by J. A. James
The bullets started firing; Griesen felt the deck at their feet start to explode with the impact of the bullets.
He heard Tripe yell at him as he took a running jump from the edge of the rooftop. His wires shot out, hooking out in tandem, swinging him into the tree brush with intense velocity. The bullets came down quickly as another helicopter emerged.
The wires tracked through the trees rapidly, pushing Griesen forward almost through sheer momentum. He vaguely saw the red dots of the team fade in front of him as they fanned out to avoid the rain of lasers that snapped the branches surrounding them. The monkeys and wild birds that had been so silent on their journey towards the observatory now shrieked in assailed panic.
He flew through the underbrush as quickly as they could, getting through a few hundred feet without the bullets showing any signs of slowing down. Then he saw Tripe materialize on the ground, in front of a fallen tree trunk.
Griesen dropped down to where he was.
"Okay." Tripe looked at him. "We're going to have to stay low on this level, get even more undercover to lose them - can you manage to find your way to the shuttle?" he asked.
Griesen nodded quickly. They were close.
"Alright. Go. I'm going to try and give you a bit of cover. I’ll go first and go higher – try to create a diversion. Don't stop until you reach her. Got it?"
The noise of the shuttles and bullets raining down on them was deafening. They were circling; like sharks. They weren’t going to give up, not until they got back what was stolen.
"Got it," Griesen mouthed, as Tripe held up his fingers. "One, two, go!" he shouted as he shot upwards.
The inky night bloomed brightly in front of him thanks to the night vision. But, wait - he realized his eyes were getting better as he lifted his visor. His Acruvae eye vision was rapidly coming back. Griesen began running through the bushes towards the shuttle.
Almost there…
The hail of bullets continued to flail around him.
The shuttle began looming larger through his visor. It came closer into view, until - he lunged forwards, heart hammering, as his legs propelled him in front of the shuttle. He was only a few feet away now.
An icy voice cut through. "Stop right there.”
Griesen stood deathly still, as none other than Ithes emerged in front of him, blocking his path. He had a drawn look on his face, as if he was tired. He was dressed exactly like the armed guards in the observatory.
Ithes raised his weapon towards him. "Take off the visor."
Griesen didn't move.
A series of bullets fired once into the ground a foot in front of Griesen, the soil imploding upwards, splaying his own armor with wet soil. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill me. But if it’s going to be today, I need some answers first.
He yanked his helmet off.
He saw Ithes' eyes widen slightly as his weapon remained raised. "Griesen. Of all the madness..." he let out a single laugh of disbelief. "Never did I think you would find yourself here. Your stooping to such low company truly behooves you."
"It takes one to know one," he shot back.
Ithes mumbled something under his breath, before raising his voice. "Give me the package. Give it back now, and I’ll consider giving you a pardon.”
Griesen stared at him. "A pardon?” he said slowly. Surely he was joking. “You’ll have to do better than that. Tell me what you are hiding out here.”
Ithes’ eyes turned completely black as his mouth turned into a thin line.
"It is complicated. Much more than you can imagine."
Griesen hated the way he drew out that last word. "Complicated would be pretending this package isn’t worth something to you. So explain it."
Ithes looked increasingly frustrated. "You're wasting your time with these humans, and I think the difference between you and I is that you'll never be able to see it."
Give it up. You'll be disposed of with these lowlifes as soon as they get what they want. Is this how you want your life to end? I can pardon you for what you've done and we can forget all about this. You can still have a brilliant career ahead of you.
I think we’re a bit beyond just a pardon. Tell me about my parents – what did you do to them? Are they here? Griesen’s heart began beating wildly. If this place didn’t even exist on a map - how many other places were similar to it?
“Some answers are not yours to have, Griesen,” Ithes snapped. “Why don’t you leave things alone, before you make things worse for yourself. Do you think joining a group of half-blood thieves was going to help you find your answers? Come. Give me what you stole. And you can go back. I’ll make sure of it.”
Ithes strangely seemed to hesitate. “I don’t want unnecessary blood on my hands.” He pointed a finger upwards.
Stop looking for your parents. They died for the cause. They made a commitment and they stood by it-
A splay of bullets suddenly fired, and Griesen’s ears rang from the sound. When he looked up a moment later, he realized that it was Ithes who had fallen. Matthias stood behind him, his gun still smoking. Tripe was right behind him.
