Wasteland: Rebirth, page 21
The sound of cannon fire disrupts my sleep. I look up and notice bright sunlight filtering in through the cracked glass of the distension. Hunter and Vier are waking those who have dozed off. Idris is talking to Lark and gesturing franticly for me get up. I grab my pack and weapon, call to Hunter and Vier, then make my over to Idris.
“The army has broken through the first barrier. I need as many troops on the surface as possible. Take the tunnel back that way,” he says, pointing behind him. “There’s a unit stationed at the top of the next ridge. The area is now the front lines, so be prepared. I’ll keep my unit down here to hold off any other soldiers that try to come through this way.”
My squad heads up north, pushing through the smoke, debris, and carnage. When we reach the surface, we see a number of aerial units battling each other. Some fall, landing in great explosions. Those still in the air are Tyrean, but the Sentries are holding them back with mortar fire from the ground. We move behind the front line, being directed by another squadron leader to head deeper into the city. When we reach the first row of buildings, the second perimeter falls. The army advances, overrunning the cannons and the Sentries. Most of the soldiers streaming towards us are Antaeans. Vier is the first to advance on them, firing as rapidly as he can. His aim is accurate, but he can’t handle them all. Hunter and Lark join him, both taking hits from Levin guns, but the uniforms are keeping them from getting hurt.
Two squadrons join us, flanking in from the right. I push my men to the back, spreading them out. Cruor Bursts fly over my head followed by Levin guns. The squadron counters with their modified ammunition, killing several Antaeans. Their deaths are horrible. Idris and his team emerge from the tunnel, running fast. Within seconds explosions erupt, collapsing the distension he had been in. If he had to evacuate the tunnel, I wonder what’s happened to Rove and his team.
“They started advancing quickly,” Idris says, coming up to me out of breath. “Loes has given the order to execute contingency plan eight. We have seven minutes to evacuate as many soldiers as we can.”
“Where will we evacuate to?”
“There’s a gas-powered tram on the other side of the city ready to take us to Ankar.”
“What about the other provinces?”
“They’ll be defended as best they can by the soldiers from Sentry Post Three, but they will probably fall. Ankar is the next important asset to Eretria. It has to be protected at all costs.”
I signal to those already at the back to follow Idris. Looking through the crowd at the front, I see Hunter dragging Lark beside him, her side badly singed. Vier is following, assisting another injured soldier. I grab Lark’s left side, where she’s injured, and gently place her arm around my shoulders. We try and hurry as time is running out. I take Lark from Hunter and place her over my shoulder. Vier transfers the injured man over to Hunter, who runs ahead towards the retreating Sentries.
I hear a loud noise, and a sharp pain spreads between my shoulder blades. I lose my balance, dropping Lark to the ground as I fall forward onto the cement. I turn over to see who shot me. Reider is bearing down on me, Grainne next to him. I shout for Vier as I struggle for my weapon. He fires a Levin gun he took off a dead Antaean, but Reider places a shield around him and Grainne, who looks pained by the action. I finally manage to grab my rifle and am aiming at Reider when I’m kicked in the head. Caderyn’s figure looms large over me. Reider shoots Vier with a Cruor Burst, dropping him. Hunter is too far ahead to know what’s happening, and I would prefer he continue to the evacuation point. At least one of us should make it out of here alive.
Lark moans next to me. She tries to pull herself into a sitting position, but Reider grabs her by the neck and shoves her face back into the cement. Caderyn approaches, gun aimed at my head.
“So nice to finally see you again, Braxton,” Caderyn says, walking around me. “I was hoping I would get to capture you.”
“This province…is…set to…explode,” Lark says, as she’s being choked.
“When?” Reider asks.
“Why should I tell you?” she replies.
“Because if you don’t,” Caderyn begins, “you’ll watch me blow Braxton’s head off right in front of you.” He taps my temple with his gun.
“Seven minutes,” she answers.
Caderyn turns to Reider. “Go find the detonation points and shut them down. Take her with you,” Caderyn says, nodding towards Lark.
