by G F Cusack
For a moment, the smile left Frank's face. It was true they had needed to kill for their own survival. He had been responsible for a lot of death over the years but he saw this as a necessary evil. He was accountable for the lives of his people and their safety was his only real concern.
“I guess you're right,” Frank said, letting go of Hook’s hand. “What do we do about the vehicles?”
“This is kind of a one-way trip,” Hook replied “I myself have always tried to live my life with the hope of a backup plan but over the last few weeks it’s become apparent that we are headed for only one of two outcomes. We will overthrow the Company and survive or we all die trying. I would suggest that your fighters hide the vehicles as best they can. Bring with you only what you can carry but do not expect to return to these vehicles.”
Judging by the look on Frank’s face, he wasn’t happy about leaving the vehicles.
“I have made some arrangements on the other side,” Hook said. “Smuggling you through the ports on both sides of the water is going to be difficult enough. Since the riots have begun, security in the Sanctuary has been increased tenfold. The good news is that increasing security has stretched the Company thin so its security net has holes. Should we fail in our tasks within the Sanctuary, I doubt any of you will survive to take a return boat journey. Before you come with me now, you need to decide if this is what you want. Once you board these boats, there is no turning back.”
Frank would have preferred to drive his own vehicles onto the boats but understood Hook’s point about the difficulty of smuggling a large group. There really was no turning back. This was all or nothing: he saw this as the future not only of his fighters but also of the masses.
Over the last couple days, he’d talked with Flo about the injustices and disparities in the Sanctuary that Zap had told her about. Even without the exact numbers, the intelligence was that the Sanctuary held enough resources for all of the people there but the insatiable one percent had chosen to hoard them while starving these people.
Frank had never really seen himself as a good man. In some ways, his forefathers would have seen many of his actions over the years as criminal. Since the Water Wars, humanity had changed a great deal. Grading someone as good or bad was determined by how high they were in the pecking order; if you had the luxury of being able to grade somebody, you were usually higher up.
“How long to the boat? And when do we leave?” Frank asked.
“We should have everyone on board within an hour,” Hook replied. “I’ve had to split you into two boats. They should both leave about the same time and arrive about the same time. With this arrangement, we can use smaller boats so they are less noticeable but also, if one of the boats should be discovered, at least the resistance will have half of your force for the revolution. I hope you understand this.”
Frank was pragmatic. The reason they were attempting this venture was that he believed his force could make a difference in the resistance’s fight. Losing all of his fighters in one fell swoop would not help the people and so he resigned himself to this. “Debs, you and Cenk take half our people and brief them. Once they’ve unloaded, ditch the trucks. Be back here in ten minutes. You will be on the second boat. Pepper, you and Lacey get among the rest of our people, give them the same orders and high-tail it back here. You and that group will come on the first boat with me.”
Hook was impressed with Frank’s decisiveness, the way he accepted the situation and also the way he reacted to the information straight away.
He’d been hesitant when Karla had first briefed the resistance on the arrival of these rebels. They were an unknown quantity in an already fluid situation. On the plus side, these were battle-hardened people with nothing left to lose, which made them a valuable asset. If the Company were unaware they were coming, this was a surprise that could definitely make a difference.
“Flo, with me,” Frank said. “I want you listening for info from Zap in case he can help us with any advance warning. Pepper, once you’re back, stay by her side.”
Before Pepper could answer, Eric said, “I’m coming with you.”
Frank had expected no less. Since they reconnected at the border, Eric had not left Flo’s side day or night. Whenever Flo had come to brief him on Zap’s intelligence, Eric had tagged along. During one of the briefings Flo had divulged to Frank and Eric that the commander of the attacks on their compound, Paris’s compound and the Farm was the right-hand man of the leader of the Sanctuary, an individual known as Will. Ever since then, Eric had been obsessed with finding more about this Will.
For all he knew, Eric slept at the foot of her bed like a faithful guard dog. This was fine: her security was important and having Eric around saved Frank from having to divert his valuable resources for this task.
True to his word, Hook saw them safely through the fence and the boats left on time.
A winter storm was churning up the waters, and the heavy downpour while the fighters were boarding had reduced the level of scrutiny of the boats’ cargo. The sentries of the port seemed happy to stay in their little hut, rather than patrol in the rain.
Even though the Sanctuary have been experiencing unrest, it appeared the land on this side of the water had not suffered the same problems. These guards seemed unaware of any threats, reminding Frank of the complacency of the border sentries. He’d considered taking out the guards and bringing his vehicles along but he bowed to Hook’s guidance as this was his domain.
The resistance in the Sanctuary trusted Hook enough to make him the liaison. He was putting his life and the lives of his own fighters at risk so Frank had to trust his strategy and stop second-guessing the plan. Trying to override the strategy would have just been something to feed Frank’s ego and he was not prepared to risk over five hundred lives just so that he could feel superior.
