Frozen Flame of Dawn - Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Chapter 13: The Ominous Broadcast_1

Amira sat at the head of the main meeting room and tapped the edge of the table in a beat that she wasn’t aware of.

Around her, Elias and the technical team moved with practiced efficiency, their faces lit by the faint glow of monitors displaying the live feed of their broadcast.

There was a buzz of activity in the room, but she couldn’t hear it because she was thinking about other things.

“Boss,” Elias’s voice broke through the fog, sharp and clear.

She blinked, pulling herself back to the moment. “Yes?” Her voice sounded calm, steady, even though her thoughts still lingered on things unsaid.

“The feed is live, and we’re broadcasting on all major channels,” Elias said in a serious but upbeat tone.

“Good.” She stood up straight, and her words became calm but firm. “Once it’s done, I want you and the team to keep a close eye on how the public and authorities react.”

“Put the info together, look for patterns, and send it to me right away. I want every doubt to be cleared up and every step to be taken. Did you get it?”

“Understood,” Elias nodded, already turning back to relay her instructions to the team.

The sound of her getting up from the chair scraping against the floor could be heard in the background. She took careful steps as she walked toward the door. She thought of something as she put her hand on the handle. She thought about it for a second before turning around and looking back at Elias with her sharp eyes.

“One more thing.” She said, “Help me get into a secure channel with Master. Could you set it up?”

Elias’s brow arched a little in surprise as she didn’t call her master very often. “Understood. I’ll have it sent to you within minutes.”

She said, “Thank you,” and her voice softened for a moment. She didn’t stay long, though; she quickly left and walked down the hall.

The walk back to her quarters was quiet, the halls a mix of muted conversations and the occasional click of hurried footsteps. As she passed the entertainment room, laughter spilled into the corridor. She slowed, drawn to the sound, and peered inside.

Through the wide door with glass panels and she saw kids playing together. The laughter of the kids was contagious. They ran quickly around the room, not caring about what they were doing. She stopped and leaned against the doorframe for a moment. She felt a strange warmth going through her chest.

Their happiness was like a light in the dark, always reminding her of why she was fighting.

She smiled a little to herself. “How do they do it?” she asked herself, feeling almost amazed. With everything going wrong in the world, how do they find happiness?

Her lips curled into a small, real, but heartbreaking smile. “I will protect this,” she promised in silence. “I will do anything to keep that light alive.”

She kept thinking about it as she turned around and walked on, her steps lighter now.

When she reached her room, Amira closed the door behind her and leaned against it for a moment, letting the silence settle over her. The day had been relentless, each moment heavier than the last, but she couldn’t afford to stop now.

She crossed the room to her cupboard, retrieving her laptop, and carried it to the small study table in the corner. As soon as her laptop turned on, she checked her email and saw Elias’s message right away.

The link stared back at her, meaningless but full of meaning. She wasn’t sure what to do, and her finger hovered over the trackpad, hesitation tightening her chest. “Why am I nervous?” she asked herself.

But she knew the answer. It had been too long since she last talked to master and felt the comfort of her mentor’s support. She took a big breath and clicked the link.

The screen shifted, a soft connecting tone playing in her headphones. The seconds dragged on, each one louder than the last. Then a voice she hadn’t heard in a long time finally broke the quiet.

“Well, well,” Her master’s voice drawled, equal parts amused and sharp. “Look who finally decided to call.”

“Hello, Master.” There was a sheepish smile on Amira’s face as she swallowed hard and said. “How are you?”

“How am I?” The voice on the other end let out a soft laugh. “I think the better question is, how are you, dear? Breaking out of detention centers, starting global broadcasts… You’ve been busy.”

Amira winced but recovered quickly, “I had my reasons.”

“I’m sure you did,” Her master replied, the sarcasm dripping like honey. “But don’t think for a second you’re dodging an explanation.”

“I wasn’t trying to dodge—”

“Of course you were. You learned that little trick from me, remember?” Her master said. “Don’t use it against me, Amira. Now, tell me. What’s so important that you had to stir up the world?”

