Nightfall

by Peter Hoole

  The result of his attempt to stop the countdown had proved futile. In fact, as William had feared, the situation became even harder to resolve. The screen had gone black, seemingly switched off.

  The only indication William had that the countdown was continuing came from the overhead lights in the room which were still flashing red.

  Unfortunately for him, now that the screen had turned off, there was no way to track the remaining time of the countdown.

  After pondering the futility of his situation, William made the decision to leave and make a dash for his evacuation point. With any luck, the countdown would continue on its previous time scale meaning he had ample time to escape the facility.

  He had little choice other than to trust in this possibility. After all, the only other option was to remain, and risk being stuck in the implosion.

  With his new-found immortality, it wasn’t something he was willing to do. For too long, he had waited for the serum. He wouldn’t waste the gift he’d been given.

  Turning to run, his motion was interrupted by the sight of a man at the entry doors.

  Though he was yet to learn the man’s name, William knew he was someone to be feared. Not only was he an outsider, but he was also the man who had figured out a way to get into the base without detection.

  It was apparent that James was there under duress. In the time since he’d been sent away, the man behind his master had not only broken free, but also made James bend to his will

  William realised the man had a gun pointed at the back of James’ head.

  “Sir?” William said, cautiously.

  “William,” James replied, seeming to be quite relaxed, given the circumstances. “How did it go?” The tone of James’ voice was hopeful rather than optimistic.

  William wasn’t sure how much to reveal.

  If the man knew the system had locked him out, then he would have no need to keep either himself or James alive. He decided it best to conceal the information, given the circumstances. “All went well sir. The shutdown has been averted.”

  Caleb sensed the man was being less than truthful. Combined with the fact that the red lights were still flashing, Caleb was certain William was lying. “Bullshit,” he announced, moving out from behind James.

  William’s facial expression gave away the truth.

  “I’m betting you put in the code, and the system shut itself down,” said Caleb, after glancing at the monitor.

  James wrestled free, and turned to the man behind him.

  “Right,” James said loudly, fed up with being kept in the dark. He still couldn’t understand how they had been so effective in their incursion. They’d been able to manipulate their plan so well, it was as though they had received inside information, “How the hell do you know anything about this place? I understand that you might have found out some information regarding the Colonials. And I realise that we were perhaps not as… efficient… in hiding ourselves as we could have been. But, I must say Captain, I’m at a loss to understand how you could possibly have done what you have. I am the only one who could have possibly set the timer to count down until this place implodes. There is no-one else who could have done this.”

  James’ words resonated with Caleb. Indeed, he had always been impressed with Murphy’s abilities. She always seemed to have a knack for understanding technology before he did.

  While Caleb was a better strategist and leader, Murphy was simply better with technology. But, this was different. If what Cook was saying was true, then Murphy had performed above and beyond even her standards.

  James was visibly angry. “Tell me, Captain! How did you know?” he shouted.

  “Oh, James.” A voice spoke from the corridor. “How quickly you have forgotten me.”

  A figure appeared from around the doorway, leading with the nose of a gun.

  The figure had a feminine voice, the accent English – much in the same vein as James’. There was a certain plum to her voice when she spoke.

  “Murphy?” Caleb said in disbelief.

  “ “Yes… and no,” Murphy replied.

  James was dumfounded. He couldn’t seem to understand how the person in front of him could actually be there. His face grew visibly paler, as if he’d seen a ghost. “It— It can’t be,” he stammered.

  “But indeed,” Murphy continued, her English accent growing more pronounced, “it is me, James.”

  Caleb and William looked at each other briefly. Neither of them had the slightest idea of what was happening.

  Caleb spoke up. “Murph? What’s with the accent?”

  Murphy continued to stare at James, revelling in the shock and surprise in his eyes. “Why don’t you tell him?” she asked.

  James shook his head in disbelief. “It can’t be you.”

  Murphy raised the gun, aiming at James.

  “Just tell them. Tell them who I am.” She was desperate for James to reveal her identity – just the way she had planned it.

  “If you are who I think you are,” James began, “You are Charlotte. Charlotte Cook.”

  “Cook?” Caleb asked, his confusion increasing with each passing second.

  “Yes, Captain,” Charlotte said. “That is I.” She turned her attention back to James. “Tell them who I am.”

  James, still trying to realise the implications of Charlotte’s return took a minutes to respond.

  “This… this is my daughter.”

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Caleb was stunned into complete silence. Though taken aback, he was unsure if what he had heard was true. He looked over at Charlotte, trying to gain some kind of assurance that she hadn’t been deceiving him.

  Unfortunately for Caleb, such an assurance didn’t come. When he looked into the eyes of his Lieutenant, he saw nothing but steely determination. It was a look he had seen in her eyes on many occasions, and usually it would serve as a source of comfort. On this occasion, it was anything but.

  Time seemed to slow, as the events that had led them to that point took on a different meaning. While he had always though her intelligent, it was now clear how Charlotte had managed to understand the Colonial technology so quickly. While she was intelligent, she had prior knowledge of what they were up against.

