Without a sound the ramp lowers from the seamless underbelly of the jet, inviting the passengers aboard.
Goto steps aside and motions towards the entrance, offering to let Paige and Cole enter first. “The crew will be here momentarily,” he says. “Have a seat in the docking bay and help yourself to a beverage.”
Cole hasn’t been aboard the Aithon since their initial trip to Australia six months ago when they abandoned the Basement. He’s never been a fan of flying, but if there was ever a way to travel through the air, this is it. The jet is several times faster than any aircraft in existence, so you’re never going to be aboard for more than a few hours no matter where you’re going. While blasting through the sky at mach three the Aithon feels like it’s standing still; barely a whisper emits from the trio of engines, and there’s never so much as a hint of turbulence, even when flying directly through a thunderstorm.
Cole makes himself comfortable in the stark white passenger bay, which is furnished like an opulent designer living room from an architectural magazine. Paige sits in the chair across from him as Goto passes by, making his way through a set of sliding doors on the far wall. He doesn’t offer to explain where he’s going, and no one bothers to ask.
“So,” Paige asks, “How ya doing?”
“I’ve been better,” Cole replies, aggressively avoiding eye contact.
“If Dia is waiting for us, and if she’s anything like she was in 3016...” Paige trails off and lowers her eyes to the white metallic floor. “To be honest, I don’t know how to prepare you. She just wasn’t the same person you met last summer.”
Cole leans forward on his elbows, eyes intensifying. “Because you turned her into someone else.”
“No,” she explains. “I tried to bring out the best in her. There’s a difference.”
“Is there?”
“I know you blamed me after she left,” Paige says softly.
Cole averts his eyes once again. “I told you not to read my mind.”
“I didn’t have to – it’s written all over your face. This thing between Dia and I started long before you met us. You just popped into our lives at a really screwed up time.”
“Uh-huh.”
Paige leans back and rakes her fingers through her dark hair, looping the purple streak in her bangs over her ear. “I didn’t want to say anything in front of the gang, but Goto was right. If Dia really has gone to the dark side then we only have two options: get her back, or treat her like any other enemy...like The General.”
Cole shakes his head in disbelief. “Am I the only person who hasn’t lost his goddamned mind around here? How can you sit there and talk about killing your father and your sister?”
“If you think this is easy for me—”
“This is all because of what?” he interrupts. “Something she did when you two were in the future? People do crazy things when they’re young. You can’t just blame her for something she did a couple years ago – she’s still in her twenties. We all make mistakes.”
“I didn’t start worrying about her until she was in her seventies,” Paige replies. “Then she started to get really scary.”
Cole knits his brow tightly and blurts out his words louder than he realizes. “In her what?”
Paige removes her glasses and tucks them into her shirt pocket; a ritual that she performs before a conversation is about to get longer and more serious than she had anticipated. “A thousand years from now the human lifespan is a lot longer. Cybernetic implants, heart modulators and stem cell enhancers are widely available. People can literally live eight hundred years or more. It’s not uncommon.”
“Holy shit,” Cole replies, his jaw hanging slack. “So you’re saying that you two are senior citizens?”
“Hey,” Paige fires back, waving her finger in his direction. “Watch it there. We’re both well under a hundred, which is considered very young in 3016.”
Cole knew the story: that Paige and Dia had been thrown forward in time when The General’s original Large Hadron Collider exploded back in 1993, and they had returned to the mid-90s after settling into life in the future. How much time that had elapsed before their return had never been mentioned. It’s uncanny, Cole thinks, now staring at Paige as if for the first time –like her sister, she appears to be in her early 20s, and there isn’t a single detail on her faces that would indicate otherwise.
“I know my reasons seem crazy to you,” Paige continues, “but I watched Dia slowly unravel for half a century. I could never get through to her, no matter what I tried. Finally I decided to take action, and I dragged her back. She just had so much trouble adjusting to normal life again once we returned...I did what I had to.”
