On the left was the map for the city of Musgrave with green to show open land, white lines to symbolize roads, and various colored boxes placed on the map to show businesses and homes – with Fuji-O’Hara being the largest facility shown with a bright yellow box, their insignia in the very center of it. Then, off to the right, was a map showing the inner-workings of the facility itself. I knew absolutely nothing about what anything inside meant, the symbols in different hallways and scientific words I had never seen in my life. For my mother being a government geneticist, I knew surprisingly little about what she did or what anything in her line of work meant.
“Well, based on what I was able to look through with Ajax and Jameson before we left, I believe it would be best for us to enter here,” Fairbanks began, pointing to a spot in between two widely spaced sentry groups according to the map, “at this point in the Northern access to the city. Just far enough away from the sentries not to get spotted. Of course, we’re going to have to land down in the trees as far away from the border of the city as possible.”
“Why not from the East? It would be much easier to access the exterior and pass through. It’s how I got out when I escaped,” John said, using his own index finger to point and follow the direction he had taken himself, going right past the university that was surrounded by trees.
It hadn’t been one-hundred years ago, but it sure was now. Musgrave was more like a township instead of a major Metropolis, mostly because Fuji-O’Hara had moved in long after the war over the Wall was over and took over to make certain their secrets remained just that – secrets. Musgrave had been a small logging town founded between Kimberly and Long Creek just outside Malheur National Forest, turned small city all because of our government’s needs. The headquarters was located where downtown used to be, every old business demolished to make room, costing a lot of jobs since most of Musgrave’s citizens weren’t trained in the sciences. Things had gotten better from what little I knew about it now.
“I would say that could work if it weren’t for the fact we would have to fly right over the sentry’s heads and land by the university. We’d be too easily spotted, I think,” Jameson said.
“Maybe not. Because of the state of the place now, the population isn’t as large as it used to be. I’d say there are maybe about one-hundred thousand instead of the almost one-million it was before. The university only takes a certain number of students, and they all have to be either science or medical students to get in,” Ajax explained.
Julius, Caius, Gaia, Ryder, Ruckus, Doctor Aserov, and Genevieve listened in relative silence, having no idea what any of this really meant. Honestly, I barely did, but I could understand enough to see the validity of each point presented. As their commander, it was up to me to decide which of them we would enact in the end. The thought made me cringe internally. Also, I barely knew a thing about Musgrave as far as layout, never having been there because of how strictly travel was monitored. Musgrave being what it was didn’t help matters in the slightest. I was even surprised a map of the place existed for the same reason.
“Well, from what I gather having never been there, this is a larger version of an old college town, right?” Gaia asked, pointing at the grid-like map.
“Pretty much,” Fairbanks said with a shrug. “I wish that helped us more, but it really doesn’t. Going into this place with only one person that’s actually been there isn’t doing anything for us either. Especially since I don’t think you really remember much except the national forest, huh, John?”
Ruckus shot Fairbanks an incredulous look while John’s expression turned thoughtful. It didn’t take long for my mind to come up with an idea – if it were plausible. It all hinged on what John remembered.
“Whatever route you took to get out, John, is the way we’re going to get in. That’s all there is to it,” I stated.
“Are you sure?” Ryder asked. “What if he can’t remember?”
“It doesn’t matter. That may be our only option,” Julius said.
“If I can’t, Queen can,” John replied swiftly. “I should be able to tap into it.”
“Should?” Genevieve asked skeptically. “You should be able to?”
John nodded. “Yes, by the time we reach Musgrave I will know exactly where we are headed. I remember some of it between the gunfire and people chasing after me, but Queen can fill in the blanks. It won’t be difficult to piece it all together.”
Doctor Aserov watched silently, taking it all in. She was there for medical purposes – not that I wasn’t certain she couldn’t help us formulate a plan of some kind. She just didn’t put her foot forward to do so.
“What do you think, Madeline?” I probed. “You’re along for the ride so you should have some kind of say in how this goes down.”
Her brown eyes met mine through her lenses but didn’t offer anything.
“I trust you, and I trust Baker. That’s enough for me,” was her only reply.
“Good.” I paused, taking a deep breath. “Good. Is everyone good with this?”
Everyone nodded, not putting up any semblance of resistance. That sent a ripple of pleasure through me as well as a ripple of terror. We were much closer now to our end-game than we had ever been, and I began to picture everything that could possibly go wrong. Anything that could stop us. I shook the terrible images from my mind, leaving Cato’s tiny supportive whispers just at the fringes of my awareness.
In turn, I met each pair of eyes ranging from brown to green to blue – looking for hesitation or confusion – anything. I found nothing except a willingness – no, a want – to fight back. To save our lives as well as our future. My heart swelled, and it made me feel even more fiercely about the fight ahead of us once the plane touched down.
Everything was about to change once that happened, and once the process started, there was no turning back.
“Now,” I stood up and clapped my hands together, “let’s all rest up. John, you do what you can. Work with Queen, and once we land, you’ll take the lead. Got it?”
“I do.”
