Chapter 148: Subordinate Settlement
“Nomad! Wait!” Fabiana called out from behind the group while picking her way through ruined concrete barriers and stepping over burned tires.
Coop, Marcus, Camila, and Charlie were already standing still after Coop paused to test his new title, so they waited for the insistent Commander. The rest of the rebel army appeared to be moving slowly, lagging behind as they collected the prisoners and cleared some of the debris to give better access between the airport and shipping port. The Endless Empire’s Chosen didn’t put up any more resistance, finding themselves both defeated and nearly evenly numbered for the first time since the assimilation began. Coop thought the role reversal would be a decent wakeup call for those who had grown accustomed to the situation as it had been.
“Thank you.” Fabiana spoke as she finally caught up, with Jackson looking spent as he followed along a few steps after her. Whether Jackson’s attitude change was from the weeks of constant fighting finally catching up to him or if it was from being confronted with Coop’s frustration wasn’t clear, but at least he was properly contrite.
“Listen, I want to apologize.” Fabiana spoke confidently, meeting Coop’s gaze with her own. “You should know that it was my idea to leverage your brief visit, not Jackson’s. The rumors about you were already spreading all over the city, and I saw it as an opening to rally people under a single banner. I understand that we ended up putting much too large a burden on you, and I’m sorry for that.” Fabiana finished, not entirely getting the point.
Coop took her words seriously, but he still felt like they only acknowledged half of the problem. The bottom line was that he wouldn’t have cared about rallying people around a fictional version of himself, if they had done so with the purpose of saving them instead of conscripting them into a war. He just didn’t agree with their priorities.
“I’m sorry, too.” Coop stated, putting his frustration aside and nodding at Jackson. “I trust that you had good intentions, thanks to Marcus vouching for you.” Jackson bowed his head.
“But the Empire needed to be put down.” Fabiana stated emphatically, unwilling to leave any doubt upon their position.
“Probably.” Coop shrugged. “I think they were failing on their own, but if they needed a little push, were random unleveled citizens the best people for the job?”
Marcus cleared his throat to jump into the conversation. “What would have happened if, instead of fighting, you rallied the people to evacuate Empress City and come to Ghost Reef? The cruise ship full of people you eventually sent shows you had the capacity to do so. If you weren’t sure we would take you, despite the accurate rumors of the ‘Nomad’ specifically inviting people that you yourselves helpfully spread, you could have sent a smaller group first to confirm. We would even have helped transport people with our own fleet.”
Marcus didn’t give her time to respond, continuing with his thoughts. “Your cause was righteous, given what became of the Endless Empire’s Chosen, but if you are going to become Champion and Viceroy of Empress City, you’re going to need to do a better job considering the lives of the people entrusting them to you.”
“You’re still offering the position? I thought it would be off the table after…” She gestured at Coop.
“You’re going to need to understand how we’ve been doing things, and confirm that you can align with us properly. Throwing away lives is certainly not something we approve of.” Marcus informed her.