  She was one of them.

  Caleb couldn’t help but feel betrayed. His mind was a muddle of anger and disbelief. After all that had happened, particularly in the past few days, he was unsure of how he would ever be able to recover.

  First, Matthew had deceived him, shooting down the plane at Seattle after convincing Caleb he was not a threat.

  Then, Jacob had betrayed him. Though not unexpected, it had once again shown Caleb that his judgement was a little… off.

  Now, with Charlotte revealing her true identity, Caleb found himself asking questions of himself that he’d never thought would need answering. It was a question of judgement, and three times in the past forty-eight hours, Caleb had been found wanting.

  Fortunately for him, the thoughts were quickly replaced by more urgent matters.

  “I… I…” James stuttered; his formerly calm, almost cocky demeanour replaced with sheer bewilderment. “It’s impossible. You died. I saw you fall.”

  Charlotte scoffed. “Come now, James,” she said, her weapon pointed towards James, “You always said that life and death had no meaning for us.”

  Charlotte began to chuckle, as though the weight of secretly being alive had been lifted, “And of course, when you pushed me, what was it you said?”

  James was silent. He remembered the exact moment he had thought he killed her. And, he knew what he’d said.

  Charlotte waited patiently, as though baiting him to say it again. When no response came, she spoke for him, “See you in the next life. That was it, right?”

  James still remained silent.

  Caleb was watching them, trying to ascertain what was happening. Despite her deception, it was clear that Charlotte was fighting the same cause as Caleb. However, her
final plan was, as yet, unclear.

  Charlotte, her weapon still aimed towards James, reached into her pocket. She pulled out what looked like a small box. Black and basic, the box resembled a garage door remote, with only one button.

  “Can you guess what this is?” Charlotte asked James.

  James stared at the box, but remained mute.

  Caleb looked at the device. While he had no way of knowing what it was, he could hazard a guess. After all, if it had been Charlotte’s goal to destroy the base and her father the whole time, the device was obviously something that would assist with that outcome.

  Charlotte spoke, impatient at her father’s refusal to answer. “I think you can guess. After all, I’m sure you remember that I helped you in the beginning. That I helped you design and build this god forsaken place…”

  Charlotte was about to continue, when James interrupted, clearly rattled by her last statement. “God forsaken?” he said, fury filling his voice, “How dare you? You were with me, almost from the beginning. You know what we’re doing is what the almighty would have wanted. How dare you stand there, about to destroy everything we have worked for? How dare you stand there and say that God has forsaken us?”

  Charlotte moved towards her father, emotion urging her forward. As she stepped closer, her anger was replaced by sadness, and tears welled in her once confident eyes. “How dare you?” she responded. “So many people. You have killed so many people… all for your cause. All for your ‘New Era’.”

  “They were necessary. The world, Charlotte,” James tried to calm his daughter and distract her. “The world has got to a point where we should… no… where we must intervene.”

  Charlotte stood no more than two yards from her father. She could hear the sincerity in his voice. “You’re lying to us all,” Charlotte said, her voice calming. “Don’t try to tell me you’re doing this for anyone but yourself.” Charlotte exclaimed.

  James considered his words carefully. “I am doing this for the betterment of the human race - for the betterment of the world.”

  Caleb could see where Charlotte’s statements were heading, and he decided to remind them of his presence. “I hate to interrupt, Captain, or whatever title you’ve given yourself, but I’m guessing that you would be the leader in this New Era?”

  James didn’t need to respond.

  Charlotte turned to Caleb when he spoke. After hearing his question, she nodded and smiled. She knew Caleb was a man of honour who could be trusted.

  “You’ve decided that because we don’t fit in with what you want, you’re going to kill us,” Caleb said. “And once we’re all gone, then you take your place as de-facto leader of the world?” Caleb waited for a response, though he didn’t really expect one.

  He knew James was too canny to admit to his ultimate goal. “Not such a noble cause after all,” Caleb remarked.

  Charlotte turned to her father. “As you and I know, James. Once Haven is gone, there will be no more ‘Source’, which means you cannot create the serum. And, I’m guessing that not all the people you need have received the serum yet… probably the African and South American colonies. I’m guessing you need them, to instigate your plan.”

  James smiled, as though he knew something Caleb and Charlotte did not. “You two. You’re such fools,” James said.

  Charlotte was surprised. It wasn’t a response she’d expected.

  “Do you really think that, after all this time, we haven’t figured out a way to synthesise the serum? Do you really think that I would let my plan be threatened so… so easily? My dear daughter, you have grown foolish in your time away from us.”

  Charlotte responded with more than a little apprehension in her voice. “You’re bluffing.” she said.

  “Trust me. All of your success here is for naught. Well may you kill me. Well may you destroy Haven and the colony that you so fervently worked on for so many years. But trust me, my dear… the New Era will begin.”

  Up to that point, William hadn’t moved, such had been the shock of the revelation that Charlotte was still alive. It had been more than two decades since the accident which had taken her life.

