by P. T. Hylton
Alex ran hard, trying and failing to push aside the emotions swirling inside of her. She knew just enough to understand that she was in no state to lead the team at the moment, so she just followed Jaden.
“Here!” Jaden shouted, stopping suddenly and pointing upward. It took Alex a moment to figure out what he was pointing at. Then she realized that there was a manhole overhead. “Owl, we’ll hold off the Twisted. The rest of you, get topside, now!”
Chuck raced up the ladder in just a few seconds. When he reached the top, he stopped, and it took him a moment to lift the ancient cover off the manhole. As the first sliver of light came down through the opening, Owl hissed.
Alex turned, realizing the Twisted were upon them.
Owl dove forward, hands outstretched, sinking the claws of her left hand into the first Twisted’s chest. She hurled him to the ground, drew her pistol with her other hand, and shot him in the head. Jaden’s twin swords flashed as he went to work, quickly dropping two more of the enemies.
Alex glanced up and saw Chuck disappear into the daylight. She drew her pistol and took aim at another Twisted. His eyes were wide, and she saw terror in them. Was it any wonder? Not only was he going up against the legendary GMT, but he’d just seen three of his comrades torn apart by Owl and Jaden in mere moments. Alex steeled herself and fired, putting an end to the Twisted’s fear and his life.
Ed was at the top of the ladder now. “Come on, Alex! Your turn.”
She put a hand on the ladder, ready to start upward, but glanced down the tunnel. Strangely, there were no more Twisted coming. She didn’t have a clue how many Twisted Maryana had with her, but it was certainly more than three. “Where’s the rest of them?”
“Don’t know,” Jaden said. “We need room to maneuver. Head up.”
Alex considered overriding his order for a moment, but decided she didn’t want to be stuck down in this tunnel with a bunch of Twisted anyway, and began to climb.
When she pulled herself through the manhole, she saw Ed and Chuck standing on either side of her, weapons raised. She quickly got to her feet and drew her own weapon. Less than half a block east lay the remains of the building they’d destroyed. At least ten Twisted had already pulled themselves from the rubble, and more were emerging by the moment. To the west, a Twisted leaped up through a manhole, joining a group already waiting. Including Maryana and CB.
“Looks like they’ve got us flanked, Captain,” Ed muttered.
“Thanks for that astute observation,” she replied. Owl climbed through the manhole, followed by Jaden.
The Twisted on either side stood watching, waiting for the kill order that they knew was coming. Maryana looked at the GMT with something bordering on pity.
“You could give up, you know,” she said. “I might let a couple of you live. Not Jaden, of course. But Alex, maybe. I could make you and CB fight to the death. That’d be interesting.” She paused. “On the other hand, I guess I can already do that.”
There were twenty Twisted near the rubble to the east, now. The GMT was cornered, and from what Alex could see, there was no escape route.
“What do you think, CB?” Maryana said. “Answer honestly. Are they going to surrender?”
“No,” CB said.
Maryana gave him an amused smile. “What do you think is going to happen?”
His voice was cold. “I think Alex is going to kill you.”
The smile melted off Maryana’s face, and anger flickered in her eyes. “And here, I thought you were smart.” She raised her voice, addressing all the Twisted. “Listen up! It’s time to—”
The sound of a gunshot split the air, and Maryana staggered forward. Behind her, Felix stood, bandaged and bloody, smoke curling skyward from the barrel of his rifle.
22
Three point nine grams of lead might not seem like much, but sometimes the smallest things can make the biggest difference. There was nothing small about the hole the bullet put in Maryana’s chest. Blood and bone tore through her shirt, and the Twisted standing next to her were covered in the spray. Alex watched her fall to the ground and for one glorious moment, she believed the war was over. Maybe Maryana was dead and CB was free. But unfortunately, in his weakened state, Felix’s shot was a little off. The bullet missed her heart by half an inch. The smallest things can make the biggest difference.
