• • •
After breakfast together, Christina called a meeting with Gibbs, René, Gabrjel and Professor Friedmann in the main lobby.
‘I think the first thing we should do is scavenge and collect all the weapons and ammo left around the place and then assemble here. I noticed that Markus left a truck in good working order behind one of the buildings near here, so we can use that,‘ René said.
‘I agree, the two trucks out front are a little shot up even though the engines are probably fine,’ Gibbs said.
‘Professor, you mentioned that you have contacts at Hamburg University?’
‘We have been in contact with Professor Matthias Dresdner, who is their head physicist. Aleksy had originally made contact with the Hamburg warlord, and he seemed keen for us to develop the energy there, but this got overruled by the GGC,’ the professor said.
‘The plan should be for us to get you to that lab together with this Professor Dresdner so you can develop the technology further, which if Gibbs has explained to me correctly, will mean a great deal to everyone left on this planet,’ Christina said.
‘It will revolutionise the way we live,’ the professor said.
‘Then I think it is best that we all stay in Hamburg for a while to protect the valuable work you and your team will be doing, Professor,’ she said.
‘Then what, Vargen?’ Gibbs said.
‘There are plans for the future, and all will be revealed when we get to Hamburg. How soon before we can leave?’
‘We need about an hour to scavenge and then another hour to load up, so I reckon by eleven a.m. we should be ready,’ Gibbs said.
• • •
A convoy of five trucks made their way west towards Hamburg. Gibbs was driving the second truck with Christina sitting next to him. They chatted about the events of the past few days and discussed the impacts of fusion engines in future.
Christina’s satphone rang, and Gibbs listened intently as she replayed the events of the past few hours to her contact.
‘Are you sure about that? Okay, I will let Gibbs know,’ she said before she hung up. She threw the handset down on the seat beside her in disgust.
‘Trouble in Vargen land?’ Gibbs asked.
‘That damn cockroach has been ordered back to Berlin to assemble more GGC troops, with specific orders of either securing the professor and his work or making sure none of it survives. The GGC ops room has been informed by Markus that you refused to surrender. It’s been assumed that you are working for the resistance and know the identity of Vargen. You are wanted alive if it’s any consolation,’ she said.
‘His number is up for sure. The next time we meet, he dies,’ he said, and let out a laugh.
‘What’s so funny?’ she asked.
‘I don’t think Christina would’ve approved of me moving on so quickly with another woman,’ he replied, flinching as she punched his arm.
The phone rang again, and she sat listening intently. ‘Well, there is good news and bad news,’ she said after hanging up.
‘Bad news first, please,’ Gibbs said.
‘My source has confirmed that major GGC forces are being assembled in London, Paris and Berlin, under the direct order of the Phoenix Council.’
‘What the hell are they up to?’
‘Well, that’s the good news. It seems that some of the warlords are unhappy and disgruntled with the GGC ideas of a feudalist society. We’ve leaked the news to them of the discovery in Poland, and now there are rumours of rebellion. It seems the Council has decided to crush these rumours and take control of their provinces before the rebellion even starts. Jörg Baier, our friendly Hamburg warlord, is apparently top of their list.’
‘He could be a really valuable ally,’ Gibbs said.
‘True. It will, however, mean that he will be targeted first. Get on the radio and get everyone to put their foot down.’
• • •
The trucks rolled up to an old industrial estate on the outskirts of Hamburg. The corrugated iron clad warehouses that surrounded their meeting point were all in a state of urban decay, with metal sheets missing and flowering weeds pushing through the cracks of the concrete aprons in the front of the buildings. Most of the old businesses had once served the successful motor vehicle industry.
They didn’t have to wait long for their welcome party of two white Land Rover Defenders to appear. Each vehicle had men standing behind roof-mounted machine guns. They drove in at pace and skidded to a stop. With surly and curt hand gestures, they indicated to Gibbs and his convoy to follow them through the city.
