A couple quick leaps brought Jared up to their platform and the entrance to his room. He ran inside to make sure Vanessa was safe. The three girls were still talking in their room, apparently unconcerned with the sound. Or perhaps Scarlet’s warning hadn’t reached them.
“Vanessa, there’s something making a lot of noise outside, and I don’t know what it is. Please hang tight in here until I figure it out. If there’s anything to worry about, I’ll let you know.”
“Be careful, please!” Vanessa ran over to give him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek.
Jared smiled as he disengaged from her. “I’ll be careful, I promise.”
He ran to his room, grabbed his gear, secured his pack and weapons, and went back to the entrance of their home. He poked his head out to see if anything had changed, but there was no evidence of something approaching even though the sound kept up a steady, rhythmic cadence.
Standing on the platform, Jared tried to think which way he should go. It was hard to say which direction the sound came from, and he could only see in a straight east and west direction from his current vantage. The top of the cliff was only a twenty or thirty-foot climb from his current position. That would put him above most of the desiccated forest and might give him a better view.
Jared found ready handholds to ascend the cliff and worked his way to the top. He could have just jumped, but he didn’t want to risk injuring anything using Maximum Muscle. The recently-healed muscle in his leg gave a slight twinge as he thought about it. It hadn’t taken much to push his body beyond its capability, and he had no desire to do so again, especially if whatever was making the noise proved an enemy.
Reaching the top, Jared tried to perch with just his head over the edge, but his grip was too precarious, so he eased his body over and lay on the ground. A quick look at his surroundings revealed no immediate threats, and he slid his pack off. Having confirmed he was alone, Jared looked around for a source of the noise. The west and south were clear, but the moment he turned his head to look north, he froze. Tendrils of paralysis turned his blood to ice. His breathing halted, and panic flared through his body.
“What’s wrong?”
Unable to respond coherently, Jared managed the approximation of a grunt, using telepathy. It didn’t do much to assuage Scarlet’s fears as Jared felt her tension rising, but he couldn’t bring himself to respond to her after seeing the source of the noise.
With a monumental effort of will, Jared activated Clear Mind and Hyper-Cognition. He needed the mental clarity and time-lapse to think through what he saw in the sky.
It was an entire floating city. The towering archways and spires peeked over the edge of the platform, resembling a giant porcupine. The underside of the floating monstrosity pulsed a light blue, while huge rockets propelled the island through the sky. A dozen drop ships escorted the ship through the air.
Wha—
Why—
How?
Even with Clear Mind, Jared found it difficult to process the thoughts. He’d never seen, nor had he ever heard of a city moving so far, so fast. From his understanding, they didn’t really move at all. Some of them might move with the tides and various ocean currents, but he’d never heard of one moving like this over land.
Jared and the dragons had destroyed a few drop ships, but he never thought it would be enough to warrant this much attention.
However, the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Someone—or something—that could take out half a dozen drop ships would concern the cities. If the water folk could take down drop ships, then they could reach the cities. It might be the first time the cities had ever encountered something that threatened their way of life, so it made sense they’d be afraid of whatever it was and come to investigate.
But a whole city?
“What is going on up there?”
“Scarlet, there’s a city up here.”
“Up where?”
“In the sky, headed toward the old colony.”
“The city we saw over the ocean?”
“I can’t say for sure, but it’s coming from the same direction. I don’t know how fast these things can move, but it’s been a little over a day since we took down those other drop ships. If it started out as soon as the one that escaped got back, then the distance seems about right.”
“How far out is it?” An edge of panic entered Scarlet’s voice.
She was no doubt thinking through the same things as him. If the city got too close to their home, would they be able to get everyone out, especially the dragons? They were too large to go unnoticed and the cities were likely on high alert. If the cities got too close, there was a chance the dragons wouldn’t be able to escape unnoticed.
“It’s already too close.”
“Jared—”
“I know, I know. They’re likely scanning everything around them, looking for any signs of what took down their ships. Now is not a time to be moving around or think about abandoning the area. Even if you and your brothers could carry all of us on your backs, which I don’t think will work, we can’t outrun drop ships. There’s no way everyone would survive if we needed to take evasive measures in the air. We’re going to have to wait it out.”
“Please keep me updated on their progress and send Attis out to investigate.”
“Good idea. Though, I’d need to risk bringing Carla up here to help interpret. Attis refuses to go underground, so you won’t be able to help all that much. I can’t understand the griffon enough to make sense of what he sees, but Carla should be able to translate enough to understand.”
Jared lay with his back to the ground, not daring to move a single inch as the city drew ever closer. The size of the city was deceptive. He’d thought their people would be well away from the thing, but as it drew closer, he realized that wasn’t the case. They were only twenty miles from the old colony, and this thing had to be at least twenty miles in diameter. Depending on where it stopped, they could literally be right above the water folk. Jared hoped the city centered over the lake to at least give them a little breathing room. Even then it would be a mere five to ten miles from them. Way too close for comfort.
