by P. T. Hylton
“It is pretty weird,” Ed agreed. “But I think the opportunity to kill vampires kinda makes up for it.”
“Agreed,” Chuck said with a smile.
Patrick raised the radio to his mouth. “Jaden, do you read? We are trying to save your undead ass. Do you read?”
A broken voice came through, but Alex was only able to catch a few words.
Patrick looked at Alex. “No improvement.”
“Then we keep moving.”
They’d walked for twenty more minutes in a variety of directions before they noticed the signal strengthening. They then continued northeast ten more minutes before finding a spot where they could clearly hear Jaden.
“Pass me the radio,” Alex said.
Patrick’s eyes narrowed and his mouth fell open. He looked genuinely offended. “Wait, you’re saying I did all that work, and now I don’t get to keep the radio for the payoff?”
She held out her hand, a stern look on her face.
“Fine.” He slapped the radio into her waiting hand.
“Jaden, you there?” she said into the radio.
His voice was still a bit staticky, but she could understand his voice. “Alex, you need to be careful. There are enemy soldiers in the city.”
“Yeah, we kinda figured that out from the giant crater. Where are you?”
“We’re underground. In the storm drains.”
“Okay, give me a location. We’ll come to you.”
“Probably a good idea if you don’t want me to burst into flames,” Jaden said. Through the static, she could hear the annoyance in his voice. Daysickness. Of course he was going to be cranky. “Okay, there’s a building a few blocks north of the crater. It has three tall windows on the front. There’s a metal sign on the top that says ‘Union Station’.”
“Yeah, we can find that.” She’d seen the building in the distance.
“Good. If you’re walking straight at the building, there’s a manhole cover about a half block away.”
“Manhole?” That was a strange combination of words she hadn’t heard before.
“Damn you sheltered humans,” Jaden muttered. “It’s a metal lid covering a hole in the street. I’ll open it a little for you so you can come down.”
“On our way.” Alex put the radio on her belt and turned to her team. “Looks like we’re headed underground.”
“Of course we are,” Wesley said with a grin. “Wouldn’t be a GMT mission if we didn’t go somewhere dark and scary.”
They found the spot without difficulty, and the manhole cover was open a crack, just as Jaden had told them. Alex called down, “We’re going to open the cover the rest of the way. Sunlight incoming!”
Patrick pulled the cover aside and they all dropped down into the storm drains.
Alex was the first to go down. After she landed, she stepped out of the sunlight and let her eyes adjust to the darkness. Before long, she could see large figures in the shadows. Jaden and six other vampires.
“Alex,” Jaden said, “why am I unsurprised you didn’t stay in Agartha?”
Alex and her team stood in silence as the listed to Jaden recount what had happened the previous night. The unexpected sniper ambush. The Ferals going on a rampage. The explosion at the water-treatment facility.
When he’d finished, there was a long silence.
Finally, Alex spoke. “I don’t understand. If the vampire soldiers are the Resettlers from New Haven, why would they attack you? Were they going after the ship? Did they want to get home?”
Jaden sighed. “I’m afraid it's not that simple. There are two vampires named Mark and Aaron. They were Ferals until recently when they returned to their intelligent form. I took them in at Agartha for a while, but I threw them out after they tried to take advantage of my hospitality. I believe they’re here to take their revenge on me. With a new army under their control.”
Wesley scratched at his chin. “So how the hell did they get all the Resettlers under their control?”
“They must have found the Resettlement site and personally turned all the Resettlers.”
Alex held up a finger. “Hang on, I’m still stuck on another part of the story. Two Ferals returned to intelligent form. The only way to do that is by drinking blood, right?”
“Correct.”
Alex spoke slowly, afraid she knew where this was going. “And when did this happen?”
Jaden met her gaze with a cold, unwavering stare. “Mark and Aaron showed up shortly after you left Agartha the first time.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that.” She felt a chill run through her. “I only know of one human who was killed by a vampire near Agartha around that time.”
Wesley’s eyes widened as he started to understand. “These are the vamps that killed Drew?”
Alex nodded slowly. She expected to feel anger, but instead she just felt cold. “These bastards killed our friend, and then Jaden took them in, knowing what they’d done.”
“They were Ferals in the grip of mindless hunger,” Jaden explained.
“Did you even consider that they’d just killed Drew?” She asked, her voice even. “Whose side are you on, Jaden? The vampires or the humans?”
Jaden took a step forward, and there was a slight snarl in his voice when he spoke. “I’m on the same side I’ve always been on. The one fighting for the continued existence of life on this planet. I saved Mark and Aaron from starvation, yes. And I saved you and your friends when you were dumb enough to stay out on your little rover after dark.”
Alex took a small step back. She’d never seen Jaden like this. His emotions seemed so close to the surface, like they were threatening to boil over.
He took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. It’s the daysickness. It makes me act… different.” He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. “Look, I made mistakes, and my friends have paid dearly for them. I won’t apologize for taking Mark and Aaron in. They were confused and suffering when they showed up on our door. But I will apologize for letting them go once they revealed their true natures. I should have ended their miserable lives then and there.”
