The Praegressus Project: Part One

by Aaron Hodges

  Looking out through the night, it seemed to Liz as though the whole world stretched out beneath them. The lights of the city shone like stars below, stretching north and east and south as far as the eye could see. In the distance, the lights merged with the sky, so that there was no horizon, only an endless tapestry of stars above and below.

  “How do you feel?” she called to Ashley over the howling wind.

  Ashley grinned back at her, her face more alive than Liz had seen in weeks. Her amber eyes shone, like twin beams in the darkness.

  “Like I’m home!” she shouted back.

  They fell silent then, drifting in the peaceful calm of the night sky. Liz watched Ashley’s face as she contemplated the city below, remembering again the girl she’d first met in their prison cell. Ashley had said something profound then – something that had given them all hope in their darkest days. She’d told them that Halt and their captors were only human, that they would make mistakes.

  But thinking about the past few weeks, the things they had endured, Liz found herself thinking there was more to those words. Because despite everything that had been done to them, the wings and strength and speed the mad scientists in the mountains had given them, they were still only human. And with all the loss and horror and guilt they had endured, it was a miracle they hadn’t all crumbled long ago.

  And of all of them, Ashley had endured the most. While the bullet wound had healed, the aftermath of Ashley’s fall had left far deeper scars. Liz just hoped her friend could claw her way back from the brink.

  “You know what I always dreamed of doing?” Ashley asked suddenly, a grin splitting her face.

  Liz shook her head, and Ashley laughed. Without offering any further explanation, she folded her wings, and dove towards the distant city. Liz’s heart lurched and she tucked in her wings and chased after her.

  “What are you doing?” she screamed, but the howling wind tore her words away.

  Ahead, Ashley plummeted through the sky, her wings still drawn tight against her back. The skyscrapers loomed as they drew level with their rooftops. Only then did Ashley pull out of her dive. White wings struck the air, sending her racing through the maze of buildings, until ahead, they gave way to the waters of the San Francisco harbour.

  Turning her wings, Liz adjusted course, surprised by Ashley’s speed. She heard the soft crash of waves from below as the winds raged on the harbour, and away to their right she saw the lights of Alcatraz. The prison had been reopened during the American War, and had since been used to hold those who were convicted of treason while they awaited their sentence. Or so Liz had thought, until a few months ago.

  But it wasn’t the prison Ashley was interested in. Her wings shifted, lifting them higher again, as the lights of the Golden Gate Bridge loomed above them. Blinking, Liz couldn’t help but grin as they flew up through the twisting suspension. The red paint glimmered in the fluorescent lights, while below the odd car drove across the bridge, ignorant of the two fugitives flying overhead.

  Liz started to laugh as Ashley reached the top of the steel suspension and dropped down onto one of the crossbeams. With the wind swirling around them, it was no easy feat, and Liz took care not to knock the other girl off as she followed her down. Landing lightly, she shivered as her bare feet touched the cold steel. Turning, she looked out across the bridge, and slowly shook her head.

  The Golden Gate Bridge.

  The bridge of dreams, the symbol of their capital, of the young nation that had been born from the ashes of the United States. It had survived the passing of the empire that had built it, and might yet live to see the fall of another.

  Beside her, Ashley lowered herself down, so that she sat with her feet hanging out over open space. With her white wings dangling out behind her, she looked like some guardian angel, sitting in watch over the Golden Gate City.

  But looking at her, Liz could see the fear in the whites of Ashley’s eyes. The amber had shrunk to a speck, and her face was pale. Whatever courage had brought her this far was quickly fading.

  Liz carefully sat beside Ashley and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Are you okay?”

  Ashley shivered in her arms. “This was a mistake,” she whispered, “They’ll see us.”

  But she didn’t move, and Liz pulled her closer. “No, they won’t,” she laughed, “And if they do, just let them try and catch us up here.”

  When Ashley didn’t reply, Liz went on. “They’re not going to find us, Ashley. I’m not going back to their laboratory, and neither are you. We’ll never wear those collars again.”

