The Fledglings' Mentor

by C L Amos

  Marcelle smiled, “I gather you like your new lab rats then, and you haven’t even touched the surface - the chain reaction of the fiveling rebirth grants them mortality for over a thousand years. Can you imagine what other wonders lay hidden in their thousand-year-old morphology… the powers they control… the power you would control? She paused to let the idea sink into his head, “Just remember who can offer that to you…” She tapped the top drawer of his desk where he kept the burner phone, he used to contact Janey. “I doubt the Faction would let you study them under your microscope… if you play your cards right, Dylan, you can have everything you have ever wanted…” She turned to the door, “If you are going to play both sides, it’s important to pick the winning side. I think it’s time you switch back to our side and start feeding us information on the Faction.”

  Dylan stood his ground, “If you want my help, then tell me who A0-10959287-FDS P0139 is?”

  Marcelle smiled, “Oh yes… they didn’t answer that one did they… they like keeping you just on the fringes… let me quench your curiosity. It’s Bernard.”

  Dylan nodded knowingly, the puzzle pieces all falling into place. “I’ll start prepping the eggs… I gather we are going to be milking some sperm from the young strapping lad next door?”

  Marcelle touched her nose, “Now you are on the right track!” Just then her phone rang. “What do you mean they have called an emergency meeting… who do they think they are? … For fucks sake. I will be there in five minutes!”

  She turned to Dylan, “Meet me in the lab next door in an hour… I want to test out a few things.”

  Dylan nodded, “And Sasha?”

  Marcelle sighed, “Dump her down the chute when you are done with her… I can’t see any reason to keep her around.” She flicked her hand and left Dylan alone in the lab.

  Dylan nodded and walked over to the EMCO machine, “Time for you to go again.” He switched the machine to cycle the blood back into the body and disconnected the needle from her artery. He pulled off the electric charging patches and watched the last few drops of Sasha’s blood trickle into her body before switching the EMCO off.

  Dylan released the brake holding the table in place and started pushing Sasha’s body to the garbage chute in the corner of the room. He pushed the button for the chute and tilted the table so that her body could slide down with ease. Suddenly Sasha’s eyes opened, and her arms shot up and grabbed the back of Dylan’s ears. She pulled his head down and head-butted him, cracking his nose. Dylan fell back bewildered, tears streaming from his eyes and blood pouring from his nose. Sasha rolled off the table, grabbed his hair in her hand and pulled his head back.

  Dylan couldn’t believe his eyes, “You… you were dead!! How the fuck is this possible?!”

  Sasha looked around like a crazed banshee, “Where are they?”

  Dylan shrugged, “Who?”

  Sasha pulled his head back harder, “Tom and Julia!”

  Dylan raised his hand, “I don’t know who you are talking about.”

  Sasha slapped her hand over his ear and bent his head back as far as it could go, “Don’t fuck with me. I can smell them all over you.”

  Dylan pleaded, “In the lab next door.” He raised his hand… “I’m on your side… check the top drawer… I have a burner phone…I work for your mother.”

  Sasha rammed his head into her knee and watched his lifeless body collapse to the floor… “I heard what you said to Marcelle, you prick!”

  Sasha ran into his office and grabbed the burner phone. She saw the book lying open on the page of the fiveling and took a few pictures; the book would be too heavy to transport. She grabbed one of Dylan’s spare lab coats, placed a few scalpels in the pocket and tied her hair up. She looked down at Dylan’s body as she stepped over it and took his glasses. She put the glasses on as she approached the two guards stationed outside the laboratory. They were busy having a conversation and didn’t notice Sasha’s initial approach until suddenly the guard looked up, “Hey, where did you come from?”

  She stood between the two men, measured them up, grabbed the scalpel out of her pocket and thrust it into the left guard’s jugular as she simultaneously reached out and took his gun from his belt and aimed it at the guard on the right hand side before he had a chance to react to the situation and draw his own weapon. He raised his hands immediately. Sasha reached down, unclipped his tactical belt, and threw it to the side. She motioned with the gun, “Take me to the twins.”

  He walked in front of her and led her to Tom and Julia’s cell. “Open it!”

  Tom and Julia came out and closed the guard in the cell. Julia jumped and hugged Sasha, and the electricity seemed to spark between them, “You did it… you found your way back.”

