The Empire Game

Chapter 22 – My daughters, my sons

The smokes danced and changed in the dark sea like flocks of birds in the sky. They switched between many forms and surrounded me, forming a cell of clouds all around, closing any way out. The shape of the chamber of smokes refined its appearance. Slowly, it was becoming familiar. I blinked once, and then I found myself in my Orbiter.

I was in the control cabin, sitting on the floor. My eyes were fixed on the window, looking at the dark space outside. My cheeks were wet due to the tears that I failed to hold back. I was silently waiting to see it. To see my last home as a human.

Something was on my chest, embraced in my arms. Something warm and soft. A small black and white flurry ball. It was a Kubrow puppy, yawning free of any worries. Sure... It was Celeris. He was the last gift She gave to me. He was all that would have remained of Her.

Why?... How did we come to this?

I stared at the small creature I had in my arms, somehow hoping to receive an answer. What a foolish hope. Celeris looked back to me. Our eyes met for a second and then he pushed his little head under my arm, hiding his face and enjoying the warm sensation that my body was giving to him.

Something inside me was holding tight my heart. I felt my throat like kept in a grip. I could do nothing except thinking about the past. I had no intention to imagine the future. My time was coming to an end, and Hers as well.

My exile, like the exile of all the others. Imprisoned like an outlaw, feared like a monster until She came. A woman, among all the others, an Archimedian. She took us under her protection, promising a cure to our illness. Thank to Her, we had been freed from our captivity, but just to be exiled again in the Moon. Thank to Her, we became the Tenno. Warriors fighting for the Empire in exchange for our spared lives, bound in honour.

We had a reason to fight, a mother who loved us, a family and a home where to return. Still, we were hidden. We could move on only when allowed, and only with our Orbiters. No permission to walk outside on our very feet, just under the skin of our Warframes.

The days in the Moon. The days of studies, of the Tenno schools. The best time I ever had after the return. The days I felt part of something, the days I felt loved not only by my Cephalon Aetheris. The memories of my past, those that remained, passed by my eyes. One after another, the moments of happiness, of sorrow, of satisfaction, of disappointment. My friends, my new family. I saw them again until Aetheris spoke. Her voice was low, emptied of vitality, letting transpire her sadness.

AETHERIS: "Operator, Earth and Lua are straight ahead."

The Earth appeared like a blue sphere in the middle of the dark ocean. It was spotted here and there with green and brown lands. The poles seemed so strange in their whiteness, they looked like fragments of a white shell. At Earth's side, there was Lua. A white orb hosting colossal golden Orokin structures that rose from the depths of the Moon as huge towers connected by very long bridges.

AETHERIS: "The landing craft is ready to depart, Operator. We'll... meet again soon."


The landing craft docked with a metal rumble and shook a little on the contact with the tower. The hollowed wall of the landing craft rotated. Soon, the darkness of the ship was replaced by a luminous golden light. Its unexpected and sudden presence forced me to cover my eyes with my hands.

The hollowed wall stooped to rotate with a small vibration. The light was passing through the fissures between my fingers, reaching my eyelids, bothering me. I slowly moved my hands aside, trying to adapt to the brightness. I dared to open my eyes a little.

In the beginning, the light was too bright for my eyes. After so much time passed in my Orbiter, I was adapted to the dark space, to the feeble shining stars. The lamps of my Orbiter were far weaker than the overwhelming rays of light of the Orokin tower.

I bent my head down, my eyes directed to the floor. My hands on my face to cover me from the golden light that was bathing me from the roof. When my eyes adapted, the bright veil of gold disappeared leaving place to a sterile grey floor. Nothing special. Still, it was so well cleaned that I could see my own shape reflecting on it.

Something at the corner of my sight captured my attention. Something shining. It looked like a boot made of gold. My eyes slid on it. I rose my head in order to follow its shape. My eyes kept adapting to the brightness of the place as I showed my face to the light.

