by Marc Mulero
Felik was my friend. Why did I hurt him? Why did I kill him? He was my friend.
Briggs knelt down, “How are you holding up?” he asked, being careful not to treat him like a little kid, considering he just murdered someone.
Milos' ears continued to ring. His small Cryos tattoo was shining through his shirt. He looked straight past Briggs and the others standing before him.
Cherris knelt down on the opposite side. “Milos,” she extended a loving hand, cupping his face, “everything is going to be alright,” she said with tears in her eyes.
Blague stared at Milos while everyone attempted to snap Milos out of his daze by offering kindness and support. Blague realized he was numb to compassion now. “Get up,” Blague said in a calm tone, with no room for question.
Briggs and Cherris looked back at him. Eugene's eyes opened a little wider and looked at Blague with his arms folded. Milos' ears stopped ringing for a moment and his attention focused on Blague.
“Good,” Blague said, “you're back.” He flung Milos' bloody knife to the wall next to him. “I believe that belongs to you,” Blague said as he then walked up to Milos and extended his hand. “Get up, Milos, we need you,” he said, penetrating through Milos' fog.
By now, most of the civilians residing in wagons throughout the mansion had heard some rumbling in the southwest corner of the main floor. Flashlights were scattered throughout. Some ventured near the incident, but a few fighters called in by Blague and Cherris were sent to reassure people that everything was under control.
“Did you hear any transmissions with Felik and the Hiezers?” Eugene asked. “Is that why you attacked him?” Eugene continued probing.
Milos stared blankly for a moment, then hesitantly nodded his head.
“What did he say?” Eugene asked, getting impatient.
“It didn't make much sense,” Milos said in a low, mellow voice. “He just kept saying a bunch of numbers, then the Hiezer he was speaking to said that Felik did good. I knew he was bad for sure when he gave this sign,” Milos said while he demonstrated the Hiezer symbol.
Blague looked at Briggs, whose eyes lit up. They both said “Coordinates” at the same time.
Cherris got up and turned around, covering her arms with a raggedy shawl, “They must be close. We're all in great danger, aren't we?” she said.
Everyone looked at Blague.
“We've been prepping for this. Everyone will know what to do,” Blague reassured.
“Can we please address the murder and reinforce that it will not be condoned?” Cherris asked.
Briggs looked to Milos. “What you did may have saved some lives and for that I'm thankful. But, there was another way. You could have gotten someone else and trapped him,” Briggs said in a sincere tone. “I know you've been through hell, but don't create unnecessary chaos because of it,” he continued.
Milos looked down. I killed him because he deserved to die.
Milos stiffened, “Commander, if I didn't act, he may have gotten away and caused more pain for others,” Milos said.
“You could have died!” Cherris jumped in.
“But I didn't,” Milos answered back, his expression changing to anger. “What if it was Kentin who was next on Felik's list? Would you still be upset with me?” Milos asked.
Briggs stood up in shock from the boy’s response.
At that moment, a fighter yelled from the top floor, “We're under attack! Through the back entrance!”
Eugene's jaw tensed.
“Eugene,” Blague said, his strategic plans rushing through his head, “rally up the commanders and start moving. Briggs, get Endok and extract the Ayelan now, then hide it! Cherris, get Milos and the kids to safety. It’s time to show the Hiezers that the Sins will not fold.”
Chapter 10
Lito leaned over the ledge of the roof, glued to a set of binoculars. He watched the ship unload Hiezer militants as it sat, anchored not too far offshore. “Puta, mierda,” Lito said as he slammed his hand on the ledge of the roof. Snipers were stationed to the left and right of him. “Hold ‘jur fire boys!” Lito exclaimed.
The Hiezers started to pour onto the shore via small boats as the sun was beginning to rise. Most of the Sins had already been working around the clock. A mix of exhaustion and adrenaline began to stir amongst the fighters.
Eugene ran up the marble steps leading to the roof. He flipped his rifle from the strap on his back. “Everyone is in position, but we have new intel that our safe coordinates may have been leaked to the Hiezers,” Eugene said.
