"A felony punishable by death?" Isidore asks. "You're delusional."
"No, I'm serious. They're the Android Laws, all written because of you."
Clara sighs. "He's right."
"What?"
"Guess I'm a criminal now." Clara says with a smile.
Blice squints and leans forward as he points at something up in the sky. "Do you see that?"
Isidore spots eight tiny lights and something that looks like parachutes falling in the darkness back towards Rubble City. "Are those paratroopers?"
"I hear gunfire." Clara says.
"Huh. We'll go check it out tomorrow, Niko."
22
"Get down!" Byron calls out as he dives behind the armored transport to avoid the blast of a hand grenade. The shrapnel and sand fly past, shattering the glass and denting the sides of the transport. Someone's hot blood splatters on his arms, but he ignores it and loads his sawed-off shotgun again. The other Rubble Rebels are shouting and shooting their machine guns while their attackers in all black lob grenades over the makeshift barricade they built out of ransacked debris and vehicle parts. He drops down and sends a blast of flames under the transport where it engulfs a couple of the enemy soldiers.
"Fall back! Incoming from the sky." Commander Alexi shouts as he runs past and motions for Byron.
From the sky? He looks up into the darkening evening sky where a plane passes overhead low and slow. Eight paratroopers parachute down into the sand, pelting the Rubble Rebels with bullets as they descend. Who are these people and why do they want to pick a fight with a group of Rubble Rebels in the middle of nowhere?
The other rebels run past as the smell of burning flesh fills the air. Retreating isn't something Byron has ever done. He didn't retreat when Meygan and Aleesha were killed by the Inquisition. He didn't retreat when he slaughtered that group of thieves to get their cans of food for his younger siblings. He didn't retreat when he was cornered by those slavers when he was sixteen. What's a few mysterious soldiers with machine guns? Nothing to be afraid of. Not for Byron Erikson.
Reaching into the transport, he finds what he needs to end this little skirmish the right way: tequila. He opens the bottle as the bullets hit the ground, sending sand flying up around him. He tears the hem of his shirt with his teeth and stuffs the scrap of fabric into the bottle. After lighting it on fire, he tosses it into the formation of soldiers. He stands and peers over the hood of the transport. He wants to see this one. Behind their rudimentary conglomeration of twisted scrap metal and battered wood planks, the screams and cries for mercy rise above the flames. The bright orange glow spreads out over the parched ground and Byron almost tears up with the beauty of it all.
Byron holds up his gun and walks into the inferno as the flames blaze around him and begin to die down. He's looking for any clue as to where these guys were from.
One man with his body charred and falling apart from the waist down is trying to crawl away, leaving a bloody streak behind him. Byron shoots once and the pitiful man stops moving. No reason to let him suffer.
Something moves just outside the blackened ground. He turns to see a soldier holding his arm and the man freezes as he looks into Byron's eyes.
Byron points at him. "You there."
"Oh God. Don't kill me, man." The man takes a step backwards.
"Who sent you out here?"
"Leblanc."
Who? "Leblanc? Who the hell is Leblanc?"
"The Prime Minister of Common Ground." The man says.
"Common Ground? You aren't from Common Ground. Common Ground is our ally."
"I don't know what to tell you. I don't know. I just follow orders."
Byron points his gun at the soldier. "Then follow these orders. Go back to your Leblanc and tell him that the Rubble Rebels are out for his blood. We will torch Common Ground and start a goddamn war if we have to. We will get our revenge. Now go before I torch your ass as well."
The soldier runs off and Commander Alexi steps up beside Byron. "Nice work, Erikson."
"It's what I do."
"Where's Montgomery?"
"Spending time with his partner." Byron says as they walk back to the transports and remaining Rubble Rebels who are already tending to the wounded.
"Good. We can't lose anyone else."
"How many did we lose today?"
"Thirteen." Alexi says.
"Damn."
"We lost over two hundred yesterday up near the border."