Reider pulls Lark behind him, Grainne still clutched in his other hand, while he radios to someone as they run back to where they entered. Vier is still unconscious, so it’s just Caderyn and myself. I begin to stand, but Caderyn hits me in the head with his weapon. The blow knocks me to my knees. Blood flows freely from the wound and I feel slightly dizzy. My ribs crack as he kicks me continuously until I’m in a ball on the pavement.
“I’ve been looking forward to this for months,” Caderyn says, kicking me again. “The acquisition of Eretria would’ve been a lot sooner if it weren’t for you.”
“Vladim would’ve been happy with his revenge, if he was still alive. Why am I not surprised that you had him killed? That seems to be the only thing you’re good at.”
Colorful dots cloud my vision for a few seconds after Caderyn strikes me in the temple. My stomach churns from the blood loss. The pain in my chest increases with every breath I take. I push myself up onto my hands and knees, then move into a sitting position, leaning against the building inches from me, and bending my legs, resting my arm on the top of my knee.
“Get it over with, then,” I try to shout, but the pounding in my head won’t allow me to raise my voice.
“You’re willing to just give up?” he asks, sarcasm and annoyance dripping from his mouth. “That’s not the Braxton I know. What’s changed? Why not keep fighting?”
I have to force myself to look up at him. “You’ve killed my family, destroyed them.”
“You come from a Hatchery, Braxton. You have no family.”
“Trea and Grainne were my life…they were my family and you murdered them, changed them into monsters. I don’t want to live in a world where they don’t exist. So go ahead, Caderyn, kill me.”
Caderyn raises his gun, barrel pressed against my forehead. I close my eyes, but the flash isn’t blue, it’s red. The air around me is still and cold.
Chapter 18
Trea
It’s almost midnight when we set down a few miles north of Brampton. The fighting isn’t as heavy here as it is along the southern edge. Fia gave me a Sentry uniform, but I haven’t changed into it. I’m still debating whether I want to or not. It’ll allow me to blend in with the others, but it looks too confining for me to be able to move freely in it. I compromise and put on just the jacket.
Our squadron leader received a communication from Loes, the woman in charge of a secondary outpost that she’s advanced another unit through the distensions in the south. I have no idea what those are, so I ask, and learn they’re the housing units for the citizens of Brampton. This means we don’t need to move as quickly as earlier advised. We spend the night slowly making our way towards the city itself, coming across small pockets of Tyrean soldiers, but very few Antaeans. I’m curious about the ammunition the Sentries are using, as it isn’t their standard bullet. Instead it’s a disk that penetrates the body, wrapping it in an electrical field, and then burning it from the inside out. I ask the squadron leader about it, and he tells me the weapon is a combination of Sirain’s Quantum mortar and a propellant round.
“Who came up with it?” I ask, removing a rifle from a dead Tyrean soldier.
“Rove and Hunter. Its main purpose is to kill the Antaeans, but with the modified weaponry the army is using, we’ve had to use them on everyone we come across.” When he notices the puzzled look on my face, he removes the rifle from my hands, unclips the magazine, and removes several cartridges containing a red substance. “They have blue and green ones also.” He reinserts the clip, hands the weapon back to me, and I sling it over my shoulder.
I recognize the red as being Cruor, which means the blue is more than likely Quantum. “What are the green ones?”
“It’s an old world weapon. One that hasn’t been seen in well over a century or two. It’s radioactive material that used to be in nuclear weapons. I can’t figure out how the Tyrean army got their hands on it, but Eretria eliminated the substance from our inventory a long time ago. Someone had to have given it to them.”
Lark.
We secure the northern border just after sunrise. An hour later, we get word that the perimeter in the southern section has collapsed. Our advance is accelerated. We manage to reach the outskirts of the city just as the primary defenses fall. The majority of the soldiers pouring through the breach are Antaeans. I take a group and head east, hoping to cut them off. I’m not familiar with the layout, so I follow a few steps behind the Sentries. We go two blocks then cut south down an alley. We’re crossing a main street when I see Vier lying unconscious on the ground. I stop and notice Braxton sitting a few meters away, Caderyn pressing the barrel of a Levin gun into his forehead.
