Departure

by Ken Barrett

  “You can hold them off though, right?” Becky asked.

  “We’re doing the best we can sweet-cakes. The problem is that the batteries for our lasers are runnin’ low. I think the savages are just waitin’ for us to go dry; when that happens, we won’t have nothin’ but harsh language left to slow ‘em down. Best you and your man find a safe place to hide and hope for the best.” The man pointed to the east. “This is my street. I hope you two find what you need and stay safe.”

  *****

  They hurried past the once majestic People’s City Council Building that riots had reduced to a burned-out shell. It looked as if the roof had partially collapsed, and through the shattered entrance he saw that the once magnificent lobby was dark and filled with rubble. The statue of Samuel, Mother’s deceased husband, had been sprayed with railgun fire and was left in nearly unrecognizable chunks that were scattered across the wide cement square in front of the building.

  Farther south, the Last Lantern was abandoned, he recalled meeting Carolyn there, and the hours of music he had enjoyed with his friends. His memories of the pub were a mixture of sadness and joy, but he forced his mind away from such thoughts so to not be distracted by the past. Minutes later, the tall concrete walls that surrounded the motor-pool came into view. “How can we get in?” he asked.

  “I know a way, follow me,” Becky said as she steered him onto a side street heading west. “We have to climb down and wade through the Monument River.”

  “Does the river go under the city wall? Can we get outside that way?”

  “There’s no way out; believe me, we checked.”

  The concrete troth that the ancients had built to contain the river had deteriorated into stony gravel through decades of neglect. Liam’s feet slipped out from beneath him on the way down, and he slid all the way into the slow-moving water. Becky joined him a moment later, and they waded into a culvert that crept under the street. A little further along they passed through a section of widely spaced rebar and at last entered the motor-pool compound. The river then fell straight downward through a thick steel grate; rubble had collected there, slowing the flow of the river and creating a deep and startlingly cold pond.

  After slogging through the chilled waist deep water, they climbed over a series of large rocks and started up a slope that led to the rear of a steel storage shed. Angry shouts came from what was probably an open area beyond the structure. “What’s going on up there?” he whispered.

  “I don’t know. Ron said that he’d meet us around the side of this building.” Becky quickened her pace and he had to struggle to keep up. She got to the top of the incline before he did, then hurriedly crawled around the south side of the tan metal structure.

  He was in no shape for any of this and questioned the wisdom of following Becky in the first place. What had he been thinking? He wasn’t a soldier or any kind of hero, and had no business participating in an escape plan. Finally at the top, he followed Becky on his hands and knees, then cautiously peeked around the corner of the shed.

  Becky lay on the ground further along the side of the building. “No, this can’t be happening,” she whispered urgently.

  “What?” he asked as he crawled up beside her.

  “They’ve got Ron.” She crept forward to get a better view.

  On the far side of a wide tarmac lot, Ron stood with his back against another metal structure with at least two dozen angry men and women surrounding him. “Listen to me,” he pleaded. “There’s the truck. You can take it and go south to Santa Fe. It’s safe there. Please, just let me go.”

  The truck was a small vehicle with a narrow cab that would only seat two people and a short bed that might carry a few more. It certainly wasn’t large enough to take everyone that was arguing over it.

  A shabby man wearing the tattered remains of an old army uniform menacingly stared at Ron, who was cowering with his back against the building. “That truck ain’t gonna do us no fuckin’ good, the savages will pick us off before we get two klicks down the road.”

  “No, we can do this,” Ron pleaded. “The Tribes are camped to the north and east, so they won’t see us leave. We can drive south all the way to Santa Fe; it’ll be safe there.”

  “Wait, hold on now.” Another man in their group said while glaring at their prisoner. “I know you. You’re Ron Castro; yeah, you were one of them little pricks that worked at the university in Flatiron. That’s who you are right?” The large man was dressed in standard gray civilian clothes, but they were torn, dirty, and speckled with blood; he held a mini-railgun.

  Ron nodded quickly as an uncertain smile spread across his face. “Yes, that’s me.”

