by E S Richards
Zahyra smiled as Vincent moved away while Cain kept his attention on his plate. He waited until the old man had moved far enough away before he chose to open his mouth.
“They’ll all surely die if they stay here,” he said seriously. “Even if we clear away the bodies, the smell will still linger. The dogs will tear this place apart when they arrive and they won’t be able to defend themselves.”
“I know,” Zahyra shook her head. “But what choice do we have? This is their home. I say we help them as much as we can and then move on, we have our own people out there who need saving too.”
The rest of the day was excruciating. The number of the bodies that littered the settlement was far greater than Cain had ever imagined. He wondered whether the safe haven had simply come all this way just for Adryan and willingly murdered everyone else.
He found the thought both comforting and disturbing. Disturbing in the sense that the safe haven would go through so much, kill so many people just for one boy. But then that was also comforting as it clearly meant that Adryan was very important to the safe haven and could possibly suggest that they don’t have as many Gen 6 mutants as Cain and Zahyra had originally wondered.
His musings of course were nothing but speculation, knowing full well it was impossible to predict what the safe haven was doing and why. Try as he might he still couldn’t find the logic behind the facility and its actions, everything they had done only managing to result in hardship for him and those he loved.
It was good though, to be able to speculate while he worked. It distracted him from the horror in front of his eyes. All walks of people and mutants had been murdered. Young and old, warped and normal, all of varying generation numbers. There was no logic or reason to the mass killings that had occurred no less than twenty-four hours ago.
Zahyra called over to him just after lunch as she stood over a body. Reaching it Cain realised she was looking down at Cyrus, the old council member who had ultimately sparked Asher’s decision to leave though teaching him he could hear people’s thoughts.
“Leave him to me,” Cain spoke softly, turning Zahyra’s body away from the dead man. “You go and help Zac.”
Cain had never thought he would be pushing Zahyra into the arms of Zac, but he knew she wouldn’t be able to deal with Cyrus’ body. His name brought too many terrible memories and imagined horrors to her mind. It was the same for Cain on some level, but naturally Zahyra’s connection with Asher was stronger than any other connection she could have, so he knew he had to do this for her.
Dragging the man’s limp body over to one of the nearest holes he paused for a moment before pushing him into the mass grave. They had decided to dig several of them on one side of the settlement and planned to set all the bodies ablaze later that evening. Vincent hoped that burning the bodies would diminish the smell somehow, but Cain knew nothing would stop the dogs from coming.
As Cyrus’ body rolled down into the grave Cain felt nothing for the man. He may have been a passive Gen 4 just like himself, but that didn’t create any connection between the two of them. To Cain, Cyrus was still the man who had been the catalyst for all of this. The irony being that if he hadn’t reached out to Asher he would probably still be alive. At least in some respect, Cain believed he had got what he deserved.
The remainder of the day passed without another incident. Thankfully Cain and Zahyra had not been in the warped settlement for long enough to form any meaningful relationships with anyone who lived there. He imagined it would be much harder for Vincent and the two remaining women, although one of them was always absent watching over Clarke.
As night finally drew in it was Cain who accompanied Vincent around the graves while the others gathered in the main hall. He carried a flame with him that grew less and less at each site, throwing the fire onto the bodies of the dead. Vincent said a few words for the members of the settlement within each grave. He thanked them for everything they had done for their home and apologised for not being able to keep them all safe.
When they reached the grave holding Cyrus, Vincent noticed his old friend and changed his speech slightly, mentioning how Cyrus had been a trustworthy companion and had helped him through many of the hard times the settlement had encountered. Cain kept quiet, as he had done through Vincent’s previous speeches. Although he disagreed with what the man was saying he knew it was wrong to speak ill of the dead and simply carried out his duty burning the bodies.
Dragging themselves off to bed later that night Cain held Zahyra as she cried softly. Although like him she had not formed any relationships with anyone in the warped settlement, he knew she was still affected by seeing so many dead.
He knew as well that it was because the safe haven was to blame and while her tears had emerged as a result of the dead they had seen that day, they were really for her brother. Her thoughts were always with him and her mind was frantically struggling to come up with a way to get him back.
As she finally began to drift to sleep the beginnings of a plan started to form in Cain’s mind. He knew something needed to be done and in their desperate times the path they chose to guide them would have to be equally as desperate. He just hoped it wouldn’t result in more sadness, more danger and more death.
Chapter 16 – Cain
“Are you sure it’s safe?”
“No, Zar, I’m not. But look around you; think about everything we’ve been through. Is there anything that you can be sure is safe right now?”
“No,” a meek voice escaped Zahyra. “I just, I don’t trust them.”
“Neither do I,” Cain’s voice argued right back. “But this is our only option, unless you can think of anything better?”
Zahyra shook her head.
“Okay. Well I think we should leave today. There’s nothing more we can do here. We need to move on, both from this place and from what has happened.”