  “Words,” Ashley shook her head and looked at her, “They’re just words – you, Sam, my parents. They will come for us, just like they did my sister. They have too. We’re a loose end they can’t afford to leave free. We barely survived the square.”

  “Then we’ll come for them first,” Liz growled. She gave Ashley’s shoulder a squeeze. “The Director, the President, heck, Halt’s ghost for all I care. We’ll take them all down if we need too. That’s what we’re doing now, isn’t it? When Mike comes back…”

  “He’s not coming back,” Ashley whispered.

  Liz shivered, her own doubts rising to the surface. She pressed them down. “Maybe, maybe not. If he doesn’t come back, we’ll go instead. We can’t give up,” she paused and stared out over the city. Finally, she went on, “I don’t know what Halt did to you, Ash. But I do know this – you can’t let it rule you. You can’t let his cruelty define you. You’re stronger than that.”

  There were tears in Ashley’s eyes as she looked out at the city. “I’m afraid he broke me.”

  Liz took a hold of Ashley’s shoulders and forced the girl to look at her. “Don’t say that,” she snapped, “Never say that. They didn’t break you, Ash. You’re still here, you’re still standing.”

  “But in the square, I was so afraid, I couldn’t move…”

  “We’re all afraid,” Liz growled, “But we don’t have the option of giving up. Too many people have sacrificed their lives for us to go hide under a rock. Richard, and Fallow, our parents, those women in the square. We can’t run away now. We have to fight.”

  Ashley closed her eyes, but after a long moment, she nodded. Smiling, Liz let her go, and turned back to the city. Sitting up there, high above it all, it was easy to picture San Francisco as she had once imagined it. As a child, it had always been so distant, an almost mythical place she could only dream of visiting. But those dreams had soured her first day of boarding school. The city had taught her only hatred and cruelty, and within days she had longed to escape.

  But now she felt a touch of that old magic return. Up here, it was easy to forget the corruption that plagued the city, the vile cruelty of the men and women who ruled it. Up here, she could almost imagine the San Francisco of old, the city that had stood against the corruption of the United States, that had led the Western Allied States to freedom.

  “I don’t know how to face him,” Ashley whispered suddenly.

  “Who?”

  “Sam,” Ashley breathed, “I know he did it for me, but… I wish he hadn’t. There is already so much blood on my hands, I can’t take having the lives of all those kids as well.”

  “It doesn’t have to be that way,” Liz said, “Help us stop them, before they have the chance to murder any more children. Whether the Texan returns or not, we need your help, Ash.”

  Ashley’s chest swelled as she sucked in a great breath. She forced a smile. “You’re right,” she nodded, “We can stop them, before it’s too late.”

  “Good,” Liz grinned.

  “We should be getting back,” Ashley said as the distant screech of sirens carried to them, “The sun will be up soon.”

  Liz smiled. “Are you okay?”

  Ashley shrugged. “It is what it is,” their eyes met, and for a second Liz caught a flash of the old fire in her friend’s eyes, “But thank you, Liz. You were right, I needed this.”

  Laughing, Liz shook her
head. “Let’s go home.”

  CHAPTER 20

  Chris looked up from the sofa as the lounge window squeaked. He jumped as a head appeared, then relaxed again as he realised it was only Liz. She scrambled inside and then turned back and offered her gloved hand to someone behind her. Chris raised an eyebrow as Ashley followed her through the window, but Liz kept her eyes averted.

  Anger flared in his chest as the girls ignored him and moved off into the corridor. Rising from the couch, he followed them out and watched as Liz led Ashley back to her room. He’d woken an hour ago in darkness, and unable to sleep, had risen and taken over guard duty from the man sitting in the living room.

  He forced a smile as Liz closed the door behind Ashley and turned around. Her eyes widened when she saw him, and for a moment they stared at each other in silence. Finally, she nodded and moved back down the corridor towards him. Chris let out a long sigh as they returned to the living room and took a seat on opposite couches.

