by S Mays
She took the elevator to the research and manufacturing floor. A quote from Sun Tzu popped into her mind as the elevator doors closed. The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
She stopped the large blacked-out van a mile away from the warehouse two hours before the allotted meeting time. She set up a long-range digital telescope and then launched several flying Remote Scouting Units. The metallic scanning orbs followed the marker set by the telescope and zoomed off toward the warehouse. Jessica viewed the readout from the RSUs on her tablet. Through the telescope, she could see no activity from the outside. The RSUs discreetly flew around the warehouse, scanning as they went. There seemed to be no one present. She decided to wait until the meeting time and observe from afar before setting out.
Night fell. The surrounding area was an industrial park. It was mostly abandoned except for the tractor trailers passing by on the nearby road every half hour or so, moving between warehouses and factories. She wondered why her father or whoever was pretending to be him had chosen this specific warehouse. Records showed it had no connection to any of the Order’s companies or fake organizations. An alarm sounded from her watch. It was time for the meeting.
Looking through the telescope again, she saw a sedan pull up in front of the warehouse. Zooming in, she attempted to get a better look at the vehicle’s sole occupant. The shadows covered the person’s face and details, but… The silhouette caused her heart to ache. She packed her gear and exited the roof. Entering the van, she made her final preparations. The van roared to life, exited the building’s parking lot and headed down the road.
She parked a hundred feet from the car and waited for the driver to exit. The door opened, and a figure emerged. It was the right build and height for her father but moved with less vigor than she remembered. The man was hesitant as if unsure of himself. He stepped under one of the parking lot’s lights, and she gasped. It was him.
She checked the RSU scans again. There was no movement anywhere close by. Maybe the story had been true? She cautiously opened her door and walked partway to where her father was standing, but she stayed in the shadows.
“Jessica… Jessica, my little girl. I am so sorry for all of this. You have no idea of the torment I’ve felt over these years. It has been so long,” her father said, his voice cracking.
“Yes, it has, Father. Where have you been all this time? Why did you run away? You have no idea the trouble it caused at the Farm. You don’t know…how much it…” she started to say, but couldn’t continue.
“I am so sorry, Jessica. I know. I would never hurt you. But it – it was necessary. I had to go underground. Staying meant risking your life and our research. I had to hide from the spies.”
“What spies? You’ve provided no evidence of any conspiracy. You’ve neglected your duty as an agent of the Order. And you’ve…neglected me as well. You are aware I am a Stalker now? That you were wrong about me?”
“Jessica…I never doubted you. I knew you could do whatever you set your mind to. I’ve seen so many horrors. So much pain and suffering. You can’t image what it does to you. Only my faith has kept me sane. I did not want that life for you.”
“What are you really doing here? You wanted me to bring your research, and I did. However, I can’t simply give you top secret research after you’ve abandoned your post. You will have to provide proof of your charges against the Order.”
“J-Jessica, you have to come with me. It’s the only w-way you’ll be s-safe. Bring the research, and we’ll hide together.” She noticed his hand was shaking slightly.
“I will not. You must come with me, back to the Farm. There’s something wrong here. I’m placing you in protective custody.”
“N-no! You have t-to listen to me, Jessica. You have t-to do what I say. Please.”
Jessica walked out of the shadows and approached her father.
“J-Jessica…why are you wearing that armor? What are you going to do?” he asked, noticing she was wearing a suit of AUG armor. She was holding Casca in her right hand and an assault rifle in the other.
“I plan to take you home,” she said, moving closer. Wait, something is wrong. She shifted her vision into the spirit realm. Her father’s aura was now a dim shade of blue. He showed no vital signs on her helmet scanners. “Father…what happened to you?” she gasped.
“Jessica…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. You-you have to r-run!” he stammered. It was as if he were fighting his own mind. He looked past her, his eyes widening in horror. A tractor trailer pulled in from the main road at high speed, then the driver slammed on its brakes and blocked the exit. Dust clouded the area. “It-it’s too late,” he cried.
