Master: Arrow's Flight #3

by Casey Hays

  The soldier blinks, his eyes wavering from Justin to me. He backs away, lets the butt of his rifle hit the ground with a small thud as it slides through his fingers. He seems to have no answer for Justin’s question. After a moment, he flicks his hand.

  “You have people waiting for you in the forest?”

  Neither one of us replies to this. I study his eyes closely. He already knows the answer. It’s why they’re here. From the looks of their dirty uniforms, I’d guess they’ve been here for a long time—watching Jeb’s team.

  I scan the group of soldiers behind him again. I count roughly twelve to fifteen, all pointing Eden-killers at us. I glance at our own group. It would be risky to engage these guys. We couldn’t guarantee the people of Jordan wouldn’t get caught in the crossfire. But I map a sketchy plan of action in my head. I don’t want to kill anyone—not ever again if I can help it. But I’ve taken on more men than this before. I could fly in like a whirlwind, take their guns before they knew what hit them, and nobody would have to get hurt. I take a step. The soldier tenses.

  “What are you waiting for?” I ask with a raise of my chin. “You have two boys from Eden standing right in front of you. Don’t you have orders to bring us in or take us down or something?”

  The soldier narrows his eyes, and every rifle holds steady, aimed right at me. I know I’m pushing it with these guys, but I’m sick of it. They’ve bullied and frightened and killed not only the people of Jordan, but every other village they’ve dug their claws into. His eyes flicker, glancing off toward one of the other soldiers, and I see the truth there. They have a plan.

  Without another thought, I leap forward and grab the officer by the collar, twisting my fists into the fabric and raising him up off the ground. He fumbles with his rifle, but it slips from his grip and hits the ground with a crack. It explodes in a tattering beat, bullets embedding into a nearby tree, before one of the other soldiers jumps into action and carefully retrieves it. A domino pattern of sound breaks the sudden silence as the soldiers cock their weapons one by one. Squeals of panic fill the air from our own group.

  “Wait!” A voice breaks out from the back of the cluster of soldiers. One young private rises to his feet from a kneeling position, puts the safety on his weapon and moves toward me, his arms raised slightly. “Just wait a minute.”

  He makes eye contact with me before addressing the officer.

  “Captain, this is the guy—the one I told you about. He took on fifty or more of us. He—” He hesitates, but after a moment of reasoning with himself, plunges on in a loud whisper. “He can turn invisible . . . and dodge bullets.” He clutches his rifle in both hands, and he raises it slightly. “He ripped my weapon right out of my hands. Captain Snow had me watch the doctor’s house a few times before I was reassigned to your squadron. Trust me, sir, you don’t want to start something with him. And if this other guy is anything like him, it might not end well for us.”

  I stare at the kid, and he puffs up his chest and nods. And crazy thing . . . I see a glint of admiration in his eyes. After a moment, I drop the captain to his feet and step back.

  “All right, then.” I hike my bow up my back a notch. “We’re going on, and you’re not stopping us. Got it?”

  I pin the captain with a hard glare. Justin shifts, giving off the same vibe. Together we stand firm until the captain agrees with a snap of his head, sharply adjusting his wrinkled collar.

  A shrill whistle in the distance breaks through the air, capturing the attention of everyone within earshot. All eyes turn.

  Along a short ridge of the northeast mountain range, a line of people stand shoulder to shoulder. Silhouetted against the setting sun, they are nothing more than shadow figures—a hundred at least. The whistle rides out on the breeze again, and a shadow in the very center raises an arm and flails it back and forth in slow motion, his tall, thick form hard to miss.

  Jesse.

  Beside him, a slimmer Max figure lifts his fist into the air.

  I glance at Justin, hope leaping as I realize what this is.

  “The Rovers?” Justin asks. I grin.

  “They did it.”

  We face the hills. I raise a hand, wave it back and forth in return. Jesse shoots both arms into the air and punches once at the sky. The line of shadow figures raises its fists in unison, a war cry bellowing over the land, and they rumble over the ridge and stream down our side of the mountain like ants from an anthill. The setting sun casts a long shadow behind each of them, causing them to look even more like giants. Justin turns slowly toward the captain. His men have all risen to their feet, their bravery turned sour as they stare wide-eyed at the mountain.

