by Jack Robuck
Matthew's eyes grew big. “Let's get the fuck outta here!”
Natalie peered over Jimmy's shoulder. “Wait, what is that?”
Jimmy stared at the screen for a moment, zooming in on a display of the star system. “Hold on, we have a problem here.”
Matthew poked his head over Jimmy's other shoulder. “What is it?”
Jimmy said, “This isn't the only control station for the Core. I'm showing one down on the surface; in Gate City.”
Matthew's memory clicked. “The Admiral's headquarters.”
Jimmy nodded. “Whoever's in control of that thing is gonna be able to do what we just did. Control of the Core is control of the whole planet, and everybody on it. The rebellion won't stand a chance.”
Natalie broke in. “That's super interesting, Jimmy, maybe we can talk about it as we fucking get out of here?”
Matthew put a hand on both their shoulders. “Wait, can we crash a ship into Gate City? Take it all out together?”
Jimmy stood over the console, punching in coordinates. He shook his head. “No, no it’s too late. It’s too late, we have to run, now!”
They popped the door with rifles bristling, but the corridor was empty. At the juncture, they spotted a Trooper down a distant corridor and exchanged fire, hurriedly backing around the next turn before they took off sprinting, running for their lives toward the cargo bay.
As they took a short lift down to the deck, slapped the door panel button and ran hurriedly to the front row of crafts, they felt a lurch that nearly knocked them off their feet.
Jimmy waved them on as he ran over to a terminal and punched in commands to open the bay doors. “That was the shift to normal gravity. We're running out of time!”
The team raced for the nearest assault craft but Jimmy, a few yards ahead, veered off across the bay toward the control tower.
Matthew screamed out, “Where are you going?”
Jimmy looked back over his shoulder as he ran, and yelled, “White one!”
At the far end of the row, sitting askew out of the grid pattern, a perfect printed replica of Trague's black and white ship sat untouched. They sprinted.
A thunderous gunk and the grinding of the bay doors accompanied the enormous blast of wind that buffeted them as they climbed into the first ship in the grid. As the bay doors slid open, the harsh grey light of the cargo deck was sand blasted by the pure orange void in front of them.
Matthew shook his head at Jimmy as they slid into the pilots' seats. “You've gotta be kidding me.”
Jimmy grinned as he turned to Matthew, who was flicking on the controls. “If you're gonna survive, it’s gotta be worth it, baby.”
Matthew laughed. “How fucking close are we?”
Jimmy shook his head, and Matthew punched the throttle full out. “Fuck it!”
He heard gear and bodies rattling around in the back like dice. A sudden jolt of g-force, and then a moment of panic as he realized they were punched out straight down, and the surface was coming straight at them, and the enormous ship was crashing down on top of it all, and, “Fuuuuuuuuck!”
He flipped on the off-planet engine, applied forward thrusters while pulling up into a sharp arc, and he could finally get a fix on how far the ground was, because he could see mountains, hills, a small town. “We're gonna make it!”
They reached the apex of their dive six feet above the surface, and blasted past clapboard buildings, fenced-in paddocks, a windmill.
Jimmy turned to him hesitantly. “Was that town we just flew over Boomerang?"
Matthew shook his head, glaring hard out of the windshield, squinting. “How the fuck should I know, we have to get out from under the flagship....Oh, fuck.”
Jimmy turned to yell to Natalie who was holding onto some cargo netting in the back. “Natalie, you got any family in Boomerang?”
She looked up, wild-eyed. “No, why?”
“Cause the flagship is about to have a large impact on the local economy.”
Natalie screamed and ran toward the front of the ship, stumbling on uncertain footing as they plummeted along. “My Mother-Fucking Bar! My Baaaar!”
An enormous explosion behind them, and Matthew closed his eyes as he held the throttle on both systems full out. They shot into the horizon, burning away and away from the impact of the Behemoth.
Chapter 14
Flying straight into the horizon, the ship was suddenly blasted by turbulence. They spun up, out of control, tumbling, but in a moment Matthew pulled them back on course.
Jimmy grabbed him by the shoulder. “I think we're Okay.”
