by Matt Ward
“We can pretend though, what if we tricked the DNS into thinking we are coming? Could we use that to our advantage?”
“Maybe.” He raised an eyebrow. “What’d you have in mind?”
I outlined the beginnings of a plan.
“That could work,” he said when I finished. “It will take a little help, but that might just work.”
33
Friends And Enemies
The next few days flew by: training, planning, sleeping… that was it. It was brutal, but the simple monastic life was what I needed.
One morning, I awoke to Paer’s voice outside my door. What was she doing here? Jumping from bed, I opened my door, conscious of my scruffy beard and messy hair. I hadn’t shaved in weeks.
Lars was talking to a hologram in the corner. “Agtha,” he said, voice tense, “I need to know the Initiative’s readiness for war. And this needs to be off the record.”
“You know I can’t do that, Lars. It’s against protocol.”
“Screw protocol!” he snapped. “After all we’ve been through together. I need you to do this for me.”
“You sound like Lyam, you know that?” she said in a voice she’d only used with Fitz. “Have you heard from him by the way?” she added in a more serious tone. “Bugger shows up after how many years and disappears again.”
“He was murdered, Ag.”
“What?” She froze. “What are you talking about?”
“Lyam was murdered. By Lilia.”
“Shit! Why would Lilia… wait, how do you know?”
“She was afraid he’d protest the fighting,” I cut in.
“Is that Raek? Is he there now?”
“Yes.” Lars flicked his wrist, and my image appeared.
I told her everything.
“Wait, Hrun?” Her jaw dropped. “Are you saying he was murdered too?”
“Why do you think I ran?” I snapped. “I saw her and Fitz fighting and heard his heart stop. She laughed about it!”
“Shit!” Her nostrils flared in a mask of rage. “I knew Lilia was extreme, but never thought she’d do something like this.”
“So, Agtha,” Lars interrupted, “what are the Initiative and the Council planning? We saw the Broag sting. Odds are DNS is closing in on other cells as we speak.”
“The Council’s been arguing since it happened. We’re prepping soldiers. It won’t work though. We have some citizen support, but not enough.” She shook her head. “If fighting starts soon, we’ll be crushed. We need more time, and more men.” She sighed. “You were our only hope, kid, and you disappeared.”
“What if I came back?”
“Are you coming back?” Her eyes brightened. “When?”
“I said what if.”
“With you, we could get more towns and militias onboard so the fighting started more places at once and spread faster. There’s no guarantee, but we’d have a chance.”
A chance… I could live with that.
“Look, Agtha,” Lars said, tone hardening, “nothing we say here leaves this conversation, understood?”
“You know I can’t—”
“Cut the crap. You need us and can’t afford to do anything else. Are you in or not?”
She was, and we explained what we had in mind.
“That could buy us a few days, maybe a week. When?”
“Today, now,” Lars said. “There’s no time to waste. Can you make it happen?”
She nodded. “I’ll manage. I’ll have to call in some favors and keep certain people in the dark, but it is doable.”
Good. “And then, part two,” I began. Paer listened as I outlined the big picture, Lars jumping in as needed. “There’s one thing,” I added. “Lilia. I want Lilia and I need your help. Deal?”
“Deal, kid. I like the spunk. Give me until the end of the day to get things sorted. I’ll send you an update tonight.”
“Sounds good, Ag, you’re a doll.”
“Oh, shut up, Lars, you old dodger, you.” She killed the call, leaving us to look at one another.
34
Zoom Zoom
The next days were a blur of planning and prep.
We got data from Paer—the readiness and placement of Initiative’s troops, transports and various heavy weaponry—and tried to construct realistic scenarios for success. It wasn’t promising.
She also shared intel on the army and DNS, anything the Initiative had deemed valuable enough to record. It was a mess of information, overwhelming and near impossible to find patterns or weaknesses in. The GDR seemed to be on top of everything.
