Floor 21- Dark Angel

by Jason Luthor

  But it’s those last few inches up that my eyes move, looking into the clouds, that makes my heart top. I look where the red skies are swirling, like a tornado’s getting ready to touch down. Then, dozens of orange beams start shining down across the city as eyes open up all across the sky, tendrils whipping back and forth through from the darkness above me. After a long second, the clouds suddenly just look like they’re being pushed away, until out of those hundreds of eyes, one single eye as big as a dozen city blocks opens up. The pupil inside constricts and then dilates, the city soaking in orange light as the skies start releasing thousands of those orbs, Creep raining down for miles and miles. Every inch of the city, all the way to the horizon, explodes apart as the Creep rips through it all, obliterating Central apart while I just stare at all of it happening. And I’m frozen, not able to look away as that massive eye suddenly looks toward me. My heart feel beats once before my body goes cold, rooted there to the rooftop as the world in front of me is doused in burning orange light.

  And when I blink, just like that, everything’s back to normal. I’m staring into the face of the Stranger, his arms crossed as he hovers there, just a few feet in front of me. He leans into me, his lips right beside my ear, and his voice burning through my head as he whispers, “I know you still hear them.” When he says it, a red pocket of energy in the world burns open behind him, and then he’s gone. I’m just left standing there for a second, feeling my heart pounding out of my chest as I try to get myself under control, my eyes looking down the streets but finding nobody out there in the dark. It’s just me up there, alone, and admitting to myself that he’s right. I still hear them.

  Johnny.

  Sally.

  Why can’t I stop hearing them?

  Tommy’s Recording 18

  If there was any doubt, any doubt whatsoever, that we were eventually going to have to join forces with Fort Silence, it disappeared today.

  Today . . . today was rough.

  Mikey was out on patrol in the Deadlands. The War Council’s pretty much made it mandatory that we collect more intel ever since the invasion. I mean, can you blame them? The raiders were at the doorstep of Central Primary before Jackie pulled our asses out of the fire.

  Anyway, I’m at the garrison, going over what we’d need to make a safe run up north, when everything goes to hell. Before I understand what’s happening, I’m watching guys running back and forth like their lives depended on it. Once I realize what’s happening, I get myself over to Central Command. Martin’s already there, because he lives and breathes the military life, but there’s else I recognize. All Martin does is give me a nod before looking back up to the monitors.

  That’s when I see what’s going on, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what I’m looking at. All hell’s breaking loose on the screen. Because of the Baby Boys filming everything, it’s like we’re right there in the fight. I catch a view of Mike turning a shoulder around a flipped car he’s ducked behind and firing into the street. Martin looks over at our comm guys. “Do we have eyes in the air?”

  “Already have a Baby Boy over the fire zone, sir.”

  “Give me eyes.”

  A second later, the screen flips to a view from over the city. It’s like being a slow-moving bird, and we’re looking straight down onto the street. There are mobs of people marching down the road west of Mike’s position with tanks inbound, while him and his guys are pinned down by gunfire coming from at least two armored transports. There’s gunfire coming from windows of the surrounding buildings, too, leaving them trapped in the middle of an all-out fight. Everything’s so tense, I don’t realize my fingers are nearly rubbing my chin raw. “Do we have a line of retreat for them?”

  Our guy on comm’s shakes his head. “Negative, sir,” he tells me as he taps into his controls. The view pulls out even farther, and suddenly we’ve got a view of what’s got to be almost two dozen city blocks. Worst of all, we can see another stream of raiders coming from the south. “Tracking at least fifty more enemy combatants approaching south of Lieutenant Chapman’s position. All other avenues out of the area take them through heavy Creep infestation.

  “Well, how the hell did Mike get pinned down like this?”

  Martin shakes his head. “We can ask that question later, captain. Comms, who do we have in the area to support Lieutenant Chapman?”

  It takes a second for the answer to come back. “Our . . . operator? Codename Dark Angel. She was deployed with her team on a separate training exercise south of the fire zone. They deployed by Vertwing.”

  “She didn’t fly in?”

  “Apparently her pack’s low on fuel, sir.”

  “And nobody thought to offer to refill it for her?”

