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Sean Vivier divides his days between writing, ballroom dance, and a career in web development. You can learn more at seanvivier.com.
It was another day in the ____(ADJECTIVE)____ Empire. Our Hero served them, not that he'd ever trusted _____(POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY)____. But you lived the choices they gave you. That attitude didn't give him much meaning, but it did place him in command.
Of course, not everyone agreed. There were rebels. Champions of ____(ANOTHER POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY)____. Our Hero didn't ask too many questions. He was gruff and worldly like that. He took his team down to the ____(TYPE OF ECOSYSTEM)____ planet.
It was an ambush. For his recklessness, he would have to watch his team die. ____(HISPANIC SURNAME)____ went first. A landmine blew her apart. ____(ASIAN SURNAME)____ died next, ripped apart by a rocket. Bullets tore open ____(ANGLO SURNAME)___. Our Hero fought the best he could, until his weapon ran out of charge. Then a bullet took him in the chest and it all went dark.
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He awoke surrounded by rather plain people. The rebels. They tortured him, but they also explained their way of life. He couldn't help it. He began to see them as people. He began to side with them.
Of course, that didn't stop him from breaking free. Nor did it stop him from destroying their hidden village and killing them all.
He returned to the empire, celebrated. Our Hero's entire outlook had changed. But that didn't mean he'd break from service. He was far too hardened and the system far too rigid for that.
The End
This story was first published on Thursday, June 29th, 2017
Author Comments
A great deal of recent short science fiction is all starting to read very much the same and blend together for me.
- Sean Vivier
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