It took another hour for the ship to reach the area. Its size easily eclipsed anything Jared had ever seen before. Even though he’d already seen it from a distance atop Scarlet, it was something else to witness it so close. Watching the angry hornets’ nest that was the city, Jared realized he’d been stupid following the drop ship back last time. They didn’t have backup then, nor were they as strong, and it would’ve taken very little effort for the cities to wipe them out. He and Scarlet had stayed far away, and they’d flown as high as they could, but in hindsight it was a stupid move.
When the city stopped moving, it rested near the location they’d downed the six drop ships. That made sense, but it also put the city much too close. There was no way the dragons could escape over land undetected. Either they’d need to wait it out or find another way.
The roar of the city’s engines abruptly cut off, replaced by a thrumming noise so deep it rattled his bones. The blue light beneath the city intensified, pulsing in time with the beat.
A pressure in his chest forced him back to the ground. He could fight through it easily enough, but with every pulse from the city, it pressed down on him. It had to be the technology that allowed the city to float indefinitely. He idly wondered if Pete would understand how it worked.
“Hey, Scarlet, how far from the old colony did you and your brothers hide the ship and robot parts?”
“Maybe ten to fifteen miles?”
Jared sighed in resignation. “I don’t think we’ll be retrieving anything. The city covers at least twenty square miles centered on the scene of our last battle.”
“We still have the original robots we took down in the old colony. Remember, we brought those to the other end of the lake.
”
“Yeah, I remember, but I was really hoping for some of these ship parts for Pete to study. At least we’ll be able to retrieve something from this whole mess. I definitely think we need to find a way out of this area. I don’t know when or how, but this thing is much too close for us to go on as we did before. We don’t know what it’s capable of, how far they can see, or if they have any scanning technology that can see us here.”
Jared lifted his head up and rolled over the edge of the cliff when another wave of pressure flattened him back to the ground. The moment it subsided, he picked up his pack and slipped over the edge. Carefully, he made his way back down to the platform. As long as he stayed plastered to the rock wall, it would obscure him from sight. Carefully, Jared made his way back to his room.
Vanessa, Carla, and Elle eagerly awaited his arrival, all of them tense.
“What is it? Are we safe? Are you okay?”
“Is Attis out there?”
“Kitty, go check?”
All three of the girls spoke at once, their individual responses making Jared laugh despite the dire situation. As usual, Vanessa cared about the safety of everyone and specifically asked about him. Carla’s first thought was about Attis, and Elle, fearless as always, thought about sending Kitty out scouting.
“Whoa, calm down and I’ll explain. A city, probably the same one Scarlet and I saw before, is now floating over the place we destroyed the six drop ships.”
“A whole city?” Vanessa was incredulous. Her demeanor showed one of fear, but also curiosity, having never seen a floating city before.
“Yes, a whole city that is much closer to us than I’d like. We need to make sure no one goes out there to investigate.” Jared turned to Elle and Kitty. “Not even the two of you with your camouflage. We don’t know what kind of scanning technology the cities have, and they might see right through your ability.”
“How are we going to get out of here?” asked Carla, a note of hysteria entering her tone. She took a step toward the door, no doubt concerned for Attis.
“Don’t worry about Attis, Carla. He’s been around this area for quite some time and I don’t think he’d draw much attention from those in the city. Now that I think about it, Kitty probably wouldn’t draw much attention either, but Kitty and Attis together in the same area definitely would. There is no way two predators like that would coexist in the same area. I also don’t think it’s wise for anyone else to wander about. Especially not with the mutations on your bodies. One or two explorers might escape notice, but the moment they saw you weren’t ordinary humans, the jig would be over.”
A small frown passed Vanessa’s features. He wasn’t trying to sound harsh, but it was the truth. He squeezed her arm and held her close to let her know he meant nothing by it, nor did it bother him in the least.
“I can probably go out there without too much difficulty. One explorer shouldn’t raise any concerns for the city. Even if they sent someone to investigate, I could just tell them I’m headed across the country.”
“Jared—”
“I know, Vanessa. I won’t needlessly risk myself, but it might come down to something like that so we can see how attentive the city is. If they don’t notice me at all, then we might have a chance at getting out of this area undetected. Ideally, I’d stay under cover of the forest as long as possible to throw the trail off this place, and then I could head toward the open areas. I don’t think I’ll have any problem feigning surprise and wonder of the city and its denizens. I’ll just need to make sure I mask my contempt.”
“I know you want what’s best for us, but let’s think through some other options before you put yourself in harm’s way like that. For all we know, they could abduct you and hold you hostage, or worse, they could kill you outright for no reason. It’s not like there are any other humans around, at least that they know of, to witness the event. They might wipe you out just to be on the safe side.”
Vanessa had a point. There really was nothing stopping the cities from taking him out immediately. For all he knew, the city itself had weapons systems that could pulverize him from way up in the sky. It was a risky bet, but if they ran out of options it might be worth the risk.
