Defying Terror

Part I: Chapter I

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July 31st, 2030, 1:56 am                                                                                                           

The sidewalk underneath my feet is completely barren and creates a void below me. Gray bullets strike my body and forms puddles in the void. Misty glares of white light bleed through the dim unknown ahead. A low crash ruminates in the area.

My mom would always tell me, "You've done it multiple times already, so you know what it takes to make it. That doesn't mean that it'll be a walk in the park. You can't go in there overconfident, or else you will be setting yourself up to fail." Well, this is exactly my feelings now. I shouldn't be this nervous about this run, but I guess that I am. This is my fifth time sneaking into the Castle, yet it is just as nerve-wracking as the first, back in April. Tonight is the first night that I'm doing this with my vision obscured.

The plan is simple, and the same as always; climb the twenty-foot fence, sneak in a open first floor window, then see how far you can get without getting arrested. Perhaps, even, grabbing some of those seriously expensive items that just collect dust in that huge mansion. I bet the Emperor doesn't know that half of that shit is even in his house. The members of the Imperial Guard that patrol the Castle probably know his house better than the leader himself.

The Castle is the closed-off home of the Emperor, and the Imperial Guard's wartime nucleus. During the day, the Castle has certain rooms open to the public, yet it is still heavily guarded. I would have zero chance stealing anything in that place, and with my status around the Empire, I wouldn't even be able to step foot onto the premises without getting arrested.

It would be quite unfair to not explain why my presence would create hostility. To put it bluntly, I'm the Empire's most wanted criminal. I think that it has been this way since mid-March, when a couple of so-called "friends" yanked me into trouble with the law, and for four months, I've been too afraid to show my face around anyone who would rat me out to the Imperial Guard.

That being said, my only real hobby now is sneaking into the Castle, walking around until I alert a guard, then get my ass out of there. Believe me, it's much more difficult than you would think, especially when the Imperial Guard is shooting at you. I've only gotten grazed by a bullet once, and I got lucky with another one that whizzed right by my nose. Scary stuff, but it's only that way if you're nervous, and I'm not. Well, maybe a little.

The only form of defense that I possess is my trusty metal baseball bat that I've owned since my days playing tee ball. There are faint red marks that are splattered all around the thick part. It's kinda odd, considering I don't remember hitting anyone with this bat. Nonetheless, this bat protects me, even when I don't exactly need it. Good insurance, if you ask me.

I breathe in and shake my head like a wet dog. The time to act is now.

I hop off of the ledge of the Imperial Bank and onto the roof. The bank is right across the street from the Castle, and I use it as my vantage point to plan my runs. Thanks to this damn rain, I'm going into this without any inkling of what my path is. I always tell myself that whenever I'm in doubt, I should just run. Run, and never turn back.

On the alley side of the bank, there is a metal staircase that stops halfway down the wall and leads into the building. Instead of entering the bank and definitely getting caught, a lumpy pile of black garbage bags sit idly on the floor of the alley. I spring off of the rusty edge and land on the side of my body into the trash. God, it reeks.

As I sift myself out of the garbage, I overhear a couple of guys talking on the sidewalk just outside of the alley. I didn't see them when I was on top of the bank. I really hope that they're just clueless citizens that wouldn't mind seeing me sneak around. If they end up being in the Imperial Guard, this run is over before it even started. I crouch down and walk over to the corner slowly to try and listen to them.