by Aaron Denius
“Where’s Cal?” Al asks.
My heart races, and a lump jumps up in my throat. He was the one who was shot. “Cal!”
A few others join in shouting his name. Just as I’m about to go back into the smoke to find him, a silhouette appears. It’s one person dragging another. After a couple more steps, I see that Cal is dragging Marco.
Dr. Metzger runs over and checks on Marco. “He’s dead.”
“Damn,” Cal says as he drops Marco’s body.
“We need to go,” one of the drones says.
I look around and see about thirty outsiders lying on the ground. We wouldn’t have stood a chance if these drones hadn’t shown up.
“If you don’t have a gun, grab one!” I shout. I run over to the closest outsider and swap his gun for mine. The remaining Genesys do the same.
Once we are all equipped with lethal rifles, we follow the drones back down the hallway they came from. They lead us down a couple more hallways and finally through a set of doors that takes us to the fields behind the scientists’ quarters.
As we pour out into the open, I see that there isn’t much activity back here. The majority of the fighting is happening inside and in the front of the compound.
A missile hits the ground to our left, where the corn and other vegetables are. Where Dr. Kivuli is. My thoughts jump back to what she said, that 80 had shot her. It still doesn’t make sense. It can’t be right.
“Let’s go!” a drone orders.
They jog ahead, and we do our best to keep up with them. Ox is slowed by having to carry Mag, and none of us wants to leave them behind. Sil is the only one keeping pace with the drones.
Before I can blink, my body gets thrown back as a missile slams into the drones in front of us. I jump back to my feet as fast as I can and run to the point of impact. The explosion of the missile has left a ringing in my ear.
I reach the drones at the same time as Titan and K. Most of them have been blown to pieces, but there are three who I can see are picking themselves up. Sil’s screams draw my attention to the ground to my left. Titan and K get to him before I do.
They are rolling him onto his back as I arrive. His body is covered with scattered cuts, including his face. It looks he was showered with shrapnel.
“I can’t see!” Sil yells.
I inspect his face again and see that there are cuts from shrapnel around his eyes. Dr. Metzger arrives and kneels by my side.
She inspects Sil’s eyes carefully. “They should heal fine once you get into the hyperbaric chamber at your bunker. Don’t rub them or touch them.”
Another explosion goes off behind us, near the library again. The Genesys are back on their feet and walk over to us, some of them rubbing the ringing out of their ears. I notice mine still have a faint ring, but I ignore it.
“We need to keep moving,” one of the remaining drones says.
I look at K. “Will you guide Sil and make sure he’s protected?”
“Yeah,” she says without hesitation. We help Sil stand. He groans in pain as he gets to his feet. K takes his hand and places it on her shoulder. “Don’t let go.”
“I won’t,” Sil says with a shaking fear in his voice.
We press on as fast as the group can, which is just a hair quicker than a walk. A few more missiles explode around us, but none close enough to do more than spray us with dirt. We stay as close to the building as we can to at least have some cover.
As we inch closer and closer to the end of the scientists’ quarters, the screams, shots, and other sounds of fighting grow louder. I’m worried that we are missing Fe by traveling outside the buildings.
We arrive at a part of the compound where the building connects to the exterior wall, and we have no other option than to reenter. The drones lead the way through a door to make sure the coast is clear. After firing a few shots, they wave us in.
“Keep Ox, Mag, and Sil in the middle,” I shout to the other Genesys. “We need to protect them and make sure we all make it to the Flyz.”
We all reorganize to make sure that those three are in the middle. Dr. Metzger joins them and grabs the rifle from Sil.
“What are you doing?” Sil calls out.
“You can’t see,” she answers back.
“Do you even know how to shoot?” Sodi mocks her.
“About as well as you know how to practice medicine.” Dr. Metzger raises her gun and aims it down the hallway.
