by Alex McCall
By this point the others were beginning to move. Most followed Cody’s lead and dived beneath the table. Jeremy and Hazel ran towards the door, desperate to get away from that awful, grasping beak. I noticed that Blake had gone with them and I frowned. Maybe he wasn’t as brave as I thought he was.
Well, if he didn’t stop the intruder I’d have to.
“Hey, Featherface,” I yelled, diving further into the room, drawing my shock-stick as I went. “Come get some!”
“Get down, Rayna,” Noah whispered from under the table, but I gestured for him to be quiet. The chicken had already seen me, but it didn’t seem to have noticed them yet. I just had to distract it until the guards arrived – which should be any moment now.
The second invention the Brotherhood had made for us, after the big lasers, were shock-sticks. They were exactly like they sounded: long staffs that emitted an electric shock when they hit something. They were created to help us fight Commandos: just bigger than life-size robot chickens. They wouldn’t do anything to a huge Catcher. Nothing but get its attention. And that was exactly what the people under the table needed me to do.
The Catcher was stuck. The room we were in was partly underground, so it had smashed straight in from above. Its body and head were dangling into the room, but its huge wings were trapped on the floor above. It lashed razor-sharp claws as its head lurched towards me, pecking viciously. It shouldn’t be able to stay there for much longer. The guards surrounding the building must already have noticed something was wrong, but as long as the giant chicken was in this confined space it was a danger to everyone. And we wouldn’t be able to deal with it as effectively if it had a kid inside it.
I hit it with the stick and watched the current flow through it. That certainly got its attention. Hopefully it would see me as more of a threat.
Its eyes glowed briefly red, though it didn’t fire its laser, and it turned towards me, enraged.
I hit it again then hopped to the side as it snapped in my direction. I’d hoped to be able to just back out the door, but there was stuff in my way so I squashed up against the wall.
“What’s the matter, a bit too plump?” I groaned. Then I had to dart away sharpish as it tried to hurl itself after me. It pushed further into the room, causing plaster to rain from the ceiling and thump against the table. I heard squealing from beneath.
So did the chicken. It turned its attention back to those trapped below and I had to jump in and smack it again. It snaked its neck at me and I spun to one side then hit it several more times.
Surely it wouldn’t be long now before the guards came running?
Percy began scrambling to his feet, groaning. The chicken must have knocked him dizzy because he looked wobbly and didn’t seem to know where he was – or that there was a giant chicken just behind him.
The chicken heard the groan and turned back, snapping at him.
I did the only thing I could. I dived across the table, sliding on the slick wood, and got to the two of them just in time. I flung out my arm before me and somehow managed to wedge the shock-stick in the chicken’s mouth. It looked surprised for a moment then jerked its head sharply.
I fell back, knocking Percy down with me. The chicken looked at me steadily for a moment, enjoying the power it had. Then it slowly and methodically closed its mouth, snapping the stick in two.
I could only watch, helpless, as it bent down towards me, beak gaping wider and wider.
This was it. After all the months of fighting, after all the effort and pain I’d gone through, it was going to end like this. Just one small scuffle in a hotel basement. I would be pecked up like an insect and taken to serve the chicken masters for the rest of my days.
The last thought as that gaping maw engulfed me was that I might see Jesse again.
Then there was a sharp twanging sound and the chicken’s neck exploded.
Part of it just disappeared, like paper in a flame. The chicken whipped itself back up, almost losing its head in the process. I could see the exposed chute that kids would slide down when they got pecked up.
The chicken scrabbled to get out of there but now its size worked against it, and it gradually disintegrated as it writhed about. When it finally hauled itself out of the room it was riddled with holes, showing the exposed insides. It jumped up with a relieved squawk but a red laser followed it out of the hole, hitting it right in the rear jets. There was a thump up above as it finally keeled over, defeated.
With a groan I got to my feet, pulling Percy up with me.
Standing in the door, laser in hand and a smug, self-satisfied look on his face, was Blake.
“Just like a duck hunt,” he said, blowing some smoke from the barrel of his weapon.
“Thanks,” I said grudgingly. “You took your time though.”
If anything his grin got wider. “I had to wait for it to charge,” he told me. “Otherwise I’d have been happy to shoot it sooner.”
Now wasn’t the time to gloat. “We need to get everyone out of here,” I told him. His grin faded somewhat and he nodded.
He leaned out the door and yelled a few things, probably summoning people from further in the building. I sat Percy down in a chair and made sure everyone under the table was safe. They were. Not happy but safe. Jeremy and Hazel didn’t come back in but some of Deborah’s medics did.
“Great job,” Noah said to me. “We all owe you one, Rayna.”
“We’ve got to discuss what just happened,” barked Cody, getting straight back to business.
I looked up from where I was sitting in a chair, having Deborah look over me. Cody was standing next to Percy while a doctor assessed him. They said he’d be fine after a rest, but I got the feeling Cody was really worried for his bodyguard and second in command.
“We know what just happened. We almost got eaten by a chicken,” said Blake. Cody shot him one single, piercing glare and the adventurer quietened down.
