Paradise Awakened Trilogy

by Mackenzie Morris

  "Well it is, so . . . forget about it."

  "You should have said something when we were on Olympus. I could have had some medics check it out."

  "I don't have time to be in a hospital somewhere." Jarred says as he tries to move the fingers on his broken hand. "I have to help everyone then get Jayce back."

  "That is your decision. I only ask that you get help after this is over."

  "I will. And Jayce will be by my side."

  * * *

  The ship quiets down as people go to their cabins to get some sleep before landing on Friedhof in a few hours. Katarina is curled up in Jarred's arms on their bed while he spins a holographic map of Friedhof on the bedside table. She feels content and protected here in his muscular arms, up against his warm hard chest. She watches his hazel eyes that are clouded with loneliness even now. She takes his hand and kisses his arm. Maybe talking about Jayce will help him feel better. "Can you tell me a little about you and Jayce?"

  He collapses the hologram and pulls her into his lap. "What do you want to know?"

  "This may be a bit personal, but how did you two discover that you had feelings for each other?"

  "How did I know this would come up at some point?"

  "Too personal?" Katarina asks.

  "Nah. I don't have anything to hide from you. I will warn you, though. It's a little graphic."

  "I'm a big girl. I know what happens when two people love each other, Jarred."

  Jarred laughs and takes her in his arms again. "Oh, no. Not that. I meant graphic as in bloody and violent."

  "I shouldn't be surprised, knowing you two. Go ahead. This is going to be another one of your crazy mercenary close call stories, isn't it?"

  "Yep." Jarred sounds excited as he starts telling his story. "So Jayce and I were hired by some really weird restaurant owners who didn't get the meat shipments they thought they should have gotten from the biogenesis ranch. I soon found out that we weren't going to be shooting humans that day. When our clients gave us tranquilizer darts, we realized we weren't actually going to kill anything. It was only our forth job and I guess they didn't think that two young teenage boys could be assassins. So we got farm duty. They wanted us to break into the biogenesis ranch where they kept the bulls and tranquilize them so they could do whatever they wanted with them. We weren't given that information. So, we waited until nightfall when the security would be the least. Armed with our tranquilizer darts, we slipped past the guard tower and barely avoided the spotlight. We used the stolen codes for the electronic keypad to get through the three security gates. Then we saw the bulls and realized that they were a lot bigger than we were. Okay, so, I don't like to admit this, but I was stupid back then. Jayce and I had been competing against each other for a couple of weeks to see who was the bravest. Yeah, it was dumb, but I was fifteen and by that time, he had adapted to be mentally the same age as me. So we were two young kids in an empty building with twelve bulls and time on our hands."

  "Is this when you first learned how to ride bulls?"

  "More like I learned how not to ride bulls. Let me tell the story. We had our little contest that we both took incredibly seriously. Just that morning, we saw who could come the closest to shooting their foot. Jayce won with half an inch."

  Really? "Good God."

  "Like I said, we weren't smart back then." Jarred says. "This is why you don't give kids guns. Anyway, I got the idea to ride one of the damned things. Once I retrieved an extension cord from a box in one of the offices, I climbed over the fence into one of the pens. Jayce was just shaking his head as he sat on the fence to watch me make a fool of myself. I tried to be sneaky and approach the biggest one there. I slipped the cable around his neck without a problem. Then I jumped on his back. I felt like the manliest man ever at that point. That quickly faded. When the bull began to run, I knew I was in trouble. When it started trying to throw me off, I knew I was going to die. I was screaming for Jayce to shoot the thing. I held on for as long as I could until my fingers slipped and I hit the ground hard. Jayce was laughing hysterically at my stupidity. I scrambled to my feet and ran to the fence just as Jayce's tranquilizer dart hit the poor creature. After a few seconds of stumbling, the bull dropped to the ground. As if that wasn't enough, Jayce pushed me back towards the pens and told me that if I did it again and lived, I would win our contest. With victory within reach, I went over to another pen and tried again. When I hit the ground this time, I wasn't as lucky. The bull stepped on my left leg, snapping my femur in half. It was the worst pain and the worst sound I had ever experienced. Jayce had to come drag me out of the pen after tranquilizing the bull. There was a line of blood trailing behind me in the dust. Jayce began trying to stop the bleeding and handed me a rag. He told me to bite down on it. I didn't understand until he sat on my chest and set the bone. Oh God. It still hurts thinking about it. As I was writhing in pain, he turned around, took the cloth from my mouth, and kissed me. I was stunned, even through the haze of pain. He told me I won the contest. There I was, filthy, covered in blood, and with my broken femur showing through my skin, and he had the idea to kiss me? I reached up and pulled Jayce back down to kiss him again. From then on, our relationship took its course rather rapidly . . . at least after I had spent four months resting and all our pay to get my leg fixed."

