by Ryan Casey
“You don’t have much time. You have one chance at this. Just one. Go. Go, now. And what happens, happens. But if you don’t go, if you don’t try, you know exactly what happens. Would you rather have that on your conscience than the alternative?”
Aoife felt sickness. Sickness, right within. She shook her head. “I don’t want to walk away.”
“You’re not walking away,” Kayleigh said. “You’re doing exactly what you need to do. What we all know needs to be done.”
She looked at Kayleigh.
Then at the wall of people beyond, barely any cracks in their chain.
She turned around to the metal doors of the power source.
So close.
So, so close.
“We’re with you,” Kayleigh said. “Me and Rex are with you. Every damned step of the way. We always have been. Even that night in the club two years ago when I was trying to hook you up with someone but secretly feeling jealous of him.”
Aoife laughed and cried. She laughed and cried as she looked down at Rex, wagging his tail despite the chaos unfolding all around him. She laughed and cried as Kayleigh cried too.
And then she looked her in the eye, knowing full well time was running out, and she forced herself to smile.
“Thank you,” Aoife said.
“For what?”
“For making me remember there is hope.”
She kissed her back, right on the lips.
Then she turned around.
Ran towards the metal doors of the power supply.
Landed against them with a slam as gunfire and shouting filled her surroundings.
Tried to yank them open, struggling to pull them apart, struggling to break them free.
“Come on,” she said. “Come on!”
She heard Rex barking behind. She heard the gunshots and the cries getting closer. She didn’t want to look back. She couldn’t look back.
She had to focus on herself.
On breaking these doors open.
On getting inside.
“Please,” she gasped. “Please.”
She yanked at the doors with the last of her strength, the last of her energy, and prepared herself to just fall to the ground.
But this time, the doors opened.
They opened, and she felt the warmth from inside.
Heard the hum of the power right before her.
She stared into that abyss. Like she was staring into the jaws of hell.
And she stepped inside.
She looked around. Just once.
The last thing she saw before she closed the doors was Kayleigh staring right back at her, smile on her tear-soaked face, Rex right by her side.
She forced a smile at her.
And then she slammed the doors shut.
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
Aoife turned around from the power source doors and looked ahead.
She knew exactly what she had to do now and where she needed to go.
It was dark in here. A hum to the air. The hum of electricity. Of power.
So inviting. So warm. The very thing she and so many people valued more than anything. The very thing that humanity had lost and the very thing that had sent society spiralling out of control completely.
Here. Right here.
The source of it.
The source of a new beginning.
And she was going to just destroy it?
It felt wrong.
And yet…
She remembered what Kayleigh said. What so many more people from Sanctuary said. It wasn’t electricity or power that was the most important thing. It was community and connection.
Because power, when it had fallen into the wrong hands, could be used as a tool. As a bargaining chip. As a way of one group ruling over another.
Yuri had made her believe it was Harvey who was doing that.
And it turned out it was the exact opposite.
She had to take away what he valued most before he could even begin enjoying it.
She stepped forwards, towards the ladder. Looked down into the darkness. Held her pistol tight in hand. She knew what she had to do. Where she needed to go. Down.
Follow the wires down.
Make it to the core.
And then she had to destroy this place.
She went to start climbing the ladders down when she heard a few bullets outside bang against the door.
She looked back. Heard the voices and the shouting getting closer. She had to be fast. She didn’t have all day. It wouldn’t be long before Yuri and his people were onto her through the door.
She didn’t have long at all, and she had to make the head start she had count.
She clambered down the ladder. Further and further into the darkness. The ladder stretched on longer than she remembered. And the darkness was intense, suffocating, like no darkness she’d ever experienced.
She should have brought a torch down with her.
But she couldn’t start worrying about what she had or hadn’t done.
She kept on climbing down the ladder, kept on going further and further into the darkness, getting further away from the shouting and the gunfire outside when finally, she reached the floor.
She stopped when she reached the bottom. Turned around into the dark. Looked right ahead. She knew it was up front. Knew where she needed to go.
She started to run when suddenly she heard a bang above.
She looked up. The muffled sounds outside suddenly became closer, more audible.
She looked up the void she’d just climbed down and saw the flicker of torchlight.
“Down the ladders!” someone shouted. “She’s down there!”
Fuck.
She ran. Ran as fast as she could, while behind her, she heard those boots clambering down the ladders. Heard the sound of heavy feet on metal, one after another.
She kept on running. It was all she could do. She couldn’t look back. She had to just keep going.
She ran and ran, and then she slammed into a wall.