“And in the end it all backfired,” Cole says.
Paige nods. “I knew the risk I was taking. I knew that if Dia ever found out that I was wiping her memory she might never forgive me. But when someone is worth saving you don’t give up on them.”
Cole fires an accusing glare across the table. “So if someone starts acting strange you just wipe their hard drive and start giving them new memories, huh? How do I know that you haven’t done that to anyone else on the team – or me?”
She stares back, unblinking. “You’ll just have to trust me.”
“You’ve got to earn trust,” he replies without missing a beat.
“Well I guess we’ll earn it together. Down in the jungle it’ll be us against The General, and if we don’t have each other’s backs, none of us will make it out in one piece.”
Paige isn’t wrong. Heading blind into what’s probably a trap, set by the greatest American military strategist of the last century, is nothing to take lightly. Cole has no choice but to put his faith in her – the person responsible for driving Dia away, and to trust Goto – a man who, on more than one occasion, tried to have him killed.
Carnivale or not, this trip is going to be one hell of a party.
Chapter Seven – Torappu
Amazon Rain Forest, Brazil | January 26, 2012 | 8:18 am, Amazon Standard Time
In just three hours the Aithon travels half-way across the planet. It stops and hovers above the drop point in Brazil, just a few kilometers from the new Collider, before directional thrusters lower it into a vertical landing on the soft earth. For such a large aircraft, it is unusually quiet when hovering. No so much when it’s smashing the sound barrier.
As the ship’s engines hum to a standby, Goto walks to the wall of the passenger bay and presses the intercom. “Take the jet up to thirty-five thousand feet when we’re all clear. Hover and cloak until we return, or until I issue further instructions.”
“Copy that,” the captain replies.
“So the jet won’t be here when we get back?” Cole asks. “Isn’t that a little risky if we need to make a quick escape?”
“I agree, it isn’t ideal, but think it through,” Goto says, slinging a large backpack over his shoulder. “The Aithon is our single greatest tactical advantage. The General doesn’t know about it, and I’d like to keep it that way. It would certainly not do for that lunatic to actually get his hands on it. So it stays out of reach for the time being.”
“How long before it gets down here for a pick-up if we need it?” Paige asks.
Goto shrugs dismissively. “Two minutes, maybe three. As soon as the captain receives our signal, she’ll return to the clearing. Failing that, she has protocols to follow in the event that he needs to refuel or leave for other reasons.”
Cole is unsure about this strategy, but he doesn’t argue. Not having an immediate means of escape sounds like a risky plan, but he’s in no mood to begin another fight, and though he may not want to admit it, his gifts do not generally lie in strategic thinking. If Goto enrages him – which is a distinct possibility – he’s likely to attack, and beating him into unconsciousness would be counterproductive. Dia is what matters now, and he knows that he has to focus.
Goto finishes strapping on his backpack and adjusts his camouflage fatigu
es. Paige and Cole can’t stop staring; they’re so used to seeing him in custom suits and imported leather shoes that he almost looks like a different person.
Pulling up her left sleeve Paige ensures that her gauntlet is securely fastened, yanking the harnesses beneath to tighten the fit. Thanks to Brodie’s design, all it takes is a quick password typed into the touch screen and the user manifests instantly; sixteen flexible syringes inject the wearer with the potent and addictive Plan B serum – the liquid version of Muse. It’s much more practical in combat than having to swallow several pills and waiting for them to take effect.
Cole and Paige gather the rest of their gear and make their way down the ramp, following Goto into the clearing. The ramp quietly and smoothly retracts into the underside of the jet and the Aithon takes off, disappearing into the sky with a powerful blast of air.
The sun is bright and punishing as they head into the jungle. Unlike the dry heat of the Outback, they’re instantly drenched in sweat from the humidity, and swarms of insects begin to circle. Once they make their way beneath the canopy the sunlight dissipates; branches and leaves create a roof that barely allows light to penetrate as they follow Goto’s lead.
