Advance (Animus Book 4)

by Joshua Anderle

  “All right, you focus on getting her to the shuttle,” Mack said. “When that’s done, you can join the fun!” With that, he raced into the elevator and leapt through the new opening. The vanguard hurtled into the middle of the mercs. Some were caught by surprise while others fired on him. Many of the shots struck home but were useless against his super-powered barrier.

  With another battle cry, he activated the two containers, threw them on the ground, and slammed his shock gauntlet on the floor as he landed. His barrier erupted and caught most of the mercs around him in a field as the grenades went off. Electricity flashed around the field, sparked, and sizzled through the mercs caught within. One or two were only tossed back, but the rest caught the brunt of the shock. Their barriers collapsed, and they convulsed and writhed on the ground from the streaks of electricity empowered by the barrier field.

  “Damn, that was impressive.” Kaiden whistled. “Come on. Let’s get you in that shuttle. I don’t want to miss this.”

  “How do we get down?” she asked.

  “That armor of yours has absorbers, right?” Kaiden inquired. She nodded. “Then jump.” He led by example and flung himself through the hole and down the three stories. He turned and looked up, waiting for her to follow. “Land with your feet slightly apart,” he shouted as she jumped.

  “What did you— Ah!” She yelped as her body tumbled. Kaiden sighed but chuckled, held his arms out, and caught her before she hit the ground. “That’s another way of getting down,” he joked.

  “Oh, hell no! Sit your ass down. Be humble,” Mack hollered. He tackled a heavy to the ground and landed hammer blows to his face as a merc grunt stood and aimed at him.

  Kaiden aimed quickly with the hand cannon and fired. The blast opened his chest and knocked him away. “Heavy armor doesn’t mean you can get careless,” he shouted and received an unintelligible response from the vanguard.

  “Go ahead and help him. I’ll get on the shuttle and start it up,” Lancia said. “See if you can find a way to open the bay doors.”

  “Gotcha.” He nodded. “We’ll be on board in a few minutes.”

  Mack now grappled with another heavy who clutched his chain gun and fired wildly into the air. Kaiden ejected the blade in his gauntlet as he approached a merc who struggled on the floor. He pressed the trigger to heat the blade before he swiped it along the man’s neck. A few steps took him to Mack, and he hastily kicked the merc’s legs out from under him. The combatant dropped his gun as he skidded back a few feet.

  “Let’s see how you like it,” Mack growled. He snatched up the already wound chain gun and fired at his adversary, then swept it in a wide arc. The remaining mercs fell beneath the fusillade.

  “You certainly have flair.” Kaiden tossed him his pistol as the vanguard threw the chain gun to the ground.

  “Grit and grind baby!” Mack hollered. “You know, we never got that drink after the test. We need to follow up on that.”

  “We don’t need an excuse for that.” The ace nodded. “I guess I know what I’ll do with my first free time.”

  “Hell yeah.” Kaiden froze as a narrow trace of blue glowed on the big man’s armor.

  “Mack, get back!” he shouted. He shoved the vanguard aside as a bullet skimmed past and drilled into the floor.

  “Sharpshooter!” Mack hollered. “They got kinetic rounds.”

  “It looks like the other guys caught up,” he responded as several mercs appeared in the hallway above. “We need to open the bay doors.”

  “Then do it,” Mack shouted and fired at the oncoming group.

  “Chief, can you find the console and access it?”

  “I’m already on it. It’s a good thing you put some points into it. Otherwise, this might have been a pickle,” Chief stated. “You two get on the shuttle. I’ll take care of the backwash.”

  “Mack, get to the shuttle,” Kaiden ordered.

  “Let’s get out of here,” the vanguard agreed and shot a few more rounds at their pursuers as he backed up to the entrance of the shuttle. The bay doors opened as the soldiers scrambled aboard.

  The craft rattled as the mercs continued to fire on them. The ace hurried to the front. “Did you get this thing prepped?”

