FERTS

by Grace Hudson

  “Beth…” he sputtered.

  “I hope you find her where you are going. Whoever she is. And I hope when you get there, she rejects you, like you rejected her when you created FERTS.”

  “Beth…” His voice was quieter now, barely a whisper. He dropped to the ground, clutching at his neck in a futile attempt to stop the last beads of blood dripping from his throbbing neck.

  The last thing Wilcox saw was her smile. Towering over him, unyielding, beaming at him in exultation.

  – 67 –

  20:03

  Petra gasped as fire rained down, watching the Officers tumble down the stairs towards them.

  “Get out of the way!” Jotha yelled, pushing Petra and Liam up on the railing, taking hold and hoisting himself forcefully to clear the stairs below. Sparks flew towards his face as he shielded himself, the smell of burning hair assaulting his senses.

  The first Officer plunged down the stairwell, limbs at unnatural angles, uniform smoking.

  Liam turned his head, unable to stand the sight of the Officer’s eyes, wide open and unseeing.

  The second Officer followed, sliding down a few steps before shuddering to a halt below their dangling feet. His face was burned away, white eyes and teeth the only features visible in the blackness.

  “Come on. Let’s move.” Jotha began to descend, tentatively stepping over the charred bodies of the Officers.

  “I can’t.” Liam clung to Petra, his young body shaking uncontrollably.

  “Come on, Liam. This is no time to be a baby.”

  Liam refused to move, turning his head away from the Officers in disgust.

  “Leave him alone, Jotha. He’s never seen this.” Petra edged towards Liam, careful not to step on the contorted bodies.

  “Hey, hey. It’s alright. I’ve gotcha, come on.” Petra gathered him up in her arms. He was no longer small enough for her to carry, but she lifted him gently, slinging him over her shoulder, grimacing with the effort as she followed Jotha down the darkened stairwell.

  – 68 –

  20:15

  201 leaned against the wall of the elevator, catching her breath. The silence was unnerving. Wilcox lay slumped in the farthest corner, skin waxen, eyes staring at nothing. 201 avoided the diffuse stare, darting her eyes to the hatch above her head. She gripped at the sides, launching herself from the ground to flick at the fasteners, legs swinging until the clamps sprang free. She dropped back down to the floor, listening intently for any sounds of movement. She knew they would be coming soon, the other Officers would surely have been notified by now. She launched upwards once more, curling her legs underneath her body as she swung her feet to the lip of the hatch, feeling the solid weight of the metal take her weight. She slithered up and swung horizontally, flipping herself over and flattening herself on the roof of the elevator shaft.

  Another explosion, ringing powerfully in the distance gently rattled the elevator shaft, raining droplets of oil down upon her.

  Placing the hatch firmly in place, she looked to the shaft above, dark metal glinting wetly with grease. She wiped her cheek, smearing the gunk towards her temple. The main lighting was still out, the only sound reaching her ears was the clunking hum of the backup generators churning.

  – 69 –

  20:25

  Officers Yarrow and Bonn made their way through the hall to the door of the elevator. The doors were sealed shut, most likely from the power outages currently ravaging the complex. Yarrow wheeled the elevator jack to the sliver of light between the doors, wedging it firmly inside.

  “What is going on tonight? I thought I heard something earlier.” Bonn unpacked the jacking mechanism from his bag.

  “Beats me. I heard there was a power surge or something. Come on. Grab the other side,” Yarrow ordered. Bonn took hold of the jack, hammering the pincers further inside the gap. Yarrow began to pump the jack, annoyed at the crude force required to begin the pincers’ slow drag on the force of the doors.

  “Did you choose any last night?” Bonn was grinning at him, eyebrow raised.

  Yarrow continued to pump the jack, the thin sliver of ghostly light beginning to leak from within.

  “Yeah. 22 something, I don’t know. She had the best…” He stopped, face slack with shock.

  “The best what?” Bonn moved closer, peering between Yarrow’s face and the door. “What?” He stepped closer, looking at Yarrow in confusion. “What is it?”

  Yarrow pointed through the gap. The dim glow within the elevator flickered off, then on once more to reveal a leg, bent at an uncomfortable angle, a large pool of dark blood dampening the trouser leg of the Officer’s uniform. The Officer’s silver uniform.

  “Sound the alarm!” Yarrow shrieked, finding his voice. Bonn took off down the hallway, almost slipping in his haste. “Sound the alarm!” he shouted to nobody in particular, his voice ringing out into the empty hall.

  – 70 –

  20:15

  Regrouped at the entrance to Zeta Circuit, Rafaella scanned the warriors surrounding her. Jotha had a small burn at the side of his cheek, hair singed a little at the temple. Liam was pale, Petra’s arm tucked tightly around his shoulders as she comforted him.

  “Did you check it?” she asked Symon.

  “Twice, like you said.”

  “Do it.”

  Vern, Kap and Symon gathered around the door, signalling to each other. After a last minute check, Vern and Kap fell away as Symon lit the charge, taking cover with the others.

  “If there’s anyone on the other side of that door,” he yelled, “Get back now! Go! Get Back!” A smattering of feet sounded through the door.

  The blast roared into the silence, forcing them to the ground, clinging tightly to each other.

  As the smoke cleared away, the group found themselves faced with a crowd of blinking eyes, lost figures, dressed in grey jumpsuits. Rafaella stepped forward.

  “We’re here to break you out. You want to make it past the Ward Beacon? I suggest you follow right now. We don’t have much time.”

