Revolution

by K. A. Salidas

  Jay winked at Mira and transformed back into her bird form. She flew up and perched on Mira’s shoulder and whispered in her ear, “At your service!”

  “Okay. I think we have all we need. Let’s get going, then.” Mira stood and motioned for her group to follow. “Soon as I have a look at the vehicle situation, we’re out of here.”

  Chapter 4

  Her beautiful stars twinkled above as she, Stryker, and Curtis hiked down the rocky path away from Caldera to the cave where old salvage transports were kept. She wondered if she’d ever tire of the serenity their light brought. No one else seemed to care. Taking them for granted. She supposed she had too once, before Theo had turned her. How many human years had she lived without truly appreciating them? And how many more had she been shut away from their silvery light? No, she’d not take them for granted ever again. And neither, she assumed, would her vampire brethren back in New Haven. Once she made it there to release them, they too would appreciate the beauty of freedom and the welcoming glow of a clear night sky.

  That, of course, hinged on her actually getting back to New Haven quickly. Based on what she’d been told, getting her hopes up was only going to lead to disappointment. Still, they had to see if any of the old transports could be made to work long enough to get them back to New Haven. Given the distance between them and the Iron Gate, it could be as long as a week before she and her group could begin their mission if forced to do it on foot. And for her, almost double that, since she’d be forced to wait out the daylight in some kind of cave.

  “Just over here.” Stryker bounded over a large boulder and disappeared from view. “I’ve parked many a transport vehicle over the years. We don’t like leaving things out in the forest. Makes the humans think they’re getting close.”

  Curtis stumbled over the rocks, tripping a few times, but he made no complaints. Much to his credit, for a human he was very agile.

  Mira followed Stryker’s voice as she scrambled over the large rocks in the trail. “Smart.” Her hopes were renewed noticing that he had said “parked” rather than “pushed.”

  “Most of our transports are solar powered,” Curtis added. “Going to need a bit of light to get them going.”

  That complicated things a little. “So if they’ve been parked and its night time, how will we know they’re going to run?”

  If Curtis was worried, his voice didn’t betray it. “I’ll check under the hood. Make sure the wiring is all as it should be. Mechanics are pretty simple beasts, really.”

  Stryker stopped short and turned back towards Mira. Even in the dark she could see the amber of his eyes. “You’ll just have to give it a little hope.”

  Was he mocking her? “Hope?” That wasn’t a word she liked to use.

  “Don’t start with the negativity.” Stryker chuckled at her angry pout. “You’ve done so many impossible things in this last week: fighting off the humans, escaping their city, getting your three human friends into Caldera. Luck, or something like it, is on your side. Be positive for a change.”

  Mira crossed her arms, wondering how many more times she’d have to hear that same speech. She was a realist in a world filled with dreamers, it seemed. “Positivity doesn’t get you anything. Action does.”

  “Ray of sunshine, this one.” Stryker elbowed Curtis as if they were old friends.

  Despite the animosity Mira had encountered from the others, Stryker held no prejudices between them. Quite an endearing quality. Not unlike her friend Lucian, who had given up on many of his own prejudices after encountering Mira. If two enemies could become unlikely friends, maybe there was hope for some form of peace somewhere down the road.

  Curtis chuckled. “Yeah, but she gets results.”

  His comment amused her, but Mira didn’t want to let them know that. “She is right here. You don’t need to speak of me as if I’m not.”

  Ignoring her haughty tone, Stryker continued, leading them down towards a small cave entrance. Nothing blocked the entry, no stones nor manmade doors, but the mouth of the cave was nearly invisible under the shadows created by moonlight. Stryker, however, knew exactly where to go. He walked them straight to the mouth of the cave without so much as a stumbling misstep.

  No light found its way into the depths of the cave, but that did not stop Mira’s vampire eyes from seeing outlines of what lay inside.

