The Price {Completed}

Chapter Ten

Out of the seven men, I recognized a few of them immediately. Doctor Alkaev, Karl Matveev, and General Masha. In order for them to be standing here, they must have left the theater soon after I did. I didn't see Yenko or the other men that had been talking to Mr. Lennox, so I assumed they were taking care of whatever business they came to our theater for. Behind Doctor Alkaev, the rest of the men wore the pristine white uniform, but they were faces I did not know. Young, stern, and with an air of military discipline about them.

Doctor Alkaev, seemingly unsurprised by the mass gathering, came to the edge of the steps and held up his hand in greeting.

"Fellow citizens, I have just been in a meeting with the king's generals and advisers," he said. My eyes cut to General Masha, who had recently traded in his navy for white. He folded his hands in front of him, his back firmly to the state building and his eyes fixed on Doctor Alkaev.

"As most of you know," Doctor Alkaev continued. "There has been a movement to protect the common people that has been hidden in secret among the loyal of this city and its sisters to the east and west. Until recently, we were silent but always growing. We understood your grievances, and we understood the frustrations of being forced to bow to a king more interested in dressing up his putrid reign with diamonds and pomp than fixing the degradation of this kingdom and the land it sits upon. His subjects go to bed with empty stomachs while he abandons us to the wreckage that war brought us in order to run to the silk clad arms of those that we fought not two decades hence. Well, this movement has had enough of these wasteful tactics and the ruination of the kingdom and its riches!"

The crowd cheered. Doctor Alkaev changed from the kindly looking man that I met at the party into a man bursting with passion. He spilled his enthusiasm and righteousness onto the crowd of people hanging onto his every word. As his voice carried, seeming to fill the entire square, the people cheered him on. They nodded along, screaming their thoughts in one loud outburst.

"The Common Army has officially declared its existence this morning, and we gave the king until five this afternoon to step down from his impotent throne and give the power to the people who spill their blood and sweat to keep this kingdom from rotting!"

I tried to tuck away into myself as the voices rose into a deafening volume. They raised their hands and arms into the air, and I saw Doctor Alkaev looking out over his sea of sympathizers through a thicket of fists.

"In one minute, the clock will turn to five. The king's officials have had more than enough time to telephone him our demands. But you and I know what will happen, do we not?"

The crowd roared and shrieked and I found myself pushed and shoved as they all moved to try and get closer to the state building.

"They will quietly sneak away, pretend that we said nothing and hope that it blows over. Five will come and the royal family will simply go to dinner. Well, we will not let them eat their pheasant and peacock in peace, will we?"

As one, the word 'No' rose from the lips of the crowd. My heart quickened and I couldn't stop my hands from shaking as I saw the anger and desperation in the faces around me.

"Strike! Stop your toiling for their benefit! What use is a crown without the money to back it? Show them that the Common Army will not be ignored, and we will not rest until he is off his throne and common people, the ones who know this kingdom, are making the decisions that affect our lives!"

"Strike! Strike!" The cry went up and the people all began to beat their feet on the ground to a beat that shook the air.

"Karl Matveev is a member of the Vigilant Men!" Doctor Alkaev shouted, holding his hand up to quiet the crowd. "The Common Army has allied with them, and he will tell you what to do in order to create a strike worthy of any history book."