  Death, as was the nature of the Colonials, was not a common occurrence. Sure, they had had to deal with the death of outsiders, but to lose someone from the inside was so uncommon, it was almost unthinkable. Coupled with the fact that the person meeting their end was the daughter of the Governor himself, William could hardly believe it possible.

  The fact that Charlotte Cook’s death was an apparent accident had softened the delivery of the news, and allowed the colony to move on. But, in light of this information – and understanding that James had apparently been the cause of her death –William was questioning his dedication to his role model.

  As Charlotte spoke, and the outsider assisted, William waited for the right moment to attack. The moment would be difficult to ascertain, as William feared that the man assisting Charlotte may prove to be the toughest opponent he’d ever faced. When he couldn’t see an opening for his attack, William decided to create one.

  He took a few steps forward, away from the large central computer. The movement had its intended effect, and distracted the man who’d been pointing his gun at James.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” he asked, turning the gun on William.

  William looked straight back at him. “I would like to leave,” he replied. It was a risk, as he was unsure how volatile the man was.

  “Don’t move, William,” Charlotte said. “You’re just as guilty of the atrocities James has perpetuated, as he is. You both deserve the same fate.”

  “If you press that button, we will all share the same fate,” William replied coldly. He hid his fear behind a brash exterior.

  “Oh, William. You’ve been hanging out with James for too long,” Charlotte replied. “You both think that I care about my life. You’re both so obsessed with immortality, with power. But you need to understand something,” Charlotte said, ensuring she had their complete attention.

  “What’s that?” James asked, defiantly.

  “Some of us don’t want to live forever. In fact, some of us would rather die for a cause than live a long life for ourselves.”

  Caleb could see that Charlotte had no intention of leaving the base. Her final mission was to destroy the work of her father. A noble cause, but one that would leave the mission only partially complete.

  Charlotte turned to Caleb, as though sensing his thoughts. “You’d better get going,” she said.

  Caleb didn’t want to leave her behind. Despite what he’d just learned, a part of him still felt as if he needed to protect her. He wanted to help his lieutenant.

  “Don’t worry about me, Captain,” she said. “We’ll be fine.” Charlotte did have the advantage. The gap between her and the others was sufficient for her to press the button without interruption.

  “Why don’t you come with me?” Caleb asked. “We could stop the rest of them together. God knows I could use your help.”

  Charlotte took a step back, her gun pointed at James, the control in the other hand.

  “My place is here,” she said defiantly.

  Caleb realised he couldn’t change her mind. He had to go, find Darcy and the others, and do whatever he could to stop the rest of the Colonials. After all, there was no telling what the news of the loss of their leader would cause them to do.

  “Okay then,” Caleb said, the moment catching up with him. “I guess this is goodbye.”

  Charlotte rolled her eyes. “Come on, Captain. Don’t get soft on me now.”

  She briefly turned to wink at Caleb, her fondness for their friendship apparent.

  It was all the time William needed. As he saw her head turn, and her body ever so slightly relax, William made his move. With the skill and speed he had learned from the years he had served the Colonials, William leapt towards Charlotte.

  Before Caleb or Charlotte could react, William closed the gap, enough that he was ab
le to strike her. The force of his quick punch had two effects. One, she immediately lost consciousness, the concussive blow shaking her brain enough to make her black-out. The second result was that the remote that Charlotte was carrying spilled from her left hand and fell to the floor. As the control fell, William grabbed Charlotte before she could do the same.

  Caleb, who had partially turned to leave, moved as swiftly as he could. It was not enough, and by the time he had redrawn his weapon and aimed, William had a firm hold of Charlotte. He held the unconscious Lieutenant between himself and Caleb.

  Caleb wasn’t surprised by the tactic. From what he had learned of the Colonials, they would stop at nothing to get what they wanted. He now knew this meant using the prodigal daughter as a barrier.

  This knowledge didn’t deter Caleb from targeting William. It was more out of instinct than any real desire to shoot.

  They were both seasoned soldiers, and they understood the situation immediately. In silence, they sized each other up.

  William struggled with Charlotte’s body, dealing with the awkward nature in which she fell into his arms. With some effort, he was able to thrust his left arm under her shoulder. From there, he reached across her chest, holding her full weight with one arm. While this caused him some discomfort, it also allowed him to free his right arm, the arm holding his gun. Under strain, William raised the weapon towards Caleb. He now had the advantage.

  Caleb knew it.

  It was only a matter of time before William fired. Caleb had to make a split-second decision. Did he fire at William, and risk hitting Charlotte? Did he shoot through her shoulder, hoping to take William out and leave her alive?

  He found his mind cluttered with second-guesses and doubt. For the better part of the last few days, Caleb had misjudged situations.

  Then, unexpectedly, a third option popped into his head. Initially, the thought merely complicated his thought process. But then he remembered what Darcy had said to him earlier in the diner, seemingly so long ago. “You’ve been through some tough times, and you’re still alive. I think your instincts are good enough.”