  “It’s ready. I can begin take off,” Lancia said and primed the engines. Beeps and clicks sounded around the cockpit.

  “Does this thing have auto-pilot?” Kaiden asked.

  “It does, but I can’t seem to access it.”

  “That won’t be a problem. Chief, are you almost done? We need a pilot.”

  “I’m ready. Let’s get going,” he declared and appeared in the console screen. “You might wanna hold on. I turned the hangar’s barrier off.”

  “Which means wha— Ah!” Kaiden shouted as he tumbled when the shuttle launched into space.

  “Let’s kick this pig,” Chief cried. The thrusters activated and they rocketed forward. The ace scrambled to his feet. An image displayed on one of the screens of the mercs sucked out into space as the team left the terminal station behind.

  Chapter Seven

  Outside the Animus

  “Would you care to repeat that?” Professor Alexander Laurie asked, his focus on the four screens, each of which showed the face of a member of the Academy board.

  “We wanted to know if you are willing to cooperate with the World Council. They request access to the Academy’s index and archives. We have provided what we can, but they seem to have a particular interest in your projects and knowledge.” The response came from Victoria Molyneux. Laurie glanced at the far-left screen. Her dark blond hair had been pulled into a bun and her eyes were soft and appealing, seemingly in an effort to coax him into giving his approval.

  It wasn’t working, not even to calm him down.

  “Ah, I see. My apologies for the confusion. Let me make it up to the lot of you by giving you a quick and simple response. No,” Laurie stated flatly. He released the railing of the platform he stood on to turn and leave when another member of the board spoke.

  “Come now, Laurie. This is a chance to build a better bridge with the council and earn their respect and admiration,” a man with neatly groomed short hair and a thin white mustache admonished.

  Laurie looked over his shoulder, reluctant to give them his full attention. “Along with access to their considerable coffers, Vincent?”

  “I would see that as a pleasant outcome,” he replied, “You say that with such a hostile tone, Laurie. You certainly don’t seem to balk at the offers and expenses of the board on your behalf.”

  “Do you mean the ones that I’m contractually obliged to receive? The ones that are the major reason for me being here in the first place instead of running my company? Well, that and the opportunity to work on some truly great projects to test my skills and problems that would require every bit of knowledge and talent I had. And, of course, to lead a group of other exceptional technicians and engineers. Yes, these were all noble and exciting promises but have come to mean less and less over the years, particularly the last year. You’ve merely had me keep the Animus up to date and work on menial assignments. I’ve had to find my own interesting projects.”

  “Is that why you are being so difficult? Spite?” Vincent asked, and his eyes narrowed in annoyance.

  “I can be very petulant when things don’t go my way—being one of the greatest minds on and outside this planet allows me that. But in this case, no. I usually drown my frustrations with you in a pool of red wine or white if I’ve smothered my issues in fine meats as well. It’s more difficult to complain when enjoying the advantages of your work, you see,” Laurie explained. He looked casually at the screen on his wrist, more to show his indifference to the board rather than for any specific purpose. “But no, I’m uncooperative for the simple reason that I don’t want to cooperate. The council has shown no interest in my work since the original creation of the Animus. I find their sudden change of heart rather offensive. If they want to work with a Laurie, their cont
racts with my father should suffice. He will still work on that ‘Icarus’ station for a couple more years.”

  “You really do have a way of making things all about you, Alexander,” the aged and gruff Oswald Whitchurch replied. “Although I must say that I always get a kick out of your little rants—when I’m not specifically on the end of them, that is.”

  “You’re usually the most agreeable of your colleagues, Oswald, at least without the commander present,” Laurie confessed and finally turned to face them. “You’ve also been rather quiet for most of our little chat, so tell me your opinion of this mess.”

  “Hmph, very well,” Oswald agreed. “I value this Academy’s independence above almost everything else. I can understand the…appeal of extending olive branches to the council, but I don’t like setting a precedent that we are willing to do things for them. We have created something wholly unique and powerful with the Ark Academy program, something so appealing that I have heard rumbles that the council will attempt to create their own in the near future, one that will be under their thumb.”

