by Magus Tor
“Not bad,” said Tara, standing back to admire her work. “What do you think?”
“I love it,” said Aurelia. She knew Nicholas was going to feel self-conscious enough without her criticising his bizarre hairstyle.
“One more thing,” said Tara.
She rummaged around and found a makeup kit, quickly circling Nicholas's eyes with dark green and painting a flash of silver grey powder over each cheekbone.
“There,” she said, standing back once more.
Nicholas stood up and gave a little twirl. There was no denying the fact that he looked very much the part. Aurelia was impressed. There was no way anyone would mistake him for a Clone, except for one small thing.
“You've got to be a bit more...” she said, thinking.
“Arrogant,” supplied Tara. “Gotta have the attitude to match the dress, my friend.”
“Exactly,” said Aurelia.
Nicholas tried to appear haughty but ended up looking like he had something stuck up his nose, which made Tara and Aurelia, and finally Nicholas himself, laugh so hard that they wept.
“So, I'll come back tomorrow evening for the final performance,” said Tara as they wiped their eyes, sitting on the floor.
Aurelia nodded. The afternoon had been so much fun that she had almost forgotten that they were dressing up to save their lives. She shared a glance with Nicholas and saw that he too had suddenly been reminded of how serious this all was.
“Thank you, Tara,” said Aurelia as the girl was leaving. “Thank you for everything.”
The purple-haired woman smiled. “No worries. It's better than hanging on a street corner all evening watching the world go by. I'll be back tomorrow, and I'll arrange for a transport pod to get you to the shuttle bay.”
Aurelia wondered if she was going to her parents’ house, was going to be so close to Jonathon, and for a second she almost told Tara who she was. But there was no point in that, not so close to their leaving date. So she just smiled and wished Tara well before closing the door and locking them in for the night.
The next day was an agony of waiting. Knowing what was coming and not being able to do anything but sit or lie, and wait and wait and wait, led to both Nicholas’s and Aurelia’s snapping at each other multiple times during the day.
The faint light of evening was coming, and Aurelia sat nervously on the edge of the bed. Nicholas had been quiet for an hour or more, meditating cross-legged on the floor. Now he got up and joined Aurelia.
“I want you to know that I know everything you've done for me,” he said quietly.
Aurelia looked at him; his bright blue eyes were shining, and she laid a hand on his leg. “You're worth it,” she said.
“And I want you to know that no matter what happens, I'm glad we're trying.” He took a deep breath. “And that I will look after you.”
“You don't need to look after me, Nicholas.”
“Yes I do,” he said. “I owe you that. And whatever happens, I'm glad we're trying, and I'm glad we're trying together.”
She put her arm around him, pulling him into a hug. “I know,” she said. “And me too.”
There was the sound of the upstairs door opening, and Aurelia looked up. Then familiar footsteps echoed on the stairs. Zak knocked once before entering and placing two small travel bags at the foot of the bed.
“It should be everything you need for a few days,” he said. “There are travel rations, a spare uniform for each of you, and some med basics.”
“Field kit,” said Nicholas, smiling.
“Field kit,” agreed Zak.
The second Clone stayed with them for a while, drinking coffee and talking. It’s nice to have a third person around sometimes, thought Aurelia. But she knew that Zak was sticking around to keep their minds off what they were about to do. Finally, he stood up.
“I've got to go back to the Arena,” he said apologetically.
Aurelia smiled as Zak turned to her.
“I see what Nicholas sees in you,” the Clone said. “And I wish you nothing but the best, and a safe journey.” He quickly and roughly hugged her before turning to Nicholas. “And you, my brother, may all the Gods be with you.”
“And also with you,” responded Nicholas.
The two men stared at each other for a moment, and then Zak relented and pulled Nicholas into a hug too. He left without another word, Nicholas turning away so that neither of them could see his tears.
They hadn't even had the chance to change positions before the noise came. There was a sharp crackling sound, followed by the thud of something heavy hitting the floor. Aurelia jumped for the door, but Nicholas was faster and held her back.