The picturesque streets of Hamburg, with its painted, multi-storeyed buildings, were lined with people and street vendors. Gibbs and Christina soon realised that this was without a doubt the most densely populated city they had seen to date. Farmers and traders were haggling in the streets over prices of vegetables, livestock and other relics of the twentieth century. Many stopped and stared as the trucks were led through the town over a large bridge, and then up to a big glass-fronted building alongside the river.
Gibbs jumped down into the mud-covered road and walked to the river wall to look at the torrent of low-tide water hurtling past. They were in the Hamburg Floodzone.
‘In a few hours this area will be flooded, so I don’t think we should hang around here for too long,’ he said to Christina.
‘I thought we would have met on higher ground,’ she said, looking around.
One of the men who had guided them into the city whistled to them to follow, and they walked up the stairs of the university’s modern glass and concrete building. On either side of the building entrance were big steel gates that served as retractable floodgates.
‘Welcome, Vargen,’ a well-groomed man in a brown suit said, with a slight Germanic accent.
‘Warlord Jörg Baier, I presume. It is good to finally meet in person,’ Christina said, shaking his hand. ‘This is Kyle Gibbs.’
Gibbs nodded at the man in front of him as they held one another’s gaze for a second.
‘Captain Gibbs, your reputation precedes you. There are people out there who would trade a lot for you,’ he said. ‘You must have caused the GGC much anguish.’
‘I try my best,’ Gibbs replied.
‘Jörg, are you fully aware of the GGC’s current plans?’ Christina said.
‘I’ve just had a call from our mutual friend, who has informed me of the situation. I’ve been in touch with a few other warlords who I regularly trade with, and they’re not happy with the current state of affairs,’ he replied.
‘Shall we go somewhere more private to discuss a potential plan of action?’ Christina said.
‘Of course. I will have my men assist your men to get the professor and his team inside and place them in the capable hands of Professor Dresdner,’ he said, issuing a few quick orders in German to his assistant.
He led Christina and Gibbs up a large staircase and then up to the top floor to his office. Once inside, he walked passed a large metal and glass desk and stood in front of a large map of Hamburg that hung on the wall.
‘The area that is marked in blue is the Floodzone, and as you can see we are right in the middle of it. We have great flood defences on many of our major buildings, and thus can function fairly normally at high tide.’
‘Many cities could learn a thing or two from you guys. You should share your ideas with them,’ Gibbs said. Jörg nodded and smiled.
‘Okay, as I see it, we have two problems at the moment. Firstly protecting the professor’s team and their research, and secondly, the pending move by the GGC to take over key cities for themselves and the implications of that,’ Christina said, turning away from the map.
‘The professor indicated that he could continue his tests and research here with Professor Dresdner as the facilities will allow them to conclude their research. We have fought off Markus before and can do it again,’ Gibbs said.
‘Most of the warlords I’ve spoken to have said that the
y would be prepared to defy the GGC and thus instigate a type of cross-border civil war. This might force the GGC into battle on many fronts,’ Jörg said.
‘They have the manpower and the reach to make it very difficult for us to fight them. They could take their time and knock the cities over one at a time. No one will leave their city unguarded while they go to the aid of another warlord. I think we have to take the fight to the GGC in London, you know, cut the head off the proverbial phoenix, and watch the rest collapse,’ Gibbs said.
‘But if we are all protecting our cities, how do we strike in London?’ Jörg asked.
‘We get the warlords of the cities that the GGC is not interested in to help us out,’ Christina said.
‘Which cities are you suggesting?’ Gibbs asked.
‘My source and I have been speaking to the warlords in Old Scotland, Wales and throughout England and they could be persuaded if the deal was right,’ she said.
‘Yes, I have also spoken to the Scottish warlords, and they are open to discussions,’ Jörg said.
‘I’m not a hundred percent sure about this strategy,’ Gibbs said. ‘The GGC seem to value the outcome of the professor’s work more than anything. I suspect they will strike very soon, and the first city will be Hamburg.’
