Chapter Seven - The Execution

It was early in the morning; the sun wasn’t up yet.  Yuri was tired.  He was tired of it all.  He wanted to die.  Sasha was gone.  She didn’t come back after Polavsky was in the room.  She hadn’t talked to him since.  That made him angry.
                
A guard came in holding a gun in his hand.  This was it.  Yuri saw numerous executions on the LCDs, and knew how it was done.  He was glad it would end quickly; at the moment he felt it would be the best thing to happen to him since his arrest.  He wasn’t afraid, he was glad.
                
The guard stepped behind him, and a camera in the corner of the room started recording.  After about a minute of recording the voice of Polavsky boomed into the room through a speaker.
                
It was a one-word statement, the final order, “Execute.”
                
Sasha appeared in front of Yuri at that moment, giggling.  She touched Yuri’s face gently, and he grinned at her.  Then she moved over to the guard as he brought the gun up to Yuri’s head.  His finger moved towards the trigger.  Sasha threw a blast of energy, a bolt of electricity from her hand into the camera as the trigger was pulled.  Her other hand appeared between the barrel of the gun and Yuri’s head.  It caught the bullet.
                
The guard jumped back as Sasha appeared in front of him for the first time.  She threw another bolt of energy into him, and he flew back, hitting the wall hard.  He was knocked out immediately.  Then she cut through the wires that held Yuri in the chair and pushed him off.  She took the chair and ripped it out of the floor, then threw it at the door, and embedded it into the floor there, blocking the door.
                
Yuri sat up on the ground and looked at her.  He didn’t know she was so strong.  He thought she was just an apparition bothering him until now.  She picked up the gun and handed it to Yuri, and then disappeared.
                
He looked around, the door was securely blocked, no one would be able to enter for a long time, nor would anyone be able to leave.  Then he looked at the guard.  He wasn’t dead, just knocked out.  He had to find a way out.
                
The guard stirred out of unconsciousness and opened his eyes.  Sitting up, he held his head in his hands.  When he looked around, he found Yuri sitting on the ground, pointing the gun at him.
                
“What the hell was that?” the guard asked.
                
“That was Sasha.” Yuri grinned.
                
The guard’s radio buzzed, and he looked at it.  Yuri heard the mechanical sound of the buzz.
               
“Toss it here.” Yuri told the guard, and he reluctantly complied.
                
A voice came through the crackling of static, but Yuri turned it off before the voice could come through and say what it had to say.  Next, he checked the gun to see how many bullets were in it.  There was only one bullet, which was reasonable since only one bullet was needed to execute him.  But it wasn’t good news for him.
                
“Are you going to kill me?” the guard spoke.
                
“I’ll think about it,” Yuri answered, not looking at the guard.  He was concerned; he didn’t know what to do.  “Sasha!” he called her, hoping she might have some kind of an idea.  She didn’t appear, “Where the hell is she when I need her.”
                
The wall by the door began to shake.  The plaster slowly fell off, and soon there was a hole in the wall.  It was almost over.  Yuri put down the gun, knowing that one bullet couldn’t stop all the guards.  The hole was big enough for a small explosive, and the guards on the other side put one in.  Then they took cover; Yuri looked away as the explosive blasted the wall away.  Plaster scattered throughout the room and hit him hard, embedding into his skin and flesh like shrapnel.  He winced in pain.  The guard was on the far side of the room, and most of the plaster that flew that far hit him lightly.
                
The guards ran in and pointed their guns at Yuri.  They were ready to fire.  One took his radio and called Polavsky, “Sir, we infiltrated the room.  Both the guard and the condemned are alive, but the destruction in the room isn’t something a person could possibly do.”
                
“It was Sasha, Sasha did that.” Yuri was mumbling, more to himself than to the guards.
                
“What?” the guard with the radio asked.
                
“Yes, it was Sasha.  She was here; I saw her, too.” the guard sitting at the far end of the room responded.
                
Yuri lied down on the floor on his back, looking at the ceiling.  He was thinking about Sasha, and about what would happen to him now.  He was pretty sure that they would execute him.  Sasha disappeared now that he needed her the most.  It was her fault that he was still alive.  She must have had a good reason to save his life.
                
“Sasha.” he was calling her, but she didn’t answer, “Sasha!”

Chapter Eight - Need

“Yeah, I’m here.” she finally answered, appearing at his side.  Large bolts of electricity traveled through her body.  The guards stepped back, contemplating whether to shoot at her or not.  Yuri saw her in this state for the first time, and feared her as well.  He didn’t understand what she was.  “Yuri, I need you.” she began, “I need you to live.  You mustn’t die.  If you die, I will die.”
                
“Is that why you saved me from the execution, for yourself?  Why couldn’t you pick someone else?” he was angry because all along she was at his side because of herself.
                
“Yuri, you’re the only one who can save me.  Listen to me; I didn’t do it for myself.  I did it for you, too.  There is something you don’t know about yourself, but I can’t tell you.  I’m forbidden to.  You must see that on your own.” she took his hand, and he felt the electric energy pass through it.  It tingled.  “Come.” she said as she helped him stand up.
                
“Where are you taking me?” he followed her towards the opening in the wall.  Before they reached the opening, and reached the guards, Sasha disappeared.  Yuri looked around, “Heh, so much for that.”
                
“I’m sorry,” Sasha’s voice came from somewhere within the room, “I’m growing weak.”  She appeared in front of him.   There were no bolts of electricity this time; she looked just like a little girl in her white gown.  She started to fall as she looked into his eyes, and he grabbed her and gently placed her on the ground, “I’m sorry, I must go now.  I’m too weak.  Please, if you die, I will die.”  She disappeared from his arms.
                
