by L. J. Suarez
Reed took a step back, aimed the Glock at the terminal, and fired several shots at it until it exploded in millions of sparkling lights and smoke.
Chapter 40
Reed’s last words to Saavi before shooting the com terminal still lingered inside Mace’s head.
It shook him to his core, what was transpiring right before his very eyes. All he could do was watch Reed walk calmly away from the destroyed terminal, having just signed the Monads’ and their own death warrants. Ionne and the grid technicians stood frozen as they starred at the smoking terminal, the realization of their fate sinking in. Mace finally got the words he needed to say out. “You’re actually going through with this? You’re gonna let the bomb go off and kill us all?”
Reed said nothing as he stared at the warhead with the timer ticking down.
Mace forcefully grabbed Reed’s shoulder. “What about my father? And our people that are out there fighting for our cause? You’re going to decide their fates for them?”
Reed pulled his arm free from Mace’s grip. Bishop took a step forward with one hand on his M16.
Reed said, “We all knew the risks the moment we embarked on this mission.”
“It’s too far into the game for you to be having cold feet, Mace,” Bishop added.
“We were only supposed to use the bomb to scare them off the planet. We bluffed, and they just called it. It’s over.”
“It will be over…in forty minutes.” Reed turned to Mace with icy cold eyes. “They took everything from us, and they no longer have the means to make it right. Now they must be punished.”
“It doesn’t have to come to that,” a voice called out from behind them.
Mace whipped his head around and caught a glimpse of Ava and a Monad woman walking along the catwalk toward them. He was relieved to see Ava was alright, despite a few scratches across her face.
The Monad woman with Ava turned to Mace. Her soft, brown skin contrasted with her navy-blue jumpsuit. Her dark, layered bob hung just past her jawline. The glow from her NI gave the ends of her hair a golden sparkle. Mace thought she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and her eyes told him that he knew her from somewhere. “Hello, Mace. It is good to see you again.”
Mace studied her face until it finally dawned on him. A ghost from his own childhood he’d thought he’d never see again. “Kora?”
She gently nodded. “It has been a long time.”
“Yeah. You’ve gotten…taller since I’ve last seen you.”
“So have you,” she said.
The expression on Ava’s face was indefinable as she witnessed the two friends’ reunion.
Bishop scowled at the sight of Ava. “You’re proving to be a real pain in the ass.”
Ava ignored Bishop’s words as she turned her attention to Mace. “Mace, don’t listen to them. They’ve been behind everything that’s happened. It wasn’t the Monads who ambushed us at the border. It was Bishop. This was all part of their plan from the start to influence this whole uprising.”
Mace felt his veins burn with rage as he turned to Bishop. “It was you who attacked us?”
“I did what I had to. It was the only way for our people to finally wake up and take a stand against the Nads for everything they put us through. Come on, wake up. You hate them as much as we do.”
“You killed your own people at the border. Injured my father.” Every word Mace said was laced with hate.
“I wish it didn’t have to come to that, but some sacrifices had to be made. We needed to set things in motion to get to this point. This war was bound to happen at some point. We simply gave the proper nudge.”
“You’re a dead man,” Mace threatened.
Before Mace and Bishop could take another step, Reed spoke up. “Think about your next move before making any rash decisions. I lost my wife, and Bishop his mother. During the pandemic at old Lazarus twenty years ago that wiped out twelve thousand human lives. Or did you forget that little detail? You should understand why we’re doing this. It’s because of them that Sarah died.”
“Don’t you dare bring my mother into this,” Mace shot back.
Reed went on despite Mace’s warning. “Your father is just as guilty as the Monads for what’s happened to us.”
Mace’s lips trembled; he was at a loss for words as to what Reed meant until he continued. “We should never have left Empyreum in the first place. We should had stayed and made a stand against the Monads. Maybe even overthrown the Inner Council and taken back what’s ours. Instead, Aaron convinced everyone it was better to run away into exile like cowards and live a life of suffering. All alone in that godforsaken wasteland out there with no support. Many of our people died for nothing thanks to his infinite wisdom. I thought you could step up and take Aaron’s place by our side. Undo the wrongs he’s done.”
