by Cage, Zion
“Be quiet. Think sharp,” she said as she emerged from beyond the wall.
The men were too stunned to say a word. She dropped two bullets in both.
Bending over one, she searched him for the key card to the quarters.
Just as she found it, a voice came from behind her.
“Stop. Drop your weapons.”
She paused. Raising her head slowly, she saw the three men standing with guns drawn and pointed at her. They were too far. She couldn’t fight them. She couldn’t shoot. She dropped her guns and raised her hand.
So, this is how this is going to end.
She knew that the moment they saw her face, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill her.
“Who are you?” one of them asked. She didn’t answer.
“Clearly, you do not know us. We will kill you without a second thought. We’re just giving you the opportunity to say your last prayers,” a man said.
She raised her head, ready to die.
“Actually, I know you,” she said.
The men gasped.
A bullet whizzed through the air and hit the Russian at the left.
The other two turned to see who it was that had shot at them. Suzanne used the opportunity to move. She slid across the ground and raked another man down before he could shoot at the new intruder. The last one was too confused to do anything. She kicked him between his legs from where she lay on the ground, and he buckled his knees in pain. The new intruder finished him off with a bullet.
Suzanne used her elbow to hit the man beneath her in the throat, destroying that area.
She stood up, too stunned to speak. She looked at her savior- Xander.
“How is the upload?” she asked.
“It’s begun, but I don’t know when it will end. It’s taking forever,” Xander said.
“Then, why are you here? You should be in the computer room!” she said.
Xander raised a brow at her. Pointing to the dead people on the floor, he said, “Really?”
She smiled.
“Thank you,” she said, and Xander nodded.
“This is the second time I’ve saved your life. You owe me big time,” he said. “I just can’t believe I used a gun again.”
“Return to the computer room. Once you’re done, get out of this place. I don’t want you to get hurt,” she said.
Xander nodded and turned away.
Suzanne went back to the place she had kept her tray and picked it.
One more step, Suzanne. You’re almost there.
◆◆◆
3rd December 2021
10:45 am.
Ray of Hope HQ, Staten Island, Richmond County, New York.
USA.
Adrik heard a faint thud from outside, as though people were fighting.
“Security Room, what’s going on in the Luxury Quarter?” he asked, holding down a button on the telecom. He waited for a response. There was none.
“Watch Room, do you read me?” Adrik said into the Telecom again. There was still no response. He frowned.
What’s going on?
Khristina placed her hand on his chest from behind and tried to pull him back to bed.
“Relax, Adrik. Maybe their receivers are having problems,” she said.
Adrik shrugged.
“Go out and check if all is well,” he ordered. Khristina sighed as she stood up and put Adrik’s robe on. She took her gun from his dressing table.
“I keep telling you not to worry, Adrik. You know me. If there’s any problem, I’ll easily take care of it,” she said as she strolled out of the room.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Of course, they will love to...
3rd December 2021.
10:55 am.
New York Harbor, Staten Island, New York,
USA.
Aaliyah bent her head as stones flew over her. The crowd had begun to protest. She looked around for Joel. He came up from behind and held her hand.
“Wow! Isn’t it amazing how fast our story spread?” he asked, smiling.
“I know, right!” she said.
Currently, there were three factions: those who knew what was going on and were trying to stop it, those who didn’t know what was happening and were trying to run from danger, and finally, those who didn’t know but enjoyed being a part of the chaos.
“We’re not going anywhere. America is our motherland!” someone screamed from on top of a car as he used a stick to break the glass on the car’s window.
Aaliyah and Joel wore big, drab coats to conceal their weapons and make them seem harmless.
“You’re ready?” Joel asked her, and she nodded.
Together, they ran towards the ship.
Most of the soldiers who had come with the ship were trying to assuage the mob. Some other soldiers had arrived from Fort Drum and pretended to appease the crowd, but they encouraged it. Joel and Aaliyah met Troy.
“Hey, we need to get on that ship now,” Joel said.”
“Sure,” the soldier said as he led the way.
By the time they arrived at the dock, Troy shouted to the soldiers on the ship.
“Hey, let down the ramp. We want to come up,” he said.
“Why? You guys want come up and protest here too?” a soldier asked.
“No?” Troy said. “These people are ready to go.”
Aaliyah and Joel raised their hands.
The soldier above nodded, and, with the help of another soldier, they let down the ramp.
Aaliyah and Joel went on aboard the ship and looked around. There was a six-deck cabin. On the ground, there was a manhole.
“More ships are coming, huh?” Aaliyah asked.
“Yes, Pretty. We’re hoping to have at least thirty ships moving over the next couple of days. But this first batch is for smart people like you,” the soldier said, looking her over.
Aaliyah and Joel looked around.
There weren’t many soldiers on the weather deck.
Joel punched the soldier.
◆◆◆
3rd December 2021
11:00 am
North Star Hotel, 5th Avenue, Manhattan, New York,
USA.