We continue forward and turn at the end of the hallway. As we walk, I look into an open door on the right and instantly recognize the room. It’s the surveillance room. There is no one in there, but the monitors are all functioning and show various images of the outsiders’ city. It’s quiet, except for a few people walking around as if it were just another day. It appears, though, that the majority of the outsiders are here, fighting.
As we press on, the two Genesys at the end of the pack, Ev and Al, fire their guns. I look back and see a couple of outsiders, a couple of drones, and a scientist on the ground. I don’t recognize the scientist, but he must have been one of the Mutineers.
When we reach the end of this hallway, the drones stop. Titan and I jog up to the drones.
“What is it?” Titan asks.
One of the drones holds a finger to his mouth and points around the corner. Titan and I peek around. Halfway down the hall is an open double door. There is a consistent stream of outsiders and drones running into the room empty-handed. When they exit the room, they are all carrying a weapon. Most of them are rifles.
I look at Titan. “What do you think?”
He shrugs. “That must be the real weapons cache.”
“It is,” one of the drones speaks up. “We will run at them and take out as many as we can—try to thin the herd.”
“Shoot the ones coming out with the weapons,” I say. “We will shoot the ones running into the room.”
Titan and I move back to let the three drones step up to the corner. My shoulder gets bumped from behind, and when I look, I see Dr. Metzger standing next to me.
“I’ll go with you,” she says to the drones.
“No,” I hear Ev say behind us.
“We need to make sure you guys make it,” Dr. Metzger says forcefully.
“Wait.” I look at the drones. “Where do we go from here?”
“At the end of this hallway, there is a double door that leads to the hangar that holds the rollpods,” he answers.
“Is that where all the people are coming from?” I ask.
“Yes. That is also where the major battle is happening, but it’s the only way to get to the hangar with the Flyz,” he says as he looks back around the corner. “We should go.”
In an instant, the three drones turn the corner and run toward the weapons cache, firing their guns. Dr. Metzger runs behind them. She’s shooting as well, but struggling. They kill about a dozen before the outsiders and other drones return fire.
Titan and I shoot from our covered position around the corner and manage to hit a few ourselves. One of the drones protecting us gets hit, and then another.
I look back at the other Genesys. “Sodi. Come shoot!”
She happily takes my place, and I turn to the others. “K, stay here with Ox and watch over Mag and Sil. Wait for us to call you forward. The rest of you come with me. We are going to have to attack, and fast.”
I rejoin Titan and Sodi at the corner and look around. The plan has worked, as the majority of our attackers have been shot. The lone remaining drone and Dr. Metzger are still shooting, mostly at the incoming outsiders and drones.
“Let’s go!” I shout.
The seven of us charge, shooting at the attackers and the few that continue to run into the hallway. Just before we reach Dr. Metzger and the drone, two outsiders run out from the weapons cache, firing. Dr. Metzger hits one in the leg, but the other drills her in her chest. She falls over.
“No!” I hear Ev and Hydro shout. They must have all bonded with her.
&nbs
p; We take care of those two outsiders and make our way to the weapons cache. Every couple of moments, a new outsider, drone, or scientist steps into the hallway, but they are quickly taken care of.
“Watch the hallway,” the drone demands.
He runs into the weapons cache and is followed in by Sodi and Al.
“K! Ox!” I yell back to let them know they should join us.
I return my focus to the hallway and see Titan and Ev handling any new threats that come into the end of the hallway.
When I peek into the weapons cache, I see Sodi switching her gun out for a sniper rifle. Al adds a few knives to his arsenal, and the drone is tucking knives in his shirt and stuffing anything sharp into his pockets.
Right behind them, I see something on a shelf that makes me smile—a chain, a real chain. I drop the simulation chain that is still wrapped around me and grab the one from the shelf. It’s slightly heavier and colder than the other one.
One by one, the Genesys take turns going into the weapons cache and grabbing the weapons of their choice. Once we are all equipped, we gather back in the hallway.
“Do not follow me in,” the drone states as he turns toward the end of the hallway. “You will know when to go.”
