The cheers of the people echoed through the grand city square, surrounded on all sides by towering holographic billboards broadcasting the scene across the planet. Spotlights danced in the sky, catching the rising sun in glimmers of gold and violet. The ceremony was already in motion, flags and sigils waving with the warm winds of the morning. The people had gathered in thousands, eager for the promised change—the promise of justice.
And standing at the heart of it all was Cloud Solslade. Or at least, what appeared to be him.
"Brothers and sisters!" Cloud's voice rang with clarity and confidence, amplified by countless speakers lining the plaza. The clone's face—indistinguishable from the real Cloud's—held a perfectly calculated mix of authority and serenity. "Today is the day we begin our great transformation. A new dawn, where peace will not be a dream, but our shared reality."
The crowd erupted in applause.
Noir, standing deep in the mass of onlookers in disguise, watched carefully. He could feel it—this was all part of the plan Cloud had whispered about. His heart beat faster, not just from anticipation, but because even knowing the plan, he couldn't help but feel the weight of how risky it all was.
The clone continued, raising his hand slowly. "Let us not forget what has brought us to this point. The conflict. The rebellion. The misunderstandings. The bloodshed. All of it leads here—where reconciliation is possible!"
As if on cue, the moment of peace fractured.
A sudden gust of smoke burst from the back of the plaza. Explosions followed, controlled charges aimed at maximum shock but minimal destruction. Rebel banners unfurled from the rooftops above, carried by wind and drone alike.
From the left, Tallo burst forward, his voice magnified by portable tech. "Cloud Solslade! You are hereby under arrest by the Coalition of Liberation for Crimes Against the People!"
The clone tilted his head, calm. He smiled slightly.
More rebel soldiers poured in—Irva among them, leading a unit of armored lizardfolk. The same faces Noir had met months ago in the scrapyard slums. Now, they all stood united, hungry for justice.
"Do not resist!" Irva shouted. "Or we will be forced to use extreme measures!"
Cloud's clone stepped forward from the central stage, raising both arms. "You want a villain? Then take one."
The rebels swarmed. They bound him with reinforced energy chains, locked with five different frequency encryptions. An overkill—but necessary. The people cheered as the great tyrant was finally brought low.
And so began the list.
On a floating digital scroll, a rebel executive began reading out crimes. "Genocide of the Hollow District. Poisoning of Sector 9's water supply. Manipulating interplanetary trade. Harboring extraterrestrial weapons."
Each name and charge was punctuated by growing applause.
Noir grimaced. All of this had been part of the plan, and still—seeing it play out felt heavy. He remembered Cloud's words.
"Let them hate me. Let them believe I died. But when they're together, when their hearts burn from shared triumph… we'll give them a new enemy to unify against. Then peace will finally be within reach."
The final crime was read.
"Mass manipulation of public memory through neural warfare."
And then, without a second of hesitation, the execution.
The crowd cheered as the clone was vaporized before their eyes. A lightbeam cannon from above sliced through the clone's chest. No screams. Just a flash—and a puff of smoke. The tyrant, it seemed, was no more.
Music played. Fireworks erupted. The liberation was complete.
Noir began to back away from the crowd, trying to make space.
That's when a voice whispered behind him.
"Daniel. This way."
He spun.
A hooded figure pulled him between two buildings. It took him a second to recognize the posture, the voice.
"Cloud?!" he hissed.
Cloud pulled down his hood briefly, revealing that sharp blue glint in his eyes. "Clone. Worked perfectly. You saw the way they cheered. I've never been more hated."
Noir blinked. "You're insane."
"Brilliant," Cloud corrected, tugging Noir's arm as they darted down a narrow alley. "Come on. They're going to find us any minute."
No sooner had he spoken than several rebel scouts appeared, sprinting around the corner. Irva and Tallo weren't far behind, flanked by high-ranking officers and familiar lizardfolk from the slums.
"There! It's him! Solslade!" someone shouted.
Cloud cursed under his breath. "They're faster than I predicted. New gear. We're adapting on the go."
Noir and Cloud twisted through tight alleys and curved skyways. The rebels were relentless. They sprinted through an abandoned market, up scaffolding, and through a warehouse of old cybertech.
Noir slipped slightly on a crate, landing awkwardly with a grunt.
"Don't die now," Cloud muttered, grabbing his arm and hauling him back to his feet.
Their destination appeared—half-buried behind an abandoned construction site. A spacecraft cloaked under refractive camouflage, blinking softly to life.
"They're almost on us!" Noir gasped.
"Almost isn't good enough," Cloud replied, leaping for the hatch.
They dove inside, Cloud pressing a sequence of buttons on the ship's control. The engines roared to life just as Irva's plasma rifle shot past them.
The ship jerked forward, lifting into the air.
"WE'LL FIND YOU!" Tallo screamed below.
Noir looked back once. Saw Irva, saw the rebellion, saw the city that now believed its war was over.
And then they were gone.
Into space.
To save the galaxy.