In front of me, no more distant than a pair of metres, there was a Dax soldier. He was standing in a perfectly erected posture, looking so sure about his strength. On his head, there was a large golden helmet that covered a good part of his face except for nose and mouth. It almost looked like the head of a mushroom made of gold. I wondered how much it could weigh, but the Dax wasn't showing any sign of distress having such thing on the head.

He was wearing black clothing that was visible at the height of shoulders and stomach. The rest of his body was covered by a golden armour set. In his right hand, he was holding a double-bladed polearm, keeping one blade behind, above his height, and the other in front of him, at few centimetres from the floor. Thin golden lines enveloped the long black handle, coming from its middle and reaching the silver blades.

He remained silent and moved his left arm, extending it towards the way ahead, inviting me to go further. My eyes slid from his golden glove to the rest of the area around us. We were in a vast hall. The grey path was bordered by two artificial streams of perfectly transparent water. At the other side of the streams, white columns hosted golden designs and Orokin symbols.

The path continued, reaching the middle of the hall, where the streams ended into a circular pool furnished of water by two waterfalls coming from the ceiling. The path formed a circle around the pool, and separated in other paths, leading the way to the doors.

In the pool, there was a tree. It was right between the two waterfalls. The tree was so tall that it almost touched the hall's roof. The wood of its trunk and branches was white, shining on its own. Its leaves were of an intense yellow, almost golden. It captured my eyes like a moth from a light in the dark night.

I have never been on this side of Lua.

A male voice forced me to wake up from the tree's enchantment. It sounded like empty of any emotion. It was a clear and powerful voice, booming like a thunder in the hall shrouded in silence. It was the Dax's voice.

DAX: "This way, Tenno."


The Dax escorted me through the path to follow. I could feel the unnerving presence of his eyes pointed at me. A wrong move and I could be killed. He came after me in silence, making me stop only to change direction when necessary.

We passed through different halls, rooms, and corridors. All of them with the same white and golden Orokin architecture. Few of them had a transparent roof of glass through which I could see the stars another last time.

The only sounds that could be heard were the echo of our steps, the streaming water of the fountains, the rumbling of the artificial waterfalls, and the metal edges of some Orokin sculpture cutting the air like blades in an eternal dance. No one else was walking that path with us.

We reached the last door. It was thin but tall two or three metres. The doors on Lua could be huge, so big to let a whole ship enter the structures. I always wondered why the Orokin needed doors of such sizes, maybe to transport something like the great shining tree through the towers.

The door opened into two parts that slid aside with a weak metal screech, revealing a large hall not much different than the others. From the door, I could see water falling from the ceiling like a column of fluid. There was something in the water, some lines shining of white. The lower part of the place was covered by the risen floor where I was standing.

I made a few steps forward, reaching the edge of the risen floor. Large stairs of white and gold led the way down to the rest of the hall. There, the waterfall ended into a rounded pool bordered by six white columns. Right upon the pool, there were four golden objects, each one attached to a white shining branch that was half-hidden by the falling water.

... So we'll be in those.

Someone else was there, near the pool. Three guys, as young as me more or less, a boy and two girls. Those were Tenno, just like me. Around them, at a few metres of distance, there were three armed Dax, one soldier for each Tenno.

The boy got curly golden hair. He was sitting on the border of the pool. His head was bent backwards, his face in the direction of the roof. The two girls, one with the hair as gold as the boy's one, the other with brown hair collected in a braid, were standing attached to each other.

Seo. Lena. Flumine.

Lena had her head hidden behind her hands. I noticed her body was jumping a little, like in a spasm. Flumine was keeping her close, embracing her with one arm while passing a hand on Lena's head. Flumine's face was dark, tired. The whole hall was silent except for the sound of the water falling from the roof into the pool.

Probably I stood there more than I realized, since the Dax soldier placed his hand on my right shoulder. I looked back at him. He was right at my side. The Dax was taller than me, and his helmet made him appear even greater. It made me feel so small and weak at such close distance. His face slid from me to the where the others were. Then, he looked at me again.

DAX: "Move on, Tenno."