  Suddenly a voice shouted from the corridor, “Code Red Passag…”

  Sasha pulled another scalpel and threw it into his eye. “We have got to get out of here, they will trace his signal.”

  Tom took her in his arms. He didn’t care; he kissed her, “I thought I would never see you again!”

  Sasha’s knees went weak as she inhaled his scent, it was intoxicating her senses and all she could do was give in to him and she could feel by the growing bulge in his pants that he had really missed her. She smiled and rubbed his face, the reality of where they were slowly sinking in… “We need to get you guys out of here!”

  Tom and Julia followed her out of the lab and down the corridor. They heard the lift stop and commotion ensue, followed shortly afterwards by the sound of heavy footfalls heading in their direction. “We have to get to the fire escape; they are going to alert Marcelle.” Sasha spotted an office door and kicked it in; a man sat behind his desk, bewildered. She ran to the fire escape window and thrust it up. “Get out.” She pushed Julia out the window, “head towards the farm, I’ll catch up.”

  A guard rounded the door and fired a shot. Sasha pushed Tom out the window and fired back at the guard, but the guard let off another few rounds. Sasha returned fire, hitting him in the shoulder and then in his head, and she watched his body collapse. She heard the sirens wailing and gunshot fire erupting outside. She dived through the window, clutching the burner phone in her talon. She spotted Tom and Julia just further ahead. She squawked at them “Climb, climb… we have to get out of their range.” Sasha shot straight up; she could see Tom and Julia following suit and starting to climb as they flew out over the city and out of the sniper’s range.

  Just then, Julia felt a searing pain shoot through the top of her wing as a bullet grazed her; she lost momentum and fell behind Tom.

  Sasha saw Julia was losing altitude and would soon be back in full range. She pulled her wings up and dove down to her position, “Come on Julia, just a few more yards we just need to get behind that tall building.” Julia took a deep breath and soldiered on as they pushed their way past the first high rise, landing on a precariously small ledge just out of range and sight.

  Tom and Julia were panting heavily; they were still getting used to flying, never mind dodging bullets while doing so. Sasha let them catch a quick breath. “We need to find a way into this building; we won’t be able to out-fly them.” Sasha dove down and darted into an open window halfway down the side of the building, and Tom and Julia followed closely. Sasha shifted back and slammed the window closed behind them. The three looked around; they were in someone’s flat, but luckily for them no one appeared to be home at the moment … but they knew that could all change at any second.

  Julia clenched her arm. Sasha took a kitchen towel from the drawer and wrapped it around the wound. “It’s just a flesh wound, but we need to stop the bleeding.” She glanced over at Tom, “See if you can find a bandage in the bathroom.” Sasha looked lovingly into Julia’s eyes, took her face in her hands and kissed her, “Oh God, I have missed those eyes. It feels like I spent eternity in there fighting to get back to you and your brother.” She kissed her again.

  Julia shrugged, “It was quite a day, we have lots to catch
up on whenever thing settle down a bit. I have so many questions.”

  Sasha stood up in a flash, “Oh shit… I almost forgot…They will be tracking me; I need to keep them off your trail.” She copied the number off the burner phone and gave it to Julia, “Phone Janey; she will get you out of here.”

  Tom walked into the room and saw Sasha standing at the window, preparing to leave, “And now?”

  Sasha blew him a kiss, shifted into a Raven and dived out the window, taking flight.

  Tom called after her… “Wait!”

  Julia spoke quietly, “Close the window, they are tracking her… it’s the only way to keep us safe.”

  Tom closed the window and walked over to Julia, “What are we supposed to do now? We can’t stay here either.”

  Julia gave him the number, “We need to contact Aunty Janey; she is the only one who can get us out of this mess.”

  Tom nodded, grabbed the phone from its charging station and dialed the number.

  Janey answered cautiously, as she didn’t recognize the number, “Hello…”

  Tom took a deep breath, “Aunty Janey it’s Tom, we need an Evac urgently - we are in an apartment in Segway Heights, about 2km from the compound.”

  Janey held the speaker, “Pete… it’s Tom, they managed to escape and need an Evac? Keep him on the phone, I might have someone in the area who can help.”

