by Wolfe Locke
“You should pick a part of the city with less toxicity, we could use a small crowd,” Niles shouted to Marcus, the kid shook his head as he slowed to take a curve. The cars behind them were fast. Niles turned around. They could just shoot them off the bike if they wanted. Why weren’t they?
“They are not going to kill us, they want you,” Marcus said.
“Me? Why?” Niles asked.
“I don’t know, but I think whoever it was that is working for them inside the base must have told them about you. This is the proof of it. I don’t think you’re compromised, but somebody there is. The rest of the SynaCAID community are either getting out or trying as much as possible to stay out of their way. I think they want to know what you know,” Marcus said.
“That is crap,” Niles said. It didn’t make sense to him. He looked around and realized they were in a part of the city he hadn’t been to before. The bike was now far from the car but the road was still clear and it didn’t matter how far, they could still see them.
“I don’t think they want us, Marcus,” Niles said. “They are not chasing, they are just tailing us. You have to lose them,” Niles said. The boy nodded. He slowed down for while and sped up again, before slowing down. Then he took a quick left and immediately followed it with a right bend. He rode for another five minutes and took another left. They were not on a main road again. He took two more bends and parked the bike in front of a building. They looked behind them, there was nothing. Marcus gestured for him to follow. They ran the other way. Niles followed Marcus. They ran until they came out another neighborhood. The boy seemed to know what he was doing. Niles couldn’t see his face, he couldn’t tell if he was scared or not.
“You wearing a body suit?” Niles asked. Marcus nodded.
“Yours looks like it’ll get used up soon. you need to call your guys for an extraction,” Marcus said as he led Niles into what used to be a school. It was now deserted. The purifiers were dead and the only thing that worked were the taps in the bathroom, but the water was bad so they just sat in one of the classrooms while Niles tried to synch with Sergeant Zander. The Sergeant told Niles they would dispatch something to him soon. Niles ended the synch and turned to the boy.
“You alright?” Niles asked. Marcus nodded. Niles smiled and through his mask. He was in trouble, but he couldn’t start thinking about that. His body suit had a couple hours before it would start to deteriorate and the poison in the air would get to him. From what he had read, his lungs and liver would burn like there were live flames in him and then he’d die a painfully slow and agonizing death. That was not the way he wanted to go out.
“Your body suit looks durable from what my interface says,” Niles said. The boy nodded. “You made it yourself?” Marcus shook his head.
“Scar did. He made most of the hardware. I have to do that now though. We hadn’t met so it was easier to talk to him. I think he suspected though.” Niles nodded. He could see how that was possible. If it hadn’t been for this mole thing, they wouldn’t have had any need to meet for real. It was still weird for Niles. He wouldn’t look at the kid the same way again.
“We have to get out of here,” Marcus said. “Scar was my grandfather.”
“We can’t, my guys will be here soon.” Niles responded.
“Yeah, but you will be dead before then. Your body suit is rapidly losing power, because the toxicity level in this school is off the planet. It will continue burning at that rate. We have to pick somewhere else to hunker down.” Niles nodded. They walked out again. Niles held his gun ready and peeped around the corner to see if there was anyone out there. It seemed clear, so they walked out. The road the school faced was empty so they stayed out there.
“You think they left?” Marcus asked, looking at the projection of his implant, Niles shook his head. He was looking around. He got a synch request. He took it and a voice he was not used to asked him where he was.
“Down the road from the school,” Niles said. He was still talking when he saw the cars speeding towards them. It had come out from the bend so fast, then the other came from the other side. They were going to be sandwiched. He pulled out his gun and very calmly aimed. He saw one of them pulling out a gun from the window, he shot at the head as it came out and the man slumped and fell out of the window. Niles shot carelessly at the car then again when it got close. He dragged Marcus out of the way. Both cars grazed each other and stopped. Niles cursed and pulled Marcus up and they ran back to the school.