  Stryker gathered items to make a torch while Mira ventured in for a closer look. Inside the cave was a musty cloying smell of old grease and mold. It turned her nose, and at the same time brought back memories of the prison level where she’d spent so much time. Not for the greasy smell, but mold and dust were two constants in the prison. Poor ventilation and dirty, sweaty mattresses were staples. Add a hint of blood in the air and she might have sworn she was back in her cell. Suddenly, she felt the walls closing in and wanted out of the cave.

  Turning to leave, she saw Stryker with the torch. As quickly as the feeling had come, seeing her new friend and the orangey glowing light washed it away.

  “You okay, Mira?” He asked.

  “Fine,” she lied. “Just not sure what to look for.”

  Stryker walked around the cave, lighting wall-mounted torches to illuminate the walls.

  While the mouth of the cave had been smallish – no bigger than the size of a transport vehicle – inside seemed cavernous. Although spacious, it was crammed with all manner of vehicles. Small two-wheeled ones, large ones on tracks, small speeders with seating space for four, and even one that looked as if it might fly.

  “Wow!” Curtis exclaimed. Eyes wide like a child who’d just walked into a toyshop, he practically stuttered with excitement. “A VT2?” He ambled over to a particularly large propeller vehicle and patted its metallic body like an old family pet.

  “A what?” Mira asked, wondering what language he’d just spoken.

  “Vertical Transport!” Curtis’s eyes lit up as he ran his hand along the length of the vehicle’s body. “I haven’t seen one of these babies in years.”

  That piqued her interest. “Vertical, as in flying?”

  “Shot it down a few years ago. Doesn’t work, I’m afraid,” Stryker added. He stood in the center of the room, arms crossed, letting Curtis and Mira have room to explore.

  “You shot it down? With what weapons?” She shot a quizzical look to her shifter friend. Not that she’d had much experience with the Otherkin, but she hadn’t noticed any weapons other than the ones the humans brought. Swords and daggers seemed to be the choice weapons for the citizens of Caldera.

  Stryker returned her questioning gaze with an impish grin. “This one got as far as this cave. Pulled out that old tank and emptied a few shells into the big beast’s belly. Leaked something awful and then” – he mimed shooting at the big vehicle then smashed his fist into his palm – “it practically fell from the sky.”

  Curtis nodded thoughtfully, eyes still locked onto the big metal beast of a transport. “That don’t surprise me. The VT2s had engine issues. The propellers took too much energy to run, and solar cells couldn’t provide the right oomph. These guys here,” he continued, patting the vehicle lovingly, “they’re a hybrid model. Second edition. Added fuel engines to help get the needed push.” Curtis ducked down and fingered a few holes along the bottom of the body. “Course, if you hit that fuel line and drained it... no more propeller. Bet this one made a nice loud little boom when it crashed.”

  She could only imagine seeing that hulking metal beast flying through the air. The mental image of it falling out the sky was hard to fathom. “But you said you hadn’t seen them in years. They aren’t used anymore?”

  Curtis shook his head. “Problem with them is they’re too costly to run, and they have horrible maintenance issues. A few newer models are still in limited use. Magistrate uses them to travel between the eight cities, but other than that, no... not common. And this baby here... will never kiss the sky again.”

  “Well, there goes the idea of flying in.” Her shoulders sl
umped. Flying would have been a novel treat. But it was probably better they stick to the ground anyway. “Let’s locate something armored... and large enough to take the whole group in.” Mira wandered through the available vehicles, keeping an eye out for anything that resembled the one in which she’d arrived. Roof mounted guns would be a plus, along with sun blocking armor. She could safely sleep the day away while others took shifts.

  Most were broken or badly damaged. Some looked as if they’d been through a war, but after a half hour of weeding through, Mira found one. Smaller than she’d hoped for, but still with room for five people. And the only windows were in the front. She could make do with covering up in the back of the vehicle if need be. “Curtis. Here. Check this one out.”

  He rushed over excitedly. “Oh, yes, this will do nicely. Light and fast. They don’t make them like this anymore either.” He looked like he’d hit the jackpot, eyeballing the vehicle in front of them. “See how aerodynamic the design is? No bulky weaponry sticking out. Yes. This will get you there quick.”

