by Siegel, Alex
Marina's phone buzzed. She ducked down behind a steel beam and looked at the display. Ipo was calling.
She answered, "What?"
"Trouble, ma'am," he said. "The crowd burst through the police barricade. Thousands are running onto the bridge. As soon as they saw the light, nothing could stop them."
"Damn it!"
"You have to kill the angels quick!"
"OK," Marina said. "I will. Bye."
She looked around again, and her gaze settled on a box of grenades in the back of a truck. Detonating them would stop the illusion, but the explosion would also cause a massacre and bring down the police. The situation would spin completely out of control, and she would have little chance to capture prisoners or gather evidence.
She wasn't sure if she was even allowed to set off an explosion. She still didn't know if an enemy of God was behind this mess. The rules of the Society stated that she had to lay low, but if she did nothing, hundreds or maybe even thousands of innocents would jump off the bridge to their deaths. Her brain had no answer, so she decided to trust her heart.
Marina pulled a FN Five-seven out of her satchel, a handgun known for its extreme accuracy. She also took out a scope and screwed it on.
"You're going to set off the grenades?" Yang said.
Marina smiled at his quick insight. "That's right."
"I don't know if a bullet will do that."
"These have explosive tips." She made sure the scope was tight.
"Maybe I should take the shot, ma'am. I think I'm a better marksman than you. No offense."
"The enemy will hear the gunshot. If you don't set off the grenades with the first bullet, we'll be at the wrong end of a shooting gallery."
He looked down the hill. "I can do it."
Marina already saw bodies dropping off the bridge. They were diving through the angels and hitting the water at lethal velocity. The colorful clothing of the men and women reminded Marina of a rainbow. There was no time for debate.
She handed the gun to Yang. "One perfect shot."
He extended his arms and looked through the scope. His entire body relaxed.
"Feel God's rage," Marina whispered.
"I'm feeling it."
He squeezed the trigger. The gunshot was loud, but the resulting explosion was louder. The entire truck went off like a bomb, and obviously, it contained more munitions than just grenades.
The level of destruction impressed Marina. The men nearest the truck had been shredded, and those further away were merely dead. Some bodies had been tossed violently into the sea.
There were survivors though. The body of the truck had partially contained the explosion, and riot gear had provided protection. About a third of the Warriors staggered to their feet while others lay on the ground, moaning.
Marina realized she was committed now. If it turned out an enemy of God wasn't responsible, she would probably pay the ultimate price for her error. God and the legate didn't forgive commanders who played by their own rules. Marina had to hope her heart hadn't led her astray.
At least the angels were gone. The San Francisco Bay had returned to its original blue-green. People were still jumping off the bridge, but now that the "portal to Heaven" had vanished, she expected the suicides to trickle to a stop.
The surviving Warriors headed for buses parked on a dirt access road. They probably knew as well as Marina that the authorities would arrive shortly in large numbers. It was time to flee.
She called Hanley.
"Ma'am?" he said in a sleepy voice.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Gas..."
"Shake it off!" Marina said. "Drive your speedboat to the north end of the bridge and pick up me and Yang."
"Yes, ma'am." He sounded drunk.
"Hurry!"
"Yes, ma'am."
She put away her phone. She had to hope his training and natural willpower would allow him to overcome the gas.
The buses were leaving, and it seemed safe to step into the light.
Marina skidded down the hill, creating a small landslide in the process. "Come on! Let's grab some evidence while we can."
Yang followed her with the FN Five-seven in hand.
Not all the remaining Warriors were dead. Some badly injured ones hadn't made it to the buses, and as long as they were still alive, they could cause trouble. Marina pulled a Heckler & Koch MP7 out of her satchel and chambered a round. She fired short bursts at a few men who were reaching for their own guns.
Yang watched her back without needing to be told. He started picking off enemies, while she focused on gathering evidence.
Bloody corpses and destroyed equipment were strewn across the rocks. The bodies probably didn't have any identification, so she ignored them and looked in the vehicles instead.
She found one truck with computers on a rack, and she expected the hard drives were full of valuable data. She grabbed a screwdriver from a tool shelf, unscrewed a computer from the rack, and took it.
Marina heard approaching sirens. Damn it! I need more time!
She ran outside, and the roar of a speedboat made her look to the water. Hanley and Katie were coming to pick her up.
Marina saw flashing police lights coming up the access road.
"Come on!" she yelled at Yang. "It's time to go!"
They ran to the edge of the water. Hanley was at the wheel of the blue speedboat, and he was obviously having trouble with his focus. He bounced off the rocks with almost enough force to punch a hole in the hull.
Marina and Yang waded into the chilly surf up to their waists. After handing the computer to Katie, they pulled themselves into the boat.
Marina took the controls. "You'd better sit down."
Hanley sat heavily in the back of the boat.
She drove off with a high rooster tail in her wake. The speedboat had plenty of power, and she expected to need it. The Coast Guard was prowling the Bay and might come after her.
Marina thought about what had just happened. She had killed some bad guys, had saved some lives, and had collected a bit of evidence, but she still felt disappointment. The big questions were far from answered. She still had no idea who the Goddess was. The motivation behind the elaborate angel illusions was equally mysterious. There was more going on than just convincing people to jump off a bridge.
