“We wish you no trouble at all, the man said, as the other five men with him stepped up near him.
Before either woman spoke, he went on. “Now we’re only here seeing everything and enjoying these classic things, but we see you and we wonder if our leader would enjoy the two of you returning to our country with us.”
Jan whispered to her sister, “How in the hell did they get here if they're from China or wherever?”
“Either way, it tells me that they're connected with the Corporation,” Reagan whispered back.
“No secrets now,” the short Asian man called out, seeing the pair talk silently to one another.
Raegan frowned.
“Well, you'll have to tell your boss or president or king or whatever you want to call him, that the two of us are not interested in returning with you anywhere in this world. We're just here to sightsee and we'd appreciate it if you just left us alone.”
“Ok.” The Asian man nodded, answering her with a somewhat disappointed demeanor.
“The problem is,” the smiling man been now declared, “he doesn't take no for an answer!”
CHAPTER FOUR
With drones in the sky and various alliance troops walking the perimeter of these monuments, any fighting needed to be swift and fast. Raegan and Jansa were ready to oblige.
A few of their biggest attackers stepped forward and went right up the stairs as if to grab the women and attempt to kidnap them. They were thinking the ladies would not put up much resistance.
Surprise surprise, the women resisted quite well.
Having higher ground was an advantage for the two Mystical Slayers, and as the first Asian male came up the first step, Jansa stuck him with a Muay Thai push kick right in his gut. He keeled over some as yet another man ran up to grab Raegan. She was too quick for him, striking out with a left jab, smacking him directly in the nose. Two other men circled around left and right and came up the stairs next.
The left side’s guy came at Jansa a little more seriously than the first. He had his hands up, ready to fight. She lifted her hands up, protecting her face with her palms open. Keeping her balance on the wide white marble stairs was tricky as it had rained fairly recently. However, as he struck out at her, she deflected his blows and then landed a solid left elbow into his face.
Raegan on the other side was attacked again too.
She leaned back, avoiding a punch at first, but then she grabbed Jansa by the shoulder and pulled her more up the stairs. “Come on, I’ve changed my mind. Let's have some fun. We’ll be more hidden up underneath the roof. Let’s go!”
Both blondes ran up the stairway as fast as possible with the Asian gang giving chase.
The short leader of this crew was last to get up there. They soon spread about, looking at the two women who had positioned themselves to the left of the big Lincoln Memorial statue.
He shook his head side to side.
“You make this difficult,” he called out, seemingly frustrated. “Women not supposed to fight. You belong in kitchen cooking!”
Raegan turned to Jansa asking, “Are you ready?” Her sister nodded. “Let’s rock and roll!”
The curly-haired doctor nodded that she was ready to go. “I was born ready!” She grinned.
“That's what I was hoping to hear.” Raegan winked.
Both of them now took a fighting stance as they watched their assailants come forward to once more attack them.
The small leader, out of nowhere, pulled a knife from his side, holding it in front of the women. He snickered some, thinking he had a clear advantage now as another of his crew pulled out some sort of a baton as well.
“Don't kill them!” he screamed. “If we have to take them as prisoners, we don't want them messed up too badly. Be nice now. We want pretty girls for boss.” He added these words while looking at the man with the club.
He then looked back to the women. “I'm only going to slice you a little bit. I will be good too.”
He pointed out with his knife ahead of him and as he moved forward, he tried to drive the knife into Raegan’s belly.
Jansa began fighting two at once on the other side. The rest spread out more and more.
At the various Mystical Slayer facilities, Raegan had gone over this knife defensive many times in their martial arts training. She slipped to the right so the blade passed by her stomach, grabbed his wrist with her right hand, twisted it up, and then locked his elbow with her other hand. It was then she drove a kick up into his groin area, turning his elbow all the while, and slammed him face-first into the hard floor with a solid arm bar.
Some of his comrades paused at this beautiful move, thinking twice now about trying to grab the woman before them. But the one with the club did not hesitate. He started swinging it at Raegan very pissed off at what had just happened to his own boss.
He said something in Chinese, which Jansa actually recognized as being a swearing curse. “Watch out,” she called to her sister as Raegan ducked under his first initial high swing towards her head.
He then tried to backhand her in the cheekbone. She brought her right hand up, placing it on her ear and tucking her elbow towards her chin. The shield block worked and she was not hurt at all upon impact.
It when then Raegan struck out at him with a rounded left knee into his liver area; it immediately paralyzed him and put him down to his knees. She then then grabbed him by the hair and punched him in the face twice. He kind of slipped down to the floor after that, not willing to put up much more of a fight. She kicked his baton out of the way and both she and her sister joined back together as the others in the room all hesitated.
Jansa wanted in on the action and curled a finger, egging one on. One bravely went at her. He yelled a battle cry and tried to punch her twice and then kick her in the side. Jansa slipped his first punch, and his second was parried by her right palm. The kick she caught under her left armpit.
She swung the man’s leg about and as he lost his balance, she went to sweep his foot out from under him. But he jumped out of the way. He then grabbed her around her side and threw her down to the hard stone floor.
