by Ryan, Matt
“What the hell?” Lucas asked.
“A Panavice has a protection mode to keep it from producing too much power. Alice broke through the safety protocol and caused them to explode.”
“She tried to kill Julie?”
“I hope it was just that.”
Another boom, from above them, then several more from above and below.
“Oh my god.” Julie held her hand over her mouth. “She’s blowing them all up.”
Lucas searched around for any more potential Pana-bombs.
“We have to stop her,” Harris said.
“How?” Jack asked.
“We’re going to her.”
“But you said the bunker is destroyed, or flooded,” Lucas said.
Harris rubbed his face. “We can’t wait, she’s going to kill everyone on the planet if we don’t stop her. I’ll go by myself and check it out.”
“But you could die,” Julie pleaded.
Harris nodded. “So be it.”
HARRIS KNELT NEXT TO THE stone. “You guys have to promise me something.”
“What?” Lucas asked.
“If I don’t come back, you will use this stone to go directly back to Earth and never come back here.”
“That’s crazy. We caused this, we can’t just leave you,” Lucas said.
“Yeah, we aren’t leaving you there,” Julie added.
“If I don’t come back in a minute, it’s because I am dead. Now promise me you will leave,” Harris blurted out with rage.
“Fine, we promise.” Lucas crossed his arms. He knew Harris would be back anyway. The man was un-killable.
“Good, now get out of the room.”
Stepping out of the steel door, they stood in the hallway. The sound of the stone activating announced Harris’s departure. Lucas shook his head. The man better make it back. He stared at the door, waiting for the sound of his return.
The wait wasn’t even ten seconds. Lucas took a step toward the open door and stopped as the room erupted in gun fire. Growling and yelling grinners filled the room. One emerged from the door and hissed. Julie screeched. The machine guns continued to fire, drowning out her screams.
Lucas had Prudence at the ready and shot the thing in the head. “Back up.” He took a step forward and shot the next grinner in the head, then another. Several bodies piled up at the entrance to the stone room. A barrage of bullets flew through them and then silence.
The grinners lay dead at the entrance. Lucas stepped closer and peered into the room. They were all dead, then something moved in the darkness, its body draped over the stone. Its hand lifted and Lucas pulled back his bow. The thing lifted its head and Lucas saw Harris’s face.
Lucas bounded over the dead bodies. His heart pounded in his chest and then he saw the bite marks on Harris’s arms and back, each wound pouring blood.
“Too many,” Harris creaked. A gun fell from his hand.
“We need a medic!” Lucas rolled Harris on his back, grabbed under his arms and dragged him into the hallway.
“What happened?” Julie asked.
“He’s bit and bleeding.”
“Oh no! Jack, get the doctor.”
Jack fumbled through his pockets, searching them out.
“Run,” Julie said.
“Yes, of course.” Jack ran to the end of the hallway and into the elevator.
“Lucas,” Harris said.
“You’re going to be okay.” Lucas lifted Harris’s head.
“You have to do it before it’s too late.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re immune, they won’t hurt you.”
“The grinners?” He looked at his pale hand, memories of their last trip to Ryjack flooding him.
“I’m not letting Lucas in that pit,” Julie said. “Who knows what else could be in there?”
“There’s no time, he’s the only one who can do it.”
“No, there has to be another way.” Julie grabbed the side of her head as she shook it in denial.
Lucas knew he was the only living person on the planet they wouldn’t attack. He didn’t have a choice. “What do I need to do?”
“There’s a room on level sixty-four where I believe Alice is kept. Once you’re in the room, there should be a few large cables hardwiring her to the world.” Harris reached into his jacket and pulled out his Panavice. He smiled. “I keep mine disconnected most of the time. Alice didn’t get to it. Plus, this one’s modified.” He handed the Panavice to Lucas. “Once you’re in the room, find those wires and use this button.” He pointed to a red button on the screen. “It shoots a laser. Just guide it into the wires. It also has a map on it if you get lost.”
Lucas felt the blood leaving his face. He was about to go into a bunker of grinners and face an evil computer, alone. He stared at the screen. An arrow overlaid a map. He stood with Panavice in hand and glanced at the stone again before looking to Julie.
She moved close to him, with tears in her eyes. There were probably a thousand things that could go wrong beyond the stone.
“I have to do this, Julie. I can save millions—”
“Billions, and yeah, I know.” She wiped her eyes. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”
“I know.”
“You better be careful in there.” She had her hands around his waist and he felt her grip tighten.
“I will.” He glanced back at the stone room. “There’s nothing but my grinner buddies, I’ll be fine. The dead peeps and I hang all the time. I’m part of the in crowd.”
Julie nodded her head. “If you get in trouble . . .” she trailed off and hugged him. He stumbled back and hugged her tight. She lifted her head and kissed him.
“I’ll come back.”
“You better.”
“Julie, I love you.”
She looked up from his chest and into his eyes. It was the first time he told her that. Walking into his possible death gave him good reasons not to hold back his feelings. He knew she knew, but he didn’t want to leave it up to chance.
“I love you too,” she replied.
