The Council made their final attempt to maintain power through military force. They ordered the guards to crack down on the resistance movements, to restore order through violence.
But the guards themselves had changed. Many of them had family members in the Lower District or the Middle District. They'd been exposed to the resistance's arguments about justice and equality. When ordered to fire on unarmed protesters, about half of the guards refused. Some even joined the resistance.
Hector himself was removed from power by the remaining Council members. They hoped that sacrificing him would be enough to satisfy the resistance. They proposed a commission to investigate the inequality and propose reforms.
But by then, it was too late for compromise. The resistance had tasted the possibility of fundamental change. They weren't interested in reforms that would just smooth over the system's worst features. They wanted transformation.
It took another three months of struggle, negotiation, and protest, but eventually, a new governing structure emerged. It wasn't perfect—no political system ever is. But it was dramatically different from what had come before.
The barriers between districts were physically dismantled. Communities were reorganized based on function rather than status. Resource distribution became more equitable, determined by need rather than birth. Education and healthcare were made universally available. The Council was dissolved and replaced with a rotating governing body that included representatives from all levels of society.
It wasn't a revolution in the traditional sense—there wasn't a moment of violent overthrow. It was a slow crumbling of the old system and a gradual building of something new. It took longer and was more painful than a quick revolution would have been, but it was also more stable and had broader support.
But it all hinged on one thing: the sacrifices of Sera, Kael, and the others who'd died for their beliefs.