“But you didn’t,” Alex pointed out. “And now everything has gone to shit.”
“This is not the ideal scenario,” Jaden admitted.
Alex cocked her head, unable to believe what she’d just heard. “Not an ideal scenario? Is that what you’d call it?”
“Alex,” Wesley said, putting a hand on her shoulder, but she brushed it away.
“These two monsters killed three hundred people. People who wanted nothing more than to make a better life. Now these two vampires you let go have my fellow New Haven citizens as their undead slaves. That’s more than just not ideal. It’s fucking horrific.”
A strange sound that was almost a growl escaped Jaden’s throat. “It could be much worse. If the settlement had been wiped out by Ferals rather than by Mark and Aaron, we’d have hundreds of Ferals returned to their intelligent, human state. They’d be running around, out of control, each with their own agenda. We’d have hundreds of Marks and Aarons. At least now it’s contained.”
“So what, we just let them run free in Denver?”
“No!” His voice was a full snarl now. “We kill Mark and Aaron. That’ll set the others free.”
Ed patted his rifle. “Finally, a plan I can get behind. Let’s do it.”
Alex ignored him, keeping her gaze fixed on Jaden. “And what then? We have three hundred vampires. We can’t take them back to New Haven. Are they going to live in Agartha?”
“I don’t… I don’t know. I haven’t thought that far ahead.” Jaden put his hand over his eyes and lowered his head.
For the first time, Alex noticed that the other members of Jaden’s team were struggling. None of them had spoken a word since Alex and her team arrived. Two of them were leaning against the wall; their half-opened eyes looked drugged. The rest were slumped on the floor in various states of consciousness.
She turned back to Jaden.
“You still with me, big guy?”
For a moment, he didn’t respond. Then he let out a deep sigh and rubbed his eyes. “You have no idea how difficult it is to function during the day. We’re all strong enough to pull it off, but just barely. Any of the newly turned vampires who are awake really hate life now.” He paused a moment, then looked at her. “I’m curious if you’re really as capable as you seem to think you are.”
Patrick took a step forward. “I’ll bet Captain Goddard’s capable enough to kick your tired ass.”
Alex flashed him a look, then turned back to the vampire. “Jaden, if you have an idea, spit it out.”
He took so long to answer that she was beginning to think he hadn’t heard the question, but then he spoke.
“As much as I hate to say it, now may be our best chance to kill Mark and Aaron. They’re trapped by the daylight, just like us. If we can find them and get to them...”
Chuck frowned. “Assuming we can make it through the million or so Ferals down here and get past any vampire soldiers they left as guards.”
“Yes,” Jaden said with a weak smile. “There is that. There are seven of my vampires left. I believe two more may still be alive in another location. They were attempting to lead the Ferals away and got separated from the group.”
“Those are long odds, Captain,” Chuck said. “He’s daysick. Not thinking clearly.”
Jaden didn’t bother arguing.
“Listen, Jaden,” Alex said, “you helped my team. Saved us from certain death twice. That doesn’t mean pissed about all this, but it does mean I owe you our help. We owe it to the Resettlers too. There’s no way we’re going to leave anyone from New Haven as a vampire slave.”
“Oh, thank God,” Patrick muttered. “I thought Chuck was going to talk you out of it for a second.”
“You want someone to hunt down vampires, you’ve come to the right place. That’s what the GMT is all about.”
Jaden looked at Alex and smiled. “We’ll give you all the support we can.”
“Thoughts on where we should start?”
Jaden nodded. “If you can help me get my other two team members, we can even the odds a little.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Ed shook his head in wonder. “Heh, the GMT teaming up with vampires for a mission. Who would have expected that?”
16
“The flight deck is the most heavily protected part of the ship from an electronic security standpoint,” Jessica said.
“Makes sense,” CB replied. “One thing you don’t want on a ship is the wrong person getting their hands on the controls.”
They were back in the tunnels in the belly of New Haven making their way toward the flight deck. A few hours of sleep had made a world of difference for Jessica and Brian, and even CB had managed forty minutes of shuteye before his senses of caution and his instincts told him it was time to move on from Wesley’s apartment.
He’d put it off long enough. It was time to make their big move. He only hoped the false leads from the residents of Sparrow’s Ridge would keep the faceless GMT off their tails long enough for them to pull it off.
“Our only hope,” Brian said, “is to get into the server room. Then I might be able to hack the system.”
“Will we be able to control the ship remotely from there?” CB asked.
Jessica shot him a look. “Afraid not. You really don’t know how this ship works, do you?”
CB chuckled. “I guess I was too busy risking my life on the surface getting you parts to learn about the flight mechanics.”
“Yeah, well, while you were playing hero, some of us were getting our hands dirty up here.”
“Oh, my hands got plenty dirty down there,” CB objected with a smile. “Blood’s hard to wash out from under your fingernails.”
Brian shook his head. “You two have a truly strange way of flirting.”
CB flushed. “We weren’t… It was just a friendly conversation.”
Jessica raised an eyebrow. “We weren’t flirting? Too bad.” She quickly changed the subject before he could respond. “Look, the flight controls are a physical system. It was built that way so no one could hack in and take control of the ship.”
