Intermix Nation

“See you later, Nation.”

Nazirah slowly untangles herself, finallyrising from the bed. She grabs her dagger from the floor and picksup her shoes. She turns around before leaving, flashing Adamek anadorable grin. “See you later, Morgen.”

She won’t.

But they don’t know that yet.

Outside his door, Nazirah laces her boots,sticking the dagger in one of them. It’s still relatively darkoutside, the sun barely peeking over the horizon. She walks acrossthe hanging bridges towards her room, taking her time, smilingagainst her better judgment. Nazirah doesn’t know what to make oflast night, of them, of it all. But, regardless of sore muscles,she feels good. Like life is somehow a little brighter than it wasyesterday. She has changed.

Only God knows if it’s for the better.

Whistling idly, Nazirah enters her room. Shestops, song dying abruptly on her lips. Ramses sits on her bed,entirely disfigured but entirely too well. “Don’t stop on myaccount, Nazirah,” he jeers, holding an assault rifle in hisbandaged hands. “You know how I love music.”

The door is kicked shut. Nazirah whirlsaround as the butt of a pistol cracks down on her skull. Shecollapses to the ground. The last thing she sees before losingconsciousness is Mather Grum standing over her smugly.

“Say hello to your fucking enemy.”

#

Nazirah slowly regains consciousness,holding on desperately to blissful oblivion. Like none of it’sreally happening. Like she’s still safe in a green-eyed embrace.Her body has other plans. It snatches ephemeral feelings from theatmosphere, making them real.

First pain.

Then panic.

Nazirah awakens fully to find she’s slumpedagainst a vibrating wall. Holding a hand to her blood-caked,throbbing head, Nazirah looks around groggily, fighting to staycalm. She’s moving, trapped inside a freight train compartment,surrounded by piles of lumber. Nazirah ca

“Help!” she screams, rattling her handcuffs.“Somebody!”

Her voice sounds flat, strangled, absorbedinto the wood.

“It’s useless,” a voice says to her left.Nazirah turns her head, seeing Lumi and Taj bound by twine around awooden pillar several feet away. Lumi has a black eye and a splitlip. Taj’s face is swollen, one of his arms perversely bent.

“What’s happening?” Nazirah cries.

“We don’t know,” Taj gasps. “We were walkingback from the bonfire last night when Grum attacked us, withanother guy. We couldn’t fight them off! We’ve been trapped hereall night.” He struggles to stave off the pain of his broken arm.“They dragged you in a few hours ago, and then the train startedmoving.”

“That other guy is Ramses,” Nazirah says,trying to formulate some sort of escape plan. “He’s the one whotried to kill me.”

“Apparently he’s not done trying.”

Nazirah ignores Lumi. Even in the direstsituation, she could still be gratingly a

“He really hates you, Nazirah,” Taj wheezes.“You should have heard him before.”

“I can imagine,” she says, banging herhandcuffs again.

“He wants to bring you down,” Lumicontinues, “and Adamek too. Ramses is helping the Medis at theexpense of his entire territory! He’s completely deranged, doped upon every kind of MEDIcine out there. I don’t know how he can evenstand with half of his face caved in like that!”

Nazirah shudders, just thinking about it.“Grum is an informer?” she asks. She doesn’t want to believe it,but the pounding in her head reminds her it’s true.

“He’s been a narc all along,” Taj says,coughing. He kicks the ground angrily. “All our work with theloggers, all the good we thought we were doing … for nothing! TheMedis knew from the start! They were just biding their time!”

“Biding their time for what?”

“For you, you stupid idiot!” screams Lumi,struggling against the ropes. Ravines of splinters and scratchesline her arms while tears streak her blotchy face, the evidence ofcountless hours of failed escape attempts.

“Me?” she asks. “But why go through all thistrouble? The campaign is almost over! The Medis are alreadyattacking us!”

“You still don’t get it, do you?” asks Taj.“Irri, you’re the face of the rebellion, whether you accept it ornot. People rally around you! Intermix and native, you give them areason to fight, a reason to hope.”

“But I haven’t done anything!”

“You’ve done enough to warrant your publicexecution tomorrow,” Taj says.

“Just think of how the rebels will honoryour memory,” Lumi adds dryly.

“What is your problem, Lumi?” Nazirah yells.“I didn’t exactly plan for this to happen!”

“Of course you didn’t!” Lumi shouts, equallyangry. “But they kidnapped us last night to get information aboutyou! Grum drugged Aldrik at the pub to get to you! They waited inyour room, all night! And didn’t you keep them waiting.”

“Lumi, stop.”

“I won’t stop, Taj! How long have you beenfucking Adamek, Nazirah?”

“Shut up right now,” Nazirah hisses.

“I won’t shut up!” Lumi yells, panicking.“We knew something was going on with you two yesterday, even thoughyou lied through your teeth! But I was so right about you! You’re acomplete hypocrite, judging me when you do the exact same thing! Atleast I was honest!” Her blue eyes are terrified. “You realizewe’re going to die, Nazirah! Taj and I are going to die! And it’sall because of you!”

“We’re getting out of here, Lumi!” Nazirahcries. “I promise.”

“Fuck your promises!”

“Lumi, enough!” snaps Taj, pale andexhausted.

But Nazirah fears Lumi is completely right.They are going to die. And it is her fault. “Where is this trainheaded?” she asks suddenly.

“Where do you think?” Lumi repliesbitterly.

Nazirah sticks the dagger into herwaistband, stumbling to her knees even though her body tells her toquit. She drags the handcuffs up the metal pole so she can stand,clutching it for support. The vibrating wall, Nazirah nowrecognizes to be a sliding freight door. She grasps the handle,fingers slipping, and pulls hard. The door slides only marginally.Using all her strength, Nazirah kicks the door open further. Thewind whistles through the compartment, whipping her hair as sheobserves the foreign landscape outside … flashing lights, acridstench, hanging smog, looming skytowers in the distance.

“Mediah,” Nazirah whispers, eyes wide. Sheturns to them, trying to be heard over the roaring wind. “Thesefreight trains carry resources into the capital!” she shouts. “Theyneed to run in the opposite direction as well, right?”

“Your point?”

“We can hop on a train going south!” Nazirahreplies. “Warn everyone about Grum! Who knows what information hegave Gabirel? The Medis must be pla

“Oh sure!” yells Lumi. “Just hop on a train!Never mind the Medi guards, or that we don’t know where thesetrains are, or that we are all tied up!”

“Can you think of a better idea?” Nazirahsnaps. “I’m all ears!”

The train enters a tu

Now that she isn’t so shocked to see him,Nazirah fully takes in Ramses’ mangled appearance. He is somehowstanding, even with an exaggerated limp and hunched back. Both ofhis arms are heavily bandaged. But it is his face that is trulygrisly. His cheekbones are still smashed, nose shattered andcollapsed. He is nearly unrecognizable. But Nazirah would recognizehim instantly. It is those sadistic, inhumane eyes. The eyes of thefather, reincarnated in the son.