For some strange reason, Mace’s anger, which had burned inside like a raging fire, was now replaced with sympathy. He now felt pity toward Reed and Bishop. What he was seeing before him was a mirror of what he would become if he continued down this path. “I’m standing right where I need to be,” Mace finally said.
Reed let out a sad sigh. “You really disappoint me. I saw so much promise in you. But turns out you’re just as weak as your father.”
“Glad to disappoint.” Mace said. With that, he drew his M16, followed by Ava aiming a Glock at Reed and Bishop. But the father and son trio already had their weapons trained on them.
Ava chimed in, “It’s still not too late to stop this war you’ve caused. You can start by lowering your guns and deactivating that bomb over there. Destroying Empyreum will not bring back your wife or your mother. Look at what’s happening out there.” She pointed to a screen being projected on a nearby console, showing a live broadcast from the master feed. The image showed the chaos continuing to rage on as the human fighters rioted, waving their weapons and flags in the air while attacking any Monad citizen that got in their way as the Capital burned. “Look at the damage you’ve done.”
“All I see is our people rising up against our oppressors,” Reed said. “Revolution is a beautiful thing.”
Ava fired back, “If you allow the bomb to go off, you would be proving to the Monads that we are the monsters that they feared we’d be all along. And you won’t be just killing Monads, but humans, too. Think about it! We’re better than that. Please—put an end to this once and for all while you still can.”
“Really nice speech, my dear,” Reed said in a mocking tone. “But you and I both know I can’t do that. If we can’t bring back the ones we’ve lost, then what’s the damn point?” Reed turned to Bishop and placed a proud hand on his shoulder. “My son and I are prepared to die, and take as many Monads with us as we can.”
“You’re insane,” Mace said. “Deactivate the bomb now, before I reach over there and take that goddamn trigger from your dead fucking hands.”
“You won’t,” Bishop said. “You’ll be too busy cleaning the blood off your hands.” In quick succession, Bishop aimed to the side and held down the trigger as hundreds of rounds blasted from the barrel.
The thunderous sounds of gunfire resounded throughout the chamber. Mace watched as all the bullets spread across Kora’s chest, forcing her to collapse to the ground. Mace rushed to her side and gently cradled her body.
Ava opened fire at Bishop and Reed, but only hit a nearby pipe, as they had already turned the corner and disappeared onto the next catwalk.
Mace ripped opened the top portion of Kora’s bullet-riddled jumpsuit; several large stains of dark blood had formed throughout her wounded chest. “I got you.” Mace’s voice trembled as he held onto her. A trickle of blood slid down Kora’s open mouth. Her NI nanites were already doing their job, closing some of the wounds inflicted on her. “It’s alright. You’re gonna be alright. The NIs will heal that up for ya in no time.”
Mace felt Ionne standing over him. “Her heart has been pierced. The NIs cannot repair such an extensive injury.”
�
�She needs a doctor right now,” Mace said.
Kora tried to speak, but the words weren’t coming out.
“Don’t try to talk. Just hang in there. We’ll get you to a doctor right away.”
Kora opened her mouth again. “It is…too late for that.”
“Don’t talk like that. You’re gonna be fine.” Mace looked up at Ionne. “Get a doctor down here now!”
Kora placed her cold palm on Mace’s cheek. “I thought I would never see your face again. I am…glad you are here with me now.”
Mace held onto Kora’s hand as she lifted her face close to his, planting her blood-coated lips onto his. She struggled to turn her head toward Ava. “Take… Take care of…each other.”
A tear rolled down Ava’s face as she gave a nod to the Monad woman she had only known for a brief time.
Drawing her last breath, Kora left this plane of existence.
Mace closed her eyes and lowered his head as tears welled in his eyes.
“I am truly sorry Mace,” Ionne said.