He takes off running, and we walk down the hallway behind him, adding cover fire when needed. In an instant, he turns the corner and is gone. I run toward the end of the hallway, but a boom stops me in my tracks before I get there. The metal doors leading into the hangar are blown into the hallway. One of them has a small knife sticking out of it.
“Did he just blow himself up?” Cal shouts as he catches up to me.
“Yeah.” I’m in disbelief. I can’t believe the drone would voluntarily do that, but it has bought us some time.
I look around the corner and assess the situation out in the hangar. A massive amount of bodies lie on the ground. Some are beginning to pick themselves up, but the majority are down for good. The sun’s sharp glare penetrates through a hole at the top of the ramp the rollpods used. The flow of attackers streaming through the hole breaks up the shine of the sun.
At the opposite end of the hangar, I see many scientists and drones protecting a door. Most of the scientists look out of place holding guns. Among them is Dr. Cicca. I’m happy to see she is on our side.
I realize that we only have a few more moments before the attackers replenish their numbers. This is where my training needs to pay off. I look next to me and see the two metal doors that were blown off. I shoot one of them with my gun, and the bullet doesn’t penetrate.
“Ev, Hydro, and Al. Grab the doors and wedge them together in a V,” I order, and they do as they are told. “Titan. You, Sodi, Cal, and I will provide cover fire as we move to the opposite end of the hangar. Ox and K, you stay in the middle and get Sil and Mag to the other side.”
We all get into position. Ev, Hydro, and Al raise the doors and hold them up to protect our bodies from the front. Titan and Sodi walk next to the doors to cover any attackers from the side, while Cal and I cover the back.
I look back down the hallway one last time, wishing to see Fe, but all I see are bodies on the ground. I can only hope that she has already made it to the Flyz.
I face the rest of the Genesys until I have their attention. I let out a primal scream, the air escaping my lungs, turning my face red with adrenaline. The Genesys all join in. I turn my attention back to the hangar.
“Genesys!” they all shout in unison.
We move quickly into the hangar and are immediately met by gunfire. The bullets ricochet off the metal doors, giving us the protection I anticipated. Titan and Sodi open fire; soon after, Cal and I shoot at the outsiders, scientists, and drones that run up behind us.
“They’re coming!” I hear Dr. Cicca yell from the other side of the hangar.
I turn my head briefly to see a large group of drones peel off from the door to come and protect us. When we reach the middle of the hangar, the drones have entirely surrounded us, and they help us get to the other end.
The few scientists and drones directly in front of the door move away to let us through. Al, Hydro, and Ev drop the doors and run through. K, Sil and Ox, carrying Mag, follow them in. As Titan and Sodi stop their cover fire to go through, I see a large wave of attackers run down the ramp. Leading them down is 13 and Petros, the outsider who nearly killed me when I ran to the pyramid with 80.
Cal and I help the scientists and drones with suppressing fire. A hand falls on my shoulder, startling me, and when I look back, I see Dr. Cicca. She has sweat running down her face, but I don’t see any fear.
“Get through the doors!” she yells at me.
“Atom!” Cal shouts from behind me.
I turn just as he pushes me out of the way, and a bullet hits him in the stomach. He falls limp to the ground in front of me.
“Cal!” I scream. I look to where the shot came from and see 13 kneeling with a sniper rifle. He’s resetting his aim at me, but before he can shoot again, a group of scientists and drones get in his way.
I stand and grab Cal by his arms. As I pull him through the door, he leaves a trail of blood on the ground. The door shuts once we are completely through.
“Somebody help!” I yell. I put Cal’s arms down and check his vitals. “He’s not breathing, and I can’t feel a pulse!”
Hydro, Al, and Ev run to my side.
“Wake up, Cal!” Al grabs Cal’s arm.
“Get him in one of the Flyz,” I hear Rene shout from behind me.
I turn to look and already see Mag and Ox in theirs. Titan and Sodi are climbing into theirs.
“Help me carry him,” I tell Al.
