The Last Revolution

by Carpenter, R. T.

  Two soldiers appeared out of the crowd carrying fully automatic weapons. Tex quit talking until they had disappeared around an adjacent corner. He led them to an observation area, with a wall of windows that looked out over the massive canyon Apollo City had been built into. It was easily several hundred meters to the bottom and just as far to the surface. The full immensity of the city came into view. Tens of thousands of little windows could be seen protruding out from the canyon wall beneath them.

  The area around them was less populated. Various types of trees had been planted in order to provide a little natural beauty to an otherwise bleak and practical surrounding. Tex stepped behind one of the trees, and then reached into his coat pocket. Alden’s hand twitched when Tex produced a small handgun. It’s a trap.

  “Caleb asked me to get these for you.” He handed the gun to Kira, who stashed it inside her jacket. Reaching behind his back, he pulled out another gun and gave it to Alden.

  “Mr. West told me you’re military deserters from Earth.” He offered them both small paper documents. “These are your lunar IDs. They’ll help you move between levels. Your identities have already been scanned into the system. However, they won’t hold up under intense scrutiny, so be careful…with both of these. You’re a married couple that lives on L9. She’s employed by the government and you’re a maintenance worker.”

  “I’m a what?”

  “Trust me, the more unimportant you seem, the easier your life will be.” Tex looked around uneasily. “I need to go now, the less we’re seen together the better.”

  “What if we need to reach you again?” Kira asked.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be around.” He stepped out from behind the tree and began to walk away.

  “Wait, one more thing,” Alden called. “Where’s the Green Dragon Pub?”

  “It’s on this level and two floors down.” He disappeared back into the crowd.

  Chapter 6

  It had been hours since Arakiel had seen any signs of life and the trip from New Tranquility had been uneventful to say the least. The lunar surface was an unending blur of barren hills and desolate craters. It was little wonder everyone up here was crazy. You’d have to be psychotic to choose this lifestyle. The proximity alarm on his wrist deck went off. He took a few more steps and then finally reached his destination at the edge of an enormous crater.

  At the bottom of the bowl was a solitary grey building. There was an entrance on one side, and a large communication tower on roof. Arakiel quickly descended the steep crater wall. After the mind numbing trip, he’d almost expected the crater to be empty. But the Guardian had been right, as usual.The location made sense from a tactical perspective. It would be impossible to see from the surface, and it would easily blend in to the surrounding landscape if someone happened to fly over.

  He covered the distance to the building as fast as possible. Who knew what sorts of defenses it contained. He pulled a small device out of his pocket, clicked it on, and then chucked it at the communication tower. The grenade rotated as it soared through the void. There was a moment of blinding light, followed by a spherical blast of energy and then it collapsed back on itself in the blink of an eye. All that remained was a twisted and unrecognizable metal structure.

  It wouldn’t have been his choice to attack a military structure. He moved towards the entrance, pushing chunks of floating debris out of his way. It seemed there were so many less conspicuous ways to get the information they wanted, but orders were orders. Arakiel reached into his other pocket and produced a small piece of clay. He pressed it against the door handle. It wouldn’t take any time to make his way through the automated facility, find the terminal and download the files. He primed the charge, averted his eyes and detonated the device.

  A small hole had been blown into the left side of the door and it opened with ease. He was met with a dizzying array of security lights that bathed the stairwell in red. He descended the wide set of steps, until he reached a giant steel door that cut him off from the rest of the facility. He had less than twenty minutes before the first military transports touched down.

  He pressed a few buttons on his deck and activated the program he’d been given by the Guardian. On cue, the door retracted into the ceiling and then a second layer of doors slid to either side. There was a quick whoosh as the oxygen was vented from the room. At the rate the software was taking control, the whole facility would be his in fifteen seconds.

  Some computer technician back at the Council military base was undoubtedly scrambling to lock the virus out. He was about to have the worst day of his life. Arakiel’s wrist deck lit up and displayed the control panel for the entire facility. He was in. The doors closed behind him and the oxygen poured back into the room. The security lights were still going off, along with the panicked sound of the alarms. The entrance door came to life and slid open, disappearing into the left wall.

  Arakiel stood at the end of a long hallway, but instead of an empty space there were dozens of soldiers lined up along both of the walls. All of them stood fully erect, automatic assault rifles pointed at him.

  Someone yelled, “Fire!”

  Every soldier in the room unloaded on him. Arakiel dove out of the way and quickly tapped on his wrist deck. The door froze in place and provided a barrier from the gunfire. He hid behind it as bullets rained down on the room. He pushed himself into a sitting position against the back of the door. The Guardian hadn’t mentioned the base was protected by an entire squad of Council soldiers!

  Was this punishment for failing to kill the soldier in Munich? Did he want him to fail? Security robots and a few soldiers would have been doable. But there had to be twenty fully-armed soldiers out there. He was meeting with Viktor tonight; if he didn’t leave with those schematics he’d never get another chance. Every facility would go on high alert. They’d be heavily reinforced by the other support units.

