He asked to see Walter’s paperwork again and Walter replied, “I’m sure it’s just a glitch in the code of the bracelet. She’s with us, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
In a sterner tone, the official asked again, “Let me see your paperwork.”
Walter handed over the paperwork and tried to maintain a calm exterior. He hadn’t prepped Amanda on any of the information he had duped the system with, so he wasn’t sure where this would go.
“Just try again, dear,” Walter said.
But the official stopped her, saying, “Not yet, I have a few questions. Please give me your full name with subnumber and the address of your old housing unit.”
Amanda looked terrified and remained silent. She had no idea what Walter had put in those papers. To herself she thought, “What’s a housing unit?”
The official asked again, adding, “Young lady, are you ok?”
She grinned as two more security personnel made their way to their loading station—it had come to a complete stop. Both of these men were big and didn’t look happy.
“I need you to answer my questions, young lady.”
Matthew and April looked to Walter, willing him to do something. But he just stood there and didn’t offer Amanda any help. She had no idea what to say, and it looked like the entire team was about to get busted. Then, out of nowhere, the familiar jingle of Sector 37 filled the air. The security personnel all turned their attention toward the screens and awaited a message that never came.
Walter signaled to Amanda to try the scan again, so she started waving her bracelet back and forth over the reader. She was in a panic, but consistent in her passes. After seven or eight of them, the much-needed ding sounded. By then the jingle had stopped, so the official turned back around. Walter immediately jumped between him and Amanda.
“It must have just been a delay in the system. I used to see it all the time in the west, around Sector 72. Stupid machine would just stop working for a few minutes.”
The official looked at his monitor and saw that she had indeed successfully scanned through. He handed the papers back to Walter and said, “I guess we’re ok. Next.”
Matthew and Johnson completed their scans with no issues, and the group moved on to the transport cars to take their seats. Addie sidled up to Walter and said, “That was close. Where did that jingle come from?”
Walter looked up to an overpass of pedestrians and saw Agents Blake and Marco looking over the edge. Blake raised a thumb, and Walter returned the gesture.
“It’s just a couple of guardian angels up there with a direct bypass for the PA system in their bag. I knew that would come in handy someday.”
Addie was relieved but cautious. She knew it would be a long trip, and the likelihood of getting caught was high. She looked back to Amanda and saw that she had latched onto Matthew’s arm. She shot the young girl a quick, disapproving stare, and Amanda let go.
Matthew raised his hand to his mouth and leaned over to Amanda. In a low whisper, he said, “You can’t behave like you would back home. Things are different here.”
She nodded her head and focused her attention back to Steven, who was now staked firmly at April’s side. He seemed to be getting some comfort from her. He saw his mother in April. He would only ever see his sister in Amanda.
Connor had kept a keen eye on Amanda and Matthew from the time they’d left the compound to the point of boarding the transport, and he noticed the attention Amanda was giving his brother. He wasn’t confused by her renewed interest in Matthew. His brother had put his own life on the line to save hers, so he understood the attraction. He just couldn’t get over the fact that someone would choose Matthew over him.
Walter’s group reached the final platform and waited their turn to load onto the transport. Steven was blown away at what he saw. These giant train cars were just levitating in place, right there in front of him! He started toward one of the pads that allowed the transport to suspend itself, but April grabbed his hand before he could.
“You can’t get too close to those, Steven. That’s why they have us standing behind these lines. We can’t load until they shut those pads off, or we’ll all be in big trouble.”
The pads worked on a magnetic-base principle that created a strong force field around the pads. If anyone had metal objects on their person and got too close, they would either be repelled or drawn into the pad.
April didn’t get into that kind of detail with Steven. She just told him it was dangerous, and that was all it took. He was a smart kid: despite wanting to ask all types of questions about what he was seeing, he knew that he needed to wait. Even though he was young, he realized things were a lot different here in the future, and tried to act as if he wasn’t surprised by what he saw, just like April had instructed him before they left.
The group was allowed to load the transport carriers, and they all took a seat. Walter invited Amanda to sit across from where he sat with Addie, so she and Connor jumped into the two adjoining seats across from them. Johnson and April sat together with Matthew and Steven sitting across from them.
Matthew wasn’t sure if he was disappointed or relieved that Amanda was asked to sit with Walter. It made things easier on him—he could avoid any conversations about feelings if she was on the other side of the transport. He did notice Connor’s eagerness to sit with her, though, and that made things a little worse.
Not realizing he had actually done Matthew a favor, Connor felt he had achieved a minor victory in getting to the seat beside Amanda before Matthew could. The transport began to move, and he asked Amanda, “So, what do think so far? The future’s pretty cool, isn’t it?”
Amanda shrugged her shoulders and said, “I don’t know. It’s kinda hard to tell.”
Hearing Amanda’s comment, Walter replied, “I would like to propose a challenge, young lady. Once we pass from the main transport station and you’re able to see out the windows, I want you to jot down what you see.”
Walter handed her a piece of paper and a pen. “We will be on these transports for several hours, so I just want you to observe.”