Chapter 24: Mistakes Made
* * *
“How many of them do you think they are?” Marcus asked. He sounded scared. You’re doing a good job of hiding it though, kid. Niles couldn’t see the kid’s voice, but he knew what the kid was thinking. Something along the lines of “This is why I didn’t want to get further involved. Just information.”
It couldn’t be helped, not really. Niles thought before answering. “I don’t know. But I would guess six at least. But I think I got one with that shot, so maybe only five now.” Marcus nodded, though the boy seemed green and uncomfortable. He started staring at the projection of his implant.
“We’ve been going about this all wrong,” Niles said, interrupting the boy and making Marcus look up at him. “We know where they are, we shouldn’t be running. I’ve a few tricks up my sleeve.” Niles pulled up an image of the school on his implant, it wasn’t as sophisticated as the kid’s projection, but it would do. He could see one man was already in the hallway, The others had spread out around the building. That one will be easy to take out. Niles told Marcus to wait while he went out.
The school looked like it had been abandoned for a while. Probably because of the storms. But it was still well lit from the bit of natural light the windows filtered in. The hallways, on the other hand, got darker the more they walked in. Even with his leg as it was, Niles was able to move quietly. The man never saw him coming. Niles locked his arm around the man’s throat in a chokehold. The man didn’t hardly struggle. Niles cut off his airway with the choke and then laid him down slowly.
He quickly searched the body but didn’t find anything.
“He’s dead isn’t he?” Marcus asked from behind him. You shouldn’t be here kid, but I’m not going to hide it from you. Niles nodded.
Marcus seemed shook but responded, “Thought you might want to know, another one showed up and went in through the back. That makes six of them. You think this will work? They are all spread around the building and we have to worry about your suit being compromised.”
Niles nodded. He had been thinking about the suit too. Finding these bastards won’t be difficult. The problem is dying while fighting one of them.
“How long do you estimate it will last?” Niles asked. The kid probably knows down to the second. Marcus looked at him and looked away.
“Just say it,” Niles said, with a grunt. Nothing like how he acted as Kubrick. Niles didn’t know if he liked that.
“You probably have an hour, and that’s a rough estimate. Though I’d say probably closer to 64 minutes.”
Niles nodded. That’ll have to be enough.
“Stay here and guide me on a local net.” Niles said, checking if he was still loaded up. His gun was good, he could trust it. The only thing he couldn’t trust at the moment was his body. He wished he was back in the System. At least there I’ve a chance of not dying if I get shot.
“Stay frosty out there,” Marcus called out as Niles walked by. Niles smiled. He knew one more thing about the kid now—he can play the part at least.. That was soldier-speak. He walked out, checking to see if it was clear. As Niles jogged. He felt the buzz of their synch and then it faded.
“We good?” Marcus asked. Niles smiled.
“Yeah, I think so, kid. Where do I go?”
“Take the next right,” Marcus said. Niles took it. He jogged, but kept an easy pace like he was at the mountain side—not too much to strain him, and not so slow to keep him behind. It was the balance he had made himself turn
into a routine.
“Take the stairs down and then you’ll see an immediate door by your left that will lead you to the parking lot.” Marcus said.
Niles bit his lip and cursed. That’s all open space. He opened the door, checking to see if he was being marked, and moved as soon as he believed himself clear. He ran out and hid behind the pillars. The cars had all been moved out a long time ago to be recycled. Just an empty space where teachers and students used to park.
He heard the man he was tailing say something. He’s on coms with somebody else. Niles peered around the corner of the pillar and cursed.
“You’ve got two of them now, Chief,” Marcus said over the chat.
