Retaliation (The Praegressus Project Book 3)

by Aaron Hodges

  When it was over, and even the dying moans of the pitiful creatures had fallen silent, the Chead finally grew still. Licking her lips, she savoured the metallic tang of their life blood. It covered her clothes, her face, her hair, covered everything in the room. Her nostrils flared as she breathed in its scent.

  Slowly the red began to fade, her bloodlust sated, and images rose from the depths of her mind. She saw the faces of the creatures strewn around her, their lips twisted in smiles, their eyes filled with laughter. She saw the man who had died first offering his hand, welcoming her, and others leading her down the long white corridors, showing her to her room.

  Susan stumbled backwards, her feet slipping in the slick blood covering the linoleum floor. The breath caught in her throat, and she grabbed at the bench, desperate to stay standing. Looking down, she saw the blood covering her clothes. Her stomach wrenched and she tasted bile in the back of her throat.

  Choking, Susan struggled to hold down the contents of her stomach. But there was no escaping the blood. It filled the room, lingering in her nostrils, on her tongue.

  “No!” the word tore from her lips.

  She gasped, a scream building in her throat as she struggled to breath. Her eyes swept the room, and found the cold grey eyes of the Chead watching her.

  “What did you do?” she screamed.

  But she knew this had not been its doing. Hecate had never left his post, only watched with the same quiet satisfaction he watched her with now. This had been her doing, her slaughter. She had torn through her fellow doctors like death itself, joying in their fear, their agony as she ripped flesh from bone.

  “No…” she whispered, shaking her head. Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at Hecate. “What have you done to me?”

  A smile spread across the creature’s face as it stepped towards her. Reaching out a hand, it placed it on her shoulder.

  “Now, you are one of us,” Hecate whispered.

  Before Susan could reply, the red haze rose again to claim her.

  19

  Liz paced down the corridor, her long strides eating up the distance in half a dozen steps. Reaching the end, she spun and set off back down the hall. Her wings stretched out to either side of her, as far as the narrow walls would allow. The muscles in her back spasmed, stiff from the long days of disuse, but she kept on. Up and down she walked, stretching and folding her wings, doing her best to work the nots from her muscles.

  It was not enough, of course, and though she had only had the strange limbs a few weeks, she longed to take to the sky. There was a recklessness inside her, a need to escape the confines of the safe house and soar amongst the skyscrapers and hills of San Francisco.

  Instead, she and the others had found themselves locked away, under strict orders from Mike and the other managers of the safehouse to remain indoors. That meant no midnight flights, not even an afternoon stroll through the suburbs. After their weeks spent in the mountains and plains of California, the restrictions were quickly driving her insane.

  It didn’t help that she had spent the past week dodging Chris. She could see the hurt in his eyes each time she spurned him. It matched the pain in her own heart, but she couldn’t bring herself to wound him further. Then there was Ashley, who had apparently decided to shun them all. Liz had done her best to console Sam, who was mostly confined to his bed while his leg healed. Mira was finally awake, and despite their best efforts to keep her in bed, had taken to wandering the house at strange hours. Several of the guards had already complained about her scaring them half to death in the middle of the night.

  And Jasmine, well, she had at least calmed down since the incident in Independence Square. But she was going as mad as Liz, locked away in the house.

  Worst of all, there still hadn’t been any word from the Texan. It had been over a week since he’d left with Mira’s feather. Maria and the other managers of the house had expected him back by now, although they still insisted everything was okay. Maria had known Mike for months now, and apparently it wasn’t unusual for him to drop off the radar.

  And so they waited, trapped in the house. During the day, they took turns watching the television, waiting for news of the attack in Independence Square to surface. The government had been tight lipped so far, suppressing all details while they ‘investigated’. But with so many people involved, even the corrupt reporters for the news agencies had started asking questions. Unfortunately, the days when everyone had a smartphone in their pocket had ended when stocks of Gallium and other rare earth metals ran out. Thirty years ago, a dozen videos of the attack would have surfaced by now, but so far there had been nothing.

