Strikeforce

by Nick James

  He had to lose them.

  “If you puke,” he started, “don’t puke on me.”

  With that, he brought the cruiser into a dizzying series of loops, whipping the ship back and forth in violent bursts, hoping to knock the foot soldiers off.

  And he did. With a screech, he felt the weight drop from the cruiser. He couldn’t tell where the creatures ended up, but he knew they’d come right back, angrier than before.

  “I’m using a boost,” he announced, though he didn’t expect any argument.

  Before the soldiers could come back, he reached up and turned the dial to full power. With a series of flips and clicks, the system’s emergency boost kicked in, counting down from five. It would use much of their power up, but they needed to get away if they were to survive. He didn’t want to crash land on the Surface, especially with the soldiers nearby.

  He straightened out the cruiser before the countdown reached zero, pointing it eastward.

  The boost initiated. He slammed back into his seat, hardly able to breathe as the cruiser rocketed forward at speeds twenty times its already quick norm. The sky became a blur of motion. Normally, he’d worry about crashing into something, but they were just under the International Skyline. He doubted—hoped—that no Unified Party vehicles would be airborne at a time like this.

  When they finally slowed down, their radar showed them as being over the eastern border of Colorado, a good two hundred miles away from where they’d previously flown.

  Madame breathed a sigh of relief. Her hand shook at her side. “Cassius,” she started. “That was—”

  “You’re welcome,” he replied, folding the override steering back into its compartment and returning the power to her. “Stay at this altitude. I know you like to think you’re invincible, but you’re not.”

  He stood.

  Eva glanced up at him. “Where are you going?”

  “To the back,” he replied. “I’m gonna take stock of our supplies. Weapons. Rations. First aid. This isn’t gonna be easy.”

  “Do you want help?”

  “No,” he said. “Keep her under control.” He didn’t meet Madame’s eyes. “Make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid. And run a functional inventory … make sure those Authority goons didn’t rip anything important from our hull.” He moved to the door, opening it to reveal the cabin beyond. “Let me know when we’re closer to Atlas.”

  8

  Trails of smoke beckon us forward, rising from Portland’s Bio-Net like fingers. The city sits on the horizon, right in the center of the cruiser’s windshield. Even from a distance, I can see the war raging. Red Pearls continue to fall from the sky, hitting the ground like meteors and instantly transforming into Authority soldiers.

  The air is clogged with vehicles around us. People trying to get out, maybe. Unified Party cruisers hoping to fight the battle from above. With every minute we remain airborne, another shuttle comes crashing to the ground. They land in fiery explosions, pelting the earth like broken toys. Most are accompanied by parachutes, thank god, but not all. And the longer we’re amongst the fray, the better chance we have of becoming one of the casualties.

  The city’s cannons, attached on all sides to the Bio-Net connectors, let loose a flurry of blasts aimed at the invaders. But the soldiers are too quick and too small to have much success with something as cumbersome as a cannon.

  “Bring us down,” I tell Avery.

  She grips the steering, hands shaking. “That’s what I’m doing, but we can’t do it too fast. Do you wanna crash land like last time we were in Portland?”

  “No.” I think back to when I’d first left the Academy with her, when Cassius had been in pursuit. Not only had our Academy shuttle lost power, but it did so right over the city, breaking through the Bio-Net and landing in a crowded plaza. We’d been lucky to survive.

  I focus on the trails of smoke, drawing ever closer. “I’m more worried about one of those cannons hitting us.”

  “Trust me,” Avery says. “I’ve got this.”

  I wanna trust her. I know what a good pilot she is, but there’s so much going on around us. Utter chaos.

  I watch as the crimson light of a soldier careens across our windshield, less than a mile away. I don’t know where it’s going, or if it’s even in control of its own course, but I dread the thought of one of them clamping onto our cruiser.

  The door to the cockpit opens and Skandar strides in. “Man.” He plops in a seat behind Avery. “It’s hell out there.”

