating mechanically. People from different backgrounds, different families, different lives roamed the streets, but all bore the same sullen expression. Much unlike downtown District 5, not a single color was visible in any of their clothes. Everyone, whether they were young or old, wore plain black and grey clothing. It matched the bleak buildings and the gray, smog infested sky above.

Someone with a poor sense of direction may have thought they had gotten lost a number of times and come back to the same place. That, however, wasn't the case. The large town they were in was all the same. Every building, every person, every perfect ninety degree angle. The only things that stood out were the white epaulettes of the OEC soldiers that patrolled the streets.

They almost seemed to have an invisible [RIS] around them, except, instead of repelling bullets, they shielded the soldiers from other people. The pedestrians crossed the street whenever a group of soldiers was approaching, and if they couldn't cross, a wide circle was formed around them like water being parted by a stone.

Half of the vehicles that hovered over the road were clearly marked with a black and red snake insignia. The trademark, Nathan had explained, of the OEC.

A few buildings in the distance differed from the others in the far distance, some four or even five times larger than the standard model. Supposedly, that was where the few functional businesses in District 3 were. The structure that stood out the most, however, was a large, almost castle-like structure. The OEC's main base of operations.

Sae had no interest in what her surroundings looked like. The thing that bothered her the most was the fact that such a layout would make it difficult to take cover, should they get into a fight. Not, of course, that she was looking to do so. The three of them may have been able to handle the number of guards spread out over a few blocks, but seeing how thickly they were spread even on the outskirts, if they received reinforcements, fighting would get them nowhere.

"Where are we headed?" Ahn asked Nathan, who was walking with his head looking almost at his feet, the mask still over his face.

"I know somebody that can get us a place to stay, out of sight of the OEC," he replied, picking up his pace as a group of soldiers grew closer.

They walked for a few more minutes before their surroundings began to change. A few buildings started to deviate from the others in small ways, some having an extra window or a different paint job. The crowds of people were also getting thicker, though no more unique.

Eventually, they came to an open plaza, which was lined with OEC soldiers from one end to the other. In the plaza were hundreds of people, many of them shouting at the top of their lungs. The soldiers stood on guard, guns raised, but none of them shot.

In the center of the plaza, which appeared to be the center of the town, was a large rectangular pedestal of rock. On top of the pedestal were a few people of different ages, sizes, genders, and ethnicities lined up, all on their knees. Some looked terrified, some looked like they had come to some sort of acceptance, and others looked defiantly down at the crowd. Each one of the people was chained down from their wrists by magnetic restraining systems, glueing their arms to the stone.

Sae, Ahn, and Nathan started to make their way through the crowd, trying to make it to the other side of the plaza. It was difficult to stay together; it was like trying to wade through a riptide of people.

The shouting suddenly stopped. A man heavily clad in silvery armor stood at the entrance to the plaza. A billowing black cape hung from his broad shoulders, giving him an opposing appearance. One of the eyeholes in his helmet shone with some sort of dim light. He was dragging a large red cross behind him with one arm. He must have been augmented in some way, because the cross, Sae discovered through a scan, was made entirely out of metal. His steel armor also made it difficult to detect any electronics. Was that intentional?

"Is this the 'Steel King' you were talking about before?" Ahn asked Nathan. The same thought had crossed Sae's mind, but she was too preoccupied in studying the man to ask.

Nathan shook his head. "That's one of his lieutenants. Like I said, he doesn't ever show himself directly to the public." He glanced at the man approaching the pedestal, whose polished armor managed to reflect the little light there was in the gray sky. "His armor looks outdated, but it's more for appearance than anything. Underneath that layer of metal, though…" he shuddered. "Put it this way, you don't want to mess with him."

The civilians, who had formerly been so full of spirit, seemed to understand this well. A path was formed between the man and the large stone in the center of the pavilion. The surrounding soldiers had put their guns away and raised their hands into a salute.

One woman, however, didn't follow the others' actions, earning a few confused whispers from the crowd. She stood directly in front of the armored man, arms crossed. The man stopped, looking down at the woman as if she were a pest in his house.

"Kneel," a deep voice rang out from underneath the shiny helmet. The woman stood, looking up into the man's eyes.

"Kneel," the man repeated, irritation bleeding into his voice. The woman still didn't comply. She was either suicidal or had completely lost her mind, Sae thought.

The woman muttered something.

"Speak up," the man said. "I have no need to listen to those who lack the confidence to state their opinion openly."

"My son did nothing!" the woman shouted, pointing to a young boy on the stone pedestal. It was the same boy from the night before, Sae realized. He was kneeling with his head lowered almost to the point of touching the stone, unmoving, but conscious.

"Clearly, you are mistaken," the man said, moving to push past her. "Otherwise, he wouldn't be up there with the other scum."