It was clear some of his people had not been on a boat before. In truth, Frank hadn’t spent much time on boats himself. As the boats tossed up and down on the churning waves, many of the fighters emptied the contents of their stomachs over the floor of the holds where they were hidden. These people had tough constitutions – they could survive on gel packs and anything else they could scavenge – but apparently being shaken up like a cork in a bottle was a little too much to stomach.
The smell of so much vomit was almost overwhelming. Everyone was happy to eventually reach the island port.
The storm had abated by the time they pulled alongside the dock. Frank had been given the courtesy of standing in the boat’s cockpit. Looking down at the docks, he noticed a convoy of Company vehicles. Immediately he drew his pistol and aimed it at Hook. “What’s the meaning of this? I thought you were on our side?”
“Wait, wait, wait,” Hook said. “You don’t understand, those are ours.”
“What do you mean those are ours?”
“I realise that I haven’t provided as many replacement vehicles as you left behind. I did tell you I had made arrangements and I believe that I also told you, I’d recently been redistributing quite a few things from the Company.”
A ramp was dropped from the boat and the first truck drove on board. “Those are my crew driving those trucks,” Hook said. “There is enough space in the back for all of your people and also a selection of Company uniforms. Not enough for everybody but enough that your fighters can pass as a Company convoy at first glance. I apologise for not warning you but I wasn’t sure if the vehicles would make it.”
“And what was your plan if they hadn’t been here?”
“Remember what I told you about backup plans? They seem to have gone out the window lately. If they hadn’t been here, we would have been in big trouble.”
Frank almost smiled at this. The relief from realising the trucks were friendly was easing the tension in his body slightly. If this smuggler had managed to steal so many Company trucks, perhaps this venture was not totally doomed.
He waved to the cockpit of the second boat as it pulled alongside th
e docks. Through his binoculars, he could see Debs and through a similar pair she was observing him. He pointed to the remaining trucks on the docks and gave a thumbs-up signal, which she returned. They couldn’t trust electronic communications in case the Company was listening.
The second half of the convoy drove up the ramp onto the other boat. As the first vehicle on Frank’s boat came to a halt, out jumped CT. “Frank, this is Clarence Thomas, CT to his friends. A man I have had to trust with my life recently.”
CT smiled. “We have a farm outside of the capital that is large enough to accommodate you and your people. We will leave in two convoys, thirty minutes apart. If that is okay with you?”
Frank nodded and addressed Hook, “With your permission, I will take CT with me and we will brief the other convoy leaders.”
Frank then turned to Pepper “It’s going to take a little while to sort things out but we need to get out of here. I’ll be back in twenty minutes. I need to ensure that Debs understands the plan and introduce her to her guide, CT. I assume you’ll be leading the second convoy?” he said to CT.
“Yes that’s the plan,” CT replied.
“I’ll meet you on the dockside, Pepper. I’m taking Flo with me but we will be straight back.” Eric tried to object but Frank cut him off. “I understand, Eric, you don’t want to leave her side but we need to move quickly and I need her with me in case Zap sends us an urgent message. Stay here with Pepper and help him load up our people.”
He paused waiting for pushback from Eric but there was none. “Pepper, my people have come to trust you as one of their own so don’t let me down. I’ll be back as soon as possible. Cenk, you support Pepper – I want our people off this boat ASAP. Put armed men in each cab and find out who we can fit in these Company uniforms. I know it’s distasteful wearing their clothes but this is not the first time we have used this subterfuge and it may keep us alive.”
As promised, Frank returned to the convoy in less than half an hour. He jumped into the vehicle next to Hook and the driver, both of whom were now wearing the Company uniforms. Flo joined Pepper and Eric in the back seats of the double cab.
“I thought you were both going to be in uniform?” Frank said to Pepper.
“I’m sorry,” Pepper said. “But young Eric here has a big issue with the Company and I thought it would be more expedient just to let him sit in the back, rather than fight over this. I wasn’t sure how many dark skins there would be here in the Sanctuary so I thought it better for me to sit back here too.”
“Okay,” Frank said, “but if we come across any checkpoints, keep your heads down.”
47
Brand takes stock
26 September 2202
The thug squad had been neutralised. Some thought that it had been the work of off-duty soldiers. They had been ambushed when they had gone to employ their brutality tactics in an area inhabited by families of dead soldiers.
Brutality against the masses was one thing but brutality against your own side was not acceptable. Most of the Company troops didn’t like the thug squad – some of them had previously served with squad members and had suffered at their hands. The problem with putting all the bullies in one place was they had lots of enemies and you created a focus for those enemies.
Some of the Company leaders had initially questioned the policy of creating the thug squad. River had ignored these concerns as he had Brand’s backing and wanted to make a big impression. But once the squad started targeting the families of dead and injured troops, tensions with the other troops heightened.