  “What was that about?” Chris asked softly.

  “She’s been struggling…with what Halt did to her, and what Sam did for her,” Liz replied. “I think she’ll be okay, but…” she trailed off as their eyes met.

  Staring in her crystal eyes, Chris could feel the barrier stretching between them. Ever since they’d kissed, Liz had been distancing herself from him, pushing him away until he found himself doubting everything they’d felt for each other.

  But watching her now, Chris knew he had a choice to make. He could let what they’d shared between them shrivel and die, or he could push through the barricades Liz had raised around herself. Taking a breath, he stood and crossed to the other couch. He could feel his heart beating hard in his chest, and his stomach was tight with fear. Remembered pain laced through his veins, but he bit his tongue and forced it away.

  Liz watched him come, her eyes distant. “Chris–” she started to speak, but before she could continue, Chris pressed his lips to hers.

  She stiffened beneath him, and he paused, his lips lingering on hers as he waited for her to react. But when she made no move to push him away, he kissed her again. He heard a low moan rattle up from her throat, and felt her hand against his chest, as though she were readying herself to push him away.

  He stilled again and their lips parted. Opening his eyes, he stared into hers, and waited for her to speak.

  “Chris…” she whispered again, her eyes watering, “What if…”

  Smiling, he shook his head. “What if we die tomorrow?”

  Then his lips were hard against hers, and her mouth was opening beneath him, her tongue darting out to taste him. Desire throbbed in his chest as her arms went around him, and he threaded his fingers through her hair and kissed her harder. All thought of pain fell away as they lost themselves in the moment.

  When the pain did come, Chris did not resist. Instead, he embraced it, opening his mind to its tingling touch. He did not release Liz, but kissed her harder, his hands running down her back to stroke her jet-black feathers. Lines of fire wrapped around his mind, but it made no difference now. He could feel Liz beneath him. The warmth of her body washed over him, mingling with the fire of her touch, until he could no longer distinguish between them.

  He shivered as her hands slid beneath his shirt and drifted up his back. Somehow she had lost her gloves, and her soft fingers sent tingles of pleasure rippling through him wherever they touched. The fire followed, igniting down his spine, but it no longer burned with the same pain, the same agony as before.

  Emboldened, Chris slid his hands beneath Liz’s shirt. Pressed tight together, there was little room to manoeuvre, but he felt the tremor go through her as his fingers danced across her belly. Their lips broke apart as she moaned, and then he was kissing her neck, her throat, as her arms wrapped around him, pulling him harder against him.

  When they finally broke apart, Liz was gasping for breath and her face was flushed red. They lay side by side on the couch, wrapped in each other’s arms, basking in the heat of their bodies. Chris could still feel the tingles of her venom seeping through his skin, a foreign heat in his veins, but it had been reduced to a dull ache now.

  Smiling, he leaned across and kissed Liz on the forehead. There were tears in her eyes when he pulled away.

  “Chris,” she reached up and stroked his cheek, “I never thought… I’m sorry, I was only trying to protect you.”

  “Liz,” he ran a hand through her curly black hair, lost in her big blue eyes, “I don’t need you to protect me. I know I don’t always make the best decisions, but they’re still mine to make. I told you I could take it – you should have trusted me.”

  Liz closed her eyes, and he could feel her shaking in his arms. She shook her head. “I know… I was afraid though. Afraid of hurting you… or worse.”

  Chris laughed. “Let me worry about that.”

  He grinned as Liz wriggled in closer. With her hands on his cheek, a few tingles of fire still touched him, but their clothes protected the rest of his body.

  “Does it still hurt?” she whispered. He could see the anxiety in her eyes.

  “A little,” he smiled, his hands trailing over her body, “It’s getting better though. You’re just going to have to be patient for a little longer.”

  Liz tilted back her head and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I’m going to have to be patient?” she asked wryly, a smile on her lips now, “So none of that was you?”