Details on the towns and local militias arrived the third day. At last count, eight percent were expected to take up arms, sixty-five percent below what sims said were needed. It looked bad, but nothing was unwinnable, right? I had to keep telling myself that. There had to be something, there had to be.
I looked into the Board members’ backgrounds again for any weaknesses. Nothing. Same with the military and DNS leaders. They had flawless records, or whitewashed backgrounds.
At last, the day came to leave. We still had no idea how to pull this off, but first, we had to get to Caen.
We left the cabin for the final time in silence, feet heavy with all that happened here. My time with Lars had molded me, and I’d never be the same.
When we were an hour from where we’d jumped off the train, he turned to me, eyes pained. “How’d Lyam die?” He must have been wanting to ask for ages.
“Like a hero,” I said as goosebumps coated my furry, recently muscled arms. “He was trying to protect me, to keep me safe from Lilia, and out of harm’s way.”
Lars grimaced. “Lyam was my friend, probably my best friend,” he added in a soft voice. “We had a falling out after Kira.” He let out a forlorn sigh. “I never forgave myself. I’m sure he didn’t either. He came to see me that night, before he died. Said he might need my help, said he was sorry.” Lars took a deep breath.
I didn’t know what to say, let alone feel, so I said nothing.
“Let’s go get those bastards,” he said after a moment, the glint back in his eyes.
I opened my mouth but a message from Paer interrupted. Things are set here, kids. Be home for dinner. Turkey is in the oven. “Paer says everything’s ready. I’m going to spring the Kiag trap.”
Opening prewritten messages, I double-checked everything. I dummy-pinged a server near Kiag, sent the messages, and I killed the connection.
We’re getting ready to head home, I shot back to Paer and gave Lars the thumbs-up. “All set.”
The walk to the train and ride to Caen was uneventful. We got onto the lev and snuck into the compartment without incident. It wasn’t until it slowed we realized something was wrong.
Lars noticed it first, a tiny green light above the door. “Where did that come—”
The door sprung open and two glaring security guards stepped in, blasters drawn.
The first was a lean ugly fellow, 160 centimeters or so, with light curly hair, ears too big for his head, and a familiar rabbitish jitteriness. “What have we here?” he said to his partner. “Looks like a couple of stowaways.”
“Hands where we can see them, both of you!” his partner snapped. He was enormous, rippling with muscle, and had the striped patterning of tigerish ancestry. His beard was impressive too, spreading from his mean black eyes to edges of his square jaw.
Both held eyes of poison, no love lost for the two of us, despite being animotes themselves.
“Search them,” the big guy muttered. My fingers twitched but it was too risky, he was aiming at Lars.
“It’s your turn to search them,” his partner whined.
“I said search them, Joey!”
“Okay, boss.” He moved forward, grabbed our bags, and checked our arms and legs. The whole time, the big guy’s blaster never strayed from Lars’ head.
“They’re clean, boss,” Joey said after an invasive search. “Although there’s blasters in the bags.”
“One second,” I said. What would Fitz do? I peered past them and waved at the door. “Johnny?”
Both guards turned for a fraction and my blasters hit them before they’d realized I’d fired. Sorry guys… They crumpled in a pool of blood and guts, charred organ matter spraying the walls and boxes.
“Time to go.” Grabbing our bags, I sprinted for the compartment door.
We burst through and three more guards appeared, blasters pointed at the floor. I shot two and Lars hit the third, but not before he yelled, “Captain, this is Waters, I—”
He never got the rest out, but the captain must have heard the blast.
“Run!” I shouted.
Lars slammed the outside door open and stared out. The landscape raced past. We were going close to seventy kilometers per hour, way too fast to jump. We might not have a choice.
An alarm sounded, blaring through the train. Shit.
35
Tuck And Roll
Less than fifteen kilometers to the city center and things didn’t look good.
A VTOL took off, and for the first time, Lars looked worried. “We’re going to have to jump.”