‘Something you will both not be aware of is that we’ve been amassing an army of men in Southampton and can mobilise them to move towards London, at short notice,’ she said.
‘And maybe if I head across to Scotland we could get their men moving south,’ Gibbs suggested.
‘That would leave me defending the professor here in Hamburg. I might need your men, Vargen, to counteract Markus,’ Jörg said.
‘That’s not necessarily the case,’ Gibbs said. ‘If we let slip to the GGC and especially Markus, that my team and I have smuggled the professor and his documents out of here, to say, Scotland, he will follow.’
‘He hates you enough to take the bait,’ Christina said. ‘In the meantime, the professor can carry on here under the warlord’s protection.’
‘In that case, I’d better get going as I need to get to Edinburgh to get agreement from them before you get to Southampton,’ Gibbs said.
‘I’ll contact the warlords of Scotland ahead of your visit, which may help you get an army together,’ Jörg said, checking his watch. ‘The next full tide surge is in three hours. I will arrange a fast speedboat to take you up the River Elbe to Cuxhaven.’
‘We have a resistance team leader up there that will be able to help to get you across to Edinburgh,’ Christina said.
‘Now we need Markus to take the bait,’ Gibbs said.
Chapter 52
Hamburg, Germany - 2028
The afternoon sun warmed their backs as Gibbs, and his men loaded their kit into the brown motorised launch. She was sleek with a dark wood finish and meticulously maintained. Smithy, being a mechanical engineer in a previous life, gave the engine a once-over before the journey.
‘She’s in really good shape, boss,’ he said.
‘Good. We don’t want Markus to catch up to us too soon and find that the professor isn’t with us,’ Gibbs said.
The tidal surge was pushing in fast, and they hurried to make the high tide that would take them out to the old Elbe River. Gibbs climbed back onto the makeshift jetty and looked backed at Christina as she stood watching them. She looked so beautiful and strong in her camouflaged army fatigues with her jet-black hair and realised he wasn’t looking forward to saying goodbye again. As he got closer, he could see that she had tears in her eyes, which was all it took for him to grab and hold her tightly.
‘You’re not going to do anything daft, like disappearing again, are you?’ he said.
She laughed. ‘No, never again. Gibbs. Please take care, especially when it comes to Markus.’
‘I will stay out of his reach for as long as I can,’ Gibbs said, squeezing her tight.
When he broke away, she said. ‘I love you, Gibbs.’
Without thinking, he replied. ‘And I you, kitten.’
He jumped in the boat without looking back, Killey slamming down the throttle as they sped away.
‘‘It’s always nice once the L-word is out of the way, isn’t it, boss?’ Killey said with a grin.
‘Shut up, you arse,’
The launch sped out towards the sea on the now heavily flooded river, passing all manner of abandoned buildings. There were countless submerged gas storage facilities, now home to many of the city’s Floodlanders. These people could be found in most cities around the world and sadly, were sometimes deemed to be a sub-human species by the GGC and the warlords.
Gibbs respected them for their sheer tenacious spirit as they scurried around the waste of the twentieth century, supporting an underworld that few dared to venture into.
Once they cleared the city limits, the landscape changed once again to vast green farmlands with hundreds of people tending the warlord’s crops and livestock. Large sailing boats were all over the river, casting nets into the muddy water, trying to catch any source of protein that was still available.
• • •
The large launch pulled up to the Hamburg warlord’s offices. A tall blond man jumped out and walked up the gangway where he was met by two armed soldiers in GGC uniforms, who saluted him sharply. He saluted back and grunted as he walked over to a small, seemingly insignificant man waiting for him. The man smiled, sticking his hand out in greeting.
Markus slapped away the hand of Jörg’s assistant. ‘Where the hell is Jörg hiding?’
‘Welcome, Captain. Warlord Baier is currently out of the city visiting his trading outposts,’ the man replied.