  Rafaella was nearly knocked over by the throng of Zeta Internees clamoring to get out. She had expected resistance, some kind of discussion. Clearly, the Internees fancied their chances with Rafaella and their group over whatever it was they were likely to encounter within the confines of Zeta Circuit. Rafaella led the group, charging through the shadows, weaving them through the tree line, edging closer and closer to the suspension zone. She could hear the heavy footfalls behind her, scores of Zeta Internees, their fragile bodies rushing frantically to keep pace with their battle-hardened group. Once through the tree line, they were exposed, running at full speed, dodging rocks and skidding on pebbles in the desolate landscape. Rafaella spotted the safe marker, a large rock next to a low gathering of flat shrubs, growing in a haphazard circle.

  “Stop!” Rafaella called. Some of the Internees kept running, adrenaline taking over their actions.

  “I said stop!” Rafaella ordered. The small group of Internees stuttered to a halt at the tone of her voice.

  “Gather around. We need to get you to our transport, it’s not far now. Jotha here has a cart to take you out of here. We’ll get you as far from the suspension zone as possible. After that, we’ll stick to the lesser-used trails, it will take a bit longer, but we’re unlikely to be followed that way.”

  She looked around at the assembled group, grey uniforms dusty, caked with dirt and sweat. The Internees looked pale and unnaturally thin, their cheeks hollowed out, blue shadows under their sunken eyes.

  “We’re going somewhere safe. We’ll get you some food, somewhere to sleep. That’s all you need to know right now, we’ll figure out the rest later. Come on.”

  Rafaella glanced over at Caltha, who had caught up with her strides, matching her steady pace. She wound an arm around Caltha’s shoulders, patting her arm roughly and giving her a squeeze. Rafaella heard the barely audible sigh as Caltha let out a breath, leaning against her. Behind them, Ginnie attended to J
otha’s burn, propping him up on a large rock as she dabbed at his cheek. Jotha waved her away in frustration, lifting himself to a standing position. Petra carefully weaved Liam through the gathered crowd, his face almost as pale and desperate as that of the Zeta Internees. Rafaella halted, shuffling Caltha to the side as she ushered the Internees towards the path.

  The Zeta Internees filed past, flanked by Bonni, Kap, Symon and Vern. Their faces appeared gaunt in the light of the half-moon, their grey uniforms hanging untidily from their rawboned figures.

  A siren sounded out faintly in the distance, barely reaching their ears. The Internees tensed, turning and grasping at each other. As the siren continued, the Internees looked over at Rafaella, panic welling in their sunken eyes.

  “You’re out of the perimeter, you’re safe. It can’t get you now. C’mon, now, you all better get going.” She gestured towards the path once more.

  As the Internees passed by Rafaella, each of them raised their heads to nod, or simply locked eyes for a moment, unable to smile for now, sending what small regard they could manage as they followed the path downwards.

  Caltha nudged Rafaella in the ribs, grinning at the passing line of Zeta Internees as they filtered down the winding path to the waiting transport that would take them far away from FERTS, far from the plains of the suspension zone, loading one by one into the transport for the long journey back to Akecheta.

  – 71 –

  20:25

  201 gripped the sturdy railing of the elevator shaft, hoisting herself until her feet rested surely on the rungs. She grasped and clung, using her legs to maneuver herself into stability as she climbed further upwards until finally reaching the maintenance side exit. She swung her body into the small doorway, unlatching the locks and slipping through to the other side. A warning siren blared, the shrill, unfamiliar sound jarring her upright as she banged her shoulder on the edge of the door as it swung shut behind her. She looked down at the cut, a shallow gash, the pale flesh flooding with a deep red.

  A scar. Like it mattered now.

  She edged along the darkened hallway, the siren throbbing with irritating frequency.

  It can’t be. Please let it not be the beacon.

  She heard footsteps clattering from further down the hall. Slipping into the first door she could find, she closed it softly behind her. She looked over at the resting figure on the bed, roused from sleep by the siren but not fully awake. As the footsteps grew fainter, she slipped outside the door before the figure could turn to face her.

  Stepping in shadows, she darted from doorway to doorway, breathing slowly and deliberately, honing her ears for anything out of the ordinary. Before long, she was poised before the side door of the ration supplies unit, wedged permanently open by the Ration Operators for frequent breaks and waste removal. The locks were out of their holdings, as expected, and she drifted through, unnoticed.

  – 72 –

  20:40

  The door swung back to its wedged position, cushioned by 201’s elbow as she eased it back as quietly as possible.

  She stepped forward, her feet digging gently into the ground. It startled her momentarily, the familiar clack of her boots on stone and metal dropping out from beneath her.

  She was overwhelmed by scents, wet and woody, fragrant and mossy, with a note of something familiar, yet intangible underneath. The siren continued to blare from within the complex, shaking her from her reverie. She sprinted towards a nearby grove of trees, careful to stay in the shadows and keep her movements controlled. She stopped, reaching the edge of the clearing facing the suspension zone. She stepped tentatively forward, siren blaring rhythmically.

  This is it.

  She pushed through the grove of trees, finding herself on the plains of the suspension zone, feet crunching on the ground below, moving faster, gathering speed, she pushed on, heart thumping with exhilaration she ran, passing rocks, shrubs, feeling the breeze smack against her face, she ran, with all the strength in her legs she ran, and ran, and ran.

  A Note to Readers

  Thank you for reading FERTS.

  If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a short review.

  201's journey continues in The Rogue Thread (Book 2).

  Thank you for being awesome, your support is very much appreciated.

  GH

  Books in this series:

  FERTS (Book 1)

  The Rogue Thread (Book 2)

  Alpha Field (Book 3)

  Other titles by Grace Hudson:

  Open Doors

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