by Drew Avera
Ghon stood up quicker than I thought his condition could handle and began limping over towards me. "No!" he screamed out. His shriek was high pitched and sounded like a man fighting back tears as he fought to survive. I watched as Ghon approached closer and closer, but I kept reaching out. I was lying on the ground now to get better leverage, and my fingertips were touching the edge of my gauntlet, but I couldn't grip it. I shot a glance up at Ghon as he closed the distance between us, and I knew I had only a few seconds left before he would grab the gauntlet and any chance of breaking free from this cell without help was lost. I stretched to the point I could feel pain shooting in my joints and small tears in my muscles as they strained to do as I bid.
Any second Ghon was going to be there. I knew it as surely as I knew I needed my next breath, but just when I anticipated his presence I looked up to see him on the ground. His body was sprawled out and his face was smashed on to the cold stones below. Blood oozed from his nose and mouth and I wondered if he was alive or dead as I realized chucks of teeth were littering the ground. His life was not important now, I thought to myself. Now I just needed to grab my gauntlet and get the hell out of here.
Chapter 21
I was glad it was no longer a race to get my hands on my gauntlet because it took at least five minutes to finally get it and clasp it to my wrist. It was a stroke of luck, too, because within a minute or so of being armed the guard came back with two more men to grab Ghon with. I watched them stalk over to his unconscious form and look at him while Harris lay in his cell seemingly unmoved since the guard had first left. I imagined it would be hard for the man to figure out Harris was pretending to be unconscious and was really responsible for tripping Ghon and causing his face to meet the stone floor. Difficulties aside, we needed to act and surprise was our greatest weapon. Well, that and my gauntlet.
"What happened?" one of the men asked as he bent over to check Ghon's vital signs. He was a young man, barely old enough to be considered an adult, but he was dressed in the same uniform as the first guard. The third man was middle-aged and didn't speak. Gray hairs sprouted along the sides of his head, making him look distinguished.
"He put one of the gauntlets on and it blew up when he tried to fire it. I think it must have malfunctioned or something." The man said. He obviously had no clue how a gauntlet worked, which meant most of the Faracon soldiers were probably clueless as well.
"Well what happened to the gauntlet, Glen?" the younger man asked. All three of them turned around in circles trying to find the gauntlet. Glen even looked inside of Harris' cell in case it had fallen inside it.
"I don't know, kid. Maybe it's under him," Glen answered as he pointed towards Ghon's body. It was sprawled out and face down. Blood pooled under his face and matted his hair.
The kid bent over and rolled Ghon over. "Wow, he must have passed out and hit the floor pretty hard. He's got several broken teeth and a smashed nose to go with his mangled arm." The young man had a disgusted look on his face as he examined the wounds.
"Is he still alive?" Glen asked as he bent over to get a better look at the spectacle. He seemed to be enjoying the drama of the situation as if it were exciting to come across a dead body. He wouldn't be excited for long.
I watched as the young man put his ear close to Ghon's mouth. "His pulse was weak, but he is breathing. We need to get him to a doctor immediately." Before he said anything else I fired my gauntlet's laser into Ghon's head, and the kid gasped and dropped the body. He was obviously startled as I leveled the beam of blue light at his chest. "Somebody go get help!" he yelled, but it was too late for that.
I fired off three blasts in quick succession. I started with the kid, and then moved to the middle-aged man who was closest to a way to escape. Both dropped dead within a single heartbeat. I next aimed at Glen, who gulped in fear and tried to step back. He went to speak, but before any sound could escape his lips I fired a blast into his chest and watched him fall. The sound of his body crumpling to the floor put a satisfied smile on my face. There was no remorse to be had. All the justification I needed was seeing how they had treated Harris all this time. They deserved what they had coming, there was no mistake about that.
Now that we were alone I began working to cut myself free from my cell. It was a time-consuming process of cutting through the iron bars without causing too much smoke, which could set off an alarm, but I was able to make progress as the bars melted and weakened enough for me to get free. As soon as I was out of my cell I ran over to search the guards for a key. Each of their pockets was empty, as was Ghon's. I swore under my breath as I realized I would have to melt the bars for Harris’s cell as well.
"Do you have a plan?" he asked once I got started on cutting through his cell. The arduous task was painstakingly tedious, but it was the quickest way to free ourselves.
"Yeah, I have a plan. I'm going to get you out of here and to safety. I imagine Gentry is bringing the policemen into Faracon to take down The Syndicate by now, but I can't hear any activity." In fact the whole area was numbingly quiet.
"Who's Gentry?" he asked. He turned his face away from me to avoid the sparks and bright light coming from my gauntlet cutting through the iron bars.
I hesitated for a moment before answering. "It's a long story, but suffice it to say he is a friend. If we live through this then I'll introduce you," I replied.
"Understood." I kept cutting through the bars until I had a section large enough for Harris to crawl out of. He was breathing heavily and groaning with each step until he collapsed outside of his cell onto the cold stone floor. "Can you do something about my wounds?"
I looked at his back and at the torn flesh. I could see muscle tissue and dried blood, which made it look rather grotesque. "What would you have me do?"