“Yes, I got that. I was there. But how did it get in here to attack the council in the first place?”
We were silent for a while, considering his point.
“Not just attack the council, it tried to get you first,” I said.
Cody looked at me, still in control, and raised one eyebrow. “What do you mean?” he asked.
“It attacked the person sitting at the head of the table. Everyone else sits in random places at every meeting but you always sit at the head. You’re well known for it.” By well known I meant that probably everyone had complained about it at one point or another. Cody knew but he didn’t comment.
“That could just be coincidence,” he said, still calm, still in control. “But it definitely took on the council. Which proves one thing: we’ve got to do something about our defences.”
He was right. We all knew he was right. The chicken wouldn’t just randomly attack an underground room in a central hotel. It must have known we’d be there. We had been targeted.
Everyone else seemed too stunned by the sudden attack to contribute anything to the discussion. Cody looked at them in disgust and motioned Blake and me off to one side.
“You two haven’t worked together before, right?” he said in a low voice.
“That’s right,” Blake confirmed. I merely nodded.
“Then here’s how it goes. Blake, you work out ways to beef up our defences. I don’t want anything like this happening again. This hotel is our home right now and I won’t stand for a chicken getting this close to it. Rayna, talk to everyone you can. I want to know who slipped up and let the Catcher get this close. Got it?”
I rocked back on my feet, surprised at the vehemence in his voice. Cody was angry, properly angry. That was never good.
“Where should I start?” I asked, trying to be professional. With Cody in this state it wouldn’t do any good to say that I didn’t want to work with Blake.
“Go have a word with your sister.”
He turned and, without one more word, walked back to where Percy was still sittin
g. Hunkering down in front of him he passed the black-haired lieutenant a bottle of water and helped him drink it.
I turned away. Cody was right. The chicken should never have got this close to us. It just confirmed what I’d been suspecting for a while.
One of us was a traitor.
CHAPTER 6
“Noah, wait up.” I saw him walking back towards the train station, where a lot of his gang still hung out. He turned and flashed me a smile.
“Rayna, thanks again for everything in there. That was really quick thinking on your part.”
“Blake probably had it handled.” I brushed off his praise but smiled inside. Noah had a talent for making people feel pleased with themselves. “I just wanted to talk with you a bit, get an idea of what you thought of the attack.”
“You mean about the spy?”
I nodded. I’d told Noah about my fears a few weeks ago. It had been worrying when he hadn’t just laughed and called me paranoid.
It began with small things at first. Chickens appeared unexpectedly when we were on undercover missions; a few secret outlying groups got picked off; people travelling under cover of darkness got jumped. But it was happening more and more often.
I couldn’t imagine who would do such a thing. And I didn’t even like thinking about it. But I had to accept the fact that someone was telling the chickens vital information about us.
“There’s no way the chickens could have known we’d be in there,” I said, lowering my voice. “Someone must have told them.”
“Any idea who it could be?” he said.
I shook my head. “Someone who knows a lot of information. The attacks are too accurate, too often. I…”
Noah shook his head slightly, his eyes flicking back over my shoulder. I turned to see Sally approaching.
“Hi.” She smiled at us. “Thank you so much, Rayna, for protecting us from the Catcher.”
“Oh, it was no problem.” I looked at Noah uncomfortably while he grinned back.
“No, it was very brave. I just froze up. I don’t think I could stand up to one of them like you do.”
“Well, you know…” I really didn’t like getting praise for fighting chickens. All I’d done was hit it a few times. Blake had been the one with the big gun. “We’ve all got our jobs. You grow potatoes and I deal with problems like that.”
“Yes, I suppose you’re right.” She paused and stared up at the blue sky. “It’s a lovely day today. Really beautiful for late summer.”
Sally was kind but I found her polite chitchat very tiring. “Sorry to be rude, Sally, but I need to go and get a new shock-stick.”
“I’ve got work to do as well. Bye Rayna, bye Noah.” She waved her hands airily and floated off. We looked after her for a second.
“You’d expect gardeners to be more down to earth,” I said.
“Oh, hush. She’s a nice person.”
“I know. She’s just so… happy.” I looked at my watch and then back at Noah. “I really had better be off. I’ll talk to you later?”
“Definitely. Take care. And play nice with your sister.”
“Only if she plays nice with me,” I muttered and stalked off.
***
I found Hazel where I expected to, back at the hotel entrance, preparing to clean up the mess Blake had made of the chicken. To find her, I just had to follow the sound of revving engines.
The Brotherhood needed supplies to make our weapons. Apparently the chickens had planned to set up a Catcher factory in Aberdeen and ship them off to wherever they were needed around the world, but we’d driven them out before that could happen. We’d been using the tools and materials they’d left behind, but now that they were running out we used everything we could from the wrecked remains of Catchers. So whenever we managed to down one, Hazel and some other Brotherhood members drove up on quad bikes and dragged them back to their warehouse.