He knew she did but hearing her say it sent his heart soaring. He felt lighter and didn’t want to leave her arms. He wanted to feel those lips again, but more were dying every second.
He kissed her once more. They’d kissed many times before, but nothing had ever felt the way this did—like saying goodbye. “I gotta go.”
She nodded her head. Words seemed to be choked in her throat.
Lucas pushed himself away from Julie and headed to the stone.
JOEY WAS HAPPY TO BE out of the coach after a solid day of riding in the jarring bench seat. His whole body felt numb and the small cushion on the chair stopped giving comfort hours before. Plus, sitting between Poly and Samantha felt as awkward as just being on Arrack’s planet again. He wanted to ask Samantha to stop hanging on him, but this wasn’t the place to have that conversation.
He stood with his arms crossed, looking around the small room they were now huddled in. A couple chairs and a bench formed all the furniture in the bedroom-sized space. Sharati paced near the door and kept her hand on her dagger.
Joey knew they were too deep now to have any chance of escape. He wasn’t even sure how to get back to a stone. None of them had a Panavice. The feeling of being at the mercy of Sharati was unsettling, yet she had saved them once before. He so badly wanted to trust her.
“I’ll go and tell them why you’re here,” Sharati said and looked at Joey. “Can I have your jacket?”
“Sure, but why?”
“They can smell you then.”
Joey took off his jacket and handed it to Sharati. She nodded and left the room.
“I don’t like this,” Poly said. “Did you see how many Arracks are out there? We have no chance, if something goes wrong here.”
“I agree,” Hank said.
Joey fought back the frustration. They were right, of course. Only if he could have kept his friends out of it, he should ha
ve found a way to go by himself. With his jacket off, he felt his exposed new gun with his hand. How many shots did Harris say it had?
He took in the more intricate details of the room he had missed at first. The finely decorated crown molding and woodworking made it for a comfortable holding cell. “We’ll deliver the note and then we’ll go. If things go bad, get close to me,” Joey said.
“I’ll be right next to you,” Samantha said and moved closer to him.
Poly looked on as Samantha rubbed against his arm. She broke her silence. “You okay?” she asked him.
“Yeah,” Joey said. How could she read him so well? It was like she knew what he was thinking. He stared at Poly, taking in her beauty and kindness, hid behind toughness and pain.
“What do you think’s going to happen?” Samantha stood on the other side of him.
He knew what she was doing. Ever since the start of the trip, she stepped in front of anything Poly did with him, like she was trying to redirect his attention.
“I think we’ll have to wait and see. Hopefully, they’ll accept the terms laid out by Harris.”
“So you’re saying you haven’t read what the terms are?” Samantha asked.
“No, but Harris said it would protect Earth and Vanar.”
“Can I see it?” Poly asked.
“Sure, just don’t open it.”
Poly took the envelope and held it near the burning lamp in the room. “I don’t see anything in it. Maybe we should open it first.”
“No, it’s sealed. It has to be opened by this council.”
Poly huffed and handed him back the envelope. Joey stuffed it back into his pocket.
“Joey’s right. We should wait,” Samantha said and smiled at Joey.
“Of course you agree with him,” Poly said.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Samantha said.
“The act is getting old. We get it, you’re together. Stop putting him on a pedestal and make up your own mind for once.”
“What are you talking about?” Samantha said.
“Joey told me about the earrings,” Poly blurted out.
Samantha rubbed an earring between her fingers and looked at Joey. He looked away and didn’t know what to say. Poly thought him and Samantha were together?
“Well, I heard about how he left you at the lake,” Samantha said. “So I think he’s made his choice.” Samantha stared at Joey. She wanted him to confirm or deny her statement. “We’ve spent a lot of time together, Poly. We’ve made a strong connection,”
Poly crossed her arms and looked away.
He shook his head, mouth hanging open. How could things have gotten so out of control? He’d wanted to break things off so Poly could move on, and they could all stay friends. He never wanted to hurt her. This wasn’t working.
Sharati opened the door and everyone’s heads swiveled in her direction. “Keep your mouths shut and never make eye contact with the council,” she said. “Got that, Poly? Eyes down. If they see you putting eyes on them like you do me, they’ll kill you all.”’
Poly huffed and stared at Sharati as she was making about her mind. Finally, she nodded. “I’ll watch the floor.”
Joey walked behind Sharati and glanced over his shoulder to see Samantha directly behind him, and Poly and Hank taking up the rear. He let out a long breath and closed his eyes for a split second, telling himself they’d be okay, that he hadn’t taken his friends to their deaths.
Please don’t let us die on an argument.
They walked down a small hallway and followed Sharati outside. She walked straight toward a large, single-story building with broken plaster covering its sides. Wooden doors and windows spread across the front.
Sharati never looked back as she walked to the wooden double doors and pushed them open. Joey entered the large room, filled with Arracks in rows of chairs. On the far end of the room, a group of five Arracks sat behind a table. Everyone in the room gave their attention to the strange visitors. The sight stunned Joey. It seemed so human, like a town hall meeting.