Marina drove towards San Francisco at full throttle.
* * *
Iris was grinning like she had won the lottery. She was certain she had just seen two members of the Gray Spear Society in action. They had moved and killed quicker than anybody Iris had ever seen.
She had taken a good, long look at the woman with green eyes and red hair in particular. Iris had memorized those eyes and had established a permanent lock. Now she could access them anytime she wanted. Whatever the woman saw, Iris could also see. Her enemy was an unwitting double-agent. It was just a matter of time until Olivia's location was revealed and the Society team was hopelessly compromised. Iris could destroy them at her convenience.
She looked out through the slot in the secret door of her hiding place. Police were flooding into the area where dozens of Warriors had just died. She didn't care much about the deaths. She had never expected the cult to survive the mission, and still having some men left was a bonus.
Iris settled back and closed her eyes. Her consciousness traveled to the woman with red hair. It was time to watch and learn the secret ways of the Gray Spear Society.
* * *
Marina was riding in the back of a van. Hanley was driving, and Ipo, Katie, and Yang were the other passengers.
They were listening to the latest news about the Golden Gate Bridge on the radio. At last count, six hundred fifty people had plunged to their deaths in the cold waters of the Bay. Another hundred or so had died in the stampede onto the bridge including several police officers. It had been a shitty day for a lot of people including Marina. She still felt terrible about killing Joshua Harp. She kept revisiting her decisio
ns and trying to imagine how she could've done a better job.
They were driving south on Interstate 280 towards headquarters. The mess around the bridge had ruined traffic all over the Bay Area. Even though it was the middle of the day, the highway was packed and cars were inching forward. Marina was too depressed to be frustrated by the slow pace.
The van suddenly filled with brilliant white light. She felt the warm, loving presence of the Lord as never before. God was right in her face, and it was no illusion made by lasers and gas. She winced, expecting to be chewed out for her poor performance.
Fly to Chicago immediately, the Lord commanded in a voice that went straight into her brain. The greatest battle of the Gray Spear Society will begin soon. You must be there! Meet the entire Society at the Rosemont Tower Hotel and prepare for war.
"But Lord," Marina said, "we're in the middle of..."
Go to the airport now! You have no time to spare.
The white light faded, and God was gone.
After a moment of stunned silence, Marina said, "Did everybody hear that?"
"Yes, ma'am," her legionnaires responded in voices filled with awe.
"The Rosemont Tower Hotel is the Chicago headquarters. The situation there must be a hundred times worse than I imagined. The whole Society in one place... incredible. Hanley, take the next exit. We're going to the airport."
"Shouldn't we go home and pack first, ma'am?" Katie said. "We're not exactly prepared for a road trip."
"I think God was pretty damn clear. We'll take whatever we got. Hanley, get off this highway! No time to spare!"
"Yes, ma'am," Hanley said.
Marina took out her phone. "I'd better call headquarters and tell the assistants we won't be home for dinner."
* * *
Iris opened her eyes. What she had just seen had left her stunned and gaping.
A white, unnatural light had filled the van. It was possible the Great Adversary had delivered a message to His minions. Unfortunately, Iris's ability was purely visual, so she hadn't heard any of the conversation. She could read lips, but the only words she had recognized were "road trip."
Iris felt rising panic. Her consciousness had to stay within thirty miles of her body, so if the members of the Society travelled too far, she would lose them. Her clever plan was in trouble.
She looked out from her hiding place. Police detectives, forensic technicians, and FBI agents were still examining the gruesome aftermath of the explosion. They would probably be at it for the rest of the day. The Warriors had left behind many bodies and tons of equipment.
Iris took her phone out of her pocket and called Laurence.
"Hello, ma'am," he answered. "Is everything OK?"
"It was until a moment ago," she said in a low voice. "There is a complication. I need you to get me out of here now, but the area is swarming with cops."
"What do you expect me to do?"
"Think of something! Use that keen mind I pay such a pretty penny for."
"Yes, ma'am," he said.
"Bye." Iris put away her phone.
She sent her consciousness back to the woman with green eyes. Maybe Iris could figure out where the Society was going on its road trip.
* * *
Marina led her team into the office of Soar Away Charters. The walls were a bland yellow, and the furniture was brown. Dust dulled the leaves of a fake palm tree in the corner. Posters showing jet aircraft provided a touch of color and style.
The tall man at the front desk had distinguished gray hair. He was wearing a pilot's uniform, but it lacked any official insignia.
"Can I help you?" he said.
Marina nodded. "We need to fly to Chicago immediately. It's urgent."
He gave her a funny look. "That's going to be a problem."
"Why?"
"Do you watch the news? The entire city is under strict quarantine. Cannibals are everywhere. The Army has locked down the whole region, and nobody is getting in or out for the foreseeable future."
"Oh." She furrowed her brow. "You can't sneak us in?"
"Only if you want to get shot down. The military isn't screwing around."
Marina realized she would be going into a war zone.
"OK," she said. "Forget Chicago. We'll go to Milwaukee."