Lito turned to Eugene slowly, in disbelief. “How?” Lito asked, “We were so careful every step of the way. How, Eugene? Another mole?” Eugene nodded his head. “Briggs screened everyone,” Lito replied.
“He screened everyone except for the kids,” Eugene said, giving Lito a quick glance.
“You've got to be shitting me,” Lito said, slamming the roof ledge again.
“I'll explain later. The enemy was one step ahead of us, thinking far outside the box.” Eugene took aim with the snipers stationed beside him. “There’s only one threat at the back entrance?” Eugene asked.
“So far, mijo,” Lito responded, focusing his attention back to the ship. Lito felt his heart drop into his stomach, his eyes involuntarily grew wide. “You were right, they're lining up against the rocks, where the boys were playing while we set up the explosives.”
The guards began forming a single line and advancing toward the mansion. Lito looked at Eugene and started laughing.
“Have you lost your mind?” Eugene asked while sighing.
“No no no no, none of that, amigo,” Lito said, still laughing. “The mole didn't catch what we did during the night shift last week it seems. Hahaha,” Lito continued his maniacal laughter. “Mira,” Lito pointed to the rocks, “Look with your scope between the rocks.”
Eugene looked for a moment and then smiled with him.
“’Ju ready to cause some chaos?” Lito asked, looking psychotic with a huge smile and one of his pupils dwarfing the other.
“You stuffed C-4 in the rocks just in case,” Eugene said.
Lito couldn't contain himself; it was a last minute idea. The soldiers relied on Felik’s instructions, confidently advancing since no bombs had yet been detonated.
“Hold ‘jur fire,” Lito said to everyone, “and duck, they probably have snipers getting into position too. As soon as the shore is swarming with them, we will begin detonating and cause them to break ranks.”
Blague radioed Lito, “I just checked the front breach point pathway. There seems to be no threat from that side. I'm now at the back entrance on the main floor with the fighters and snipers. Are you almost ready, Lito?” Blague asked.
“Si,” Lito responded, with his detonator in hand. The device had multiple buttons to set off the remote explosives in certain areas. “Here we go,” Lito said to himself. He peeked out to see a swarm of Hiezer soldiers quickly advancing in multiple rows, hugging the rocks. “Now, Eugene!” Lito hit a detonator at the same time Eugene swung his rifle over the roof ledge, taking aim.
His sniper subordinates followed his lead. Explosions burst out of the seemingly safe rock pathway, jolting the entire line of soldiers. Some were thrown into the air as others quickly spread out to avoid the explosions.
“Aim for the ship!” Lito screamed amongst the cries of agony caused by the bombs.
Eugene shifted slightly. He took a deep breath, keeping his red line black rifle steady. He fired, piercing the eye of a sniper who had his sight on one of his infantry. Eugene quickly ducked as he spotted two other Hiezer snipers within the boat. Lito peeked out to assess the damage with his binoculars. Eugene signaled for the other snipers to get down, but it was too late. One of them flew backward from the impact of a bullet that sliced through the side of his head.
“Fuck!” Eugene screamed, “Get down!”
He beckoned another sniper to crawl over to him. A large horn went off, coming from the sh
ip. The Hiezer soldiers were scattered throughout the beach as the battle ensued, running in fear of potential land mines throughout the area.
Lito Hissed. “Not yet, not yet,” he said quickly to himself. “The ranks should be storming any second.” Lito pulled out his device and radioed Blague, “Can you hold them?” he screamed. A blanket of sound comprised of gunfire and panic covered the battlefield.
“The fighters are holding them. They're piling up outside,” Blague responded.
Lito heard intense gunfire before the radio cut out.
“Fire two shots quickly at the ship from the furthest corner,” Eugene told the sniper as he pointed, “Go!”