It all started because the families were complaining that the Company had reduced their food rations. Now that the SUP had a secret benefactor that was not part of the establishment, the families’ allegiances were being challenged. The military community was more of a family than most. Knowing that at any stage their own families could be starving, soldiers too began questioning which side they should be on.
It was surprising how fast the unrest had grown, even among the Company troops. The elites had miscalculated how far they could push people. Brand had even needed to attend one council meeting and lay down the law. He’d arrested two of the council members and sent them to the gel plants as an example.
Yet the elites had already committed themselves so strongly to their greed that they could not understand consequences. As far as they were concerned, they were above all rules and laws so consequences meant nothing to them.
Having never been stopped before, they thought they could just continue with the same actions. The disparity between the haves and have-nots had been going on so long that, in the view of the elite, the lives of the poor had no value. They saw to it that the poor were sent to the plants at forty-five, whereas they could die of old age if they chose.
Brand only became involved in the day-to-day running of the capital when things started to go wrong. And this time, things had really started to go wrong! As the situation spiralled, it was starting to affect Brand and anything that impacted Brand annoyed him. His spies had told him of the growing unrest. No matter how many times he tried to instil fear into these idiots, they just didn’t get it. The situation had deteriorated to the point where they almost had a full-scale rebellion on their hands.
That imbecile River had been stoking up resentment and making the situation even worse. Brand was unsure if it would be a good move to replace River and his troops while still trying to quell a rebellion. He was himself a big proponent of brutality as a way of keeping people under control.
Yet using cruelty for no reason removed structure. If you didn’t give the masses the structure they craved, anarchy could occur. The numbers were not in the elites’ favour so they had to rule smartly. Apparently Brand was the only member of the council who got this message.
His spies had told him about the impending attacks. He didn’t know where or when they would occur but he knew they were coming. All the troops were supposedly on high alert, but they were stretched thinly because of the approaching festival. River’s strategy of increasing patrols was stretching the troops even more.
Smit may have had his failings but he understood strategy a lot better than River. He would not have made these same mistakes but unfortunately Smit was no longer around. It was rare that Brand admitted making mistakes, even to himself, but replacing Smit with River was something he was regretting. He would have been better off installing one of his own puppets to do his bidding.
Time was running out and Brand was making his own contingency plans. He had not survived as the supreme leader for this long without having lots of contingency plans. In this time of crisis, he had to consider his own survival.
48
Zap and Flo meet
27 September 2202
Flo couldn’t wait to meet Zap.
They had been coordinating between the rebels and the resistance in their minds but had not had a chance to talk socially, let alone meet in person. She had so many questions for him.
Frank was going to a meeting at a place known as the fighting pits. She had convinced him to take her along so that she could finally meet Zap.
Eric had tried to insist that he should come too. However, she sensed that he felt some jealousy towards another male in her life so she had convinced him to stay with Pepper and prepare for the coming battles. Pepper was working with Eric to develop his shooting skills, which at the same time was helping to break down any remaining animosity between them.
“I’ve been told we’ll be with you in ten minutes,” Flo said in Zap’s head.
They had said that they would wait until they met to talk but Flo was too excited for that.
“I can’t wait to meet you, I’ve got lots to tell you,” Zap replied.
As Frank and Flo exited their vehicle, they were greeted by a man with one eye and a small serious-looking man.
“I’m Angus and this is Miyamoto,” the one-eyed man said to Frank, offering him his hand. “The rest of the resistance leaders are already h
ere, please follow us upstairs.”
Frank shepherded Flo along with him, while taking in their surroundings. He had survived for a long time by being able to quickly size up a person and his instincts told him that his two guides were able to take care of themselves. Sending two such men to meet them served as reassurance that the resistance wasn’t playing but also showed that they did not yet trust Frank fully.
As they reached the top of the stairs, Flo saw a young man who looked about the same age as her. Their eyes immediately locked with recognition.
Not prepared to wait any longer, she ran towards him as she felt the word, “Hello” in her head. Zap also started to advance and they met half way, both smiling delightedly.
“Hi, I’m Flo.”
“I kind of guessed that,” Zap said with a grin.
Frank had let Flo run ahead to meet Zap but had now caught up. “You must be Zap?”
Zap nodded, more reserved now.
“We’ve a lot to thank you for. If it hadn’t been for your warnings, I don’t know if I or my fighters would be still alive.”
Zap blushed a little, unused to such praise.
Angus and Miyamoto were gesturing for Frank to follow them into the meeting room with the rest of the rebel leaders.
“This will probably take a while so take some time to get acquainted.” Frank patted Flo on the shoulder and left them standing together.
“Are you thirsty or hungry?” Zap asked.
“It is a bit warm in here.”
“Follow me.”
Zap led her to a large kitchen-like room that had big containers of cold drinking water and tables full of fruit and other foods. “The elites are supplying all of this to feed the warriors before the festival. They like the warriors to be fit and well in order to put on a good show. Help yourself.”
