by Gavin Magson
With effort Ajax push himself out of the chair and rounded up a glass by the sink, pouring something close to clean water from the tap. He choked on the first mouthful in his haste, then took small sips that left a strange after-taste in his mouth. The tablet vibrated on the table, rattling as it scuttled across the surface. He returned to the chair, his jaw now free to move once more. He was finally ready to read Aiko's reply.
Shit, you had me worried. I hope you are all right, don't go rushing back out there if you are injured. I am sure that Rine would understand if you had to leave the slums for a while, or were laid up for a few days more at least. If you aren’t fit to fight I don’t want you taking the risk, don’t let your ego get the better of you.
Malik is now the largest producer of drugs in Sector Six. We don't have a current location for him, he dropped into obscurity weeks ago. A few unconfirmed rumours came in last week, no sightings in the meantime. If he is still manufacturing he would need a big warehouse or possibly a suitable building to fit his equipment in, which he probably would need to be working overtime in order to raise funds for his private forces. I'll send you anything I can find out about him. Rine would be very eager to see him dead, there would be little left in Six to oppose the mercenaries then. Stay safe, please – Aiko
No wonder why Miles was so interested in the man, it sounded like finding Malik would be a big pay day for everyone involved. Killing him could even end the fight in Sector Six, prematurely ending what was fast becoming a long, drawn out battle. He was sick of Six and the urban combat; perhaps Seven would prove to be a true battleground, instead of these pitched firefights.
As he zoomed out of the tablets map to study the layout of Seven Angelica came down the steps with a haggard Miles in tow. He ducked under the low beam and looked just as shocked as Angelica had several minutes ago.
“I have to admit I thought Angelica was playing a cruel joke on me, you've been gone so long I thought you were dead.” said Miles.
He pulled something out of his jacket and presented it to Ajax. Ajax looked down and was surprised to see the small black camera that had been clipped onto his jacket by Aiko.
“We tried tracking your signal and found this on a rooftop nearby. Whatever happened to you it's safe to say you did not go down without a fight. There was blood and bodies everywhere, that truck was still burning when Jerry was stabilised and we found half a building demolished. What happened to you?” asked Miles.
Ajax scooped up the last of his bowl, which stretch his shrunken stomach to its limits. Ajax leant back in the chair and started to tell his story to Miles. He did not leave any details out but made sure it was a quick rendition. Angelica stayed to hear the events and added her own sound effects, gasping when Ajax recollected the sight of his ruined leg and accepting his death when he ran out of ammunition. Miles handily supplied possibilities of what Rose used to mend Ajax's ruined leg, eliminating the need to come up with a convincing lie that avoided mention of his augment.
With his story finished Miles produced a small bottle from his trouser pocket and found a second glass, pouring the strong spirit into both. Ajax had expected nothing less from the man as they toasted his return. When Ajax asked about Jerry Miles' face turned sour.
“He is alive, but he hasn't had your fortune with his recovery. Angelica did a brilliant job with the wound, with Katherine’s help she saved the man’s arm, and his life. There wasn't even an infection and it's hardly a sterilised hospital in here. Jerry is just weakened by his recovery, we can't get him to eat much and he won't be any use to the squad for a while. How long do you think it'll be before you re-join us?”
“Hopefully soon, I haven't had a meal in four days so I am really lacking in energy. Give me time to build up some reserves and I'll be right back with you guys. I was planning on going for a sleep now, my back is killing me after being strapped to a table for so long.” Ajax said, declining the offered refill.
Miles watched as Ajax gathered up his tablet, the camera, and his rifle, before he headed up the cellar steps. Ajax did not pass anyone on his climb to the attic, which he was thankful for as he was moments from passing out with fatigue and had no enthusiasm to recollect his experience one more time. He barely had time to shut the door behind him and lay down before sleep claimed him.
Chapter 10
The knock on the door was light, almost too quiet to even wake him. Ajax finally stirred, giving in to the interruption. When his brain was finally up to speed he called out that the door was unlocked and pulled himself up to sit on the heavily worn mattress.
Katherine entered sheepishly, her movements slow as the floorboards squeaked under her weight. Her face visibly blanched at the sight of bloodied bandages wrapped around his thigh. She carried in a small tray, he couldn't see the contents from the floor but his hope was there would be more food.
“I thought you might need a change of dressing on that,” she motioned at the soiled bandages. “If you would prefer I can do it for you.”
“Thanks. I must admit I don’t relish the task and would rather someone else changed the bandage. How is Jerry doing?”
Her expression dropped when he mentioned the man. Katherine ignored the question as she moved over to attend his right leg and set down the tray with a rattle. The stench was putrid, he had ignored the bandage since awaking in Rose’s basement and was embarrassed as the woman started undressing his wound.
As the last layer came off Ajax tensed, ready for the worst scenario. From the smell he was expecting gangrene, not the vivid red scar on perfectly healed flesh. Four days? There was no way a wound that big could heal in such a short time; he was dumbfounded by the nano machines efficiency. As if to confirm the thought Katherine gently ran her soft fingers over the scar, disbelief mirrored on both their faces.