He gasped for air. "Do what you did for Ben. Cauterize the wound."
I looked him over, but there weren't any wounds that were still bleeding. "I can't, there's nothing I can do with what I have. We need to find some medical supplies and get you cleaned up. Maybe we can find some medicine to help dull the pain." At the moment I remembered the small bottle of Serum in my pocket and pulled it out. "In the meantime there's this," I said.
Harris grabbed it from me and took a sip. He made a face as he pulled the small vial from his lips. "Ben was right; it does taste like piss."
I had to smile at his response. Serum wasn't very good, but it was effective. Within a minute or two, Harris was feeling the effect and was able to stand up with a little help. I wrapped my arm under his to avoid touching his back and making things worse. Together we walked through the chamber and found the stairs. I didn't know my way around, but luckily Harris was familiar enough with the layout to help us find a way out.
"There are two sets of stairs before we get to the ground level. I suggest taking a left. It's a longer walk, but the exit is closer to the woods, where we can hide in the tree line.”
I followed his suggestion and we made it to the woods without being spotted. Or so I thought.
Chapter 22
We stayed close to the tree line, and from our vantage point, I could see a lot of activity on the south side of the city. Harris had himself propped against a tree as I kept a lookout in case anyone approached. In the distance I could hear weapons fire from the Faracon Army; the report reverberated in a staccato echo off the trees and buildings. The smell of burning powder filled the air and was thick enough to taste. "Which way should we go?" I asked.
Harris labored over to me and extended his arm as he pointed back towards the trees. "I think we should go on the other side of that hill and then head south. If nothing else we can stay out of sight until everything is over," he said. Walking this far had taken a lot out of him and he was struggling to catch his breath.
I looked where he was pointing and the hill was a few hundred yards away. "All right," I said. "How far are we from Midican?"
He cast a downward glance, "Midican is gone," was all he had to say.
&nb
sp; I had no way of knowing the extent of the devastation, but I could see he wore it on his sleeve. I knew better than to push the issue. "Here," I said; taking his arm in mine to assist him with the walk. I knew it was a lot to ask for him to carry himself over the hill. I was surprised he wasn't already dead on his feet from blood loss and dehydration.
Before we had the chance to start our trek I heard a twig snap underfoot close by. I turned and aimed my gauntlet in the direction of the sound and there I saw them. Gentry was with Kara and Laurel. Each of them was armed and was far enough apart to not create a large target for the soldiers to aim at.
"I almost shot you," I said as I lowered my arm. There was something about aiming a weapon at someone you love that makes your heart ache at the thought of what could happen if you slip up. I couldn't live with myself if I killed my sister or Laurel.
Gentry smiled, "I've heard that before." All three of them seemed in good spirits and I doubted they had run into any soldiers yet.
Kara ran up to Harris and went to embrace him, but stopped short of touching his open wounds. Instead, they kissed. "What happened?" she asked once their lips parted ways. She held his face in her hands and ran one hand through his hair. She looked longingly into his eyes as if she were afraid she would never see him again.
Harris ran his hand through a tuft of her hair and placed it behind her ear. He then took hold of one of her hands and kissed it gently. "Something that will never happen again thanks to your brother," he said. He wrapped his arms around her and she let her hands rest on his hips nervously.
I looked at Gentry as he stood next to me. "What's the latest report?" I asked.
"All six transports landed and everyone has taken an offensive position against the city. Four thousand policemen are currently in the fight while the other two thousand are looking on in case things go awry. So far, so good," he said. He turned his ear towards the other side of the city as sounds of gunfire erupted in the distance. "Sounds like things are getting off to a great start," he smiled.
"Excellent, but we need to get Harris out of harm’s way and to some medical attention. He's lost a lot of blood and the only thing helping him with the pain is Serum," I replied. I looked back at him and Kara as they held close to one another. He was masking his pain for her, but I knew the facade would not last long. Eventually he would give in to it and collapse. I could only hope we could get him back to safety before that happened.
Gentry thought for a moment, "We can take him back to our transport where Pontiff White's medical staff is waiting. We need to hurry though so we can come back to the fight. I don't want to miss anything," he replied. Gentry had been geared up for this fight for so long he was borderline obsessive about it. Understandably so when you considered what all he had been forced to do and had to endure all these years.
"Can you help me move him? His back is really torn up and it's difficult for him to move." I knew it would be impossible for him to make the walk on his own power.
"Of course," he said; walking over to Harris and grabbing an arm. "Kara, Laurel, you two stand point in case we come under attack. The transport is about five miles away from here so let's take it nice and slow." Gentry supported Harris' weight with one arm while I took hold of the other.
Kara went ahead of us while Laurel stayed close behind as Gentry and I helped Harris walk. It was slow going and we stayed in the woods for the entire first half of the trip until the sounds of warfare faded in the distance. Once it was safe we took to the roads which made carrying Harris a little easier. Even with Gentry and me supporting him it took almost two hours before we saw the transport. It was like seeing water in a desert.
