Legacy Of Ashes

by Ric Beard

  “There’s a bunch of them,” Reagan said.

  “They were going to ambush us,” Jenna said. “Whichever one of you decided to test that drone might have saved our asses. Especially with me and Scruff out here with ours hanging in the wind.”

  Scruff grunted the affirmative.

  “You’re welcome.” Reagan winked.

  The display showed a crater in the center of the road.

  “That’s a big hole,” Sean said. “But I think we could get around it.”

  “Around it?” Jenna asked. “Do you see those guys?” She pointed across his body at the HUD’s video.

  Sean took manual control of the drone and slowly positioned it right next to a tree stand where two badlanders waited. A shoulder-fired missile launcher was propped against the tree trunk between them. Both men held carbine rifles. He tapped Jenna’s shoulder as she hovered over him and she turned.

  “So maybe we should’ve ignored the message? I’m not rubbing it in, but is there any way to see where it came from?”

  Sean, Reagan, and Scruff jumped as one of the badlanders’ heads jerked backward on the display, and a spray of blood painted the tree behind him. Jenna turned inside to see him flop and roll off the tree stand to fall to the ground below with a hard thud.

  “Holy crap!” Sean whipped the drone around, looking for the source of the attack. Another badlander fell out of a tree. He backed the drone away to get a wider view. Another badlander fell from a tree.

  “Where’s that gunfire coming from?” Jenna asked.

  “Sara, locate the source of that gunfire.”

  “Do you wish to re-task the drone?” The automated voice asked.

  “Yes!” Sean and Reagan barked in unison.

  The drone spun and inched forward. Suddenly, they heard a gunshot from the speakers in the tank.

  “Scanning life form.” Sean and Reagan both leaned forward. Whoever was down there was wearing a black hat with a round brim that shadowed his or her face. A long, black leather trench coat covered its torso. In one hand, a revolver pointed up at the trees. In the other, the same type of gun aimed parallel to the figure’s shoulder. The figure swiveled its head left and then right, the guns dancing in its hands, light popping from the barrels followed by wafts of smoke. It stopped firing, turned in a full circle with the guns extended straight out from its body, and then swung them upward so both muzzles faced the drone.

  Sean’s mouth gaped, as if he was looking down the barrels instead of at a display. He cringed.

  But the figure didn’t fire. Instead it holstered its guns, raised the free hand, and turned to point through the trees.

  “What’s he doing?” Reagan asked.

  “Pointing.”

  “No shit. What’s he pointing at?”

  Sean turned to match her sarcastic expression and tone with his own, saying, “I don’t know. But I have another question that might be equally as important.”

  “Yeah?” Jenna asked.

  “How did he see the drone?”

  There was a contemplative moment as they all took turns looking at each other.

  “Where’d he go?” Jenna asked.

  Heads swiveled.

  “He vanished,” Reagan said.

  Sean saw that it was true. They’d turned their heads for a moment, and the figure was gone.

  Spooky.

  Sean looked up at Jenna. “So not someone you know, huh?”

  “No, I’ve never seen anyone like that.”

  Sean brought the drone back to the tank for a fresh charge. After a few minutes, Reagan broke the silence.

  “If that…thing warned us to turn right, into this ambush, my question is why?”

  “To show off?” Sean asked.

  With her face still inches from his, Jenna looked down at his lips and then up to his eyes and threw him a smirk. Giving her head a subtle shake, she smiled.

  “Maybe because what waited on the main road was worse?” Jenna posited in a soft tone. “It cleared the way for us, after all. We were coming up on Memphis. Maybe there was a bigger ambush waiting there.”

  Sean’s lips parted as he planned to speak, but he pressed his lips together, stunned quiet by her smile.

  “Does it record the drone video?” Reagan asked.

  Sean spoke, but his eyes were still locked with Jenna’s. Her green irises were flecked with gold. “Sara, do you record drone video?”

  “Yes, Sean. This system records—”

  “Play back.”

  “Playing encounter video.” Sean held back a grin. It’s nice to have someone who doesn’t mind being interrupted.

  Sean and Reagan figured out the speed controls and stopped the video on the figure.

  “There!” Reagan said.

  “What?”

  The figure was wearing black cloth over its nose and mouth.

  “Look at the eyes.”

  “Zoom four times on that life form’s face,” Sean said, knowing he sounded like Captain Kirk but that no one around would get it.

  “Aye, captain,” Jenna said.

  Sean’s chin dropped. Jenna pressed a finger to her lips just briefly and gave a curt shake of her head.

  What in the unholy name…who is this—

  “Please specify location by quadrant.” A grid overlaid the HUD.

  “Zoom four times, quadrant seven.” He watched and perked up. “Those are goggles. They’re almost transparent.”

  “I’d like to know where you buy those,” Reagan said. “They aren’t from Triangle City, unless they’re new. I haven’t seen anything like them.”

  “It’s not OK City tech,” Jenna added. “They don’t even have bottom frames.”

  “That’s how he saw the drone while it was in stealth mode,” Reagan said. “It’s the only explanation.” She looked at him. “What, you aren’t impressed? Sean, this is a game changer.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “If that’s not Triangle tech? If it’s not OK City tech?”