“That was a little slow, Marcus,” Niles said as he looked directly at his target. He moved, quietly, to another pillar. They were not so far apart so it was easier. In the dark, Niles could see the two men by the lights they were carrying. It helped him know where he needed to avoid, and where he needed to go. He moved ever closer to one of the lights and when he was close enough, he put the gun to the back of the man holding the light. The man didn’t so much as flinch. Instead he swung his arm and Niles dodged. He was too slow, the blow caught his face and pushed him away. But as he fell, he squeezed the trigger and just like that, a tight shot group called the day.
The other man screamed in rage. He sounded foreign, European probably. Niles took cover behind a pillar.. He didn’t have to move. The other man would walk over to check on his friend. He waited as the light got closer. I can shoot at the light, and hope it’s right in front of the man, or I can wait for a clear shot. Niles reminded the saying about assumptions. He waited for the man to approach the dead man’s body, and as soon as the light was shone on the body, Niles fired. Another body slumped to the ground after.
“The others, Marcus, where are the others?” Niles hustled back to the door that had led to the parking lot.
“Wait,” Marcus said. “Turn around, there is door near the end. One of them is there, he has been walking around the back,” Marcus said, sounding confused.
“That would mean he’s guarding the rear, thanks.” Niles said and ran back to pick up the light.
“I think he heard the shots, looks like he’s starting to move.” Marcus said. Niles cursed. Sometimes the only option is the nuclear option.
“What are you doing? Get out of there?” Niles smiled and waited. As soon as the door opened, he raised the light up into the man’s face, temporarily blinding him as he fired three shots into him. The man hit the ground with a heavy thud and Niles turned around and started to move. Only three more left. Niles thought, everything else aside, he was actually feeling pretty good. That’s because you’re a War Junkie, admit it. Niles had a smile on his face.
“Can you check to see how far out my guys are?” Niles asked.
Marcus was silent for a moment over the coms and then replied. “I totally forgot, they are here,” Marcus said. Before Niles could say anything, the connection between them changed.
Niles spoke “I need back up. There are at least two armed men in the building, I’ve managed to take out the rest so far. My body suit is failing, and there is a kid in here with me too. We need extraction. You need to get in, I hope you are armed,” Niles said.
“We got you Chief, don’t worry “The soldier responded before the line switched back to the communication between him and Marcus.
Niles was moving up the stairs, light out in front of him. He was listening to Marcus over the chat, and Marcus was screaming for him to watch out. Niles crashed into somebody. They both fell down, but Niles recovered quicker, scrambling to get back up as the other man’s gun fell uselessly far from either of them.
The man rushed at Niles and when he slammed into him, Niles grunted in pain. He’s built like a bear. Definitely a Kovac. A flash of pain exploded across Niles’ rib as he took a punch. Niles shoved the pain down into himself and shoved the man away. He followed with a brutal knee into the man’s groin. The man collapsed, but Niles wasn’t finished. He repeated the attack, twice, three times, just for good measure.
Niles couldn’t really see his face but he knew the man was bleeding. He started coughing. The damage to my suit sped up. He had to leave or he’d die. Niles turned around and took off. The man on the ground growled, but Niles wasn’t interested. He shot the man once in the leg. That should be enough for the extraction team. He had to get into the car, the car would have a purifier. He kept running.
“He is behind you,” Marcus said. “The last one is trying to cut you off.”
“Where are you?” Niles screamed, hoping the kid was safe.
“With your friends. Duck, now!” Niles slid down, just barely avoiding a hailstorm of fire erupting above his head. Niles kept going and tackled the other man. Fully intending on submitting him, but the man had some skill. Soldier? Or hobbyist? The thought was fleeting, and shortly after, Niles was able to push the man up into the wall, forcing the man to drop his gun. The man though was not without weapons. He head butted Niles in an explosion of pain that he used to run away. I have to go after him.
Niles knew most of his body suit was gone. He saw the man was still fleeing on foot, but he couldn’t give immediate chase. A soldier came out with a mask and and shoved it in Niles’ face. He inhaled hungrily as the man was getting away.
“We have to take him back fast, he looks like he is past critical,” the soldier in front said. Marcus shook his head.