Cain had been trying to convince Zahyra of his plan ever since they’d woken up. He had stayed awake half the night considering it and had come to the sad conclusion that it was the best idea they could possibly have, even if it was dangerous. He tried to think of people he could reach out to, any mutant group that would help them in standing up to the safe haven. Each time his mind circled back to one set of mutants: those at the commander’s camp.
Although the time he had spent with them had been short, he believed he had developed some sort of rapport with the commander. He also knew they had a trade deal with the safe haven and therefore presented their only possible way in.
Cain knew it wouldn’t be easy to convince the commander to work with him, but he hoped that revealing information about the device the safe haven had developed – the Tocsix – would sway him into choosing a side. Surely once the safe haven had got everything they needed from the commanders camp they would dispose of the mutants within it, just like they had at the warped settlement.
Cain knew Zac would be a valuable asset to their plan. His knowledge of what the red band was working on within the safe haven was the best they had, even though it wasn’t as extensive as he would have liked. At least Zac knew about the device they were using and could hopefully explain in more detail how it worked. Cain made a mental note to talk to the boy about it before they set off, in order to make sure he didn’t disappoint when they were making a deal with the commander. If they could manage to make one.
“What about the others?” Zahyra asked after a pause. “Vincent, Clarke and the women?”
“They’ve made it pretty clear they want to stay here, I don’t think there’s much point trying to convince them otherwise.”
“And Zac?”
Cain sighed. “Zac should come with us. His information about the safe haven could be valuable and besides, it sounds like he does genuinely want to try and help the two boys he knew.”
“Jonny and Dylan,” Zahyra whispered their names, then her eyes widened slightly. “What about Clarke’s brother? Adryan? Surely if she knows we’re going to save him she�
��ll want to come.”
“Probably,” Cain nodded. “But we can’t bring a child along with us Zahyra, you know that. If,” he paused, “when we get them out of the safe haven, we can bring Adryan back here, see if his sister is still around. But you know we can’t guarantee they’ll ever be reunited again.”
Zahyra’s face fell. Naturally Clarke’s brother being taken was an all too similar scenario to her and Asher’s. Cain knew that would be especially hard for her to handle, but the truth was that with the exception of Asher, it was most likely that all the other boys would find themselves alone once they left the safe haven.
Cain wondered whether there would be anything they could do to help them, but knew that was a problem they would have to deal with further down the line. It would also depend on how many boys had been turned into Gen 6 mutants. If there were hundreds the problem would be catastrophically bigger.
“So, when do you want to leave?” Zahyra’s question was unenthusiastic. Cain knew she wasn’t happy with how things were going so far, but he was glad she was at least compliant.
“I need to talk to Zac first,” he replied. “But we should try and get away today, after lunch at the latest ideally.”
“Okay,” Zahyra nodded. “I’m going to have a shower.”
Cain watched his companion leave the room slowly. It was obvious that the next part of their journey was going to be tough. He had no way of telling how life in the commander’s camp had changed since he’d been there. They had lost their man on the inside – Repo – although Cain was certain the commander would have no way of knowing it was him who had killed him. He would have to fabricate some story about how he managed to escape but Repo didn’t, and why he had abandoned his post when he had appeared so keen to join up to the commander’s ranks.
Sighing Cain dragged himself out of bed and moved to the door Zahyra had just passed through. He had to speak to Zac before all of this; find out if the boy had any additional information they could use.
“Come in?”
Zac’s voice came from the other side of the door that Cain was knocking on. He pushed it open to reveal the boy in the latter stages of getting dressed, his hair wet from an inevitable shower. Cain was pleased to see Zac was changing into something other than his safe haven uniform, the outfit almost certain to cause distress amongst the commander’s camp.
“Morning,” Cain spoke as he closed the door behind him. “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Well I figured as much,” Zac nodded slowly. “What’s up?”
“Firstly,” Cain began sitting down in one of the chairs that occupied the room. “I need to know where your head is at. You obviously carry some loyalties to the safe haven, but with the new information you have learned about what they’re doing to the boys – I need to know what you think now.”
Zac swallowed. “You’re right. I can’t deny that I have fond memories of my time within the safe haven. It was the first place I ever felt safe, the first place I could ever relax.”
Cain’s resolve hardened, quickly reconsidering bringing the ex-solider along with him.
“But, I won’t stand by and let them ruin the lives of innocent boys. I won’t stand by and let them use them like slaves, like puppets that allow them to get what they want. I... I have been used in the past for the mutation I carry. I was kept by a small group of advanced mutants before I escaped and found the safe haven. They treated me like a dog. Using me to hunt down prey with my mutation and then keeping me locked away at night with their own. I won’t let Jonny and Dylan be treated like that. I want them to be free. I want to help you set them free.”
Cain watched Zac speak for a moment, shocked by his revelation from his past. He had not even thought about what the boy’s life had been like before the safe haven, judging him immediately for the uniform that he wore. Cautioning himself he remembered that both himself and Zahyra had worn that uniform in the past. Listening to Zac speak he could see he cared more for the lives of his friends than he did about the safe haven itself. For the first time since he’d met him, Cain slowly started to put some faith in Zac.