Today she was working with a kid called Kyle, who was Jeremy’s second in command. I was fairly sure Kyle actually ran everything important. He was the one who made sure supplies went where they needed to be. He catalogued what the scavenging teams brought back. Jeremy led the teams but ultimately Kyle did all the important work. I hadn’t seen much of him before the Battle of Pittodrie but from what I’d heard, he’d spent most of his time with one of the groups that moved about Aberdeen, scuttling from one house to another. It wasn’t an easy way to live and he’d picked up a nervous attitude.
I walked up to them and waved. “Hey, you got a minute?”
Kyle jumped in his saddle and looked about as Hazel turned off her engine and gave me a big grin. “Hey, well done in there, sis. It was good work. What do you want to talk about?”
“Can I get another shock-stick?” I asked Kyle, holding up the broken pieces of my old one. “The Catcher broke mine.”
He took the two halves in his hands and glared at them. “These don’t grow on trees, you know. We don’t have enough for you to keep breaking them.”
“I know but it was an emergency. And I need a new one.”
He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Anything for a council member, I guess. I’ll grab you one after I’ve finished helping Hazel.”
“Could you go and get it now, please?” I asked, putting a special emphasis on the please. “I’ll wait here with Hazel.”
He glanced at me, suddenly uncertain, then nodded and scuttled off. Hazel strode into the hotel towards the Catcher’s remains, her smile shrinking. I followed.
“It’s business then, is it?” she asked as we walked towards the large hole in the floor.
“Yeah, it is. I’ve got a few questions.”
“Because of the attack? Or has something else happened you want to pin on us?”
My heart sank. She was already getting annoyed. I tried to keep the peace.
“Look, I just want to ask you one or two things, that’s all. It’ll be over quickly and then you can get back to work.”
“Work, work, work. That’s all it is with you. Why can’t we ever talk about something else?”
“Well, what do you want to talk about?”
“How’s Jesse getting on?”
I wasn’t aware of doing anything, but my body language must have given me away because her face fell.
“Well, don’t worry about it,” she said after a moment. “He’s sure to call soon. The chickens won’t have got him yet.”
“You know a lot about the chickens.”
Hazel hesitated for a split second before shrugging. “You hang out with them for a few months, you tend to pick things up.”
“A lot of stuff to pick up. That Jesse’s still free, that there’s a spy…”
Hazel had confirmed my suspicion that there was a traitor in Aberdeen. I don’t know how she knew, but she’d taken me aside at a meeting last week and mentioned it. Sadly she could only tell us that a spy existed, not who it was. Which was kind of suspicious.
Hazel’s eyes narrowed. Looks like, after a brief few pleasant words, we were back to fighting. “A spy I told you about immediately.”
I rubbed my forehead. “Look, Hazel, I trust you. You know I do.”
“Then why are you always going on at me like this? It’s always ‘Oh Hazel, have you sold us out to the chickens yet?’ That’s not trusting.”
Something snapped inside me. “I said I trusted you. Only you. Not the Brotherhood.”
Hazel gave a wild laugh. “So you think I’d just be going along with them if they were traitors? That I wouldn’t turn them in? What would be the point? We were on the same side as the chickens once before and look how that worked out. We’re with you now. You guys just aren’t with us.”
“What do you expect? You worked with the enemy. Egbert betrayed us and fed us all to his masters.”
“And he’s gone! No one’s seen him since the Battle at Pittodrie. The Brotherhood’s changed. We’re working with you now. And things would go a lot smoother if you worked with us.”
I took a few deep
, calming breaths. Every time I tried talking to Hazel about this, we ended up getting in a fight. “Look, I’m sorry for the way you’re being treated. But there’s nothing I can do about that. Right now I just have to do my job and make sure the council is safe. Now, did you know about that attack beforehand? And did you tell anyone about where the council meeting would be held?”
“No and no.”
“And you don’t know who the spy is?”
“Nope. There is something you should know though.”
I felt my pulse increase. This sounded serious. “What is it?” I asked.
But she didn’t answer. Like Noah a minute ago she looked over my shoulder. “Hello, Blake.”
“Hello,” said a voice right in my ear.
I jumped, spinning round. Blake was standing there, leaning on his shock-stick. He was looking at the Catcher lying on the ground.
“Don’t do that,” I snapped at him.
He didn’t seem too concerned, just grinned at me.
“Did you want anything?” I asked.
“Just checking in. Cody told me to check possible defensive weaknesses so that’s why I’m here.”
“To look at the big hole in the floor?” I glared at him.
He looked straight at Hazel, who flushed, and said, “Or the thing that caused it.”
I opened my mouth, about to tell him to back away from my sister, but Hazel had obviously had enough.
“I’ve told you everything I can. I’ve got to get this Catcher back to our warehouse. See you at the next council meeting.”
Just then Kyle hurried up with my new shock-stick, which I snatched from him before shooing him away. “Can you at least tell me where you’re getting your information?” I whispered to Hazel.
But Hazel and a now very angry Kyle were busy attaching chains to the Catcher’s suit. They pulled them tight then stormed off towards the quad bikes.
“Wait,” I called after her.
She looked me dead in the eyes. “Trust us first,” she told me. “Then we’ll trust you.”