"Two hundred?"
Alexi smoothes his dirty blonde hair. "One of them was my son. Took a bullet through his eye. He died instantly."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"He knew what he was getting into. He volunteered and all he wanted to do was make me proud. He did. He made me the proudest father ever."
"How long? How long are we going to keep this up?" Byron asks.
"As long as we have to. Someone has to defend the defenseless."
A group of men in all black storms out from behind some ruined buildings. "Halt."
The Rubble Rebels hold up their hands when faced with AK-47s, obviously caught off guard.
Alexi steps forward. "What is the meaning of this?"
A tall man in a tan inquisitor trench coat pushes through the crowd and bows in front of Commander Alexi. "Greetings, Alexi Nabokov."
"Do I know you?"
"Hand over Byron Erikson and everyone else is free to go. If you refuse or put up any resistance, my men will kill everyone here. Choose wisely, Nabokov."
"I go by Alexi and only Alexi."
"Fine by me. I'm just here for Erikson. He's needed for a very important mission."
Alexi looks at Byron. "Do you know this guy?"
Byron studies what he can see of the man's face. That accent . . . he's heard it somewhere before, but he can't place it. He can't put the others at risk. If going with this man will save the other rebels, he will do it. "I'll come with you."
"Byron, are you sure?"
Byron doesn't have another choice. "Get the wounded taken care of then get back to Rubble City as soon as you can."
"Be safe." Alexi says.
Two of the men in black take Byron's arms and lead him to a van behind one of the buildings and force him into the front seat.
The tall man sits inside and starts driving out into the wasteland. He takes his sunglasses off.
"What do you want?" Byron asks.
"I am Kazimir Dark."
It's him. That's where he knows that accent from. "You bastard. I should have killed you when I had the chance on that space station."
"Give me one reason why you think you should kill me."
"You tried to kill Isidore." Byron says.
"Ah. So you care about him?"
"He's my friend."
Kazimir laughs. "Good. Then you'll want to work with me. I have so many plans for our dearest little Isidore Williams. That's what I need you for and Damien. Ever been to Styx?"
"No and from what I've heard of the place, I never want to."
The van stops and Kazimir gets out. Byron follows suit and looks up as five of the most annoying and temperamental people he has ever known wave at him from next to a transport big enough for all of them. This might very well be the worst day of Byron's life. So this is what hell is like. There's a crazy computer android priest, a domineering traitorous glory seeker, an egotistical ex-inquisitor with purple eyes, a hardened yet wise man in a wheelchair, and a woman that Byron is immediately and embarrassingly attracted to with her arm around the crazy computer android. Let the nightmares begin.
Kazimir pats Byron's back. "Well, go with them. Have fun."
"Do I have to?" Byron asks.
"Have something against your buddies?"
"They aren't my buddies."
"Then at least go so you can protect Isidore."
"Is that my part in all of this? I'm always here to guard people."
"Get used to it. You're a great fighter and big enough to scare others
away. Isidore needs you to be his body guard from now on. Go." Kazimir waves at the group of misfits then gets back in the van and speeds off, leaving Byron rubbing his face, trying to get the headache to go away.
Body guard? Why does Isidore need a body guard? As he thinks it, he knows the answer. Everyone wants to kill that kid. Fine. He'll go pretend to be a part of this entourage. Maybe Byron is a masochist. He walks up to them. "What's up?"
"We're going to Styx." Blice says as he hands Byron a backpack. "Damien packed you some clothes."
"Um, thanks. What happened to your eye?"
Blice sighs and puts his red sunglasses on. "Ask our friendly not so innocent computer friend."
Isidore frowns and pulls Blice away from the driver's seat. "I'm driving."
After a moment of hesitation and what Byron can only call a staring contest, Blice gives up and Isidore takes the keys from him.
"Can you drive all right with your legs the way they are?" Clara asks.
Isidore starts the engine. "Don't worry about it. It's doing better today."