  That's it? She yawns and rubs her eyes. "Why do I feel exhausted after every story you tell? Did that even answer my original question?"

  "I don't know. What was your question?"

  "Never mind."

  17

  "Before we go out there, there are a few things we all need to be aware of." Velex says as he pulls on a fur parka that looks almost humorously too large for him. "Temperatures outside are negative ten degrees Fahrenheit which is about negative twenty-three Celsius. It's cold. If you suspect at any time that you are hypothermic, you call in on your radio and let us know. Kat and Jarred, you have your earpieces, right?"

  "Yes, sir." Katarina says.

  "I need everyone to stay in contact with Apollo who will be staying on the ship to relay messages and keep an eye out for any troubling situations. You have your map?"

  Katarina pulls up the blue glowing hologram on her watch. "Right here."

  "Now's your chance to redeem yourself. We all know your luck with maps."

  "I promise I won't mess up again."

  "I've already programmed the location of our destination on the map." Velex says. "The plan is for my sniper team to infiltrate the compound and remain hidden while searching for Kazimir, Doss, Zerachiel, and Gabriel. Kat, I switched your rifle for Jarred's. His is a smaller caliber and has one of the high-tech electronic silencers on it as well as aim assist, thermal imaging, and night vision. I figured it would be a lot more covert."

  Jarred crosses his arms. "René."

  "What?"

  "His name is René. Jayce named him. It means rebirth."

  Velex grins mischievously. "I hope you're talking about your rifle."

  "Shut up. Yes. My rifle is very important to me. It's the only thing I have that was my father's."

  "I'll take good care of him." Katarina says as she slings the rifle on her back.

  "I know."

  Velex scrolls through some data on his watch. "Conditions are calm tonight which is good for us finding our men, but that also means that the enemy will see you better. You have to remain hidden."

  "Here." Jarred hands Katarina a face mask to cover her mouth. "Keep this on. Your breath won't fog in the cold air as long as you wear it."

  "Seems like you've done this before."

  "Hundreds of times. I won't make that mistake again. So Jayce and I were on a job-"

  "No. We don't have time for a story." Katarina says as she pulls him towards the door. "Let's go."

  * * *

  Sinking down into the knee-deep snow is all too reminiscent of being stranded on Barren Void. This time, Katarina is grateful for the warm clothes. The material is warm without being too bulky so s
he can still run and move around. The dull yellow light from Friedhof's two moons shimmers on the far-stretching fields of snow. Above the vast emptiness loom tall jagged mountains void of any vegetation. Katarina stares at the peaks and the ice. It's unlike any place she has been before.

  Jarred appears to be awestruck as well. As they walk through the night, their feet crunch in the snow and they hold hands, finding much-needed comfort in this simple gesture. They need each other now more than they ever have. Jarred has to remain calm so they can figure out a way to save Jayce. Katarina can't stop thinking about Doss.

  What are these people doing to him? Doss is no stranger to being interrogated, but everyone has their limit. Despite his normally strong exterior, Doss is fragile deep down. He's like a crystal glass encased in a concrete shell. Once someone is able to break through his fortitude, there's nothing left to protect what remains. But that's part of the reason she's here right now. They'll rescue everyone then things will be back to how they were. They can all finally be happy.