Many Arracks whispered to each other as they walked toward the council. Joey’s gun, in plain sight, drew much attention as he passed by, their eyes locked in on his weapons. Some scowled, while many kept hands on their blades.
He walked sideways for a few steps to get a look at his friends. Samantha kept her gaze on the floor and looked as if she wanted to be somewhere else at the moment. Poly’s gaze traveled over the Arracks as they walked by, hand near her blades. Hank kept his chin up and walked with a confidence, as if he could take on the hundred Arracks surrounding them.
Sharati stopped in front of the table and spoke in her Arrack tongue for a minute. Joey noticed his jacket on the table in front of the council. Sharati motioned for them to stand next to her. They formed a line. Joey made sure to keep his gaze below their eyes.
“Only one of them speaks your language,” Sharati said in a low voice.
“What should I do?”
“Don’t talk.”
“These are the messengers from Vanar, the Mushidi.”
From the top of his vision, Joey saw one of the council members move. It spoke in a loud voice that carried through the large room. It picked up Joey’s jacket and smelled it before finishing its sentence.
The hall rumbled with talking.
Another council member slapped its hand on the table and said something. The rumblings of the hall slowed to a murmur.
The council member in the middle stood. “The Mushidi? Are you sure?”
“Yes,” Sharati answered.
The middle councilman let out a long hiss. “After so many years and so many lives, they are here, in this building.”
“Yes, but they bring with them a message.”
“So you have said. What is this message?”
Sharati nudged Joey with her elbow and Joey said, “The people of Vanar want a peace treaty.”
The middle councilman spoke in Arrack and laughter filled the hall. “Peace? There can be no peace.”
Joey pulled the letter from his back pocket and many Arrack brandished steel in response. The room filled with clatter. He held the white envelope high for all to see. Swallowing hard, he looked to his friends. Samantha looked like she might pass out from fright.
“This letter explains what they offer.”
“We’ve already made a deal with Marcus, long ago. There will be no new deal.” The middle councilman hissed out.
“This comes directly from Harris.”
“Harris . . . is he trying to rule Vanar in Marcus’s absence?”
“He’s trying to stop the killings on both sides,” Joey said, daring to look at the councilman’s chin.
“What’s wrong with killing? We all die, at least we can now choose how we die.”
Joey glanced at Sharati for help, but she stood as still as a statue. He didn’t think he’d have to convince the leaders to look at the letter. He wasn’t prepared to argue the point. He took a deep breath and lowered the paper. “There’s no harm in seeing what he has to say.”
The councilman sat down and talked with the others next to it. “Bring it up here.”
Joey took the few steps to the table and placed the letter down and slid it toward the middle Arrack. He headed back to his spot next to Sharati, hoping the offer would be enticing.
The middle Arrack inspected the envelope and then used its dagger and slid it across the top. A puff of white powder burst into the air. The councilman stood and peeked into the envelope. He turned it over and poured out the white powder on the table with a confused look. A mist rose from the pile, growing in size every second.
The councilman stepped back from the white mist and coughed. “What is this?” He began coughing hard, but quelled it long enough to yell out his final command. “Kill them!”
LUCAS FREAKING HATED GRINNERS, TOO bad they didn’t seem to mind him. He tried to keep them from touching him, but as he moved down the stairway, they brushed up against him w
ith regularity. Boy, did he pull the short straw on this one.
Door sixty-four stood open like a giant bank vault. He walked into the room, lighting it up with his Panavice. A few grinners mingled nearby.
“Hey, Herb, working hard or hardly working?” He lifted the man’s hand and gave the thing a high five.
“Janet, you look terrible.” Lucas said to a woman in a black MM uniform with a R7 on the chest. “Hey, Herb, looks like someone’s got a case of the Mondays. Am I right?”
On each side of the room were chain-link fences. Each door stood open but one. Lucas’s curiosity had him shine his light into the closed section.
“Hello, Lucas,” a voice warbled.
“Good Lord!” He jolted back in surprise. The computer screen over a desk lit up with Alice’s face. So, she would be watching him? That’s fine, she can watch her own demise. Lucas caught his breath and continued on his search.
He came to the end of the room and a blank wall. The arrow directed him right through the wall. Moving closer, he inspected a seam in the wall that seemed a bit off. It wasn’t a seam at all, but a small opening. Anyone not looking for it would have missed it. Squeezing through the opening, Lucas ended up in a small entryway. A thin bridge led to a suspended ball, the size of a room, with a circular door sitting open. The arrow on his Panavice beckoned him to move forward. But if he fell off the bridge a metal funnel below the whole room would greet him and send him into a black hole at the bottom.
“I would not step on that bridge,” Alice said. Her face projected out from the circular house.
Lucas pulled his raised foot back. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I do not want it to end too quickly. I will even stop detonating Panavices while you figure it out.”
Lucas studied the bridge and spotted the rubber boot on each end of the bridge, connecting it from the floating egg to the small platform he stood on. He took an arrow from his quiver. He felt the steel tip before tossing it on the bridge. It sparked as a jolt of electricity shot through it, sending it to the bowl shaped floor below. Great, a freaking BBQ bridge.