The others made a move toward Raegan now.
The doctor loved to grapple and as they scrambled in the fight, she shrimped her way from his grasp and wrapped both legs around his waist line. Lying on her back, she had him in her guard and as he tried to break free, she led him right where she hoped he’d go.
In the meantime, Raegan had another cocky man strike out at her. He jabbed at her face, and she parried the punch with her right hand and swinging her left hand around the back of his neck. It was then she drove several hard left knees into his midsection. It took the wind right out of him and hurt like hell.
Jansa pushed her assailant’s left hand between her leg as he tried to force her crossed ankles open and wrapped her legs around the man’s neck. She then grabbed his head with her free hands yanked it down. The restriction of blood and oxygen to his brain made him very dizzy and soon he passed out. She loved the triangle; it was one of her all-time favorite jiu-jitsu moves.
Anyone still standing stopped fighting as Jansa jumped back up.
The small boss, now on one knee, called out for a truce. “Stop it now. We stop, you too tough. Crazy women who fight like banshees!”
“You made the right decision,” Reagan said, as she went over and helped the boss of these thugs up more. She then pushed him back up against a stone wall. “You're messing with the wrong two people. Don't always judge a book by its cover.”
The little Asian man nodded his head.
“Yes, we make a big mistake. You two out-of-this-world tough. Are you soldiers in hiding?”
Another Asian fellow asked next, “Are you secret police?”
The ladies chuckled some.
The boss then added, “We very sorry!”
Their leader, once Raegan let him go, grabbed all his men. “Let’s get out of here, you morons,” he called out, leading the way as they ran
down the memorial stairway.
Jansa and her sister just stood in the open chamber now for a bit. She then broke the ice. “Oh, my Lord. Are we like a red target for everybody to come after? We’re just two women walking around, for God sake.”
Raegan could not agree more.
As they were about to leave the covering area, Raegan pointed to a drone that suddenly flew into the memorial. She motioned for Jansa to follow her as she walked around to the other side of the large Lincoln statue, trying to get out of the drone’s perfect view. The thing zoomed over and followed them as Reagan tried to make small talk with her sister, acting as if they were just sight-seers.
The drone was metallic silver with green lighting. It stopped and watched as the women finally left and went down the white stone stairs outside. The drone, obviously a Y-Wood Corporation device, was about the size of a small car. It came up near them even closer now, as if trying to get the perfect picture of who they were. But then it zoomed off into the sky.
“Should we actually keep going?” Jansa now asked her sister.
Raegan shook her head no.
“I think I've seen enough of this place already. It is still not safe. Y-Wood is making it look like the new governor has got this place under her wing, but the truth is, it’s still complete chaos here. I mean, it’s better than it was, but they're up to something. I don't need to see any more.”
Jansa was disappointed, obviously. They had barely been anywhere. But she understood.
They then made their way along the streets, heading back to her motorcycle.
But it was then a flying vessel came up from behind a tall building and sped down near them. In a loud, familiar voice, one coming from its outside speakers, a man called out, “What are you two doing out here? Did you think we would not spot you?”
The women both looked at one another, a bit puzzled, but it was then the Sky Captain Raymond Hully called back down to them. He was an old friend from past battles with the Corporation. They knew his voice quite well.
“It's me, you knuckleheads,” he announced. “My scouts have already told me you've been here for close to an hour or two. And as you can imagine, she wants to speak with you now that you've made your presence known.”
The women knew he meant Jerry Bends.
The ship now hovered and was easing down to the ground more.
“I'm going to land down in front of you in the open area, so that I may fly you over to see Governor Bends. Hide your faces from the flying dirt,” the Sky Captain announced.
It was then that he picked up both the women.
They chatted about all as they flew towards the Capitol building to see the Governor.
Reagan was first to ask, “I'm sure she knows that this place is more of a facade than anything else? Yes, it offers a lot of hope to those who visit, and its banner is not showing Y-Wood. However, only in theory is it better than nothing. I see that the Alliance is still partially in charge here, but we all know the real truth.”
Captain Hully did not disagree.
“She seems to be fine with that,” he replied. “It’s been a step in the right direction at least. But I'll let you talk to her about it. I'm sure she'll explain how she feels and be quite happy to see you two.”
“After a few years, we were hoping that it would be better than this,” Raegan added. “Yeah, at least it’s a place where people can relax and enjoy the sights. But, I mean, we've been attacked twice out here in less than 2 hours.”
“We patrol a lot, but we’re limited in man power and flyers. Like you said, it's not the optimum setting,” the captain explained.
Jansa tuned in. “Why haven’t you all got more flying ships and more people helping?”
The good captain grinned. “Well the best answer to that question, doc, is simply fear. The threat of Y-Wood retaliating against any who come here is very much an issue.”
The three of them soon stopped talking for a bit. Washington, D.C. was one area still pretty much standing and intact. The sight of all the buildings about was something both women loved seeing.
