“Hmmmm—” he says. “Well, Lady Mason here, has a—uh—she has a certain—way with Maya.”
His eyes are still on me and I wonder what he’s thinking. A way? I remember how she’d waded through the water to presumably snack on me. My eyes grow wide at the memory and Minchin laughs at my face as if he can tell exactly what I’m picturing.
“What—way?” Strohm says, still shouting. “You’re not making any sense, Minchin. Have you been hitting hard on the jane again or what?”
“No more than you have on the booze,” Minchin mutters but since Strohm’s still yelling, I’m relieved that he hasn’t heard the words.
Minchin’s eyes land on me again and he nods a slight nod. Hmm, I don’t know why he’s playing along but I’m not about to question it.
I say, “What safer place for me than out there on the ocean, doing something more productive than sitting in my room, waiting for two weeks. No one needs to know of this plan. The Axiom won’t be out there. Right?”
Every single part of what I said can be refuted. Still, Minchin’s frown deepens as Strohm stares at the ceiling, as if meaning to yell at it next.
“It would also be great for the narrative,” I say, now nodding at Zandra. “Right? I mean the people think we—the Leaders are sitting here pretty, not getting sick or dying like they are, not doing a thing to help them. This would be something that will help change that. Right?”
Zandra looks at me, then back at Strohm, and me again. “Actually, Lady Mason is right,” she says.
I’m talking out my butt, so I’m surprised when she agrees.
“They know Lady Mason as Romy, as the girl who actively brought down Prospo City, then actively helped build up Liberty. Now, she’s starting to look like just another hands-off Leader. Maybe she’s right—”
Before she can finish the sentence, Strohm’s yelling again and two new blue veins throb in his neck. I’ve already tuned him out but the rest of them stare at him like he’s about to burst.
“Look how much peace we had in town after that day they saw me help that man,” I say. Of course at the time, I had no clue we were being watched. I was just helping someone, but it has been playing nonstop on the screens since. And there haven’t been any issues with the people for several days since.
“Look,” I say, “for whatever reason, they respond well to me. They can see I’m trying here. Can’t you just see this as another—plus for us?”
Zandra nods her head. “She’s right,” she says. “I don’t see why there’s any harm in trying. We’ll have drones on her constantly while they’re out hunting Maya.”
“What if she dies out there?” Strohm yells, then I finally understand where his anger is coming from. It’s not about letting me out of his sight or even about me being in danger with the Axiom. It’s about potentially losing me, the mother of his child, just months after losing Abigail. He can’t handle the thought of it. So it comes out before I can stop myself. “You can come too, Strohm.” Oh for Odin’s sake, I think, just as the words come out of my mouth. “I’m sure the people would be happy to see both of us trying to catch her, trying to help find a cure for what ails them.”
Great. Now I’ll have to think of a way to lose him somewhere along the way. Still, my suggestion silences him for a moment, but he finally says, “I have to stay here. I’m keeping an eye on the Axiom.”
Right. Not to mention, no way would the general be happy about him going off to the north with everything that’s happening here. Still I don’t mention her, I don’t ask why she’s not in here during this meeting.
“Then that’s settled,” Zandra says. “I’ll go see about what sort of drones we can commission for this. When will you be heading out?” she asks Minchin who turns to look at me.
“The sooner the better I reckon,” he says, to which I offer him a quick smile.
Then Zandra’s out the door, and Minchin stands to go as well.
Finally, Strohm rests his eyes on me. “I just don’t like any of this,” he says.
“I know,” I say. But boy are you gonna hate what I have to say next. “I need Blair to come with as well.”
Out Of The Frying Pan…
Of course Strohm says no, and of course he yells some more. Finally, I give up, just happy that this is happening anyway. I’m about to get on a boat with Minchin.
I’ll have to figure out everything else as we go, but that’s fine. I can plan things all I like, but if there’s only one thing I’ve learnt over the last several years, it’s that plans can go to heck.
I head to my quarters—it won’t take me long to pack. After all, we’ll be on the ocean for, whoever knows how long it will take. I’ll just really need a couple of changes of clothes, deck shoes, nothing much else.
As I walk in through the door, I’m not surprised that she’s in there, perched on my bed. The general.
I thought she’d be in the meeting for sure. Not that she would have been able to say much, what with Strohm’s incessant yelling. My ears still ring with his voice.
“General,” I greet as I close the door behind me. “How can I help you, this fine afternoon?” I’m chipper, unlike me, but I can’t help feel positive, no matter the inevitable darkness she’ll leave me in, in a matter of minutes.
“What are you up to?” she says. Straight to the point.
“I’m packing,” I say, “for a trip to the north, we’re going for Maya.”
“No—” she says, “what are you really up to?”
“General,” I say, “I don’t really have time right now. Maybe you’d like to go have a chat with Leader Strohm?”
Of course I’m stalling and she knows it. Her face crumples into a deep frown.
“I don’t believe for a second that you’re going out there to help bring this beast down for whatever reason you’ve fed your husband and the PR lady. I don’t believe any of it.”