Matthew relaxed his grip. He looked up at Jimmy. “Think that was the behemoth blowing a hole in the plastic shell?”
Jimmy nodded, puffing out an exasperated breath. “Those poor fucks. Where are we going?”
Matthew shrugged. “Luna?” He offered Jimmy the pilot's seat, and slid over into the second chair.
Natalie was throwing backpacks around in the back of the ship as Sydney and Charlie tried to calm her down.
Jimmy altered course, and began programming the ship's sensors to chart all of the incoming vessels about to crash into the planet. “Luna's safe, of course, it’s all the way around on the dark side...I mean, you know. A lot of other places are safe too. A lot of the ships are falling where it used to be the hot zone, so nobody's gonna be living out there yet.
“Okay. I don't think we killed everyone on the planet. So that's comforting.” Jimmy looked expectantly over at Matthew, but Matthew's head was back on the seat, and his eyes were closed. His ear and cheek were still running wet with blood and his forehead was smeared with gunpowder residue.
“Matthew.”
Matthew slowly turned his head.
“This isn’t over yet. I mean, it’s probably never gonna be over, there’s a million Fleet Troopers already on the planet, and it’s a good bet a lot of weapons and armor are gonna survive a hard impact with the surface.”
Matthew slowly nodded. “Yeah.”
Jimmy relaxed at the controls, leaning back in his seat and letting the ship take care of the flying. He looked over at Matthew. “We can’t stop now. We have to get to Gate City and take control of the Core. The fact that they didn't try to stop us tells me that nobody's in command there. The Admiral is dead. That means it’s a race to the Fleet tower. The only way we survive is if we win.”
Matthew blinked hard and shook his head, trying to pull himself together. “And then what? How do we even get in? Didn't you say the place is a fortress?”
Jimmy nodded.
Matthew turned in his seat, looking into the back bay. “I think we need more people.”
Jimmy nodded, closing his eyes. “Man, Gate City is a hornet’s nest. What we need is an army.”
Matthew shook his head. “It’s funny...there was this girl in Luna and she wanted me to take her to Gate City, said she just wanted to see the ocean.”
Jimmy shrugged. “Gate City's not exactly filled with hopes and dreams, man. It’s the last place on this side of the ring where the rebels and the Fleet have been battling street to street for decades. If it wasn't for the civilians and the fucking Salt People, the Admiral would have chem-cleansed the place years ago just so he could assure control of the tower. If you're gonna bring her with us, you need to tell her the deal.”
He looked out through the windshield for a long moment, then turned back to Matthew, lowering his eyes. “Then again, we're gonna need all the help we can get.”
*
Back in Luna, Matthew followed the others as they trudged through the narrow cobblestone streets. The evening sun crisped to orange, and several local residents stood leaning on brooms or pinning up laundry, still entranced by the apparent daily birth and death of the distant star.
The Silver Lady beckoned, the hope of baths and bed, of drinks, food, and news called them toward the great amber dusted statue.
In the back of the pack, Matthew looked up the steep concrete steps to his lef
t, to Ella's terrace and the big square window, where already in the evening a candle flickered and cast a shadow of movement inside the room. Matthew paused for a moment, and, letting the group go on ahead, he slipped away unnoticed and up the stairs.
Under the crunch of his steps on the sand strewn concrete, he heard a noise from within Ella's little room, and he called out, so as not to intrude. “Ella?”
When he reached the top of the steps, the black hole of the window was as dark and hollow as a skull.
A thin man in an untucked white shirt stepped out, his suspenders hanging from his waist. He had a cigarette, and a smoke-wisped candle, which he promptly set in the windowsill. He looked Matthew up and down. “She's gone.”
“Gone where?”
The man shook his head. “I don't know. She was talking about going to the ocean.”
Matthew said, “Yeah.”
The man put out his hand. “I'm Stephen.” He eyed the tail end of Matthew's group trailing into the bar. He smiled. “You must be the people we have to thank for the attack on Luna.”
Matthew shook his hand and nodded.
