George Kruger, who was in front of me, swallowed while Arno Holmann stared at the scene, poker-faced. He looked uncomfortable when he turned away from the fighting people.

“There are children in the group.” George Kruger bit his lip. “They are pushing children to their death.”

Two young children were in the inferior group. They were ten years or younger. I also spotted the boy from before the bus station. His bright yellow backpack stood out in today’s muted fashion.

“Do you want to rescue them?” I asked George Kruger. 

He looked down at me as his eyes grew bigger.

“Do you… have a way?”

I had planned to rescue them anyway. Securing George Kruger’s loyalty was a bonus. I wasn’t sure what would happen if we didn’t fill the quota of 12 or 24 people when entering the gate, so I planned to collect some team members from that group.

“I might have one. It’s not foolproof, but it’s worth a shot,” I said. “We need you for this, Arno Holmann.”

“What do I need to do?”

“Not much. How good are you at acting?”

The group, led by a man in a baby blue shirt and a cap, hiding his receding hairline now stood close to the edge. Only a foot length separated them from their fall to death.

“Hello Thomas. Can I… join your group?” A big man with sunglasses and a dark beard spoke to the leader of the other, stronger group. 

“… I don’t huff…know you… huff. Why …should… I?!” The leader squeezed out between his heavy breaths.

He was bathed in sweat. Pushing that many people was an arduous task. He really wanted to get away from here. Sure, it had been fun to be the top banana for a short time. He was sure he wouldn’t get punished for killing that woman either. But now, he just wanted to go home.

The man with sunglasses spoke again.

“I have a way to control the voice.” 

“…”

“What?!” The muscular leader turned around.

“It’s not exactly controlling the voice itself but I have something that can command the lightning.” He holds up a piece of paper. “If you read it out loud, you can command it one time. But it only works once. So… sorry for not demonstrating.” 

The tall man with sunglasses stroked his beard while smiling apologetically.

“That’s good enough. But why not use it yourself?”

The other man shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know what will happen if I don’t meet the quota of the group. And, as you see, I am alone. It should be difficult to join any group now. I just want to go home.”

Thomas thought for a second. It did sound reasonable. He also wanted to go back as soon as possible. 

“If that works, then sure!”

„Thank you! I am Arno Holmann.“ 

“Thomas Donau.” 

Thomas received the piece of parchment, read it shortly, and then furrowed. ‘What is that supposed to mean?’ He thought. But he didn’t say anything, and instead nodded. He waved Arno to join his team, pushing the others off.

“Now it is our turn.”

I nodded to George Kruger, and he returned the gesture. Then he lifted his hand. 

A lot of people, who were seemingly sitting in fear, suddenly rose up and marched towards the power struggle between Thomas Donau’s and the other group.

Intimidated, sudden panic seized the people there, unsure if the incoming people were on their respective sides.

“That will be so embarrassing... Don’t forget what you promised me!” George Kruger sighed and focused on the scene in front of him.

I was equally immersed. “Don’t worry.” I smiled.

“There I go,” he sighed, ruffling his own hair.

Then George Kruger ran towards the fighting people and screamed one short time: “Oh-Ah!”

The marching people answered the shout. “Oh-Ah!”

From all sides, it resounded: “Oh-Ah!”

George then shouted again:

“Oh-Ah!”

And they answered: “Oh-Ah!”

The grouped men and women shrugged together every time a shout rang out. But they continued pushing.

George Kruger lifted his hand again, this time holding a small gray item. He threw the stone at Thomas Donau’s group.

The other people, that stood on the plane shouted again and when they saw George Kruger attack, they also started throwing rocks at Thomas Donau's group. A woman screamed as a stone dislocated her shoulder. She put up her hands to protect herself. But the attackers didn't stop.

“Oh-Ah!”

To escape, more and more people started ducking away from the attack and rushed to the left and right. They scattered quickly. First, only 2 or three people stepped out of the attackers' line of fire, but as people saw that the escapees no longer had to fear the flying stones, more and more of them separated from the pushing group. 

“Where are you going?!” Thomas Donau shouted at them. “Let us finish this here first!”

“Oh-Ah!”

“You fucking…! Just you wait!” He screamed angrily and pulled up the piece of parchment from his pants’ front pocket.

“Helios!” he shouted, holding his arms wide above his head to summon the lightning. The sky flickered a few times above his head, but no lightning flashed down to earth. 

“Heliooos!”, he screamed.

Still, nothing happened.

