by Peter Hoole
“How can you be sure it wasn’t an accident?”
Jace considered his response, “Just a gut thing... I guess. I don’t know about your experience, Captain, but to me – if something walks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck... then it’s probably a fucking duck.”
Caleb could sense Jace was getting angry about the conversation, so Caleb reassured him, “We believe you Jace. After the last couple of days, hell I’m willing to believe anything until I get proof.”
Jace became quiet.
Caleb decided to stop the conversation and give Jace some time to settle.
“How far out are we, babe?” he asked Darcy.
Darcy had the tablets sitting on her lap. As they drove, she tried to find as much information as she could. But, as had previously happened, she found herself constantly blocked from most of the tablet by something call Endeavour Access Only.
She reopened the mapping program, judged that they were about an hour and a half at their current speed. There was nothing on the road or in front of them that would indicate the speed would be hampered, so she relayed the information to Caleb.
Caleb asked her about what else she had found.
“I keep getting the same warning...” she said, having previously told Caleb of the restrictions on her access, “I’m a bit worried to be honest.”
“Why’s that?” Caleb asked, becoming concerned that she was concerned.
“What if we get there and we can’t get any other information. If we keep getting blocked by the access restriction...”
Caleb pondered her question.
“I’m sure we’ll find... something. I’m not sure what it will be, but we’ll find it. And even if we don’t it’s not like Haven’s the only option. Dunleavy and the others are going back state-side. Hopefully they get support and head to Minot. That should do the trick.”
Darcy seemed a little comforted. She did not like resolutions to be out of her control, but there was little she could do about it.
As Caleb drove, the road blended into itself. Where once he looked at the lush, green trees with enthusiasm, he now longed for them to be gone. He was eager to get back to Haven, and to find out what he could do to bring down the Colonials.
After about another twenty minutes, the phone rang.
Once again, Darcy answered it. After putting it on loudspeaker, Darcy again placed it on the centre console.
“Cap? Can you hear me?”
The familiar voice of Murphy resonated through the handset.
“I can hear you, Lieutenant. What’s your status?”
“We’ve arrived at the airfield. We’re all fuelled up and ready to go.”
“Good. How longs the flight time?” asked Caleb.
“Sadly, sir, we’re just on a standard military transport today. Looks like it’s gonna be a long one.”
Caleb remembered the last time he had flown across the Pacific, prior to the journey a few days earlier. Unfortunately, one of the major advantages the Colonials had was speed. They were able to take long haul flights in a matter of a few hours. Non-Colonial planes could only make the trip between Australia and the US around fourteen or fifteen hours.
“Where are we headed sir.”
“First stop is to hook up with Walker. He’s probably hanging out for our call.”
Declan Walker was the second best pilot in Caleb’s team, behind Murphy. After they had dropped into Seattle, Walker had continued to fly the Gulfstream they had borrowed. Caleb had hoped he’d followed protocol, and flown to one of the black site airfields in the north-west they had often used. He has the right clearances, so would be able to land without drawing undue attention to himself. The airfield was code-named the Nest, and was situated around five hundred miles east of Seattle.
“He’ll be at the Nest...” Caleb continued, “Make your way there.”
“Yes sir,” replied Murphy, without hesitation.
“Put Casey on the line.”
“I’m already here sir... or haven’t you guys heard of speaker phone?” Casey quipped.
Caleb smiled a little, realising the events of the past few days had not dampened his sense of humour.
“Good luck, Sergeant.” Caleb said.
“Don’t you worry about me sir, we’ll get it done.”
Caleb then heard Dunleavy’s voice.
“We’ve got the tablet, Jackson. Now you do your bit, and I’ll get this stuff stateside.”
Caleb took a breath. It may be a while before he caught up with his compatriots again, and he wanted to spend some time savouring the moment.
“Good luck guys. And call me when you land.”
“Will do, Cap.” Said Murphy.
The phone was disconnected, and there was silence in the car.
Caleb always trusted his team, and he knew that, should they have a bit of luck, they would prevail.
But there was only so much they could do. They needed Caleb and Darcy to do their part. While Dunleavy could perhaps get some intelligence-fraternity help, and Murphy could round up some military muscle, Caleb knew they were going to need a lot more.
They continued down the road for a mile or so.
“It’s a bit quiet in here” said Darcy, “I’ll put the radio on.”
Darcy reached to the dash. Caleb was somewhat surprised that the ‘Bat even had a radio. But as Darcy turned the power on, and some token pop music played, Caleb figured that even the Colonials could enjoy music.
And for a few minutes, even Caleb found himself enjoying the tune.
Typically, Caleb never enjoyed listening to Taylor Swift, but even the simple pleasure of listening to Shake It Off was enough to help him momentarily relax.
After several minutes of tunes, Swift followed by Sheppard, followed by a song he hadn’t heard before, Caleb again needed to shift focus.