After a short trek through dense undergrowth and ankle-deep mud they arrive at another opening; the clearing that leads to the construction site for the new Large Hadron Collider. They crouch behind a rock and brush some leaves aside, allowing for an unobstructed view of the area.
Similar to the footage seen on the newscast, the Collider appears to be well underway. The enormous hole in the earth has been fitted with several kilometers of tubing, and the control room is already complete. From the looks of the device it could be finished well inside the timeline that The General had indicated.
The only thing missing are the workers; suspicious, considering the accelerated timeline. The General boasted that the project was being worked on tirelessly, day and night, evident by the hundreds of floodlights surrounding the area to illuminate the zone for the evening shift. But it’s the middle of the week, and the entire construction site has been abandoned. Empty bulldozers, cranes and trucks surround the enormous hole, and not a single person is in sight.
“Maybe everyone is taking a snack break?” Cole says.
“Or maybe they got the Hell out of here on The General’s orders.” Paige scans the area intently, looking for any sign of movement. “Something isn’t right.”
Goto flips open the face of his oversized watch and reveals a circular green touch screen hidden beneath. He taps the surface several times. “I’m not detecting any SPB’s in the area, which means that Dia isn’t here. Let’s board the jet and bring it to a safe altitude, and then we’ll destroy the area.” Goto would have preferred to take out The General in the blast, but it would have been too convenient had he announced his presence and exposed himself to an attack. Crippling the Collider will have to suffice for the moment.
“Not a chance,” Paige replies. “We can’t just start dropping bombs before we take a better look around. If Dia is here we have to try and reach out to her.”
“Wait,” Cole whispers, pointing towards the far side of the construction area. “I see something.” Approaching from the distance are two figures that vaguely resemble humans. Dark outlines with glowing eyes embedded in featureless faces, circling the perimeter of the massive opening. Cole produces a small pair of binoculars from his backpack, and passes them to Paige.
She accepts them without a word and takes a look, adjusting a dial on the side to bring the figures into focus. She immediately recognises this particular threat: the angular helmets, the protective chest plates, the oversized gauntlets – they combine to form a seamless, inky black exoskeleton that resembles a living shadow. The haunting vacant eyes that emit a powerful glow are a signature of the armor, but that’s not the most recognizable feature. An equally bright emblem adorns each shoulder: a luminous pair of golden wings. “We need to get out of here,” Paige says.
“What are those things, cyborgs or something?” Cole continues to observe with interest as Goto and Paige quickly gather their equipment and prepare to retreat.
“It’s Federation armor,” Goto replies, snapping his watch back into place. “From 3016.” He turns and begins to wade through the darkness of the thick foliage, and Paige rapidly follows.
“Is that bad?” Cole asks, following close behind.
“You have no idea,” Paige says, her words muffled by the sound of her arms chopping through the dense leaves. “If they switched to thermals we’ve already been spotted.”
They trek for several minutes towards the drop-point and Goto steps into the clearing. He pulls back the last of the greenery like a heavy curtain, flooding their vision with bright sunlight.
Had his eyes been given time to adjust, he would have seen the three ominous figures in Federation armor waiting for them, and the bolt of electricity rocketing towards his chest.
Chapter Eight – Recumbentibus
Amazon Rain Forest, Brazil | January 26, 2012 | 9:11 am, Amazon Standard Time
The bolt strikes Goto’s torso with the force of a cannonball. He careens backwards into Paige, and their bodies convulse as the powerful electrical charge surges though their nervous systems.
Having narrowly avoided the blast, Cole races towards the attacker and launches a blitz of punches, one powerful strike after the other. The soldier’s head recoils with each crushing blow, bouncing dangerously from side to side, but the helmet shows no sign of damage. In the Outback he’s reduced towering boulders to dust with a solid right cross, but this armor – whatever it’s made of – seems nearly indestructible. With a frustrated scream, Cole grabs the soldier by him arm and launches him thirty feet into the jungle, wrapping his spine around the roots of a tree.