I run as fast as I can, firing several shots from the Cruor rifle at Caderyn. I don’t stop until he’s motionless. I sling the gun back around my shoulder as I bend down in front of Braxton, looking at a wound on the side of his head. I apply pressure, trying to stem the flow of blood.
“You all right?” I ask.
His eyes fly open at the sound of my voice. He grabs my throat, lifting me off the ground as he stands, squeezing until my larynx is closed and I can’t breathe. “You’re supposed to be dead,” he says, anger heavy in his voice. “I saw you die and it broke me, until I learned the truth about your betrayal, then I was happy you were dead.”
I claw at his fingers, trying to loosen his grip.
“So much pain you’ve caused, and not just to me. I promise to make Grainne’s death quick. I don’t want her to suffer.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Vier watching, who’s slow to respond. Perhaps he’s too dazed for what is happening to register. It finally clicks in his mind and he charges at Braxton, knocking us both to the ground. I cough violently, trying to get air back into my body as I roll away. Braxton punches Vier, shoving him aside. Just as the dizziness begins to subside from the lack of oxygen, Braxton pins me down again, and points a gun at my head.
“What happened to you?” I shout at him.
“I had my eyes opened, Andred.”
Andred? Oh shit, he still thinks I’m her.
“I’ve been going about this blindly, following my heart and not my head. I should’ve known that Antaeans can’t be trusted…none of them.” He turns and fires at Vier.
I shout in vain for him to stop as the disk cuts through Vier’s uniform, enveloping him in a blue ball. His screams fill the air. They intensify when he begins to burn. I close my eyes, not wanting to see his horrible end. Tears are running down Braxton’s face when he turns back to me. I’m too stunned to shed any.
Is this how he’s felt since the beginning? Since we first met? Does he really hate the Antaeans? Has his feelings for me just been all a lie? He’s acting just like Vladim, and Artemis, and Caderyn…he deceives to get what he wants.
He presses his weapon back into my forehead, finger on the trigger. The ground beneath us shakes slightly as something is detonated to the north. A large plume of smoke, fire, and debris shoot skyward. I use the distraction as an opportunity to try and reach the Levin gun I have in my waistband behind my back. I retrieve it and fire at close range, hitting him in the shoulder. It’s enough to knock him off me, but the majority of the energy is absorbed into his uniform.
I get to my feet and sprint deeper into the city, trying to put as much distance between us as possible. I run through a crowd of retreating Tyrean soldiers as they head south, away from a second explosion that is closer, but still in the northern section. Sentries are chasing them down, firing even as small bits of rubble rain down. I take a moment and glance behind me. Braxton is far behind, but he’s not slowing down. I turn a corner, trying to get out of his line of sight. I get a few blocks and am met by Reider and Lark. Grainne is struggling in Lark’s grasp.
“Trea!” Grainne shouts, kicking fervently at Lark’s legs.
“Why’d you do it, Lark?” I ask. “You lived in a peaceful society, why go to such lengths to help destroy it?”
“I was hoping to do my father proud.”
The truth finally dawns on me. “Vladim is your father?”
“He was my father, yes. I was much more willing to follow in his path than my older brother. Artemis was weak, always has been. His mother wanted to him to replace Vladim as ruler. After he had her killed, he found my mother, a woman just as committed to ending Eretria as he was.”
“How is that possible?”
“My father sent my mother to live here in Eretria shortly after I was born. We lived far enough away that when he spoke to me, no one picked up the transmissions. When I got older, my mother slipped me into Rye, where I grew up. I never stayed out of contact with Vladim. I’ve been helping him for years.”
“Where is Artemis?” I ask.
“With his mother.”
Lark lets go of Grainne, who races towards me. Reider lifts a modified rifle, aiming in our direction. I don’t know what type of ammunition he has, but it won’t be Quantum since Grainne can repel it. I dive at her, wrapping my arms around her waist, pulling her into me, and putting my back towards Reider. He fires as my shield goes up. The blast is both deafening and destructive, but it doesn’t affect Grainne or myself.