“This is not possible. There is nothing that could heal a wound this large so fast.” she said.
Katherine kept stroking the scar, Ajax did not stop her despite the slight stabs of pain as her fingers pressed over the newly healed flesh. He was doing his best to think of how to explain the situation.
“Let’s just keep this a secret between the two of us, I don't need any questions from the men right now.” said Ajax. He could not believe that the number of people who knew he kept an important secret was about to double in just a handful of days. At this rate only half of Konar would know by the spring, if he was lucky.
“I don't understand what is going on, but if this is important to you then I can respect your privacy; don’t worry, I can keep your secret safe. Do you want me to put the bandage on anyway, to keep up the image?”
“Great idea, just don't wrap it too thick please, it restricts my movements. It’s best that you don’t ask questions about this, trust me on that. Have you seen Miles or Rex yet today?”
“Not Rex, he normally sleeps in Jerry's room watching over him throughout the night. Miles said something about going out on a reconnaissance mission tonight but he is still in his room, as far as I am aware.”
When the bandage had been wrapped Katherine took away her medical tray and gave Ajax a shy smile as she left the room. He waited a few minutes for her to reach the bottom floor before dressing and heading downstairs for Miles' room. He considered a shower first to wash away four days of stale sweat, but he knew Miles might leave at any minute.
Ajax had almost forgotten which door was Miles’, thankfully the distinct smell of strong alcohol guided him to the correct room. Ajax straightened out his jacket and rapped his knuckles on the paint flaked door.
Miles was slow to open the door; several scrapes and bangs preceded him and had Ajax curious as to what the man could be doing inside his room. Nothing could be seen past him when an out of breath Miles opened the door.
“Ah, Ajax, just the man. How are you feeling today?”
“Better, I certainly have a little more energy for the rest. Katherine mentioned something about you going out tonight. What is the plan?”
�
��You had better come inside, Ajax.” said Miles, holding the door for him to enter.
He took the offered second chair and faked a relieved sigh as he sank into it. As he had descended the stairs Ajax realised that his pains and limp had faded completely since the morning. He knew that this rapid healing wouldn't be easy to hide if he could not keep up appearances.
“A bit of advice for you, Ajax; don't tell a woman anything you expect to be kept secret. They all gossip at the first opportunity, haven’t yet met one who doesn’t. Angelica swore to keep my plans to herself. I received a tip off about Malik’s location from an old buddy who has the means to intercept tablet signals. Seems using foot runners as messengers was not entirely fool proof. I presume you remember that druggie mentioning him back in the warehouse?”
“Of course I do. I was shot in the leg, not the head.”
“I know you weren’t, just checking that more important things hadn’t cropped up since. Malik is one of the biggest players in this sector, if we can locate his base of operations it's not only a big payoff for us but we could be out of Six in days, not months.”
“So where are we going to recon Malik?” asked Ajax, subconsciously kneading his right thigh.
“There is no we, I'm not taking you until I know you are fit for action. No, I will be going alone; I work better that way for stealth missions. His new base has supposedly been moved to a skyscraper on the sectors outskirts, close to the northern Sector Seven border. I'm going tonight, I have a better chance of making it under cover of darkness. It’ll take several hours to get there so you should expect me back around the morning. Though give me four days before you decide I am dead.”
They both chuckled at his awful joke, which Ajax half suspected was an attempt to mask his unease at going out to scout ahead with no backup. Ajax was no longer surprised by the man's drinking problem as Miles produced yet another bottle from under his beds pillow, amber liquid sloshing from side to side. The glasses didn't appear clean but for the purposes they would suffice, Ajax didn't feel the need to point this out to the drunkard.
Today's drink was smoother than he had become used to from Miles' seemingly bottomless personal supplies. He enjoyed the warming sensation as he sipped the drink, with no sharp aftertaste accompanying this batch. Ajax watched with a combination of awe and fear as Miles powered through his generous serving and pretended to not notice the unsteady hand that held his glass.
“How far is it to the border?” asked Ajax.
“About five hours, give or take, although the skyscrapers aren’t directly on the border. It depends on how much resistance I encounter along the way, and how easy it is to navigate through the streets, as to how long it’ll take me to get there.
“Have you been checking the territory overlay on your tablets map? The other teams have been working hard, no thanks to our efforts; we are currently the furthest back. At least that means I should have an easy run for half the distance, then the search for Malik can get under way.”
“What does Rex think about your plan?”
“He doesn't know. I don't want him to worry about my life as well as Jerry's. He hasn't left the man's side since we returned, just stays there talking to him about old times. Do me a favour and don't mention it to him before I return. If I don't, feel free to avenge me. Did I ever tell you how I met them?”
Accepting his refill Ajax tried to remember the last time he had sat in this room. It had seemed far more minimalist then, several new additions had since appeared to crowd the large room. “You need not worry, I would bring the world crashing down upon them if you were to die. Malik and his employees would suffer my wrath and see their world’s crumble around them. I don't believe you have mentioned how the squad came together, I only know a little about Rex and Jerry’s past.”