The doors of the big rig opened, and a mammoth man emerged from the driver’s seat. A woman stepped down from the passenger side. “Are there any others?” she asked an unseen accomplice who was still inside the truck.
“No. Scanners picked up no more life signs. She is alone,” a voice answered from inside the truck.
“Jessica Luvkrafft. I am pleased to meet you. My name is Elizabeth, and this is Iceberg. We are not ones to be trifled with. I defeated your father years ago and made him my thrall. That is all you need to know. Please hand the research over and come with us.”
Jessica responded with, “Casca: dissect.” The blade lengthened, ready for combat.
“N-no, Jessica. You don’t know—” her father said before he was interrupted.
“Silence, slave. Stand back, and do not interfere,” Elizabeth ordered. Jake complied, moving far off and standing silently.
Casca’s edge glowed brighter as Jessica’s rage increased. “You will die for this,” she hissed.
Elizabeth laughed. “Years ago, I made the mistake of underestimating your father, and you are not your father. However, I decided this time to come prepared.” She said something into a transmitter in her ear. The rear of the trailer slammed open. Twenty armored men set up positions around the perimeter, targeting Jessica with a myriad of weapons. A massive assault craft decloaked above her father’s car, activating glaring lights that temporarily blinded Jessica. Its weapons were trained on her position. The soldiers’ armor and the ship appeared to be based on Order technology. Was Father right about the spies? No, it can’t be true.
“Drop your weapons and surrender, Jessica. I hope you can see that your position is hopeless. Or did you inherit your father’s stubborn will? Even as a thrall, it took me over a year to break him completely. Yet, in the end, he won. The damage to his mind was too great. Only parts of his research remained. I need the rest. You will provide it to me, now.”
“I don’t think so,” Jessica said. The visor on her helmet closed. The targeting reticle appeared. She scanned the battlefield for her enemies and marked each of them.
“You can see we are prepared for battle. Do not be a fool.”
“I, too, came prepared for battle,” Jessica said. She noticed the van’s top pod had rotated into position from her helmet’s commands. “Fire.”
The pod deployed two gun barrels which launched a volley of explosive rounds at the airship behind her. Half of a wing exploded, along with the cockpit. The craft dipped forward, engines screaming, and skimmed over the ground, veering uncontrollably toward the semi. Everyone scrambled away from the truck just before the two collided, creating a massive explosion which flattened everything on the battlefield and sent the armored van lurching up on two tires. Metal shards and glass bounced off every surface in the area. One unlucky soldier screamed, a metal pipe protruding from his visor. He fell forward, and the pipe propped up the body at a ninety-degree angle.
The gun turret rotated, seeking out other targets that Jessica had marked while she was talking. Three soldiers were shredded before they could regain their footing. Their knockoff AUG armor offered little protection from the armor-piercing exploding shells. Men scrambled for cover as the twin guns sl
owly fired across the field with a “chum-chum-chum” thrumming.
Iceberg leapt atop the van. His metallic robotic hand formed a tight fist, locking in place as spikes erupted from it, transforming it into a mace. He pounded the turret until it had been crushed to pieces. In a display of massive strength, he ripped it from the van and tossed it thirty feet away.
Elizabeth coughed as she made her way through the smoldering wreckage and smoke.
“Find her!” she screamed to the remaining soldiers.
Jessica watched from underneath a parked trailer at the loading dock as the soldiers spread out in a search formation. “Romulus and Remus: target all who are not me,” she whispered into her helmet.