  That’s why you’re weak. You’re focused on the individual… Small thinking… you fail to see the big picture. What is a man’s life worth if the reactor is detonated inside acity? How many lives will you be responsible for losing then? You’re better than this, now start acting like it. The Guardian’s words rung in his ear as the automatic weapon fire continued. Those men were an obstacle to accomplishing his goal. They didn’t know it, but they were standing in the way of peace. If the reactor was not safely delivered along with the schematics, war was inevitable. He would not fail the Guardian. Sometimes sacrifices were required.

  Arakiel scrolled through the facilities control panel on his deck until he found what he was looking for. With the press of a button he activated every security drone in the facility. They were under attack; eliminate the hostile forces. The hydraulic sound of wall panels moving could be heard around the corner, and in an instant the pitch of the fire changed. The drones had started to attack the soldiers.

  Jumping up, Arakiel pulled out his sidearm, stepped back into the hallway and began firing at everything that moved. The area had erupted into a hellish chaos. Robots had emerged from their stasis positions behind both walls. They were interspersed between all the soldiers. Blood spattered the tiles. The machines were taking them down one at a time. A stray bullet hit the drone nearest Arakiel. It exploded and slumped to the ground. He dived over the wreckage, grabbing an assault rifle off a dead soldier.

  He popped up over a barrier; time had slowed to a crawl. The energy of the moment elevated him to another level of performance. His eyes registered each weapon that was firing in the hallway. He squeezed off a set of controlled bursts at the soldiers who seemed to be gaining an upper hand on his robotic allies. A few moments later, there was only one soldier still standing. He was firing two sidearms simultaneously at the drones surrounding him.

  Arakiel lifted a knife off one of the soldiers slumped against the wall and slung it as hard as he could. It hit the lone soldier square in the chest. The force of the impact sent him flying back and into thewall. The room fell into a deathly si
lence. The hallway was completely destroyed and bloodstained bodies lined either side. Large piles of dead robots littered the path. He pressed a button on his wrist deck, and deactivated the remaining drones. Arakiel pulled up the layout of the base and located the server room just around the corner.

  Pressing a few buttons on the nearest console, a holographic display of the ADNV Testament appeared. Arakiel could use his hand to manipulate the image. It allowed him to examine the ship from any angle. He initiated the download sequence and watched as a wealth of information was transferred to his deck. He had to hurry; backup would be here within ten minutes. When all of the files had been transferred the light clicked green. He typed several commands into the control panel and started the self-destruct sequence.

  Moments later, Arakiel was back inside his hovercraft and speeding away from the crater as fast as it would carry him. The reactor was still safely tucked in the back seat. He watched as the timer in his heads up display ticked down to zero. The surface area surrounding the crater sank into the ground until the entire thing disappeared below the surface. In the end, the base was returned to the ground and all that was left was a bigger crater.

  ****

  Alden leaned around the corner. There it was. An old wooden sign hung above the doorway, an image of a green dragon breathing fire carved into it. They’d finally arrived outside the pub on the lower levels of Apollo City. He dropped back behind the wall. Kira stood next to him, dressed as a colonist, complete with dirt smudges on her face.

  “Remember our story?”

  She nodded. “We’re only going to get one shot at this. Let’s do it.”

  Alden followed Kira down the street and then into the entrance of the pub. The inside had seen better days and it smelled like helium-3. Steam pipes stretched across the ceiling. The area in front of them was cluttered with dingy tables and patrons. The ambient sound of the pub disappeared as everyone watched them move up to the bar. The hostility was palpable.

  “Charming place,” Alden whispered.

  She nodded. “Follow my lead.”

  The bartender seemed unusually cold, even for this place. He ignored their arrival, and scrubbed away at several glasses. Alden made out half a tattoo, barely visible under his sleeve.

  “Hello,” Kira said.

  The bartender barely looked up.

  “Could we get two Jamesons straight up?”

  He ignored them for a few more minutes, until he finally pulled the rag out of the glass and set them both back down on the shelf. He pulledtwo glasses down, and filled them with a caramelized liquid. He dropped them on the bar and slid them over. “Hundred twenty credits.”

  Kira swiped her deck over the digital reader.

  “Thanks for the tip,” the bartender grunted.

  Kira smiled. “I like your bar.”

  He didn’t bother turning back around.

  Kira continued, “It seems clean…no Terrans.”

  “It’s against the law to segregate,” he responded.

  One of the drunken customers on their left uttered an expletive in agreement.

  “Then I guess you’ve heard about the bombing in New Tranquility?”

  “Who hasn’t?”

  “It serves them right for bringing more soldiers up here.”

  “It’s an invading enemy if I’ve ever seen one,” the patron slurred.

  Several other people sitting at the bar nodded in agreement.

  “Shut your trap,” the bartender snapped at them.

  Alden watched Kira take a sip of her drink. He wasn’t sure what she was getting at, but it didn’t appear to be working. This was going to be a lot more difficult than he’d realized.

  “I actually grew up in New Tranquility,” she said. “What about you?”

  The bartender slammed another glass down on the bar. “Look lady, I don’t know who you are and I don’t care. It’s time for you and your friend to go.”

  “We want to get involved,” Alden blurted. The words had left his mouth before he’d had the chance to think them through. The bartender just stared at him. Another calculated risk, hopefully this one worked out better.