  Ahead, a door opened and Liz drew to a stop as Ashley walked into the hallway. The girl’s lips were drawn back in a scowl and she stood with her arms crossed, one eyebrow raised.

  “Do you have to do that?” Ashley asked, her voice sharp.

  Shifting her weight to lean against the wall, Liz folded her wings and eyed the taller girl. Staring into Ashley’s amber eyes, Liz struggled to pierce the veil the girl had cast over herself. The girl standing in front of her was so different from the Ashley she’d known back in the facility. That Ashley had always seemed so perfect, as though the darkness could not touch her. Even in the mountains, with bullets flying all around them, Ashley had kept her cool.

  Yet back in Independence Square, Ashley had frozen.

  “Sorry, were you sleeping?” Liz finally replied in a whisper.

  Ashley’s white wings stretched out behind her, the feathers standing on end. “Of course I was sleeping!” she snapped, “It’s 3am!”

  “Oh!” Liz glanced at the clock on the wall, surprised she’d lost track of time, “Sorry, I didn’t realise.”

  “Of course not,” Ashley snorted, her eyes flashing, “Why would you?”

  Liz raised her arms in surrender, unwilling to say anything that might provoke Ashley further. Shaking her head, Ashley turned and stalked back towards her room.

  “What happened to you, Ashley?” Liz asked without thinking.

  Ashley paused in her doorway, one hand on the wooden frame. With her back turned, Liz could not see her face, but her feathers quivered, standing on end to tangle with her scarlet hair. Her shoulders started to shake, and suddenly Liz realised Ashley was crying.

  Liz was at her side in an instant. Reaching out, she gently rubbed the small of her back. She had taken to wearing long sleeves and thin woollen gloves, but she was still careful not to touch Ashley’s skin. After a moment, Ashley looked back at her, her eyes red.

  “I don’t know, Liz,” Ashley’s voice shook, “I’m terrified… of everything. I feel so helpless, so useless, like every bad thing that happens is my fault.”

  “That’s not true,” Liz gripped her by the chin and forced Ashley to look at her, “You know that.”

  But Ashley only shook her head. Breaking free of Liz’s grip, she leaned against the wall and slid to the ground. Hugging her knees to herself, she went on.

  “You don’t know what it was like, after you escaped. Halt had me so drugged up, I couldn’t do anything to stop him. My…my mind was so muddled…the things he did, they’re still coming back to me, even now. Every night I go to sleep, and I remember something new, some fresh, horrible thing he did to me while I was helpless in that hospital bed. It’s like he’s waiting for me, every night…” her voice cracked, “And then there’s what Sam did… for me. I can’t bear it.”

  Liz shivered. Staring down at Ashley, she could only begin to imagine what vile things Halt might have done to her in retaliation for their escape. Taking a breath, she crouched beside Ashley and hugged her as best she could.

  “Come on,” she said finally. Pulling back, she nodded down the corridor. “You need some fresh air.”

  “But…” Ashley trailed off, and Liz saw the fear in her eyes.

  “No,” Liz gripped her under the arm and hauled Ashley to her feet, “Don’t think it, don’t say it. It’s dark. There’s no on
e looking for us out here, not at this time of night. We’ll be fine. Sitting around stewing isn’t doing you any good.”

  With that, Liz set off down the hallway, dragging the other girl with her.

  Taking care to avoid the man on watch, they slipped out the back window into the garden, where a scattering of trees offered shelter from anyone who might have been watching. The last hint of Ashley’s injury had faded days ago, and while she’d had less practice than the rest of them, Ashley still managed to get airborne with only a short run across the grass. Her white wings clipped the treetops as she lifted from the yard, then she was free.

  Liz laughed as she looked back and saw the grin on Ashley’s face. Stretching her wings, she drifted sideways, allowing the other girl to catch up. As they drew side by side, their wings stretched out to brush against one another, black on white. The lights of the houses fell away beneath them as they rose higher, the strong San Francisco winds sending them soaring.

