by S D Rogue
“There’s one in his bedroom—that’s in the back of the plane. And some in the cockpit, but that’s locked.”
She went back to the window and stared one more time at the men with the rifles. They’d soon realize something was wrong and come for them.
“Hey Riko?”
She didn’t turn. “Yeah.”
“How do you know there’s a gun in York’s room?”
Riko didn’t answer. It started making more sense. “He was the guy?” Hana laughed. “You cheated on Bashir with York!”
Riko looked at her, annoyed.
“I thought everyone knew that?” Kenna said.
“That’s pretty cold,” Hana said. “They’re best friends.”
“Yeah,” Riko explained, “I’m a real bitch—everyone knows it. And yet York turns out to be the criminal.” She handed Hana one of the guns then grabbed both of the men’s radios. “Kenna—stay put. If we get caught, go back to your lab and act like you didn’t know what happened. Then get out of here—you know where the boats are?”
She nodded.
“Good—run and hid if anything happens.” Riko turned to Hana. “Let’s get this over with.”
Before Hana could question what exactly that meant, Riko was out the door and heading down the hall. She said something threatening in Japanese to the men in the lounge. By the time Hana got there, she saw two men with their hands up. “You said there were three?”
“I heard three.”
The men looked nervous. They weren’t guards. They looked like scientists. Riko’s gun was still aimed at them. She looked at them sternly and spoke in Japanese. “The third is in the bathroom,” she said to Hana. “Stay with them—nobody moves.”
Hana nodded and Riko moved quickly towards the front of the plane.
The men stared at Hana trying to size her up. “Hana, right?” One of them said with a heavy accent.
She didn’t reply.
“They’re not going to hurt you,” he explained, “they just want to study you.”
Hana aimed straighter at him. “I don’t want to be studied.”
“You’re not a killer,” he replied. “There’s too many people on this island with guns and there’s nowhere to escape. If you fight it, you’re going to get hurt.”
Hana started to say more, but she caught movement from the opened door. The men with guns were moving from the van towards the plane. “Hey, Riko,” she called, “I think we’re going to have company.”
Riko didn’t come. They were now at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the plane. “Crap!” She looked at the man who had been speaking to her. “You! Get over here.”
The man slowly walked towards her. Hana grabbed his arm and looked at the other man. “Stay.” She moved the man towards the stairs. When the men with guns started walking up the steps, they noticed her. She pushed the man down the stairs. He knocked two of the men at the bottom over. There was a third still standing. Hana pointed her gun at him and fired, hitting one of his knees.
The men were starting to stand by the time Hana reached the bottom of the stairs. She was able to grab away their guns. The man she had pushed down the stairs was moaning. It was a far fall, but he’d live.
A fourth man was in the van, and he burned rubber as he sped off the tarmac.
“I was wrong about you, Hana Nakamura,” Riko said from the plane doorway. “You’re not just a nurse.”
Hana started to speak but stopped when she heard chatter on the radio. It was in Japanese and she looked up at Riko to interpret.
“Guy in the van has called it in,” Riko explained,.“We need to get out of here.”
“Get Kenna.”
Kenna was already walking up behind Riko. She called down, “Is it possible that you guys could teach me just one or two of those moves?”
Riko and Kenna raced down the steps to join Hana at the bottom. At the last step, Riko nodded to the left and instructed, “That way.”
Hachijō-kojima Island was heavily wooded and mostly mountainous. Its claim to fame was the film Battle Royale had been filmed there. Before York had leased the island, it was mostly visited by fishermen and scuba divers. Its terrain wasn’t ideal for housing, but York had managed to find the perfect spot for a main house, a large lab facility, and several guest houses scattered around the island.
The closest island to it was Hachijō-jima, which was about 7.5 miles away and several times larger in size; it could be seen in the distance, and Riko pointed it out. “If things go bad, that’s the island you want to head to—it’s home to nearly 8,000 people.”
“You seem to know your way around,” Hana noticed as they jogged off the runway. “How many times have you been here?”
“Enough,” Riko said shortly. “There are boats near the main house.” She looked over at Kenna. “You know where I’m talking about?” Kenna nodded. “When we get to the house, I want you to hide out in them. Don’t come out.”
“You have no idea where to go,” Kenna pointed out. “All of this is partly my fault—let me come with you.”
“It’s safer if you hide,” Hana said as they ran. “Just tell us where everything is.”
Kenna stopped. Hana and Riko kept running several feet until they noticed she wasn’t with them. They both turned at the same time and looked at her, confused, until she offered, “You really think you can knock on the front door?” She questioned, “What happened to the goal being to escape? That was a good plan.”
“That was before other Paladins were involved,” Riko explained.
“And before we knew about the Jekyll and Hyde operation that you had going on,.” Hana added.
Kenna said, “There are at least a dozen Paladins that work for York who are either here now or on their way; and there are at least 50 armed men stationed all around this island. So if your plan is to knock on the door and ask for tea, then it’s time to rethink this.” She paused, then warned, “There is only one way for you to win this—and even that is a long shot. You need me with you—helping you—showing you all of York’s vulnerabilities. You need me to make sure you wipe this place clean so he can’t just rebuild somewhere else.”