“Is there any news on?” asked Caleb.
“What, Captain? You don’t like Tay Tay?” asked Jace jokingly from the back seat.
“It’s not that, Jace,” replied Caleb, a droll smile on his face, “I just think we need to catch-up on what’s going on.”
Darcy turned to Jace, “What channel?”
“Not sure, I think it’s around 99 on the FM dial.”
Darcy searched the stations on the dash, and eventually came to 99.5FM.
The female broadcaster was finishing of another story, “... with many still unaccounted for. This is the largest terrorist attack on English soil of all time, with many people afraid to even leave their ho...”
The radio went silent. In the background, there was a slight sound of astonishment “what do you mean another one?” the broadcaster said.
As they continued down the road, Caleb and Darcy looked at each other, waiting for the broadcaster to start again.
“Oh my god,” she began, “This is just terrible. Following from the plane in Seattle, the bombings in Rome and London... Oh my god... It seems a fourth attack has just occurred. Details are still coming in, but it seems less than ten minutes ago another explosion has been detected, this time at a crowded market in the Indian city of Jaipur. Wait... we have just been informed that an attack has occurred at a market place. This time it was a... it was a... are you sure?”
The broadcaster was speaking to another person in the room.
“My god. Early reports are saying a bomb was dropped from a small craft into a marketplace. At this stage, it is too early to report damages or casualties... but... oh my... this is just terrible.”
“Jesus Christ... another one?” asked Jace.
Caleb was silent. He could not believe the ferocity of the attacks. So far, four attacks had happened.
All he could think was they needed to get to Haven to have any chance of stopping the next one, wherever it may be.
“How far out are we Darcy?” he asked his girlfriend.
Darcy was silent, and Caleb could see tears streaming down her face.
“Darcy?” Caleb asked again.
<
br /> After still no response, Caleb put his arm on Darcy’s leg, and shook it a little. The amount of shock he was feeling was immense, but he could not imagine what Darcy was going through.
But at that moment, he needed her help.
“Darcy?” he said again.
Darcy looked away from the radio, and down at the tablet.
“Still about an hour away...” she said as she wiped a tear from her eye.
Caleb, thinking about the people in Jaipur, realised they would need to go faster. He put his foot down on the accelerator. He speed jumped from one hundred kph, to one sixty kph.
“What about the cops?” asked Jace, noticing the increase in speed.
“I think they’ve got bigger things to worry about right now.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Welcome, Zachary.”
The only light in the room was pointed straight at Zach’s face. The rest of the room was small, but that was the only aspect he could discern.
“I’m sure you have many questions,” the deep, Australian voice continued, “But I’m afraid I am not here to answer them for you.”
Zach struggled in the metal chair, and was unable to make any progress in loosening his hands.
“I don’t have any questions. I know who you are.”
The man lurched forward, and swung a closed fist at the tied up Englishman. The force was sufficient to turn his head and make the chair fall backwards.
After a second or two, the man ordered an unseen accomplice to lift him up.
As Zach regained his composure, he smiled. Or at least as much as his freshly fractured jaw would allow him.
“Do you really think any of this will make a difference?” Zach asked confidently, “the plan is already in motion.”
The man turned to Zach, and raised his fist again. This caused Zach to flinch. While he could feel his jaw regaining its structure, the pain of another blow would still be significant.
“I don’t like hitting people, Zach. But you probably knew that already.”
Zach scoffed.
“That’s why it was so easy to defeat your people all those years ago... you’re weak.”
This time, the man did not hold back, and another blow came down on Zach.
“Weak?” he said, wringing his hand, “Just because we don’t kill you does not make us weak.”
“You were weak all those years ago... and you’re still unwilling.”
It had not taken long for Zach to realise who his abductors were. For many years, they had known they were being watched. After all, they took something from their stalkers. Something more valuable that anything that has ever been discovered before.
But such was the power of the Colonial’s, they were able to stave off all the attacks that had occurred.
Not that they were a regular occurrence. After several years of fighting for control of the Source, the native population had seemingly given up.
But now the Colonials at Haven were weakened. They had been dealt a blow by Dunleavy and the others.
The man laughed.
“You were infiltrated by a small team, Zach. They have destroyed your base. Your precious access to the Source. Now, it’s our turn to take our history back.”
Zach could feel the moment slipping from him. He, for the first time in years, felt vulnerable.
“So, if you aren’t going to kill me...” he said.
“You’re right,” said the man, we should probably do just that. But unlike you, it is not in our nature.”
“You’re savages. Nothing more.”
“If we were savages, you’d already be dead.”
“So just be done with it then.”
The man scoffed. He was clearly not getting through to the man in the chair.
“We’ve got your equipment. But we need you to open it.”