  “Like I said,” Justin shrugs. “You better get out of here while you still can. Our reinforcements have arrived.” He takes a minute to count, sarcastically pointing his finger at each soldier. “Looks like you’re outnumbered.”

  The captain swallows once, but in one final attempt at courage, he lifts his chin.

  “I think you’re forgetting who holds the tools that can kill you.”

  At his words, the soldiers snap to attention, and a dozen Eden-killers stare at us like one-eyed snakes ready to strike. I narrow my eyes, and before I give myself a minute to think about it, my bow is in my hand and three arrows pierce the trigger hand of three soldiers in the back. A scream rips through them in unison as their weapons clatter to the ground. I lift my bow, the fourth arrow already nocked, and press the point into the tip of the captain’s nose. His eyes go wide, and he visibly swallows, but he doesn’t budge.

  “You should probably rethink that statement,” I say, my voice low and threatening.

  Justin grins and kicks a toe at the dirt, enjoying the captain’s squirming. But one soldier to his left makes the mistake of flicking his finger on the trigger. My arrow leaves the string, burying itself in his arm, and he staggers backwards. Justin swoops in and catches the rifle in one hand. He twirls it around, pressing the barrel into the soldier’s forehead. The soldier whimpers, his fingers wrapped around the embedded arrow.

  “I think you’re overestimating your power,” I say.

  Arrow number five stares the captain in the face. He backs away, snaps a command, and the soldiers are on their feet.

  “You can drop your weapons right here,” Justin points at the ground. “Guns here. Magazines there.”

  Nobody moves, and I press the arrow into the tip of the captain’s nose.

  “Do it!” he barks, pulling his face away. A clicking and clatter of metal is the response. The soldiers back away toward the cover of the forest, several gripping the shafts of my arrows, pain seared into their eyes. The captain raises his head, scanning the mountaintop before turning on his heels with an angry huff and following his men.

  Justin smiles at me; I lower the bow, and we bump our fists against each other.

  “It’s not much,” I admit as the speeding Rovers disappear in the shadows at the foot of the mountain and reappear a few seconds later, transforming into the colors and the shapes and familiarity of Eden. “A hundred or so can’t go up against an army of thousands.”

  Justin watches the men move closer. He activates the safety on the rifle he holds, and crosses his arms, pinning it against his chest.

  “It’s a start,” he replies. He looks at me. “That’s all we need to spark a fire.”

  Chapter 29

  T

  he Rovers are a menacing bunch. Dressed in fatigues and armed with pistols, rifles, and knives of various lengths, they trample in among the crowd, eyes alert, always on the lookout for danger. The people of Jordan gawk at them with awestruck faces and mumble excitedly to each other. There were always rumors of us—rumors that we could fly like the wind and lift houses—but Penelope and Doc were experts in discretion. Only a few people ever saw Eden in action, and never at this magnitude.

  I find Kate in the fray with Claudia and Sophia. She tears her gaze away from the Rovers as I approach. There’s a reservation in her ey
es—a slight fear even. But with a tiny lift of her shoulders, she smiles.

  Jesse and Max weave their way through the people. I recognize Rob Foster with them, a clear leader at the front of the pack, along with Evan Rice. I remember my dad telling me how those two shared equal rank when they graduated. Always in competition, they both entered the guard top of their class. It doesn’t surprise me to see them among the Rovers, and my childhood admiration revives itself a little.

  Jesse breezes to a stop with Max on his heels, and I extend my hand.

  “Good job, man.” I clap Max on the shoulder while Jesse sweeps in to hug Kate. “This is more than I’d expected.”

  “Hey, when you say go find the Rovers, we deliver,” Jesse grins. He lifts his cap from his head with a slight bow and returns his attention to Kate. “You look good, Kate. Super glad you didn’t die.”

  Kate laughs. “Thanks Jesse. So am I.”

  Justin joins us, dropping his pack at his feet and moving in to shake Max’s hand.