“Wait!” he told her.
But that wasn't necessary. The door opened, and standing framed in the doorway, stunner held high in his hand, was Jason.
“Going somewhere?” he asked, a grin on his face.
Aurelia was about to run and hug him, grateful that he had taken the time to find her to say goodbye, but Nicholas was still holding her back, and she couldn't figure out why. Her brain tried desperately to process the conflicting information in front of her. Jason was here. Jason was her friend. But something was off. He was holding a stunner; that was it. But why? Then behind him in the open doorway, she could just make out the shape of something on the floor. No, not something, someone.
“Your little friend,” said Jason, following her gaze. “Dead now, so take it as a warning. I'm perfectly serious.”
Aurelia stared at him, her mouth gaping open, not knowing what to say or do or think. Then Nicholas pushed her behind him.
“There's no need for anyone else to get hurt,” said Nicholas. “No need at all.”
“I agree,” said Jason, grinning again. “And don't think that I'm not aware of your special skills. So the first thing that we're going to do is tie you both up. Take the sheet off the bed and tear it into strips. Not too narrow, now.”
Nicholas nodded and did as he was told, leaving Aurelia standing and staring at Jason, her mind finally taking in what was happening here. Jason kept the stunner trained on her.
“Surprised to see me?” he asked her.
Why had she never noticed how manic his grin was before? She found herself incapable of talking to him; her eyes kept flickering over towards Zak's body lying in the basement. Jason sighed and reached over, pulling the door to, but not taking the time to close it properly. Nicholas handed him a pile of sheet strips.
“You first, Clone,” he said.
Quickly and efficiently he tied Nicholas's wrists and ankles, sitting him on the bed, then did the same to Aurelia.
“Not too tight?” he asked, almost solicitously. “Don't want to lose circulation, do we?”
Aurelia shook her head. “They're fine,” she whispered.
Jason stood, satisfied, placing his stunner in his belt now that both his hostages were bound.
“Why are you here?” Nicholas asked him.
“Must get boring down here with just the two of you,” mused Jason. “Missing out on some intellectual conversation? Want to make small talk?”
He pulled a chair over and sat on it, his back to the door.
“Well, right now we're waiting for some friends of mine. They didn't want you to leave so soon. In fact, I don't think that they want you to leave at all. I'm sure they'll be more than happy to have intellectual discussions with you when they get here. Mostly about the Resistance, I think.” He laughed, crossing one leg over the other at the ankle and sliding down slightly in his chair, relaxing.
“Wait, you turned us in?” asked Aurelia, shocked.
Again, he laughed. “Of course I did. Faintly amusing that you think your boyfriend would have done it, but it was me all along.”
Nicholas blinked but didn't show surprise. Aurelia took her cue from him, trying to stay as calm as he appeared.
“And why would you do something like that?” Nicholas asked him.
“Oh, all sorts of reasons,” sa
id Jason airily. “Money, privileges, power—you know, the usual.”
As he was speaking, Aurelia caught the click of the upstairs door opening. Gods, it must be Tara. Desperately trying to cover up the sounds that the girl was making coming down the stairs, Aurelia coughed, spluttering. “Water,” she managed to croak.
As Jason was pouring a glass, Aurelia caught a glimpse of purple in the crack of the door. Tara was smart enough to figure things out. Or at least Aurelia hoped she was.
“Why would you hold us at gunpoint waiting for security to come pick us up when you could have had all the Resistance, including Jonathon Hansen, at your disposal just a few days ago?” Aurelia said loudly. She tried to pack as much information into the sentence as possible, wanting to give Tara all she'd need to try and help them.
She thought she heard a small gasp, but she didn't want to draw attention by looking towards the door. Instead she concentrated on Jason, who was back on his chair.
“You think they'd believe me if I told them Hansen was Resistance? No way. Better to prove my trustworthiness as an informant first by handing over a couple of small players, don't you think? That way when I turn over the big fish, there'll be no questions, and the rewards will be bigger.”