Hana looked at her carefully and bit her lip. “She makes a pretty convincing case.”
“Do you even know how to use a gun?” Riko asked.
Kenna shrugged. “No—but I’m pretty good at turning chemicals into explosives.”
“That’s good enough for me!” Riko smiled. She looked around. “We’re in an open area—should we keep running or do we need to hug it out now?”
Kenna ignored her and ran past them.
“So what exactly does York need for this Frankenstein experiment to work?” Riko asked as they made it off the tarmac and onto a dirt path that was surrounded by trees.
“We have to put you under,” Kenna explain, “then we take your bone marrow, mostly.”
“Mostly?” Hana asked.
“We need a little spinal fluid too.”
“Is that all?”
“And Paladins have been open to doing this?” Riko asked in disbelief.
“We haven’t exactly asked permission,” Kenna explained. “All the attacks were staged—we got what we needed and then made them think it was a failed mission.”
“Then why’d you come back for Bashir?” Hana asked, starting to get a little out of breath.
“I don’t know the details—I’m just the scientist. I know York needed more from Bashir and that’s why he went after him again—he didn’t want him to go into hiding. Not when we were so close.”
“They were using live bullets!”
“I swear I don’t know anything about that.”
“This is all unbelievable,” Riko said. “I knew York was a bit—cutthroat—but not like this.” She added, “Tell me if you hear anyone coming.”
“Do you know where we are going?” Hana asked.
“The main lab and York’s
apartment are just down the road from here.” Kenna explained.
“And helicopter?” Hana asked.
Riko looked at her curiously.
“There’s one coming,” Hana explained.
“How far?”
“Minute out, maybe.” Hana pointed and they could just barely begin to make it out in the distance. It was still dark out and the helicopter had its lights on.
Chapter Fourteen
R
iko grabbed Hana and Kenna and tossed them on each of her shoulders. They were light, but she held them awkwardly, trying hard not to drop them. Before either protested, she was speeding off. In seconds they were near what Hana figured was York’s lab. It was a single story metallic building with no windows that reminded Hana of the makeshift buildings she used to work out of in the Middle East.
There were two men with guns chatting near the entrance. They seemed oblivious of any escape. Their eyes were on the helicopter pad that was between York’s house and the boat docks.
Riko found a spot about 100 feet away behind a large tree and thick shrubbery. Bright lights illuminated the space in front of the building, which Hana imagined was to guide the helicopter in. Moments later, two Sikorsky helicopters began to descend onto a dirt helicopter pad. One was aiming for the pad and the other was aiming for an empty space several feet away.
When the doors opened, York, Frank, Bashir, and nine Paladins exited. There were a dozen on the other helicopter as well. Kenna was correct—York seemed to be bringing all of them in.
“Welcome to my island paradise,” York said proudly. “We have rooms waiting for all of you—you’ll be safe here.”
“What about Hana and Riko?” Bashir asked.
“My men are already searching Tokyo for them—whoever took them, we’ll find them.”
Bashir didn’t seem satisfied.
“Don’t worry,” York reassured them, “ore’re safe.”
Bashir looked at him doubtfully. “I should have stayed behind to help find them.”
“If that’s what you want, then once we know what’s going on, I’ll send you back,” York promised. “Right now, just trust me.”
York quickly walked to the lab and used his handprint to open the doors. When everyone was inside, Hana noted, “They sure are friendly considering everything that has happened.”
Riko rolled her eyes. “Isn’t that how men are? Bashir got over York pretty quick—he blamed me for everything. I was the great temptress in that scenario. His buddy York was just the sacrificial lamb.”
“Such a sad story,” a man’s voice laughed. Hana didn’t have to turn to know that the voice came from Dallas. She silently cursed herself for not picking up his movements, but her concentration had been fixed in front of her.
###
York was giving a mini tour of the communication room when the doors swung open and Dallas walked in with a guard; Riko, Hana and Kenna had their hands zip tied and were being led by him. “We caught them out front,” he explained.
“Nice work.” York smiled. Kenna caught his eye. “Kenna? Well that’s certainly disappointing—we’ll have to figure something out.” He looked to the other Paladins and said, “Looks like we’re all here now.”
Bashir looked at York, confused. “What’s going on?”
“Wow!” Riko laughed. “Breaking up with you was hard, but moments like these make me happy. You are so in love with this guy that you literally can’t see who he really is when he is at his evilest!”
“Not evil,” York clarified, “More like—seeing the world more clearly and wanting the best for everyone.”
“So,” Bashir said, still confused, “you kidnapped them?”
York shrugged. “I don’t know that kidnapping is the right word choice. Did we bring them here against their will with bags over their heads and tied up? Yes.” He turned to Bashir and smiled. “But it was all for their good. Is that kidnapping?”
Bashir looked at him blankly.
“He was luring you in,” Hana said. “He’s one of the bad guys, Bashir.”
