Vigo's Lament: A Dystopian Thriller (Age of End Book 3)

by Chris Yee

  “You mean prisoners,” Vince said.

  “Right, prisoners. Sorry. Force of habit. Anyway, we’re not going there.” She pointed far to the left, where two large columns stood in place of the wall. “That’s where we’re going. Between those two pillars is the Western Gate. It’s usually operated by Greene’s men, but with Greene gone, there’s no way to know what we’re up against. That’s why we need to be careful. For all we know, Simon is posted in there, waiting for us.”

  “He doesn’t know we’re coming,” Alan said. “And even if he did, he wouldn’t know which gate we’re at.”

  Charlotte turned and pointed to the camera mounted above them. “There’s a good chance he knows.”

  “He’s been watching us this whole time?” Alan shouted. “Why in the world didn’t we disable them?”

  “We could have, but it wouldn’t matter. There are cameras all over, and this boat has a locator device. If Simon really wanted to, he could find us. But who knows? Maybe he didn’t bother looking.”

  Alan scoffed. “That makes me feel better.”

  Vince looked at the bag of guns sitting by the bed. “Whatever is waiting for us, Charlotte’s right. We need to be ready to protect ourselves. I know we’re far from the Spire, but if there are any Crowns in there, there’s no doubt they’ll try to kill us. Others may want us dead too.”

  “Like who?” Alan asked.

  “A lot of Greene’s people think we betrayed him. They think we’re working with Simon. You may be okay walking the streets,” He pointed to Alan and Charlotte. “They may not recognize you, but like Trevor said, my face was broadcast to the entire City. Everyone knows what I look like. In any case, we should all take precautions and cover our faces anyway.”

  “Vince is right,” Charlotte said, walking to the beds. “We’ll cut up these sheets and wear them as scarves. Of course, no one knows about Izzy, so she doesn’t need one.”

  Alan looked at Charlotte, with the sheets in her hands, and to Vince, with guns in his. “So let me get this straight. Our plan is to walk in there and hope that no one recognizes us, and if they do, we charge in, guns blazing.”

  Vince and Charlotte nodded.

  “Okay then,” Alan said, shrugging. “Let’s do it.”

  Vince cut long strips from the sheets and Charlotte inspected their guns. Alan wandered to the pantry to stock up on food. They met at the front of the boat, just as it was pulling into the gate. The huge swinging doors were already wide open.

  “Hmm,” Charlotte said, carefully studying the gate. “They usually keep these closed. Greene didn’t much care for outsiders. At least not the ones that weren’t test subjects.”

  “Simon must have opened them,” Alan said. “He’s all about freedom after all, right? Just like the prisoners in the Spire. Free to stay or free to leave.”

  “Live free forever,” Vince said, recalling the Rodin motto. It was the same motto Harry Hedcrown carried over when he first formed the Crowns.

  “Live free forever,” Alan repeated. “As long as you agree with Simon. Otherwise, Live free until he shoots you in the head.”

  The boat slid through the gate and into the docking area. The place was eerily quiet. Dozens of boats were docked against the wooden platforms, none of them occupied. Piles of cargo sat out, unattended. Not a soul was around. The only sound was that of their motor, growling along as they passed by other boats, searching for a vacant spot.

  Charlotte steered towards the end of the dock, where there were plenty of spaces. She butted up against the platform and threw the rope around a nearby post. Once they were secure, she wrapped the self-made scarf around her face and hopped out. “I’ll check the area. Watch the girl while I’m gone.”

  She jogged up and down each path, checking the windows of every boat. Vince and Alan stood on the deck, marveling at the size of the place. They knew the City was big, but the sight of so many boats was overwhelming. They were still both new to the technology of the City, motorized boats included.

  Charlotte returned with her gun lowered. “The area is clear. We’re alone, for now.”

  “So where to next?” Alan asked.

  “Next, we go to the Spire,” Vince said. “To find Simon.”

  “Right,” Alan nodded. “How far are we?”