“Yeah, those two are hardly the most talkative people in the world; don’t be offended that they haven’t told you their entire life stories. Even I don’t know that. Let’s see, how best to tell the story?
“It was five years ago now, or perhaps six, either way awhile back. I was new to the city, only just landed from Rigaan, if I remember rightly. Konar had a lot of job prospects for people like myself and I was eager to take advantage of them. The man who employed me, can't remember his name now, he owned an apartment block in Sector Five. Nothing on the scale of the skyscrapers in the slums, though the building was impressive nonetheless.
“He set me up with a room to live out of, gave me a few easy missions and business was going well. Money rolled in, I had my own tab at the local brothel and all the drink I could stomach. I had just got back from off world, coincidentally my boss had sent me to Rigaan, I think it was to kill someone who had stolen something of value from him. The mission was a success, thanks to my local knowledge and contacts I didn't even get so much as a scratch.
“Turns out the target had some important family who were not pleased with their brother being killed and they took out a contract of their own on me. I wasn't even back in Konar for a day before I was jumped in the apartment building, dragged kicking and screaming into my own room and tied to my bed, naked as the day I was born. These five guys, ugliest bastards I have ever had the misfortune to see, they started pulling out their knives whilst telling me they were going to dice me up for killing the brother.
“I honestly thought that was it, just like you back in the alley; I accepted my death as an unstoppable inevitability. It’s said that when you are about to die your whole life flashes before your eyes, which I personally think is bullshit, but I did experience something close to it. Every person I ever killed, every pair of eyes that faded by my hands ran through my mind; I saw them all. That was probably why I was so ready to accept my death, knowing just how many lives I had taken.
“That was when Rex burst through the front door, raining bullets like a demon possessed. Blood and flesh exploded in that brief second and the room fast became a charnel house. Jerry slid past Rex with his gun bucking in his hands, I thought that heavy artillery had rolled in. It was the single craziest thing I have ever seen and the image will stay with me forever. It turned out my boss hired several men and most were staying on my floor, I was none the wiser. Rex had seen me get jumped and they hatched that plan on the spot, which wasn’t really a plan at all. When Jerry untied me he said the only reason he or Rex were still alive is because they worked as part of a team; from that day on we worked as a trio, so far none of us have died.”
Ajax had lost count, Miles was at least on his fourth drink by now. He truly looked hurt, lost in thought, undoubtedly about his injured friend that could even be dying in his own bed. Miles knew that he should be there for him, doing the same as Rex and helping to watch over and care for man; he just could not bring himself to witness Jerry waste away before his eyes.
“You don't have to go out there tonight, Malik can wait. It is dangerous to go alone, that story is only a testament to my words, not to mention the redesign of my leg.” Ajax patted the bandages lightly. “There is nothing to be proved by risking yourself for a few credits; let someone else take the bastard out.”
“It's not about the money any more, it is about getting even. These scum druggies need to be taught a lesson; no one fucks with my men and gets away with it, and I include you in that. You did a noble thing that day, risking your own life for one of my, I mean our own. I know that you will make a fine leader of men one day, should you choose to do so; it takes a lot to risk your life for a comrade. Don't try and stop me, I need to do this.”
Ajax looked into the unfocussed eyes, saw the desperation staring back at him. If there was something other than revenge motivating Miles he was keeping that close to his chest, yet Ajax was loath to question the man any further.
“Obviously your mind is already made up; I won't waste my time in trying to stop you. I would ask if there is any way I can help you, though. Just don't do anything stupid like taking on a small army single handed; three injured men will make our mission imposs
ible. How long until you leave?”
Miles pulled out a copper coloured watch from inside his jacket, something Ajax had never seen before. Words, almost faded with age, were inscribed on its back plate but illegible to him.
“A couple more hours yet, it is only early afternoon. Yes, two hours and it will be starting to get dark outside. By the time I reach the end of our safe zone it should be pitch black. I just hope I can get everything done I aim to achieve before dawn. I’ve got everything I need right here, but thank you for offering your help.”
“Don't get caught out, be thorough and swift tonight. If you feel yourself getting penned in at all do your best to secure your position and message me with your location straight away; I might be injured but I could still get there in a few hours, if needs be. Don't leave without saying goodbye, I would not want to miss the opportunity to lecture you some more. I'm going to source out some food for now, thanks for the drink.” said Ajax, handing back the glass.
They shook hands and Ajax limped dramatically out of the room, only resuming his normal walk when the door closed behind him. He descended the stairs to the ground floor, almost shocked by the sight of Angelica keeping watch in her chair. He had half a mind to offer her a place in the squad, he couldn't even hear her breathing whilst he entered the room. They exchanged a polite nod and his limp returned.
Inside the kitchen Katherine was reading a book, its cover battered with age and the spine so creased only one thick line ran up its aged surface as they all pooled together.
“Hello, Katherine, I was wondering if there is any breakfast still going?” he asked, craning his neck to try and make out the books title.