Bullets fly past. Christopher and Sadie are shooting as much as possible, doing everything they can to fight off the swarming guards. My attention is on Aaron. Stepping forward, I raise my hands to make myself visible to him. I think he sees me.
He’s driving as fast as the truck will let him, equipment jostling around in the back. A bullet slaps off his side mirror. He’s riding for us fast. He won’t be stopping. Even from this distance I can tell he’s looking at me. He needs me.
Closer and closer he comes until he screeches past us, slamming on his brakes nearly making a full circle around us. I step forward, facing the three vehicles, arms outstretched. Before the Screven vehicles can even put on their brakes, I concentrate on each of their wheels, crushing them inward. Two of the vehicles do an instant barrel roll towards us as the other one flips frontward onto its top.
With bullets popping all around us, Aaron yells for us to get in the truck. Without hesitation, I run for the truck and so does Christopher. But Sadie isn’t so fast.
I’m in the bed of the truck with all the equipment before I even realize that she isn’t with us. When I look out, she’s on the ground, a pool of blood soaking the dirt under her.
“Sadie!” Christopher yells out. He runs to her, scooping her up in his arms, doing everything he can to get her to the truck. I try to deflect bullets away from them, but it’s impossible to be a shield from so many directions. A mist of blood spouts into the air as a bullet rips through Christopher’s torso.
I curse loudly and jump from the truck, pulling the two of them from the ground with an invisible rope. They slam into the side of the truck, and I know it’s too rough when they hit, but we’re out of time. If we stay here any longer, we’ll all die. Aaron gets out and helps me get them into the bed. More vehicles are on their way, and my abilities are becoming exhausted. It’s not unlike the feeling of when I had overexerted myself the last fight I had here in Salem. I run to the front seat of the truck and Aaron slams on the gas.
“Hold on!” he yells out as we crash through the signs and rip through the tape of what used to be Salem’s gate.
As we speed away from Salem, I look through the rearview mirror and all I see are two unconscious bodies and surveillance equipment covered in blood. Who knows if any of it is still usable?
For all we know, the entire trip could have been a waste, and Aaron and I might be the only survivors in this truck.
The Screven guards don’t follow us. They know better. Aaron keeps driving until we meet our other truck so we can check on Sadie and Christopher. The moment we step out of the truck I can hear moans coming from Christopher, silence from Sadie.
“I’m okay,” he says. “I’m okay.”
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Aaron says, pulling him up by the collar to a sitting position. Christopher winces at the movement.
I run over to the side of the truck and reach a hand to Sadie’s neck, feeling for a pulse. It’s faint.
“How is she?” Christopher calls out.
“She’s not going to make it if you don’t work your magic,” I say. “Heal yourself and get over here.”
“I can’t heal myself,” he says through labored breaths. “That’s not how it works.”
I look at him in confusion. “But I saw you heal. You healed me the other day.”
“Yes, but I can’t heal myself.” He pushes Aaron’s prodding hands away and stands to move over to Sadie. “The bullet passed through me. One thing I do have is a good sense of whether or not a wound is fatal.” He looks at Aaron. “I’ll survive. Sadie, on the other hand, will not survive if I don’t help her now.”
Aaron and I stand just behind Christopher as we wait in anticipation of this miraculous gift. The wound is through her chest and there is another straight through her leg. She would bleed to death if Christopher weren’t here.
He wraps his hands around hers and squeezes them tightly.
For several long seconds, he winces in pain, even lets out a sharp yell as he accepts her pain as his. I can’t help my wide eyes as I watch her wounds close. Within moments, her skin is as pure as before she was shot, though bloodstains remain on her clothes.
Christopher, however, is writhing in pain. He grabs at his chest and leg, falling to the ground, coughing, wheezing.
“What’s wrong?” Aaron asks, trying to make Christopher’s descent to the ground easier.
“He’s taking her wounds,” I tell him. “He’ll be all right, I think.”
“This one was bad,” Sadie says from behind me.
I turn sharply to see a completely conscious and healed girl watching her brother suffer.
“He doesn’t usually have to heal wounds like this,” she continues. She gets up from the back and rushes to his side. “If he takes on too much he could die.”
She bends down close to him, rubbing his shoulder, trying to get him to calm. Her soothing voice helps him a little.
The radio sounds from my back pocket. There has been all kinds of chatter since the fight, but this is the first time that I’ve registered its noise. I pull it out to hear the voice of Commander Green.
“…groups out on the edge. I’m taking three vehicles with me. Commander Green out.”
“They’re coming,” I say, dropping the radio to the ground. “Can he walk?” I ask Sadie.
“Yes,” Christopher says. “Yes, I can walk.”
Sadie helps him stand and he limps over to the side of the truck. Aaron gets into the driver’s seat and turns the key. Dead.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he says. “Mora, can you get the equipment into the other truck? We’ve got to get out of here before this Commander Green gets here.”
Of course I can. I just don’t know if we have enough time. I move to the back of the truck, focusing all of my energy on lifting the equipment. Within a few seconds we’re ready to go. Sadie and Christopher are in the back bed; Aaron is in the driver’s seat. We could be driving away, but I can hear the engines coming.