  * * *

  When they reach the warehouse that Velex has marked on the holographic map, they stick to the shadows and remain out of earshot from the people they can hear working inside. Jarred pulls her down into a snowdrift and points towards an ice-slicked ladder leading up the side of the brick building. Does he seriously want her to go up the thing? She shakes her head in silent protest, but he pushes her towards it before walking off into the night. Fine.

  She brushes the snow from her gloves on her pants and attempts to dry them, but it's not much help Grabbing onto the rungs of the ladder, she carefully climbs up, only slipping a couple of times. Katarina tosses Jarred's rifle onto the roof and pulls herself up. Once up on top of the warehouse, she spots a door below her feet and pries it open, breaking the ice that had built up around the hinges. She waits for a minute to see if anyone heard her before climbing down onto the scaffolding overlooking the main work area.

  Peering over the yellow painted railed to the warehouse below, Katarina sees the metal and flesh conglomerations of the cyborgs like the ones Zach had been working on. With the recent developments, these were probably made by Zach as well. They are milling around, carrying sheets of metal and bundles of assorted cables and wires.

  "See anything from up there?" Jarred asks over the speaker.

  "Not much. No sign of our guys."

  "I'm gonna go around back and see what is going on there. Any heat signatures other than the cyborgs you can see? If any of those rogue Shadow Spies are lurking around here, thermal imaging is the only way to reliably find them. That camouflage generator they have is pretty damn good. I saw some tracks in the snow that weren't ours going up towards that ladder so be careful."

  "I haven't seen anything else." Katarina says.

  "All right. Hey, what is this? Kat, I found a false wall back here. Come back out here and watch my back as I slide this open. I don't know how much noise it's gonna make so I need to make sure you're not in a dangerous position if I alert anyone."

  "Will do. On my way." As she slings the rifle over her shoulder and begins to climb back up to the roof, she spots some sort of movement in the corner of her eye. Squinting in the dim light, she tries to make out what looks to be nothing more than a slightly shimmering shadow. Then she realizes what it must be. A Shadow Spy. Sure enough, when she looks through the scope of Jarred's rifle, there are the bright yellows, oranges, and whites of heat in a human form. Katarina nearly drops the rifle in shock. How long has it been there silently watching her? What all did it hear? The more urgent question is if it is a friendly one. Is it one of Velex's allies? Being that they are out here on a secluded base controlled by Clark's Blood Force, it's probably not going to want to shake hands.

  The Shadow Spy's camouflage vanishes, revealing a man in all black with a mask concealing his face except for bright green eyes. He draws a laser pistol from his hip and walks towards her.

  Katarina begins to panic as she backs up towards the wall and presses the button on her earpiece. "Jarred?"

  "What's up?"

  "I've got company."

  "Who is it?" Jarred asks.

  "A Shadow Spy."

  "Run. You can't take him by yourself."

  Thinking quickly, Katarina runs to the ladder and climbs up to the roof as fast as she can. A silenced shot sends a bullet through the leg of her pants, narrowly avoiding her calf. Clambering out onto the snow-covered roof, her boots hit ice and she falls face first to the slick concrete. She tastes blood as the shock of the impact sends pain through her head. She bites her lip to keep from screaming. She can't risk drawing the attention of the cyborgs and Blood Force soldiers around the building.

  When feet crunch in the snow and the ice snaps and cracks under the man's weight, Katarina rolls over and holds up the rifle defensively. Not realizing that her finger was on the trigger, the recoil from firing hits her in the chest and knocks the air out of her lungs. Before she can recover, the Shadow Spy kicks the rifle out of her hands and jumps on her.

  There is a flash of metal as a knife sticks into the concrete next to Katarina's face. Struggling and writhing to get free from her attacker, she is doing everything she can to not cry out for help. Where is Jarred? The man's gloved hands tighten around her throat. Those eyes. She stares into the bright green eyes and she knows who this man is. Between gasping for air, she grabs his arms and whispers. "Zach?"

  He leans closer and slams her head on the roof. "That's right, angel. You can't get away from me. I will always find you."

