that had mostly died out after the war, and Winston recognised the ‘I’ symbol from Imperia’s old banner but the style reminded him of something he couldn’t quite place. Soldiers in bulky white armour with black fatigues and the same golden symbol marked on their shoulder pads and helmets were marching various GOVT workers into the back of the vans at gunpoint. Their rifles were large, black, evil looking rectangular shapes with multiple barrels, and every now and then streaks of neon blue energy would surge through geometric lines across their surface from shoulder rest to barrels.
The whole sight sent a shiver down Winston’s spine. It was like he was watching a movie being filmed, but he knew this was all too real. “What’s going on?” he asked nervously.
“I don’t know,” Alexander began. “They must be the new Autocrat’s forces from the Orphan Isle. This isn’t good, whatever it is.”
The large island at the centre of the ocean in the middle of the planet’s three curved continents was named Central Isle. During the Great War, the Church of the Twin Goddesses (when it was still a properly functioning organisation) set up a large refuge on the uninhabited island for casualties of war and children who had lost their parents in the conflict, which is where it got its slang name from; the ‘Orphan Isle’. Shortly after Edgar I lost his wife, he moved to the Central Isle and had several construction projects put into motion such as more housing, research facilities, and a new skyscraper similar to the World GOVT building in the Capital City placed in the centre of the Isle. It was always rumoured that they were experimenting with extremely high-tech equipment, but no one had seen it until now.
A guarded officer walked out of the entrance with her hands behind her back. She had heavily tanned skinned, obviously of Tropican descent, with smart shoulder length chestnut coloured hair. She wore a long white glossy looking trench coat with every button fastened, and a black shirt with a white tie underneath. As the Shadow Circle’s van passed by she seemed to lock eyes with Winston, and he saw something strangely familiar in her dark brown eyes before she was out of eyeshot and the moment was gone.
Alexander was already on the phone to Lucius giving him a description of what was going on. Many Government staff accepted bribes from the Shadow Circle gang and others; some were practically on the payroll, so any hint of interrogation didn’t bode well. The only good thing was that if anyone did speak out against the Supernaturals, they’d probably think they were crazy. Most normal humans only saw what they wanted to see, which was usually very little.
Winston carried on looking through his book to try and take his mind off what he’d just seen. Images and text flowed onto the pages showing him how to use the quill to draw portals to the Gloom. It seemed simple enough – just a matter of holding the portal magic in mind, willing the quill to respond, and literally drawing a portal of the desired size. Afterwards it seemed the portal could be dispelled or left open indefinitely.
As they started to reach the edge of the city, the giant concrete wall that had been constructed in the Great War came into view. It was at least 80ft tall and 30 to 40ft wide, and encircled most of the city. Four massive gates were placed at the northern, eastern, southern and western points. The Capital had never been close to being attacked during the Great War but Edgar I had insisted that the city regain its trademark walls which it had lost under the reign of one of Imperia’s more peaceful Autocrats, using up-to-date materials. The gates were always open now, as the city had expanded slightly beyond the walls and to allow easy access for the large amount of traffic entering and exiting the Capital. A few armed MPK’s stood guard but they were mainly for show.
At regular intervals on both sides of the wall, the World
The whole sight sent a shiver down Winston’s spine. It was like he was watching a movie being filmed, but he knew this was all too real. “What’s going on?” he asked nervously.
“I don’t know,” Alexander began. “They must be the new Autocrat’s forces from the Orphan Isle. This isn’t good, whatever it is.”
The large island at the centre of the ocean in the middle of the planet’s three curved continents was named Central Isle. During the Great War, the Church of the Twin Goddesses (when it was still a properly functioning organisation) set up a large refuge on the uninhabited island for casualties of war and children who had lost their parents in the conflict, which is where it got its slang name from; the ‘Orphan Isle’. Shortly after Edgar I lost his wife, he moved to the Central Isle and had several construction projects put into motion such as more housing, research facilities, and a new skyscraper similar to the World GOVT building in the Capital City placed in the centre of the Isle. It was always rumoured that they were experimenting with extremely high-tech equipment, but no one had seen it until now.
A guarded officer walked out of the entrance with her hands behind her back. She had heavily tanned skinned, obviously of Tropican descent, with smart shoulder length chestnut coloured hair. She wore a long white glossy looking trench coat with every button fastened, and a black shirt with a white tie underneath. As the Shadow Circle’s van passed by she seemed to lock eyes with Winston, and he saw something strangely familiar in her dark brown eyes before she was out of eyeshot and the moment was gone.
Alexander was already on the phone to Lucius giving him a description of what was going on. Many Government staff accepted bribes from the Shadow Circle gang and others; some were practically on the payroll, so any hint of interrogation didn’t bode well. The only good thing was that if anyone did speak out against the Supernaturals, they’d probably think they were crazy. Most normal humans only saw what they wanted to see, which was usually very little.
Winston carried on looking through his book to try and take his mind off what he’d just seen. Images and text flowed onto the pages showing him how to use the quill to draw portals to the Gloom. It seemed simple enough – just a matter of holding the portal magic in mind, willing the quill to respond, and literally drawing a portal of the desired size. Afterwards it seemed the portal could be dispelled or left open indefinitely.
As they started to reach the edge of the city, the giant concrete wall that had been constructed in the Great War came into view. It was at least 80ft tall and 30 to 40ft wide, and encircled most of the city. Four massive gates were placed at the northern, eastern, southern and western points. The Capital had never been close to being attacked during the Great War but Edgar I had insisted that the city regain its trademark walls which it had lost under the reign of one of Imperia’s more peaceful Autocrats, using up-to-date materials. The gates were always open now, as the city had expanded slightly beyond the walls and to allow easy access for the large amount of traffic entering and exiting the Capital. A few armed MPK’s stood guard but they were mainly for show.
At regular intervals on both sides of the wall, the World
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