“Mora, get in,” Aaron says.
I shake my head at him. “No. There can’t be a pursuit. These are Screven guards on our tail, not colonists. These guys have real weapons.”
“I don’t have the electricity to help you,” he says.
“I know. Sit tight.”
I walk in front of the other truck and wait for the Screven vehicles to come around the next bend. One, two, three…four of them, fully loaded and ready to fight. I shake my head as Commander Green rises out of the top of the front vehicle through the sunroof. Other guards sit out on the sides of the windows of each vehicle, weapons in hand. Though I’m beginning to weaken, I don’t see why I couldn’t take on this group of guards. I’m glad they’re coming straight at me. I can focus better this way.
But they don’t come at us like mad men. In fact, Commander Green is holding his hands in the air as if he’s trying to surrender. I glance at Aaron behind me and he shakes his head. Can’t trust them.
The vehicles come to a stop about thirty yards away from us.
“You must know by now, you can’t just wear me down,” I say. “You come at me like this, I will win.”
“Yes, I know,” Commander Green says, hopping off the top of the vehicle and to the ground. The other guards get out all around him. I make sure to keep an eye on every single one of them.
“That’s why I’m here to talk.”
“We have nothing to discuss.”
“You may feel that way, but I don’t.”
I sigh. “Say what you want and get out of here.”
A grin forms at the side of Green’s mouth. His thin beard twitches a little when he is about to speak.
“Jeremiah still considers you a very powerful potential ally.”
“What are you talking about? He framed us. He set all the colonies against us.”
“Because you went against him first,” Green says. “All can be made right again on both sides should you decide to work with us.”
�
�What do you want exactly?”
Green’s sharp eyebrows dart downward and he lets out a huff as though the answer was clear. “To get rid of the greyskins, of course. That has been our goal from the beginning.”
I can’t help but wonder if he knows that Jeremiah actually created the greyskins in the first place. I wonder if he knows how much of a monster his leader truly is.
“We are not here to negotiate,” I tell him. “Turn and leave, or suffer the consequences. You know what I’m capable of.”
“Yes,” he says. “I do.”
Behind him, several of his guards pull out weapons I’ve never seen before.
“Guards,” he says. “Fire on Mora and the truck.”
With the sound of a thousand rockets going off, each of the guards lets off what looks to be some kind of missile. Of course, just like a bullet, I’m able to stop these things in mid-air. I don’t know why he thinks he can just win like this.
With a shove, I send the tiny missiles back from where they came, setting off explosions all around the Screven guards. The force of the blast nearly knocks me off my feet, but I’m able to maintain my composure. Flesh burns, and men scream out in pain as they try to snuff out their own flames. Smoke fills the air and there’s no way they would be able to follow us now. I tried to warn them. I told them to go back, but they wouldn’t listen.
I run back to the truck and get into the passenger side.
“That was…bloody,” Aaron says. “Where’s the commander? Did he get hit?”
I look through the haze of fire and smoke, but I can’t see anything clearly. Surely the man must have been incinerated or something because there is no sign of him.
“Get us out of here, Aaron.”
Without a word, he puts the truck in gear and drives off.
CHAPTER SEVEN
I FEEL LIKE I’ve spent the entire day at Salem, but it’s only around seven in the morning. Through the back window, I call out to Sadie to see how Christopher is doing. She says that she’s gotten the bleeding in his torso to stop, but he’s in terrible pain.
I look at Christopher’s face and can see that he’s pale as a ghost. Blood covers the bed of the truck surrounding his body. If the bleeding hadn’t stopped soon, he would not have made it.
“You never told me there were two of them,” Aaron says as his left hand hangs out the window, cutting the air that passes.
“I didn’t know either.”
“That Commander Green guy seemed to know you.”
“Oh, we had a nice conversation before you drove over next to us,” I say with a sarcastic smile.
“I didn’t see him out there when I drove in.”
“He was in the Vault,” I say.
“The Vault? What were you doing in the Vault?”
“Getting those two.”
“You were planning on going into the Vault without telling me? Are you insane?”
“We’re alive aren’t we?” I ask.
“What were they doing in the Vault?”
“That’s something I’d like an answer to as well.”
Aaron gives up with a shake of his head. I don’t want to tell him that I had no idea where they were when we planned this little trip. I don’t want to tell him that I was able to find out where they were by my ability to spy on people without their knowledge. I just want to drop it and get back to Springhill.
With the success of our own mission, I can’t help but wonder how things are going with Connor and the others.
“If it’s all the same to you, I’m going to try and get some shut-eye. I have a feeling we aren’t going to get much sleep tonight. The elders will have a lot of questions.”
Aaron shakes his head and mumbles something about shoving something somewhere up an elder, but I don’t pay attention. I’m already watching over Connor’s shoulder.
He stands next to Danny and Heather in the woods facing the compound. Greyskins are scattered everywhere. Even Heather would have a hard time getting through without notice.
“What exactly are we looking for?” Danny asks.
Connor takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. With a hand, he points to a building in the distance. “You see that over there?”