  “Where’d you find them?” I ask.

  “Mostly in Shiloh,” Max answers. “But man, Ian, this is a full-blown operation. These guys have been past the Lakes up north.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah,” Jesse picks up the story. “They knew the Vortex was up to something years ago, so they’ve been spying. They watched their technology surpass ours. A few of them saw the first plane tested.” He shakes his head. “Eden wasn’t completely blind-sided by this attack. They just got complacent in the last ten years when nothing happened.”

  Justin and I exchange a glance, totally floored by his words.

  “So, does Eden have a plan?” Justin crosses his arms over his chest. “I mean, they must have prepared for this if they knew it was coming.”

  “I couldn’t say,” Jesse shrugs. He thumbs over his shoulder. “These guys are fully trained soldiers. It’s amazing. They were all members of the guard before they upgraded.”

  “Rob says the Board hasn’t been very cooperative,” Max adds. “They’re too focused on the Serum, trying to make us immortal. With all their talk of training us to protect the wall, a war was never a reality for them. Rob says the leadership never wants to listen to the people on the ground.”

  “Why am I not surprised?” Justin sighs. He runs a hand up the side of his face, and I see it. He’s thinking not only of the Board’s mistakes, but the mess his dad may have created.

  “By the way, you were right about the nanotech.” Jesse tosses his chin toward a few of the loitering Rovers. “These guys already know. It’s part of their training to know. But they sure were surprised when I brought it up.” He leans in, the back of one hand hiding his mouth. “Need to know basis.” He shakes his head. “That’s crap. We all need to know.”

  I start to say something, but movement behind Jesse catches my eye, and in another second, one of the Rovers sidles up and drapes an arm around Jesse’s shoulders. He hands me a crooked grin.

  “Hello there, Ian Roberts.”

  My mouth drops. “Kyle?”

  “Oh yeah,” Jesse grins. “We met Kyle.”

  “Good to see you, Ian.” His eyes fall over Kate, and he raises a brow. “So. This must be the girl who was worth it.”

  He nods toward Kate with a wink. She flashes her eyes toward me until I squeeze her hand reassuringly. I face him.

  “How long have you been out?”

  “Since the night you left.” He leans an elbow against Jesse’s shoulder and crosses his foot over his ankle, the toe of his boot resting on the ground.

  “What happened in there?”

  “First—an alarm. That was enough to urge me back to the gate. It was chaos up there. Some of the expedition teams were trapped outside. The guards wouldn’t let them in.”

  “Why not?” Justin asks. He grips his pocketknife, his knuckles white.

  Kyle pauses, his eyes going dark.

  “Because it was a blood bath out there.”

  We all pause a moment, shifting on wary legs. Max habitually flicks his pocketknife open. Kyle shakes his head.

  “I yelled at them to open the gate and at least let the teams into the inner chamber, but Ernie wasn’t having it. So I climbed to the deck. And I saw the plane.” He frowns. “It took out everyone on the outside, then circled back aiming it guns straight for the Plexiglass. Pocked it full of bullet holes. I dove, but not before I watched Tag take a bullet right through the head.”

  “Tag?” I stare at him, a numb sensation overtaking my body. He nods.

  “He wasn’t the only one. It was insane.”

  I release a long slow breath. For the first time in days, Bethany’s face floods my mind.

  Kyle uncrosses his ankle and shifts his weight away from Jesse.

  “They shuttered the place,” he continues. “Brought down the inner covering of the dome, and that was it. Nobody’s getting in or out.”

  “So how’d you get out?”

  “Took the tunnels, same as you.”

  “What about our families?” Justin asks. “Do you know anything?”

  “No. But . . . I will say Eden was a mess. A real mess. People running around terrified, screaming for each other.” Kyle purses his lips. “Here we have all these abilities, and most of us don’t know what to do with them.”

  “Yeah,” I agree. “And why is that?”

  Kyle shrugs. “Simple. Eden is all about preservation. Making sure we survive if a war breaks out. Let the rest of the world kill each other off, and we’ll still be standing strong inside the wall.”