  “We were as well, at one point,” Victoria reminded him.

  “We were on lease, one that we’ve paid off,” he countered.

  “And now, at least one of you wants to crawl back into those oh so tempting claws.” Laurie deadpanned and glanced at Vincent again. “Is it a sense of masochism or do they simply call you the right pet name to have you kowtow to them?”

  Vincent glared at the professor. “You should be mindful of your tone.”

  Laurie scoffed. “I don’t see how this will affect me in the slightest. Will you actually attempt to fire the man who designed and maintains the Animus? Even if you had the guts to do so, I’m only under contract while I retain my position here. Once I’m out, I’m sure one of the other five Ark Academies would be quite giddy at the prospect of acquiring my skills.”

  “That isn’t a concern, Professor,” Olivia Aoba, the final board member present, stated. Her auburn hair had been straightened, and small, hazel eyes looked down at him with ill-concealed impatience. The lenses of her optics brightened and appeared more translucent. “This isn’t a matter of your standing. We simply wanted to inform you of an offer that the council—”

  “Knew the answer to. Which is why, instead of asking me directly, they informed you and hoped you could use your combined influence to sway me.” Laurie ran a hand through his long cream-colored tresses and took a moment to sigh and adjust his gloves. “This whole conversation makes me quite irate and is rather unbecoming, to be honest.”

  “Your sense of decorum is certainly still intact, at least,” Vincent muttered. “If rather delayed.”

  Laurie grunted disdainfully. “It’s been at least ten weeks since I’ve been able to see a therapist thanks to all the busywork you gave me at the end of last year and the Animus updates you simply had to have at the start of this year.” He straightened his coat and stood with his hands clasped behind his back. “I’ve made do by relaxing to some delightful ambiance curated by Aurora along with a bottle of Acqua Armonia, both of which are calling to me. So, if I’ve answered your question well enough, I would like to get back to my domain. I’ll be in touch with you with my report in three months.”

  He turned to leave, but his shoulders slumped and jaw clenched as Vincent called, “Wait a moment.”

  “Well, one of us is certainly acting spiteful,” he grumbled and scowled over his shoulder. “What now?”

  “I want to satisfy my curiosity by calling a board vote on the subject of Laurie giving the council access to his designs and technology,” he explained. The professor raised an eyebrow and folded his arms.

  “The chancellor isn’t here, and you are missing your fifth member.” Laurie looked at the empty screens. “It’s not exactly official, is it?”

  “That’s why I said this was for my personal benefit,” Vincent clarified. “I doubt the council will stop asking simply because the good professor is…disagreeable. I think we should see where we all stand in this regard considering the potential benefits a strengthened partnership with the council will bring us.”

  “More specifically, that of you being able to get your lips closer to their ass,” Laurie muttered. “Well, you know my opinion, and I know yours, Vincent. What about the rest?”

  Victoria was the first to speak. “Even considering that this is only a hypothetical hearing, I would still have to side with Vincent on this discussion. We have wanted to change the curriculum in this Academy and allow more applicants in. While we have seen a steady rise, we are still limited by resources and functions. A stronger partnership with the council would be a great benefit to us.”

  Laurie rolled his eyes. “How about the two of you?”

  “I am against it,” Olivia stated. “Considering your links to the council and previous mention of the desire to work closely with them, Vincent, you have an obvious bias. That said, I understand the hope you two have and the potential of what such a partnership could mean for the Academy. However, we have no guarantee that this would play out in our favor in any way. They simply made a request to see the professor’s archives and to have more access to the Academy’s database. It isn’t inconceivable that they would merely get what they want and bid us a quick farewell.”

  “Agreed.” Oswald nodded. “Even if this worked out for the best, the council isn’t known for leaving the corporations and divisions under their wings autonomous. Our grand plans and hopes for the future shouldn’t come at the cost of all we have built so far.”