  Pete took the phone, “Tom, it’s so good to hear your voice. Aunty Janey is pulling in a few favors, how did you manage to escape?”

  Tom shook his head, “I’m not even sure, Sasha pitched up out of nowhere, protected us. got us to safety and gave us this number.”

  Pete called Janey over, “I thought Sasha was dead?”

  Tom shrugged, “All I know is that everything is upside down at the moment… nothing makes sense.”

  Janey took the phone, “Listen a courier van is going to pull into the parking garage underneath the building in ten minutes. He will pick you up outside the service elevator.”

  “Tom nodded, “Thank you, Aunty Janey.”

  Chapter 11 Incompetence

  The High Council had called for a meeting in the boardroom. Twenty members sat around the oval oak carved table, each agitated and flustered. There was a faint knock at the door, but it was ignored as all eyes focused on Marcelle as she slammed her hands on the table, “This is the only way to ensure your safety. I know the methods seem harsh, but I assure you that they are temporary. The wolves have been brainwashed by the Faction and are spearheading a revolt against us. Might I remind you that they are targeting the prominent members of this council? As soon as we have squashed the Faction, things will return to normal.”

  Rosendorff butted in, “I have received numerous reports from wolf elders claiming that there is no such rebellion and that the wolves are being hunted down and brought here for extermination… I have known these men for years and I know for a fact that their clan is loyal to our cause.”

  Marcelle snapped, “Only those found guilty of treason are being executed. If they are innocent, then they have nothing to worry about.”

  Rosendorff stood up, “I think the council chose too hastily. I call for a revote.”

  Marcelle motioned to the guards to arrest him, “Your request is denied, please escort Mr. Rosendorff out of the conference room. We invoked the law of Vultallah. Might I remind you that the law decrees that the council needs one clear vision in a time of war, and that vision has been entrusted to me? Any opposition to my directive will be seen as treason and be dealt with in a manner befitting the charge. Now, are there any more questions?”

  The insistent knocking intensified, and Marcelle snapped, “Who the fuck keeps knocking? Don’t they know that the council is in session?”

  The door opened and a skinny young woman came running around the table with a note in her hand. “I am sorry, madam, but there has been a security breech on the third floor. Two prisoners have escaped the laboratory and took out several guards in the process.”

  Marcelle clenched her fists and dug her nails into her hands, “We will have to postpone this meeting. I have an urgent matter to attend to!”

  Marcelle met the security chief in the hallway, “What the fuck happened?”

  The chief shrugged, “The guard said they were attacked by a female lab technician.”

  Marcelle stopped in her tracks, “A female lab technician? Oh my god, I am surrounded by idiots.” She pushed the button for the elevator. “How the fuck did they escape?”

  The chief shrugged “I just told you? A female lab technician broke into the lab, she took a guard hostage and freed the Blackberg twins before locking the guard in the cell. They exited through a fire escape window in one of the offices stationed further down on the floor. Four teams with air and ground tracking capabilities have since been dispatched and I assure you that we are doing everything possible to capture them.”

  Marcelle flashed red and grabbed the security chief by the collar and pushed him against the wall, “You are a fucking incompetent idiot. How the fuck did anyone bypass our fucking state of the art security system twice? You don’t seem to get the point that they SHOULDN’T HAVE ESCAPED IN THE FIRST FUCKING PLACE!!!”

  The elevator arrived and she dropped him. The chief coughed and cleared his throat, “We are looking into the lab assistant as we speak and I can assure you that this will never happen again… if there are any moles they will be flushed out shortly because we are running each and every employees’ coms through the system as we speak.”

  Marcelle shook her head, “Just shut the fuck up… the more you speak the more I just want to strangle you. I want this mess sorted out before the sun sets tonight. I want to know who the mystery woman is, how long she has worked here, what information she had access to and any and all links that tie her to the Faction and or the Blackberg twins.”

  “We have security teams going over the footage in the labs as we speak, we have already got her profile pic,” the elevator stopped on the third floor and he passed his tablet to her.

  Marcelle looked at the picture and her heart stopped, “That is fuckin impossible she is dea..” she paused, “That fuckin two-timing scumball, get Dr. Dylan here right now - he has a lot of explaining to do.”