"Let's go!" Matthias shouted at him.
He looked at Griesen, who remained frozen, staring at the unmoving body in front of him.
"If it makes you feel better his suit will repair his injuries in a matter of minutes. So hurry!” Matthias shouted.
The shuttle doors opened, and Griesen scrambled to his feet, sliding into the shuttle which rocketed them out of the atmosphere. It was his words that kept coming back to him – I’ll have to thank you friends for handling this so well… was Matthias somehow linked to Ithes? He shuddered at the thought. What ties did they have to each other?
The noise of the bullets ricocheting off the shuttle reverberated in Griesen's ears. They had been found. Tripe frantically manoeuvred the shuttle, fingers rapidly brushing over the touchscreens, his face a sheen of sweat. They couldn’t get off the ground fast enough; the shuttle rocked from the staccato stream of firearms continually echoing around them before it rose unsteadily, tipping them all forwards before it throttled to full speed ahead.
Griesen was thrown violently from one end of the shuttle to the other before collapsing onto the cold metal wall behind him.
Nobody spoke as the shuttle took on its hyperspeed, losing their foe.
A moment later, Matthias sat on the edge of his seat, suddenly clutching his fist and waving it into the air.
"Triumph!" he exclaimed. “Today is a day we celebrate progress!”
Tripe coughed loudly, as he sat upright. Griesen glanced at the man, whose face was caught in a grimace as he slowly unzipped his suit. Tripe reached inwards with his right hand, and withdrew his hand.
Griesen cringed at the sight of the blood. It covered his hand, spattering droplets in a darkening red and violet pool around them.
"Computer," Matthias barked, eyes narrowing at the sight of the injury. "Change course to get to the infirmary, Base 201. Stat!"
He glanced at Griesen briefly. "We have to make this stop. You've still got the cannister?"
Griesen nodded. Of course. He glanced at the 10-litre sack that had rolled into the corner next to the shuttle door. His future depended on the small container in that sack. He felt a glimmer of hope within him. He had made it this far - surviving now, even Ithes.
"Good. Your job until we reach our base again is to ensure its safety. I hate to reroute us, but - he might not make it otherwise."
"Of course," Griesen uttered. He felt his eyes close involuntarily as he replayed the conversation with Ithes in his head.
Moments later, he was woken again by Matthias shaking him. The shuttle was descending into the docking area, and an orange hue was flashing outside the windows.
"What's happening?" he asked groggily. Matthias stood up as the shuttle docked. His face looked grim as he bent over Tripe, gingerly helping him on top of the cot.
"The base has been placed under orange alert. I was just notified that th
e Acruvae radar was able to track us - they are heading this way. That leader of yours is going to rip apart Gaia to find us.”
Matthias laughed dryly at his own words.
“And…you’re not afraid?” Griesen asked him slowly.
“Should I be?” Matthias countered. “A good fight is always welcome. Fear is always an illusion. See this?” He unzipped his suit from his neck, revealing a long scar down to his mid-chest.
“He almost got me last time,” he whispered, his eyes narrowing. “But the fact is, he didn’t. And I look forward to returning the favor in kind to him. He deserves to know how it feels to be near death – as much as I have experienced it at his hands. That is a feeling you never forget.”
“Was that before you came down here?” Griesen asked.
“Before. But I had already made my decision about the Institute by then. I realized what they were.”
The shuttle doors were opening, and two medics rushed in with a flatbed.
Matthias helped them lift Tripe, now unconscious, onto the stretcher.
“Don’t lose him,” he barked at the medics. Put him in the healing chamber immediately.”
“Do all your men survive once they’re put in there?” Griesen asked, watching the medics run the stretcher towards the exit door.
Matthias lifted an eyebrow at him. “There is never a guarantee. Not even one are alike,” he said. “You ought to know that. Raised in an environment where everybody was taught the same thing, raised the same way, reciting from the same books… and yet, here you are. An outcast. A brilliant rebel. Your life is your own.”
His words singed, bringing Griesen back to the reminder of his current situation. Not long ago, he had been someone else entirely.
He held up the bag. “I want answers now. I’ve delivered to you what you wanted.”
Matthias eyed him carefully before taking a seat. “Fine. You get two questions.”
“Why two?” Griesen asked. He didn’t deserve just two questions for everything he’d just gone through.
“Two. Keep this simple, Griesen. The clock is ticking. Any more questions are a waste of my time, and yours.” Matthias leaned forwards slightly. “And you know how important time is on this little blue planet.”