  “Yeah. Thought so. You were the one who opened the city gates and let them fuckers in.” The stout looking man stepped forward threateningly. “You’re a fuckin’ traitor; no, worse than that. You’re a murderer; killed thousands you did. My wife Nell and son Jeffie died because of you.”

  Ron’s eyes widened an instant before the punch landed. His head slammed with a loud bang into the sheet-metal wall behind him and he collapsed to the ground. Blood from his splattered nose and broken teeth dripped from his chin onto his gray Socialist shirt, painting it a brilliant crimson. He looked up at his attacker beseechingly. “You can have the truck, just please, let me go.”

  “Oh, we’re gonna take your truck all right,” the civilian said. “And I’ll let you go just as soon as my Nell and Jeffie come back to me.” The man paused to pretend to look around. “But I don’t see ‘em, do you?”

  “Ron,” Becky leaned forward as if she were about to run out to save her brother, then an instant later she pushed herself backward. She oscillated, forward and back, whispering, “Ron… no, please no.”

  Liam laid his arm over her back. “You can’t save him, if you try they’ll kill you too.”

  “Ron,” she whispered as her body twitched and convulsed.

  “Close your eyes Becky,” he suggested.

  “I have to save him,” she said, but made no move to do so.

  “Don’t, because you can’t.”

  “I know.” She buried her head in her arms and shuttered as she began to quietly weep.

  Liam watched as the big civilian grabbed Ron’s feet and dragged him away from the building. The man then took a step back then drove the toe of his boot into Ron’s ribs. Others quickly joined in, and the beating escalated. Ron probably died long before the kicking ended. Liam felt no joy from the death of the traitor who had caused everyone so much pain and misery; his heart was empty, it was as if his humanity had evaporated leaving only a thinking machine behind.

  In the meantime, another group of men and women had surrounded the small truck and were trying to coax the vehicle to life. It didn’t sound promising though, the electric motor whirred slowly, but didn’t have enough power to move the vehicle. The battery was dead, or nearly so, and since the lasers atop the city wall were also running dry, there probably was no way to recharge the truck. No one was going anywhere.

  With Ron’s battered body forgotten, the group began to coalesce around the small vehicle. “Let’s get this fucker started and get outta here,” the man wearing the tattered army uniform said.

  “You’re late to the party,” a tall woman with frizzed out blonde hair replied. “This truck is ours.”

  “Well, fuck you bitch,” Ron’s killer replied, and opened fire with his railgun. The blast of ultra-high-speed tungsten tore the woman in half and severed the legs of a man standing behind her. The attacker was then hit immediately by a blast from an L-80 laser rifle which vaporized his upper body.

  In the chaos that followed, blood flew and body parts evaporated as rail and laser fire were exchanged at close range. The combatants ran to take cover as best they could, but most were cut down. It was a free-for-all with no clear sides. Railgun fire tore into the truck and cut it cleanly in two, and yet, even with their objective destroyed, the fight for it continued.

  “Let’s get outta he
re.” Liam gently pulled Becky away from the grisly spectacle. They crept on their bellies back behind the old building that had concealed them, then quietly climbed down the jumble of rocks and fled into the river.

  *****

  He knocked on the computer lab door. “Rose, it’s me and Becky.” He kept his voice low, worried that he might be overheard.

  “Liam?” His sister’s voice asked from the other side of the door. “We thought you were going to escape.”

  “It didn’t work out,” he replied quietly. “The hallway’s clear, let us in.” The security latches clattered and a moment later the door was flung open and they both were quickly pulled inside.

  After the door was secured, Rose and Lisa stepped back and looked at them worriedly. “You guys are a wet muddy mess,” Rose said. “What happened?”

  “Ron was killed by a bunch of Flatiron refugees,” he replied. “The truck’s battery was dead anyway, which is probably why it was left behind.”