Several crewmen were armed to defend the transport from invasion. Once we were in sight several of them came over with a stretcher to lay Harris down on to carry him on board. "Let the doctor know he has severe back lacerations and has not had any medicine. I did give him a vile of Serum to help numb the pain, but it seems to be wearing off," I said as they placed him on the stretcher. I looked down at him and saw him wince with each movement.
The crewmen immediately grabbed the stretcher and carried him towards the transport. Kara placed a hand on my shoulder, "I want to stay with him," she said.
I turned to look at her. She was scared for him and I knew she needed to be here. "That's fine, maybe Laurel can stay to keep you company," I said.
"I can do that," Laurel said.
Kara shook her head. "Thank you."
I stepped up to Laurel and gave her a hug and a kiss. She was still wearing the strawberry lip balm I so loved. "I'll see you soon. I love you," I said.
"I love you too," she replied after returning the kiss.
I took Kara's hand in mine. "Keep an eye on him. He's been through a lot."
"All right," she said. "Be careful out there."
"I will," I replied. I turned to look at Gentry. "Are you ready?"
He looked coyly at me. "You can bet your life on it," he said.
I smiled. "Let's do this."
Chapter 23
The walk back to Faracon went much faster than when we carried Harris back to the transport. Even Gentry, twice my age, kept a quick pace and showed no signs of getting tired. When we arrived there, were still loud shots filling the air and we could hear soldiers barking orders and crying out in pain. It sounded like a rather one-sided devastation. Gentry and I moved through the tree line, hoping to flank some of the Faracon soldiers and keep them from retreating.
We entered the city in almost the same area I had left it. I recognized the building where Harris and I had been held captive as we took our positions near it. Several blocks away there seemed to be a lot of commotion with gunfire and artillery. "You stay on that side and I'll take this side; we can approach and take cover behind those units while covering for each other," Gentry said.
"Roger," I said, moving quickly to the other side of the street. I took my position and looked back at the older man, relying on his experience to make the best decision. Our gauntlets could fire from here, but once we were discovered we could be easily flanked. Besides, the effectiveness of our gauntlets was diminished quite a bit at long distances. Gentry counted down from three with his fingers and pointed for me to take the lead.
I jumped out from behind my perch and ran up to the first unit. It seemed to be an air conditioning unit, based on the large fan spinning inside of it. The ambient air was blowing up from the vent and it felt warm to the touch. I looked back at Gentry and gave him a nod as I crouched down behind the unit with only my head exposed. I could see some activity, but it was hazy because of the smoke and fumes from their weapons.
Gentry went ahead of me to what looked like some kind of steel shed. He made eye contact with me and nodded, letting me know to go again. I moved around the unit and jogged towards a section of wall that protruded from the building. It didn't seem to have any real purpose, but at least it would block me from being detected. I kept my arm up and my gauntlet armed as I ran towards it. I kept an eye out on all of the activity until I stopped and knelt behind the wall. We continued in this way until we were within a single block of the soldiers.
Instead of staying on his side of the street, Gentry moved over to me and together we hid behind a large vehicle. It was dilapidated and would probably never run again, but it was useful to us. "Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes, what's your plan?"
"We're going to go in shooting. Stay low and try to maintain some kind of boundary between us and them. Once they catch on, they will move out and expect us to come up this street, but look there," he pointed at a ladder leading up the side of a building. "We can take that up to the top and fire down upon them."
It’s a good plan, I thought. "Sounds great. On three?"
He nodded.
"One. Two. Three," I said and we both took our positions and fired our gauntlets at the small band of soldiers standing near the heavy artillery. The first six men fell in front of their friends without anyon
e realizing what was happening. There were still over a dozen men who scattered, trying to find a defensive position to fight from. "You first," I said as we approached the ladder on the side of the building. I stood at the bottom and kept an eye out for some kind of assault. One of the soldiers got impatient and turned the corner with his weapon drawn. I made short work of him with the blast of a blue laser beam between his eyes. Daylight showed through the wound in his head as he fell dead in the street.
"Serus," Gentry called down from the roof.
I looked up and nodded; quickly grabbing the rungs and pulling myself up the ladder. It was only three stories tall, but it was high enough to get an idea of what was going on around us without being exposed on the street. We took separate sides of the building and fired down into the crowd of soldiers. Some of them were well hidden, but all we needed was a shadow or a reflection in a window of one of them moving, and we could fire through whatever barrier they were hiding behind. One of the men was unfortunate enough to be hiding inside a wooden crate. I quickly set it ablaze, and he burned inside of it.
"Serus!" Gentry called over to me with panic in his voice. I looked over to see a soldier with a knife to Gentry's throat. Gentry's arm with the gauntlet was being held to his own head by the soldier’s free hand.
"Let him go," I shouted.
The soldier stood there, silent, obviously seething. "No, you brought this war to us."
I kept my gauntlet aimed at him as I stepped towards them. "You have it wrong. Faracon attacked Midican. We came to set Harris free and take out The Syndicate. If you are working for them, then you are our enemy. Otherwise, you can go. The choice is yours," I said.
"They said you would say that. They said a lot of things."