“I can do that,” Amanda replied. “If I have a question about what I’m looking at, can I ask you or Connor?”
“No, I want to keep conversation to a minimum. Just look out the window and write down what you see. We’ll discuss it later.”
The magnetic bases on the transports emitted a low buzzing sound that overpowered every other sound throughout the trip. It was hypnotic, and Amanda found herself zoning out several times during the journey. The only things breaking up the time were the transfers from one transport to another. This occurred twice, until finally they reached the final transport to Sector 4.
The group experienced no other issues with the officials or scanning at the other stations. Steven spent most of the trip teaching Matthew and April a card game that he enjoyed from back home. Apparently the game of go fish had been removed from the culture in the late 2000s. It helped pass the time, though; even Johnson played a few hands.
Amanda kept silent through the entire trip, focusing on what she saw out the transport window and jotting it down on her paper. Connor was frustrated that Amanda took Walter’s assignment so seriously. He tried to pull Amanda away from the window a few times, but she didn’t pay him much attention, so he sat in sullen silence for the majority of the trip.
Walter and Addie discussed what needed to be done once they reached Sector 4. Connor tried to listen in on their conversation, but most of their talk was technical, so he couldn’t follow what they were saying. He flashed more than one critical glance at Walter for taking away his opportunity to converse with Amanda.
Eight long hours passed before the transport arrived at Sector 4. Stiff and sore from the long inactivity, the travelers gathered up their belongings and made their way through the last checkpoint. Walter’s plan had gone off without another issue.
“Ok, team, everyone follow me and Johnson. Stay close to each other, and try
not to draw any attention to yourselves. We have a long walk to make.”
It was quite late in the day when they arrived in Sector 4. The group would normally not be allowed to walk the streets at that hour without a Sector 4 chaperone, but since Walter was posing as a transfer agent, he was allowed to lead the group through the streets. He was stopped only twice by the local security personnel, and both were fooled by his official paperwork.
Sector 4 was quite different from Sector 37, a small town by comparison. The buildings weren’t as tall or as big, and some remnants of nature were still scattered among the main paths. Walter explained that they were on the edge of Sector 4, where officials ran smaller subareas of the sector.
“To put it terms that Amanda might understand, it’s similar to a mayor running a small town, but instead of citizens, it’s all the personnel that run the sector living in one area,” Walter explained.
After walking for almost an hour, the group reached a bridge that crossed a small body of water. They seemed nowhere near anything that looked like a compound. Walter stopped the group and said, “Johnson, I want you and Addie to go on to the compound and complete the door installation. Start bringing everything through. Take Steven with you.”
Johnson looked around the bridge and realized where they were.
“Are you crazy? You can’t take them in there.”
Walter looked to April and asked, “Do you want to see the real face of the Minster and the Council of Compassion and World Order?”
“What do you mean? I know who the Minister is.”
Walter chuckled and said, “You know who he is, but you don’t know what he does. There is too much doubt about what we’re doing and why we are doing it. I’m taking you to Sector 3.”
Chapter 6
A HORRIBLE TRUTH
Addie took Johnson’s hand and said, “Walter knows what he’s doing. They need to see it.”
Johnson replied, “No one needs to see that. Hell, we don’t even know for sure if it still exists.”
Walter’s face turned red as he glared at Agent Johnson. Grabbing his bag, he said, “It most certainly still exists, my friend, and the small path on the other side of this bridge is the best way to get there. It’s imperative that our entire team understands what we’re dealing with.”
“We can’t protect you if we aren’t with you,” Johnson replied.
Walter scoffed and said, “I’ve been protecting myself for over two hundred years. We’ll be fine. I have my bag of tricks…if we need them.”
Connor said, “I can carry that bag if you want. I’m good with the gadgets.”
Assuring Connor that he could manage himself, Walter ordered Johnson and Addie to the compound. He then opened up to the Chance family and Amanda.
“We’re heading into Sector 3 so I can show you a secret location that the Minister has kept hidden for years. There are those that say it doesn’t exist. There are those that have been put there for simply mentioning it. You need to see it.”
“Why is it so important?” asked Amanda.
Matthew looked across the small bridge. “It’s the Genesis Camps, isn’t it?”
Amanda approached Matthew’s side and asked, “What are the Genesis Camps?”
Taking a few steps onto the bridge, April said, “It sounds like Walter is an expert on them, so perhaps he should clue us in. The Mercury Camps are where Keith threatened to send Connor and Matthew.”
Connor stopped Walter before he could answer. “Come on. Those camps are just a folktale. They don’t really exist, do they?”
Walter motioned for the group to follow him across the bridge. “They most certainly do exist, and the Minister has a very good reason for keeping them a secret. That is what I want to show you. Once you see what is really going on, you’ll have no doubts about our mission and why it’s so important.”
Walter explained that the camps were one of the most heavily guarded areas on C1. Genesis was the primary site, and it housed older occupants. The Mercury Camps were a subsite for younger citizens. Much of Sector 3 was secluded and out of the public eye, so its location made sense. It was very important to the Minister that he kept it under wraps.