We pick him up and carry him to the Fly, where K is waiting.
“The rest of you get into your Flyz!” Rene shouts.
I look and see Hawk helping Sil into his Fly. I’m surprised to see him. I could have sworn he would be on the other side. Al and Hydro run to their vessel, just as the ceiling above us begins to open and the Fly carrying Ox and Mag takes off.
I run with Ev to ours as two more Flyz take off. Rene stands waiting outside our Fly. I don’t recognize the pilot.
“Where is Fe?” I ask Rene as Ev climbs in.
“She hasn’t come,” he says bluntly.
I turn back toward the door and see that all but two of the Flyz have taken off. Sil is alone in one, and Ev sits in the one behind me.
“We have to go, Atom!” Ev yells from inside.
I look back at Ev, and Rene grabs my arm. He looks me in the eye. “Don’t.”
I pull my arm away from him, reach into the Fly and pull Ev out. With all my strength, I carry her to Fe’s Fly, where Sil and Hawk sit, waiting.
“Put me down!” Ev kicks. “What are you doing?”
I put her in Sil’s Fly, right next to Sil. I grab his hand and put it on her arm. “Sil, don’t let her off. Go, Hawk!”
“Atom!” Ev screams, tears running down her face. “It’s supposed to be you and me!”
Hawk lifts the Fly into the air, pulling Ev away from me. She needs to be safe. She needs to be away from here. I look at her, tears in my own eyes. “I’m sorry!”
The last look I see on her face is worse than pain. It’s betrayal. The Fly leaves the compound.
CHAPTER XIX
“We have to go, Atom!” Rene yells at me.
I look back at him as I run toward the doors leading to the rollpods hangar. “I have to find Fe!”
I pull the doors open and run out before he can say anything else. Scientists and drones on our side have regained control of the hangar, mainly because the majority of the outsiders and the other attackers have retreated back outside. I’m guessing it’s because the Flyz have already taken off.
“What are you doing?” A hand grabs me. I turn to see Dr. Cicca standing before me.
“Fe is missing. I’m not leaving without her!” I pull away from her and run to the opposite side of the hangar. A few shots fly by me, but none close enough to stop my m
omentum.
I reach the hallway that leads to the weapons cache, and I stop right at the corner. I can hear a couple of voices. When I peek around, I see a couple of outsiders and a Mutineer. Carefully, I steady my rifle and shoot each one before they have time to react.
After waiting a couple of seconds to make sure that no one else comes out of the weapons cache, I run down the hallway.
“Fe!” I yell as I turn the corner. I continue to shout her name as I run down each hallway.
I reach the surveillance room and am met by gunfire. The bullets hit the wall to my right, and I back up around the corner. I aim my gun down the hallway and see a barrel of a rifle poking out of the surveillance room.
“Atom!” the voice in the surveillance room calls out.
“Who’s there?” I yell back.
“It’s 80. I’m stepping out,” 80 shouts as he steps out.
“Are you alone?” I call back.
“Yes,” he says, placing his rifle on the ground and holding his hands up.
I walk down the hall with my gun pointed right at his head. “If you move, I’ll shoot.”
“Got it,” he says.
So many questions run through my head. Anger is behind every one of them as I step closer to him. “Why? Why did you do this?”
He takes a deep breath. “You taught me what it was like to live. You taught me the value of life, and I didn’t want to lose it. I told every drone I could what I had learned, and one by one, we realized how wrong this extermination by the scientists is. It’s not their place to decide the fate of others.”
My mind spins in circles. I’m to blame for this betrayal. I planted the seeds, and now I have to reap what I sowed. The anger I have toward 80 right now should be equally directed at myself. The worst part is that he is right. It’s just too late.
I reach him, and in an instant, my right fist connects with his jaw. He stumbles against the wall.
“I guess I deserve that.” He wipes the blood from his lip.
“I was your friend!” I yell in his face.
“And you were going to let me die!” He pushes me back with a newfound fire in his eyes.