  “What if we encounter trouble on the road?” Stryker asked.

  “You’ll have to outrun them.” Curtis could hardly take his eyes off the vehicle. He ran a hand along the line of the roof and then down toward the door handle. “This one was built for speed.”

  With the push of the handle the door opened, swinging upwards rather than out to the side. Mira jumped back.

  “I’ll check it out and disable any tracking devices that may still be inside.”

  Happy they’d found something, Mira let herself get cautiously hopeful. “How long before you’ll know if it works?”

  “It’ll have to charge up a bit before I can know anything for sure, but I’d say, if the solar cells are still good, you’ll be ready to leave tomorrow night. We’ll let her charge up during the day while you sleep.”

  “Let’s get her outside then.” Stryker walked around the vehicle. “You steer, I’ll push.” He shot a wink in Mira’s direction and she wasn’t too sure why.

  “I’ll help you push too.” Mira followed Stryker around the back of the transport.

  Their combined strength made quick work of moving it beyond the mouth of the cave. Out in the open, it could bathe in the sun all day long and with any luck fill its solar cells for the journey.

  Hopeful that they’d have transportation, Mira took a step back and dusted her hands. “I’ll head back and pack our things. We’ll meet here tomorrow night and be off.”

  Stryker nodded. “I’ll stay here with Curtis and get things running. Do you remember the way back?”

  “I think I can manage.” She had plenty of fresh footprints to follow and Curtis’s lingering smell to help guide her back up the mountain. Feeling a little more confident about their journey now, Mira was almost eager to get on the way.

  Chapter 5

  One working transport, a small cadre of warriors, and enough knives and swords to equip them all. Mira and her team were as prepared as they could be to head back into the Iron Gate territory. Wasting no time, they sped through the badlands as soon as the sun had set, each taking turns driving through the day and night toward New Haven City.

  Though prepared as she could be, Mira felt hindered by her own weaknesses. Forced to take shelter every morning, she was unable to drive as long as the other members of the group. Hiding behind a blanket just made her feel silly, too. More than once she caught a mocking stare from the wolves accompanying them.

  Despite the speed of their transport, the trip back to New Haven felt as if it took days longer than it should have. Neither Stryker nor Lucian seemed to mind much. At least no one made any complaints, other than being trapped in close quarters, but Mira felt on edge the entire time.

  During the time she was supposed to be sleeping, her mind wandered to George and the other vampires, trapped within the confines of the Iron Gate prison. Mira wondered if she’d truly be able to do what had been requested of her. The task seemed an insurmountable beast. Talking about it was one thing, but actually making their way back into the city was pure insanity, even for an accomplished warrior like her. She’d never been accused of being the most “with it” of individuals though, so crazy as it was, this plan was par for the course of her life. Still, though, as much a warrior as she was, a small thread of fear coiled deep within her, planting roots in her mind. Death was just beyond the horizon, and the taste of freedom and peace she’d been given might be all she’d get to enjoy in this life.

  Before the fear grew wild, she forced the tone of her thoughts to more positive things. George. The look on his face when she released him would be worth all the lightboxes in the world. He’d told her countless times that she’d never escape. He’d have to eat his words when next they saw each other. And, she’d make good on her promise to free him, too. She smiled inwardly. Companions in enslavement, he’d been the closest thing to a brother to her.

  “What’s got you all smiley?” Lucian’s voice broke her silent contemplation.

  “Just thinking of freeing my people.”

  “Well, don’t you sound like the optimistic freedom fighter now.” His words might have been spoken in jest, but there was warmth behind them.

  “If I don’t try to stay positive, the truth of how impossible our task is will take over.”

  “Such a ray of sunshine...” Stryker appeared in front of her and sat roughly down on the transport’s floor.

  “Who’s driving?” Lucian might have tried to hide it, but Mira caught the sneer in his voice.