Griesen had to agree with that. “Tell me what you plan to do with what we stole.”
Matthias sighed. “To this question. Fine. You deserve the answer, since you did work so hard for it.”
He paused a moment before he spoke.
“I’ve been wanting to take this piece away from them for a long time. They – your kind – you know how much you need it.”
Matthias paused, and Griesen’s thoughts spun. He remembered the vial. He’d never seen it captured in this form before. “This is blue energy. A chrysalis,” he whispered.
“Very good, very good you’re finally catching on,” Matthias said, nodding. “You’ve heard of the seven wonders of the world. There are energy centers here on Earth and those ‘wonders’ have nothing to do with the pyramids or any ridiculous man-made creations. Oh, the stories they love to tell each other…They all have to do with the energy emanating from these fragments of chrysalis. Only this fragment - was one of the largest self-generating energy sources that exist here on Gaia.”
He snapped his fingers. “Now - it is with us. Unfortunately now, Ithes will move to protect the rest further… I do not think we are bound to replicate our first success so easily.”
Griesen had no idea there were that many stored here on Earth. “You’re going to take them all down?” he whispered. “Is this your way of destroying the Institute?”
“Is this your second question?” Matthias challenged him.
Wait. No. Griesen closed his eyes for a moment. “Wait, no. My second question.” He waited a moment, debating between the two he had in his mind.
“Who is Nicholai? I wish to speak with him.”
Matthias looked at him, a silent challenge forming in his eyes. “Interesting choice. My friend, what makes you think I’m not he?”
Griesen shook his head. "An army sends out its generals, not the master.”
Matthias got up, sighing. “Very well. Since I am a generous man of my word… follow me.” He eyed Griesen once more before walking out the doors.
Griesen said nothing as he followed him through a cement maze. They went deeper and deeper underground, descending into darkness as the walls became narrower and the temperature colder.
Finally, Matthias stopped in front of one of the many metal doors. It was unmarked, as he knocked.
“Come in,” the voice inside said. The voice sounded familiar, oddly enough.
They pushed the door open, revealing none other than Mattie, sitting on a wooden bench, mending a green woman’s tunic. Griesen’s eyes widened; she was surrounded by shimmering lights that bathed her in a rainbow of color. The room was peaceful. He noticed that the lights were circling her, like slow-moving goldfish in a tank. Was it her that was putting on the light display? Could she, given she was human?
“Mother,” Matthias said, bowing down deeply to her.
Griesen noticed then, that he addressed her with a deep reverence in his voice. “I had a last request from him, and it was to see you.”
She looked up from her sewing as she smiled. “Very well. Thank you Matthias.”
Without further words, he turned and walked out the door, leaving them both.
“You’re…Nicholai?” Griesen uttered after a moment.
Mattie nodded, smiling slightly. “In a sense, yes. Nicholai is… my stage name, I suppose. For those yahoos upstairs, that’s what I call myself.”
Griesen shook his head in disbelief. “I – I don’t understand. Matthias told me why we did the job. I – what is your purpose here?”
She was quiet for a moment as she placed her needle down, holding up her garment for him to see.
“Pretty, isn’t it?” she asked him, showing him the front. Then she turned it around, and he saw the trails of golden thread woven in a flowing pattern down the back.
He nodded. It was interesting that she continued making female garments. She was still the only female he’d seen, so far, in this army of men.
“Is it for yourself?” he asked.
A dark shadow crossed Mattie’s lined face. She sighed, as she got up, folding the garment and slowly placing it onto the table beside her. “It is not. It is for another… she will be arriving soon.”
Arriving soon.
“How do you know?”
She moved over, patting the empty space next to her. “I know many things. Come. Sit.”
Griesen obliged, as he let the light waves slowly cast their waves over the both of them. They filled him with a sense of peace, the lights. As if he were freed from the burdens of his quest...
“To your first question. I am here because I didn’t have a choice. I was once you.” Mattie stated this slowly. “This was many, many Friels ago. I see you in me,” she said, staring at Griesen with a small smile on her face.
“I didn’t fit upstairs, if you know what I mean,” she said.
“Like me?” he said, but it came out more as a statement.
She nodded. “I began questioning too many things. I wasn’t happy with the answers from anybody. Not from Ithes, from Angol, from my teachers. It all became too much.