by Ella Young
And with that, the levian hurried out of the blast zone.
-~-~-~-
The blast itself was deafening, but the sound of the screeching metal struts of the radio relay buckling under pressure was worse. As Ji watched, the entire metal contraption folded and collapsed, landing with a thunderous crash on the wall of the prison. Chunks of permacrete crumbled from where the wall had been struck. A cloud of dust rose from the entire mess.
Ji held her breath. From her vantage point behind the smelting building, she could see the guards in the compound staring, momentarily confused, at the twisted mass before them. Their training kicked in before long, and most of the guards turned towards what remained of the radio relay, leaving very few behind. In fact, the only ones that Ji could see were the ones outside of the armory.
"Now," Nero said quietly, and the group burst into the open, hugging the sides of the buildings. The guards at the armory were too distracted to notice the six beings barreling down on them until it was too late. One turned and opened his mouth to shout but was silenced when Nero plowed his fist into the man's jaw. He crumpled. At the same time, Knight went after the second guard, sweeping her leg across the ground and knocking him off his feet. He hit the ground with an oof, and she crawled on top of him. Knight grabbed his gun and brought the butt crashing down into his temple. He stilled.
Ayla and Eli brought down the last two before either could alert their comrades. Ji stepped over the bodies and pulled at the door; it easily slid open, admitting the group of six into the armory.
Ji had to pause at the threshold, taken aback by the sheer amount of weaponry held within the armory. There were guns of all shapes and sizes, grenades and detonators, photoshivs and metal daggers, all lining the walls. She knew it was a high-security prison, but this seemed like overkill. This was an armory for a military base, not a prison asteroid.
But there was no time to dwell on the implications of the weaponry. They had to move quickly. Who knew how long the fallen radio relay would distract the guards? Nero, Keith, and Eli armed themselves to the teeth. Ayla grabbed a gun, and Knight grabbed a pair of photoshivs. Ayla handed Ji a gun.
"I've never fired one before," Ji said, staring at the gun in her hands like one might look at a venomous snake.
"It's better than nothing," Ayla said. "Point and shoot, that's it."
Ji still felt unsure, but she held the gun close.
"We'll meet you behind the barracks in twenty," Nero said. Knight nodded. The men hurried back out the front door of the armory; the girls followed, but instead of heading out for the center of the prison they turned left towards the warden's office. The guards inside had obviously heard the blast from the radio tower and came out to investigate. One of them turned at exactly the wrong moment and caught sight of Ji, Ayla, and Knight headed his way. He had just enough time to shout before Ayla took aim and fired a shot directly into his chest. The second guard turned, weapon up, but Knight was close enough now to put her blades to use. She elbowed his gun out of the way and plunged a photoshiv into his neck. The man grunted and dropped.
They reached the door to the warden's office, only to find it locked. The fabric that Kanu had put there had fallen when the guards ran out.
"Hold on," Ji said, and rushed back to the dead levians. She patted them down, searching for their own key cards. She found one and returned to Knight and Ayla. One wave over the sensor and the door slid open.
They ran up a flight of stairs to a second door, and they could see the warden at her desk through a window in the door. This door needed no key card. Ayla shoved it open and Knight barreled in, reaching the warden before the levian had a chance to react. Knight held a blade to the levian's neck, glaring at her. The warden stared unflinchingly back. Ayla and Ji both trained their weapons on the warden's head.
"You're trying again? And so soon after your first failed attempt." The warden tsked. "I don't suppose this has anything to do with the girl we took?"
Knight's eyes flashed and she pressed the photoshiv against the warden's neck. "Where is she?"
"Somewhere impossible to reach," the warden taunted. "Even if you take the prison, you'll never find her."
"We know about the Rock," Ji said. The warden smiled a cold smile.
"The Rock is just a rumor."
"We've seen it."
Now there was a flicker of surprise in the warden's eye.
"And you're going to tell us where it is," Knight snarled.
"Am I now? If you’ve seen it, why do you need to ask me?"
Knight's eye twitched. With lightning fast speed she drew her second photoshiv and drove it into the warden's shoulder. The levian cried out. She looked at the blade, buried deep in her flesh, then up at Knight.
"You will get nowhere with this," she bit out through gritted teeth.
"Is that a challenge?" Knight purred, and pushed the blade deeper into the warden's skin. The warden gasped raggedly in pain and squirmed in her seat.
Ji shifted on her feet, uncomfortable. Armed uprisings were well and good. But torture? It felt wrong to stand there and let it go on. Was she really willing to lose her humanity to get to Toshi? Ji looked at Ayla; Ayla looked as unsure as her.
"There are a lot of places I can cut you before you bleed out," Knight said, leaning in close. "Tell me where to find Toshi or I'll use every last one."
The warden spit in Knight's face. Angrily, Knight pulled the second photoshiv out of the levian’s flesh and plunged it into her other shoulder.
"Tell us!" She leaned all her weight on the blade. The warden shuddered, her mouth open in a silent scream.
"Knight, that's enough!" Ayla snapped. Knight pulled back, but she still glared at the bloodied warden. "We can find the Rock without her. There's only so many places the entrance could be hiding."
