Surpreme Court. United States of North America.

For centuries, the United States of North America Supreme Court was the symbol of unwavering justice. Here, partisanship was put on a hold. Politics were put on a hold. Justices made decisions on critical cases that the lower courts couldn’t settle for the overall good of the country.

When the President had Uncle Sam apprehended, he wanted to use this as a chance to elevate himself in the eyes of his people. This trial had to be the trial of the century. A case like this never should’ve reached the Supreme Court, but the President pushed it through by force.

In fact, Uncle Sam’s sentence was already decided before the case was started.

But things appeared to be going against what he had planned in mind, at least for now. Even before the trial has began, thousands have already gathered in front of the Supreme Court. They were holding onto flags and banners with slogans written all over. Their chants only made them look more determined.

“End this war!”

“Get the Voyagers out of here!”

“Peace! Not war!”

“We don’t have to pay for a war we are not a part of!”

A few were more violent.

“Death to the Voyagers and their political pets!”

“Get out of there Anderson!”

Between the protesters and the Supreme Court, hundreds of armed soldiers formed a wall. They were members of the 10th Armored Division. Their presence here was supposed to be a show of strength, but now, they were in an awkward state. They held in their arms weapons more advanced than anything Earth has invented, but in no way did they help with fending off the protestors trying to break through their lines. Those people knew they wouldn’t use their weapons and risk a bloodshed, so they moved forward recklessly while the soldiers had to be more conserved.

The President sighed as angry words surrounded him. For a moment, he wondered if he has made a mistake.

He has never considered himself to be a good person. He has turned back on more than half of his election promises. He has made countless behind-the-curtain deals with fellow politicians and corporate heads.

Those actions he didn't regret. He was a politician, and being a politician meant making compromises. That was how the country and its constitution was established. One could never hold absolute power. If someone wanted to make change, he needed to get others on board, and that required deals.

The people despised it. If it was up to them, they would brute force through any foe and choose destruction over compromise, but if everyone did that, it would be a constant stalemate.

But back in the days, he could still say with confidence that he was fighting for the right cause. Now, not so much...

He could still remember the day when he talked to a mother whose daughter passed away from poverty and the malnutrition that followed. He spoke with absolute assurance that the tragedy that happened to her would never happen again. And he did his best to keep up with that promise. Within the first year of election, he did all he could to make policies against poverty.

But that all changed ever since the Voyagers came. Jean Turner deflected the Romans that would’ve slaughtered their way through the planet. Without Jean and her Wardens and Purifiers, the only thing the U.S.N.A. could rely on to defend themselves would be its arsenal of missiles. The Romans could take an RPG to the head. Could they survive a thermonuclear weapon? But that would come with a price. If just a squad of Romans made it into the cities, the U.S.N.A. would be screwed. What could they do? Drop a nuke on New York City to kill a dozen invaders?

Jean saved this world a whole lot of casualties, and for that, the President was grateful. In fact, for a while, he felt blessed by how Jean was and what she did. He has heard about how the other Voyagers roamed across the nations they were tasked with protecting with no regard of the local laws. Apparently, one of the Voyagers kidnapped and raped two girls to death, and all the local government could do was give compensation for the families.

Jean was different. She wasted no time to build up the defenses. The portals at the U.S.N.A. were constructed into fool-proof barriers that were near impenetrable even to the Romans. It was as if she was the perfect guardian, sent by the gods to save the nation.

But that opinion changed quickly. Jean was massing her forces to an excessive degree. Countless local factories were converted from building consumer goods to machines of war. Local resources were redistributed as well. Jean’s unit count skyrocketed, but the living standard of the nation reached a point where if someone’s car broke down, they couldn’t find a replacement because there was not enough metal.

The President knew it was time to stop. He went to Jean with a request for her to slow down, but the savior of the nation refused almost the moment the offer was brought up.

“The Romans will be back, Mr. President, and when that happens, I will not let this planet fall because its inhabitants decided to prioritize comfort over safety.”

Those were Jean’s words. She wasn’t giving in an inch. When the President pushed further, Jean hinted that he was only saying this because he was working for the Romans.

Oh how furious he was to be thrown such an absurd accusation. Even now, the President could remember the anger that flowed through his heart. But with that anger was a sense of helplessness. He was insulted, but there was nothing he could do. In fact, he still had to put on a smile when talking to the woman who wounded his pride without a care in the world.

After all, the Voyager had the forces to wipe out his entire country with a single order. The President has seen what she and her forces could do. If even the Romans could break through their lines, what could the U.S.N.A. forces do?

That was when Jean came up with a proposal.

“Hear me out, Mr. President. I have an offer. In exchange for the materials and producing facilities your country has provided, I will give you technologies beyond anything your world has seen before.”

“Beyond our world...how...how does these technologies compare to your forces?”

“You are optimistic, Mr. President, but it is important for one to know his place. These technologies will not bring your forces to our level, but it will still be a huge step forward.”

The President could no longer tell what he was thinking when he agreed to that deal. Day after day, he told himself that was the proper decision. A lot of his problems would be solved if he had a powerful army behind his back. But sometimes, he couldn’t help but wonder if his decision was made based on his self-interest.

A dominating army could make a nation strong, but it could also make a person dictator.

Shaking his head, the President tossed those thoughts out. He looked around. The waves of protests continued. In fact, their intensity grew. But there was still no sign of Jean’s convoy.

“Ms. Lane, where is Sergeant Louis?”