The woman resisted with all her might, pushing against the man's massive figure. "You'll have to get through me, too! I'd rather die than see my son killed!"

The man pushed her to the ground hard, placing one metal boot on her stomach. "Then you will die a fool."

He reached down, grabbing her by the throat, then raising her into the air with one arm, the other still holding the massive metal cross. The woman struggled, kicking her feet in every direction, all the while grabbing furiously at the gauntlet at her throat.

Her efforts were wasted. They hardly had any effect on the man holding her suspended in the air. He watched for a moment as she thrashed about, then closed his hand. A loud snapping sound echoed throughout the plaza, followed by a low gurgle as blood ran from the woman's mouth, dripping onto the man's gauntlet.

He tossed her body aside, then pulled out a small white rag and rubbed his armor clean of the fresh blood. The crowd remained silent as he resumed his walk towards the pedestal.

The sound of his boots landing on the stone stairs was the only audible noise as he finally reached his destination. He stood in front of an elderly man on the right side of the pedestal. He turned to face the audience.

"Denzel Ray, age sixty-five, charged with attempted robbery of consumable goods!" the man's thunderous voice boomed throughout the pavilion. "His fate has been decided!"

The man raised the cross above his head.

"Death."

Sae watched quietly as the cross came down. She watched as it made contact with the elderly man's head, listened to the gut-wrenching crunch as his skull caved in.

"Justice," the man said, "hath blessed us."

"We are blessed by merciful justice!" a chorus of voices rose from the crowd. "We are grateful for our enlightenment!"

Sae glanced at Nathan, who was standing in front of her. His head hung somehow even lower than before. He was one of the few people in the audience that hadn't recited the lines.

Ahn looked back at her. Despite the fact that he was far more sympathetic towards others than Sae, his eyes were silver, showing that he felt the same apathy she did. This kind of thing wasn't new to them. They didn't know these people, and watching them die had no impact on them, aside from the fact that they knew now the entirety of the tyranny in District 3. While externally, it appeared to be far different from District 5, it was the exact same on the inside. Those who had power used it.

"The Executioner hath shown us the light!" This time, it was the soldiers that spoke.

The proclaimed 'Executioner' walked over to his next victim, leaving a trail of blood as it dripped from the red cross, making it look almost as if the metal were melting. A woman in ragged clothing sat before him, a defeated look on her face. She didn't even look up as the man stood in front of her.

"Jane Hughes!" The Executioner shouted. "Age thirty-six. Charged with attempted assault on another citizen of our beautiful District! Your fate has been decided!"

A torrent of cheers erupted from the crowd as he said the next word. "Death."

The cross swung again, producing another loud crunch and even more cheers. The same praises were sung.

He moved to his third target. The boy.

"Wait!" the boy shouted, his voice cracking.

"Oh?" the Executioner said. Sae couldn't see through his mask, but it was more than likely he was smiling underneath it. "And why should justice wait for a worm who has gone against the will of our savior?"

"I…" the boy choked back tears. "I was held late at my job, and was just trying to get home! I swear on my life!"

"The life of one who is soon to lose it is worth nothing to me," the Executioner said coldly. "Do you have anyone who would be willing to testify to this statement?"

"Yes, yes!" the boy nodded vigorously. "James! My coworker! He's standing in the front!"

The Executioner's gaze shifted slowly towards the man he was talking about. The sea of people shuffled away from James, who stood uncomfortably before the armored man.

"Well?" The Executioner asked. "What say you, James?"

James hesitated as the boy looked with pleading eyes at him.

"James! You know you were there! I was asked to finish cleaning up! You saw me, right? You said goodbye!" The boy's voice was desperate.

James lowered his head. "No, sir. He was not forced to stay. He is guilty, as you say."

The Executioner nodded, satisfied, then turned back to the boy. "Johnathan Markovits, age sixteen!"

"Please!" the boy screamed.

The Executioner ignored him. "Charged with violating mandatory lights out laws."

"Please!" the boy yelled again.

"Punishment…"

Johnathan was emitting sounds similar to those of a wounded animal, no longer forming coherent sentences, opting instead for loud wails.

"Death."

Another crack sounded out. The wailing stopped.

The crowd went wild as they watched the man repeatedly swing the cross into the boy's already mutilated corpse until it was barely recognizable as human anymore.

He turned to the people in the plaza, not bothering to wipe the blood off of his armor this time. It would just stain his entire rag red.

"There are those who seek to sully our great leader's name. They are blinded by the darkness. They work at night for fear of the revered light. They are cowards. I have freed this boy today from this darkness! I have shown him great mercy. This is what awaits those who stray from the path of the light!"

He had to wait for the hollers of approval from all directions to die down.

"Justice," he said calmly, "hath blessed us."