  “Turn around and look, why don’t you? It’s not driving itself.” Stryker sounded more annoyed than tired. He didn’t even bother looking up at Lucian to direct his irritated glare.

  Great, more male testosterone and posturing. Really not what she needed at the moment. Everyone had to have to have their head in the game, and she’d make them understand that – the hard way – if they kept up their little pissing matches.

  “How close are we to the city?” Mira snapped at both of them.

  “Not long now. We just passed a dam. I’m going to assume that’s their local water supply and possibly power source too. The city shouldn’t be too far. We should see the wall shortly.” The animosity left Stryker’s voice when he addressed her.

  She retained her aggravated tone. “Well, then, let’s focus on important things, shall we? Do we have a plan for when we get there? No doubt the city gates will be well guarded and have constant surveillance.”

  “If we attempt to enter through the Elite’s entrance, we should have less trouble. It’s a little-known entrance to the city,” Lucian said, more for Stryker’s benefit than hers.

  As the city walls appeared out of the front windows, a sense of urgency began to well within Mira. That wasn’t going to work. Mira shook her head as she spoke. “But they know you’re Elite. That changes things. Those entrances will be under more scrutiny in case you were stupid enough to return.”

  “Point taken. The only other entrance that should be quiet is used for maintenance and repair of the city walls. There’s a small doorway. It’s going to be out of the way, along the southernmost wall.” Lucian pointed out of the vehicle’s windshield, but the city was still too far away for her to accurately judge landmarks. She’d just have to take his word for it.

  Stryker too. He nodded thoughtfully, scanning the horizon. “Stop here,” he ordered the driver. The transport came to rest beside a thick tree trunk. Where once a vast forest must have been, only shells remained. Some trees still stood, but most had died or been cut down to be used in the nearby city. What remained were gnarly stumps, holes, rocks, and dirt.

  “I’ll take my wolves and we can scout the wall,” Stryker offered.

  “Be careful,” Mira warned. “Go in wolf form and try not to be seen.”

  “We’re not accustomed to seeing wolves in these parts. Your presence might alert someone,” Lucian said.

  “My team knows how to hunt in stealth. We’ll be fine.” Stryker looked
down his nose at the Elite human, amber eyes narrowing with angered focus.

  “Hey.” Mira snapped her fingers in front of Stryker. “We’re just looking out for you.”

  “Right...”

  Mira caught the slight flush of red on Stryker’s cheeks. He should feel embarrassed, she thought. All this stupid aggression between them was going to get someone killed. “Get your head in the game.”

  “Sorry. I’m just not used to taking orders from... others.” He turned to Mira, softening his tone before he spoke again. “I didn’t mean to come off as ungrateful for your suggestion for our protection. We’ll be careful.”

  “It’s okay. We’re all on the same team.” She reached out and lightly touched his shoulder. “We’ve got to look out for each other.”

  “Yes. We do.” The ghost of a smile flashed across his face before disappearing. “I’ll be fine. And when I get back, I’ll have a full report on what we’re up against.” He turned away from her and Lucian.

  The time for words had ended, obviously. With an almost imperceptible nod of his head, Stryker and the rest of his wolves stripped down and shifted into their wolf form. Though she meant to be all business, she couldn’t help but watch with admiration as the well-toned men shifted and took off heading, south toward the city.

  Above her, Mira heard the soft tweets of a bird. She looked out of the transport and saw the little brown Jay perched in a nearby tree. For a moment, she could have sworn she and the bird exchanged a look, and then off little Jay went, chasing after Stryker and the wolves.

  Lucian followed the wolves’ path outside of the transport but did not venture too far. He stood, surveying his surroundings, and stretched his arms high above his head. Taking a deep breath, he let out a long sigh. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he doesn’t like me much.”

  “Why would you say that?” Mira joined Lucian, taking a breath of fresh night air. “He helped keep you guys from being killed for trying to enter Sanctuary. And he didn’t force me to turn you. If he hates you, that’s a pretty funny way of showing it.”