After a moment, Mace rose to his feet and picked his M16 off the floor.
“What are you going to do?” Ionne asked.
“Go after Reed and Bishop and get that trigger back.”
“I’ll go with you,” Ava said.
“I need you to stay here and look after Ionne and Aaron in case anyone loyal to Reed comes charging in here.”
“You can’t do this alone.”
Mace reached for Ava’s hand and held onto it tightly. “Do you trust me?”
“Always.”
“Then stay with them. This is something I have to do alone.” He turned and marched down the catwalk to where Bishop and Reed were headed with the M16 in hand. Before he left, he caught a glimpse of the timer on the bomb.
There were only thirty minutes left before Empyreum was reduced to ashes.
Chapter 41
Thick steam lingered in the air as Mace moved steadily deeper into the central power grid.
The heat was nearly unbearable throughout this section of the grid; liters of sweat drenched his face and slid down his back. The combination of steam obscuring the path ahead, the orange light partially penetrating the steam, and the distant hum of machinery gave the chamber a chilling atmosphere straight out of an ancient horror film Mace had snuck behind his parents’ backs to watch as a child back in old Lazarus. It was the one where a crew on board a spaceship were being taken out one by one by an alien monster they had picked up on a distant planet, leaving only female crew member alive, who managed to eject the hideous beast out of an airlock. Mace couldn’t recall the name of the movie, but remembered it gave him nightmares for days.
He checked the last magazine of the M16 rifle. The cartridge was filled to the top with rounds.
Gotta make it count.
Snapping the magazine back into place, Mace aimed the rifle in every direction as he moved down the catwalk. Neither Reed nor Bishop were anywhere in sight, but he knew they couldn’t have gotten far.
A spray of bullets from an M16 collided with a pole inches from Mace’s face. He managed to duck behind the pole as another barrage of bullets came down on him, but not before one glanced off his shoulder. Mace let out a yell as he held his arm from the intense pain that burned into his flesh. With his back glued to the pole, he took inventory of the wound as blood poured out from it. The bullet had gone straight through. The gunfire had come from somewhere one level above him on an adjacent catwalk.
Though the ringing still blared in his ears, he could make out Bishop’s voice calling out from above. “You disappoint me, Mace. Thought you were quicker than that. Hope I didn’t hurt ya too bad.”
In a rush of anger, Mace twisted himself out of cover and fired off several shots while grinding his teeth in the direction he believed Bishop would be before returning to his cover. He wiped the sweat from his face using his blood-covered hand as he heard movement above, but couldn’t determine which direction it was coming from. The surrounding steam was preventing Mace from getting a clear shot, and there was no other way around except straight down the catwalk.
Taking a quick breath, he lunged forward, rolled on the catwalk, aimed, and fired blindly across the catwalk above. He checked to hear any other movement. Nothing. The good news was he wasn’t being shot at again, as he was clearly out in the open, giving Bishop an easy target. It could only mean one of two things—Bishop was dead, or he was out of bullets. Mace hoped for the first but feared it was the latter.
He proceeded carefully down the catwalk, rifle forward, his eyes fixed above. He heard the sound of metal clanking nearby; it felt close. Mace froze. His senses were heightened, concentrating on where the noise had come from. He continued forward when another metal clanking sound echoed in the air. Mace whipped his M16 toward the source of the sound when he felt someone kick him in the back. The force of the kick pushed him to the edge of a railing.
Mace immediately twisted around to see Bishop swinging his axe at him like a baseball bat. Mace aimed the M16 and got off a single shot before Bishop sliced the barrel with the axe. The bullet safely raced past Bishop’s head and bounced off a wall. Mace took several steps away from Bishop, who had his axe at the ready. He tossed the now unless M16 to the ground.
“You’re a traitor,” Bishop said. Every word oozed with hate. “You would take sides with them over your own kind?”
“I take my own side. Now tell Reed to come out and shut off the bomb.”