  Chris grinned. “Okay, maybe we both have to be patient,” he shook his head, “So, what were the two of you doing out there anyway?”

  Twisting beside him, Liz sat up on the couch. He joined her, eyebrows raised in expectation.

  “We needed some fresh air,” Liz said softly.

  “Where did you go?” Chris asked.

  Liz’s cheeks turned beet red and there was a long pause before she answered. “The Golden Gate Bridge.”

  Chris blinked, and then started to laugh. “Wow, so much for laying low!”

  Leaning back in the couch, Liz turned sideways and looked at him. “You don’t feel frustrated, sitting here, trapped like this?”

  “A little,” Chris admitted, looking away. His stomach clenched. “But it’s for the best. When Mike gets back, we’ll know what our next move should be. Until then, we don’t have anything to gain going out there.”

  “What if the results don’t prove anything?” Liz pressed, “Or what if he doesn’t come back. What’s our plan C?”

  Chris groaned, shifting in his seat. He just wanted to rest, to have a few days or weeks without the weight of the world hanging over him. Let someone else make the decisions for once – after all the mistakes he’d made, he was the last one they should be turning to now. He still found himself replaying the fight in the courthouse in his mind, wondering what he could have done differently.

  What if they hadn’t split up? Or if they hadn’t gone after Liz? Of if they’d left Artemis behind?

  And then of course there was chaos that had swallowed them in Independence Square, and the bullets Sam and Mira had taken for his recklessness.

  No. Let the Texan and the Mad Women make the decisions. He was done.

  He looked across at Liz. He could see in her eyes what she wanted him to say. She wanted him to admit she was right, that they should go out and do something, anything to help undermine the government’s power.

  But he couldn’t do it.

  Because what if he was wrong, and someone else died?

  Closing his eyes, he looked away, unable to meet Liz’s eyes any longer. “Mike will know what to do. He’s the professional.”

  “And what he if doesn’t come back?” firm hands gripped him by the shoulder, “Chris, even if he does, Mike isn’t one of us. He doesn’t know what we’ve been through, he hasn’t seen what these people are capable of. You have. We have. We need to stick together, make our own decisions. All of us… including you.”

  Chris swallowed. He looked back at her, and found himself trapped by the fire i
n her eyes.

  “I don’t know what’s happening with you, Chris,” she said softly, “But you need to snap out of it.”

  With that, Liz rose and disappeared back down the corridor, leaving Chris alone in the growing daylight. He sat staring at the worn carpet for a long time, wondering at her words, wondering whether she was right.

  Yet even if she was, what could they do?

  CHAPTER 21

  Susan groaned as she woke, the sharp pounding of a headache tearing her from sleep. Opening her eyes, she squinted into the dim light, struggling to make out her surroundings. They slowly came into focus, lit by the single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling.

  She was in some kind of wooden hut, its single room furnished by two sets of bunk beds and a bench that must have served as a kitchen. The mattresses on the beds were half-rotten, and dark stains marked the ceiling where the rain had seeped through. Outside, the wind howled, and she shivered as a breath of cold air swept through the room. The place stank of mildew and age, but another, sweeter scent lingered too.

  The only sound was a dim whirring, and turning, Susan froze as her eyes found one of the portable refrigerator units from the facility. Her stomach twisted as it all came rushing back. She looked down at her hands, a scream building in her throat as she saw the dried blood covering her.

  What have I become?

  “Susan,” she jumped as a voice called from behind her.

  Spinning, she stumbled backwards as she found the old Chead woman watching her. She sat on a worn-out sofa, her murky white eyes shining. A smile twitched on her lips as she stood and moved across the room.

  “Welcome, Susan,” the old Chead spread her arms.

  Shaking her head, Susan backed away. “Where am I? What… what did I do?”

  The old Chead laughed again. “We are someplace on the way to where we need to be,” the wrinkled faced tilted to the side, “Would you like to eat?” she ignored Susan’s other question.