Code of Shadows

Chapter 18: Trouble

There were several seconds of thick silence after the video finished playing. Everyone was processing what the video meant about our family.

"As you can see now, it is mandatory to get you all out of Almosa as soon as possible. With the way that current events have been going, Cait only has 6 months left in Almosa, at the max." Aala ran a hand through her hair. "The Prime Justice has blinded Almosa's citizens and has corrupted his government officials. He has complete control of everything."

"But isn't that how it has always been?" Dad ask quizzically. 

 Aala grimanced. "No. When Almosa was first formed, the Prime Justice had to share power with several councils of representatives. The current Prime Justice has corrupted everything in the government making it so that he is a dictator." Aala scowled. "He has altered what you know about Almosa's history to make his actions justifiable. He is really a cruel and power hungry Prime Justice.

"Almosa used to be a free country, but now, it is a controlled and isolated one." Aala's face was sour. "I will not lie, the Prime Justice has done a lot of things right, but he has done just as many wrong. He has ruled for over 300 years in Almosa. He has captured and killed 5 Fantasies before you." Aala's face finally turned unexpressive. "The first was Pinocchio, then Jiminy Cricket, followed by Aladdin, then Tiana, and finally Peter Pan, or Mason. All the Prime Justice wants from your family is Cait's magic and he will stop at no ends to get it.

Aala sat down in front of the screen. "That is why Cait needs to 'disappear' or die in the governments eye. We will be taking everyone to a place that is safe. I told you this in hopes that you understand what we are doing and why." Aala stopped talking and she took a moment to look each of us in the eye. I watch as Mom and Dad have another silent conversation. 

Dad was the first one to talk. "How would we get there?"

"By train to start, then by foot over the border. Cait and I will have to go a different way though. I don't think it is in the best of our interests to let the government see supposedly dead people walking around."

Mom went bug eyed. "What did you mean by suppose to be dead?"

Aala guiltily looked away from my mom. "The only way that Cait and I will escape alive is if they think that we are dead. We are going to have a person attack Cait while she is coming home after the yearly high official meeting. We will make it look like the person killed Cait, and burn her body." Aala put air quotations over the last part.

"Of course, in real life, this won't be happening. It will all be an illusion. At this point, Cait and I will be running for the exit. We will then proceed to trek through the wilderness to Yimlan, the place that you will go after Cait's supposed death. At that point, we will get some help to get us over the boarder."

"How will they not realize that we are missing?" Mom asked.

Aala smiled. "Yimlan experiences periodic outages that don't get fixed for weeks. They come around the same time every year, and it isn't uncommon for people to go missing during this time. Besides, to the government, in those small towns, you are just a number on the screen, they won't even think about it twice." I blinked twice. That was a something I hadn't expected.

I was about to respond when a red alarm blared to life over our heads. I jumped and knocked over the chair I was sitting on.

"What is happening?" Arin asked, slightly fearfully.

Aala scurried out the door. "There is a intruder in the building, the capitol building is going on lock down. We need to get to the training room before the door is closed and locked."