Strikeforce

by Nick James

  Gritting his teeth, Cassius pushed up and sprinted toward the creature. He kept his elbows out, protecting his torso, and rammed into the soldier’s chest. Barreling forward, he didn’t pause to see what effect he’d had. Instead, he rounded the corner.

  The sharp turns of the corridor grew more constricting. He used the walls as a guide, trying to keep himself from getting too dizzy.

  Another soldier.

  He almost ran into the second guy, but caught himself just in time to deliver a roundhouse kick.

  The Drifter went down immediately, but he knew the first one would still be a problem.

  Sure enough, a narrow band of Ridium shot after him, coiling around his wrist with incredible strength.

  It yanked, pulling him back with enough force that it felt like his arm was going to pop off. A second tendril wrapped around his neck, choking him. He hit the floor. The coils dragged him on his back, toward the waiting soldier.

  Cassius tugged at the Ridium frantically, stealing precious breaths when he could.

  The first soldier said something to the second in the Haven language. He had a slick, oily voice—snakelike, but harder. More menacing.

  Pressing his hands on the Ridium that constricted around his neck, Cassius let his body explode. He’d been aiming for something more focused, but ended up with a blast not unlike the first time he’d burst into flames, back in his dorm room at the Lodge.

  The fire engulfed the entirety of the corridor, knocking away both soldiers. It did little to the walls, which seemed to absorb the brunt of the blaze until the flames dissipated altogether.

  When it was over, his clothing was tattered and seared. He let his arms fall to his sides and heaved air into his lungs. He lay there a moment, too exhausted to move.

  The corridor fell silent again. The soldiers were dead.

  When he was finally able to lift himself, he staggered to his feet, ripped an annoying strip of what used to he his shirt sleeve from his shoulder, and moved forward.

  The soldiers had attacked instantly, without provocation. They’d been guarding something.

  One last turn and the hallway expanded into a wide, circular room. For the first time since entering the vessel, there were windows. Wide portholes wound all the way around the large space, offering a 360-degree view of the world outside.

  Immediately, Cassius could tell that something was wrong. While the windows to his left offered an unencumbered view of the sky, the ones on his right looked straight down at the brown Surface.

  He remembered seeing the ship from the outside. It had landed at a diagonal, drilled into the ground. The sight from the windows instantly threw him. The floor underfoot clearly wasn’t level, but something about the gravity made it feel so.

  The room itself was nearly empty, save for an oval platform that rose from the ground at the center. A faint glow issued from the platform, hitting the low ceiling. Though Cassius couldn’t see much from his position on the sidelines, he imagined a variety of recessed electronics or computers inside. He’d need to investigate.

  He glanced around, making sure that no more soldiers were on their way. He couldn’t imagine that a ship so enormous would have been guarded by just a pair of Drifters. Wasn’t there an alarm system? Backup of some kind?

  Cautiously, he approached the center platform. He kept his footsteps silent.

  Once he was close enough to grip onto the edge, he leaned over and took a look at the source of the faint light.

  Just as he’d suspected. Computers.

  Or at least he assumed they were computers. He couldn’t tell exactly what they were. Some flashed, but not from screens like he was used to. The lights seemed to come directly from the surface of the platform itself. More than that, they circled around on top of the metal, like small fish or tadpoles. Like they were alive.

  Amongst the moving glow rested several stationary, diamond-shaped lights. They shone darker—almost like the black abyss of Ridium, yet somehow reflective. Cassius couldn’t quite understand what he was looking at. He’d never seen a color like it on Earth.

  He reached out a finger to touch the nearest diamond. A ridge of textured material surrounded it.

  He winced, expecting an electric shock or pulse of light.

  Nothing happened.

  He pressed harder. Maybe it wasn’t a button after all.

  He ran his fingers up and down, then tried to catch one of the strange moving lights. They began to pulse. He stepped closer, watching the platform’s strange rhythm. It was captivating, so much so that he forgot to glance behind him.

  Then, everything stopped. The pulse died. The lights froze.