Zach again smiled, feeling the serum working to its full potential. The serum itself was not enough to stop a catastrophic injury, but it was enough to repair a broken body. If there was a heartbeat and brain activity, the serum would work, much like the Source did. But Zach also knew that, should his captors shoot him in the head or the heart, or even if they cut of the connection between the two, then he would be dead.
However, judging by the tone of the man, it would seem they were not willing to do that.
At least not yet.
“You know I’ll never open the tablet. You know I can’t.” Zach said, trying to appeal to the man’s logic.
The man let out a sigh.
“Enough of these games. Turn on the light.”
As soon as he uttered the words, the room illuminated.
The transition from light to dark was enough to shock Zach’s vision for a few seconds.
When he regained some composure, he looked around the room.
To say it was rudimentary was an understatement. In essence, it reminded Zach of the cabin he had on the very first voyage all those years ago. Wood surrounded the room, and the floors were covered in dirt. The only electricity into the room powered the single light bulb in the centre of the room, and the lamp that had been pointing at him.
As he looked around further, the only other men in the small room were the ones that had found him in Haven.
He looked at the man that had been questioning him. It was a face he had not seen for many years.
“Hello Adam.” Zach said, demonstrating his recognition.
Adam stood in front of the chair, only four or five feet away.
“Zach, your time is up. We need that information.”
As Zach was about to answer, one of the other men spoke, “Adam.”
Adam turned to the man, seemingly perturbed by the interruption.
“What is it?” he asked, the irritation in his voice palpable.
The other man sheepishly responded, “There’s been a breach in the perimeter.”
Adam lifted his hand up to the headpiece he wearing and spoke.
“Report.”
Zach could hear a voice, but could not make it out.
“Is it more of them?”
Again, Zach struggled to hear a response.
“Ok… I’m coming down…” Adam said, “You stay here.”
Adam referred to the man standing behind Zach, and he left the room, some urgency in his footsteps.
***
After he had put his foot down, the journey to Haven had taken less than half an hour. Jace’s previous worries about being pulled over had not eventuated. In fact there were barely any cars on the road. Caleb surmised this was related to the attacks, with people fearing any kind of travel.
As they approached the small town, Caleb and Jace had formulated a makeshift plan. As was his normal practise, Caleb always made sure planning was of the utmost importance.
Unfortunately, the intelligence they had was somewhat flimsy. Even though they had access to the basic plans for the town and the underground facility, these could all have changed, even since the preceding day.
It was a large unknown as to what they were heading into, and they were unsure what, if any, resistance they would find from the Colonials.
As such, Caleb had considered asking Darcy to remain in the vehicle. But that would have presented a variety of risks.
Coupled with the fact Darcy would have rebuffed his request with fortitude, Caleb’s decision was easy.
They had moved the ‘Bat to the side of the road, approximately five hundred yards from the outskirts of the small town. As they exited the vehicle, the determination was made that they would stay together, and walk towards the centre of town.
As they approached, Caleb realised just how valuable Darcy would be.
Of the trio, she was to only one with firsthand knowledge of the town and its layout. After all, as when they had left the evening prior, Caleb had been passed out in the back seat.
“Alright babe,” Caleb said, “We need to follow your lead from here. Where do we go?”
Darcy seemed tentative wi
th the request. While she felt a sense of pride that Caleb had trusted her to lead, she also felt some trepidation. She was not used to other people’s lives potentially in the hands.
Caleb could sense her apprehension.
“It’s OK,” he said softly, “I didn’t mean that literally. I’ll take the front, you will be in the middle and Jace will take our sixes. You just need to tell me where to go...”
Darcy nodded, and pointed down the road.
Haven was simple in its geographic structure. As with many small towns, there was one main street. Along the street were various store facades. There was a small motel, a grocery store, a mechanic and what looked like some other small businesses.
Or, at least that is how it appeared. With the knowledge they had, Darcy and Caleb knew the stores were merely fronts – a kind-of window dressing to hide the real intent of the location.
As they walked through, Jace asked a question, “Not to sound like an arsehole, but are you sure this is the right spot? Looks like every other town we’ve passed through.”
Darcy turned to the man behind her, “I’m sure. With what we went through here, it’s not a place you’d easily forget.”
Jace nodded.
Caleb moved slowly down the main street. They past a few non-descript stores, each similar in design.
As it was not a place he had seen before, it was important he get a clearer understanding of what they were facing. And, more importantly, note any escape routes in case they needed them.
Continuing the towns simplistic design, off to the side of the main road were several side-streets. Some lead towards other junctions, others were cul-de-sacs.
And, for some reason, more than one of them were just dead-ends. From the limited time Caleb had to observe the streets, it was becoming clearer just how artificial the town was.
As he walked, he noted the various roads, and mentally planned their best escape route at each junction.
Caleb was sure the Colonials would be back – at least when they surmised there was no longer a threat. Caleb only hoped they would take their time, being the patient people they were.
Still, it could only be a matter of minutes before they had company, so time was well and truly of the essence.