He let my shoulder go and I started to walk down the stairs, looking where to place my feet. In the beginning, I feared that my steps would have echoed like falling hammers in the hall. I was grateful for the waterfall's sound was covering them.

Once I rose my head, I saw Seo was looking at my direction, a weak smile on his face. He slowly rose a hand, greeting me. I became suddenly worried about him when I noticed the Dax soldiers' reaction to Seo's movement. All the three of them were looking at him, the hands on the hilts of their weapons.

I was scared by such vision, and, at the same time, part of me was somehow amused. I had never seen the Dax so on alert, especially for a bunch of children. Maybe that meant we could be a threat for them, maybe we could be as powerful as them, or even more.

Do they fear us?

Once I reached the stairs' end, Flumine too noticed my presence. She remained silent, like Seo, and just slightly rose her hand, stopping to caressing Lena for a moment. I got closer to them, Lena was still in Flumine's embrace, hiding her face. I saw Flumine was moving her arm aside, freeing Lena's shoulders. I understood she wanted to let her know about my presence. I moved my head to right and left, signalling her to stop. Once Flumine got the message, she returned to hug Lena, keeping her even closer than before.

She needs comfort.

We remained there for a while. No signs from other Tenno. I wondered where the others were. Maybe they were separated in groups, just like ours. After all, I doubted we would have been allowed to remain all together in that last moment.

Suddenly, a ray of light came down from a fissure of the wall. The ray expanded and formed a large transparent floating screen. Slowly, pixel after pixel, colours and shapes were appearing on it.

In the corner of my sight, I saw Lena finally raising her head. We looked at each other in silence for an instant. Her blue eyes were lucid like ponds of clean water. Her cheeks were wet. Our eyes encountered for only a moment, then she looked at an area of the floor, avoiding contact. She passed her hands on her face, trying to get rid of the tears, before looking at the screen.

I stared at her for just another second, feeling so uncomfortable for her sufferings, then I returned my eyes to the screen. A golden hall took form on it. A crowd of people, Orokin, were all around something that looked like a stadium. On top of it, there were seven figures shrouded in a golden light.

In the middle of the hall, there was a lonely woman dressed in black and silver. Our mother was going to face alone the Orokin sentence. She appeared so small and abandoned under the presence of the Seven. Betrayed by the one she trusted, which voice boomed in the hall of judgement.

BALLAS: "Honored Seven, we have gathered here today to carry out the sentencing of Archimedian Margulis... You face the Jade Light, recant, and we will grant a merciful death."

Ballas' voice faded, and a moment of silence fell in the judgment hall.

I could easily feel my heart beating strongly in my chest. In that very moment, I felt it so heavy. I felt like a rope was tightening around my neck, closing my throat. My eyes were getting wet, even if I was struggling to hold them back. The tears finally flowed out from my eyes when I heard her voice for the last time.

MARGULIS: "My daughters, my sons... I want you to know... my last thoughts are of you."

The traces of her voice vanished in the air. The hall was again in silence. A golden light enveloped her figure, making her disappear like a meteor devoured by the Sun.

I trembled. I felt like my chest was being punched. Such sensation seemed so familiar, like I already lived a moment like that before. Still, I could not remember a situation like that.

I saw Lena falling on her knees at a few metres from me, to my side. Her whole body was trembling. Her head was bent down, her face hidden in her hands. Clean drops started to fall from the fissures between her fingers.

Flumine and Seo got closer to her, kneeling at her side, both holding her tight in silence. Seo hid his face in the shoulder of his sister. Flumine's face was contracted by the pain while she was visibly forcing herself to not cry, yet drops formed around her tightly closed eyes.

I immediately turn to the other side, rapidly drying out the tears from my eyes and cheeks, but the tears were flowing out again and again. Suddenly, the Dax's polearm was placed in front of me at a few inches from my face. Its long shape was a little contorted due my eyes were wet. The metal was sparkling under the golden lights.

DAX: "Now, inside the pod, Tenno."

