After issuing her instructions, Commandant Zakiyya and her entourage departed, leaving the execution of said orders to the rank and file. Almost immediately, complications emerged.

“I am not giving you my sword.”

Rúna glared defiantly at their captors. “You want it? Come and get it,” she growled. Her eyes blazed as she taunted them, her body already tensed for a fight. She showed no signs of backing down, and given the number of weapons pointed at them, she was daring them to cross a line from which there would be no coming back.

His own arms still raised, Genvass took a cautious step toward her. “Rúna, please, don’t do this,” he begged her. “If you don’t give them the sword, they’ll kill you.”

“They can try,” she snarled, her knuckles taut as she gripped the hilt, staring them down.

“Lose the blade, or we will open fire,” one goon barked.

“They’re not bluffing,” the ambassador pleaded. “For the love of Mother Terra, do as they say.”

“Never,” she hissed.

Genvass stared wide-eyed as time slowed to a crawl. She wasn’t going to surrender the sword. He knew that, and what was worse, so did they. There would be no negotiations, no willingness to de-escalate, no backing off until tempers cooled. They would just shoot her down like an animal, despite being one of their own. Her courage, her heroism in the face of incredible odds, none of that mattered to them. She was merely a loose end awaiting disposal, and nothing more.

He couldn’t let it happen.

“Rúna… look at your team,” he told her, playing the only card he had. “If you fight back, so will they.” Despite their captors having her total focus, she spared a brief glance at the others. They too were poised and spoiling for a fight, as always taking their cues from her. Something twitched within her, more sensed than actually seen, but it was only a momentary lapse. It was there and gone in a heartbeat as she returned her gaze to the guards, giving them her full attention, and despite his utter lack of military experience, somehow… he knew.

She’s chosen this spot to make her last stand.

“... they’ll kill them,” he said in a rush, deliberately playing on her emotions despite the self-loathing he felt doing so. “You told me how hard you fought to protect them on Sonoitii Prime, and how deeply losing Kai and the others wounded you. Don’t throw their lives away now, Rúna,” he beseeched her, “and don’t let them do it, either, fighting a hopeless battle you can’t win.”

Something broke inside of her when he mentioned Sonoitii Prime. In many ways, she’d never truly left that war-torn world, despite her best efforts. A sound escaped her throat, a ragged gasp that was quickly silenced as she gazed at her team once more. They stood with her, ready and willing to follow her commands, prepared to lay down their very lives if that’s what it took. Bowing her head, she closed her eyes, trembling as she relived that nightmare yet again.

He didn’t need to be a Knight to know what she was suffering in that moment; the screams of those she’d been unable to save. Her shoulders slumped as she slowly undid her belt, letting the sword fall to the floor with a clatter. Genvass breathed a sigh of relief while cursing himself for his betrayal. Maybe he’d saved her life, but he’d broken her spirit by doing so. Perhaps someday she’d forgive him, assuming they survived this, but he was certain he’d never forgive himself.

One by one, the others followed suit, dropping their weapons as their captors took them prisoner, herding them into waiting transports. There was no further resistance after Rúna surrendered her sword, instead, her team closed ranks, shielding her as best they could. With the Valkyries defeated, the others didn’t put up a fight, with Remi staring woodenly in defeat as the doors slammed shut.

“Where do you think they’re taking us?” Taneka asked.

“I don’t know,” Genvass shrugged. “A holding facility of some kind, perhaps.”

“Or an out-of-the-way spot where they can finish the job,” Becca said darkly.

“No… they could have done that at the warehouse,” Remi spoke up, expression slowly returning to his features. “They sure as hell showed no hesitation in taking Samara down.”

“I thought nothing could do that,” the ambassador admitted. “But with Precursor weapons…” He let the rest trail off.

“What I don’t understand is why,” Taneka said pointedly. “Why are they doing this, any of this? What do they hope to gain?” She shook her head in frustration. “What’s the bloody point?”

“I wish I knew,” Genvass sighed. “None of this makes sense. They must have a plan, it’s too well-orchestrated for them not to, but I can’t see it. I don’t understand what they want.”

There were nods of agreement all around, but no answers. With no insights forthcoming, the conversation drifted into silence. They simply waited until the vehicle finally came to a halt.

The guards pulled the doors open as the prisoners stared at drawn weapons. “Get out,” they ordered.