The cartridge fired is nuclear. The Quantum neutralizes most of it, but an explosion still erupts around us. My shield dissipates, and we can finally see the destruction. Lark and Reider lay yards away, partially buried amongst cement, glass, and metal from several collapsed buildings. I let go of Grainne and head over to the destruction, checking to see if they’re dead. Lark is almost cut completely in half by a piece of glass. Reider is moaning as his wounds heal. I pull the rifle off my shoulder, slide a cartridge into the chamber, and aim at Reider’s head.
“Go ahead,” he says, smiling. “You’ll be dead in a matter of moments also.”
“I don’t care.” I fire three rounds of the Cruor into his face.
Grainne is standing next to me when I place the rifle back over my shoulder. I didn’t even hear her approach. We feel another explosion, this one from the west. I remember the squadron leader telling us that there is an evacuation point on the far east side of the city. I take Grainne’s hand and head towards the other end of the alley since we’ll need to get to one of the main roads.
Braxton is waiting for us.
I stop in my tracks, almost causing Grainne to fall. She smiles, lets go of my hand, and runs towards Braxton. He lifts is weapon, aiming it at her. My heart stops…time stops, but only for a mere second. I can see it all play out in front of me. If Braxton fires, Grainne will die. She needs to live. No matter what happens to me, she has to live.
But I do the unthinkable instead.
The round I fire from my rifle hits Grainne right in the back. She crumples to the ground, not moving, but it’s not a fatal shot. I just wanted to get her out of the line of fire. Braxton changes his target to me. We both shoot at the same time. The disk slices the side of my arm as I try to dive out of the way. The metal that is still intact disintegrates when it makes contact with the Quantum Stream. I hit the cement, scraping my hands. Braxton screams when the Cruor Burst hits. His uniform absorbs some of the weapons effect, but not all. He will have burns on his shoulder, but he’ll heal. I just don’t have the heart to kill him. I still love him and always will, but the pain is too much, and I tell myself this must be the last time I see him.
I pick Grainne up, cradling her in my arms as more explosions ignite to the west. I exit the alley and head east. There are only a few of us left making our way to the tram that will take us away from all of this. An extremely tall man approaches me, a concerned look on his face.
“What happened to Grainne?” he asks, blocking my path.
“She got injured.”
He looks at me, hard lines creasing his face. “You’re Andred.”
“Not anymore.”
He smiles and takes me by surprise with a hug, though I’m still holding Grainne.
“Where’s Braxton?”
“He’s back there.” I nod my head in the direction we came from.
The man runs off hurriedly as another set of explosions is seen from the south. Grainne is taken from me when we reach the tram. She’s passed down to the medics who are treating other wounded. I climb aboard and follow her. They let me hold her in my lap on the tram floor. They apply a cooling cloth to her head. She begins to rouse a few minutes later, dazed and not sure of where she is. She wraps her arms around my neck, crying softly into my shoulder.
The tram jerks, then begins to move as the rest of Brampton’s buildings fall. The tall man, who Grainne introduces as Hunter, has managed to drag Braxton on board. The medics strip him of the uniform and begin applying an ointment to his burns. Grainne wants to stay with him, but I tell her he needs his rest. We make our way towards the front of the tram and watch the scenery pass by.
It takes us an hour to get to Ankar, the main city of Eretria. The wounded are immediately transported to the main hospital. Braxton is among them. Hunter escorts Grainne and myself to a residential tower next to an administration building. We’re given a suite on the top floor. I’m so tired and filthy, I don’t know what to do first. Grainne collapses on the couch in the front room, falling asleep immediately. I go into the larger of the two bedrooms, step into the bathroom, and take a long hot shower. I spend most of the time, however, curled up in a ball on the tile floor, crying.
I’m dismayed at what’s happened, how Braxton reacted to me, and what will happen to Grainne and me. Will we be kept here in Eretria? Returned to Sirain? Will we be left free to live our lives, or kept as prisoners? I turn off the water, wrap a towel around myself, and crawl under the covers, trying to shut the world out for a little longer.