Before he can turn back, he’s struck with a pair of punches so fast that he’s unable to detect where his attacker came from. Another soldier in identical black armor is moving so quickly that his body is nothing more than a blur, circling Cole and picking his shots, like a boxer moving in fast-forward.
A third soldier stands at a safe distance and appears to be speaking into the back of his gauntlet, no doubt signalling for back-up.
As Cole continues to absorb punches and kicks he throws strikes of his own, blindly lashing out with his fists at the vague impression of his attacker. Since he’s been able to manifest permanently, Cole has experienced a noticeable increase in his speed and agility. But this is different – the soldier is moving so quickly that he seems to be teleporting from one place to another.
He is unable to make contact and is forced to change his tactics. He drops his hands, clenches his teeth and juts out his chin. The words of his mixed martial arts trainer ring in his head: “Always do the unexpected,” Gary would say whenever Cole was physically outmatched. “You won’t always be the fastest or the strongest, but you can always outsmart some cocky bastard. And when you find your opening, make him pay, kid.”
The soldier blasts him with a flurry of lightning-fast uppercuts, dislocating his jaw and blackening his eye. Waiting for his opponent to become complacent, Cole ducks and lunges forward, wrapping his arms around the soldier’s thighs. He drags his attacker to the earth with a dull thud.
With Cole’s massive frame pinning him to the ground the soldier has few remaining options, and his blinding speed is no longer an asset. He struggles and squirms, rolling to his stoMach, but his efforts are futile. Face down on the ground is not the ideal position to be in, especially while facing an experienced grappler.
Pressing his hands into either side of the soldier’s helmet Cole wrenches it to the side; a swift, violent motion as if he’s twisting off a bottle cap. A sickening crack echoes through the clearing as he continues to rotate until the glowing eyes are facing upward, and his opponent’s body falls limp beneath his weight.
Cole turns his head in time to see the remaining soldier wave his hand like an orchestra conductor, tracing an invisible figure-eig
ht in the air.
Sprinting across the clearing, Cole feels a strange tingling sensation throughout his entire body; his muscles ache, his vision blurs, and suddenly, in mid-stride, he bursts into flames. He stops dead in his tracks and rolls, trying helplessly to extinguish himself. He screams and tears the shirt from his chest, tossing the charred rags aside, but the flames persist. His skin, his hair, and even his eyes are on fire, burning him to a cinder.
From the edge of the clearing Paige, still recovering, stumbles to her feet and activates her gauntlet, infusing her with power. The potent blue liquid fills her bloodstream and her eyes flare with purple energy. She unleashes a guttural scream and claps her hands, sending a magnetic charge towards the remaining soldier. His exoskeleton contorts, wrenching his limbs into unnatural positions. His bones twist and snap inside the armor, and a muffled scream reverberates from his helmet.
The flames extinguish, and Cole’s body collapses to the ground.
Disoriented and bleeding from her ears, Paige races to Cole’s side and cradles his head. His blackened and charred skin is already repairing itself, shedding the damaged layers like burnt tissue paper.
The jet hovers to a soft landing behind them but Paige doesn’t avert her gaze. She stares down at him, oblivious to the rushing wind from the massive engines at her back, and the hair billowing around her cheeks. “I always knew you were hot, Cole – but damn.”
Cole can’t help but chuckle, coughing up particles of black soot as he exhales. “Ugh, Paige...don’t make me laugh, that really hurts.” He rolls to his side and hacks a few more times as the jet’s entry ramp lowers to the ground. “That was a pity laugh, by the way.”
Goto staggers from the jungle and waves them into the jet. “We have company,” he shouts, making his way up the ramp.
Drowning out the hum of the Aithon’s engines is the roar of two F-22 Raptor jets screaming overhead. The General has already scrambled air support, and additional soldiers are likely on their way.
Legacy (The Vs. Reality Series Book 3) Page 5