Maryana screamed and tried to get up, but her legs didn’t function. The shot might have missed her heart, but it tore her spine in half. She clawed at the ground around her, desperately trying to rise, but stuck on her back. Alex intended to make sure she never got up. She leveled her pistol and squeezed a round off. One of the Twisted jumped in the way and covered Maryana with his body.
“Protect me! Kill them! Kill them all!” The words came out muffled through the blood leaking from Maryana’s mouth.
The Twisted closest to Maryana circled around their mistress, while the ones near the rubble charged the GMT. Alex fired one shot into the group surrounding Maryana before she focused attention on the group running at them. The GMT was completely exposed on the street. Alex knew that they would not survive long without cover.
“Move!” Alex shouted, as a bullet flew by her ear.
The team rushed toward an alley between two buildings. Only Jaden did not follow Alex’s order. He raced toward Maryana with a sword in each hand.
Most of the Twisted coming from the rubble were moving slowly. They were broken and mangled, injured by the building that had fallen on them. Alex could see the pain in their eyes as they ran toward her with gaping wounds and bones protruding from the skin. Ed’s rifle crackled to life and one of the Twisted flipped onto her back. The team continued firing at the approaching Twisted, while they moved for cover.
Jaden raced toward the Twisted guarding Maryana. He covered the distance to them in an instant, watching gun barrels, trying to avoid their fire. The number of enemies and the open space made it impossible. He spun and stumbled when a bullet tore into his left shoulder and another pierced through his right calf. His momentum carried him into the tight group of Twisted.
Alex and the team reached the alley and darted between the two brick buildings. Each building rose four stories into the air and the alley between them was wide enough to drive a large truck through. Alex crouched against the building on one side of the alley and Ed was against the other, both of them in a position to defend the entrance.
They didn’t have to wait long for the enemy. A Twisted dashed into the alley, and Alex shot him in the chest. As he fell, Alex recognized him as a badge with whom she’d occasionally played cards. But there was no time to mourn him; more Twisted were dashing toward the alley.
“Chuck, we need a sniper!” Alex shouted, while she and Ed fired at incoming Twisted.
Chuck scanned the windows twenty feet up on either side of them. “Roger that. It will take time to get up there.”
“I’ve got you.” Owl wrapped an arm around Chuck’s waist. She jumped halfway up the building, landing on the wall to her right and pushing off with her legs. The push was enough to get them on top of the second building.
“Holy shit, thanks,” Chuck said as he orientated himself to the sudden change in location. He settled on the edge of the roof with his rifle in hand. Owl jumped down, landing next to Alex and Ed.
Up ahead, Alex saw Jaden smash into the line of Twisted who were protecting Maryana. He knocked them off balance, pushing Twisted into each other. An ancient sword went through one Twisted’s heart as he crashed into the group. The chaos of the close fight worked against the inexperienced soldiers. Several tried to grab Jaden, but he slashed off hands as they shot toward him. One of the Twisted raised his rifle a foot from Jaden’s head. Jaden moved to the side and pulled in one of the others who had grabbed him, moving his captive’s face in front of the barrel. The Twisted shot his comrade in the face at point blank range.
Twisted charged into the alley. Ed’s rifle blasted in rapid bursts. He shot four Twisted in center
mass, stopping their forward movement. He missed two of their hearts, but Alex finished each of them with a shot to the head. She edged forward toward the end of the alley, and spotted a group of ten Twisted headed for Jaden.
“Chuck, they are trying to protect Maryana. Don’t let them get away.” As she finished speaking, a clawed hand reached around the corner of the building and grabbed her, pulling her out of the alley and tossing her into the street. She flew twenty feet and rolled as she hit the asphalt. Shaking her head to clear it, she struggled to her feet and raised her pistol. The Twisted who had grabbed her was still crouched at the alley’s opening. It was CB.
Alex gritted her teeth, and forced herself to fire, but he was already in motion, diving to his right.
She cursed softly, unable to believe the absolute chaos of the fight. A strategic ambush had turned into a street brawl. She saw Jaden struggling in a group of Twisted to her left. He looked badly injured. Chuck fired from the roof above, while Ed and Owl defended the alley below.