  “They murdered my brother; they kicked him until he died,” Becky whispered as fresh tears wandered down her cheeks. “Then they fought over the truck and blew it up, so nobody got it in the end.” She wiped her tears away and shook her head angrily. “And they call the ones outside the wall savages, it ought to be the other way around. You know, all the invaders have to do is wait, because everyone in the city will fight and kill each other in the end. We’ll do their work for them.”

  “That’s probably true,” Liam admitted. “Which is why we need to hide here and hope that we’re not noticed until the Tribal Army finally decides to invade.”

  “So, we’re stuck here,” Becky said. “And if our own citizens don’t kill us, the invaders probably will when they finally knock down the gates.”

  They were silent for a long moment, and Liam noticed that Suzy and Sally were standing behind their mother, listening in on their conversation. The little girl’s eyes were wide and their faces were blanched with fear. “It’s ok kids,” he said. “We have a friend that’s outside with the army, and he knows where we are. He’ll come for us and we’ll be fine.”

  The children still looked fearful, but Rose went and joined their mother who was giving them hugs. “My brother’s right,” she said. “We’ll be just fine. Now why don’t you both chat with Lucy while we go outside and make plans.”

  “You won’t leave us, will you?” Sally asked. “Not like Daddy did. He just went away one day and didn’t come back.”

  “Oh no, we’ll never do that. Not ever.” Rose promised. “We’re all safe as long as we stay together.”

  Chapter 22: Surrender

  Liam sat out on the balcony under an oppressive hard white sky and worried. The wall was still manned by a few soldiers and civilians, and that was keeping the invaders at bay, but the electric hum of laser fire had all but ceased. With the shortage of charged batteries to fire their weapons, the city’s defenses couldn’t be maintained for much longer.

  Within the walls, the city was on the verge of falling into violent anarchy. From the vantage point of the terrace, he had seen warring factions fighting for control of various neighborhoods and battle over the rapidly diminishing supplies of food and water. How long could the internal conflict continue before there was nothing left to fight over? Maybe that was the strategy of the besieging army; why waste resources exterminating an enemy that was suicidal? All they needed to do was wait, and Pike City would implode of its own accord.

  For now though, the city was quiet. The fighting that had erupted at the motor-pool the day before appeared to have ended. Smoke still lingered in the thick humid air to the south, but the area was silent.

  He hadn’t seen much of Becky since they’d returned. She hadn’t eaten dinner with the rest of them, and had instead wrapped herself in a blanket in the old break room and had fallen asleep on a cot. Without a doubt she was having a hard time dealing with her brother’s death, and probably her own inaction as well. If he were in her place, and it had been Rose that was in danger, he would have interceded even if death for them both was the most likely result. It would be better to die together than to live alone without her.

  Ron was different though; his betrayal of their city had led to the deaths of thousands. From a city of 10,000, only 1,500 had survived. Old people, children, and entire families had been extinguished. Flatiron City had been the last island of freedom and enlightenment left on Earth and now it was gone, entirely due to Ron’s treachery. So, try as he might, he had trouble feeling any sort of compassion or regret over the death of a betrayer and a mass murderer.

  Becky was another matter though. She had no hand in her brother’s actions, and even said that she hated him for what he had done. It must be hard though, weighing the bond of their childhood together against what her brother had become. She hadn’t rushed out to try and save him, and the fear and indecision that spurred that choice was probably tormenting her.

  He shook his head to clear his mind and focus on their more immediate problems. Their oasis was secure behind locked doors, and they had enough food and water stored away in the computer lab for now. But he fretted over what would happen when the invaders finally took the city. Would they simply kill everyone on sight, as had happened in both Flatiron and Fort Collins, or could they find it in their hearts to have mercy? His recent experiences had taught him that those in power rarely have compassion for those they conquer. There wasn’t going to be an easy way out of this mess.

  The invading army had gradually reduced their nightly shelling. Rockets still occasionally flew over the wall, arcing either toward the center of the city or what was left of the motor-pool. Occasional railgun fire sought out the heavy laser emplacements, but those attacks seemed to be more about keeping the residents afraid and on guard rather than an attempt to breach the city’s fortifications.

