“We’re you”
Strike“We’re you” is the stark answer an officer gives when asked who the invaders are. When the guard confirms that the officer meant exactly what he said, the phrase makes identity—not merely the fact of an invasion—the scene’s central mystery.
The Phrase and Its Context
The exchange follows a question about whether the unfolding situation is an invasion. The guard confirms that it is. The narrator then recalls asking one of the officers who the invaders were and receiving the answer “‘We’re you.’” The phrase is brief but disorienting: it collapses the distinction between the people asking the question and the force confronting them, without yet explaining how that identification can be true.
Confirmation and Dramatic Function
The guard does not soften or reinterpret the officer’s words. Asked what the officer meant, he replies that the officer meant exactly what he said. That confirmation preserves the phrase as a literal claim rather than a misunderstanding, while withholding the explanation that would resolve its implications. The guard then urges the narrator to find the Sounders and stay alive, calling them the narrator’s only chance. The exchange thus links the identity riddle to immediate danger: understanding who the invaders are remains unanswered, but survival depends on finding those who can help.