Stephen and his crew had almost given up searching. They had gone through eight floors. He stood and looked out of the glass panes that overlooked the city. The search was tiring. Tanner stood on the stairs, sniffing as though something intrigued him.
Suddenly, he heard rotating blades. A helicopter came from the side of the building and hovered beside the floor above them.
At the same time, four Russian agents came out of a room on the floor above him. With them was the president. Three of them focused their firepower on Bucky and Milo, while the last one concentrated his bullets on the glass. Milo and Bucky took cover behind pillars. The Russians kept engaging them with bullets. There was no freedom to aim at Billy.
Stephen heard the glass above break and watched as the agents on the helicopter tried to help the president get on. Billy Munroe was more agile than he appeared.
Eric raised his gun to shoot, but Stephen held him.
“No. We’ll just draw too much attention to ourselves. They will have weapons too. We might end up getting killed instead of the president. I have a better idea,” he said, taking out his grenade. Tanner had come to stand beside his master.
Accuracy…
He remembered his training. He was going to need them now.
“Guys, are you seeing this?” Bucky shouted from above. He was still engrossed in a crossfire.
Soon, the president was on the helicopter, and the helicopter began to move.
“Shoot the glass down now,” Stephen said as the helicopter moved further away slowly.
Eric obeyed.
The moment the glass shattered, Stephen pulled out the pin of his grenade and hurled it.
The men inside the helicopter began to shoot in their direction. Stephen and Milo ran for cover.
The grenade landed in the helicopter before the
Russians realized what was happening.
The next second, there was an explosion, and the helicopter began a descent to the ground.
“No!” one of the Russians on the loft above shouted, looking at the burning helicopter.
That was all the clearance Bucky needed. He gunned the lady down.
The last one, realizing there was no hope for him, killed himself.
The four men sat on the ground in exhaustion as the sound of an explosion came from the outside. They couldn’t believe it was over.
◆◆◆
3rd December 2021
10:45 am.
Ray of Hope HQ, Staten Island, Richmond County, New York.
USA.
“Hello, Khristy. Missed me?” Suzanne asked as she watched Khristina step out of a room.
Khristina was shocked as she watched Suzanne walk towards her with a tray in one hand and a gun in the other.
“Bitch! What are you doing here? Who let you in? Security!” she called.
Suzanne laughed.
“Not the sharpest tool in the shed, are you? Please, I need to deliver breakfast to Adrik. The darling has been waiting, and he hates late breakfasts. Could you direct me to his room?”
“You have a lot of nerve coming back here, sis,” Khristina said as she raised her gun.
Suzanne raised hers.
“Let’s see; you’re open without any coverage; I have a tray to shield me. That leaves you at a disadvantage, doesn’t it?” Suzanne asked as she tilted the tray and allowed its contents to fall.
Khristina watched her for a second.
“Then, let’s do it the old-fashioned way, shall we?” Khristina asked, dropping her gun, and posed for a fight.
Suzanne dropped her gun and tray and posed too.
“OK. I love old fashion,” she said.
Khristina ran towards her, ready to land some blows. Suzanne allowed her to come. As always, Khristina’s impulse would be her undoing.
Suzanne dodged Khristina’s blow and moved behind her. Turning, she pulled the other gun from her waist and shot Khristina on the head. Khristina fell dead to the ground.
“Sorry, sis. I just don’t have the time for old fashion,” Suzanne said as she hung her guns and picked up her tray.
A million thanks to the inventors of silencers…
She turned to the door Khristina had just come out from. It looked grander than the other doors around. She pressed the doorbell.
Hello, Adrik.
◆◆◆
3rd December 2021.
10:55 am.
New York Harbor, Staten Island, New York,
USA.
Aaliyah kicked a soldier in the groin and shot the one behind him. By her side, Joel twisted the ankle of a man and drew him closer, using him as a shield against the enemies’ bullets. Aaliyah ran behind Joel. Together, both ran with their human shield, shooting every Russian in their way.
“I didn’t know you were such a badass,” Joel said once they had wiped out their adversaries. He threw the dead shield to the ground and found the manhole to the engine room. It was locked with a large padlock. He began to think of how to get in.
“And I thought you were too old to be badass,” Aaliyah said as she dangled her set of pick locks. “No one knows everything.”
PART FOUR
THE END
CHAPTER TWELVE
"Enjoy your sleep..."
3rd December 2021.
11:00 am.
New York Harbor, Staten Island, New York,
USA.
Aaliyah worked carefully on the lock. She enjoyed the challenge of picking them. Their complexity gave her more satisfaction when she succeeded.
“Hurry up, Aaliyah. We don’t have forever, you know,” Joel said, looking around. In the meantime, no one had come out of the cabins; however, he knew that there were Russians there.
” Voila! Done,” she said as she took the padlock off the lock. She threw the manhole open.
“Ready to go in?” she asked.
As if on cue, bullets began to fly out from the cabin area. Aaliyah and Joel fell to the ground for cover.