His unenhanced body wouldn’t stand a chance. “No way. I might be okay, but you wouldn’t.”
“Jump, Raek, now! Either that or I’m going first. We can’t afford to lose you.”
And I can’t afford to lose you. Wait, what was that? “A small pond, look.” I pointed. “Four kilometers, we can make it.”
“Fine. But you’re jumping, either way, kid, even if it’s too far for me.”
What choice did we have? I nodded as a realization hit me. We had to torch the place. The DNS couldn’t find DNA samples or they’d realize I wasn’t in Kiag.
Hurrying into the train, I went to work on the crates. There had to be something explosive. After busting several boxes, I knew it wouldn’t work. Hundreds of solar cells and microturbines, but no freaking batteries or fuel cells.
We were running out of time. United Digital was a no go.
Come on, one last shot.
Cracking open The Everything Store box, I knew we were in business. It was full of Amazon Elite Vodka. Slamming the case of a hundred or so bottles, alcohol gushing about my feet, I noticed another packing label: Olive Oil.
Perfect. I smashed a fortune’s worth of cases and waded to the doorway.
The pond was almost on us. Aiming, I fired and the booze caught fire. Two hundred fifty meters, closing fast. Here goes nothing. “You ready?” I asked.
He grabbed my shoulders and forced me toward the edge. It was getting hot. “You’re jumping! I’m old and washed up. The Resistance needs you.”
Not a chance. I couldn’t lose another friend, not like this.
As we argued, a BOOM. The main crate of vodka had ignited, engulfing the boxes around it. The heat became unbearable, burning stench of oil searing my nose as we reached the pond. It was too far to jump, at least four meters. It wasn’t going to work.
A flame exploded through the door and Lars yelled, “Now, kid!”
I sprinted, and as I was about to clear the edge, I grabbed him, pushing off with everything I had. The look on his face was priceless, pure anger and rabid fear, eyes wide, mouth open in a wordless scream. Straining my muscles and tendons to their max, I willed myself further as sounds of the VTOL broke the crackle. Five kilometers now.
We soared through the air but wouldn’t make it. Rotating my hips and timing it with the ground beneath us, my shoulder and hip thudded first, taking the brunt of the blow.
I threw my arms over Lars’ head and pulled his body into mine as we smash-rolled along, splashing into the freezing water. Seconds later, we came to a stop: soaked, sore, and shivering—but alive.
“You okay?” I asked as we crawled out.
“Thanks to you, yes. That was some stunt. Shoot, kid, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” I scratched my head. “What’s wrong?”
“Your face—”
My hand was drenched in blood. “Are you bleeding?”
“That’s your head, Raek!” He touched my cheek. “Are you okay? There’s a massive gash down the side of your face.”
Putting my hand to my cheek, I felt sticky warmth on my icy fingers. “I’m fine. We need to get out of here.” Something wasn’t right... “Is it me or did the VTOL stop?”
“I don’t hear it either,” Lars replied. “Maybe they boarded the train.”
“Hopefully the fire slows ‘em down. Either way, let’s go.” I sprinted for the treeline, Lars hurrying to catch up.
When he did, he said, “Wow, you are fine. I need to get me some of those cybernetics. Could use a new bod too.”
“Maybe they’ll make an exception,” I said sarcastically after sending a cryptic message to Paer about the change of plans.
“If they find something, our plan’s toast,” Lars said as I finished.
“We’ll see,” I said, sounding more confident than I felt, and reminding myself of Fitz. “That’s why we have a backup plan. You taught me that.”
“Using my own words against me. I’ll have to be—”
A VTOL took off, cutting him short. “They must have finished searching the train. Hurry.”
We made it in the nick of time, a VTOL zipping overhead thirty seconds after we hit the treeline. It followed the lev track westward as we continued through the wood, thankful for the cover.