  “Get involved in what?” He leaned in.

  “The resistance,” Alden said, holding his ground.

  “Did I hear that you’re interested in getting involved?” A man walked up. He stepped into the space between them. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “Pleasure is all mine,” Kira responded, smiling.

  He took her outstretched hand and kissed it gently. “So what would you like to do?”

  “We just want to help. We don’t even know what needs to be done.”

  The man had his back to Alden, cutting him out of the conversation. “What’s a pretty lady like you doing in a dirty place like this?”

  “I’m Kira, from L9. This is my husband Alden. We’re tired of the bloodshed; we want to get involved. We want to kick the Council off Luna.”

  The hair on the back of his neck stood up. Something was about to happen. The drunken patron’s eyes looked over his shoulder. Alden instinctively moved his head to the right as a glass bottle flew past his face and crashed into the wall behind the bartender.

  He pushed off from the bar just as two guys rushed him from behind. This was not how it was supposed to go! He dodged several rapid-fire punches and used the assailant’s momentum to push him head first into the bar. Deflecting a kick from the second person, he was able to land a blow into their rib cage.

  Kira let out a startled yell and jumped back. Three more people threw their table over and ran at him. It was all he could do to block their shots and send them sprawling out of the way without seriously injuring anyone.

  The man grabbed Kira by the wrist. “What are you really doing here? Who do you work for?”

  “We just want to help!” Kira responded. “We were told this was the place to go.”

  There was a great crash in the distance. Screams rang out. Dozens of people were running past the bar outside. Someone hollered, “They’re locking down L3, rounding up anyone that isn’t licensed.”

  There were a few stifled screams from inside the bar, but it was immediately disrupted as dozens of police officers crashed through the thin walls. The man who had been holding Kira looked stunned, unsure how to react. The patrons that tried to swarm the officers were tackled as more guards flooded the room.

  One guy attempted to put up a fight. He threw a punch, dropping one of the police officers. He was blindsided by a club to the face. He fell to the ground, motionless and bleeding. That was all it took. People ran off in all directions.

  Several officers sprinted towards him with steel clubs in hand. Alden figured he could sustain a few attacks, but those clubs were meant for breaking bones.

  He avoided the first strike, grabbed the officer’s baton and gave him a strong kick. The man released the weapon as he fell. Alden swung and landed a blow into the arm of the second officer. Several soldiers charged Kira and the stranger. He let go of Kira, and tried to defend himself, but he took a club to the face. He dropped like a sack of rocks. Suddenly a gun fired and Alden’s right shoulder lurched back in searing pain. He saw the horror in Kira’s eyes.

  Alden swung the club at the officer who had just fired at him. He landed a debilitating blow against his temple and the man slumped to the floor. Alden flipped the steel rod in his hand and then flung it across the room at the guard that had just hit the stranger.

  The metal connected with the back of his head. Alden was over the pile of guards around him and across the room in a matter of seconds. Easily weaving between their clumsy blows, he landed a flurry of hits against anyone who stood in his way.

  Alden grabbed Kira’s arm. “We have to go now! Soldiers with guns will be here any minute.”

  “We can’t leave him.” Kira pointed at the stranger sprawled out on the floor.

  “We can’t risk it. We have to go now!”

  “He’s our only way in, we have to.�
��

  Alden sighed; she was right. He bent down and picked the man up, threw him over his shoulder and then moved to the back of the bar. They were partially obscured from the chaos in the street.

  “Wake up, wake up!” Alden slapped the man’s face.

  His eyelids separated and the first moments of consciousness registered on his face. “What’s going on, what happened?”

  “You were attacked, but Alden saved you,” Kira said. “The police are shutting down L3. They’re rounding up anyone that isn’t licensed. Is there any way out of here?”

  He looked up at them through a half hazed stupor. “Huh, what?”

  “We need to get out of here! Now!”

  “Oh, umm…follow me.”

  Alden put a hand under his arm and helped him to his feet. They ran the rest of the way through the bar and then down a back hallway. It sounded like the screams were getting closer.

  The man came to an abrupt stop. He pounded his fist against a non-descript part of the wall. On cue, a small section sank back and disappeared. The man raced through with Kira and Alden closely behind. As they rounded the first corner, the door slid shut behind them.

  Alden found himself wandering down a dimly lit tunnel. The walls had been heavily refined so the lunar regolith was almost indistinguishable from concrete. Flakes of dust glinted under the light of the lamps hanging from the ceiling. He could face almost any challenge that lay at the other end of the tunnel, but the thought of a thousand meters of dirt above his head made him shudder. He’d always been terrified at the thought of being buried alive. Unable to move, forced to endure the slow deprivation of oxygen. What a terrible way to go. Pushing the thought out of his mind, he picked up his pace until he was jogging next to the man.

  “How’s your head?”

  He shrugged. “I’ve been better.”

  “What happened back there? Why were they raiding the lower levels?”

  “They were rounding up anyone without papers. It’s not uncommon, but I’m sure it had to do with the explosion in New Tranquility. They’ll search all the colonies.”