Aurelia chanced a look at the door. No purple. Gods, she hoped that Tara was as smart as she'd given her credit for. Now they just had to keep Jason talking.
“Rewards? You're doing this for profit?” She tried to sound scathing.
Jason glared at her angrily. “You've got no idea,” he hissed. “No idea at all. I grew up here in Lunar, watching the rich Elite kids get everything, and me nothing. Watching Earth whizz kids like you walking into jobs that should have been mine. It's about time the scales balanced out, and that's exactly what I'm doing.”
So not only did he want money and rewards, but he wanted her job too.
“You want to be head of trauma,” she said, raising an eyebrow. “Right.”
His hand reached for the stunner but stopped before he pulled it out. “It just so happens that you're worth more to me alive right now,” he said. “But don't count on the situation not changing. As for your job, why shouldn't I do it? I'm a good med Worker, and it's not like you're even in the hospital most of the time anyway. Busy off doing your Resistance work.”
Okay, that’s actually kind of a fair point, Aurelia thought. She squirmed, trying to get comfortable in her restraints.
“You must have been delighted when Jonathon and Elza told you about their Resistance work,” said Nicholas, calmly.
Aurelia glanced over at him and, seeing his face, was sure that he too had seen Tara come and go.
“Like I needed to be told,” said Jason. “Like I didn't already have a damn good idea.”
The sharp, clear sound of a transport pod door closing rang through the room.
“Sounds like my friends are here.” Jason stood up. “Hope you're ready to meet them.” He grinned his evil grin again, turned, and prepared to open the door as feet clanged down the metal steps to the basement.
As the footsteps got louder, Aurelia turned to Nicholas and shook her head. All this. All this planning. All this for nothing. The steps approached the door.
Chapter Twelve
Her heart was beating hard, and for once, Aurelia's logical brain deserted her. She had no plan, no chance of escape. This was it; it was all over. She couldn't help but think of Jonathon, the man who hadn't betrayed her, the man whom she loved. The man who would now be arrested and probably injected because she would be forced to give information about the Resistance. And there was absolutely nothing that she could do. She was paralysed, tied up; all she could do was wait until that door opened and the sec Workers came in, their green uniforms glinting in the light, to take her away.
All these thoughts spun through her mind as she waited for the door to open. The footsteps outside stopped, and she knew that they were here for her. She took a breath but did not close her eyes. No, she would see this. She'd played a dangerous game, but she wasn't coward enough not to look her fate in the eye.
The door opened, revealing a large man holding a stunner at waist height. He began to move, but Jason was fast, yanking his own stunner out of his belt and half-raising it. Too late, though. The device in the man's hand hummed, and a bright blue light flashed out. Then Jason was writhing, the light swallowing his body up as it danced. Just as suddenly as it had started, the light disappeared, and Jason fell to the floor. He twitched, but Aurelia had seen enough death to know that it was a biological response to the electricity that still flowed through his system and nothing more. Then he was still.
Her eyes flew from the body on the floor to the man in the doorway and then back, and then back again. How? How had he been so fast? How had he gotten here when Tara had barely had a chance to call him?
“Nice shot, Jonathon,” said Nicholas approvingly.
“I thought so,” said Jonathon, grinning. “Should I untie you, or would you prefer to remain as you are?”
Nicholas pretended to think. “Oh, I don't know. Maybe freedom for me, Aurelia?”
She could only nod as Jonathon got to work untying her. Elza pushed into the room, ignoring Jason's body on the floor, and began picking up items and shoving them into a bag. Finished with Aurelia, Jonathon offered her his hand and helped her stand. And then she was in his arms, feeling his warmth, his soft skin, his lips kissing her face.
“Hey!” said Nicholas. “You're not done yet!”
Jonathon grinned down at Aurelia and went to untie the Clone.
Elza thrust the chess set into her bag and looked around the room, nodding. “That's everything,” she said. “Let's go. Fast.”