The van’s back door exploded open. The two werewolf robots emerged, each carrying a deadly minigun in its right hand and a grenade launcher in the other. The gun’s barrel spun up quickly before they squeezed their triggers simultaneously. A blistering spray of explosives and bullets ripped through the area, cutting down trees, light posts, asphalt, parking blocks, and…men. The body armor of the soldiers could not withstand such heavy weaponry. Four of them were cut down in seconds. Elizabeth and Iceberg moved too quickly for the synthetic werewolves to target and took shelter behind a concrete wall. The robots focused their firepower on the scattering soldiers, who hid behind whatever nearby trees, bushes, lamp posts, garbage cans, and cars that they could find.
The remaining soldiers regrouped and began to bombard the two resilient robots with their own weapons. Pieces of fur ripped free, exposing the armored chassis underneath. Jessica set off into the dark while the soldiers’ attention was on the robots. Another soldier fell. A grenade explosion tore loose Remus’s left arm. Each side was locked in an awesome display of unrelenting firepower, thousands of rounds unleashed in minutes. During the chaos, Jessica slipped through the darkness, picking off the isolated and wounded enemies.
Most of them were human mercenaries, but a few were low-level vampires. She wasn’t sure why two high-level vampires and a platoon of mercenaries had shown up to capture her, but now was the time to call in backup. “Command, I need immediate backup at my position. Priority One. Targets have advanced weaponry,” she said. There was no response. “Command, I need immediate backup.” She ordered her helmet to display communication signals in the area. All wavelengths were being jammed.
The minigun of the robots spun uselessly, their ammo spent. The duo dropped their weapons and loped off to engage the remaining soldiers in hand-to-hand combat. With their training safeties disengaged, they were extremely lethal.
Jessica moved behind two men who were hiding behind a dumpster, reloading and regrouping.
“Man, I ain’t never seen robots like that before. Did you see what they did to Malcolm? Holy shit, man. I ain’t goin’ to… What the hell?” the man on the right said as a sharp metal star lodged in his chest armor. “Is this some kind of damn ninja star—” he asked just before the weapon exploded. Gasping, he looked down at his exposed rib cage and smoking guts. He toppled over, and his face slammed against the edge of the dumpster.
“What the fu—” the other man began before Casca cut deeply into his neck. He gurgled blood, attempting to form words, and then fell limp. Jessica opened the dumpster, tossed both bodies inside, then cleaned the blood from Casca and silently slipped away. Between the werewolf robots’ blitzkrieg and her ambush tactics, there were now only two soldiers left.
Romulus and Remus were heavily damaged but still putting up a fight. The two soldiers ran from the false werewolves, heading toward the area where Jessica’s father was standing. Seeing the lone figure, Remus turned to attack Jake.
“Stop,” Jessica ordered from her hiding spot. The robot froze mere feet from her father. Iceberg suddenly appeared, brought his arm across the neck of the robot, and sent it flying into her father’s car, which crumpled like a tin can. He was on top of it in a split second, rapidly smashing it with his mace hand. Remus sputtered and sparked, trying to stand, but its systems finally shut down. The lights in its eyes faded.
“Attack new target,” Jessica said, quickly moving to a new position.
Romulus turned from the two soldiers and focused on Iceberg. The two behemoths raced at each other at breakneck speed and collided with a loud clang. Romulus fell back, sliding across the concrete, a trail of sparks erupting around him. Iceberg was on the hapless automaton in seconds, and smashed it viciously with his mace. The noise of metal on metal traveled for a mile. It sounded like a blacksmith forging a new weapon. Seconds later, Iceberg was standing above the wrecked robot. Pieces of Romulus were scattered at his feet. The gargantuan vampire was thoroughly enjoying himself. “Are there any more toys to play with?” he yelled into the night sky.
Jessica emerged from the direction the soldiers had fled, blood dripping from her armor and from Casca. The real fight is about to begin.
“Hah, you are smart girl. All units, converge on my position,” Iceberg said. There was no response.
“Unless you have another truck full of men coming, that’s the end of them,” she informed the brute.
“Ah. You think you have won. I am worth more than all of these men put together!” Iceberg boasted, slamming his alloy hand against his metal chest plate. “You have more tricks up your sleeve?”