She stopped. It was so dark she couldn’t see a thing. And she was forgetting whether it was a left or a right turn here. She couldn’t remember. Shit. Shit.
But she had to be fast.
Because suddenly, light illuminated the corridor.
She took a left and right on cue; bullets hit the wall right where she’d stood.
Fuck.
They were here, now.
They were here, and she’d committed to turning left.
In for a penny, in for a pound.
She ran down this corridor. Heard the boots echoing behind her. Saw a few glimmers of light. She started to worry that she’d taken a wrong turn. And if she had, she was screwed. She’d blown it. Completely blown it.
She kept on going anyway, knowing it was her only choice.
And suddenly, she hit a wall.
She froze. Her stomach sank. She’d made a wrong turn. She’d made a wrong turn, and they were going to be on to her. They were going to reach her, and they were going to kill her, and this would all be for nothing.
She went to turn around to look back when suddenly she felt something protruding from the wall.
Something that made her realise it wasn’t a wall at all.
It was a handle.
A door handle.
She turned the handle, and then nothing happened.
Nothing, and then: PASSWORD REQUIRED.
Shit. Password? She didn’t remember anything about a password.
Footsteps getting closer.
Light getting closer.
She tried the handle again.
Nothing.
And that robotic woman’s voice. “PASSWORD REQUIRED.”
She closed her eyes. Her stomach dropped. A password? She had no clue. Absolutely no clue. She should have known something like this would stand in her way. She should have seen this coming.
She lowered her head, closed her eyes, when suddenly a spark of inspiration came to mind.
“Ben and Ross,” she said. Harvey’s kids. Could it be?
She tried the handle.
Then she said those words again as the footsteps and the light got closer, closer.
“Ben and Ross,” she said. “Ross and Ben. Ben and Ross!”
She waited.
Nothing.
And then: “ACCESS GRANTED.”
The door clicked.
The handle lowered.
And then the door opened.
She stepped inside, slamming the door behind her.
Right ahead of her, she saw it.
It was small. Wires all worming out of it. Only about six feet high. Grey metal, with a slight illumination from above.
But there was no doubting what this was.
The power core.
She knew it was different. Electricity worked differently these days, according to the Order of Light. She didn’t know how it worked. She didn’t know how they’d managed to restore power in the first place, let alone activate something like this—using technology that was many, many years ahead of its time, apparently.
She just knew she had to destroy it.
Because electricity wasn’t where real power rested.
And in Yuri’s hands… he could become tyrannical.
He could become the most powerful man in the country.
She walked over to it.
Opened the door at the front of it, hands shaking.
Tore off chunks of metal protecting it.
And then she lifted her pistol.
Pointed it at it.
For a second, as she stood there, no sounds from outside anymore, she wondered if this was the right thing to do.
She wondered whether this was selfish. Whether she wasn’t really considering the future of humanity at all. But putting her and her people first.
But then she took a deep breath.
Shook her head.
She knew what she had to do.
She went to pull the trigger when suddenly, the door behind her clicked, and she heard footsteps.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” a voice said.
Aoife turned.
Yuri stood there.
A ton of his people by his side. Guns pointed at Aoife.
And in front of Yuri, gun to her head, Kayleigh.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
“It ends here, Aoife. Right here. Right now. Step away from the power source, or I’ll be forced to kill her. You don’t want that. None of us want that. Right?”
Aoife stood right by the power source. She still had her pistol pointed at it. Still had her finger tightly wrapped around the trigger. She knew she had the power to end all this right now. To bring down the power charging this place up. To end it, once and for all.
But at the same time, she knew that doing so would result in Kayleigh’s death. And it would result in her death, too.
She looked around at the torchlights surrounding her. The torchlights of Yuri’s people. She looked at each and every one of them, holding those rifles. And then at Kayleigh. Standing there with that pistol to her head. Staring right at Aoife. She didn’t look afraid. She didn’t look tearful. She looked… strangely calm.
“Come on,” Yuri said. “This has gone way too far. I should have known you’d be trouble. I should have known you’d find a way to get back at me. But let’s just say I didn’t account for the possibility you might actually survive that blast.”
Aoife shook her head. “You lied to me. You lied about everything.”
“Harvey was a ghastly monster of a man,” Yuri said. “But the fact he was who he was… really, it was just an added bonus. Because Sanctuary, as you call it, was always destined to fall into our hands eventually.”
“Who are you people?” Aoife asked.