His voice sounded clear, no expression transpired from behind the helmet. That's why the Dax soldiers were the favourite servants of the Orokin. They always accomplished every kind of order commanded by their Emperors. It didn't matter what was the cost. It didn't matter who would have been sacrificed. Sometimes, I've asked myself if they could feel something, or if they were just mere puppets controlled by the Orokin's strings.

A scream boomed in the hall, coming right from behind me. The voice was of a boy, Seo.

I looked back instinctively. Seo was lying on his back on the grey floor, unmovable like unconscious. A Dax soldier was standing upon him, his golden sword unsheathed. I thought the Dax stabbed him, but the blade of his sword was perfectly clean, no signs of blood.

Lena rose the head from her hands. Her eyes were filled with tears. She looked at Seo, lying down. On her face an expression of pure horror and shock. She launched herself on Seo's body, calling him. She took his hand, caressed his cheek. Her tears fell one after another on his suit.

LENA: "Brother!"

The Dax placed his sword back into its sheath. He kneeled on Seo's body and tried to separate the two siblings. One of the other two Dax grabbed Lena by an arm and pulled her away while she kept calling Seo and crying.

LENA: "Brother!"

The third Dax was taking Flumine away, heading to one of the golden pods. The Dax was keeping her down, his arm was around her neck. She was trying to break free, but she could not win the Dax with her only strength.

FLUMINE: "Let me go!"

I was looking at all of this. I felt petrified like a statue, still trying to understand what was happening. In the past, I never imagined that something like that could happen. How could we make it against the Dax soldiers? Behind me, I heard the Dax talking again.

DAX: "Inside, Tenno. Immediately!"

Lena was struggling to not let go her brother. The Dax soldier who grabbed her arm hid his hand behind his back. Once he showed his hand again, he was holding a black disk of metal with golden accents. He placed the border of the disk on Lena's arm and made it slid on her skin. He did nothing more than a small cut. A feeble spark shone. She screamed, and an instant after she was falling down like a dead.

Flumine stopped to fight back for a moment. Her eyes wide on the scene that was taking place at just a few metres from her. Her mouth half opened in shock. Her face turned rapidly in an expression of hate and rage.

She placed a hand on the face of the Dax soldier who was carrying her away, almost completely covered by the helmet. She shouted, her voice echoed in the area like a war cry. Her hand shone of bright red light.

FLUMINE: "You infested bastards!"

A flash enveloped everything for an instant. A ray of red light came out from her hand, throwing the Dax away. He heavily fell into the pool, making a column of water rising. Flumine didn't turn back. She charged the other two who took Lena and Seo. Her hand was still glowing of red.

A violent instinct awakened inside me. A savage desire rose like a new flame. I was scared, I was sad, and I was angry. I wanted to save us, but also more. I wanted to see those Dax flying away.

I felt the hand of the Dax tightening around my arm. My whole body trembled due that sudden contact. I uncovered my teeth like a wild beast. A dark veil obscured the reality that surrounded me.

I jumped back on the Dax. The hybrid of a shout and a roar came out from my mouth. I contracted the muscles of the arm that was still free, pointing my hand's palm towards the Dax. I felt the energy flowing through me like my own blood.

Finally, the Dax had an expression, finally I could see some kind of traces of humanity through that helmet. He was surprised. So sudden, the tall Dax didn't look so powerful and great. He was just a target, like any other.

A blue spark exploded from my palm, right at the side of my head. It invested him, freeing me from his hand. The Dax soldier flew metres away from me and fell on the floor, nearby the stairs.

I was already heading back, to help Flumine, when I heard her screaming, just like Lena and Seo did before. I just made in time to see her body falling at the feet of one Dax, and the other one charging towards me. He unsheathed his sword while covering in a mere instant the distance between us.

The sword passed on my skin, at the height of the neck. I felt the sharp and cold metal cutting my body. It was just a small and miserable cut. Still, my whole body contracted, my own flesh was out of my control. The pain travelled across me. The sounds faded away. Maybe I screamed, maybe not. I fell on my back and everything vanished into the darkness.