Stephen went on. “People died. Although I can't blame you for that.” He glanced across the background for listening ears. “Actually, I think Ella had the right idea. The Fleet's coming to lock this place down, that's the word from on high.”
Matthew smiled. “I don't think that's going to happen anymore. We just crashed the entire Fleet into the desert.”
Stephen took a long drag from his cigarette and turned, looking out toward the end of the courtyard where the cobblestones led to the city gates. He flicked the butt and nodded. “Well. Then I guess they're busy.”
In the bar, Sean was interrogating the exhausted team. “What the hell happened up there? I thought I was dying too, but when it was over, and I could get up again, everybody said they all had the same thing happen to them too! There's people dead, and buildings collapsed everywhere. Trepan Alley is completely impassable.”
Stephen spoke up, quietly. “The doctor's through there. No one can get through. Don't even know if he's alive.”
Jimmy held up his hands to the two men. “I'm sorry, but we took a calculated risk. We knew there would be collateral damage, but we had an opportunity to destroy the flagship, all their ships, and we took it.”
Sean whistled long and low. Sydney spoke quietly in the silence. “You sound like Rachel.”
Matthew's breath caught in his chest. He'd never thought to compare the two actions. There hadn't been time, there had only been the mission, and survival.
Jimmy put a hand on Matthew's shoulder. “Rachel would have approved. But this isn't over. There will be survivors, and there's already a huge contingent of Fleet personnel downstairs to deal with. We've taken away their toys, they're gonna be pretty pissed off."
Sydney stood up, and stalked toward Jimmy. “Rachel would have approved. Rachel would have blown the whole atmosphere into space to stop the Admiral, and you should have known that! You should have stopped her.”
She pointed a bony finger at Jimmy, and poked him in the chest. “You should have stopped her. You should have known what she would give to stop him. And now you're no better. She gave herself. How many lives did you give? Probably thousands when you pushed that button, but not your own. You didn't ask us our opinion. You just did it.”
She paced back and forth on the sand strewn floor. “But the difference between you and Rachel is that she was selfless, so she's dead. And you're here, because you're fucking selfish, and you just killed who knows how many people, and I'm not going to die for you too.” Sydney pushed away, and headed for the door.
Jimmy called after her, “We need you to help us finish the job! It’s what she would have wanted. We can't let them have the Core!”
Sydney burst through the doorway and out into the street. Winston backed away from them, and said simply, “I'm sorry.” He walked out of the Silver Lady behind Sydney.
Charlie sat on a bar stool across the room. He looked from face to face, finally settling on Matthew. “Well, I'd better come with you.”
Sean closed his mouth, watching the front curtain blow in the breeze. He lowered his head. “I'm in. I've got nothing left in Luna.”
Stephen tucked in his shirt and pulled his suspenders up onto his shoulders. “I can fight, gentlemen. And for all you say, I think the tide is turning against this place. If you'll have me.”
Jimmy and Matthew looked at each other, and at Glazier and Natalie standing behind them. Glazier nodded and said, “Okay.”
*
Jimmy flew low through the outlands near Gate City. In the coming dawn, the immense round metropolis glinted amber from its spires, and faded down and down to black where night still crouched between its walls. Across the horizon, a thick bar of blue where the ocean lay still and heavy.
They touched down in the fenced back yard of some abandoned facility, and covered the ship as best they could with tarps and dusty pallets they found. The yard door was open. They found their way through an old repair shop. The earthy smell of mixed grease and sand gave a humid, animal feeling to the place.
Matthew's hand tingled. He looked down at it to see his LED palm screen spiraling. He turned it off. They pushed out through the front and chocked the door for their eventual return.
On the street, litter and burnt out cars. A crashed troop transport, barely identifiable, and the crater half-filled with sand. The buildings blurred into one another on the horizon. Short, squat mud and brick structures that were never part of the city planner’s drafting.
Jimmy pushed ahead, keeping his handheld out in front of him, attempting to navigate the nearly identical streets.
They spread out, stalking from cover to cover, scouting the fallen sections of window combed building corners that sprawled in the street.
Matthew whispered to Jimmy, "Why's this place such a shithole?"