Yuri shrugged. Smiled a little. The first time she’d seen that stony, stoic face break into something more narcissistic and psychopathic than ever before. “Who I am doesn’t matter. What matters is this place is ours now. And it will continue to be ours. And people will flock here. They will flock to us, and they will kneel before us, and we will protect them. And if they don’t… well. Every world needs some order, doesn’t it? And what better way to convince people to join our side than with electricity itself.”
Aoife shook her head. She had no idea what to say. Only that all her worst fears about Yuri abusing his power were proving correct.
“I’ve no doubt you’ll have a lot of questions,” Yuri said, standing there in the darkness. Pistol firmly pointed at Kayleigh. “And there’s only one way I’ll answer them. Step away from that power source right now. Lower your pistol and step away. Because you don’t want this. Destroying the power source? Really? The very thing you and your people have spent so long enjoying? The very thing so many people have worked so hard to build and install? The very hope of the future of mankind? Really?”
Aoife kept her pistol pointed right at that power source. “It was good when we had it,” she said. “Harvey… Harvey was a good man. And he wanted everyone to enjoy it. But now it’s fallen into your hands. And as long as it’s around, there’s a chance it might fall into the hands of people like yours.”
“And who are you to decide whose hands it’s allowed to fall into?” he asked. “Who are you to decide whether I am any better or worse a person to run a community?”
“It’s not just my decision,” Aoife said. “You’re right about that. But what you’ve done. What you’ve done to so many people of mine. Innocent people—”
“And you think you’ve done much better?” Yuri snapped. “You really think you’re all innocent? That we haven’t lost innocent people, too?”
“You’re a snake,” Aoife said. “You’re a snake, and you’re full of shit. Completely full of shit. This all started because of what you did to Harvey’s children. This all started because of your grudge. I know how strong revenge can be. But I know the difference between acting in vengeance and acting out of evil and spite. You’ve slaughtered people. You’ve slaughtered people, and you’ve got your entire community of followers to worship you as some kind of leader. Well, it’s over, Yuri. It’s over. I’ve dealt with enough psychopathic leaders to know when I’m dealing with another. It ends. If I have to destroy the power source to take away the very thing these people worship you for… if I have to destroy the only thing that gives you any kind of power over the rest of the country, well, the house of cards will soon come toppling down; let’s put it that way.”
Yuri stared at her. And for the first time, he looked genuinely concerned. Like he was worried.
He yanked Kayleigh closer. Pushed that pistol deep into her skull. “If you step away, and if you lower that pistol, I’ll let her live. And I’ll let you live too.”
“You expect me to believe that after everything? We’re as good as dead already.”
“I don’t expect you to believe me. But I give you my word. And it’s about the only thing I can give you right now.”
Aoife gritted her teeth. Looked at Kayleigh, right into her eyes.
“Think about it,” Yuri said. “Think about the millions of potential lives that this power could enrich. I’m not saying you’ll have the best life. I’m not saying I’ll give you a life of luxury. But you will be viewed kindly in history by our people for making this choice. For choosing not to shoot. So think about it. Very, very carefully.”
Aoife stood there. Hand shaking. She shook her head. Fear crept up. Anxiety taking hold.
She looked at Kayleigh. At Yuri. She looked at all these people with their torchlights shining at her. She wanted time. Time to think. Time to figure out what the fuck she was going to do.
“Put the pistol down,” Yuri said. “Put it down, and it ends. Put it down, and you live. Both of you live.”
She looked right at Kayleigh again. Right into her eyes. She didn’t want to watch her die. She didn’t want to watch her skull explode. She didn’t want to watch her fall to the floor.
Bu
t she saw the intensity with which Kayleigh stared right at her.
Saw the way she nodded.
And she knew exactly what she had to do.
She knew what Kayleigh would say.
She knew this was bigger than just the pair of them.
She knew this was for her community.
“There’s one thing more important than power,” Aoife said.
Yuri frowned. “And what’s that?”
Aoife lifted her pistol. “Connection.”
She pointed at the power source.
Held her breath.
Closed her eyes.
And she pulled the trigger.
END OF BOOK 6
Fight For Darkness, the seventh book in the Survive the Darkness series, is now available to pre-order on Amazon.
CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER
If you want to be notified when Ryan Casey’s next novel is released—and receive an exclusive post apocalyptic novel totally free—sign up for the author newsletter: ryancaseybooks.com/fanclub
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any reference to real locations is only for atmospheric effect, and in no way truly represents those locations.
Copyright © 2022 by Ryan Casey
Cover design by Miblart
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Published by Higher Bank Books