  “She’s not officially approved for requisitions, sir. She’s not . . .” He gives us this awkward look. “That’s why she’s categorized as an operator. She’s not officially militia personnel.”

  Martin rubs his hand over his face. “And I’m just now finding this out? This damned bureaucracy is going to get peopled killed. Look, just get her on the line.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  There’s a few moments between when the colonel gives the order and when Jackie responds, but I can tell by her voice that she already knows something’s wrong. “Dark Angel. What’s going on?”

  Martin shifts his feet, and I can see how uncomfortable he looks when he talks to her. “We’ve got an emerging situation on our hands. I’ve already got men getting ready to roll out, but you’re the closest support we have.”

  “How can I help?”

  “Chapman’s team is pinned down in an area north of your position. We’re feeding you intel to your helmet right now, so take a look at the visuals. The southern road’s the only route out for them unless we want them going waist high through Creep. Unfortunately, we’ve got a mob of raiders heading up that way to Lieutenant Chapman.”

  “So, you want us to go through that mob to get to the lieutenant?”

  “I need you to make a call from what you’re seeing on the ground. If you think you can get your men through that mob in a rush and without taking too much fire, that’d be the safest route. Our main problem’s time. We’re watching a dozen assorted armored vehicles moving east on Chapman’s position. You could drop your men into that fire zone and try to hold out, but you’d still have two separate forces converging on you from the east and south, with armored vehicles holding down the streets to the north. If I’m not being clear, that zone is hot, and we’ve got a lot of people stuck there. That Vertwing you took out doesn’t have enough space to evac you all back to Central, so we’re going to have to get them out on foot. So, you tell me, Dark Angel. Can you cut through the southern road?”

  There’s a long pause on the other side. It goes on long enough that I can feel my breath sticking in my chest. As we wait, I feel like I’m about to go blue in the face when her voice finally comes back through. “The militia can handle the situation from the south. I’ll take the Vertwing and drop down on the lieutenant’s position. I’ll hold off any incoming, including that armor, until my men reconnect with us and free up the road south.”

  Martin nods. “I need you to be aware of what you’re doing. I’ve seen what you’re capable of, but I don’t want you under any illusions of what’s headed your way. When I say there’s incoming, I mean I’m staring at a whole hell of a lot of armor inbound. Heavy machine guns, rocket launchers, that kind of thing. Once the Vertwing drops you in, it won’t be able to pull anyone out until that area’s clear. There’s just too much fire in the area.”

  “Not a problem.”

  “Alright. Delegate command to your L-T. We’ll oversee both operations from here.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The colonel looks my way as we watch the viewscreen switch over to Jackie loading onto the Vertwing. Martin looks like he’s chewing his cheek when he grumbles at our comms guy, “And you’re really telling me that nobody approved her for requisitions?” />
  “Still getting a lot of pushback from the generals, sir. I’m not sure they like someone with her firepower having access to Central’s resources.”

  “The damned War Council will end up getting every one of us killed,” he grumbles as he turns back to the screen. The Vertwing’s already in the air, and Jackie’s legs are dangling out of the side as it rumbles along to Mike’s position. Beneath her, we can see all the small clusters of apartment towers. It was a poor part of the city, back in the Old World. The lack of skyscrapers is a good thing though, since it helps us keep a better eye on the action.

  “We’re one minute out from the LZ.”

  Martin nods. “Tracking you here, Dark Angel.”

  It’s only a minute later when she says, “We’re in position over the target.”

  “You seeing what we’re seeing?”

  “Got a column of armor inbound. They’re moving slow. Lots of debris between them and our position.”

  Our man on comms turns around to face us. “Colonel, we’ve got Suiciders inbound on the Vertwing’s position.”

  Martin shakes his head. “Hell. Dark Angel, you’ve got Suiciders incoming. Their rockets might be inaccurate but that Vertwing can’t take too many hits.”

  “I’m dropping. Clear the Vert out of the fire zone until I’ve secured the area.”

  “Roger that.”