  Charlotte considered the question. “Let’s see. The Western Gate is the closest one to the Spire, other than the Spire gate of course. It’s about five miles away.

  “Five miles?” Alan said shrugging. “I guess we walked in the snow plains for five days. What’s another five miles?”

  “It is a long distance to go unseen,” Vince said. “Especially in a place this densely populated.”

  Charlotte nodded. “So we stick to the shadows and move quickly. Stay away from the main streets. The tunnels are completely off limits. Everything underground is Crowns territory.”

  “Isn’t everything Crown territory now?” Alan said.

  She shrugged. “I guess, but it will be far worse underground. We have no reason to go down there anyway.”

  “We need to look out for cameras too,” Vince added.

  “That will be difficult,” Charlotte said. “Greene’s cameras are on almost every block.”

  “We did it when we were with Simon. Otherwise, Greene would have seen us coming.”

  Charlotte looked up at the camera mounted on their boat. “Maybe we don’t have to worry about them. That camera up there was staring us in the face for the whole trip, and there’s no one here waiting for us. If he was paying attention to the cameras, he would have sent someone. Maybe he missed Greene’s camera systems, or he just lost interest.”

  “Okay,” Vince said. “So we won’t worry about the cameras, but keep an eye out for people and stay hidden if you see anyone. There’s no way to tell if they’re friendly or not, but we can’t afford to risk it. If anyone recognizes us, if they blow our cover, our trip suddenly becomes ten times as dangerous. Does everyone understand?”

  They nodded.

  Vince wrapped the scarf around his face and pulled his hood up. “Good, then let’s go.”

  TWELVE

  VINCE, CHARLOTTE, AND Alan briskly walked along the side of the road. Izzy sat upon Charlotte’s shoulders.

  “You know the way, right?” Alan asked. He felt the need to whisper even though no one was in sight.

  “Maybe,” Charlotte said.

  “Maybe? You’re telling me we don’t know where we’re going?”

  “We know the general direction. That should be enough.”

  “Why in the world don’t you know the way? This is your home, isn’t it?”

  “The Spire is my home. It was my home. The day I went on that mission with you was the first time I left the Spire in fifty years, maybe more. I’ve studied maps, but the City is massive. I only know the major roads. You know, the ones we’re trying to avoid.”

  Alan threw his arms up. “Well, I’ve lost all hope. We’re going to get lost in this maze and end up on the opposite side of the City. Then again, that might not be such a bad thing. As far as I’m concerned, the further away from that thing, the better.”

  Vince shook his head. “We must go back. Someone has to stop Simon. He’s too unpredictable to have such power.”

  Alan dismissively waved his hand. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry. I was just joking. I’m looking forward to seeing the old labs. Ah, the memories.”

  Voices came from around the corner, two people in deep conversation. The four of them dashed to the nearest wall and pressed their bodies flat against the cold concrete, hidden in shadow.

  The two strangers stopped in the middle of the intersection, chatting away.

  “What do you think those signs mean?” said the voice of a man.

  A woman answered. “You mean the wanted signs?”

  “Yeah, it doesn’t make sense. Why would a girl so young have a bounty on her head?”

  “She’s important to someone. Or at least Simon seems to think so.”


  “Simon is a weird guy. Do you think it’s for, you know…”

  “No. He’s a crazy son of a bitch, but he’s not like that. Knowing him, he’ll probably hand her a gun and tell her to shoot some poor labbie.”

  “You think there are still some around? Labbies I mean.”

  “I’m sure of it. He must be holding them captive.”

  “Why wouldn’t he just kill them?” the man asked.

  “If he kills them, he loses his leverage. His power.”

  “Leverage for what? Greene’s dead. He’s already won.”

  “I don’t know,” the woman answered. “Maybe he knows someone’s coming.”

  “Or maybe he’s just a sick bastard.”

  “That is also very likely.” She paused for a moment. “You know what, you’re probably right. Why does he ever do anything? Because he’s one sick bastard.”

  “I can get on board with that.”

