by Keegan Long
“I don’t see the base,” Sarah said as she looked around.
“That’s because it’s right above us,” Susan answered as she ushered us to look up. “Now we make our way in.”
Susan pulled her bag from around her back and laid it in front of her. As she rumbled through her bag she would eventually pull out a metal device that looked like a grenade but more advanced.
“What is that?” I asked as I took a closer look at the object.
“This here is a sound grenade,” Susan answered as she held it up for everyone to look at. “It has the same idea as a grenade but is more silent and less explosive. Great for breaking into places without being noticed.”
“And where did you get one of those?” Joe asked with a curious tone in his voice.
“My brilliant scientists came up with the design,” Susan answered. “Now they are gone because of Cerberus so I am the only one who has the last few left.”
“I’m sure we can get someone back at our base to replicate it,” Jill suggested. “Greg would definitely be up for the task.”
“But now is not the time,” Susan interrupted as she begun sticking the device to the ceiling of the tunnel. “We got work to do.”
As soon as Susan armed the device it began counting down with a slight ringing that followed. We all prepared ourselves as we took a couple steps back from the grenade.
“Just give it a couple of seconds,” Susan assured us. “Don’t you worry. They won’t hear a thing.”
As the seconds to the moment of explosion got closer I couldn’t help myself by closing my eyes and covering my ears. Then there was slight rumble from above and when I opened my eyes there was a nice fresh hole in the ceiling above us.
I could not help myself but find myself finding Susan smiling at her work. “Told you it would work.”
“You were always full of surprises,” Jill laughed. “But never disappoint.”
Susan made her way over to me with a big grin on her face. “Let’s get you on up there, Delaney.”
To my luck I was the first one to go through the ceiling. With the help of Joe, he lifted me up as I stepped on his shoulders. As I came into the view of the base I was in complete shock of my surroundings. The room was filled with guns and to my surprise a couple of deactivated Centaurs that were in perfectly good fighting condition. We had hit the jackpot and landed right in the armoury.
“My god,” Joe exclaimed as he emerged into the room and was shortly followed by the rest of the group. “Cerberus does have it all. There’s enough guns and ammunition in here to put a serious dent in our base back in Nebraska.”
“No one is to touch those Centaurs,” Jill quickly commanded. “Those can still go active at any moment.”
“It’s time we wire this place,” Susan said as she started rumbling through her bag again and pulling out different types of explosive.
“Now wait a second,” Joe interrupted as he continued to examine the room. “I think we should rethink our strategy. If you blow this place it will do more than cause a distraction. It will level this whole base with us in it.”
“He’s right,” Kevin agreed. “We have to come up with a better plan.”
“One that ends with us still being alive,” Sarah reminded us all.
“What if there was no distraction,” I suggested. “What if we fought our way to the communications room.”
Susan looked at me as if I was crazy. “I admire your courage girl. I really do. You remind me of myself at times but what you are talking about is suicide. We don’t have the numbers or weaponry to take on this base.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” I replied with a big smirk on my face. “Most of the base is out looking for us and not here in the base. The last thing they would expect is for us to be in here. By the time their backup arrived we’ll already be gone.”
Joe was the first to step up and support me. “I think she’s right. I know it doesn’t sound ideal but in this situation, it could work. It’s our best option.”
“Alright then,” Jill joined in. “Let’s finish this and get the hell out of here.”
We all quietly made our way out of the Cerberus armoury and into the main hallway where it was dead silent. No sign of any guards or any robots. It looks like my suspicions were right but I was scared to think on how long it would last. Luck was finally on our side this time.
My thoughts were soon interrupted though as Susan lifted her hand signalling that there was trouble ahead. “We got trouble ahead.”
“How many?” Kevin whispered across to her as he readied his gun by flipping the gun’s safety off.
“Just one by the looks of it,” she replied quietly. “Shouldn’t be a problem.”
Mitch was the first to step forward as he handed me his gun. “Don’t worry. I got this.”
Mitch very carefully made his way towards the guard’s back with his army knife out and ready to find its target. When he reached the guard he quickly grabbed the guard around his neck and lunged his knife into the guard’s chest. The guard only struggled for a second until it became lifeless. Mitch carefully set his body on the ground and signalled to us that the coast was clear.
“Damn, Mitch,” Bekah said as she came into the view of the body. “I didn’t know you had that in you.”
“Me either,” Mitch replied as he looked at his work. “I guess desperate times call for desperate measures.”
Susan kneeled down by the dead body that now lied on the white floors of the hall. She reached her hand into the guard’s pockets and rummaged through them until she pulled out a plastic key card by the looks of it.
“This will get us into the communication room no problem,” she informed us as she tossed the key card to me. “You hang on to that.”
“How much further do we have?” Lindsay asked as she stayed alerted with her rifle drawn.
“Not far,” Susan replied as she got up to her feet. “It’s just that room at the end of the hall.”