Thirty minutes later, two more buzzed by, one headed west, another, north. They were widening the search. At least they hadn’t narrowed in on the wood, yet.
Paer called five minutes later to confirm, worried about a trap. We reassured her and asked for updates.
Everything was going according to plan. A local team with backup from Caen was prepping the Kiag mission, and Lilia and the other members of the Council had no idea what would happen next.
The hike to Eagle Creek was beautiful and relaxing. It snowed some, crystals pirouetting through the air, blanketing us and our surroundings in a soft glowing gleam. Caen was stunning this time of year.
And the snow covered our tracks, too, which helped me breathe easier.
It was a snowglobe moment, the kind you’d like to capture, store away and relive again and again.
36
Smell The Organs
Agtha arrived an hour after we did, calling as she got closer.
Despite knowing she was coming, we tensed as her wheels screeched around the corner and cleared the treeline. Hitting the brakes, she made eye contact and threw open the doors. “Get in. Now!” she added, when we didn’t move fast enough.
There were pressure cooker bags under her eyes like she hadn’t slept for days, and her hair—always perfect despite her spartan existence—was a tousled mess.
Lars smiled. “Agtha, it’s great to see you. It’s been too long.”
“We have to move!” she snapped. “You know how many back alleys and dirt roads I had to take to get here? Cops everywhere, tons of VTOLs searching the skies. You boys sure know how to make an entrance. How were the woods?”
“Kid picks things up fast,” Lars replied. “Turns out he’s got paralleosis, the super-cynetic speed reading thing.”
“Good, we’re going to need it,” she said, white-knuckling the wheel while Lars embarrassed me, bragging about what I’d been reading.
Once Lars relented, she said, “Council’s meeting tomorrow at noon. That’s when we should do it.”
“Can you sneak us in?” Lars asked.
“Can I beat you in a fight blindfolded, Lars?” Her eyes twinkled in the rearview. “It’s good to see you, you old fart.”
So, she was human after all.
“You’ve gotten old after all these years,” Lars said with a grin. “Wanted to make sure you still had it.”
Paer swore. “We got company. Get in the back, in the boxes. Now!”
In the trunk were two boxes labeled Hearts and Organs. The tops were open.
I hopped the divider and scrambled in. Lars fell over a second later, squeezing to fit his long body as the car slowed to a crawl.
“Pretty tight in here, Agtha. Could have used bigger boxes,” Lars remarked.
“Have you put on weight, Lars?” she whispered. “Quiet, twenty meters. Stopping now.”
An electric whirr. “Everything okay, officer?”
“What are you doing out here?” a gruff voice replied.
“I’m picking up a shipment from my brother-in-law,” Paer answered.
“A shipment of what?” the voice snapped.
“Deer,” Paer said. “Hunts whitetails and gets me to lug the kills back to the city. Lazy git. I get to keep some of the meat though, so it works out. But the bastard gave me organs this time.”
“Where’s he hunt?” the other officer asked. “He got a permit?”
“He alternates between parks west and north of the city, the ones he could get permits for.” She sighed. “South and east are reserved for elites, that’s where all the best game is, he says.”
“We’re going to need to inspect your vehicle, ma’am. Please step out and turn off the engine.”
Crap. Not good.
“Sure thing, officers. You fellas hunt?” Come on, Paer, let’s see some smooth talking.
“Nah,” said the first. “Wife’s against it for some reason.”
“Same here. Open your trunk.”
My breath caught. This was about to get ugly. I tried to position myself for a clean shot but it was too cramped. My muscles tensed. We’d be sitting ducks.
“You officers like organs: hearts, tongues, testicles, that kind of thing? That’s all Frankie gave me this time, cheap bastard! Imagine, my poor sister, living with that scum of a man! I’d be happy to give you boys a couple testes or tongues if I could get on my way. Got a work shift at 18:00 and can’t afford to be late again. Boss’ll kill me. You know how it is.”