There was no time for questions or answers; Aurelia knew they were racing to get out of there before the sec Workers arrived. Jonathon grabbed the two travel bags, and they hustled out of the room, breaking into a run to get up the stairs and out the door. Nicholas was the only one who spared a second to glance at Zak, but with his own life on the line, he didn't have time to mourn.
It was dark outside, and a transport pod hummed, waiting close to the door. Jonathon opened the doors, flung the bags inside, and waited while Elza, Aurelia, and Nicholas climbed in before getting in himself. He fastened his safety belt and pressed an icon on the control panel at the same time. The pod hovered and then started moving. Just as they turned the corner, Aurelia looked out of the back window, seeing lights appearing at the other end of the street. They'd done it.
She heaved a huge sigh, but as she turned back to the others, she caught a glimpse of something in an alley.
“Stop!” she cried.
Jonathon heard the panic in her voice and didn't question her, immediately hitting the emergency halt button as Aurelia flung the door open.
“Here!” she shouted. “Fast!”
There was silence, then the sudden sound of flying footsteps. With relief, Aurelia saw a purple smudge move against a building and then appear on the street: Tara running as fast as her feet could carry her. Aurelia held out her hand, and Tara reached for it. Aurelia tugged and pulled the girl into the pod, slamming the door just as she was inside.
“Go!” Aurelia yelled to Jonathon.
The pod swerved and went up two levels, correcting its course. Then it sped off, leaving the dark blocks of the outskirts of Lunar City behind it.
“Nobody speak,” Jonathon ordered. “Wait.”
Now was not the time for talking. There was no guarantee who was listening in on a transport pod. Jonathon is simply trying to keep us safe, thought Aurelia. But she had also noticed the tightness on his face when he'd seen his sister, though he'd said nothing.
Looking around, Aurelia saw the hard, firm line of Jonathon's jaw as he concentrated on the centre console of the pod, then the grim set of Elza's face, focussed on the task at hand. Nicholas looked more relaxed than anyone; his smile was easy when Aurelia caught his eye. Then there was Tara. She was white, and looking down, Aurelia could
see that her hands were shaking. She moved over on the bench seat and put an arm around the girl. To her surprise Tara leant into her, holding her tight. It took a moment for Aurelia to realise that the warmth she felt on her shoulder came from the girl's tears. She cried silently, and Aurelia held her all the way home, stroking her purple hair.
The pod slid through the City, lights bouncing off the glass windows, the kaleidoscope of colour that Aurelia loved about Lunar. Now the streets were wide and familiar, and she knew where they were going. Sure enough, a few minutes later, the pod halted outside of Jonathon's house.
“Out,” he ordered.
Aurelia smelt the fresh, clean smell of grass as she obediently exited the pod. Jonathon held up a hand to stop everyone from speaking, and he led them into the house. Like a military parade, they trooped after him, in through the front door, down the long bare corridor, and finally down the stairs into the basement. Aurelia shook her head. She'd gladly never enter a basement again in her life, if she had any choice about it.
It wasn't until they were all closeted inside a small office with a thick metal door that Jonathon finally spoke.
“It's safe to talk here; no one will be overheard. And I think that there's a fair amount of talking to be done,” he said.
His voice was stern, but Aurelia saw a twinkle in his eye. He’s nowhere near as angry as he is pretending to be, she thought.
“I think we'd better start with how the hell you found us,” Nicholas said.
There was the sound of sniffing, and Aurelia looked over to see that Tara was crying again. With her makeup running down her face, she looked impossibly young.
“I tried,” the girl said, almost sobbing. “I honestly tried.”
Jonathon looked confused.
“I knew as soon as I heard you what you wanted to do, even though I didn't really understand. I was trying to get to a com system; I promise I was.” Hot tears ran down her face.
Jonathon shook his head. Pulling a disposable wipe from a box on his desk, he got up and handed it to Tara, who took it gratefully.