Just as two soldiers began to come out of the cabin, Joel unpinned his grenade and tossed it at them. The grenade blew up before landing and killed the men. Aaliyah stood up. Her arm had taken one of the bullets, and she was in pain.
As Joel stood up, he saw the wound.
“You were shot,” he said. He began to think. The worst-case scenario was that both went into the engine room, finished the mission, and came out to meet an enemy firing squad waiting for them. He didn’t want her to die. She was too young.
Well, there are two ways to ground a ship: destroy the engine or destroy the manpower…
“Aaliyah, go down there and get the job done. I’ll ensure you aren’t disturbed. Don’t forget to get out of there and leave the ship once you’re done. You’re about to cause a major explosion,” he said.
Aaliyah smirked.
“I’d say the same thing to you. Don’t go to sleep in the cabins, okay?” she said.
Joel smiled. He loved her quirkiness.
“Go, girl,” he said as he bent and picked up a dead body as cover. Aaliyah went down into the engine room and Joel went into the cabin section.
Once Joel was inside, he shut the door. To his right, there was a circuit breaker.
He turned it over.
Lights out.
Aaliyah hadn’t gone too far when a man in coveralls came towards her with a gun. He shot at her and missed. His aim was poor, and he looked afraid.
There was no time to keep climbing. She was sure there were more vengeful engineers down there. She let go of the ladder and allowed herself to fall through the remaining four feet. Then, she ran out of the reach of the man’s bullets.
“They are here!” the man shouted as he followed her.
Aaliyah flattened herself against a large tank and a group of pipes waiting for the man. She could hear more than one footstep coming in her direction, and so, she braced herself.
“I don’t know who you think you are, but you can’t fight five hefty men by yourself. Your minutes are numbered,” one man said as all of them peered around for her.
She smiled.
Five eh?
From the pipes behind her, she could sense someone. She waited for the person to come close enough, then she moved, grabbing the hand of the man that held onto the gun. She raised it so that he shot at the ceiling; then, she kicked the arm, causing him to let go of the gun in pain.
His scream attracted the other men. However, before they arrived, she twisted his arm so that he was in front of her. One of his colleagues came from around the corner, shooting randomly. He killed his teammate, and she killed him.
She realized her gun was empty. The others were running towards her. She ran towards a larger pipe and climbed up on it. An unsuspecting man passed by, looking around. She jumped off, landing on his shoulder with her legs curled around his neck. Twisting her body, she took him down to the floor. The other two engineers were right in front of her. She picked the fallen man’s gun up and shot the two of them with perfect aims.
She stood up and listened. There were no more movements. She then ran to a set of tanks and looked inside. They were full of an oily substance- fuel. She took a deep breath, ready to run.
Unpinning a grenade, she dropped it into the tank and ran to the entry ladder. Climbing up with all her strength, she left the manhole, and she covered it.
She could hear gunshots from the cabin area. Joel was still inside.
“Joel!” she screamed. But it was too late. The first explosion happened, almost making her trip. She knew it didn’t stop there. She ran through the weather deck to the Starboard side of the ship just as another explosion caused the manhole cover to fly off. She dived into the water, swimming away with energy as the explosions continued. The concussions rippled through the water, pushing her away. As she began to lose consciousness, one word was on
her mind.
Joel…
The protests on the harbor had ceased, and everyone watched the fireworks show.
◆◆◆
3rd December 2021
11:00 am.
Ray of Hope HQ, Staten Island, Richmond County, New York.
USA.
Adrik held a gun in front of him as he opened the door of his room. He peered out cautiously. There was no one. He frowned. Something wasn’t right.
That was when he noticed Khristina’s body on the ground.
“Too slow, Adrik,” Suzanne said as she emerged from a corner, flinging the tray at him. The tray hit the hand that held the gun and sent the gun flying.
Adrik looked at her in shock. She pulled her two guns from the belt and held them pointed at him.
“Do you always kill the waiters that come to serve you breakfast?” she asked, smiling.
Adrik didn’t return the smile.
“Vivien,” he growled. “You had the nerve”
“Oh, spare me. You should have seen me coming,” she said.
“Why are you doing this? Why have you betrayed our people?” he asked.
“I’ve not betrayed my people. I’ve done what is right. This madness ends now,” she said.
“Madness? You call this madness? This madness is what has fed you for over twenty years. It is what has made you the woman you are now. This madness is how Russia will be great again.”
Suzanne watched him speak, wondering how she hadn’t seen the madness in Adrik before. He looked like a monster when he spoke.
Had he been the one she had taken advice from for years?
“No, Adrik. This madness is what has killed millions of innocent people and will turn so many innocent girls to sex slaves if nothing is done,” she said calmly.
Adrik watched her resolve. He had lost control over her. She no longer held unto his words. He tried harder.
“Then, what about us, Suzanne? What about what we had? Would you really throw it all away like that?”
“I’ll blow your brains out if you bring that up again, Adrik,” she said, feeling her emotions rise.