  Laurie watched in amusement as Vincent’s lips puckered and his eyes closed tightly but briefly in anger. He sighed, opened his eyes, and shook his head. “Then it’s a stalemate, it seems.”

  “At least without the input of the chancellor or— Well, hello, Sasha.” Laurie greeted the commander as he walked into the room and stood at the end of the walkway. Sasha nodded and approached. The professor moved to allow him to pass and stand on the central panel.

  “I must admit, I’m surprised this meeting is still in progress.” Sasha nodded acknowledgment to the other four board members. “When I read the report of the council’s request, I assumed that this meeting would be quite brief and that Laurie would simply say no before he left in a huff.”

  “I did and tried,” the professor confessed, irritation evident in his voice. “But they seemed to believe there was some sort of wiggle room there.”

  “We’re covering all the potential bases, Alexander,” Vincent huffed. “It’s an interesting idea to have the World Council as a possible benefactor. I wanted to be sure you understood that. I’m certain that there would be plenty in it for you as well.”

  “I assure you, I’m fine,” Laurie retorted. “Being able to go about my business without the high and mighty second-guessing everything I do is its own reward. For all my complaining about the pointless jobs you give me, I’ll admit they are simple enough to complete and thus afford me more time to work on my own personal projects.”

  Sasha looked at the professor for a moment and rotated his hand to indicate that he would wrap things up. Laurie nodded and turned to leave. “As the professor previously stated, his contract with the Academy allows him a number of privileges, one of which is that he is allowed his privacy.” No one questioned how the commander knew the gist of their conversation. Whether present or not, he had a knack of learning what he needed to know, and they had long since given up trying to work out how.

  “If you wish to allow the council access to the academy’s databases,” he continued, “I’ll allow that up to level three. That will provide some of the schematics and files on Laurie’s work with the Animus and Nexus EI chips and devices which should sate their rather sudden curiosity. But unless the chancellor gives his blessing, it’s a moot point.” Sasha fixed the board members with a hard look. Oswald and Olivia nodded, and both seemed pleased with the solution. Victoria nodded but her eyes betrayed slight dissatisfaction, while Vincent merely sighed and agreed.<
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  “Unless there was something else you wanted to discuss while we’re all gathered here, I would say that this meeting is adjourned.” There was silence for a moment, indicating that the board members agreed that they were finished for the day. “Very well. Hominum ultra.”

  They signed out with the same tag and the holoscreens disappeared. Sasha turned and walked down the path and through the doors of Laurie’s conference room. The professor leaned against the wall, waiting for him.

  “Good timing, Sasha. My patience had worn thin.” Laurie sighed. “Oswald and Olivia try their best, but they seem stuck in the same officiate mindset most of the career-chasers have. Fortunately, they walk a different path than Vincent, although Victoria seems unfortunately swayed to his side.”

  “Vice-Chancellor Molyneux has relatives who work within the world government. She was raised in that environment, so it makes sense that she would hold a more favorable view of them than others,” Sasha reasoned and leaned against the opposite wall to Laurie. “As for Director Princeton… Well, he only took the position here as a means to make his way to the government proper. Now that he’s been here for more than a decade, I’d imagine he’s rather impatient.”

  “Speaking of which, I listened to your final words. Saying the council has a ‘rather sudden interest’ in my work is how I would put it myself. It makes me wonder if they have a true burgeoning interest in the applications of my work outside a defense context or if there’s simply an interested party who wants a more intimate look at some of my personal projects.”

  “Do you think this could be linked to the Arbiter Organization?” Sasha asked. “You’ve been rather quiet on that front.”

  “So have you,” Laurie pointed out, “Whatever happened to that ‘friend’ of yours who was supposed to investigate them.”

  “I’ve kept in touch with him, although he doesn’t usually come to Earth that often. However, most of his findings had little merit,” Sasha admitted. “There was little to be discovered beyond what we had already deduced, but he was able to find some odd transmissions.”