  “Lost in your head again, eh big brother?” Rose sat down beside him.

  “Yeah, I guess.” He looked around to be sure they were alone on the balcony. “It just seems like, I don’t know… like there’s no way this is gonna end well.”

  “Worrying about the future is a waste of time; you taught me that,” she said. “I think you were right too, so now it’s time for you to follow your own advice.”

  “Yeah.” He sighed. “This feels different though, because we’ve got other people counting on us. I’m really worried about the kids.”

  “I know,” she replied. “Let’s just do the best we can and try to keep the scary possibilities to ourselves, ok?”

  “Yeah, that’s a deal.”

  “Anyway, I came out here to tell you that something’s going on near the east city gate. I was out getting water and saw a commotion from Julee’s office window, and I thought we ought to go up on the roof and take a look.”

  “What were you doing in Julee’s office? There’s no water in there.”

  “Yes, that’s true, but I found these.” Rose held out a pair of binoculars. “I was scavenging, looking for stuff that might come in handy, and I’m pretty sure that these will.”

  “Well, good deal then. Let’s go up to the roof and have a look.”

  *****

  The computer lab door slammed shut behind them, and he heard the sturdy locks click into place; the harsh sound echoed through the silent halls. They had been lucky so far that no one had broken in to ransack their building. If that happened, hopefully the intruders would leave once they discovered that the cafeteria’s food supplies were already gone. If they did venture further the steel computer lab door would probably keep them out. There was nothing else in the tech center but offices and work areas, so the building could offer only shelter, which could easily be found elsewhere in the city. If people broke in, there would be no reason to stay.

  Climbing the stairs brought about the usual agony in his injured leg, so he was out of breath when he reached the rooftop exit, where Rose patiently waited. “Are you ever gonna get better?” she asked.

  “I hope so,” he replied.
“Whatever you want me to see better be worth the climb.”

  “Oh quit complaining, you could use the exercise.” His sister smiled. “Anyway, whatever’s happening is certainly more interesting than sitting in your lab and staring at the walls.”

  He followed his sister across the flat gravel covered roof and saw that a large crowd had gathered at the top of the city wall above the eastern gate. “Can you see what they’re doing?”

  Rose peered through the binoculars and adjusted the focus. “It looks like they’re putting something together; I can’t tell what it is though.”

  He walked over to the side of the roof and sat down, letting his legs dangle over the edge. “Let’s give it some time and see what happens.”

  Rose eased down beside him, and they passed the binoculars back and forth as they watched the movement along the wall. The sun was still high above, and without any shade the temperature was oppressive and the sharp stones made sitting uncomfortable, however they were distracted by the activity above the gate. After studying the situation for a long while, they finally concluded that whatever was being set up wasn’t another laser weapon. “It looks like an amplifier and some speakers,” he said. “Probably cannibalized from what’s left of the city’s public-address system.”

  “So, somebody wants to talk, maybe to negotiate peace?” she asked.

  “Yeah, maybe. I hope it works.”

  The work atop the wall continued as the sun slowly crept toward the western mountains. Finally, a dim figure that was blurred in their binoculars, stood out in the open above the gate and began to speak.

  “WE ARE NOT YOUR ENEMY. THE SOCIALIST GOVERNMENT AND THE ARMY OF PIKE CITY HAS ABANDONED ALL OF US LIVING HERE. WE’VE SUFFERED SUBSTANTIAL LOSS OF LIFE DUE TO OUR GOVERNMENT’S ACTIONS, AND NOW WE ARE RUNNING LOW ON FOOD.

  “A PROVISIONAL CITY COUNCIL HAS BEEN FORMED, AND WE ARE WILLING TO SURRENDER IF AMICABLE AND MERCIFUL TERMS CAN BE REACHED. WE ARE SENDING AN UNARMED EMISSARY TO YOU THROUGH THIS GATE TO DISCUSS TERMS. THERE IS NO NEED FOR FURTHER KILLING, LET US NEGOTIATE INSTEAD.”