Matthew asked, “If this place is so heavily guarded, how are we gonna get close to it? What if we get caught?”
Walter patted the boy on the back and grinned. “You should know me better than that, my boy. I have my ways of getting around the sector security. Besides, we aren’t actually going to go into the compound. You’ll see.”
“So, you’re gonna trudge out there in your suit?” asked Connor.
Walter removed his gray suit and showed the group that he had indeed been wearing his T-shirt and suspenders under his coat. “I always come prepared. I can’t stand wearing a suit.”
Walter wanted to get the group to a location about a mile outside of the camp. It was a long trek through dense foliage and, in some cases, mud-laden terrain. It was difficult to see. Luckily a full moon glistened in the distance and lit some of their path, and Walter used a wide-range flashlight to help brighten their way.
Amanda stayed close to Matthew for the length of the walk. She tried to grab his hand on several occasions, but Matthew always found a way to let go of it just seconds later. Connor stayed close to Amanda as well, but it was obvious that her attention was directed to his brother.
April continued to question Walter about what they were about to see.
“So, why are people sent here? Is it only the people who try to fight against the Minister?”
Her questions were valid, and they needed to be answered, but Walter wasn’t budging. “You need to see it. Once you see it, you’ll understand.”
Amanda turned to Matthew. “Does this remind you of anything?”
Confused, Matthew replied, “Remind me of anything? I don’t seem to remember slugging through the woods at night back in Travis, trying to find a government complex.”
The foul smell along the path was enough to gag most people—a combination of mold and rotten grass. The insect life around the area was plentiful, with dive bombing mosquitoes and horseflies virtually blocking the path.
Amanda grinned and said, “It kinda reminds me of our first date. We were walking around Travis at night, and we got too far from downtown. It was real dark.”
Matthew remembered that night all too well. It had been his first date. He remembered Amanda snuggling up to him at the movie and holding his hand as they walked the sidewalks. He remembered the smell of ice cream and the infectious scent that radiated from the prettiest girl in Travis beside him. He also remembered Keith showing up and ruining the rest of the night.
“What’s your point?” Matthew asked.
Amanda replied, “I remember how you were that night. You were protective of me. You were always looking around to make sure nothing bad was going to happen to me, just like you are now.”
Matthew hadn’t realized that he was doing anything like that, but actually he was. His primary concern then, as it was now, was to protect her. Even if he didn’t know he was doing it.
Matthew stopped and looked into Amanda’s eyes. The faint reflection of the moon illuminated her soft face.
Amanda said, “See, I know you have feelings for me. You just need to let them out.”
Matthew caught himself, remembering Walter’s words. He didn’t want to be separated from Amanda or cause her any harm. He had to keep his feelings to himself, no matter how much he wanted to let them out. He turned his head and walked faster to catch up to Walter and April.
Matthew was stuck in a situation he didn’t know how to get out of. It was a choice between the mission and the girl of his dreams. Having both did not seem possible. He needed to complete the mission so that the girl of his dreams would have a life. Turning away from Walter and the mission was not an option.
Matthew asked Walter, “How much farther?”
Walter scanned the horizon. “We’ll take a position just over that ridge. Follow m
e closely, everyone. I’m going to have to turn off the flashlight.”
The group huddled as close to Walter as they could. The crunching of brush and leaves under their feet was the only sound seeping from the forest as they neared the crest of the ridge. Amanda took the opportunity to rub up close to Matthew, startling him. “Walter told us to get close,” she said.
A stream of lights peeked over the ridge as the group topped it. It looked like several spotlights going off in the distant skyline. As Matthew cleared the last of the trees at the ridge, he could see what all the fuss was about.
Walter signaled for everyone to get on the ground. “We need to stay well hidden. This brush should do quite well.”
In the distance, no more than a mile from the group’s location, stood a gigantic facility surrounded by barbed-wire fencing with tall towers at each of its corners. It resembled the prisons of the twentieth century, but it was much larger. The buildings’ outer walls were a cold green and gray. An obvious attempt to blend in with the surroundings.
April tried to catch her breath. “This structure is unreal. I’ve never seen anything so big. Are these buildings the Genesis Camps?”
“Yes, these are the Genesis Camps,” replied Walter. “They were constructed about sixty years ago for one purpose and one purpose only.”
“What’s the purpose?” asked Amanda.
Without answering Amanda’s question, Walter reached into his bag and pulled out a small metal device, about the size of a beetle.
Connor asked, “How are we gonna see anything in there? If this is as close as we can get, we’ll never know for sure what’s going on.”
Walter held the small metallic object in his hand and replied, “You boys just continue to underestimate me. Watch and learn.”
Walter threw the object into the air toward the Genesis Camp buildings. It flew up and then leveled out, coming to a hover. It stopped for just a moment and then began its journey to one of the buildings. It flew just like a small insect, and the group lost sight of it after just a few seconds of its flight.
Last Chance Volume 2 - The Legend of the Hathmec: Planting the Seed Page 8