The woman snatched the piece of paper. “Helios? What’s that supposed to mean?” Thomas Donau looked at her in panic. Then he became calm. The people from the other group were escaping their death trap already, and his own force was diminishing more and more. Nobody paid attention to the two. “Arno,” he said with a grim expression.

Thomas Donau looked around and quickly spotted the tall man with sunglasses among the opposite force. At that moment, he helped a boy, who then escaped quickly. Thomas Donau scoffed. So Arno never had any intention of being on his side. Thomas Donau took a step forward. His group had completely separated. Now, he would never get the 24 people together. The other group wouldn't let him be either. His expression became even darker. If he had to die, he might as well take another person with him.

Only now, that his thoughts and last wish were finalized, he realized that he could not move at all. He gave commands to his body, but it did not react. He looked down at his feet. They were… discolored? They looked gray.

When I saw how the man in the tank top completely turned to stone, I exhaled in relief. His darling shared his fate.

It was finally over. Now, scattered and without a leader, the group of thugs was running around like a headless chicken. 

I, who had been hiding near the tower before, walked to George Kruger. Arno Holmann also came back. Now, that we stood together, I clapped my hands slowly four times. The uncommon sound, that was amplified and echoed from the nearby tower, attracted a lot of attention. It also helped, that some rescued sought the nearness of George Kruger, their savior.

Despite my nervousness, I tried to maintain a steady voice.

“Some of you have seen me next to George Kruger,” I made an enormous gesture, pointing at the handsome man, “a lot of you have probably never seen me.” A commotion broke out. They whispered.

“It is not important, who I am. But I am currently representing George Kruger, the hero from just now. So please lend me your ear.”

“We only have a few minutes left. I hope, that we can all leave here together. Dear Fate, please repeat the way to enter the tower!”

“Hey, you! Don’t provoke the voice!” A woman screamed, lifting her arms in prayer.

“This bitch! Is she trying to kill us all?!”

“Is she crazy? What if we all die because of her now?!”

But their lamenting was unnecessary.

{The humans divide into two groups of two dozen each. Get the ruler’s love. They make decisions about who lives or dies. 94 seconds are left. Break it apart. The humans choose wisely.} answered the Voice, calm and without any malice.

“Wait. That works?!”

Another commotion broke out. Almost everyone looked up to the sky, then at the person next to them and then they started whispering.

George Kruger came to my side and murmur in my ear.
“Did you know, that you could ask questions all along? You could have told me!” He looked at me, pitiful and hurt with slightly hunched shoulders, which made him look like a dejected child.

“I have only known since about… 4 minutes?”

“When we were recruiting?”

4 minutes prior

“Why did you tear the parchment?” George Kruger asked.

“I need to write something.” After writing one word, I folded the piece of paper and handed it to Arno Holmann. “This is for you.”

He took the folded piece and looked at me, puzzled.

“So, I should go to the group over there and try to join it, yes?“

“Precisely! And then give Thomas, the guy in the tank top, an excuse to read this out loud,” I tapped on the paper in his hand, “That the word can control fire or lightning or something. Be creative.”

“And what is written there?” He proceeded to unfold the piece of parchment.

I lay one hand on his. “Don’t read it!”

“What?” That baffled him.

“Never read it yourself. You will most likely die!”

“Oh… well, in that case…” He cautiously folded it back together and carefully stored it in his pocket.

“George Kruger, I have a task for you, too.”

He looked at me with skepticism, and the discomfort could be heard in his voice, too. “What do you need from me?”

“We are going to recruit some people and cause a commotion. And I need you to be the head of the group.” I gave him my most innocent glance.

Sadly, he wasn’t allayed by it. “What, why?”

“It’s something only you can do. I promise it will work.” I was not sure if it would all turn out the way I wanted it to, but George Kruger, as the official leader would certainly double the chances of success. Who would accept me as the leader?

He was not completely convinced but gave in. “Okay.”

I was a bit sorry to use him. He looked uncomfortable. But I really couldn’t think of a better way at this moment.

Instead, I exclaimed energetically, “Let’s recruit some pawns!”

Then I started moving, shifting the attention to something else.

George Kruger followed swiftly, while Arbo Holmann stayed behind. He probably thought about how to best get Thomas Donau to recruit him.

George Kruger and I talked to the people on the ground. I convicted the first ones and for the later ones, I could get George Kruger to do it himself.

While he talked to his third person, I heard the barely audible voice again. 

{Hello there~ I am bored, here is a tip. You can ask questions to fate-ie, you know~? Hurry up! Ah! The power of belief is powerful. Don’t underestimate it. Be careful of your words, though. Don’t be afraid~ of yourself~ haha~ Okay, that’s all~ till next time~}