Polavsky stormed past the guards into the room, holding a gun in his hand.  He pointed it at Yuri in anger, “What the hell are you all just standing around!  I ordered him to be shot!”
                
He was about to shoot him when a guard stepped forward and whispered into Polavsky’s ear.  Polavsky turned around and hit the guard as hard as he could, “What kind of bullshit is that?”
                
While Polavsky faced the guard, Yuri approached him.  The arm Sasha held before she disappeared still tingled.  He felt he knew what to do.  As Polavsky turned back towards Yuri and once again pointed the gun at him, Yuri raised his hand, and sent a bolt of electricity at the gun.  Polavsky dropped the gun.  Yuri walked past Polavsky and through the hole.  No one stopped him.  The guards stood there motionless and speechless, while Polavsky was too busy holding his hand in pain.
                
The tingling was gone.  Sasha gave him just enough to get out of the room, and that was it.

Chapter Nine - Finding the Strength Within Me

Yuri stepped out of the building into the streets.  It was raining.  He must have been quite a sight, his clothes dirty and stained with blood.  Passers-by looked at him, and quickly moved on.
                
The rain falling on his hair and shoulders felt good, cooled him off.  He wondered what Polavsky was going to do next, but figured he had some time before Polavsky went after him.
                
He called for a cab, and when it stopped, he entered.  Giving his address to the driver, he sat back, and looked out the window, thinking what to do next.  When the cab arrived at his house, he stepped out.  He had no money to pay for the cab so he just walked away, the driver screaming after him.
                
He entered his house, and found that it was searched.  That didn’t bother him.  He didn’t care; he was leaving everything behind.  He went into his walk-in closet, and pushed a box out.  Under the box was little place where the carpet was cut.  It was barely noticeable, but he knew it was there.  He created that little spot.  Uncovering the floor beneath the carpet, he removed one of the boards, to reveal a hidden hole.  There he found new cloths, black.  A black t-shirt that he found years ago and thought that it was from the time before Polavsky came to power.  He liked it.  Soon afterwards he got his hands on black pants and a long, black trench coat.  The shoes were the hardest to find, but after rummaging through the storage rooms in museums, he found some combat boots that were worn by a soldier during some war years ago, before his lifetime.  Under all of that was a little bundle of newspapers.  He picked up the newspapers, and unwrapped them, revealing two handguns, both Ruger P89Ts.  He took all of this to the bathroom.  He took a quick two-minute shower to freshen up, and then put the black cloths on.  It wasn’t allowed, but he didn’t care.  Sasha needed him; he didn’t understand why, but he felt that he needed to do something for her.  The guns came with gun holsters, and he put them on before he put the trench coat on.
                
He picked up a box of cigarettes, and lit one, walking out of the house.  Breaking the window of the closest car, he unlocked it and stepped inside.  Connecting the wires, he turned the engine on.  He was going to the beach.
                                                                                                
                                                         *     *     *

He walked down the beach.  He thought that Sasha might come there since that was where they met the first time.  Instead he found that he was followed.  Polavsky was there, with his numerous guards.  Polavsky approached Yuri with caution.  He wasn’t afraid of what Yuri might do, but that Sasha would appear once again.
                
He hadn’t seen her, as she disappeared before he entered, but the guards did.  They explained as much as they could to Polavsky.  That was why Polavsky now felt that he needed Yuri alive.  Yuri wasn’t a big threat, not as big as Sasha.  He felt that he might be able to control Yuri in such a way that he could gain Sasha’s power.
                
“Where is this Sasha?” he wanted to know.
                
Yuri smiled, “I don’t know.  See, that’s the beauty of it, she just comes and goes as she pleases.  Freedom of choice, something this world doesn’t have.”
                
“Freedom, yeah, you have freedom of choice.  You can tell me where she is or die.” Polavsky was angry.  He was angry most of the time, especially when confronting people who were inferior to him, which was everyone, but now he was facing a new power.
                
“I don’t know where she is.  I told you she comes as she pleases.”
                
“I’ll kill you if you don’t tell me.”
                
“Ha, you’ll kill me even if I do tell you.”
                
“I promise I won’t.” Polavsky grinned.
                
“You want her dead?”
                
“But of course.  She’s a threat to me, why wouldn’t I?”
                
“Well, then kill me and she’ll die, too.  That’s simple enough, isn’t it?”
                
“Right you are.” He said and walked over.  Then he pulled out his gun and shoved it under Yuri’s chin, “Where is she!?”
                
“Haha, go ahead, pull the trigger.  I dare you.”
                
“Not yet.  I want her power first.”
                
“Aww, well, that’s too bad for you.  You’re not getting it.  That’s not possible.”
                
“Yeah, and she gave you the power, didn’t she?”
               
“Umm, no…”
                
“You’re lying.”
                
“Sure.”
                
Polavsky hit Yuri as hard as he could across the face with the gun.  A streak of blood appeared on Yuri’s cheek.
                
Sasha appeared behind Yuri, taking a hold of his hand.  She slipped something over it.  It was like a glove with the fingers cut off.  She slipped a second one into his pocket, and then disappeared once again.
                
Yuri looked down at it, as did Polavsky, “She did now.” Yuri said, smiling, and then took a hold of the barrel of Polavsky’s gun.  He pulled it out of Polavsky’s hand, and pointed it at him, “I could kill you right now, but I got a better idea.  My turn to rule the world.”