Fall: Cross of the past, key of the future (Numbered Book 4)

by Magus Tor

  Now Jonathon was grinning too. “Good work,” he said. “Now sit; we've got tactics to discuss.”

  Aurelia sat back with Elza, loaded the med instructions up onto her screen, and the two started going through them. Elza had done a good job, and Aurelia thought of only a couple of small points to add.

  “You can use alcohol to dull pain and prevent shock,” she said. “But don't forget that it will thin blood and increase bleeding as well, so it needs to be used sparingly and only in situations where bleeding is fully controlled.”

  Elza made the edits, and Aurelia looked out of the window, startled to see that the shuttle was already off the ground. I must be getting used to flying, she thought, remembering her first shuttle trip, when she'd been terrified. Now she hardly seemed to notice the vibrations of the ship. Craning her neck at an odd angle, she could just make out one of the other two shuttles, a fair distance behind them. She wondered if they were armed, but Nicholas was too busy to ask.

  Glancing over at Elza, she saw that she was still busy, so Aurelia settled herself more comfortably into her seat and listened to the male conversation around her.

  “It makes sense to divide our forces,” Nicholas was saying. “But not completely evenly.”

  “What are you suggesting?” Jonathon asked. Already Aurelia could hear the sharp edge of anger in his voice.

  “I'm saying that we give up the idea of 01, 04, and 03 at the moment,” Nicholas said. “We concentrate only on 02, which we know we can take fairly easily, and 05, where we already have a Resistance-controlled outpost in the desert. We concentrate on taking 02, as it's a complete City and one with a lot of resources, but 05 will be a useful backup. The caverns under the desert are an ideal place to take the injured or to station soldiers who can be used as relief. It also means that we aren't putting all our eggs in one basket.”

  “Eggs? Basket?” asked one of the other men, whose voice Aurelia didn't recognise.

  “It's an old saying,” said Nicholas. “I mean that we aren't taking the risk of putting all our forces in the same place. Should something happen to those in 02, then we still have reinforcements in 05.”

  “Actually, I think I agree,” Jonathon said, seeming calmer. “But I want as many Resistance evacuated from 04, 03, and 01 as possible.”

  “Understood,” said Nicholas. “That shouldn't be too much of a problem. Many of those in 04 have already been taken out of the City and sent to 05, anyway. The City is about to fall to the Elite Army. I've ordered only token resistance, just enough to allow us to get everyone out who needs to be out. Then 04 will be abandoned.”

  City 04 was the birthplace of Aurelia's mother, and she was sad to hear that it was to fall to the Elite. She had been there a few weeks ago, and though the place was cold and snowy, she’d felt a certain connection to it. But Nicholas made sense; he always did in matters like these. It was better to focus on somewhere they knew could be made safe. Though remembering the poisonous water, swamp, and plants around City 02, Aurelia wondered just how many accidents there'd be before the troops were ready to fight.

  The shuttle journey was a long time to be sitting. Aurelia felt her skin become dry, itching from the controlled atmosphere inside the ship. She yawned, and Elza looked up from her screen.

  “We'll get food soon,” she said. “Then maybe you should sleep. This might be your last chance at a vaguely comfortable few hours of rest before we get to Earth, so take advantage of it.”

  The two went over a few small details in the field med Worker manual, then Elza declared herself satisfied.

  “I'll upload it to the screens of those I've chosen to lead groups of med Workers,” she said.

  Aurelia was questioning her as to how she was dividing her resources and how she was designing her med teams when a shuttle steward arrived with food. Opening the package, she saw the same brown stew that was always served on the shuttles. The first time she'd tasted it, she'd had to admit that despite its mud-like appearance it was actually quite good. Now, however, after having had real food rather than synth-food, the stew tasted bland, and the texture of the meat was a little off. She pushed her plate away. Then, taking Elza's advice, she settled in to try to sleep for a couple of hours.

  The shuttle had already landed when Elza shook her arm. Aurelia stretched, blinking in the bright deck lights.

  “We're down.”

  Aurelia looked out of the window and saw that they had landed towards the edge of the 01 shuttle bay. She could see tall residential buildings close by. She also saw one of the two other shuttles. A grinding, sliding sort of noise came from the other side of the deck, making her think that the third shuttle had also just landed safely.

  Nicholas was already on his portable com system. Jonathon was watching as he spoke.

  “All okay?” he asked, as Nicholas pressed the icon to finish his conversation.

  “Good to go. The shuttle bay is currently closed down, everyone evacuated. We were given landing permission, as were several other shuttles, but we're locked down until the bay is open to accept visitors again.” The Clone grinned.

  “And?”

  Nicholas shrugged. “The group commanders are already opening the shuttle's loading doors. We'll need to exit down there too, and then we get to see what Lukas has arranged for us by way of transport to 02.”

  Following Nicholas, the group went through the central column of the deck. He hesitated in front of the elevators and then turned towards the steward's cabin, where Aurelia knew the emergency stairwell was located.

  “I don't know if the elevators are needed below or not,” he said. “Best to be safe. And the exercise will do us good.”