"Fine," Knight said. She stood up straighter. "Then we have no more use for her."
Before Ayla or Ji could protest, Knight drew the first photoshiv across the warden's throat. She fell back in her chair, blood spilling from the gaping wound in her neck. She was dead in seconds.
Ji swallowed the bile that rose in her throat. She was no stranger to death, but this had been brutal. Graphic. It left her feeling ill.
Knight quickly patted down the body and found the warden's level five key card. "We got what we came for.”
Ayla nodded. "Let's go."
-~-~-~-
The muffled sound of an explosion could be heard from the mess hall. Ralot looked up; that had to have been the Remnant agent, knocking down the radio tower. It was time. The guards looked around, confused. Some spoke into comms, trying to ascertain just what was going on. It didn't take the disoriented guards long to realize that something was about to go down. One by one they straightened and raised their guns against the prisoners.
"The compound is on lock down," one commanded in a loud voice. "All prisoners are to report back to the dorms."
Non-Remnant prisoners rose but paused when the Remnant prisoners remained seated. Nearly three quarters of the prison population was Remnant. It was a significant number that refused to stand.
"All prisoners are to report back to the dorms!" the same guard barked again, voice angry. Sensing something was up, the non-Remnant prisoners, one by one, sank back into their seats. Their eyes darted around, looking for a clue as to what was going on.
"Move!" the guard snarled. The levian across from Ralot shifted uneasily, eyeing the guards with distrust.
"Steady," Ralot murmured. The first guard heard this and swung his gun around to aim it at Ralot. He walked over.
"Is this some kind of Remnant protest?" he demanded. "When I say move, you move."
Ralot didn't bother looking up. This only angered the guard further.
He slammed the butt of his gun into Ralot's chest, knocking Ralot off the bench. "I said move!"
Now. With lightning fast speed, Ralot lashed out with his foot, catching the guard in the knee. The guard grunted and collapsed. R
alot was on him in seconds, driving a fist into his temple. The guard went limp. At the same time, Ralot grabbed the guard's gun and dove behind the table. All around him, Remnant prisoners suddenly upended the mess hall tables, forming barricades. It only took a few moments for the guards to realize what was going on, but it was a few moments too late. Ralot had always been a good shot. He took out three guards in quick succession, and prisoners dove for the fallen guns. Now there was gunfire, crisscrossing in the air above their heads, as the guards realized they were headed towards another riot.
The position wasn't ideal, Ralot knew. They were cornered in the mess hall, and more guards were streaming in every moment. In minutes the prisoners would be overtaken. Ralot peeked out from his hiding spot and squeezed off two more shots. Only one met its mark. Nero was their only hope now, and Ralot had to ponder just how foolish he'd been to agree to this plan. Nero could just as easily wait for the guards to pick off the prisoners before jumping out with his militia. Ralot glanced to the side, catching sight of the humans on their side of the cafeteria. Was Nero the kind of man to sacrifice his own people for revenge?
There was a sudden shout and all at once the guards were turning their fire away from the prisoners, aiming their weapons outside the mess hall. Ralot let out a breath. It had to be the other humans, having successfully raided the armory. It was the guards who were now in trouble, sandwiched between two groups of armed prisoners. It didn't take long to pick them off. Mere minutes after it had begun, the shootout ended when the last of the first wave of guards fell. Ralot jumped out of his hiding spot, motioning his men with him. The non-Remnant prisoners were all making a run for it, streaming from the mess hall towards the landing pad, their only way off this stars-forsaken asteroid.
"We're not in the clear yet," Nero commented as Ralot jogged up to him. "We still have to get the energy shield down."
"That shouldn't be a problem."
"Can you take it from here?"
Ralot glanced back at his people and the Remnant prisoners, salvaging the dropped weapons from the bodies of the dead guards. "We'll be ready when they send the next wave."
"Good." Nero turned to leave, but Ralot stopped him.
"Nero."
Nero turned, one eyebrow raised. "Yes?"
"Good luck."
Nero's face remained impassive. He merely nodded and turned back to Keith and Eli. The three jogged away, out of sight. Ralot turned back to the Remnant prisoners, many now armed, and cocked his gun. The battle for Arryna had begun.
-~-~-~-
"What was that back there?" Ji asked when they left the warden's office. Knight looked at her.
"With the warden?"
"Yeah."
Knight shrugged. "We needed that information. She wasn't going to give it to us without a fight."
"But we didn't learn anything."
"Yes, because you stopped me. She would have caved eventually."
"Is that what the Remnant taught you?"
Knight barked a laugh. "The Remnant kept me on as a healer."
"Really." Ji replied flatly. She didn't believe it. Not after what she'd heard about Knight, about what she'd seen. Knight found this amusing and laughed again.
"When we get out of this, there's someone you really need to meet. I think you two would get along great."
Ayla shushed them just then. They were at the bottom of the stairs. Through the window in the door, they could see Arryna guards rushing from the twisted remains of the radio relay for the armory. There was only one reason someone would knock out the radios, and that was so no one could call for help. They realized they were in trouble.