  “Someone else is developing advanced technology,” Jenna said.

  Sean considered their words, but two factors were blocking his mind from focusing on them. For one, Jenna was still leaning on his lap. The other, she’d just gotten a Star Trek reference and signaled him to keep quiet.

  “We aren’t alone,” Jenna said, backing away and kneeling outside the vehicle again. Sean felt a wave of disappointment. “There are more cities.”

  Reagan clicked her tongue and shot her with a pistol constructed of her finger and thumb.

  “Holy shit,” Scruff grunted.

  Chapter Seventy

  Who?

  All the rain and cloud cover from the previous day combined with Lucian’s minimal movement would have left his Tab uncharged if not for the BCP’s charging unit. He was in a slumber brought on by the last pain pill he’d found in the console when the device chirped incessantly, waking him.

  Lucian used a fingernail to remove some of his dried blood from the screen so he could read the message.

  Are you still near Asheville?

  He replied.

  Yeah, on the southern edge. I have issues so I’m not ready to move yet. But there have been developments, and I need to come up with a plan. Was just going to try to sleep first. How’s your side?

  It’s over.

  Over???

  I’ll tell you when I get there.

  You’re coming here?

  Already en route. Driving through the night, there by predawn. You aren’t going to believe who I have with me!

  Who do you have with you?

  Are you ready for this?

  Spit it out!

  William-fucking-Graves!

  Who?

  It took Miles a moment to process. Graves was Miranda’s last name but—

  Are you fucking with me right now??? He typed furiously.

  Yeah, he goes by Sean. Sean Stone. He’s been out West all this time. Unreal, right? See you soon!

  The connection
ended.

  “But…wait. What the hell? And she logs off?”

  Chapter Seventy-One

  A World of Hurt

  Ghost town.

  They had wrapped around Nashville and sent the drone instead. It was anti-climactic, definitely unexpected. Jenna had warned that Nashville was going to be wall-to-wall crazies warring under the orders of their general, but as the drone flew along the section of the city walled off by rusty metal sheets, tires, tank tracks, and everything that could be fashioned into a thick wall to defend against the civilized folk clearing roads from the east and west, they saw that their intel wasn’t panning out. Fly as it might, what the drone found was a ghost town.

  The cruising from that point to the Oil Age sign that read Welcome to North Carolina had been so eventless that Sean and Reagan napped the whole way and woke up to a view through the glass roof of a starry night sky.

  A little while later, the smooth sailing ended.

  “Wake up,” the voice said. “Sean, wake up.”

  A proximity alarm whirred in the cockpit as Reagan gently tugged at his shirt.

  “Life forms detected.”

  Sean brought the tank to such a sudden halt that he and Reagan jerked forward. Jenna and Scruff stopped their bikes just ahead and stared into the cockpit.

  “Send a pulse.” After he did, Reagan pointed at a button and Sean pushed it. The turret raised, a countdown commenced, and the drone shot out of the opening. Sean set it for autopilot and ordered it to fly recon.

  “How long was I asleep?” Sean asked.

  “I think we were both out for a long time; it’s dark. At least a few hours.”

  “Jenna and Scruff must be exhausted. We should—”

  The speakers throughout the cabin started beeping. The radar was drawing yellow and red dots as the drone reported contacts over the hill, and all the ticking and beeping lit up both HUD displays. Heart thumping in his chest, Sean pressed a button, and a metal shield slid out of the top of the hull and covered the glass roof.

  “Oh, my God,” Reagan said.

  “This is bad. This is really, really bad.”

  “I think we found the Nashville and Memphis contingents.”

  “Incoming transmission,” Sara said. “Uncommon frequency.”

  “What the hell?” Reagan asked. “This trip is full of surprises.”

  “Play transmission.”

  “Sean Stone?” a male voice asked.

  “Who wants to know?”

  Reagan pointed at the drone screen, which showed some yellow indicators the drone had marked as it flew over. She knew from the manual that orange and yellow indicated life forms, and red indicated vehicle heat signatures.

  “Cowboy, you need to back that thing up in a hurry because over that hill is a world of hurt. Come back about a mile, and turn off the last exit ramp you passed. I’ll zip over there and meet you. Roger?”

  “Hold on,” Sean protested. He waved Jenna over. She dragged her leg over the bike and walked toward him as if her thighs were made of stone.

  Once the door was open, he scooted over in the seat and she sat. She felt good against him.

  “God, my legs hurt. The Asheville township is just over—”

  “You give someone my contact info?” Sean asked.

  “Wha—?”

  “Jenna?” The male voice said over the speaker.

  “Lucian?” Jenna asked.

  “Hey, babe!”

  Sean looked over at Reagan. “I guess she did.”

  “I was just telling our friend that he needs to back up and meet me at the last exit ramp. I’ve been sitting here for two days watching these Chain fucks while I lick my wounds. They’re gearing up for a fight. A real one.”

  “You’re injured? Why didn’t you say so? How bad?”

  “It feels pretty bad, but I’ve been camping on a ridge, keeping still. I’m sure as shit glad you’re here, though.”