  The chief shook his head, “Dr. Dylan is in recovery. He was badly injured in the attack but should be ready for questioning in a few hours.” He paused, cautiously asking, “Who is this woman? Do you know her?”

  Marcelle snapped, “It’s Sasha you fuckin idiot, track her location immediately and send sweepers in at every point she stopped at in-route.”

  The chief radioed down to control and gave the order.

  Marcelle interjected “…and have them send over the Dr’s camera feed for the last 24hrs, I want to see everything that happened in that fuckin lab.”

  Chapter 12 Standoff

  Sasha hopped from building to building, leaving a jumbled trail of stops, and even planted Dylan’s phone in the basement of one of the buildings. She knew they would have to send teams to every location, and if she managed to give Tom and Julia a slight advantage it would be worth it. She eventually made it back to her apartment. Sasha knew her mother was able to jam the tracking signal, but she wasn’t sure how long the procedure would take and how long they could jam it for. She knew she might have to prepare for a stand-off and her apartment made the most sense; she had access to her weapon safe and knew the layout and vulnerable spots like the back of her hand - she could defend herself there for hours if necessary.

  She grabbed her own burner phone and swiped green to call her mother.

  Janey burst out, “Oh my god I thought we had lost you! Sasha, is that really you?”

  Sasha placed the call on speaker, so she could prepare her apartment, “Yes, it is. Have you heard from Tom and Julia? Have you managed to get them out of the city?”

  Janey replied, “Yes, they should be leaving the city as we speak. Where are you?”

  Sasha shook her
head, “I am preparing for a standoff in my apartment. I can’t go anywhere until the signal to my chip is jammed.”

  Janey nodded, “Understood, I will get someone on it right away. If everything goes to plan, we should have an extraction team with you in less than half an hour… I have a feeling you are going to need a little back-up.”

  Sasha heard tires screeching to a halt below, and she looked out the window, “The sweepers have arrived. I will keep them busy for as long as I can. Please promise me that you will do whatever you can to keep Tom and Julia safe… promise me that you will protect them.”

  Janey snapped, “Hey, don’t you dare give up hope! You have already cheated death once today and I will do everything in my power to ensure you get out of this alive. Now get off the phone and prepare to greet your visitors!”

  Sasha cocked her Glock and smiled, “I plan to.”

  Sasha heard the heavy footfalls approaching. She had already secured the wooden shutters over the windows - this wouldn’t eliminate the threat of a multi-angle assault, but it would slow them down and buy her time. She killed the lights and slipped over her tactical mask and set it to night vision. She heard them knocking the door with a ram… she took out her pack of venom-laced stars and readied herself. As the first wave broke through, she showered them in a fury of deadly stars and watched them fall one by one. The second wave realized that she must have night vision glasses on and threw in a light grenade as they ran in, unloading clip after clip of their assault rifles, and the dust and fluff rose into the air in a cloud of perpetual confusion. Sasha ripped off the goggles and took aim but as she did, she gave her position away, and the wave of bullets moved towards her at speed. She ducked behind the solid counter, grabbed a grenade and tossed it over the counter toward the front door. She ducked and covered her ears as the close-quarters explosion shook the room; plaster fell from the ceilings and light fittings smashed onto the floor. She popped her head over and shot the next three in the doorway. She looked around. It seemed quiet, but her ears were ringing, and she struggled to hear if anyone was approaching. She felt the burner phone vibrate… she looked down and saw the message stating that the extraction team had arrived. Gunfire echoed up the staircase and she ran over to the sealed window. As she opened the shutter, to her surprise a man came flying through the window, holding on to his rappelling rope. He grabbed a hold of Sasha’s hair as he passed her and pulled her to the ground. Sasha felt her brain jolt violently forward as her skull crashed into the floor. She opened her eyes and the man sat on top of her. She had deja-vu; the man struck her through the face and she just shook her head, gathered all the blood and spit in her mouth, and spat it into his eyes. Just then, a member of the extraction team ran in and hit the back of the man’s head with the butt of his gun. Sasha’s attacker slumped over her and she struggled for a second to get a grip and roll him off of her. When she sat up, the rest of the extraction team came flooding in and the young wolfing helped her to her feet. She felt a bit dizzy and rubbed the back of her head, “Are we all set; can we get the fuck out of here now?”