  “There’s one problem with that theory.” It takes a minute for me to finish my thought. “I did kill.”

  I hate how that sounds coming out of my mouth.

  “Yep,” Jesse adds, and Max nods. “We’ve all done it.”

  “Right. The nanotech,” Kyle nods. “I’ve learned a few things since I’ve been out. We like to think we’re training our children to survive, but we aren’t. We’re simply programming them to react to imminent danger. To destroy the enemy on impulse. We don’t need training for that. It’s a part of Eden’s make up.”

  I swallow. Hearing Kyle say it aloud leaves an ugly, raw lump in the bottom of my gut. Kate’s fingers tighten in my hand reminding me that she’s been here all along for this uncomfortable conversation. I connect with her. Her eyes reflect that familiar understanding that links us together, and I draw from it to steady my nerves.

  I face Kyle. “It’s not about preservation. This is why our classes focus on self-control. It’s all Jones every talks about anymore.”

  Kyle winks. “Bingo.”

  We all stand quiet a moment digesting what I’ve said, and words from the Code resonate in my mind. Self-discipline is the key to unlocking the power within. Unlocking? Or restraining?

  The uneasiness in my gut deepens.

  “So Eden can potentially protect itself from the inside.” Justin’s hopeful voice breaks the momentary silence, and I face him. “We’re all programmed to defend. To fight. To kill. Right?”

  He looks at me, sweeps his eyes toward Max and Jesse, and runs a hand across the top of his head before refocusing on Kyle. Kyle’s eyes shift dangerously before he answers.

  “Potentially, yes. But the Eden-killers pose a problem. The Board never expected anyone to be able to kill us.”

  Justin’s face turns grim, and my hope sinks.

  “Why did you leave Eden?” I ask.

  “Because,” he shrugs. “I’m a Rover. And I had to get word out to them.”

  “You weren’t a Rover when I left.” I frown.

  “I am now, Ian Roberts.” He grins again and tousles my hair. I bat his hand away. “I am now.”

  He steps back, spreads his hands wide, indicating the group behind him.

  “You sent for us, and here we are. Now let’s take our city back.”

  Diana throws herself into Kate, sobs pouring out of her. And Kate breathes a sigh of relief as she melts against her friend and wraps her arms t
ightly around Diana.

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I was angry with you.” Diana’s voice is muffled against Kate’s chest. “It was foolish, and you were not to blame.”

  “I know,” Kate whispers, catching my eye over Diana’s head. She smiles. “Everything is going to be okay from now on.”

  Diana leans away, studies Kate curiously. I smile, rubbing at my chin because I know she’s right. Everything is going to be fine.

  If nothing turns out like we hope, everything will still be fine.

  The expedition team set up camp deep inside the forest, surrounded by a dense grove of trees. It’s well-hidden and close to a stream, and for the first time in a while, I heave a relieved breath. We can bathe, get fresh water . . . we’re safe.

  Jeb wastes no time reuniting Thomas with his family. The little guy trudges between him and Justin, helping to carry a load of firewood. But the wood is forgotten with a clatter the minute he spots his aunt.

  “Aunt Claudia!”

  He jets out in full run and leaps into her arms, and she goes to her knees to cover him in kisses, a sigh of relief escaping her.

  I pause in setting up my tent to smile at the reunion. It’s nice to see it in the midst of all this trouble.

  The group from Jordan begins to disperse, spreading out to find decent places to sleep for the night. Some have tents. Others make shelters out of tarps or blankets and branches. Soon campfires dot the area, and the smell of dinners cooking fills the night air. The sun begins to set, and the day cools off.

  There is no sign of rain. Another relief. And no soldiers. The Rovers made a sweep before letting us bring in the people of Jordan. The coast was clear, but I pause in the middle of setting up my tent to scan the perimeter, my fingers tightening around my bow. I’ve refused to lay it down just yet.

  Kate and Diana sit on a blanket under a tree, talking quietly. Diana’s hand rests over her growing belly. A few more weeks and that baby will be here. Hopefully, we’ll be settled by then.

  I return my attention to the hammer in my hand, and crouch to pin another spike into place.