Taking a steadying breath, Amira recounted everything. She told her master about the Spiritual Energy Surge, the methods of cultivation, the Rienfeld family’s hidden agenda, detail about the future which she told her team and her own efforts to prepare for the coming chaos. Her voice was steady, but the weight of the revelations made her chest tighten.

As her master listened in silence, her presence a steady anchor even through the call. When Amira finished, she hesitated before adding, “I’ve sent you two cultivation methods. One is common for simple energy circulation. The other is… for you alone it contains advanced energy circulation methods for creating a core and leveling up, keep it secure.”

“Well,” Her master said finally, her tone lighter but still carrying weight. “You’ve certainly kept yourself busy. And you’ve learned to plan, I’ll give you that. Not bad for a student who never used to have her own ambitions.”

While saying softly. “And still taking care of me, are you? I thought I was supposed to be the mentor here.”

“I trust you with everything,” Amira said simply.

After a pause her master then said, “I’ll look into everything you’ve sent. And I’ll make sure no one interferes with your plans.”

“Amira, pay attention to your work. Do what you need to do.”

“Thank you,” Amira said, her voice soft with gratitude.

Her master’s tone turned playful again, though it carried a note of affection. “Stop thanking me and start trusting yourself more. You’ve got this—go set up your stronghold in Icelorn Basin, and who knows, maybe I’ll visit… assuming the world doesn’t end before then.”

Amira smiled, feeling the weight in her chest lift somewhat, “I’ll hold you to that.”

With a soft click, the call was over, and the room was once again quiet. Amira shut down her laptop, but her mind was still on what her Master had said. The road ahead was dangerous, but she felt more stable and grounded now. She was ready for anything that came her way.

*****

Meanwhile the broadcast spread really quickly. Every corner of the globe buzzed with panic, fear, and disbelief. Screens, radios, and holograms played the same ominous message, looping it into the minds of anyone who dared to listen. People tried to figure out what they had seen. Some people believed it right away, while others thought it was just a mean joke. Not everyone could ignore it, though.

In a Suburban Home:

A modest living room in a sleepy neighborhood. The furniture was mismatched but well-loved, and the television flickered with the unsettling broadcast. A brother and sister sat on a worn couch, their younger sibling sprawled on the rug below. The air felt heavy with the weight of the words they’d just heard.

“Do you think it’s real, Lila?” Matt, the middle sibling, asked, his voice low. His wide eyes darted between his elder sister and the screen. “That Spiritual Energy surge… It’s not just some fake thing, is it?”

Lila didn’t respond right away. She stood, her arms crossed tightly, her jaw clenched. “I don’t know,” she admitted at last. Her voice was steady, but her hands betrayed her, trembling at her sides. “I don’t know if it’s real. But we’re not waiting to find out.”

She turned, suddenly decisive. “We’re preparing. Now. Matt, Cara—grab every can, every bottle of water, every supply you can find. Bring it to the basement. We’ll make it secure.”

“Secure?” Matt repeated, his tone rising with panic. “Lila, that’s crazy. If this is real, shouldn’t we—shouldn’t we try that cultivation thing? The broadcast said—”

“No!” Lila snapped, her voice sharp. She took a breath, softening when she saw Matt’s startled expression. “We don’t even know if that works. We focus on surviving first.”

“But why not try?” Cara chimed in, her eyes lighting up with cautious hope. “What if it’s real? What if it actually helps us?”

Lila hesitated. She saw the eagerness in their faces, the fragile optimism that refused to die despite everything. Her shoulders sagged. “Fine,” she relented. “We’ll try it. But only after the house is secure, and we’re safe in the basement. Until then, no risks. Got it?”

The siblings nodded, their fear momentarily forgotten as they threw themselves into action. The house soon buzzed with movement—cans clattering into bags, blankets dragged down the stairs, whispered reassurances passed between them. In the face of chaos, they clung to what they could control.