Alex tried to focus on CB, but before she re-engaged, something else caught her attention. A group of Twisted was pulling Maryana away from the battle. Two of them carried her, while the rest formed a tight, protective circle around them. One of them dropped, a victim of Chuck’s elevated position, but there were so many that he wouldn’t be able to take out all of them.
Still, she knew she had to finish CB while she had the chance. He was back on his feet now, angling toward her. She focused on the task at hand, pushing her knowledge that this was CB to the back of her mind, and began to fire. He moved fast enough to stay ahead of Alex's shots and dove behind the remains of a bus. Bullets sparked against the metal as he took cover.
Alex dropped her clip and slammed a new one into her pistol. She was ready to fire at the first sign of motion. CB came around the front of the vehicle and threw an old tire at Alex. His strength sent the object flying with enough speed to kill her. The side of the tire brushed against Alex’s arm as she ducked out of the way. She crouched, her pistol ready, but CB was already on top of her. He hit her hand hard enough to send the pistol flying across the street. She sprang to her feet as he drew back a clawed fist. Before he could land the deadly punch, Owl crashed into him at full speed.
Owl clawed at CB’s face while they tumbled away from Alex. CB grabbed Owl’s arm and controlled his fall as they tumbled to the pavement. By the time they stopped rolling, he was on top of her. He held her arm pinned behind her back while she lay on her stomach, face against the street. Owl struggled as CB began to pull the arm from the body. Despair crossed her face. In all their sparring matches, she’d never beaten CB.
But she wasn’t alone in this fight. Alex sprang toward CB, her sword raised. She swung at his neck, but he saw the blade in time to bring up an arm and deflect the blade. Owl used the opportunity to push up off of the ground and flip CB onto his back. Blood dripped from his arm as Alex pressed the attack.
Alex swung her sword, but CB moved with vampire speed. The blade made the air sing as he ducked below it. She knew his fighting style and moved her head back to avoid an uppercut that would have removed her head. She spun while dropping low. The blade became an extension of her body. It moved with her, slashing toward CB’s knees. He jumped back in time to avoid the strike.
Owl punched him in the side as he landed. He moved with the force of the blow and grabbed Owl’s arm, pulling down hard and bringing his knee up into her forearm. The crack was loud, and Owl’s arm bent where there was no joint. She screamed and slashed wildly with her other arm.
The crack of Chuck’s rifle rippled through the air and a scream came from Maryana’s direction. Another burst of fire came from her group in the distance.
Alex saw Jaden slice his sword into the last Twisted from the crowd that he had been fighting. She hoped he would help to subdue CB, but he only took a single step before falling to one knee among the pile of dead Twisted.
Ed stood at the opening of the alley now, rifle raised as he tried to get a clear shot at CB. CB was still focused on Owl; he gave her a side kick that sent her flying into the bus. The old, rusted shell crumpled when she slammed against it.
Alex moved to the side, giving Ed his opening. Alex’s eyes darted to his position and CB spotted the glance. It was all the warning he needed. He sprinted across the street a step ahead of the trail of Ed’s bullets. From above them, Chuck’s rifle cracked again.
CB sprinted three steps and lunged into the air. His leap carried him impossibly high, and he managed to snag the edge of the roof with his hand. He quickly pulled himself up. In a moment, his hand was around Chuck’s throat.
Alex watched in horror as CB raised Chuck into the air, over the edge of the building. Even from the ground, she could see CB was shaking.
“I’m sorry,” CB said. Then he squeezed, and Chuck’s neck bent at an impossible angle. Then he let go, and Chuck’s body fell to the ground.
23
Alex watched in horror as Chuck’s body tumbled from the rooftop to the pavement below.
How the hell had things gotten so terrible so quickly? She remembered the beginning of the fight, when she’d first heard Maryana’s voice in the drainage tunnel. She’d thought then that this fight was going to change the world. And for Alex, it had changed the world, but not in the way she’d expected.
Chuck was dead, and CB had killed him.
Jaden was right. Everyone under Maryana’s control was the enemy, including CB. She couldn’t afford to hold back against him. Not only for her sake, but for his. Being forced to kill his teammates? Alex could imagine no worse fate.