  Forty long flights of stairs later, they emerged into the cargo bay of the shuttle—panting, legs aching, and cursing Nicholas, particularly when they saw that the elevators were not in use at all. He took the criticism well, laughing at their cramped muscles, and led them through the wide bay, dodging crates as he went. Soldiers were gathered at mustering points marked on the walls, their voices loud and cheerful. Again, Aurelia marvelled at how they could act so normally, knowing what they were about to do.

  Finally, they walked down the long cargo ramp and onto the concrete of the bay landing pad. Immediately, Aurelia breathed in the damp, fresh scent of Earth and felt her skin drinking in the humidity of the air. She always felt better on Earth.

  Nicholas was looking around. When he eventually spotted what he was looking for, he raised a hand. “Over here!”

  Aurelia was happy to see Lukas, who was smiling, his scarred face as friendly as ever.

  “I was starting to think that you'd missed your flight,” he said, jogging over to join them. “I've got about fifty force commanders yelling at me and demanding that their men be allowed off the ship, and no President to give me the order to do so.” He clapped Jonathon on the back. “Congrats on that, Mr. Pres.”

  Jonathon gave him a back-slapping hug back. “So, how are you getting us all down to 02?”

  “Ah, right, that. Hold on a second.” Lukas pulled out his portable com, keyed in a combination, then put it away again. “Wait just a minute,” he said.

  There was an electronic whirring that grew louder and louder, until Aurelia could make out the shape of a pod, then another, and another. The pods grew larger, and she could see that they were the large cargo transporters she'd used before. There must have been at least a dozen of them, maybe more.

  “Liberated them from the cargo depot,” said Lukas, proudly. “Should do the job.”

  Jonathon nodded. “Nice idea. And have arrangements been made for the men in 02?”

  “Just outside of the City,” said Lukas.

  The pods hummed to a stop and floated to the ground.

  “You guys can head into the passenger section of the front pod. I'll give the orders to unload the men. How fast do you think we can get them out?”

  Lukas and Nicholas had a brief discussion, then Lukas nodded.

  “Okay,
let's say an estimated time of departure a half hour from now. We won't have much longer than that to get away before they open up the shuttle bay again, anyway, so we'd best get a move on.”

  He and Nicholas hurried off. Elza followed, saying that she was going to speak to some of her med team about the changes in the manual they'd made during the flight. Aurelia and Jonathon were left alone.

  “Are you doing okay?” he asked, reaching for her hand.

  She nodded. “I'm always glad to be back on Earth. It just feels better here.”

  They began walking slowly around the cargo pods, stretching their legs after the long journey.

  “Worried?” Jonathon said after a while.

  “Yes,” admitted Aurelia.

  “Me too.”

  After that they didn't speak, enjoying the feeling of being in each other's company, being somewhat alone. They walked until they could see that the pods were almost loaded. Then they went back to their pod, climbing into the passenger section as they'd been instructed.

  Aurelia was glad to see that she didn't have to travel in a crate, as she'd done the last few times she'd been on a cargo pod. The inside of the pod was equipped with bunks, three to each of the three blank walls of the cabin, the fourth wall being made up of the windscreen.

  “You should be able to get some sleep in here if you need it,” Lukas said, climbing into the pod followed by Nicholas and Elza. “The troops are almost ready to go.”

  He sat in the pilot's seat and keyed in the coordinates he needed.

  “Sure we've got enough energy to get there this time?” asked Elza.

  Lukas laughed. The last time they'd taken a pod to 02, they'd ended up walking for almost a day to get to the City after their pod had discharged and crashed. “Absolutely definite this time,” he said.

  The trip took hours and hours, and though Aurelia did sleep a little, she'd slept on the shuttle and was wide awake long before they reached the outskirts of 02. The others, except Lukas, were softly snoring in their bunks when she climbed over the small divide to sit on the seat next to the pilot's.

  “Where are you going to put all these men?” she asked. “There can't possibly be room for them on the island we visited before.”

  Lukas shook his head. “There isn't. We had to get creative. One of the tech Plants in 02 is the one that designed the portable domes that were used to build Lunar City. They still manufacture a few for mining parties and such. So we've requisitioned the stores that they have.”

  “You're putting them in domes?” asked Aurelia, surprised.

  “Not because of the air,” explained Lukas. “But a dome will keep those inside it away from the water, the groundwater, and the plants. They'll be safer that way. Besides, there shouldn't be the need to camp out for more than a few days. From what I hear, the plan is to begin taking the outlying islands as soon as possible.”

  “And where are you putting all these domes?” Aurelia asked him.

  “I've had some help with that,” he admitted. “We needed ground cleared, and we needed help from those who know the foliage around 02 well enough not to get poisoned in the process. Fortunately, I've got some connections.”

  “Your family,” said Aurelia, quietly. She knew that Lukas had left his family at a young age to try to get into City 02, and that the settlement he'd belonged to had disowned him.

  He nodded. “I went back. We have their support. They helped.”

  Aurelia smiled, happy for him. Then she was struck by a great wave of despair. She didn't know where it came from, just that it hit with powerful force. She held her breath, waiting for it to pass, but it didn't. The feeling simply settled into the pit of her stomach. She needed to contact her parents. And fast.