Brian nodded his agreement. “Don’t get it wrong, there are plenty of systems on this ship we can control by hacking in. We could have some serious fun. But controlling the actual flight of the ship? No, sorry.”
Jessica stopped walking and pointed up. “This is it. Here’s how we get into the control tower.”
They stood silently, each contemplating the severity of what they were about to do. Taking control of the ship, what they would have been called a mutiny back in the pre-infestation days. Everything they’d been working for had been leading to this.
“All right,” CB said. “Up we go.”
Brian tilted his head. “Hang on. ‘Up we go’? That’s your motivational speech? I’ve heard you in dozens of briefings and you always get the team psyched for the mission. You can do better than ‘up we go.’”
CB chuckled. “I guess it’s not the most eloquent speech I’ve given. But honestly, what else is there to say? We’ve already been through hell together, and we know what’s coming next is going to be even more difficult. And that’s not even considering what happens after. If we lose, we’ll be killed. If we win, we get to work our asses off putting this city back together and convincing the people we aren’t traitors. Either way, it’s not going to be easy.”
Jessica looked at Brian. “I thought you said he was good at motivational speeches.”
“The positive part’s coming,” Brian replied. “At least, I hope so.”
“I’m afraid it’s not,” CB replied. “There’s nothing I could say that would make this easier. But I will say this. As much as I love Alex and the GMT, there are no two people I’d rather have by my side on this mission.”
“There it is,” Brian said with a grin.
Jessica’s eyes shone as she stared at CB. “That was… it was really touching.”
“I meant it,” the colonel replied. “Now, come on. Like I said before, up we go.”
CB laced his fingers and gave Brian a boost up into the ductwork. Then he gestured for Jessica to step into his hand.
Instead, she grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him close. For a moment, CB pulled back in surprise, but then he leaned toward her. Their lips touched, softly at first, but soon the passion overtook them both.
Finally, Jessica pulled away and smiled. “I figured a little extra motivation couldn’t hurt. Get us through this and we can see where that goes. Now how about that boost?”
As he lifted her into the duct, CB promised himself he would live through this. He wanted to experience a thousand more kisses like that one. And he was eager to see where those kisses would lead.
Jessica and Brian each lowered a hand. CB jumped, catching them both, and they pulled him up.
“Um don’t worry, I wasn’t watching,” Brian said once CB was in the duct. “And if I had been, I wouldn’t want to say another word about it, because it would already be super awkward. Hypothetically.”
CB was suddenly grateful for the darkness in the ducts so Jessica couldn’t see him blush.
They came out of the ducts in a hallway on the bottom level of the control tower. CB stuck his head through first, and when he saw it was empty, he breathed a sigh of relief. Other parts of the mission would depend on good fortune, but this hallway was the only place their success or failure would depend solely on dumb luck.
They moved through the hallway quickly and quietly, making their way to the door to the server room. When they reached it, CB stood watch while Jessica removed a panel and Brian went to work hacking the locking mechanism.
The lock opened with a soft beep, and Brian grinned. “Easy as that. I thought you said this was going to difficult, CB?”
“Why do I wish you hadn’t said that?” Jessica asked.
They stepped inside, and CB saw an orga
nized maze of wires plugged into rows of servers. He stood by the door while Brian got to work. None of them spoke as the low hum of the electrical equipment filled the air. CB stayed close to the door, listening for any approaching workers in the hallway. Brian was too in the zone to notice anything outside his tablet screen, and Jessica paced back and forth, one moment listening at the door with CB, in the next moment looking over Brian's shoulder.
After about ten minutes, CB asked, “How’s it going, Brian?”
For a moment, CB thought Brian hadn't heard him, but he finally responded. "Great. I'm getting control of quite a few systems. My only concern is that even if I override the locking mechanisms to get us onto the flight deck, Fleming's people will also have control of the systems on their end.”
“Which means his faceless GMT will be able to waltz right on to the flight deck," Jessica said.
“Exactly," Brian confirmed.
CB grunted in annoyance. "There has to be a way for us to lock down the flight deck. If not, there's no point to us even getting in there. It's going to take time for us to change the course of the ship, and we need those fake GMT goons locked outside."
Brian said nothing to that.
CB and Jessica exchanged a glance.
“Any thoughts?” Jessica asked.
“Just a moment,” Brian answered. “I’ve got us into the security system. Jessica, jack your tablet in. I’ll route the feed to you so you can make sure our route is clear.”
Jessica did as he asked, and less than a minute later she was watching a live feed from security cameras on her tablet.
Their entire level was surprisingly empty, but a few moments later Jessica gasped.
"Shit. Look at this, CB, we've got company."
CB peered over her shoulder and let out a curse at what he saw. Six of the faceless GMT members were marching down the hallway, their weapons drawn.
Jessica glanced back at CB. "I don't suppose this is a routine security check."
"Unless a lot has changed in the last forty-eight hours, GMT isn’t in charge of ship security. And even if they were, they sure as hell wouldn't need that kind of firepower while simply walking their rounds."