  “Oh, we’re late.”

  “Let’s get going then. Don’t want to miss the ceremony. It’s important. We need to honor the ones we’ve lost.

  “Do you know where we’re going?”

  “Yeah, this way.”

  The strangers moved down the street, away from the four of them pressed against the wall. “What was that about?” Alan asked.

  “Wanted posters of a girl?” Charlotte said. “Could it be Izzy? Could he somehow know Greene’s secret?”

  Vince looked up at another camera, staring at them from up high. “You said there are cameras everywhere. He must have seen her on the monitors.”

  “Even if that’s true, the cameras don’t have microphones. The only way he could hear us is through a portable microphone. There’s no way he knows she’s his daughter. To him, she’s just a random girl who decided to tag along.”

  “Well he wants her for some reason,” Alan said. “Where do you think those two are going? They mentioned a ceremony?”

  “They said it was to honor the ones they’ve lost,” Vince said.

  “We should go,” Charlotte said.

  Vince and Alan both glanced at her as if they had misheard what she said.

  “Are you crazy?” Alan asked. “I thought we were trying to avoid people. That ceremony is guaranteed to be swarming with people. People who think we’re traitors. As far as they know, we’re the reason all of those people are dead in the first place.”

  “Which is true, I suppose,” Vince added. “My plan was to rescue you and take down Greene, but I put other people’s lives in danger without realizing it.”

  “They were going to break through anyway,” Charlotte said. “Your arrival may have sped up the process, but Simon was determined, and Greene wasn’t equipped to handle his methods. They broke through the first wall before your group even showed up.”

  “That won’t make any difference to these people,” Alan said. “Directly or indirectly, those people died because of us. It’s a slap in the face to show up to their funeral.”

  “Remember,” Charlotte said, “the Spire was my home. I knew a lot of people who died that day. Some of them were close friends. I know the ceremony will be crowded. I know there will be some risk, but it’s very small. We can stay in the back and keep our faces covered. I promise, no one will recognize us.” She sighed. “You got your chance to mourn, now it’s my turn.”

  Alan glanced down at his feet. “Damn it! When you put it like that, now I feel bad. I guess we’re going to the ceremony.”

  Vince nodded. “We don’t stay long, we don’t talk to anyone, and we don’t show our faces. If it is Izzy’s face on these wanted posters, we will need to cover her face as well.”

  “Here,” Charlotte said, pulling out a spare cloth. She gently wrapped it around Izzy’s face. “Is that comfortable?”

  Izzy nodded. “Yup,” she said in a muffled voice.

  “Good. Come on. We’ll follow them, but let’s keep our distance.”

  Alan peered down at the two people down the street, walking away as they turned the corner. “We’ don’t want to lose them either. Hurry up.”

  They jogged to the corner and peeked their heads around. The man and woman were halfway up the block. They waited a bit longer and swung around the bend, walking casually down the street and keeping a close eye on their two guides.

  Vince pointed to a wall on their right. “Look,” he said. The others turned to see a wall littered with posters. “There’s the wanted poster.”

  Charlotte trotted over and grabbed a copy. She ran back, holding it up to examine. “Well, this is definitely Izzy.”

  Alan leaned over to see. “I don’t get it. Why would Simon want Izzy?”

  “Maybe he knows something we don’t,” Vince said.

  “Like what? We’re the ones that know she’s Greene’s daughter. I thought we were the ones with the secret.”

  Vince shrugged. “I don’t know, but he knows something.”

  “I don’t like it,” Alan said. “This whole thing makes me uncomfortable.”

  “No one said coming back would be easy,” Charlotte said. “But someone has to stop Simon.”

  Vince shook his head. “Simon said he would give up his power once Greene was gone. I’m beginning to think that won’t happen.”

  “Of course it won’t,” Alan said. “A nut like that can’t resist power, even if he thinks he can. I didn’t believe it for a second when those words left his mouth.”

  “I had my doubts, but some of the things he said before the attack, he almost sounded sane.”