“He isn’t, the suit just started fading, but we need to do something fast.” The soldier looked from Niles to Marcus. Niles could tell what the man was thinking, so he shook his head. He is not my kid. Pretty sure the kid doesn’t have any family.
“Marcus, they were…” Marcus placed his small hand on Niles and tapped him lightly. Niles understood. They were not alone. The soldiers that had been sent might be help, but they couldn’t be trusted completed.. He closed his eyes. He was tired, his legs ached and he knew he was going to have to talk to Grisham soon. But he had confirmed something. The opposition was made up of either retired servicemen or men from the existing military force. And they knew what he was doing which meant that he was being watched.
His movements were being watched and there was only one way they could have done it. Whatever Grisham put in me to track my location has been overtaken by somebody else. The thought made him angry, he groaned. Shit!
He was still fuming when he passed out. When he woke up, he was back in his quarters and Grisham was looking down at him. Niles almost jumped out the bed. Grisham chuckled.
“People say the sight of me is a nightmare,” he said, chuckling. Niles blinked, trying to understand what was going on and why it seemed like he had died and woken up again for a third time. He leaned back on the bed.
“Here I thought I was the only one you tortured with your face, Grisham.,” Grisham grunted and pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down. He was staring at Niles. Then he smiled.
“You saved a kid, huh?” Grisham asked. Niles gasped, he had forgotten about Marcus. The boy was not in the room. Grisham chuckled and shook his head.
“The kid has been returned to his home; his parents were worried. So he does have parents. You know, I still can’t figure how you ended up in a school and now we have a lot of dead bodies, and still know hardly anything about them. I wonder if you could have kept one of them alive, or was that not possible?”
“Negative,” Niles groaned. He wondered what happened to Marcus. The boy’s identity was not blown, at least not to Grisham. But his parents? That was weird. Grisham nodded.
“I thought so,” he said. “Glad you’re still alive, Niles. I thought we had lost you for real this time. You want to be careful sometimes. The toxicity has been increasing in the negative recently. I thought you knew that.”
“I did, that was why I had the body suit,” Niles said. Then he thought about adding what he had found out. He wondered what Grisham would say, what he would think. “Look, Grisham, there is som
ething you need to know.” Grisham sat back down. He looked around to see if they were being watched, it didn’t seem so.
“What’s up?” The Colonel asked. He wasn’t Grisham anymore, he wasn’t playful or friendly. He was the Colonel, receiving the after-action report of a mission that had nearly claimed one of his men.
“The opposition, Old Dominion? The guy I fought today had actual training. Real training.. They knew how I moved. They couldn’t anticipate because I had help, but if they could, they would have been able to defend against me. I recognized some of the techniques. I thought they might be Kovacs, but now I’m not sure.
Grisham was stiff for a moment. He did nothing except blink. His mouth was open like he wanted to say something. Then he sighed. Then it hit Niles. The bastard knew, or at least he suspected.
“You fucking knew?” Niles shouted.
Grisham shook his head.
“I suspected.” He scratched his face as if there was a stubborn itch and stood up. “I thought when I saw how one of the first three victims were killed, it had been too professional. The kill shot was from over five hundred meters. The bullet that killed her had been a 12 mm.” Niles had read it too, and it stuck out a bit.. He didn’t think about it still.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Niles asked.
“I guess I didn’t believe it, I didn’t want to. I always thought those who have gone through what we have will have some sense of integrity. You know, honor.” Niles chuckled. Then he laughed because what he just heard was the most insane thing out there.
“You haven’t been outside the safety of this shithole job in a long time Grisham. With due respect, you are fucking blind to what is going on out there. There is nothing for them out there, nothing. Before the world went to shit, there was nothing and now, it is even worse. They will take whatever comes their way.” He sighed and shook his head. Dignity isn’t a job. Dignity is not going hungry or having to beg to be treated like a human being.