The sniper hustled over, fearful of the chaos developing below him. Eugene watched carefully as the sniper got in position. Lito lit a stick of dynamite and carefully tossed it toward the soldiers, who were trying to take cover behind the rocks. The explosion set off a blaze of fire, blood, and rock that spewed in all directions. The sniper cadet flung his rifle over the ledge and fired two shots toward the ship and ducked back down. Eugene saw his opportunity, as he flung his rifle over the ledge, positioned right beside Lito. He took aim, catching a Hiezer sniper repositioning himself to aim at the corner ledge. Eugene fired, barely leaving his scope there long enough to see the bullet penetrate the soldier's eye, propelling him backward. Eugene quickly shifted his rifle, focusing on the second sniper who was aiming toward the same corner through a window of the ship. Eugene fired; the soldier's rifle tumbled out of the window as he used both hands to grab the wound on his neck. Eugene ducked down and took a breath. He looked over to the sniper who fired the decoy shots and gave him a nod. He was a skinny man in his mid-twenties with blonde, long hair on the top of his head, and shaved sides. He looked terrified even though this wasn't his first battle. The horn sounded again. The whole side panel of the ship facing the shore lifted upward as the ship began to tilt. Endless amounts of soldiers dove into the water to reach the shore.
Lesh, Sabin, Morn, Mars, and Volaina were scouting the breach point from the front entrance. The four of them were using this time to recuperate after their missions. They quickly ate the meals that Volaina brought to them. Lesh was the only one who seemed unaffected by her recent ordeal.
“If there aren’t any threats in the front entrance, then shift rotation. We're about to be overwhelmed,” Blague calmly said to Sabin via radio.
Sabin began equipping one of his metal gloves, keeping his pistol hand free to aid in long-range combat. Volaina quickly whipped her jet black motorcycle around and sped to the front entrance to help. The others sprinted behind her, fatigued, but no less dedicated.
As they entered the mansion, a fighter barricaded the enormous front door in an attempt to buy some extra time in the event they were to be stormed from the breach point. The main floor was decorated with carts, wagons, and supplies, all resting on the black marble floor and huddled near the front entrance. This set up was meant to keep the civilians safe from the battle erupting on shore. Morn was shocked to see so many Sins working together as a community. People were helping each other and providing comfort in such a chaotic time. He watched nurses and doctors wheel injured fighters to the dedicated medical rooms, as orders were shouted to maintain effective battle positions. It was quite a sight for any Sin who was not a part of Blague's original group. There was something unique about this community; they had a sense of hope. Sabin directed Mars to his room and headed toward the roof to catch up with Lito and Eugene. Lesh ran toward Briggs. He was sprinting with a vial in hand, while Endok struggled to keep up behind him.
“Stay with the civilians, Morn, and help protect them,” Lesh said.
“Alright,” Morn responded in his southern drawl, still trying to process all of the chaos around him.
“Lesh!” Briggs stopped for a second to put his free arm around her. “You've looked better!” he said with a smile.
Lesh smirked back, her lips still encrusted with blood from the beating Nemura had given her. “Is that the chemical?” Lesh asked.
“We finally extracted it. Now we just have to hide it,” Briggs replied as he picked up the pace.
At that moment, an explosion rattled the mansion. They both looked up for a moment, when they noticed the sound of helicopters flying closely above them.
“Shit,” Briggs said to Lesh and Endok, “the roof is being compromised.”
Briggs ran to the hole that Mulderan's hidden camera sprouted from and placed the vial there. Lesh ran behind Briggs with a limp.
“Ready to join Blague?” Briggs asked Lesh.
She nodded.
Sabin approached the staircase leading to the roof, when suddenly a group of snipers and fighters rushed in. “What the hell is going on?” Sabin stopped one of them forcefully to ask.
“The Hiezers just landed on the roof! They boxed in our fighters sniping shore side,” the Sin responded.
“Then why the fuck are you running inside?” Sabin raised his voice.
“Because Commander Lito just threw a bomb at the helico-”
An explosion rattled the staircase and a massive flame engulfed the corridor. Sabin released the fighter and ran toward the nearest window on the fourth floor. He opened the window and pulled himself out from the ledge. He had his string blade between his teeth and his half cloak was flapping in the wind behind him. He heard explosions close above and saw a portion of a burning helicopter directly above him.
I have to help the fighters get off that roof.