“Mother,” I say, only pausing for a moment as I haven’t called her that in—well—years. “Maya is the cure,” I insist, “and I want to help bring her down. Sitting here in this room, not doing anything useful, well, it’s not useful. Why is that, anyway? Why do you want me stuck in here not doing anything?”
“You’re safest in here,” she says. “The missions team can go get this ‘Maya’. You don’t need to be there—you don’t need to be out on that ocean. They can get her without your help.”
No truer words have ever been spoken. Still—
“Well I don’t believe for a second that you’re that worried about my safety,” I throw at her. “That you’re just worried I’ll get hurt or whatever. So why is it that you want me stuck in here? What are you up to?”
I know I sound exactly like her. It doesn’t matter, I think. We can sit here for hours comparing how much distrust we have, but none of it matters as long as I get on that boat with Minchin and the team.
“Well,” she says, “fine. I’ve assigned heaps more security to Blair.”
There it is.
“I expect that you wouldn’t want your ward unsafe while you’re away. So we’ll take extra care of him until your safe return.”
And with that, she’s out the door.
Great. Not that I had much of a plan in place to get Blair out of here anyway. Now there’s extra security in place, whatever that means. And I only have a matter of hours before we have to go.
We’re heading out in the cover of darkness so that any watching Axiom will have a harder time getting to me, by the time the boat’s on the water. So I look at the time. I have what, five hours? To come up with a plan, to get Franklin to agree with whatever it is—because chances are good she won’t. Then to break Blair out of this ship, and on to the boat, all without getting him killed in the interim.
Yeah. Easier said than done.
Still, I bring out my little black box. I have two minutes to connect with Franklin and Sanaa. Okay, here goes. I bring out my small compact mirror and establish connection by hitting its tiny middle.
Sanaa’s face pops up on the mirror, Franklin’s brooding face right behind hers.
“About time,” Sanaa says. “Frank’s about ready to use all available weapons to come get Blair.”
The time she’s given me is up. “Well—” I say, with a wide grin on my face. “Bring it.”
And I fill them in with my plan.
Five hours later, and I’m sat on my bed, staring at the clock. Any minute now.
And I have to move fast. I know that Minchin and company are waiting on the south dock not twenty minutes from us. Blair’s in his room, also waiting. I was only able to give him the shortest of instructions but I’m counting on his ability to think on his feet from here on.
The general didn’t exaggerate when she said there’s extra security. I counted six visible drones. Three at Blair’s door, three in his room, and not to mention the big lug—a security guard by the name of O’Donnell, posted at the entrance like a human gargoyle.
This one reminds me of another burly one I’d overcome several years ago—a security guard on roids. Bigger than me by a lot, but I was faster, smarter. Still, I know I can’t be complacent with this one. He’s a Soren. He’s bound to be trained far better than that other one I’d dealt with.
Still, I pump myself. This has to happen, I tell myself. Even if I end up killing him, even if I kill anyone else in the interim. This has to happen.
Then an explosion thunders from far and echoes through the room. Sanaa!
I jump to my feet, run out the door and charge straight into O’Donnell. His eyes are wide as he takes me in and he’s already turning, ready for the attack.
The three drones around him have their weapons out and are shooting. I’m fast though, I shield myself with my two sleeve weapons, blocking each shot as they come.
One bullet lodges itself into my fake leg. I twirl and slam one weapon into O’Donnell’s chin just as another blast hits and I hear Blair scrambling and yelling in his room. Was that out of pain? I try not to think about it too much as I slam another fist into O’Donnell’s face. It better not be, I think. I’ve got these ones to deal with already.
O’Donnell grunts and falls back and I move forward to pummel him some more but I know I have three drones behind me and have to move sideways though there’s not much space in this tiny hallway.
I twirl again, meaning to catch one of the drones. That’s when O’Donnell’s massive arm grabs me around the waist and he has me up in the air, as if to slam me into the ground. Just as my face reaches up to the ceiling, I see a drone and reach out to grab it.
These things aren’t nearly slow enough, I think as it easily hovers away from my grip.
But I have the ceiling. So I put my feet up against it and do a running somersault past O’Donnell’s head. He grunts again but his grip around my waist loosens and I’m up and over his head so fast, by the time he turns back to me again, I punch six, seven, eight, punches with my steel beams right into his crotch.
It’s dirty fighting but I don’t have time to tell myself off.
It leaves him grunting again, and he’s on his knees, his hands down to where I hit him. I finally manage to grab a drone and slam it several times into the top of O’Donnell’s head.
The explosions have stopped, I realize, and I wonder why the other drones haven’t attacked me by now.
Then I turn towards the laughter behind me and look up to see my new teammates stand beside each other as I drop the now useless drone on the ground.
“Ha!” Sanaa says as she leans forward to give me a hug. My shoulders, still tense from the fight, relax in her grasp as I realize it’s over. Franklin’s beside her, and Blair grins down at me. Blood drips down the side of his face but otherwise he looks fine, in one shape.
“Okay, team,” Sanaa laughs. “What’s next?”
I turn right back around and into my quarters. I’ve already got the birdbots asleep on my bed, drugged from the extra doses of jane I’d given them. I don’t feel any guilt, I know they’re fine. They’ll sleep it off and wake in the morning, no worse for wear.