  Looking out through the night, it seemed to Liz as though the whole world stretched out beneath them. The lights of the city shone like stars below, stretching north and east and south as far as the eye could see. In the distance, the lights merged with the sky, so that there was no horizon, only an endless tapestry of stars above and below.

  “How do you feel?” she called to Ashley over the howling wind.

  Ashley grinned back at her, her face more alive than Liz had seen in weeks. Her amber eyes shone, like twin beams in the darkness.

  “Like I’m home!” she shouted back.

  They fell silent then, drifting in the peaceful calm of the night sky. Liz watched Ashley’s face as she contemplated the city below, remembering again the girl she’d first met in their prison cell. Ashley had said something profound then – something that had given them all hope in their darkest days. She’d told them that Halt and their captors were only human, that they would make mistakes.

  But thinking about the past few weeks, the things they had endured, Liz found herself thinking there was more to those words. Because despite everything that had been done to them, the wings and strength and speed the mad scientists in the mountains had given them, they were still only human. And with all the loss and horror and guilt they had endured, it was a miracle they hadn’t all crumbled long ago.

  And of all of them, Ashley had endured the most. While the bullet wound had healed, the aftermath of Ashley’s fall had left far deeper scars. Liz just hoped her friend could claw her way back from the brink.

  “You know what I always dreamed of doing?” Ashley asked suddenly, a grin splitting her face.

  Liz shook her head, and Ashley laughed. Without offering any further explanation, she folded her wings, and dove towards the distant city. Liz’s heart lurched and she tucked in her wings and chased after her.

  “What are you doing?” she screamed, but the howling wind tore her words away.

  Ahead, Ashley plummeted through the sky, her wings still drawn tight against her back. The skyscrapers loomed as they drew level with their rooftops. Only then did Ashley pull out of her dive. White wings struck the air, sending her racing through the maze of buildings, until ahead, they gave way to the waters of the San Francisco harbour.

  Turning her wings, Liz adjusted course, surprised by Ashley’s speed. She heard the soft crash of waves from below as the winds raged on the harbour, and away to their right she saw the lights of Alcatraz. The prison had been reopened during the American War, and had since been used to hold those who were convicted of treason while they awaited their sentence. Or so Liz had thought, until a few months ago.

  But it wasn’t the prison Ashley was interested in. Her wings shifted, lifting them higher again, as the lights of the Golden Gate Bridge loomed above them. Blinking, Liz couldn’t help but grin as they flew up through the twisting suspension. The red paint glimmered in the fluorescent lights, while below the odd car drove across the bridge, ignorant of the two fugitives flying overhead.

  Liz started to laugh as Ashley reached the top of the steel suspension and dropped down onto one of the crossbeams. With the wind swirling around them, it was no easy feat, and Liz took care not to knock the other girl off as she followed her down. Landing lightly, she shivered as her bare feet touched the cold steel. Turning, she looked out across the bridge, and slowly shook her head.

  The Golden Gate Bridge.

  The bridge of dreams, the symbol of their capital, of the young nation that had been born from the ashes of the United States. It had survived the passing of the empire that had built it, and might yet live to see the fall of another.

  Beside her, Ashley lowered herself down, so that she sat with her feet hanging out over open space. With her white wings dangling out behind her, she looked like some guardian angel, sitting in watch over the Golden Gate City.

  But looking at her, Liz could see the fear in the whites of Ashley’s eyes. The amber had shrunk to a speck, and her face was pale. Whatever courage had brought her this far was quickly fading.

  Liz carefully sat beside Ashley and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Are you okay?”

  Ashley shivered in her arms. “This was a mistake,” she whispered, “They’ll see us.”

  But she didn’t move, and Liz pulled her closer. “No, they won’t,” she laughed, “And if they do, just let them try and catch us up here.”

  When Ashley didn’t reply, Liz went on. “They’re not going to find us, Ashley. I’m not going back to their laboratory, and neither are you. We’ll never wear those collars again.”