“And remember, everything is about to change. There is no going back. I’m sure all of you thought about that before getting on this plane so let’s do this not only for us but for our future. I don’t know about any of you, but I’ll be praying to whatever God is out there for our victory. It may be only us from the Fallen Paradigm out here, but I have faith in us. Meeting adjourned,” I said.
To me, everything I had just stated was a jumbled mess of a speech, but if it helped and made sense to them, I’d take it. I sauntered away from the lightbox before waiting to see if anyone else did, crossing the expanse of the plane to stand with arms crossed before the vast array of weaponry. It wasn’t long before I felt a presence beside me, mirroring my tension in the only way a sister could. Turning, I found Gaia standing in much the same posture, but watching me instead of the inanimate objects created for war.
All dark, black plastic, and cold gunmetal.
“That was a nice speech, sis,” Gaia assured me.
With a small laugh, I said, “Yeah, I’m not as good as Mom was, but I do what I can.”
“Well, you did good. I think she’d be proud of you. I know I am. And so would Dad.”
“Thanks, that means a lot.” I sighed, watching the fatigue hit every one of her muscles. I wasn’t certain if it was physical exhaustion or emotional, but either way, she needed some rest more than I did. I was far too wired. “Go get some rest before we land. We have some hours to go before we’re even close to there.”
She grinned and gave me a mock salute with the index and middle fingers of her right hand.
“Yes, Commander,” she said before giving me a pat on the back and hesitantly leaving me to go sit beside John, taking his large hand in hers and leaning her head on his shoulder to close her eyes.
Ryder
watched me from a few feet away, hands shoved into the pockets of his cargo pants – leaning against a shelf that held multitudes of weapons cases. His green eyes roamed over my face – for what, I didn’t know. Fear? Reluctance? Indecision?
Smiling gently at him, I made my way over and weaved my arms around his waist to clasp my hands at his back. He returned the embrace and sighed.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I leaned forward and pressed my cheek against his broad chest – listened to his heart beat steadily against his ribcage. His chin rested on the top of my head while his fingers began to trail down my spine tenderly.
“I am,” I breathed in his heady scent. “Everything is going to work out. I can feel it.”
Chapter
TWENTY-FIVE
After at least four hours, countless naps, exchanged glances, and watching John as he sat with eyes closed – his lids flicking from side to side – we arrived outside Musgrave in the growing expanse of the national forest that lay beyond its borders. A part of me thought we should have been better prepared than just waiting for Baker to have his eureka moment, but it was all we had. No one knew a better way into the city and Fuji-O’Hara better than he did, even if it were locked away in his Nano-Queen.
I wanted to ask how he and Queen communicated, but I swallowed the question down as we stood just across the seam in the floor where the ramp would open and lower to the ground so we could exit the plane.
Each one of us was completely outfitted with every type of weapon imaginable, and when we realized there were only two Jagdkommando tri-daggers on board, I made certain I got one – even pulling rank to ensure it. It was one of the best knives on the market for military use, and it didn’t just stab. It tore, and it shredded. Considering our enemy, I didn’t want anyone that had the misfortune of meeting that blade to get up and walk away from the encounter. Gaia followed my lead, grabbing the remaining tri-dagger and cuddling it to her chest before attaching its sheath to her hip, beaming with victory.
Within moments of our prep, outfitted with not only weapons but also protective gear, we stood at the bottom of the ramp with toes mere millimeters from dark Earth. We were surrounded by trees – the national forest having encroached on everything to ensure Fuji-O’Hara’s secrets remained well-hidden. They had succeeded, nothing coming to light until the Specials and John Baker. I felt eyes on me as all of them watched my lead, making me even antsier than I had already been. My heart raced, and sweat lined my upper-lip while my mind ran through every possible scenario that could meet us once we crossed this line.
Taking a deep breath, I held it for a moment as I scanned our surroundings. It didn’t look any different than any other forest I had found myself submerged in no matter how close a city was to it. All of them looked the same – only the sounds were different. Everywhere else, I had heard birds or insects. Even wolves when we had approached King’s Forge before it was attacked, but here there was only silence to greet us, which caused apprehension to flare to life.
Before I could change my mind to go running for the hills, I pushed out the breath I had been holding and said, “Let’s go to war.”
Then we were off to trek through the green, following close at John’s back as he led us along, crunching on twigs and dried pine needles that littered the ground – brown and discarded like lost children. It wasn’t long before John groaned and looked off to the side, dark eyes avoiding something as he passed it.
“What is it?” I asked as I pushed forward until I was at his back.
Julius pointed to a large carcass covered in tawny fur, decaying to become one with the Earth again. A bear, its insides completely torn away from what remained of its body. Bile rose into my throat, but I swallowed it down,
“A friend of yours, Baker?” Ajax asked before I could.
“More like my salvation,” he answered – lightning quick. “I’d rather not talk about it.”
“Did you kill it or something?” Ryder asked.
Gaia only watched John and reached out to him as he turned a sickly shade of green. That was all the answer I needed. It had been his salvation, which meant he was definitely the reason it lay there in tatters. An image of him tearing into it, feral, flashed into my mind and I shook it away. I opened my mouth to say something, but Caius got to it before I could.