  He watched a sinkhole form in the middle of the platform. He had to remind himself that this was metal he was looking at. It behaved like sand. Quicksand. For a moment, he feared it would keep expanding—swallow him up along with the lights.

  Instead, the platform blossomed.

  Cassius stumbled back. A pillar as thick as a tree trunk grew from the opening at the center, on its way to the ceiling. As it silently spread upward, compartments around the perimeter slid open, revealing shelves of tiny metal cubes.

  Cassius recognized them immediately. The Drifter Ryel had carried one before he died.

  Senso-cubes, used on Haven to catalog important memories of life on the planet.

  When activated, each tiny cube displayed an immersive recreation of whatever memory it stored. He remembered being sucked into a particularly harrowing scene several weeks ago. That was the first time he had heard the voice of Matigo, the Authority’s leader. Unfortunately, his voice and body had been obscured.

  The thick pillar shuddered to a stop as soon as it touched the ceiling of the room. Cassius peered up, wondering just how many cubes were inside, and what they meant. Were they catalogued by the Authority themselves, or stolen from members of the Resistance? Either way, they could contain valuable information. They’d been stored carefully, hidden within the seemingly impenetrable vessel. Regardless of what memories were inside, Cassius knew that they must be important. Or dangerous. But beyond that, any snapshot of his home planet was important to him.

  Cautious to dodge as many frozen lights as he could, he lifted himself onto the platform.

  That was when he felt it—a cold, sickly sensation in his gut.

  He paused, unsure of what had suddenly changed. He looked to his feet, then glanced at the lights below him.

  They were moving again. They swirled around his ankles like a whirlpool.

  The rest of the ground soon joined them, rumbling with the furor of an earthquake. The walls shook.

  Cassius spun, trying to make out what was happening. The room remained empty of soldiers, but the metal shifted, alive.

  Then a rupture spread across the ceiling. Crack and boom, so loud that it resonated in his chest.

  He froze.

  The ceiling exploded.

  20

  Savon and I are so silent that Avery doesn’t even notice us until we set down in the center of the Chute tracks.

  I open my mouth to say her name. But before I can make any more than a small noise, she turns, strides toward me, and pushes on my chest.

  Taken by surprise, I stumble back and nearly collide with my father. The optimist in me was expecting a hug or maybe even a kiss. Instead, she kicks the dirt, clearly rattled from spending time alone in the Fringes.

  “God, Fisher!” She swats me again. “Just when I think I’ve got you back, you get yourself kidnapped again. I can’t keep doing this!”

  “It’s okay.” I grab her shoulder. “Avery, I’m fine.”

  She shakes her head. “I jumped from the train. Is that the stupidest thing you’ve ever heard? I don’t know what I thought I was gonna do when I landed here. Drag myself to a Fringe Town? There aren’t even any in sight!”

  “Calm down,” I say, pulling her closer in a tight embrace. “Here.”

  “You’ve gotta stop it,” she whispers in my ear. “We ca
n’t keep getting torn from each other. I was sure you were gone. I was sure I was gonna die alone out here.”

  “It’s okay. I’m back, and I wasn’t ever in any danger.” I release my grip on her and glance over my shoulder. “Avery. This is … I can’t believe I’m saying this … this guy is my father.”

  The words feel strange coming out, like someone else is saying them.

  Avery pivots, wiping the dust from her face as she stares at Savon. “No way.”

  “It’s crazy, right? He followed me from the city. He’s actually here, Avery! Right when we need him.”

  “That’s … ” She grabs my shoulder, her terror beginning to fade. “That’s amazing, Jesse.”

  Savon gives a slight bow. “A pleasure to meet you. I’m afraid—”

  “You broke from a Pearl? You came all the way from Haven?”

  He crosses his arms. “I’m afraid we’re on a schedule. I know you have many questions, but now”—he glances at the skies—“while we’re exposed like this … now is not the time.”

  Avery raises an eyebrow. “So, you’re the guy who sent Jesse to Earth?”