Bishop chuckled, gazing down at his axe as if he were about to perform surgery. He then twisted the axe several times with one hand. Mace attempted to reach for his bow and arrow, but Bishop already had closed the distance between them. He took another swing at Mace, who managed to hop farther back from the incoming attack. The blade missed his stomach by mere inches. Another swing, and this time it made contact, slicing across Mace’s chest. He let out another cry as he felt the heat from the fresh wound form on his chest.
Bishop swung his axe again with more ferocity, and this time Mace caught the axe’s handle before the blade reached his head. He kneed Bishop in the stomach, forcing him back.
Bishop quickly regained his posture and was more enraged than ever. “You know, I never wanted it to go down like this. We were friends. Hell, I almost considered you a brother. But now I’m gonna enjoy gutting you nice and slow.” With a loud warrior’s grunt, Bishop charged at Mace with his axe raised over his head.
Mace ducked his head as the axe swung above his head, gave Bishop another blow to his gut, then kicked the side of his leg to force him to drop to one knee. He jammed Bishop’s hand against the railing, forcing him to drop the axe and elbowed him directly in the face. As Mace grabbed him by the collar to raise him up, Bishop tackled him to the ground. He underestimated Bishop’s raw strength.
They rolled on the ground, bumping against the railings on either side of the catwalk while delivering punches to one another. As Bishop was pinned on his back, Mace hammered his face numerous times with his fist until he couldn’t feel his hand anymore. Bishop pushed Mace off him, and both men were on their feet at the same time. Bishop’s face was covered in blood, and a giant bruise was forming under his eye.
Exhausted from the confrontation, Mace made one more effort to swing his fist at Bishop, but was caught in midair. He found one of Bishop’s powerful hands wrapped tightly around his neck. Mace felt his life force being drained out of him.
Just as he was about to lose consciousness, Mace’s fingers managed to reach the hilt of his dagger tucked in his back pocket. He pulled the dagger and jammed it right through Bishop’s heart. His pearl-white eyes widened with a permanent look of shock as Bishop loosened his grip.
After Mace regained his breath, he brought Bishop’s face close to his and whispered, “That was for Kora and my father.” He pulled the dagger from Bishop’s chest, and he instantly dropped to the ground, never to rise again.
Mace grabbed Bishop’s axe and advanced farther down the catwalk.
* * *
After turning a corner, Mace found Reed at the end of the catwalk with his back to him. He didn’t seem to be trying to hide any longer.
Mace brought the axe forward, readying himself for whatever Reed would do next. “It’s over, Reed. There’s nowhere else to go.”
Reed didn’t respond; he continued to look out past the railing.
“Turn around!” Mace commanded.
After a moment, Reed did what he was told and turned to face Mace. He still clenched the Glock in one hand, but didn’t point it at Mace. A tear rolled down his face as he stared at his son’s axe that was now in Mace’s possession, knowing full well what it meant.
“You just don’t get what I was trying to do,” he said in a somber, low tone. “I believed in you, Mace. That you would do what was necessary to protect our people and get rid of the Monads who infested our world. After everything they’ve put us through. All the loved ones we’ve lost because of them.”
“I did hate the Monads as much as you and Bishop. For a long time, I wanted nothing more than to see them suffer for everything they did. But now for the first time, when I look at you I see what would happen if I let my hate to continue to take control over me. Over my soul.” A tear rolled down his cheek as his voice started to crack. “My mother…is dead, and killing everyone in this city ain’t gonna bring her back. It won’t bring back your wife. There’s nothing we can do about what we’ve lost. I’ve accepted that fact. Our people are still out there. They need your guidance, your wisdom. Don’t throw it all away because of vengeance. The Monads once believed we were a race of savages that should never have been brought back. If you go through with this, you would be proving them right.” Mace let the axe drop by his feet and moved an inch closer to Reed. “What do you say we go prove them wrong?”
A slight grin crossed Reed’s expressionless face. “You sound just like your dad. I see his words have finally gotten through to ya. He’d be proud if he were here to see you now.”