Markus’s phone rang, and he stood glaring at the warlord’s assistant, taking what was being said on the phone. ‘I understand, Grand Founder.’
Markus ended the call and took a step closer to the assistant, a grin appearing on his face.
‘Make sure my boat is refuelled, and my men are given food. What time did Captain Gibbs leave?’ Markus asked.
‘I am not exactly sure,’ he started to reply, but Markus cut him off, taking a step forward and slapping him across the face with such force that he fell to the ground, his spectacles flying across the marble floor.
‘I’ll ask you one more time, what time did Gibbs and the professor leave Hamburg?’ Markus said, unclipping his Glock from its holster.
‘About two hours ago, Captain. They are heading to Cuxhaven, I think. That is all I know,’ the terrified man said, cowering on the ground.
‘You have fifteen minutes to refuel the boat and load the supplies. Make it happen, and I may just let you and your treacherous warlord live,’ he said and walked off.
• • •
Shredder nudged a dozing Gibbs and pointed across to the shoreline. ‘We have left the River Elbe, boss.’
Gibbs opened his eyes to hundreds of squatter shacks, wooden buildings and old houses up on a small hill and as they raced on, the harbour of Cuxhaven finally came into view.
A few hundred yards further along they spotted someone on a metal jetty, signalling them with a flashlight. Killey turned the launch sharply, and they headed straight towards the lone figure. As they approached, they saw another bright light being flashed at them, this time from inside a large flooded warehouse. They slowly cruised inside and up to a wooden jetty. A loud grating noise behind them made them jump and turn to see the large metal warehouse doors close, juddering on metal runners as they pushed through the water to seal the boat inside.
‘On your guard, men,’ Gibbs said. A lone figure dressed in yellow fishermen’s overalls walked over to them and grunted something in German.
‘Does that mean he wants us to follow him?’ Killey asked.
‘Where the fuck is Markus when you need him?’ Shredder said.
They followed the tall man out of the warehouse and along a thin narrow stone path between two rows of fishing huts, veering left to three steps that led up to a large weather-beaten w
ooden hut. The man wiped his feet and walked through the door. The team followed, entering a room with a large table and mismatched chairs in the centre of it. On the right was a big sideboard with kitchen utensils laid out on it. In the corner was a wood-burning stove, giving warmth to the hut with a pine needle aroma. As they were about to sit, a tall woman walked in.
‘Mr Gibbs,’ she said with a broad German accent. ‘I am Milena. I’ve just spoken to Vargen and was asked to inform you that the Edinburgh warlord has sent a fishing trawler to meet you at the halfway point. I suggest you take one of the fast sailboats because the boat you have now does not have the range required. Under sail, you will get further and still have an engine should you need it.’
‘That sounds fine, thank you, Milena,’ Gibbs said. How will they find us?
The buxom woman handed a bag over to him, which contained a transponder and radio. ‘When you are more than eight nautical miles out to sea, you can turn the transponder on. They will track you.’
‘Okay, thank you. We’ll get going,’ Gibbs said.
‘No, you must wait. My men along the Elbe River have radioed to say there is a large GGC motorboat following you. They should pass here in an hour. Once they have passed, you must be ready to leave quickly,’ she said.
• • •
René stirred in the front of the truck and looked out at the empty road in front of him. Faded white lines flicked under the truck as Christina steered to the left avoid a large hole.
‘Welcome back, René,’ she smiled.
‘How long have I been asleep?’
‘Over four hours,’ she said looking at her watch. ‘It has been a hectic couple of days for everyone.’
‘Tell me about it. Where are we?’
‘Just about to head into Bruges. We crossed the border an hour ago.’
‘Wow, I have slept for quite a while. I wanted to see the town of Essen. My mother’s family hailed from there.’
‘Sorry, you should have said something.’
The Journey of Kyle Gibbs Box Set Page 52