He took the blade out of his mouth and threw it with force toward the roof. The blade caught onto the ledge. Once he tugged it to test if it would hold, he began pulling himself upward. As he approached the top, wrapping the wiry rope around his arms as he leveraged himself, he heard screams and gunfire directly above him. When he reached the roof, Sabin grabbed onto the ledge with one hand and worked to dislodge his double-sided blade with the other. His attention was momentarily directed to a soldier who was thrown by the impact of a sniper’s bullet; the solider spun off the ledge of the roof with blood squirting out of his shoulder. Sabin turned his attention back to the blade as a scream echoed below him. Sabin put the blade back between his teeth and with both hands, gracefully boosted himself over the ledge. Time slowed as a chaotic canvas filled with blood and destruction was painted in front of him. He saw Lito hiding behind a large piece of helicopter scrap, with only his mohawk peeking through. He then saw Eugene and his black rifle stationed between two corpses. Only a few other Sin fighters remained on the roof. Most of the Hiezers were either dead or critically wounded from Lito's dynamite, but ten or so still remained. Sabin's moment of assessing the situation was over. He had an advantage, since all of the soldiers were facing the remaining Sins. Sabin threw his string blade under the body of an intact helicopter. The blade pierced the leg of a soldier who was shooting toward Eugene. The soldier let out a scream and dropped his gun. Sabin yanked the wire, sending the guard face first onto the floor. With his other hand, Sabin drew his long barrelled pistol and aimed it toward a soldier who was heading for the mini-gun equipped on one of the helicopters.
If he begins firing that, it's all over.
Sabin struggled to keep his arm steady with the guard writhing in pain, kicking his impaled leg and shaking the wire. Sabin paused for a second to aim as the soldier on the helicopter was about to fire. Sabin fired at the Hiezer, causing the soldier’s hand to almost burst. Blood splattered all over the mini-gun. Sabin fired again, this time hitting him in the stomach. The soldier fell off the step that hoisted the mini-gun. Sabin knew that bought him a few seconds. With great force, Sabin swung his hand back, painfully whipping his blade out of the soldier’s leg. The bloody blade retrieved back into Sabin's metal glove. Noticing that some of the guards had spotted him, Sabin took cover behind a piece of the burning helicopter. Fighters were slowly starting to come back out of the staircase, which led to the roof. They fired shots toward the Hiezers which further diverted their attention. Eu
gene aimed with the little vision he had between the two corpses and fired at a Hiezer, who was running to aid an injured soldier. The bullet pierced his chest and slammed him into the side of the helicopter. Two soldiers on the opposite side of the roof noticed Eugene's exposed sniper barrel and began firing. The corpses danced as the bullets from the automatic rifles penetrated them. Eugene groaned, feeling the sting from a bullet, radiating all the way down his arm. After hearing Eugene’s anguish, Lito became enraged; he plucked the pin from a grenade and bowled it over to the two soldiers. It rolled under one of the two, tearing his body apart from the shins up. The other soldier dove out of the way just in time.
“Sins, out!” Lito roared.
The fighters pooled back up the stairs. Sabin revealed himself and flung his blade downward, aimed at the guard that survived the grenade blast. He pierced him right in the neck and quickly retracted the string blade back to his hand. The incoming Sin fighters finished off the last few soldiers. Lito rushed over to Eugene and kicked the corpses off of him. It didn't look good, as blood covered Eugene from head to toe. He lied still in his sniper position. Sabin rushed over as well. They both stood there in shock, not knowing what to say about the bloodbath in front of them. Sabin and Lito exchanged looks, stunned. At that moment, Eugene's gun went off, scaring the shit out of the both of them.
“You didn't kill the one near the mini-gun,” Eugene said, turning his head to look up at Sabin.
Lito and Sabin smiled at the nice surprise. Sabin gave Eugene a joyful kick.
“Argh, you piece of shit, that's where the bullet grazed my arm!” Eugene screamed at Sabin.
Sabin backed up, “Whoops,” he said, still smiling.
Lito took hold of Eugene's other arm and hoisted him up. “We thought you were done,” Lito said, relieved, “All that blood from the muerta, we thought it was from you.”