“Good,” he replied simply, unwillingly to let much of his emotion show. “We’ll be happy to have you with us.”
Zac remained unmoved by Cain’s response, sensing that there was more he wanted to say.
“I’ve come up with a loose plan of sorts,” Cain continued. “In order to get us back into the safe haven we’re going to need to team up with the only group I know that has a way in. If, in fact, they still do. What do you know of any deals the safe haven has with parties of advanced mutants on the outside?”
Zac raised one of his eyebrows at Cain’s question. “There have always been rumours of trade deals. The safe haven using the advanced mutants to gather things they can’t acquire themselves in return for food or fuel. I don’t know what the safe haven gets from them in return though, I’ve never been privy to that information.”
“The mutant camps hunt down Zero’s for the safe haven.” Cain paused for a moment to let his words sink in. “I’m proposing we go and join one of them today.”
“What?” Zac’s disagreement was obvious. “Are you mad? Zahyra’s a Zero! We can’t just go and parade her around a group of advanced mutants like a prize pig!”
Cain couldn’t help but laugh at Zac’s outburst, only enticing the anger in the young boy more. “I’m not for a second suggesting we do that,” Cain began, encouraging the boy to sit back down.
Slowly, he began to elaborate about his time within the commander’s mutant base and what he learned there. He explained that it could be their only way back into the safe haven and that himself and Zahyra were going to begin their journey there today, with him as well if he wanted to help save the boys.
“But,” Cain paused for breath towards the end of his explanation. “I need to know what information you have about the device the safe haven has developed that can destroy mutations, the Tocsix? That could be our main bargaining chip with the commander. He’s a proud man, meaning that if he thinks the safe haven are going to try and outwit him at any point, swindle him out of their trade deal for example, he’ll be furious. I’m almost certain he’ll want to hit back at them before it’s possible.”
Zac seemed more relaxed now, understanding Cain’s plan after listening to what he proposed to do. Cain had seen a change in him when it had been assured that Zahyra would be safe, both pleasing him and bringing up that spark of jealously once more.
“The Tocsix is in mass production now,” Zac explained. “All the senior members of the red band carry one with them when they leave the facility and as far as I know there isn’t any way to reverse its effects.
“Once you’re hit with its beam your mutation ceases to be active and you become, something else. It doesn’t turn mutants into Zero’s as they still carry mutated genes and they still feel like their mutation is there. They just can’t use it. I suppose in that way I don’t know whether it removes the ability to use a mutation, or just locks it away inside somewhere.”
“So there could possibly be a way to reverse the effects?”
“Everything we’ve been told in the safe haven suggested that no, once you’ve been hit the effects are final. But I guess... if the mutation itself doesn’t leave your body, if it’s just frozen inside then there could be a way to unfreeze it? I don’t really know, like I say was very new to the red band, I wasn’t allowed to know the more sensitive information.”
Cain leaned back in his chair. What Zac was suggesting was very interesting. Being able to regain mutations even after being zapped could be a game changer.
“Do you know anyone within the safe haven who’s had it used on them? The Tocsix I mean?” Cain asked curiously, another idea slowly beginning to form in his head.
“No,” Zac thought for a moment. “It’s only ever used on the outside. And even then we’re told to kill the mutants anyway, most are still dangerous even without their mutations.”
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“Interesting,” Cain mused, the edges of his mouth creeping up into a small smile. “Thank you Zac, your information has been useful. I assume, as well, that you want to come with us today?”
Zac nodded.
“I’m not sure when we’ll be going,” Cain continued starting to stand from his chair, “but it’ll be soon. I’ll let you finish getting dressed and I’ll see you in the main hall for something to eat.”
“All right,” Zac spoke after Cain as he left through the door, “thank you.”
Cain grinned as he moved away from where Zac was staying. It was him who should be thanking Zac, not the other way around. He was pleased to say the boy’s information had been more useful than he could have imagined, that is, if his suspicions were correct.
Just over an hour later, the three of them were on their way. Zahyra had tried yet again to convince Vincent and the others to leave the warped settlement, but with them unable to travel to the advanced mutant base there wasn’t much choice for them elsewhere.
So instead she had hugged each of them in turn, reminding Clarke to stay strong and stay out of harms way. Cain was cautious that Zahyra might mention something about Adryan to his little sister but she kept quiet, knowing that any seed of hope would probably lead to sadness later down the line.
They had been able to pack with them enough food and water to survive a day in the forest. Zac was confident that his mutation would allow him to sniff out food sources easily, should they find themselves travelling for much longer. Cain had a rough idea of where the commander’s mutant base was but he knew Zac’s sense of smell would be useful for that as well. The odour of a big group of advanced mutants holding a rather overpowering scent.
Cain continuously ran over the plan with both Zahyra and Zac as they walked, each of them with a rifle slung over their shoulder. He hoped to reach the base either just before nightfall or more realistically as day broke the next morning. He told them both that they would likely receive a less than pleasant welcome from the commander and that they would all need to have matching stories in case they were interrogated separately.