Unfortunately, Knight, Ji, and Ayla were also in trouble. There were three of them and dozens of guards outside. The odds were not in their favor.
"They're going to run for the heart of the prison," Ayla predicted. "We just have to sit tight."
And sit tight they did. It felt like hours before the guards, many of them out of uniform, began to rush from the barracks to the mess hall. The muffled sound of gunfire reached the girls from the courtyard. Ji set her mouth in a thin line. She only hoped Ralot and the Remnant would be able to hold their own against the coming onslaught. There were two guards for every prisoner. It would be a long battle.
"It looks empty outside," Ayla noted. "Let's go."
Ji hesitantly pushed the door open, bringing her gun up in case a stray guard caught sight of them. She needn't have worried. The barracks were now deserted, save for the bodies of the dispatched guards. Together the three of them snaked around the back of the building to the smoking remains of the radio tower. Kanu met them there, looking antsy.
"I was beginning to worry you'd been caught," he admitted.
Knight shook her head. "We're all here. Nero, Keith, and Eli should be on their way back soon."
"We should start looking," Ji said. "Who knows if the people in the Rock have heard the commotion. They may have the compound on lockdown."
"I don't think finding it will be a problem," Kanu said, pointing to where the radio tower had fallen against the wall. At the edge of one of the gashes in the concrete, something flickered like a damaged screen. "It's the holo field."
In that same moment, Nero, Keith, and Eli rounded the barracks and came into view. They jogged up to the group.
"Ralot's got the guards distracted. He's working on getting the energy field around the landing platform down," Nero informed them.
"Good. We think we found the Rock," Ayla said, and pointed with her chin to the flickering holo field Kanu had mentioned. Nero frowned, took aim, and fired at the flickering field. An entire five-meter-long section of the wall sparked and then the holofield fell, revealing a large helite door buried in the wall.
The Rock.
Ji was the first to reach it, running her hands over the smooth surface. Knight was right behind her, holding the warden's key card in her hand.
"Is everyone ready?" she asked, glancing behind her. The group, unsure of what they would find behind the door, lifted their weapons and trained them on the entrance. With a deep breath, Knight swiped the key card in front of the sensor. The door slid open.
It admitted them into a sterile white environment. Before them stretched a long corridor, with yet another door at the end. Smaller hallways branched off of it. These hallways, Knight remembered, ended in the pod-like rooms they'd seen from the outside. At first it seemed that there was no one in the Rock. No one came running immediately. No alarms were sounded. But as the group stood there, taking in their surroundings, a levian priest in white scrubs crossed the corridor. He stared at them, they stared back, and then he darted back in the room he'd come from.
"Hey!" Knight called out and charged after him. Ji followed.
The levian attempted to shut the door to his pod, but Knight caught it with her elbow. With Ji's help, she forced it open. The rest of the group followed, and the levian priest found himself staring into the eyes of seven people, all with guns aimed straight at him. He immediately threw his hands up.
"We haven't done anything wrong," were his first words. They were poorly chosen. Ji looked at Knight, waiting for her to make the first move. Knight twirled a photoshiv in her hand and approached the priest.
"You are holding an aquarin here. Where is she?"
The levian frantically shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Knight raised one of the photoshivs, still stained with the warden's blood. The levian's eyes were drawn to it. He swallowed, fearful.
Ji still thought torture to be extremely distasteful. She found herself silently pleading with the priest to give Toshi up instead of forcing Knight's hand.
“Drop the act. You know where she is. You can tell me, or I can slowly cut you to pieces. Your choice," Knight hissed. The priest backed up until his back hit the wall. His eyes flicked from Knight to the humans and guard behind her.
"You can't reach her. It's too dangerous. Don't you know what we do here?"
Knight held up a hand and summoned a ball of blue light. The man looked even more terrified. "We can handle it. Where. Is. She."
"Our starless sickness ward," the man finally admitted, clearly seeing no way out. "At the end of the hall. Please don't hurt me." Ji's heart sank into her stomach. As Luminants, she and Knight would have no problem in the ward. They couldn't become infected. But Toshi was not a Luminant. Toshi was just as susceptible to the sickness as anyone else.
Knight was clearly thinking the same thing. She lowered her shiv and stepped aside, allowing the priest to pass. "Get out."
The priest didn't question her, scurrying out to the main entrance, passing Kanu and the rest as he did so.
"The ward is this way," Ayla said, stepping back to allow Knight and Ji through. They all rushed down the hall towards the large door at the end.
"We need to get inside," Ji said, already moving towards the door. Knight placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Wait. We can't have everyone else around for this."
She was right. Ji paused and turned to Ayla.
"We'll head outside," Ayla said, glancing back at Kanu, Nero, Keith, and Eli. They all nodded in agreement. A somber air had fallen over the group; it was clear they were all beginning to realize that Toshi might not walk out of here with them. The group of five turned and left the Rock. Ji waited until the door shut behind them before rushing to the starless sickness ward’s doors, searching for the keypad that would allow them egress. Knight joined her and found it quickly. She pulled out the warden’s keycard, and then paused.