“Evil? Good?” York smiled. “It’s all in the eyes of the beholder. What you never could just wrap your head around was how much potential you had, Bashir. You had this ‘superhero’ fantasy in your head. You wanted to be the good guy—to rescue the girl. News flash, Bashir—the princess is in another castle, and you know what? She does not want the hero. That’s just a fantasy. She wants the guy who isn’t afraid to capitalize on their power.”
“So that’s what this is all about? Money?”
York smiled. “It’s always about money, Bashir. I fly in an airplane with a swimming pool! That doesn’t come cheap.”
“So what is all of this? You kidnap? For what?”
“To get you here. I wasn’t going to hurt them.”
“And the others?” Bashir said. “Paladins died. You nearly killed me.”
A smirk grew on York’s face. “Died?”
“Don’t play dumb,” Bashir said. “You killed Mason—he was just a kid.”
“Mason?” York questioned. “Mason is fine.” He paused and called, “Where’s Mason? Is he in the lab? Page him.”
Mason’s name appeared on the intercom and moments later he appeared, scratch free, from a door behind them. He looked over at Bashir with a bright smile. “Sup, Bashir?”
“I saw them drag his body from a car…”
“All in the name of theatrics,” York said. “We just needed to get some blood from you while you were under. Mason signed up to work with me weeks ago.” York paused, then said sincerely, “I’m investing in something great here, Bashir. We cracked the code.”
“We were friends,” Bashir said sadly. “You’re just going to stab me like that?”
“Calm down Julius Caesar!” York laughed. He looked at everyone. “The time has come for each of you to decide—do you want to keep living by the paycheck? Putting your life on the line for pennies on the dollar? Or do you want to work with me—to capitalize on your talents? To become millionaires?”
“You’re mad!” Bashir said.
York shrugged. “Let’s see who agrees.” He looked at the two dozen Paladins eyeing him with the same confusion as Bashir. “Paladins! Your future awaits. Those who stand by me—who want the luxury their powers deserve, then step forward.”
“And those that don’t?” Finn, one of the teenagers, said.
York smiled. “I’m not a monster—you’ll be free to go.”
Bashir rolled his eyes.
“So who is with me?”
It was quiet for a moment. Leith was the first to step over. Mira, his twin, looked at him, disgusted. “Come on, sis!”
She crossed her arms and didn’t move.
Riko caught Embry’s eyes grow sad as she watched Leith cross over. She knew that she was considering joining him and said, “Embry, no. You don’t want that.”
York smiled. “Let the girl choose.”
Embry looked at Riko, confused. She then looked to Leith, who pleaded, “He’s right—the agency will do nothing for us. We’re gifted and yet look at how we’re treated.”
She took a step back. “And how is that?”
“I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t mind one of York’s jets.”
“I thought I knew you,” Embry said, hurt. “You seemed different.”
Alex, one of the teens, was the next to cross over. He was ultimately joined by ten other Paladins. Hana looked at the scene and felt like a line had been divided between friends.
“So here we are,” Bashir said, looking at those who had crossed over.
“Here we are.” York smiled.
“Now what? We have the villain fight scene? Last one standing wins?”
York shook his head, “Of course not, Bashir. Like I said, I’m not a monster. We do it the civil way.” He looked past Bashir.
Bashir turned to catch his stare in time to see several guards had jo
ined them in the room. A bag went over his head and an electric shock went into his spine. All the other paladins were next.
“Get them out of here,” York said to Dallas.
Chapter Fifteen
A
s Bashir came to, he looked blurry eyed in front of him. He was in a cell with Frank and Finn. Across from him he saw Hana, Riko and Kenna. He slowly looked around and saw there were several more cells—each full with the other Paladins.
“Bravo, hero!” Riko said. “Bravo!”
Bashir looked at Hana, concerned. “Are you hurt?”
“We’re fine,” Hana said. “You really need to pick better friends.”
Bashir didn’t reply.
“Nearly a dozen Paladins in a room,” Riko noted, “and not one of us can use our abilities to escape?”
“They gave each of you a nerve agent when they shocked you,” Kenna explained. “Your powers will be gone for a few hours.”
“When did they develop that?” Hana asked.
“I developed it about three months ago,” Kenna said.
“I don’t suppose you developed something to undo it?” Bashir asked.
She nodded. “But good luck getting it.”
“So basically, if we want out of this mess, we have to be…human?” Voss, one of the teenagers, said.
“Afraid so.”
The door at the end of the hallway slowly cracked open. Mason appeared with a cocky grin on his face.
“Here to take us?” Bashir asked with a hint of disgust.
Mason’s grin disappeared as he explained, “I don’t have much time—they’re going to kill you. We’re going to kill you.”
“We’re?” Bashir questioned.
Mason held up the keys, then explained, “I swear to you that I didn’t know what York was doing. He said we were just taking blood samples—that it was all with your consent.” He paused. “I heard him with the other Paladins—he’s building an army. He’s going to use your powers to rule the Earth. He’s like the ultimate super-villain—he even had a creepy villain laugh!”