  Avery’s brows rose. “How are the Drifters?”

  “Antsy.” He stares out the front window.

  Before I can respond, an orange panel illuminates at the top of the console.

  Avery glances over to the light. “The emergency hatch.”

  “What?”

  The back of the cruiser lurches, as if someone had just dropped a sandbag in the cabin.

  “The emergency hatch,” she repeats. “It’s open.”

  “I don’t—”

  I’m interrupted as a pair of green flashes pull to either side of the cockpit. I look out the window to see Talan flying beside us, matching the pace of the cruiser. On the other side is Sem, his green glow equally as strong.

  “The Drifters,” I start.

  “They’re out,” Avery finishes. “The back hatch is already closing up again. They were waiting for you to leave, Skandar.”

  He shrugs. “I guess.”

  I stare at Talan and Sem as they continue forward, overtaking us but losing altitude at the same time. “I didn’t know they had any Pearl energy left inside of them.”

  Avery brings us lower. “Just enough to get to the surface, I’d wager. I guess we weren’t moving fast enough for them.”

  Within seconds, both Drifters are out of sight. They’ve joined the fight, sure, but they’ve also left us alone in the process. Maybe they saw something we didn’t. Maybe our cruiser was about to be attacked.

  “We can’t worry about them now,” Avery says. “I’m speeding up descent. We’ll take a wide, low route. I’ll set us down in the shadow of the northeast landing pad. Depending on what’s happening on the ground, they’ll have either amped up security or seen their checkpoints completely breached, in which case I’m betting it’ll be pretty easy getting past. Of course, once we’re inside the city, it’ll be a different story. Either way, it’s better to be safe.”

  Skandar rests his chin in his hand. “I still say you should let me go with you.”

  I pivot so that I can see him. “It’s gonna be hard enough getting two of us in there.”

  “Besides,” Avery adds, “if something goes wrong, which … chances are … ” She trails off. “Anyway, we’ll need someone manning the cruiser that can get us out of here fast. I’m fairly familiar with the layout of the city. And Jesse … well—”

  “He breaks Pearls,” Skandar interrupts. “I know.” He sighs. “And I wait in shuttles. Fantastic.”

  ––––

  Once on the Surface, the Chosen City towers over us, casting an enormous shadow along the entirety of the landing pad. Of course, I can’t see much of that now. Avery managed to make a tricky turn underneath the concrete pad, wedging us in between the city and the ground—down with the roaches and spiders, and I’m sure there are many of them out here.

  Avery said the northeastern landing pad is the least-frequently used. Passenger parking, basically. And most people on the Surface rely on the automated Chute system to travel from city to city. Not many own shuttles to park, and those that do would have tried to clear out already.

  We exit the cruiser and climb up the rocky terrain, settling on the desert ground after a minute of sweaty, arm-straining work. The hot Fringe air crawls inside my lungs. The scratchiness of the air instantly takes me back to the dream I’ve been having.

  The rooftop. Syracuse.

  At least the Nevada bunker had been temperature regulated. After so many days down there, my body struggles to adjust to the b
last of heat. With any luck, we won’t be outside for long.

  From this distance, the battle seems muted. Much of the attack is happening in the air now. I’m sure it will be different once we’re inside the city, but barring the occasional explosion, we’ve found a relatively calm place.

  Once at the edge of the landing pad, I glance up at the Bio-Net connectors. As apprehensive as I am about breaching a Unified Party stronghold, my body longs to pass the city’s walls and enter into the cool, Net-protected atmosphere.

  I’m so eager that I don’t even notice the obvious until Avery raises a hand and points.

  “Do you see that?”

  I trace the line of her finger and realize she’s pointing at the closest connector. A red circle, right in the center of the metal cross, flashes in quick repetition. I scan the horizon. Every Bio-Net connector’s the same. Red, off and on.

  “Security breach,” she says.