She raised her pistol, hoping to get off a shot, but CB had disappeared. Her head swiveled as she searched for some sign of him, but she saw nothing. He must have retreated, along with the others.
Alex heard the slightest sound behind her, so soft, that she couldn’t even be certain it hadn’t been her imagination. She spun toward it, raising her weapon, and as soon as she saw CB’s distinct form, she fired.
Of course CB hadn’t retreated. She knew him better than that. Maryana had ordered him to protect her, and CB knew that the best way to do that was to kill Alex.
The round from Alex’s pistol hit him in the chest, knocking him back a step, but he kept his feet. The pain, emotional and physical, stood out in his eyes.
Alex steadied her weapon, preparing to fire again. This time she would hit his heart. She took careful aim, wanting this shot to count. Or perhaps, a little voice in the back of her head suggested, she was stalling. For all of her bluster, she wasn’t sure she could kill CB.
“Twisted, to me!” Maryana shouted.
CB’s head swiveled toward the sound, and he immediately took off toward it. Frustration and relief flooded Alex. She’d failed to kill CB, and now she’d have to face him again. But at least she wouldn’t have to kill him today. As CB sprinted off, Alex snapped out of her shocked state. Her team needed her. “Owl, get Chuck!”
Owl paused, knowing just as well as Alex did that Chuck was beyond help, but then she nodded and ran to where he’d fallen.
“The rest of you, let’s thin the herd!”
All around, Twisted were retreating, pulling back at Maryana’s orders. The GMT fired at their fleeing enemies. Ed got in a shot, taking down one of them, but the rest managed to limp off, each sporting a few new bullet holes. Alex considered giving chase, but she knew there were still too many Twisted left. They might be running now, but if the GMT attacked their master, they’d turn around mighty quickly.
“Team, let’s regroup,” she said. She turned back toward the building where Chuck had fallen. “Owl—”
What she saw made her stop talking. Owl stood in the road behind them, Chuck’s corpse in her arms.
Alex didn’t like the morgue. It was all cold steel and overly bright lighting. The chilly air prickled her skin, and goosebumps sprang out on her arms and neck. She didn’t move. Her eyes remained fixed on Chuck’s body.
Agartha’
s coroner had yet to go to work, so Chuck looked exactly as he had when Owl had lain him in the back of the transport. He still wore his GMT uniform, complete with black vest and a holstered pistol at his belt. His boots were dusty from the rubble where they’d battled the Twisted, and the bottoms were caked with mud. From the chest down, he looked normal. Battle-ready, even.
But look a bit higher, and there was no mistaking that the man was dead. It wasn’t just his slack face or his bluish lips. It was the angle of his head. No matter how many times they’d tried to straighten it, they couldn’t quite get it to look natural. CB had so demolished Chuck’s neck that his head refused to stay upright. It lolled to the side every time.
“I figured I’d find you here.”
Alex bristled with annoyance at being disturbed here of all places, but then she recognized the voice. She turned and hugged Brian. “It’s all fucked up. Every bit of it.”
Brian tried futility to keep the disturbed expression off his face as he caught his first glimpse of Chuck’s body. “I’m so sorry, Alex.”
She let go of Brian and turned back to her fallen friend. “There’s been too much death. Is it ever going to end? And now it’s not just our enemies. CB did this.”
Brian put his hand on her shoulder. “Just remember, he’s not himself. It wasn’t really him who did this.”
Alex tilted her head in surprise. “It was, though. He has to follow Maryana’s orders, but he’s still CB. That’s what makes this all so terrible. Without his skills, his battle savvy, they never would have survived our ambush. He’s going to be one step ahead of us, just like he’s always been. Only, Maryana gets to take advantage of that now.”
“Until you kill her,” Brian said with a weak smile.
“Yeah.” All of a sudden, the weight of it hit Alex. They were counting on her. Brian. The GMT. Agartha. Probably New Haven, too. They were all counting on her to come save them. She felt like she might break under the weight of it all.