  “Words,” Ashley shook her head and looked at her, “They’re just words – you, Sam, my parents. They will come for us, just like they did my sister. They have too. We’re a loose end they can’t afford to leave free. We barely survived the square.”

  “Then we’ll come for them first,” Liz growled. She gave Ashley’s shoulder a squeeze. “The Director, the President, heck, Halt’s ghost for all I care. We’ll take them all down if we need too. That’s what we’re doing now, isn’t it? When Mike comes back…”

  “He’s not coming back,” Ashley whispered.

  Liz shivered, her own doubts rising to the surface. She pressed them down. “Maybe, maybe not. If he doesn’t come back, we’ll go instead. We can’t give up,” she paused and stared out over the city. Finally, she went on, “I don’t know what Halt did to you, Ash. But I do know this – you can’t let it rule you. You can’t let his cruelty define you. You’re stronger than that.”

  There were tears in Ashley’s eyes as she looked out at the city. “I’m afraid he broke me.”

  Liz took a hold of Ashley’s shoulders and forced the girl to look at her. “Don’t say that,” she snapped, “Never say that. They didn’t break you, Ash. You’re still here, you’re still standing.”

  “But in the square, I was so afraid, I couldn’t move…”

  “We’re all afraid,” Liz growled, “But we don’t have the option of giving up. Too many people have sacrificed their lives for us to go hide under a rock. Richard, and Fallow, our parents, those women in the square. We can’t run away now. We have to fight.”

  Ashley closed her eyes, but after a long moment, she nodded. Smiling, Liz let her go, and turned back to the city. Sitting up there, high above it all, it was easy to picture San Francisco as she had once imagined it. As a child, it had always been so distant, an almost mythical place she could only dream of visiting. But those dreams had soured her first day of boarding school. The city had taught her only hatred and cruelty, and within days she had longed to escape.

  But now she felt a touch of that old magic return. Up here, it was easy to forget the corruption that plagued the city, the vile cruelty of the men and women who ruled it. Up here, she could almost imagine the San Francisco of old, the city that had stood against the corruption of the United States, that had led the Western Allied States to freedom.

  “I don’t know how to face him,” Ashley whispered suddenly.

  “Who?”


  “Sam,” Ashley breathed, “I know he did it for me, but… I wish he hadn’t. There is already so much blood on my hands, I can’t take having the lives of all those kids as well.”

  “It doesn’t have to be that way,” Liz said, “Help us stop them, before they have the chance to murder any more children. Whether the Texan returns or not, we need your help, Ash.”

  Ashley’s chest swelled as she sucked in a great breath. She forced a smile. “You’re right,” she nodded, “We can stop them, before it’s too late.”

  “Good,” Liz grinned.

  “We should be getting back,” Ashley said as the distant screech of sirens carried to them, “The sun will be up soon.”

  Liz smiled. “Are you okay?”

  Ashley shrugged. “It is what it is,” their eyes met, and for a second Liz caught a flash of the old fire in her friend’s eyes, “But thank you, Liz. You were right, I needed this.”

  Laughing, Liz shook her head. “Let’s go home.”

  20

  Chris looked up from the sofa as the lounge window squeaked. He jumped as a head appeared, then relaxed again as he realised it was only Liz. She scrambled inside and then turned back and offered her gloved hand to someone behind her. Chris raised an eyebrow as Ashley followed her through the window, but Liz kept her eyes averted.

  Anger flared in his chest as the girls ignored him and moved off into the corridor. Rising from the couch, he followed them out and watched as Liz led Ashley back to her room. He’d woken an hour ago in darkness, and unable to sleep, had risen and taken over guard duty from the man sitting in the living room.

  He forced a smile as Liz closed the door behind Ashley and turned around. Her eyes widened when she saw him, and for a moment they stared at each other in silence. Finally, she nodded and moved back down the corridor towards him. Chris let out a long sigh as they returned to the living room and took a seat on opposite couches.