  Savon nods.

  “Hmm … ” She glances back at me before appraising him once more. “I’ve got some things I wanna say to you.”

  “And I’m sure I’d love to hear them when this is all over.” He pauses. “You’re not Haven-born.”

  “Yeah, so?”

  “If I give you Pearl energy—provided I have any left to give—it would likely kill you. It certainly wouldn’t give you the ability to fly. I’ll have to carry you.”

  Avery shoots me a confused look.

  I bite my lip. “We sort of … flew back to you.”

  Her eyes narrow. “You flew?”

  “I know,” I say. “It’s weird. But trust him, he’s family. He won’t drop you.”

  She sighs. “Honestly, just get me out of the Fringes. Where are we going?”

  “Back to Portland,” I reply.

  “Goodie.” She frowns. “My favorite.”

  ––––

  I remember exactly where our shuttle was parked.

  It’s not there.

  We touch down on the Surface, just below the landing pad, which is remarkably unscathed compared to the rest of the city. Avery stumbles forward as Savon lets her go, disoriented from the breakneck pace we took on our flight back to the city. I’m beginning to flag, myself. I feel the energy fading inside of me. Even though the thought of flying doesn’t horrify me anymore, I’m not sure I’d have enough power to do it for much longer anyway.

  This late in the afternoon, the sun is unforgiving. It heats the dirt to the point where it becomes painful to stay in one place for too long.

  Savon stands behind us, not sweating or winded or visibly uncomfortable in the least. Meanwhile, my heart is doing loop-de-loops and my lungs are working overtime to keep up with my rapid breathing. I can almost hear the sizzle of my skin being burnt.

  Avery turns, shaking her head. “My god, look at the city.”

  I steal a moment to take it all in. Portland lies in ruins behind us, skyscrapers pulverized into piles of rubble. The gleam of the fallen Bio-Nets is visible in the distance. I don’t see signs of movement or fighting. I’m not even sure if the Authority is still active in the area. It’s a massacre, plain and simple. We were lucky to escape with our lives. I pray that Skandar wasn’t amongst the casualties.

  Savon strides forward. “If your friend has any sense, he would have retreated.”

  “It’s only been a couple hours,” Avery says. “But you’re right. Once Skandar realized we were missing, he wouldn’t have stuck around to die.”

  I turn and scan the view ahead of us. “Maybe he left us something. A sign. A message.”

  Savon rests his hands on his hips. “Perhaps you overestimate him.”

  “We’ll see.” I lead the way down the sharp slope of the rock, slinking under the lip of the landing pad. It reaches over us like a makeshift roof. Up the hill on the other side is a cliff that looks down on the Columbia River, a shallow body of water that connects, eventually, with the Pacific Ocean.

  “You’re sure this is the right place?” Savon asks.

  I’m about to respond when a distant explosion ruptures the sky beyond the concrete ceiling. Instantly, I duck and cover my head. Avery does the same. Savon stays still, eyes narrow.

  As I crouch low, I consider what a horrible idea this is. Even if the battle’s over, that doesn’t mean the city’s completely deserted. One strategically placed explosive and the landing pad collapses on our heads. The good news is, we’re far enough away from the city walls to be of any interest. The explosion issued from far in the distance.

  I scan the dark expanse of the landing pad’s underbelly, spinning to take it all in. “Skandar? Talan?” I shout their names. My words echo along the support beams. I can practically feel my father bristling at the sound of my too-loud voice, concerned that it will draw unwanted attention. I turn to face him, making a point to whisper. “There’s nothing.”

  A ringing clang disrupts the darkness behind me. I jump sideways, turning to stare in the direction of the sound. It’s too deep and dark to make out any details from here.

  Avery backs up until we’re side by side. “What was that?”

  Savon pushes his way in front of us. “Behind me. Now.”

  The clang repeats, louder and closer. Metal against rock.

  I keep my voice low. “Is it fighting? Above us, in the city?”

  “No,” he whispers. “It’s close. It’s here.” His attention doesn’t break as he stares at the obscured landscape before us.