“Good point, Vanessa. I’ll work with Scarlet and her brothers to see if we can find another solution to the problem.”
“What about the tunnels we explored?” Elle pointed to the caverns below.
Jared thought about the direction the tunnels went. “No, I don’t think that’ll work. At least, not without us digging through more rock. I don’t want the dragons using their fire, because last time the smoke escaped into the air. If we do that now, then they’ll for sure see it and send someone to investigate. Those little probes or sensors they use will easily find the tunnel leading underground and then we’re done. I’m not sure how long it would take us to excavate it by hand, but I suppose we could try.”
“Scarlet help some?”
Jared turned to Elle. “We can try, but I’m not sure she’d fit. We would need to widen the initial entrance for her to get back to the dead end. The other tunnel leads directly to the lake and we can’t go that way. So, if there’s nothing on the other side of the wall where the water disappears, then there’s no way we can escape underground. I’ll tell you what, I can take the shovels down there and try clearing some of it away. We’ll need to be careful we don’t collapse the room on top of everyone or block the stream. We don’t need it flooding down there.”
Jared turned to leave but remembered he’d wanted to send Attis out to explore. “Carla, do you have a good enough understanding of Attis and how he thinks to interpret what he sees? I’m thinking we might use him as a scout to see what’s going on, but I can’t understand him enough to make it worthwhile. Since he won’t go down to Scarlet, that leaves you.”
“I—” Carla paused, her face twisting in thought. “I think so. It is difficult, and there are things that seem alien, but I think I’ve got enough grasp to understand him.”
“Good, that might be the only viable way we have to get insight right now. I think after a time, we can have Attis fly further afield and then get Kitty out there exploring, but I don’t want the two of them close to each other.”
“Sounds good. Now go.” Vanessa pushed Jared toward the door. “Do what you must to keep everyone safe.”
Jared gave her a quick kiss, making the other girls giggle as he ducked out the door. The little moments they shared always lifted his spirits, no matter the situation. He wanted to chat with Scarlet about everything that had happened between him and Vanessa, but in light of recent events that conversation could wait. He didn’t really need Scarlet to help him sort out his feelings. No, those were readily apparent to him and everyone else. What he wasn’t sure how to reconcile was what his relationship meant and how they should proceed to take it to the next level.
If he wanted to honor his parents’ memory, they’d need to get married first. However, he didn’t know what that really meant these days. They didn’t have a priest or official minister to say vows. A slip of paper or certificate binding their marriage meant exactly nothing out in the wastelands. What was the faculty of marriage, and how did it fit in his worldview? These were the thoughts Jared wanted to discuss with Scarlet. She had a much greater depth of history and knowledge to pull from than he did and might yield some insights.
Perhaps it was the cynic in him, but he’d always assumed traditional marriage was a way for people to adhere to the old ways when government made provisions and bound people together by law. He’d read stories in his parents’ historical textbooks and a big oversized Bible they’d kept in their living room that talked about ancient kings and warriors who just took wives for themselves. They didn’t have ceremonies, or official paperwork.
What, then, was to stop him from asking Vanessa to be his wife? He’d seen others in his old colony who’d proposed to the woman
with a ring of some sort to symbolize the relationship, but again he didn’t see the point. If they had mutual feelings for each other, did they really need rings?
Distracted as he was, he still held Clear Mind and had the wherewithal to mind his surroundings and avoid a straight line of sight to the cities. He stuck close to the walls and kept the rock and trees between him and the city at all times. There was only one time, for a split second, where he saw the cities, and that was when he sprinted from the base of the cliff to some tree cover before ducking into the tunnel.
Scarlet and several of the water folk greeted him at the entrance, demanding to know what happened and why Scarlet wouldn’t let them go up. He asked them to take a step back into the cavern to avoid being exposed even a little to the open sky.
“Scarlet? Did you let anyone else know what’s happening up there?”
“Only my brothers. I did not want to cause a panic.”
“Okay, listen up, everyone. I’ve got some bad news. It looks like the cities took much more of an interest in our destroying their drop ships than I’d expected. We knew they’d send a response team, but what we didn’t account for was an entire city showing up in the sky.”
Jared heard gasps and shocked cries in response to his words. “There’s no need to panic and freak out just yet. As far as we can tell, they don’t know we’re here and I intend to keep it that way. I’ve already set a few things in motion to learn more about them, but for now I ask that everyone remain down here.”
A few people nodded their heads in agreement, needing no further encouragement to stay out of the crosshairs of those above.
“Now, I brought a bunch of shovels because I want us to start excavating the dead end down that branch of the tunnel.” Jared pointed to the dark opening through which the stream flowed. “The water has to go somewhere. Whether that is straight down, or even winding back on itself I’ve no idea. However, the city is too close for us to try evacuating above ground. Until we learn more about their ability to detect things below, we need to exercise extreme caution.
Radioactive Revolution: A Dystopian, Post-Apocalyptic Adventure Page 18