  Chapter Six

  By the time the transport pods landed in the desert outside of City 02, the feeling that Aurelia had had become almost familiar. She was getting used to the sense of dread in her stomach. She almost couldn't find the words to describe it and was embarrassed that she had this feeling at all. But it was so pressing that she couldn't ignore it. As the others jumped out of the pod, she held Jonathon back for a moment.

  “Do you have a portable com?” she asked.

  “Sure,” he said, looking at her in surprise. “Why?”

  “Can I use it to contact my parents? Please?”

  Maybe he saw the fear on her face, but he said nothing. He removed the com from his pack, hit an icon, and passed it over to her.

  “Jonathon?” came a voice. It was her father’s. A tide of relief washed over her.

  “Dad, it's me.”

  “Aurelia?”

  “Yes. Are you okay? Where's Mum?”

  “She's right here next to me. We're okay, as well as can be expected. Busy. What about you?”

  Aurelia explained as briefly as she could what was going on, making no mention of where they were. Who knew if the communication channels were compromised? When she was done, she handed the com back to Jonathon. She'd expected that the feeling in her stomach would be gone once she knew that her parents were fine. But it still lurked there.

  “What was that all about?” Jonathon asked, putting the com away.

  “I don't know,” she admitted. “I just had a feeling. A bad feeling, like something had happened to them.”

  He studied her for a moment. “Do you want to see them?”

  She nodded.

  “I'll arrange it,” he said. “It might not be for a couple of days, though.”

  She was glad that he hadn't laughed at her—many would have. Superstition was not ranked highly in the Empire. He hadn't even questioned her that much, just implicitly understood that the feeling she had was both real and important. And she loved him more for it. Every time something like this happened, she thought that she loved him as much as possible; and then he'd do something, something small, and she'd realise that she could love him even more. Aurelia leant in and kissed him, her arms snaking up around his neck.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  With the domes set up and the men safely barracked, plans were laid. There was no time for waiting around. The next morning, half the troops left the encampment, and within the day they had taken four of the outlying islands. There was little resistance; the islands were mostly deserted. But it gave the army space to spread out, and capturing the islands was good for morale. Aurelia found herself tending to minor injuries: a few broken fingers, rashes on the skin from coming into contact with the foliage or water around the islands. Once some mid-level burns from an exploding stunner.

  She moved with Jonathon into a dome on one of the islands, and the next morning it started all over again. This time, the men took one island that was full of residential buildings, though again the fighting was brief. There was no sign of the Elite Army, and those who resisted were mostly sec Workers. By nightfall, the men were ready to move on again. They were joined by Workers from 02, those who had managed to leave the City to join the soldiers, and their ranks were swelling.

  It was on the third morning that the Elite Army finally made their appearance. In full uniform, the Elite presented a fearsome sight. Aurelia saw little of the action; what she saw was the aftermath. Man after man was brought in to the field hospital that had been set up. Limbs mangled from direct hits from air cannons, skin charred and crackling from the beams of lasers or stunners. Some—the lucky—were dead, unmarked, peaceful looking, a stunner having sent a current directly into the brain or heart.

  She did what she could, the steady rhythm of work and constant improvisation keeping her busy enough that she didn't have time to think about what she was really seeing. She thought, in the end, that she'd saved more than she had a right to, pushing herself and those around her to make one last effort, to try one more thing, so her patients survived more often than not. But it wasn't enough to erase the pictures in her head.

  That night she woke screaming. The nightmare was so real that she could still see it when she closed her eyes.


  “What?” Jonathon asked, sitting up behind her and gently stroking her back.

  She said nothing, but curled herself into him, letting herself relax. Her breathing slowed, and her heartbeat steadied.

  “I think you should go to 05 tomorrow,” said Jonathon, after a few minutes. “I think the combination of this feeling you have about your parents and the stress of working at the field hospital is too much. You need to see that your mother and father are fine before you can come back and deal with what needs to be done here.”

  She nodded against his chest. He was right. The feeling that still lurked in the pit of her stomach somehow threw her off balance.

  “Aurelia, I need to stay here. You know that, right?”

  Again she nodded. As she'd suspected, once confronted with real men with real faces, Jonathon had lost all doubt and become the kind of leader who was both decisive as well as loved. She had watched him, seen how—despite being the one who gave the orders—he never shirked his share of tasks or responsibilities. He might not be the first into battle, but he wasn't far behind. Still, she hadn't seen him take unnecessary risk, either with his men or with himself, which comforted her a little.

  “I can go alone,” she said.

  “No, not now you can't. I'll get you an escort. But don't be gone too long,” he whispered. “I'll miss you.”

  “Me too.” She snuggled closer to him, her skin drinking in his warmth.

  Finally, she fell asleep, and this time didn't dream at all.

  “I will take her,” said a voice outside of her dome the next morning.

  “I'm not sure you can be spared at the moment either,” Jonathon said. He was speaking to Nicholas.

  “Look, I need to go to 05 anyway within the next few days. I need to check out the situation there, the supplies, work on our plans with the leaders over there. It makes sense that Aurelia should travel with me. We'll go, just the two of us, and make it fast.”