[00] The Control Room

[DA 2009]

“This is going to be harder than I thought,” Kaden chuckled through gritted teeth. “But I’ll prove it. I’ll prove you don’t have to play this game.”

He trudged through the snow, knowing that the first thing he had to do was get to a bunker to get his bullet wound stitched up, and the second thing he needed to do was find Ashe. Thus far, they were keeping each other together, sane, protected. She would likely head for the Sector bunker, and they could meet up there. In the meantime, Kaden intended to use the time to himself to further plan out his strategy of rebellion. Damon hadn’t interfered, and Kaden hadn’t had to fight, so although he literally ‘took a bullet’ for his ideal, the courier found himself elated with this personal moral victory. And he intended to do it again.

That was when he heard the beeps.

Much like the others, at first, he didn’t understand what was going on. The combat protocol had just ended, there wasn’t likely another one to be scheduled this soon…and then it hit him. Despite the pain in his shoulder, Kaden laughed.

“You gotta be kidding me.”

He couldn’t see the bunker anywhere nearby, and even if he knew where to look after his geographical displacement, he doubted he could make it in time. Kaden just kept on laughing at the irony of it all, so loudly that it almost drowned out the beep of the collar. He was still laughing when his body disintegrated into nothing.

-----

Damon Dukes leaned back in the chair, watching every last second of it. Although no one was watching him, he sat as far away as comfortably possible from the console, his fingers laced together, elbows placed upon the armrests, as if to prove to the universe that he had nothing to do with it.

“Sorry Kaden, that was all you.”