He turned to his most trusted secretary.

“I have no idea. They should be here five minutes ago.”

“Check the GPS.”

“Yes sir.”

The President sighed again before returning his gaze to the crowd. Hopefully, after today, the dissent should be quieted down a little. This nation couldn’t survive any more turmoil.

On the side, General Johnson glanced at his watch again. Inside his pocket, his fist was repeatedly opening and closing. Behind him, an officer stepped up gently.

“Sir?”

It was not a question. It was a remind.

The time was now.

General Johnson gave one last glance at the court behind him. He knew once he pulls the trigger, there would be no going back. If the plan was successful, and the Voyagers all end up dead and the Romans leave this world, he would be the secretary of defense of the new government. If things went wrong and the coup failed, the Voyagers would execute everyone involved without question.

It was a great risk, but just like he said, Earth shouldn’t be bleeding for the war of someone else.

With a swift turn, he pulled his Defender II gauss handgun and emptied three bullets into the back of the head of the President of the United States of North America.

The field was dead silent for a second as everyone, from the crowd to the soldiers, realized what happened.

And then all hell exploded.

Ms. Lane stood still, frozen. Her eyes lingered on what was left of her former boss’s head. In contrast, dozens of Secret Service agents acted swiftly as they pulled out their specialized gauss handguns and turned to the President’s assassin.

But before they could do anything, a wave of gunshots rang out, and it wasn’t from the agents.

Twenty 10th Division soldiers on the side have pulled out their gauss rifles. But instead of going for the traitor, their bullets landed on the Secret Service agents, within moments, the men in black were on the ground, dead or dying.

“What the…”

“What have you done?”

“Stand down soldiers!”

“This is treason!”

A fragment of the six hundred 10th Division soldiers were confused as well. They were the ones not in on the plan, but their confusion was very short-lived. Every one of them found multiple of their comrades raising their rifles on them. Their mouth hung open in surprise, but it was already too late. Following a wave of short, concise bursts of bullets, the remaining loyalists were finished off.

General Johnson turned around and gunned down two military officials behind him reaching for their handguns. When the twenty rebels behind him raised their weapons as well, the survivors froze.

Across the field, dozens of police officers who heard the gunshots closed in, wondering what happened, but they were welcomed by a hail of ammos. Unlike the Secret Service agents or 10th Division troopers, they weren’t armed with trooper armors or gauss rifles. Their resistance was even more short lived.

The President’s corpse was still on the ground. Never did he imagine the end would be this quick and from someone this close. At the back of his mind, he always believed General Johnson would be a loyalist. After all, he almost single handedly moved him up to his current status from a mere colonel.

What he didn't realize was that, for some people, faith was more important than personal gain.

General Johnson stepped forward and took the President’s place. A single kick sent the body tumbling to the side, drawing a wave of screams from horrified audience.

But Johnson didn't say anything. He merely turned to the side and whispered an order. Immediately, thirty 10th Division men marched into the court building. After a few minutes and some rather intense gunshots, fifteen of them emerged with the person they were sent to retrieve.

Uncle Sam.

General Johnson stepped to the side and gave Uncle Sam the stage.

Uncle Sam, or rather Professor Hardin, keenly noticed some of the audience were attempting to leave. They were against the current regime, but they weren’t expecting for a political coup as brutal as this one. The man knew he had to act quickly.

This was especially true when General Johnson whispered to him a sentence. Well, it was closer to three words.

“Jean Turner survived.”

Jean Turner survived the assassination. Uncle Sam knew this meant both the 10th Division soldiers and the Romans failed. Likely, she was heading right for them. He also knew a few gauss rifles and men in power armor couldn’t stop Jean. Having lost her partner in crime, the Voyager would hunt them to the end of Earth.

Their only chance of survival was in one factor: the Voyager was sent to protect the locals, so if thousands upon thousands of locals were going against her, what could they do? Kill them all?

But to do that, he needed to stir up these audience now. He cleared his throat. At the same time, dozens of 10th Division rebels pulled at least two dozens reporters into position. The reporters were sent by the major media centers to report on the trial of the century. When the bloodshed began, they were completely paralyzed. But now, the rebels needed them to relay their message to the rest of the world.

“People of the United States of North America, listen to me!”

“We have being involved in this war for far too long! We have lost too much! Fathers! Husbands! The lives of our sons and daughters have been taken, and for what? The Protectors Corps? The Infinite Realms? We never wanted this war, and it is because of the Protectors and their Voyager goons that we have been dragged into its endless depth!”

“The Romans have retreated. Thanks to our might and our sacrifice, they have taken back any thought of setting foot into our world! But apparently, that’s not enough to satisfy the Voyagers! For the past three months, they have latched onto our world like parasites, roaming around our land and doing whatever they wish to our people!”

He held his hand out, and Johnson passed over a piece of paper. On it were two images of two young girls.

“Ashley and Cara! Those were the names of two 16 year old girls who were unfortunate enough to be spotted by the Voyager known as Major on the streets one day. They have survived the blades of the Romans, but they couldn’t make it through the claws of the Voyagers!”

“The time is now, people! How many have the Voyagers taken from us? How many more have to die before we realize what must be done? I say, no more! Today is the day where the Voyagers fall!”

Suddenly, on one side, the crowd scattered. The reason became obvious.

Jean Turner was standing there, in all her might and all her glory, but the polite smile on her lips was nowhere to be seen.

She knew she has lost the upper hand.