I looked down towards the end of the hall and sure enough there was a big set of doors. It had to be the communications room no doubt but to my surprise there was no guard by the door. This was too easy and I did not like the feeling of it.
“Let’s get going then,” Jill responded us as she ushered for the group to keep moving.
When we arrived at the doors there was a security panel that was required to be accessed in order to unlock the doors. Susan signalled me to swipe the key card that we picked up earlier and I did as I was told. As soon as the card had been swiped there was a silent pause that was soon follow by a buzzing sound as the hinges of the door moved. The door was now unlocked and we silently made our way into the room.
As we entered the room there were a few Cerberus workers and three guards that seemed surprised when we entered the room. The Cerberus guards tried to stop us but we were able to beat them to it and fired the first shots. As for the workers that filled the room we decided to let them go as they posed now credible threat and they quickly fled the room.
“Is still don’t think that was the best idea,” Sarah commented on our decision to let them go. “They are going to warn the others.”
“And by which time we will be gone,” I assured her.
“Let’s get you on one of these computers, Joe,” Jill directed as he sat at one of the computer stations and began typing away on the keyboard.
“Just give me a couple of minutes to search the Cerberus database,” he responded. “I’ll find where they put it.”
We all stood there by Joe’s side as we waited until he had found something.
“I got it,” Joe informed us a few minutes later. “Well, I think I do.”
“What do you mean you think?” I asked.
“Well, I wasn’t quite sure what they would have put the video under,” he started to explain. “So, I just searched your last name Nordbrock but to my surprise two files came up under that name. It looks like one is a video file and that anyone from Cerberu
s can view and the other is a document but you need a level five security clearance to view it.”
“What do you mean by level five?” I asked all confused and a bit stunned on why there were two files under my family’s name.
“It means this file can only be viewed by very few people in the Cerberus chain of command,” Joe explained. “More like the Cerberus President and his most trusted advisors.”
“Play the video first,” I told Joe. “There’s no question that is my mom’s video she left for us.”
“Putting it on the big screen,” Joe replied as we all turned our attention to the main screen that was positioned on the center wall of the room.
Moments later the main screen, that almost filled up the entire wall, came to life and a familiar figure came into view. People would tell me that my sister and I looked just like her. It was my mother.
I could feel the tears start running down my face just at seeing her. She looked exactly the same the last time I saw her with her beautiful blonde hair and the blue eyes that you could stare into for days. But there was also a feeling I had that she was different person than I remember. Her face was covered in dust and dirt and it looked like she had seen any sleep for days.
“That’s her,” McKenna muttered at me. “That’s mom. She still looks exactly the same.”
“I know,” I replied in agreement. “But she’s not the same.”
She made her way into the chair the was placed in front of the camera and looked right into the lens before she started her message.
“My name is Alessandra Nordbrock and this is a message for my daughters Delaney and McKenna. It has been many years since you guys were taken and our family separated on that horrific day. There is not a single day that goes by when I do not think of you guys. If you are watching this message then you have meet Susan and I know you guys are in great company.”
I quickly look over towards Susan and saw a few tears begin running down her face as well at the mention of her name. I looked back at the screen as my mom continued her message.
“Unfortunately, I do not have much time as the generator I am using to make this video does not have much power left. I first want to let you know that there has not been a single day that has gone by that I was not fighting for you.”
“We’ve always known that,” McKenna acknowledged but I just kept my eyes on my mother.
“I am leaving you this message because there is information that I have found that could change the future course of this war and even the world.”
This got everyone’s attention now as their eyes widened and they began to focus even more.
“I have found the solution that can lead to the collapse of Cerberus. You must find the Creator. He is the only one who can defeat what he created. He has contacted me and informed me that he had built a back safe to the programming that runs Cerberus in the form of a virus. He possesses this virus and keeps it on him at all times. Find him and deliver the virus to the Cerberus mainframe at the capitol building.”
I think everyone was stunned at what we were hearing. For so long we lived under the tyranny of Cerberus but there is hope after all.
“When the virus is uploaded to the Cerberus mainframe the entire system will fall. The drones, the robots, the organization will all collapse. You must find the President. I know she’s still alive and he ensures me you can trust her. She will rally the people of the world and free this country and even the world. I love you girls and dream of the day when I can reunite with you guys once again.”
We all looked over to Jill who looked just as confused as we all did. By what my mother was explaining it sounded as if Jill knew who this Creator was.
My mother was able to speak one last and give us one last piece of information before the video cut off.
“You must find the Creator. Find Keegan.”
7
The Prophecy
I could not believe what I had just heard from the person that I assumed to be dead years ago. She just handed us the key to defeating Cerberus once and for all and returning this country to what is used to be known for. But we still have a long way to go and now have to find this Creator.