  "Not if I'm alive." Jarred pulls Zach off of her and sends him to the roof. "You die now, Montgomery."

  "I won't go down easily, especially not to a man like you."

  Jarred steps on Zach's throat and aims his own silenced pistol in his face. "A man like me? And what kind of man am I?"

  "A filthy man-fucking faggot."

  Jarred starts laughing. It's a deep, dark, evil laughter that sends a chill down Katarina's spine. He kneels down and sits on Zach's stomach with the barrel of the pistol pressed up against Zach's throat. For minutes, Jarred continues laughing until he tosses the gun to the side and pries the knife out of the concrete roof. "Do you need a demonstration?"

  Zach is clawing at his arms, but he's no match for Jarred's muscular build. "What are you doing? You're insane!"

  "You have hurt so many people. You betrayed your friends and your family. I would rather be a man like me than a soulless monster like you. If you want to act like a bitch, then I'll make you my bitch." Jarred plunges the knife into Zach's side then again into his chest. "You don't get to call me names. I will dominate you. I will take what I want." After stabbing him twelve more times in the chest and neck, Jarred drops the knife and pummels Zach's face with his fists. Even with his broken hand, he hits him with all of his strength. "I want your life!"

  Katarina knows that Zach won't die from those stab wounds. There's no blood because the T.I.M.E.s still aren't bleeding. She steps up to Jarred and touches his shoulder. "That's enough."

  "What's wrong with you?" He screams at her as he punches Zach in the mouth.

  "Get off of him."

  Jarred rolls away and picks up the gun. "I'm not done with him."

  "Yes, you are."

  "Why?"

  "It's my turn." Katarina takes the knife and goes over to Zach who is moaning and drifting in and out of consciousness. With a surge of rage, she slashes at him, dragging the blade across his neck. Seeing that he's still alive, she knows she has to destroy his microchip so she closes her eyes. The foreign tingling sensation of her dark matter travels up her arms until it is unleashed from the hand she has pressed against Zach's forehead. When she opens her eyes, the destruction she caused makes her gasp. Zach's headless body is lifeless in the snow. Despite the evils he had done, Katarina can't stop from losing control over her emotions. Her hot tears drop down to the snow.

  Breathing hard, Jarred comes up behind her and surrounds her with his arms. "We did it. H
e's gone."

  Katarina holds up her hands as the swirling purple and black fades. "What have I done?"

  "What needed to be done. You saved so many people. He had it coming."

  "What do we do now?"

  Jarred brushes the snow from his clothes and looks around them. "Usually we would run or hide the body and destroy the evidence. But even with Zach's struggling, I don't think we've been discovered so we need to just get our gear together and continue our search for our friends."

  "Don't you ever feel anything for the people you've killed?"

  "Of course I do, but I can't dwell on that. You're strong enough to deal with this. It's gonna be okay. I'm always here if you need to talk about this. Right now, we need to find our earpieces and let Velex and Apollo know that we're okay. I'm sure they've been trying to get in touch with us after the last transmission was you calling for my help."

  With one last look at Zach's body, Katarina picks up Jarred's rifle and goes down the ladder. All of her rage and adrenaline have faded, leaving her exhausted and questioning if they did the right thing. What truly concerns her is the brutality that Jarred is capable of unleashing. He's normally so friendly and gentle. Katarina's mind and emotions begin to get the better of her. What if Jarred turns on her?

  Jarred replaces his mask over his mouth as he joins her back on the ground and puts his arm around her. "Hey, at least we're not covered in blood."

  She pulls away from him. "You think that's funny?"

  "I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

  Katarina takes her earpiece from him. "We just slaughtered a man who used to be my boyfriend. Forgive me for not feeling ecstatic about it."

  Velex's voice comes over the speaker. "Come in Jarred and Kat."

  "We're here." Jarred says. "We're alive."

  "Where have you been?"

  "Exterminating a pest. Zach is dead."

  "Thank God. That's the best news I've had all day. Any sign of our guys?" Velex asks.

  "Not yet, but I found a false wall that we are about to check out."