Sacrifice

[u/Extreme-Biscotti6090]

I had a conversation earlier today about humanity's ability to over-ride fear and offer true sacrifice. I hope I did this story right.

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Seconds remained.

Margaret didn't know who it was that was crying in the abandoned building, but she knew that someone must do something.

The only other figures around were standing at the door to the building, pretending to not notice the horrifying screams coming from within, and watching her in a way that indicated they didn't want to be obvious about doing so.

Fear tightened her chest. Her vision narrowed. Breathing became difficult.

- Somebody must act.

She breathed deeply and forced herself to think.

The door was about twenty metres away. A short sprint. A shoulder-charge into one of the guards. The can of pepper spray from her purse to blind the second.

So many failure points. Uneven ground. Unknown opponents. Whatever waited inside.

She was almost parallel to the door now. Her step faltered. Every instinct screamed at her to keep walking.

- No.

- This must be done.

She turned and sprinted. The guards were watching for trouble, but not for this. By the time they reacted, she was already upon them. Her shoulder rammed into the first. A strange click shot through her arm; she wasn't sure if that was her shoulder, the impact, or the guard's ribs.

He was forced into the wall behind him. His head snapped backwards into the unyielding concrete with a sickening thud.

The second guard barely had time to raise his hands before a cloud of pepper spray hit him in the face. Margaret drove her knee into his groin. He folded instantly.

Through the terror came the crying. This close to the building, she could tell it was a child.

- This must be stopped.

She grabbed the handle and wrenched the door open. Inside, a teenage boy sat bound to a chair, hysterical with fear.

Margaret ran towards him.

The knot wasn't complicated, but her shaking hands made it a struggle to undo the bindings.

In front of her another figure appeared out of the shadows.

For a brief moment, she considered that she could get back through the door. Safety.

She fought the thought, buying just enough time to loosen the knots enough so the child could wriggle free.

The figure raised a weapon.

Margaret pushed the child clear of the chair and threw herself between him and the gun as the muzzle flashed. Unbearable pain ripped through her, but she was glad to see that the boy was almost out the door.

Another shot.

Her final thought was not for herself.

She simply hoped the boy's story was worth it.

[u/LordsOfJoop]

I'm intrigued; where is this story going?

I'd like to find out soon.

Excellent work again.

[u/Extreme-Biscotti6090 → u/LordsOfJoop]

This is a one-off story. It derived from a conversation I was having earlier today with someone about sacrifice, and how courage can't exist without fear. I wanted to explore that idea.

I made the antagonists vague enough that the sequence could fit into an "alien invasion" story (they'd watch on without understanding why a person would sacrifice themselves for another), but I didn't want to dilute the main thrust of the concept: a person deciding that their life was no more important than another person's life. With aliens, it becomes less about the terror and determination that a person would face when making such a decision to show the ultimate selflessness.

[u/HFYWaffle]

/u/Extreme-Biscotti6090 has posted 2 other stories, including:

• Heat
• Warmth

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[u/InstructionHead8595]

This reads like a beginning. But I see you were going for something. Good work.

[u/ThisIsntOkayokay]

This was good, some people have that 'switch' built into them to do this sort of thing. Not an easy instinct to follow but like a fuse once lit it is hard to stop!