“Okay,” I say, “we’ve got to get to Minchin’s boat. It’s around the corner from here, on the southern-most dock. Too many people in our way if we head down the hall, so you ready for a swim?”
They all nod once and we head to my wide open balcony doors. I walk until I have my back to my front door and make a running head start, launch myself up and over the railing and straight into the trees below. I reach up to grab the first branch I can grip, then make my way swiftly down the tree’s trunk.
Leaves rustling to my left and right tell me the others have safely landed too. Then, the moment our feet hit ground, we’re running through the forest, and throw ourselves into the cold water below.
It doesn’t take more than ten minutes for us to get to Minchin’s boat, ready to sail already.
I wonder what’s happening on the Elysium right now. Surely, they came running soon as they heard explosions. I don’t think about how easy it was to just get off the dang ship. Gotta keep moving, I tell myself. Job’s not done yet.
Then we’re scrambling up the side of Minchin’s boat. I’m the last one to get in.
And I freeze when I look up to see the others with their arms in the air, as the general and three of her men aim their weapons at us.
…Into The Fire
The general’s mouth raises into a small smile and I know she’s thinking she’s stopped us. And she’s right. Or at least, she’s only stalled us some.
“I knew you were up to something,” she says.
I bite my tongue, not wanting to say, “Well duh.”
She looks over at Sanaa, Franklin, and Blair, her eyes staying on Franklin longer. “So your plan was to escape from the Elysium with these three, get here, then what? Sail off into the night without us knowing? How stupid do you think I am?”
“Oh I know you’re not, General.” I hold back from saying what I really want to say. “In fact, I was counting on it.”
That’s when I hear the first few claps from land and look over at the same time the rest of the people on the boat do. Massive lights pop in the distance, shining straight into our eyes. I lift my hand to shade my eyes at the same time the others do, and I see Zandra the PR lady on the dock, instructing her security detail to keep the forming mass of people in one specific spot.
“What—what the hell is this?” Mother lowers her gun and instructs her people to do the same.
“I think that’s what they’d call a mob of people,” Blair quips. “Off to see us go, isn’t that lovely?” He looks at the general and gives a big toothy grin, making him look slightly scary, what with the dried blood on the side of his face.
The general’s eyes dart to me again. “What did you do?”
“Why I suggested to Zandra that the people of Apex would be more than happy to watch us go,” I say. “You know, in person. It’s far better than watching things on the vidfeeds, don’t you think?”
We were planning on sailing in the cover of darkness so as not to draw any unwarranted attention. But I also know the last thing the general wants to do is cause a scene and bring me in kicking and screaming, not in front of all these people. I’m counting on that more than anything else.
If it’s a fight she wants, well a fight she’ll get, but the people of Apex won’t be happy to see me being attacked either, especially not when I’m planning to find them an (admittedly fake) cure for their illnesses.
“So, General.” Blair brings his arms down. “You planning on coming with us or will you now be disembarking?” What he doesn’t say is, if she stays with us, she’ll be thrown overboard the first moment we’re out of sight of all these people, which I wouldn’t object to. But she’ll be able to swim to shore with no issues—unless I stop her. Still, that wouldn’t help the people stay on my side, and I know better than to mess with that right now.
Her eyes shift to him, then back to me again. “This—” she says, “is insubordinati
on. This is not forgivable, Romy.”
No, I think, it’s not. “I have to do what I can, General,” I say. “As you have to do what you must.”
With that, we usher the general and her team off the boat, to join the hordes of people—must be a thousand of them—on land. I turn and wave as we sail away from them. I know the Axiom’s probably watching too, and now they know we’re on the ocean somewhere, but we’ll deal with that as it comes. For now, I keep waving, watching my mother’s face as she stares from a distance.
I don’t know where Strohm is, but wherever it is, he’s likely drunk and sleeping it off. Oh well, my loving husband. I’ll see ya when I see ya.
Then I turn and join my new team.
The next day, over a breakfast of oats and nuts, I talk to them about the plan. “Minchin won’t like that,” Blair says. “I know him.”
“I won’t like what?” Minchin asks as he rounds the corner to join us.
“I’d like you to turn the boat around please,” I say. “We’re not really heading north.”
“Oh we damn well sure are,” was his answer. When I tell him this was all a show, that Maya was just a diversion for Strohm and the general, that we really need to go south, he stares at me for so long, I wonder if he’d heard me.
“Okay we will,” he finally says. “Deal. But FIRST, we must go for Maya. She’s the reason I agreed to bringing you along for this whackamamy ride. I was wondering what you were up to. Now I know, and I’m in, but you have to let me get her first. I’ve got this great big hunting team in place, due to the grace of the great Lady Mason. Besides,” he says, pointing to the drones that we had disabled for this meeting, “the people are expecting this. You really think they’d be happy you went off somewhere else?”
He’s got a point. I’ve still got to appease ‘the people’. There’s a huge part of me that’s guilty for leading them astray in the first place, with promises of finding a cure for their ailments.
Romy's Last Stand: Book III of the 2250 Saga Page 8