Raymond Hully flew swiftly to the Capitol building. A few minutes later he then explained, “This is where we put most of our patrols. This is where our sky fighters are throughout the day. It is the biggest place and it's where she is, so the rest of these things get little attention. But I definitely agree, it ain’t perfect out here by any means.”
They were now in sight of the giant, domed, white stone building. A place that once housed the great Congress and Senate of the United States of America. It was, even still today, an amazing building indeed.
“Here we go, ladies,” The captain said. “It's been a pleasure escorting you two superstars here.” He then landed his dragon flyer and let the women out down a ramp and stairs so that they could pay a visit to Governor Bends.
Raegan turned to her sister as they were soon taken by armed guards inside the place. “I hope she’s okay.”
Jansa nodded. “Me too!”
CHAPTER FIVE
After several flight up, they came into her office. Jerry was sitting in her wheelchair with her glasses on, reading a book.
She looked up, peering at the two women before her.
“It's about time you two got over here. Did you have a chance to visit all the different memorials? Each is still here, intact, which is a good thing.”
Reagan smiled.
It was good to see Jerry, yet she was looking weak and drawn out.
“You know us very well. You've been watching, I’m sure. We didn't do much. We were going to go to the cemetery and pay our respects to some of the fallen and also go to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial as well. I think we both needed to remember that this area that was a one-time place billed as an age of enlightenment, one for the civil rights movement still should mean something. A place that makes one’s soul feel better, if you know what I mean?”
“Oh, I know exactly what you mean,” spoke the Governor. “It still is, my dear.”
Jansa was a bit perplexed. She knew, all of them knew, things were not great.
The Governor saw it in her face.
“I think the premise of bringing hope to everyone and taking over the Washington, D.C. area has been a great success. Now as to maintaining it, well, I always knew that would be an issue.”
“People all over America,” Jansa replied, “were thrilled to have this area under the Alliance. We did the right thing, either way. But now, I have to ask, what do we do regarding the future?”
The elderly Governor answered her concern with a slight smile. “Well, I'm figuring that you two came here for that very reason. A way to make things better. Let us talk more on it.”
Raegan raised your hands up. “Actually, we came just to see how things were going in person. It’s been long enough that we figured it was time to move about. Hiding is not something we enjoy.”
Jansa then added, “I think we've been in seclusion long enough too. The Y-Wood Corporation is not going away. Why should we?”
“How do your fellow sisters feel, the same?” Jerry asked with concern.
“Restless,” Reagan answered. “Many of the sisters, especially some of the younger ones, are getting very restless.”
The Governor understood.
“Well, let me just say first that if you're hoping to see Victory and Jackson J I cannot say they’re here. Actually, at the moment both are visiting our friends in California.”
Raegan bit her lip some. “That's too bad. We were hoping maybe we could at least see them now that we’re here. Chaya is there as well. How are they doing, by the way?”
The Governor rolled her eyes. “Rambunctious as always, trying to get themselves into things that are bigger than what they should be doing. But they're doing fine. The issue here, ladies, is that no one now, after years have passed, wants to just stay out here in the open under the watchful eyes of the Corporation. Their drones, as I am sure you spotted, are everywhere. They know what's going on
and for most people, this is not how they want to live. You have been in hiding and other people want to be in hiding as well. Does that make any sense?”
The women both nodded that it kind of did.
“How do we change that?” Reagan asked. “I guess that's the question of the day. It's the question for our future, right?”
Jerry started coughing suddenly, more than both sisters were comfortable with. Something was not right. They got an answer when she bluntly announced, “Darn sickness, it’s a rough way to make an exit.”
The room suddenly became very silent. Raegan’s and Jansa’s hearts sank.
Jerry than announced, “It’s okay, no one lives forever, you two. Really, it’s fine. I want you both to know, it was my hope that more people would come forth in revolution. It just has not happened, and until we can make the Corporation go away, or turn them into something that resembles democracy, we're still limited in what we can do.”
Again, she coughed some.
“I'm sure you know they're back at the Empire State Building in New York, using it as their main base of operation in full again. They are heavily fortified now more than ever. It would be impossible to take them down there.”
“How long do you have?” Jansa asked Jerry without hesitation.
The long gray-haired freedom fighter smiled.
“Only time will tell. I’m a fighter as you know.”
She then rolled her wheelchair about and came out from behind her desk.
Jansa knew it was better to leave things at that. “What were you reading there?” she asked.
Jerry leaned her head that way. “Oh, that old thing. It’s a tale of a woman being used as a slave, called a hand maiden. It’s a very old tale, but rather interesting.”
They chatted more about many things, yet no ideas for the future was spoken on. It was then the Governor announced, “I know there are people in the area that you care about that are buried in Arlington Cemetery. Let’s get you over there.”
There was so much both women wanted to still discuss. Raegan had said nothing about her encounters with Pure, and Jansa felt a new plan was in order for what was to come. But no words led to either issue being talked on very much if at all.
ONE NATION: A Post Apocalyptic, Dystopian Saga Page 3