Jimmy didn't look up. "Actually, looking back on what I know now, Gate City must be part of the original design. One of the first cities. A planet-wide communication tower with full control of the Core.
"In recent memory, it was a rebel stronghold for a while. Rebel Command on this side of the ring. There's been so many battles fought over the city, both sides left in disgust. I guess the Admiral kept the tower because he hoped that one day he'd be able to regain access to the Core."
They continued on through the streets, Jimmy following the blinking path on his handheld.
"But the city, there was nothing left worth saving. Except for the salt, and the Salt People, well...even the Fleet doesn't fuck with them. Worldwide monopoly, baby. Pulling product straight out of the ocean, only source there is. Psychopaths using religion as an excuse to turn a profit, if you ask me.”
Jimmy looked up at Matthew, raising an eyebrow. "Then again, who doesn't like salt?"
Matthew stopped. "So how are we gonna take over the tower, destroy the troops there, and hold it down indefinitely?"
Jimmy nodded slowly. "The rebels. Ever since there was a rebellion, there's been soldiers stationed here. And even though it’s a wasteland, they're still here. Last truly organized rebel group on this side of the ring. Rachel and I used to interface with them sometimes.”
Matthew looked at Jimmy. “Do you trust them?”
Jimmy stopped short in the street. “No. We can't trust anyone with what we know. We have to get them to help us, whatever the cost, but they can't gain control of the Core either. Every function of life on this planet is controlled down there. It’s too much power for anyone.” He took a step, then turned back and gave Matthew a quick wink. “Except us.”
As they approached a silent, dusty intersection, Jimmy came to a stop. He put up a hand and pocketed his device. The blue morning light glowed on the sand grey walls. A long moment of quiet as eerie as an airlock, and Jimmy hunched his shoulders, his head forward, listening. In a flash, he jumped behind a crushed yellow dumpster at the same moment a rifle shot cracked throu
gh the concrete canyon.
Get down!” Jimmy yelled in a throaty whisper and squatted, motioning toward the ground with his hands. The team rushed to cover. Matthew crouched next to Charlie behind a rusty vehicle in the center of the road. He loosened the cinch on his rifle strap and pulled back the slide.
Jimmy was sitting on the street, his back to the dumpster, waving the handheld wildly, dipping it around the corner, but trying not to get shot. Sean and Natalie were hunkered down behind a bus-sized chunk of concrete wall lying sideways on a hill of rubble. Sean peered between spears of rusted rebar, and signaled to Matthew.
Matthew flipped onto his hands and knees, and peeked around the car tire, where he could whisper to Jimmy. “Sean says about a dozen, spread out. Uh...” He looked back at Sean, trying to make out the signal. “Sniper high, I think.”
Jimmy nodded and gestured to Stephen and Glazier, who had been bringing up the rear. He motioned for them to move up and through the left hand building, past the dumpster to find a position for crossing fire. They ducked down and skirted toward the building's door.
Another shot popped, and a divot exploded in a concrete column, a burst of dust and gravel blasting Stephen in the face. They hit the ground and crawled for cover.
Sean gestured wildly and yelled, “Sniper high!”
Matthew turned to Jimmy. “Yep. Sniper high.”
Jimmy leaned his head back against the dumpster.
Sean was gesturing again. Matthew shrugged, and shook his head. Sean pointed to Jimmy twice. Matthew called out, “Jimmy!” and hooked a thumb at Sean.
Jimmy sighed, stood up, brushed himself off, and pulling back the slide on his assault rifle, leaned out to look at Sean. Sean reached up and rubbed his own forehead with his thumb.
Jimmy nodded. “Salt People.”
A burst of shots rang out and Jimmy ducked, then fired off a blind burst around the corner of the dumpster. He called out, “Brothers! Friendly, friendly!” Then, pointing at Matthew, he said, “You didn't see this shit, understand?” And he licked his thumb, bent down, rubbed it in the sand, and smeared it across his forehead. Rifle up, barrel down, arms open, he closed his eyes, winced, and stepped out into the open. “Brothers! Friendly, friendly!”