  Alan laughed. “There is no way that man is sane. Not in the slightest. A sane man doesn’t use children as weapons or sacrifice thousands of people just to send a message. A sane man would not shoot his own troops for absolutely no reason at all. I’ve said it a hundred times, but that guy is nuts. He has anger issues. He throws tantrums, and if you get in his way, he shoots you. We all saw it. Saul didn’t have to die like that.”

  “Enough,” Vince said. “We don’t need to dwell on the past. What’s done is done. Focus on the task at hand.”

  “All I’m saying is, if a man like that is put in a place of power, he will never give it up.”

  “And that’s why we have to take it from him,” Vince said. His face, stone cold.

  THIRTEEN

  AS THEY FOLLOWED the man and woman down the street, another group of three turned onto the road. They were also talking about the ceremony. Vince and the others stopped their conversation, anxiously walking beside these new strangers. More people joined, and they soon found themselves stuck in the center of a small crowd, heading towards the ceremony. Vince kept his head down, hoping no one would recognize them.

  The strangers paid no attention to them, but they remained silent anyway, too nervous to say a word. Charlotte finally looked to her side and whispered, “I think we’re okay. They don’t recognize us.”

  “Don’t take any chances,” Vince whispered back.

  “This was a mistake,” Alan said. “We should have stuck to the plan and headed straight for the Spire.”

  Vince kept his eyes forward and his head down. “Too late now. We’re surrounded. There’s no way to get out without drawing attention. All we can do now is follow them and hope for the best.”

  “Shoot,” Alan said. “I hate hope-for-the-best. It never works out.”

  “Hey, we’re still alive,” Charlotte said. “That has to count for something. We’ll be okay as long as we don’t make a scene.”

  Izzy pressed up against Charlotte, trembling as the crowd grew denser. Charlotte wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her in closer.

  The movement of the crowd slowed to a stop, and they found themselves in front of a modest stage. Vibrant flowers were stacked at the center, with pictures of faces scattered around. Hanging from the front of the stage was a sign that read, Never Forget. People from the crowd threw paper on stage. Pictures of loved ones, and letters of grief.

  “When does it start?” Alan asked to no on
e in particular.

  A lady to his right turned around. “Any minute now. It’s so nice that they’re doing this. A ceremony like this means so much.” She held up a picture to show Alan. “This is my son. He was working in the Spire during the attack. He didn’t make it out.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Alan said. “It was truly a horrible day for all of us. I’m sure your son was a good man.” The lady crumpled the paper, pressed it against her lips with loving care, and tossed it onto the stage.

  “Thank you for saying so. If you don’t mind me asking, who did you lose?”

  Alan thought about the question for a moment. “My wife, Melinda.”

  “Do you have a picture of her? You can throw it on stage.”

  Alan lowered his head. “Sadly I do not. She was a beautiful woman, though.”

  “Did she work in the Spire?”

  “No. She just got caught up in something she wasn’t a part of.”

  “That’s a shame.”

  “She was the nicest woman in the world. Wouldn’t hurt a fly. She always put others ahead of herself. She didn’t deserve such a cruel death.”

  “She sounds like a nice person. Perhaps she and my son will meet in the afterlife.”

  “Yes, perhaps.”

  A man walked up on stage holding a microphone. “Ladies and gentlemen. If I could have your attention, I would like to begin this ceremony.” He waited for the chatter to die down. “Thank you. As you all know, we are here to honor lost friends and family who were taken during the fall of the Spire. It only happened weeks ago, but it feels like ages that we’ve had to suffer without our loved ones. I know it’s difficult, but we will overcome this time of sorrow. Every single one of us has one thing in common. We have lost someone close. We will not let this break our spirits. Instead, we will support each other and grow as a community.”

  The crowd cheered.

  “I think it would be appropriate to take a moment of silence, in respect for those we’ve lost. Please join me.” He lowered his head and closed his eyes. The rest of the crowd did the same.

  Vince, Izzy, Charlotte, and Alan closed their eyes as well.