  Jackie’s Baby Boy takes up position behind her, and we just watch as she slides out of the rear cabin of the Vertwing and starts plummeting hundreds of feet to the ground. I almost feel sick watching the buildings rushing up at her and flying by on every side before a burst of fire ignites from her pack. She stops falling in a second, but she still slams into the ground with so much punch that the concrete beneath her armor cracks apart when she lands. Jackie doesn’t waste time and immediately rushes up behind the same overturned car that Mike and a few of the militia are ducked behind.

  “Where’s the rest of your men?” she asks as she looks up and down the street. Mike looks back at her and motions to the buildings.

  “Secured inside,” he says as he points to two buildings on either side of him. That’s when I notice gunfire coming from the windows.

  “You’ve got a funny definition of secure,” she shouts back over all the noise. “We’ve got armor coming from the west and raiders from the south, but your back’s covered for now. We need to free you up to move out of here.”

  “What’s the plan?”

  She holds out her hands, and a blue light passes upward through her palms until she’s holding a rifle so big that it would normally take two men to carry. “Take out those armored transports. Cover me while I make my way up.”

  “On it.”

  I see Martin look my way before he points to the screen. “Did you know she could bring in rifles like that?”

  “Uh. Well, if she can teleport in her sword, why not a rifle? It’s Pocket Space, so I guess she can pull out whatever she’s got stored in there.”

  I can see him frown because I know he’s not sure about the idea of Jackie having that kind of firepower. Then again, it’s not exactly the sort of firepower that we need, so even if it makes him uncomfortable, he doesn’t say anything. We turn back to watch as raiders go ducking behind cover. Mike’s militia are firing from every window they’re positioned at, distracting those transports long enough for Jackie to launch herself out from cover. While the raiders return fire on the buildings at either side of her, she goes running ahead at a speed I’ve literally never seen anyone run. With a rifle that big? She must cross a tenth of a mile before the raiders realize she’s coming straight at them. The second they do, she goes diving behind the corner of one of the buildings. We watch all this at the same time that we see Mike’s guys emptying out of the surrounding buildings. Mike jumps from behind cover and joins them as they all reunite, this time in an alley that’s east of Jackie’s position. Mike’s voice comes shouting through the comms. “Jackie. We’re southeast of you and behind cover. Can you make your way back here?”

  “No point. If we don’t clear this area. You guys don’t have an evac.”

  “Then we’ll make our way up this backstreet and get them from the rear.”

  “Just buy me five seconds to get my head behind cover and I’ll take care of the rest.”

  “On it.”

  This time, I motion to the screen and the aerial map in the upper right corner, watching a trail of red dots moving in on the fire zone. “That armor’s closing in on her. Fast. They don’t have a lot of time.”

  Martin nods as he motions to the comms. “Dark Angel, if you’re sending Mike’s men behind those armored transports, then you should remember that we’ve got a column of armor less than ten minutes away before they’re on you.”

  “Yes, sir,” she says as she turns her head away. The corner of the wall gets chewed apart as bullets spray through the air and turn the concrete and brick into dust. “I’m taking out those transports now.”

  “Acknowledged,” he literally growls as his eyes flick up to the map, where we both see Mike’s guys nearly in position. Martin looks my way. “The Angel’s not the one I’m worried about here.”

  “I know, but I can promise you that the only person she cares about right now is Mike and his guys. She’ll do anything to save them.”

  “I’m putting a lot of trust in her to save those people. Trust in a person I don’t know.”

  “She’s going to prove you made the right decision, sir. Have faith in her.”

  “Captain, I don’t have any choice right now but to have faith.”

  The second the words are out of his mouth, the screen starts lighting up with explosions. Our eyes shoot up in time to see a rocket propelled grenades streaking through the air and tearing into the sides of the building around Mike and his people. His guys are hitting the ground while he screams, “Down! Down! Behind cover!”