Much to his own surprise, Genvass stood up first. Whatever else happened, he was responsible for these people, and he refused to shirk his duty. If they were being marched out to face the executioner, then he would do so with his eyes wide open. Stepping forward, their captors motioned with their weapons to exit the vehicle, forming two lines to direct the prisoners. As he passed through the cordon with the others in tow, he found himself looking at a cluster of prefab buildings, hastily constructed, surrounded by a high wire fence. He nodded as he recognized it for what it was.

“... Internment Camp,” Taneka spat out, echoing his thoughts. “Guess it beats a bullet in the back of the head.”

“Don’t kid yourself,” Remi argued, “that’s still on the table.”

Gazing about, Genvass spotted other prisoners eyeing them warily, curious of the new arrivals. Their captors piled back into the van now that they had discharged their cargo, driving out of the camp as guards closed and locked the massive gate behind them.

“We need information,” the ambassador realized. “We need to find someone who can tell us what’s going on here.” He glanced over at Rúna, but she was still withdrawn, her team doing the best they could to coax her back to some semblance of humanity. It was as if losing the sword had taken a piece of her soul along with it. Glancing about, he searched for someone they could approach, only to have the decision taken out of his hands as he spotted a young woman beckoning from behind one of the buildings.

“This way,” he told the others, as he headed toward her. The others followed, from sheer inertia if nothing else, arriving at their destination less than a minute later. The young woman peered into his eyes, studying his features, before nodding in recognition.

“You’re Genvass, aren’t you? The ambassador?” she asked him.

“Yes, I am,” he told her. “Have we met?”

“You wouldn’t remember me,” she replied, shaking her head. “We never spoke directly, but I was part of the group that met with you on the Yait’xaik homeworld. Ponfia Khadhuj,” she said, introducing herself.

“I remember,” he nodded. “Your group took some convincing regarding Exodus, as I recall.”

“Yeah,” she shrugged. “Most of us were doing okay with the Yait’xaik, better than a lot of others in our clan, and we all figured New Terra was just a pipe dream. But you were pretty persuasive,” she smiled.

“Sorry things didn’t turn out better,” he apologized, before switching gears. “Can you help us? We need to find out what’s going on. I mean, what is this place? Why are you here?”

She gnawed on her lip for a moment and then waved him forward. “Come with me. There’s someone who might be able to answer your questions… better than I could, anyway.” He started to speak, but she was already moving, heading for one of the other structures. Looking back at the group, he simply shrugged and went to follow her.

They entered the prefab as she led them down a corridor, taking a right that led them to a large open space. Chairs were lined up against the walls, many of them currently occupied, while in the center of the room, a couple of tables stood. An older man sat atop one of them, being examined by another roughly the same age.

“Grand Master Makar?” Amar Svoboda said in shock.

The elder Knight turned at the mention of his name, staring in surprise at the young medic. “Chevalier… Quatrième, as I recall,” he smiled. “It’s good to see you again, though I regret the circumstances.” He pointed to a nearby washbasin. “Scrub up. We have patients, and I could use the assistance.” The clan leader prepared to resume his exam when he paused, turning back once more as he spotted Genvass. “Ambassador Shaafvaazif,” he slowly nodded. “This is starting to make a bit more sense.”

“Grand Master,” he said politely. “What are you doing in this place?”

“Trying to help out where I can,” he shrugged, “though if you’re asking how I ended up as an internee, that, I’m afraid, is a much longer tale.”

Genvass sighed. “I think we really need to hear that story, Grand Master.”

The clan leader led them to a smaller room close by, forcing most of the group to wait outside. Genvass, Remi, and Taneka, all accompanied him, followed a moment later by Rúna as she broke free of the other Valkyries, shouldering her way through the doorway to join them. She appeared to be slowly coming back from whatever dark recess she’d retreated to, but it was obvious she still had a way to go before she was her old self again. She and the ambassador barely exchanged glances, despite taking a seat beside him, as the Grand Master made himself comfortable.

“I scarcely know where to begin,” the senior Knight sighed, running his fingers through his thinning hair. “It’s obvious to me now that there was a great deal going on I wasn’t privy to, though I didn’t realize it at the time. Despite the many meetings with my fellow clan leaders, it’s clear that much of what transpired was nothing more than political theater. Oh, it had all the appearance of normal discourse, of us wrangling over the various issues we faced, but it was nothing more than a sham. The real planning sessions, it seems, were taking place behind my back.”

“You mean all the other clan leaders are involved in this conspiracy?” Genvass said hoarsely.

“Well, I’ve seen none of them here,” he shrugged, “so that’s my assumption.”