  I open my mouth to respond, but end up swallowing my words. Something tugs at me, grabs me by the chest, and tries to pull me forward. I plant my feet on the ground and easily stay in place, but the sensation remains. I’ve felt this before. I’ve been waiting to feel it again.

  “The Pearls,” I say.

  Avery stands on her toes to get a look at the city, still far in the distance. “Where?”

  “I can feel them already,” I whisper. “They’re inside. There are a lot.”

  She grabs my hand and pulls me closer. “Maybe you can reach them from here.”

  I close my eyes and try to focus on the energy, pinpoint exactly where it’s coming from. But each time I grab on, something interrupts my concentration—pushes me away. “No.” I let the sensation pass. “There’s too much going on inside. We’ll need to get closer.”

  “Figures.” She takes a deep breath before releasing her hold on my hand. “Just follow me.”

  We approach the city slowly, leaving Skandar behind in the cruiser and making our way to the nearest entrance. A short tunnel, surrounded on all sides by rows of flashing lights, leads past the Bio-Net and into Portland. A guard stands watch, turned sideways. A blue laser searches the area around him, beaming down from the ceiling to catch Unified Party identification codes. Avery used to have one before she came up to Skyship. I never did, which means neither of us will be welcome past the checkpoint, especially during a security breach.

  The guard notices us before we’ve even passed through, and holds out a hand. “We’re in lockdown.” There’s a tremor in his voice, a hint of fear I’m not used to hearing from a Unified Party soldier.

  Avery moves faster. “Our little brother’s still in the city. You have to let us in!”

  “You’ll be safer outside,” he replies.

  “Please.” Avery approaches him. “We got separated on our way out. We need to—”

  “Listen,” he interrupts, though I can see he’s just as shaken as Avery’s pretending to be. “If I were you, I’d take your—”

  Before he can finish, Avery delivers a roundhouse kick, knocking him to his knees. In the same motion, she spins to grab a pistol sitting on the desk behind him. “Go, Jesse.”

  Without a hint of hesitation, I sprint through the laser and past the checkpoint. The stupefied guard attempts to react, but Avery’s too fast. She follows behind, grabbing my shoulder and forcing me to the left. We barrel down the nearest street as the alarm sounds behind us. He might call backup. But with everything else going on, he’s more likely to forget us.

  The city is as messy as the skies outside. Troops of soldiers race down the narrow streets, dwarfed on either side by skyscrapers so tall they block out the sun. The dull red flash of the Bio-Net connectors reflects off the silver sides of buildings. Smoke far above us casts the city in a gray ashiness.

  And I know they’re here. I can’t see them, but there are invaders inside Portland. Like Talan and the other Drifters said, you won’t notice them until you’re close enough to see the red of their eyes. They could be anyone.

  Avery and I bolt into an alleyway and take a moment to catch our breath.

  “Close your eyes,” she pants. “What way should we be going?”

  I nod, and lock onto the Pearl energy. There are still disruptions, but I feel it in the distance. A constant pulse, like an extra heartbeat outside of my body.

  I open my eyes and point to the far end of the alley. “In the center of the city. Exactly. Follow me.”

  I take a step forward just as an enormous blast ruptures the ground two streets behind us. A bomb? Enemy fire? Unified Party defense? There’s no way to tell.

  My ears ring as the sound of the explosion fades. A cloud of rubble rains over the street bordering our alley and begins to work its way toward us, like a tidal wave of gray.

  Avery shakes her head. “We had to pick Portland.”

  She’s right. There may be other Chosens that are in better shape. Of course, we had no way of knowing that. And then again, Portland could be one of the safer places. We’re completely in the dark. Guesswork. That’s all we’ve got.

  “Come on.” It’s my turn to lead. We sprint forward as the dark cloud streams in behind us.

  All the while, the Pearl energy intensifies. I’m locked on it now. And I’m not stopping until I’m close enough to break them all.