I think most of us were still in shock as the room remained silent for several long minutes with no one willing to be the first to talk. I was still even in shock as all these thoughts were dashing through my head on where to even start. Keegan could be anywhere in the world. Where do we even begin?
I was the first to break the silence in the room. Jill knew something about Keegan that she needed to tell us.
“I take it that you know this person my mother is talking about.”
“Not just me,” she answered to my surprise. “Many of us in this room know him. I had no idea.”
I turned my head and looked over towards Joe as he starred off in the distance and refused to make eye contact with anyone.
“Joe?” I asked as I walked over towards him.
Joe was silent for a few seconds until he gained enough momentum to answer my question.
“The best friend anyone could have asked for,” he answered as he fought from the tears sliding down his face. “But to know now that he is responsible for everything that has happened. I guess I didn’t really know him.”
“That is not true, Joe,” Jill quickly interrupted. “I was with him on the day of the Cerberus Hack. He fought off the robots and is the only reason I’m still alive. He was the person we knew and remember. We just don’t have the full story.”
“He didn’t just save Jill,” Kevin joined in. “But saved me too. He’s the only reason we were able to get out of the White House on that day. I was sure he was dead though.”
I looked around at all those who knew him and could see in their eyes that this person had impacted each and every one of them in some way that everyone aims at doing at some point in their life on another. He was not just a friend but was family too. Just like we had all grown on each other and formed a family bond with one another. Even Susan was being silent and that meant something too.
I was the one to take charge of the group as they all were clearly still in shock and ignored the fact that we were still in a Cerberus base with reinforcements not far behind.
“Then we’ll find him,” I said to all of them as they looked up at me. “Keegan holds the key to the future of the world. Only he can stop Cerberus but he’ll need our help to do it. My mother trusted and believed in him and that’s good enough for me.”
“And if it’s good enough for her it’s good enough for me,” Kenna joined in by my side.
“Well, look who’s taking charge,” Susan said with a bright smile. “Just like your mother.”
I walked over to Jill and put my hand on her shoulder. “Where do we start? Madam President.”
“The last state that fell,” she answered. “California.”
“Well, this sucks,” Sarah sighed. “California is all under Cerberus control. How do you expect us to go there?”
“And the real question is why?” Susan questioned. “Out of all the places he could be there why do you think he would be there.”
“He won’t be,” Jill replied. “But his sister will be. And she’s our best shot at finding where he is hiding.”
“How do you even know she is there?” Mitch asked as he became concerned with this plan.
“I came into contact with her during my little series of missions I was doing as I was recruiting people for our cause,” she replied.
“Do you know how dangerous that was of you,” Kevin argued. “You could have easily been spotted and killed.”
“And the reason I never told anyone about it,” Jill countered. “Plus, no wars or even revolutions are won without sacrifice.”
“I agree with Jill,” I addressed the group. “She is our best shot at finding him. Now let’s look at this other file they had under my family name and get out of here.”
“What about the video?” Joe asked. “What should I do with i
t?”
“Delete it,” I told him. “The less people know about Keegan the better.”
“As you wish,” Joe said as he clicked a few buttons on the keyboard and the video vanished from existence.
“What about the other file?” I asked Joe. “Can you access it?”
“If you give me a few minutes to hack into it I think I can,” he responded as he started typing away.
“Hurry, Joe,” Jill said. “I don’t think we have much time.”
As we all watched Joe type away on the keyboard we wondered what they could possibly have on my family. Our curiosity was really being fed to us on this day but it was time to learn all the secrets of Cerberus.
“I got it,” Joe said as he projected the file to the main screen. “Unfortunately, it’s not good news. It looks like even this file is all redacted except the title.”
As I looked up at the screen and my heart immediately dropped. I saw that the entire text of the file had been blacked out but when I looked at the heading is when my world fell apart. All it read was The Nordbrock Prophecy.
“What the hell is this?” I asked as I became confused. “Is this some sick joke.”
“It’s no joke, Delaney,” Joe said. “And it has only one name tagged with it. Yours.”
“I don’t understand,” I muttered as I was speechless with no words to come out of my mouth.
“I do,” Jill spoke up and made her way towards me. “Because I was the one who redacted it.”
“You?” I asked as I looked around to see everyone confused except Jill and Kevin. They knew what this file revealed under its black markings.
“Yes,” she replied with no hesitation. “There will be no more secrets. It’s time you knew.”
“Know what?” I asked.
“Why you’re so important,” she answered. “Why you’re special.”
“I need to know everything,” I told her with an angry tone as I learned that she had been keeping a secret from me all this time.
“A week before everything had become hell a group of hikers came across an unexplored cave in the Rocky Mountains. The cave had to be hundreds if not thousands of years old. At the time, I thought it was no big deal and had a team investigate the cave. It revealed to have an ancient prophecy written on the walls in many different languages. When my team got back to me and translated the message it revealed a message about a girl who would save us from the enemy of the underworld.”