“What the hell do they want?” Remi demanded. “What’s driving all of this?”

“Oldest motivation in the universe, I’m afraid,” he said unhappily.

“Power,” Taneka said quietly.

“Yes… power,” the Grand Master nodded. “I suspect it all began when we created the Provisional Government. It was supposed to be a temporary measure, to ease the transition from the clans to a single unified body. The plan was to come up with a constitution we could all agree on, submit it to the people for ratification, and, if they approved it, hold general elections.” He sighed. “Obviously, that didn’t happen.”

“The last I heard, the constitution was still stuck in committee,” Genvass said.

“Intentionally, I suspect,” Makar said pointedly.

“And what happens to you and the other clan leaders if the constitution were ratified?” Taneka asked him.

“I imagine we would all be out of a job,” he smiled wanly, “unless they were elected on their own terms. I wanted to add a paragraph specifically barring any of us from holding office, but it got shot down.”

“Why?” Genvass said curiously.

“Because it’s time,” he answered. “Time for new blood and fresh ideas. A way to break from our fractured past and build something new, here on Terra Nova. If I or the other clan leaders took office, it would likely be a generation or more before we could start moving past all the arguments and petty squabbles that kept our clans divided.”

“So they saw the writing on the wall and decided they enjoyed being in power too much to just give it all up,” Remi snarled. “The Admiral is part of this as well?”

“I believe so, yes,” the Grand Master said gently. “I understand he’s been bringing the shipyards back online, though I fail to see why. It will be decades at least before we can build anything like Peacemaker.”

“So the clan leaders staged a coup and took control,” Taneka snarled. “Is no one opposing them?”

“Several, in fact, once they realized what was happening.” He sighed unhappily. “You’ll find most of them here, I’m afraid.” He turned to the ambassador. “Many of them are Dharmists, Ambassador. I fear your clan is now under a dark cloud, accused by many of being ‘Pro-alien sympathizers’.”

“WHAT?” Genvass exploded out of his chair, staring at the Knight in shock. “That’s insane!”

“... No, it isn’t,” Rúna said quietly, speaking up for the first time in hours. “It’s a classic political strategy. You create an external threat to rally the population… and an internal one to weed out the opposition. Anyone speaking out against what you’re doing becomes an ‘Enemy of the People’.” She looked up sadly at him. “And because they’re seen as a threat to their own survival, no one cares when they are taken away.”

“How do you know this?” he whispered, his expression one of pure horror.

Rúna winced and then looked away. “I’m a Valkyrie,” she said softly. “It’s what we do. Well, did,” she amended. “Corrupt governments would hire us to suppress dissension within their population, among other things. I’ve seen this scenario play out more times than I can count.”

“I fear she’s correct,” the Grand Master agreed. “It certainly fits with what I myself have witnessed.”

“Samara was right all along,” Remi said in disgust, “they did play us. They sent us out to stir up the hornet’s nest with Peacemaker, turn all the other races against us, and when the clan leaders geared up for war, they labeled anyone objecting as a traitor.” He clenched his fists in rage. “Goddamn it, is there anything we Terrans can’t fuck up?”

Genvass collapsed back in his chair, stunned beyond words as realization slowly sank in. “I can’t believe it,” he said in dismay. “The Dàifu deliberately offered her own people as sacrificial lambs, just to stay in power.”

The Grand Master looked at him with sympathy. “Your clan makes for easy targets, I regret to say,” he said gently. “There have always been accusations regarding your clan’s true loyalties; whether they lay with your fellow Terrans, or the alien worlds you called home. They were undeserved and unjust, you were simply trying to survive as best you could, just as all of us were, in our own ways.” He sighed and shook his head. “But then we Terrans have always been quick to divide ourselves between ‘Us’ and ‘Them’.”

“I can’t believe it,” he repeated, still struggling to process what he’d just learned. “And what’s worse, they’re going to get away with it.”

“No, they won’t,” Rúna snarled, rising to her feet as the fire blazed in her eyes once more. “They think they can just dump us here and leave us to rot while they take control? Think again.”

Genvass could only stare at her in confusion. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying we have fought too hard and bled too much, sacrificing everything to give our people a second chance,” she said with barely controlled fury. “I will not let them throw all that away.”

Remi stood up as well. “Goddamn right,” he growled, as Taneka nodded in agreement.

Swallowing hard, Genvass rose to join them. “I’ve never been a fighter,” he said, “but it’s time I learned.”