“That’s enough, guys. Let’s just get to Musgrave and get this over with.”
Doctor Aserov made her way toward John and Gaia, stopping just behind them – her medical curiosity getting the better of her.
“Why such a large animal, John? Is there a medical reason for that?” she asked, her eyebrows raising above her glasses – first aid kit and medical supplies strapped to her back with a pistol at her hip and extra ammunition.
Annoyed, he refused to meet her gaze. “Can we just drop it? I’d really rather not talk about it.”
“It’s okay, John. You don’t need to explain,” Gaia stated, her frustration at the good doctor evident.
“Fuck no, he doesn’t,” Ruckus chided.
“They’re right,” Fairbanks muttered.
Ruckus didn’t say another word after that– only walked along with us as we continued. After Fairbanks’ statement, I didn’t feel the need to say anything further. There was no need to utter another word until we reached our destination. Only then would we truly need to think up a plan of action. We knew our entry point into Musgrave, but that was all, and we couldn’t leave it all up to John. That wouldn’t be fair, and we all needed to pull our weight in this fight. There was no alternative.
“Let’s just move along, guys. John will get us to Musgrave, and we will go from there. I’m not putting all of this on his shoulders, so he can lead us to the place and Fuji-O’Hara, but anything more than that comes from me. You got it?” I explained.
A few people whispered and muttered an affirmative yes, and that was that. Knowing they agreed, even only outwardly, meant a lot to me as the new Commander. I felt some of the weight lift from my shoulders, but not enough. That wouldn’t come until all of this was over. Then a question I had been expecting came to my mind. Something so extremely legitimate I couldn’t truly alleviate their concern until the end.
“So, who is going to run this shit-show after this is all over? We can’t take down King with no backup plan,” Caius asked as we continued to hike, moving up a soft incline – Musgrave finally visible in the distance.
“Trust me, it’s been on my mind,” I answered, squinting past the sun that filtered through the trees.
“Is there a plan, then?” Julius then asked.
“You could always take the seat, Mila. You’re fully capable,” Ryder stated.
“What I know is that I can’t do it. I just can’t. There are so many things I know need to be fixed and completely restructured. I may be able to lead a small resistance, but I can’t run a country. I’m sure of that. Especially not taking the place of my tyrant father.”
“Any idea who you’d like to put in the seat? If you had to choose someone?” Jameson probed.
I sighed and tried my best not to look at anyone – especially Gaia. My mind raced, thinking over and over, but only one name coming to mind because I had seen him work with so many people since I first met him. I felt I could trust his judgment on just about everything. Granted, I could take place as council or advisement, but that was all I felt I could do in the end.
“To be honest, I don’t see why it would be my decision, but if I had to choose and it was up to me?” I paused, taking a quick glance at each person before turning my eyes back up to the cityscape that was slowly creeping closer. “I’d choose Fairbanks. If my mother were still alive, I’d say her. She could lead and fix everything, but Fairbanks is just as good as she was, and I’d be stupid to say anyone else.”
The only sound for a moment were the birds a
nd insects that grew louder the closer we got to the city, but it didn’t take long for what I just said to register with the group. At first, I thought no one was going to respond, but Fairbanks proved me wrong quickly.
“Thank you, Mila. It’s truly an honor that you believe I’d be a good fit as President of the United States. If it comes down to it, I will not let you down,” he stated.
I turned slightly and looked at him. “Like I said, I’d be stupid not to say you, but maybe we should go to the old stand-by from one-hundred years ago. Maybe the citizens should vote on it, and we can have some temporary coverage for the time being. Who knows? Maybe they’d like you enough to keep you in.”
He beamed at me and looked down, trying to hide a blush that I didn’t think he was capable of. To be honest, I didn’t believe he could express emotions beside annoyance, pride, or anger, so this was a surprise. A good one, though.
“I agree with Mila,” Gaia piped up with a grin, looking at the others.
We hadn’t stopped walking during the entire conversation, and I noticed we were nearing the forest’s edge with buildings taking up my entire line of sight beside the overwhelming green of the trees.
“So do I,” Jameson said with a nod. “Wholeheartedly.”
“Fairbanks for President, I can see it now,” Doctor Aserov pressed, waving her hand before her. “I can see the life-sized banners.”
“Jesus, you guys, stop it,” Fairbanks chuckled. “That’s an order.”
“Yes, Mr. President,” Caius, Julius, and Ryder all said at once.
They broke out into laughter, and I couldn’t help but follow suit. This could very well be one of the last moments we could have to ourselves without the pain and the rage. This was the means to an end, and I couldn’t wait until it was all over. I was tired of war. I was tired of fighting. And I was tired of the never-ending anger that boiled inside of me that only wanted escape. It wasn’t time yet. Not until I had King on his knees before me, begging me to let him live. He didn’t know it yet, but his survival wasn’t an option. Not by a long shot.
The Clash (The Permutation Archives Book 5) Page 21