"What happened to his legs?"
"Dark matter." Blice says. "We had a fight. Drop it."
Damien and Byron look at each other. Damien speaks up. "He'll lose his legs."
Everyone is silent and they all look at Isidore who tries to hide his face from them. "Just get in and stop talking. I'm not dealing with this today."
What's wrong with him? "Isidore?"
"What part of get in and shut up do you people not understand? We have a long way to go and I don't want to hear fighting all the way. I've had enough fighting lately."
Clara rubs his shoulder from the seat next to him. "Don't get angry. We're here for you."
"I get so pissed off at the yelling and bickering over nothing." Isidore punches the dashboard. "And then everyone decides that they want to start caring about me now. Where was your concern and empathy when I was struggling? Where were you when I was begging for help and you stayed quiet? Tell me that."
They get in and close the doors without another word.
Isidore starts driving. "Not you, Clara. You've always been there for me."
Her voice is cautious and soft. "Why are you getting so angry? You're never like this."
"I just have a lot on my mind today."
Blice takes out a map and hands it to Isidore. "Niko, here's how to get there."
"I know how to get there, Blice. I have GPS remember?"
"Oh. Yah, that's right."
"What are we going after, anyway?"
"You probably don't remember, but there were a lot of computers and data storage devices down there. At least one supercomputer was among the destroyed technology in that mine. If we can get down there again and find something for you or W.A.N.D., then we will be doing well."
Seth flips through a tiny black notebook. "Well, sorry I brought all of you on this little excursion without telling you the facts first. I'm glad Damien and I were able to hunt you down and orchestrate this terrible plan. God knows Styx is the last place I ever want to return to, but we need more information after Kazimir butchered the T.I.M.E.s."
"He's on our side, you know?" Damien asks.
"Poor Montgomery. You're so naive."
"So this was Kazimir's idea?"
"Yes. One of those computers is his. He thinks there is still some salvageable information that will help defend Paradise and allow Isidore to be upgraded for his ultimate purpose."
Isidore looks at them from the rearview mirror. "My ultimate purpose? What's my ultimate purpose and why don't I know what that is?"
"You'll find out soon enough." Blice says. "Besides, it will take a long time to explain it all."
"We have a three day trip. I think that's plenty of time."
"You're not ready to know. I will tell you when I think you're ready."
"You know anything, Clara?"
She looks out the window and rests her chin on her arms.
"You're not telling me either, are you?"
"Sometimes it's better if you don't know things." Clara mumbles.
* * *
Three days of Seth and Damien whispering and being too close for just friends in the back seat, Isidore's crazy driving, Byron's constant tequila drinking, and Clara's intoxicating scent have driven Blice to edge of sanity. Especially Clara. The longer he is around her, the more he needs her and he needs all of her, every inch, every tiny laugh, every perfect hair that she keeps pinned on the top of her head. The only thing keeping him from losing it are his pills.
He's almost out. If he doesn't get away from these people soon, he will snap and lose his temper. He'll wind up doing something he doesn't mean to do then everyone will label him as an abusive slave driver again. That's the last thing he wants. In order to ease up on his frequency of taking pills, he has been stealing some of Byron's tequila when he's asleep. That only makes the side effects of his pills that much worse, though.
Then there's what Byron told them. Why would Common Ground attack the Rubble Rebels? What is going on in Paradise for his father to let something like this happen? Damien and Seth made some calls earlier, so the Outlander Force probably has this under control, but still . . . it's disheartening. So much for his plan of going up there. War is looming now and every day that goes by proves that the tensions are escalating. If Blice was still in Paradise, he could do something about all of this. But now, he's powerless. He will just have to let things happen and react accordingly with what little ability he has left. He has to stay strong for Isidore.