“Just one,” she said coldly, holding Casca level in front of her. She quickly raised her assault rifle, firing at the large man. Most of the bullets bounced off his armor, although a few dented it or made small holes.
Iceberg sneered before he leaped toward her. Too fast! Jessica jumped backward as his hand smashed the concrete sidewalk in front of her. Debris crashed against her armor, hitting as hard as bullets. She’d made improvements to her personal AUG suit, increasing its speed thirty percent over the previous generation, but it still slowed her down. Against unrelenting power like this, she wasn’t sure it would be able to withstand a single blow. This was a full vampeer level of vampire, at least ten times stronger than his human form, and his human form had probably been three times stronger than an average human. A monstrosity like this could probably crush her armor with his bare hands. That wouldn’t normally be a problem, except that his speed was also superhuman. It would take a constant burn of chi to keep up with him, especially with the added weight of her armor. This fight would have to end in one or two movements, or she would lose.
“Why do you not make easy and give up, little one?” Iceberg said.
His voice overrode all her senses. Casca almost slipped from her grasp. Jessica had never met a vampire strong enough to verbally control a strong-willed human. Panic gripped her. Order agents were trained in meditation techniques to resist the influence of vampiric entities, but this was on another level.
“Yes, that is it. Give up. No need to fight. Come live with your papa. Do not move,” Iceberg said, casually approaching her frozen form. Jessica strained against his commands, but each new directive built upon the power of the last. She managed to utter one final command into her helmet. “E-external audio off.”
Iceberg loomed above the small armored woman and smiled. It was as if she were a statue. He picked her up, then carried her back to where Jake was standing. “Follow,” he said. Jake did not move. Annoyed, Iceberg called out to Elizabeth, “It is safe to come out now. No need to hide. I have girl. Tell your slave to come.”
“I…was busy calling another aircraft. I was not hiding,” Elizabeth said defensively as she appeared from behind a wall. “Jake! Return to me!” she shouted. Jake obeyed.
“Yes, yes. When will it arrive? I am sure police will arrive soon after this noise. I am tired and want to feed and rest.”
“Fifteen minutes. This was an utter disaster. Who would have thought the girl would present such a problem? You are sure you have her completely under your command?”
“Girl, you will do what I say. Do not move, do not resist. I repeat, do not resist. Do you understand?” Iceberg asked, looking directly at Jessica’s face throu
gh her helmet. Her eyes were glazed over. She nodded mutely at him.
“See? Is easy,” he said, setting Jessica down. He turned to continue his conversation with Elizabeth.
“Now we have girl, research, and father. Grigori will finally be happy.”
“Grigori will never be happy. Not until we have functioning weapons. After the planning we put into procuring Luvkrafft, we have virtually nothing to show for it.”
“You should not have rushed conditioning.”
“My… My methods were fine. The man had the most indomitable will of any human I’ve ever seen. He is at fault for his current mental condition. Where is the research the girl brought?”
Jessica could only read the lips of Elizabeth, but she was managing to pick up bits and pieces of what had happened to her father. She’d spent the past few minutes focusing her mind to break the vampire’s last set of commands. Meditation and concentration could overcome the orders if one realized they were being controlled before the control was absolute. Once total control was assumed over a subject, only time and lack of contact would cause the domination to fail. Shutting her helmet had isolated her from his last commands and allowed her to concentrate.
Iceberg turned and held out his hand. “Girl, where is research? Hand it to me.”
Jessica couldn’t hear him, but she deduced he wanted the USB drive. She ejected it from its protective case in the back of her armor, then handed it to Iceberg. I can move freely again!
“Good girl. Now, remain frozen.” He looked her up and down. “I like her like this. Perhaps I’ll keep her as decoration once we get back.” He handed Elizabeth the drive.
“She’s to help us with this research. Her father said she had been his assistant. Once we have developed the technology, you can do what you wish with her.”