  Jackie’s eyes turn the corner as she watches the attention of the raiders shifting away. Some are still taking potshots in her direction, but most have turned around to hold off Mike and his guys, who’ve managed to work their way north and behind the transports that were firing on them. That’s all the opening Jackie needs, and suddenly she’s sprinting out into the open. All around her, you can see concrete kicking up as bullets ricochet off the ground, or windows shattering behind her as glass goes exploding. As the gunfire focuses in on her, she cuts to her left and down the middle of the street, her rifle coming up as she does. She’s close to the raiders and with that kind of firepower, when she squeezes down on the trigger, I’m not surprised by what I see. The rounds for a rifle that size, at that distance, will eat light armor alive. That includes those raider transports sitting out there in the middle of the street. All of us watch as holes tear through the front of the transports, their windows shattering into millions of pieces while their engines open u under rifle fire. The whole time, she’s still streaking across the street so fast that there isn’t a bullet that touches her. She goes sliding out of the line of fire and rolling into a side street as the raiders keep chasing her with their gunfire.

  “Dark Angel,” Martin says into his mic piece, “Those raiders are going quiet but that armor column’s right on top of you.”

  “I’m moving up to—”

  She never finishes the sentence as another series of rocket explosions go tearing the into the street. Martin’s eyes flick up to the map. “Comms, get me an aerial view.”

  “On it, sir,” they reply from the front, and soon we’re seeing a close bird’s eye view of a stream of armored vehicles emptying into the intersection, their weapons trained on Mike’s position. They don’t even seem to care that they’re firing on their own men, just as long as they can somehow get to him and Jackie. “Chapman, what’s your status?”

  Mike’s voice breaks through along with another explosion. “They’re bringing the buildings down around us!” Everyone in Primary holds their breath as we watch clouds of rockets being unloaded from
roof mounted launchers. From what I’m seeing, the lead transports have heavy machine guns mounted up top while the vehicles behind them are the ones launching rockets. It doesn’t take more than a few seconds before the street’s glowing with rockets, their fiery trails burning through the air before punching into the sides of buildings, walls giving way and collapsing into the street. Everything’s crumbling as Mike and his guys try to pull back deeper into the small street they’re tucked into. We can see their signals on the map as they try to stream away, but the walls around them are literally on the verge of caving in on them. “We’ve got men down!”

  And that’s when we see Jackie’s signal streaking down the middle of the road, running so fast across the street that she closes the distance between her and Mike in seconds. Martin motions at comms, and soon we’re seeing a close up of her as she’s angling into the side street. Up ahead, we can see Mike and his guys trying to pull the debris off the ground. Guys’ faces are covered in grey powder and more than a few of them are struggling to pull themselves free from huge chunks of the wall that came down around them. Mike looks up at Jackie as she’s closing the distance, but before he can say anything, she’s got her hands on those big chunks of debris and tossing them like they’re pebbles. She’s screaming as she hauls the last few pieces off the ground, literally throwing hundreds of pounds of weight through the air as she barks orders.

  “Get your people out of here, Mike!”

  “We’re pulling back to our last position, I—” He never gets to finish his sentence because his eyes catch sight of a group of raiders rounding the corner and staring straight at them. Mike’s guys jump behind the huge pieces of wall that are still littering the ground and huddle for cover, but Mike never gets a chance to move. Bullets are already filling up every inch of that narrow street before he can even twitch. I actually feel my heart stop as his eyes go wide, but Jackie doesn’t hesitate. She grabs Mike and hauls him to the ground, hugging him and covering him up as much as she can. Jackie’s got her arms wrapped around him, shielding him, and all you see is sparks bouncing off her back as more rounds than anyone can count go flying off of her. It feels like forever as she crouches there, holding on for Mike’s life while gun fire ricochets off her body. When it finally lets up, she doesn’t miss a beat. Jackie spins around with her rifle, still trying to stay between the raiders and Mike, but everyone in the room sees the same thing at once. Someone’s standing at the entrance to the street with an RPG strapped over his shoulder. It only takes him half a second to fire it off, and we all watch as a trail of smoke and fire go screaming at Mike’s position, a rocket as long as my arm flying along over the pavement. Nobody in the room breathes as we watch that rocket flying down the road, but Jackie leaps at it, trying to put as much space between her and Mike’s team as she can. She’s maybe halfway down the street when the rocket makes contact, and when it hits, you can hear everyone in the room suck wind. The tip of it strikes her right in the stomach and detonates with enough power that the whole screen goes black for a second, debris and ash filling up the camera. Before the view has even started to clear, Martin’s already shouting into his mic.