Page 73 of Uprising

Roman

It’s going to be a long week.

A good week.

A week we send a message to the entirety of Verona.

They spent so long living with their heads in the sand, deliberately ignoring all the flashing red warning lights that show what’s really going on. But now they’re going to realise that they’re not immune from all of this, that their actions have consequences and after tonight I’m going to have each and every one of them looking over their shoulders, wondering if they’re next.

We start off on the outskirts of town. Koen makes sure we have enough bikes and people to overpower any militia Darius might have lurking and by the time any reinforcements get to us we’ll be long gone.

Holden heads up one team. I head up another. I know Koen has three already on route to the main substations and if they’re successful we’ll all witness the evidence of it.

When we get to the reservoir it’s more guarded than I anticipated but within minutes we’ve shot down everything that moves.

We’ve been strategic with our targets. We picked this one out especially and as I start planting the bombs I can’t help but feel a thrill of excitement, of glee. Finally I am doing something. Finally I am making a point.

It takes a good ten minutes to ensure they’re all were they need to be. We have to do this right, to blow this up in such a way that all the water fucks off down the valley and we don’t end up drowning ourselves.

But that’s also why we choose this one for the big explosion.

Verona has two reservoirs. Two massive artificial lakes that feed the city and ensure that even during the height of summer all the grass is green and every swimming pool is filled and sprinkler can flow.

Darius isn’t stupid. He knows that this infrastructure is vital to keeping his power.

And that’s exactly why I’m going to take this right out from under him.

I step back, far enough that I know the explosion won’t reach me and without hesitation I hit the detonator.

The sound is like thunder. The very earth beneath me seems to shake as if this were natural.

I can hear the rush of water, the sound of it cascading down the hill.

And just as the silence settles in, I hear another explosion. And then another.

Both of them are far off. In the distance. Miles away from where we are. I turn my head staring down to the city beneath me and I can see the evidence of what Koen has done. What his teams have done.

Gone are the glittering lights. Gone are all the sparkles of Verona. It’s pitch black. As if the city isn’t even there. The only thing visible is the car lights, that look like insignificant specs.

But the noise, the sound of vehicles beeping turns the darkness into chaos.

I get back on my borrowed bike, luckily for us there’s a tunnel entrance not far from here, and we’ve been amassing fuel all week to ensure our own generators keep everything underground powered.

We’ve been amassing water too. And food. We’ve really have got enough to survive a nuclear holocaust and for once I find that thought a relief.

Holden’s voice comes through the earpiece. “It’s done.”

I pick it up, speaking into it as the ten of our group ride away.

“You got it all in?”

“Every drop.” Holden says.

I grin at that.

We couldn’t take out the other reservoir without causing serious casualties and while this city has a lot of answer for, the only blood I want on my hands is Darius and his cronies.

But leaving the reservoir intact meant blowing this one up wouldn’t have the same effect. We needed to take out both. We need to twist the knife and ensure Darius feels the pressure point tightening.