  “We’re en route!” Jenna exclaimed. “I can’t wait to see you!”

  Wait…Lucian? I knew a guy named Lucian. No. It can’t be. Then Jenna’s face clicked and Sean Stone’s heart seemed to stop its incessant thumping and his whole world began to spin out of control.

  Jenna nearly fell when she jumped off her bike and ran across the gravel overlook toward the wiry man with the limp. He held out a hand as she approached, his other hand covering his ribs. She stopped short and tilted her head before taking his face in both her hands and kissing him on the forehead before gently wrapping her arms around his neck. He patted her back with one hand, and Sean could see a wide smile cross his bruised and cut face as he stood in front of The Beast. They rocked back and forth for about a minute before the man looked up at Sean.

  Jenna moved to the side and turned around, placing her arm around the wiry man’s waist. The man reciprocated. Now that Jenna was beside him, Sean had a better look. The moment of familiarity out on Old I-40 when he’d seen Jenna, right before Moss knocked him out, made sense now. Suddenly, he had context. The man standing next to her was the missing puzzle piece. He couldn’t have been sure from a distance, especially with the swelling that made the guy look like he’d been through twelve rounds in a lightweight battle. He had a liquid bandage over one eye and another wrapped around his hand. But now that he stood closer, Sean knew that face. Even spaced across all this time, all the events of his life over the last century, he knew that face.

  Chapter Seventy-Two

  The Rest Was History

  July 4, 2023

  Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

  Mitchell and Judy Tyson-Graves set out with strict isolation parameters when they began their experiments. They’d intended to keep all the children separate, except for William and Miranda who, as siblings, would know anyway. After a couple of years of poking and prodding, blood draws, and myriad experimentations, they’d hit the jackpot.

  As far as the children were concerned, their parents were making a vaccine that would keep them from ever getting sick. Though that was a side effect, it was not the intent; it was not the product intended for market. At the rate the children’s bodies were creating white cells, and at the rate their biological indicators were speeding along, they estimated the real effect would take place in their mid-twenties. They would wait until they were adults to tell them, each on their 21st birthdays.

  But then, on January 22, 2023, isolation protocols failed. A needle broke in Miranda’s arm, and blood spurted into the air through the miniature cylinder. Though the lab technician reached out with a cotton ball and assured Miranda it was okay, and that her platelets would close the hole, Miranda had dropped her iPad, had burst screaming through a door that was supposed to be locked, and tore down the basement hallway. At the other end of the hall, waiting in a chair for his own experimental regimen to continue, was Lucian Gray.

  A precocious child in his own right, Lucian was two grades ahead of Miranda at their private school, even though the children were born the same year. His natural propensity toward technology had specialists labeling him a prodigy. After that academic year, he would skip more grades and start college. But when Miranda saw him sitting in the waiting area opposite where she usually exited the building, she instantly recognized him from school.

  The rest was history.

  Mitchell and Judy could no longer isolate the children from one another. After learning that there were other kids going through the experiments, they insisted they would not continue unless they met the other kids. But the only other child who participated had already left the experiment and was in college on the east coast—a young woman with blonde hair, green eyes, and a quick wit named Marie. Marie came home from college and met the other three patients over Christmas break that year. As the only one who had reached the age of twenty-one, she knew the real benefits of the experiments. To her credit, she kept them secret because she agreed with the scientist-parents that the kids might be too young to deal with it.

  On the Fourth of July, 2023, when
Miranda was eleven and William was thirteen, the partners took the kids to Myrtle Beach for a week.

  William sat on the beach that night, looking up at the moon as fireworks exploded above. Well, that was what he wanted them to think. But he was actually looking at his sister Miranda and her friend Lucian, who were sitting together next to the pylons beneath the pier, stealing time away from the crowds, laughing together and ignoring the fireworks in their entirety. He watched as the nerdy kid wrapped his arms around his little sister and hugged her. And he felt okay with it. Miranda, the nerd who couldn’t raise her eyes from a tablet long enough to eat dinner at the table, had made a friend. And her older brother knew she was safe with him.

  Chapter Seventy-Three

  You're How Old?

  “William-fucking-Graves!” The thin man yelled, walking forward, though obviously in pain with every step.

  Sean stood dumbstruck.

  “Lucian?” he asked.

  Lucian stopped in front of him and slapped his uninjured hand on Sean’s shoulder, gripping it tightly.

  “You remember! I’m touched. What are the odds, right?” He wrapped an arm around Sean’s neck and tugged.

  Sean hugged him and patted him on the back. Lucian cringed.

  “Billions to one, against, I’d guess,” Sean said. “Maybe trillions?”

  “I’d agree,” Lucian said. He patted Sean’s back a couple more times and let go, to hold him at arm’s length again. “You look like total shit. What happened to your face?”

  “A rifle butt. What’s your excuse? You look like you spent the night in a glass cage with an angry inmate.”

  “Feels like it, too.”

  Sean looked over at Jenna.

  “You’re Marie.”

  “I’m honored that you remember.” Her green eyes aglow even at night. “It’s only been, what…” She looked over at Lucian.