Heather and Danny both look to where he’s pointing but they both shake their heads.
“The far east building. To the right. The satellite dish is at the top. Aaron seems to think that’s what will work.”
“Can we fit that into the car?” Danny asks.
Connor shrugs. “If not, I suppose you could rip off the top and make it fit, right?”
Connor seems to have meant it as a joke, but Danny nods with confidence. “Yeah, I think so.”
Connor walks over to the back of the SUV and opens the back hatch. Inside is an arsenal big enough for a village it seems. He pulls out a shotgun and gives it a pump so it’s cocked and ready. Heather and Danny come up behind him. He hands the shotgun to Danny, then he hands him a wooden club. He gives Heather a dagger and pistol and gets out a rifle with a large scope for himself. He also grabs a hatchet and a pistol.
“Why do you guys get the big guns?” Heather asks.
“Wouldn’t want to slow you down,” Connor answers. “If we run out of weapons I think there’s an armory in the basement of one of the buildings. Not sure which one though.”
“We sticking with your plan, Connor?” Danny asks, swinging the strapped shotgun over his shoulder.
“What do you guys think?” he asks.
“You know what I think,” Heather says. “I think your plan stinks. We should stick together. Even if you aren’t a Starborn, there is strength in numbers.”
“But I can cover you both from the top of this hill.”
“And greyskins will swarm you within minutes,” Danny says. “We can take a lot of them out, but we can’t do anything for you if you’re up here sniping. Your gun is loud. Should be a last resort in my opinion.”
Connor accepts the decision with a nod. “Then we go together. If we get split up, meet back at the car. Make sure nothing is following you though. It’s our only way out of here.” He reaches into the back one more time and pulls out three black wristbands. They’re the same kind everyone is forced to wear in Salem. “Put these on,” he says. “If we do get split up, we can use these.”
Heather scowls. “Hate wearing these things. Puts a bad taste in my mouth.”
“I modified them,” Connor says. “No Screven soldier will be tracking you.”
Connor closes the back hatch and sighs, looking at the other two in the eyes. Fear is etched on each of their faces, mixed with a touch of confidence. Holding their silent weapons ready first, they step forward and begin their descent onto the trail leading to the compound.
Watching them, I can’t help but think about the equipment we have in our truck. After being covered in blood and bullet holes…there’s no telling if any of it will work. I feel like we should all be there to help them. I have confidence that they can make it through, but it only takes one scratch. Only one bite.
Edging their way to the front gate of the complex, sweat trickles down their necks as the summer heat bears down on them. The stench of the undead fills their nostrils and I can tell that they are sickened by it.
“Just think,” Danny says. “All of these greyskins were once people like us.”
“No,” Heather says. “Not like us.” She waits for a second. “Maybe Connor. But not us.”
“Thanks,” Connor says, rolling his eyes.
“Don’t worry,” Heather says, “you might get into a sticky enough situation that you’ll discover your own little gift.”
“Let’s hope not,” Connor says. He takes a deep breath. “Quickly and quietly.”
The other two nod and they step into the compound. Immediately the first greyskin sees them but Heather speeds up next to it. With a quick swipe, its head rolls to the ground. Disgustingly enough, it’s still biting, begging for one more bit of flesh. Danny finishes it with
a quick slam to the forehead.
Connor is busy with his own pair of greyskins. His hatchet cuts through the temple of the first, but before he can swing into the second, Heather dispatches it to the ground where it stops moving. Connor gives her a slight nod of thanks as each of them moves on to the next one.
Watching from my consciousness, I can’t help but think this is going to take forever. The building Connor is trying to lead them to seems so far away considering the number of greyskins in the area.
Their movements aren’t quiet enough either. Even with a club and silent blades, the commotion of each encounter brings in more greyskins. Like a domino effect, they turn their heads to see what is happening, intensely drawn to the prospect of feeding.
Danny can’t be stopped. He smashes through the skulls of each greyskin, one by one. He hits each with such force that, even with a wooden club, many of them end up headless.
Darkened, congealed blood and brains run down each of their weapons, and soon, all over their hands and arms.
Connor finds himself surrounded by five greyskins moving toward him quickly. The first, he’s able to slice through the front of its skull, but the hatchet sticks into the bone and won’t budge. With little time to try and wedge it out, he’s forced to pull out his pistol. Four shots, four downed greyskins. But the echoes reach every corner of the compound.
Now all of the greyskins know something is happening and they’re ready to eat.
A shotgun blast barrels out into the open air as Danny blows away two that had been behind him. In the same motion he grabs a slab of crumbled wall from one of the buildings and chucks it at a group of six or more greyskins, flattening them to the ground.
Heather speeds past him, slicing away at their enemies, but there are too many now.
“Connor!” Danny yells out. “We’ve got to run!”
Connor doesn’t make him say it twice. He sprints toward Danny. Heather has already made it to high ground on top of one of the shorter buildings, just out of reach of the greyskins.
Connor runs up beside Danny, fully intending to make his own way to the top of the two story structure, but Danny picks him up by the back of his pants and tosses him up. Connor lands hard on the roof next to Heather.
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