  Then I see them. Two at first, but soon joined by more. Red pinpricks of light cut through the darkness, floating closer.

  Eyes. Six pairs of them, though there could be more farther back.

  I think about that last night in the Nevada Bunker. Just one foot soldier had nearly done me in. A half dozen, in such a confined space with no defense, will be slaughter.

  “Let me handle this.” Savon pushes us both back with such force that I struggle not to fall over. As I’m steadying myself, I watch him bound forward into the darkness. A flurry of sounds follows. First frantic footsteps, then blasts of some sort of words I’ve never heard before. Shouts, yells, but no gunshots.

  I stay frozen in place, scared to move any closer. Every once in a while, I see flashes of outlines, though it’s impossible to tell if they’re the Drifters or my father.

  Then one’s thrown toward us. Avery pulls me to the side just as the lifeless body of an Authority foot soldier slams into the ground where we’d been standing.

  I grit my teeth. It’s six against one. I have to help my father.

  I move forward, but Avery restrains me before I can get very far. “Wait,” she warns. “Can you see it? They’re no match for him.”

  As my eyes begin to adjust to the darkness, I realize that she’s right. Savon attacks the soldiers with brute force, delivering bruising blows in every technique imaginable. At points, he even hovers above them, coming down with the strength and speed of a jackhammer. It’s astonishing to watch, and more than a little intimidating. I’m just relieved that his attacks are focused on them.

  I take a meager step forward, just as the landscape falls silent. Savon steps out of the darkness, shoulders heaving with exertion. As his face pulls free of the shadows, I notice a bloody scratch above his good eye. It’s the only sign of a wound.

  “It’s finished,” he says. “I’m afraid there are cracks in the landing pad. Everywhere. When those soldiers don’t return, more will come looking. It isn’t safe here. And more than that, it isn’t helping us find Cassius. If there’s no communicator here, there’s no point in staying any longer than we must.”

  “I just—”

  Something hits my right shoulder, interrupting me. I turn, just in time for a pebble to fly right at my face.

  “Ow!” I stumble into my father’s side. I qu
ickly straighten my back, realizing how ridiculous a tiny rock is compared to what he just did.

  “Jesse! Avery!” Skandar’s voice comes from the edge of the pad. He stands where the sun meets the shade of our makeshift cave, a second stone clutched in his fist. “It is you!”

  Avery beams. “Skandar!”

  He’s too far away for me to see his expression clearly, but that doesn’t last long. Without giving me a chance to respond, he bounds inward. “I thought you were dead,” he says, hands resting on his knees as he leans over. “When the Bio-Nets—”

  I look up at my father, smiling. “He didn’t leave. See? I knew he wouldn’t.”

  Skandar winces. “This place. Man, this place is lost. It’s totally gone. I’ve been hiding out in the—”

  “Do you have the shuttle?” I interrupt.

  He inhales. “That’s what I was about to say. Around the corner. Talan said hide it, so that’s what we did. Then he ran back into the city. I … I haven’t seen him since.”

  Avery smiles. “We’re just glad you’re okay.”

  “Oh man,” Skandar continues. “I didn’t know what to do. I can’t get ahold of Cassius. I couldn’t reach you. Everyone left and I … I didn’t know what to do.” He pauses, then stares up at Savon for the first time. His eyes narrow. “Who’s this?”

  “This is my father, Skandar.”

  “Your who?”

  “My father,” I repeat.

  Savon crosses his arms. He gives Skandar a slight sneer, though it’s not entirely menacing. It’s almost as if he’s putting on a show.

  “Oh.” Skandar looks away, realizing that he’s staring. “Okay. Stranger things have happened, right?”

  Savon wipes the blood from his forehead. “You have no communicator, I take it?”

  “I do,” Skandar replies. “I mean, I have it, but so far it’s not doing me a lot of good. You can head back to the shuttle and try, but all I’m getting is static.” He turns back to me. “I heard the Skyships fell, too. Is that true, Jesse?”