Isidore stopped being so moody and even slept in Blice's arms last night after he had a nightmare. It's weird now that he thinks about it. Why didn't he go to Clara for comfort? No. Instead, he came to Blice asking to be held. Strange. Seems like he's not losing his friend after all. And truth be told, he likes it when Isidore comes to him in the middle of the night so he can take care of him and make him feel better. Not having friends or siblings around him when he was growing up, Blice views Isidore as the little brother he never got to have. If Blice could go back in time and erase all of the pain and the horrible memories that haunt him to this day, he would in a heartbeat.
Blice prayed. He hasn't prayed in years, but last night, he prayed. There has to be something in those computers that will save Isidore from his dark fate. It's not right and it's not okay. But it's what he was ultimately created for. There has to be another way to make W.A.N.D. work that doesn't take the life of Blice's best friend. Kazimir had some ideas about it years ago, but who knows if those will actually still work?
Kazimir is insane. They've never liked each other, but they have talked over the phone a few times about Isidore. Kazimir is the one who taught Blice all of the important parts of dealing with Isidore. And Blice feels indebted to him for creating the genetic combination that made Isidore different from the failed androids. That is a fate that no one, human or otherwise, should ever have to go through. But then again, is it that much worse than what Blice has done to him?
Someone walks past the dying fire where the coals are still smoldering under the vast empty sky. Blice stares up into the blackness and tries to lose his terrible memories in that void.
The person lies down next to Blice and leans up against him. "Blice?"
Blice knows that timid and soft voice. He rolls over to face Isidore. "What's up, Niko?"
"Can you hold me?"
He unzips his sleeping bag and Isidore crawls inside then cuddles into Blice's chest. Blice puts his arm around his friend. "Another nightmare?"
Isidore nods his head and clings to Blice.
"What was this one about? Was it the same one from last night?" Blice asks.
"I don't know. I'm just scared."
"Okay. You're okay. I'm right here and nothing is going to hurt you."
"Except you." Isidore says.
Blice sighs and closes his eyes. "Yes. Except me. Because I'm a terrible person."
"You do it because you care."
H
e feels Isidore's shallow breathing against him. "You should try to get some sleep or you won't be up for driving in the morning."
"I don't want to go back to Styx." Isidore whispers.
"You're not the only one, buddy. We'll get in and get out as quickly as we can. Then we will sit down and I'll tell you everything."
"I'm going to die, aren't I?" Isidore asks.
"Why would you say something like that?"
"The only reason you would hide my purpose from me is if it is too awful for me to deal with."
Blice holds onto Isidore tightly. "We'll talk about it later, okay? I don't want you worrying about theories and rumors. The only thing you need to know is that you will not die while I have a say in it. I swear to you that I will give my own life before you are sacrificed for anything."
"Thank you."
"That's part of my responsibility as an owner and a friend."
"I love you, Blice." Isidore says.
That one catches him off guard. What is going on in that computer brain of his? Oh well. What will it hurt? "I love you, too, Niko."
23
Every step Damien takes drives him deeper and deeper down into the memories that seek to destroy his mind. This is the first time either him or Seth has been back here since that fateful day. Seth hasn't said anything since they arrived. His cold grey eyes offer no comfort or insight to Damien.
The guards watch them carefully as they make their way through the city that reminds him all too much of Paradise. It is a third of the size of Paradise, but it has all the same luxuries and excesses that Damien has come to despise. The only reason they were let in was because Blice left his trench coat in the transport and hid his eyes. Then Seth had to show his identification and after an hour of interrogations, explanations, and a call to President Evans himself, they were let behind the lead walls.
Blice is honestly a liability right now. Isidore might be too. If anyone still believes that Blice is alive, they will undoubtedly arrest him and either kill him themselves or take him back to Paradise to face his father's brand of justice. Even though Damien serves the president directly, he knows that cooperating with Blice is a threat to both Seth and Damien's positions and lives. So he has to keep the details of this little excursion completely secret from anyone and everyone. Damien didn't even tell his own agents where he was going.
Paradise of Lead Trilogy Page 44