  9

  From a distance, Skyship Atlas appeared untouched. Upon looking at it beyond the windshield, Cassius was reminded of the last time he’d been onboard, before everything with the Pearls and Drifters had started. The Skyship had inspired awe back then. It certainly was an imposing structure—a tremendous wedge of dark metal floating above the clouds—but in the midst of war, nothing seemed untouchable.

  Madame had already contacted the Tribunal through official channels. Now that they were close enough to the ship, she could do so without worrying about scrambled or dropped lines.

  He knew the Tribunal didn’t like her, but they did respect her to an extent, and a meeting with a high-ranking Unified Party figurehead was nothing to brush off. Their cruiser was granted landing in one of Atlas’s docking bays.

  Meanwhile, Cassius and Eva sat in the back of the cockpit, as far from Madame as they could manage without actually leaving the room.

  Cassius tapped his foot nervously on the ground. “Do you think the Tribunal will listen to us?”

  Eva shrugged. “I think they’ll be happy for the glimmer of alliance, even if it’s with her. If they understand half of what’s going on around them, they better be.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  She laughed. “Or they’ll just shoot us down without question.”

  Atlas’s immense hull soon overtook the view of the sky outside. Cassius stood and kept his attention forward, searching for any indication of an attack from the Skyship. Even after receiving positive confirmation, he wasn’t willing to concede the possibility that this was all a trap.

  “Relax,” Madame said. “Don’t let them see you sweat. Remember last time. It’s important not to show weakness. These people thrive on it.”

  ––––

  After settling down on Atlas’s most secure docking bay, their cruiser was met by a fleet of guards surrounding Representative Chandler, one of the three operating heads of the Skyship Tribunal.

  Chandler was an eager, brown-haired man in his mid-thirties. Of all of the Tribunal, Cassius felt the least threatened by him. Even flanked by a battalion of guards, he had an easygoing, almost friendly nature.

  Madame disembarked the cruiser first, striding onto the landing pad with instant authority. Whatever his feelings toward her, Cassius was continually amazed with her ability to put on a show for those operating underneath her.

  Cassius and Eva followed, arms to their sides, free of any weapons or tech.

  Cassius looked over the rows of soldiers. They were modestly dressed in navy jackets and slacks. No body armor, but each had a pistol holstered at their side, ready for action.

  Representative Chandler nodded
as Madame approached. “Seems like we just did this yesterday, Jessica.”

  “Trust me.” She walked beside him, moving deeper into the ship. “None of us has ever done something like this.”

  He nodded. “You’ve come to tell us what’s happened, I hope. Who’s attacked us. Or maybe this is just another Unified Party trick.”

  “If you’ll listen, I can assure you we’re not here to attack anyone.”

  Chandler stopped, looking her up and down. “Security checks first, Jessica. One can never be too certain with you.”

  “If you must.” Her lips pursed. “But make it quick. We’re running out of time. You’ve already lost a Skyship. From the looks of it, the Chosen Cities aren’t faring much better.”

  “Mmm-hmm.”

  He ushered them forward, through a series of energy and metal detectors, through a detailed pat-down, and finally to the elevator that would take them to the Tribunal meeting room. Even Eva was thoroughly checked. Throughout the entire process, she didn’t mention that she was Skyship. No one seemed to question her on it either.

  Once in the meeting room, Representative Chandler took his seat at the far left podium beside Representatives Buchanan and Leone. As Cassius moved to his place at the table below the Tribunal’s three imposing podiums, he was reminded of the last time he’d sat in this room, sent on a secret mission to capture Jesse Fisher and bring him back to Madame. Had he known the chain of events that assignment would set off, he wasn’t sure he’d have taken it on. Even back then, it had been prickly between Madame and the Tribunal. Now, with war raging outside, it could end up much worse.

  Representative Buchanan—a round woman with harsh features—was the first to speak. “Would you like to tell us about Skyship Altair?”

  “That’s neither here nor there,” Madame responded pointedly.

  Buchanan laughed. “Isn’t it? Several hundred of our people died when Altair sank. A thousand more have been displaced. Is the Unified Party going to take responsibility for this attack?”