"Sure. We have several fine aircraft to choose from..."
"The fastest."
The man raised his eyebrows. "That could be expensive, ma'am. We have a Gulfstream G650..."
"Sounds perfect," Marina said. "We'll pay now. Just tell us where to board."
"Uh."
She leaned towards him and glared. "Ring it up."
"Yes, ma'am." He swallowed.
* * *
The van parked in front of the executive terminal of the San Francisco International Airport. It was on the north side of the runway, far from the commercial airlines used by common folk. The terminal consisted of a single, large, square building which was mostly a hanger. Airplanes that couldn't fit in the hanger were parked off to the sides.
Marina and her four legionnaires got out. Ipo, Hanley, and Yang grabbed gray duffle bags out of the back of the van. The team had packed standard mission supplies before going to the Golden Gate Bridge, and bringing the bags to Chicago couldn't hurt. One big advantage of a charter flight was the ability to carry weapons. The computer Marina had grabbed was left in the van.
She followed the directions she had been given and quickly found the jet. It was a beautiful aircraft, as sleek as a fighter. The tips of the wings were bent vertically, and twin engines were mounted near the tail.
A staircase was already placed in front of the open hatch. The Spears clambered onboard and sat on soft, white seats. There was room for eight executives to travel in great comfort.
A pilot stepped out from the cockpit. "I heard you were in a hurry. Is everybody ready to go?"
"Yes!" Marina said. "Get this thing in the air. I'll give you a ten thousand dollar cash bonus if you can get us to Milwaukee in three hours."
"Yes, ma'am!"
* * *
Is that Laurence? Iris thought. Finally!
A police car parked directly in front of her hiding spot. Laurence stepped out wearing a police uniform instead of his usual black suit and cape. With his sparse, white hair and gaunt face, he didn't look much like a cop, but the disguise didn't have to work for long.
He came around and opened the passenger door. Iris checked to make sure none of the real cops or FBI agents were looking. She opened the door of her hiding spot, dashed across, and huddled down in the car. It felt good to move around after being stuck in one position for several hours.
Laurence ran to get back in the driver's seat. He pulled smoothly away and headed for the dirt access road. He had to skirt around the mess from the explosion, and some of the investigators made angry comments.
"Where did you get the car?" Iris said.
"I killed for it, ma'am. Same with the costume."
She nodded. "Well, the good news is I locked onto a member of the Gray Spear Society, a woman with green eyes. She might even be the commander here. From that perspective, the plan worked perfectly. The bad news is the enemy chartered a jet, and they're already out of my range."
"Why?" He glanced at her. "Where are they going?"
"They left after receiving some kind of message from the Great Adversary. I don't know where they went, but they used a place called Soar Away Charters. The company will know where the jet is going. That's our next stop."
"You actually saw the Great Adversary?"
"I saw a lot of white light," Iris said, "and there was a feeling... It's hard to describe, but I'm pretty sure it was Him. I wish I knew what He told the Society. It was probably very important. What's the status of the Warriors?"
"Forty-eight survived, although some are in bad shape. I found safe places for them to recuperate. Walfred is one of the survivors."
"As usual. That man is like a cockroach."
"Yes, ma'am,
" Laurence said, "and with the second team coming in, we'll have plenty of manpower. We just need the girl's location."
Iris clenched her jaw. The plan had been going so well.
Getting to Soar Away Charters took two long hours. They had started on the wrong side of the Golden Gate Bridge and couldn't get back across the direct way. Traffic elsewhere in the Bay Area was horrendous. It was ironic that the traffic jams were Iris's fault.
Laurence finally parked in front of a brown building in a generic industrial park. A red awning was the only dash of color. He and Iris ran into Soar Away Charters.
The bland décor didn't impress her, but she focused on the man behind the desk. His uniform was reminiscent of an airplane pilot without actually being one.
"A woman with red hair and green eyes was here a few hours ago," Iris said. "She chartered a jet."
The clerk nodded. "Yes. So?"
"Where did she go?"
"Our clients' destinations are confidential."
"Oh?" Iris drew a gun from under her jacket. "Let's see if we can change that policy."
It took some encouragement, but the clerk finally confessed the enemy had gone to Milwaukee. He produced paperwork to prove he wasn't lying. Once she was satisfied, she shot the man dead.
"Come on," she said. "We have to get to the airport fast."
Iris ran out the door, and Laurence followed.
* * *
Marina was staring out the window at a solid layer of clouds. She hadn't seen any sign of land for a while. A storm had swallowed up the world.
"Ma'am?" Ipo said.
She turned to him. He wore green cargo pants with plenty of pockets. A soft jacket with a hood covered a sweatshirt, and the word "49ERS" was printed across his chest. He had brown leather hiking boots. He hadn't had a chance to change after the Golden Gate Bridge assignment.
"Yes," Marina said.
"Maybe you should give us a briefing before we land. Tell us what to expect."
Katie, Hanley, and Yang immediately turned to her. The chairs on the jet could rotate in place.
"I don't know much more than you," Marina said. "Whatever is happening is probably because of the twins. The legate went to Chicago to personally protect them during the final days of the firewall project. It's a very big deal."