Hybrid: Project Vigil (6 page)

They woke up at dawn, ate all food left, packed the camp and headed back. There was no need to talk, they could read each others minds.

Back in camp Gillian went to return basket and tent. John decided to clean his armor. When he entered his tent Hudson was waiting there. He was looking closely at disassembled armor.

“Waiting for me? Or just hanging
around? John asked taking Hudson by surprise.

“I wanted to ask you something.”
Hudson said calmly, still looking at armor.

“Go ahead then.”

Hudson
took a deep breath.

“We spent enormous resources on this project. You're the best we've got. Now the situation is calm bu
t I don't know if we can keep it that way. Wars will be and our enemies are getting smarter and stronger. We need something that could give us an edge over them. I hate to say that but our prospects don't look good.”

He turned his eyes to John.

John, we need you. We need you in that armor, with a gun, shooting people. Maybe not right now but soon.”

Hudson
indeed caught John's attention.

“That a job offer?”

“Yeah. You tell set the terms.” Hudson looked almost desperate.

John liked that offer sounded fair enough.

“I can keep my gear. I can go to college. I will get paid for what I do and I will always get the full story, no secrets. Deal?”

A smile appeared on
Hudson's face.

“Deal. I knew we can count on you.”

Hudson
left John's tent. When he was far enough he lit a cigar and took out his phone. He called his boss.

“What is it
Hudson? Hope you have good news, I'm sick of bad news right now.”

Boss was upset with current situation.

“Crisis agreed. He set reasonable terms I'll inform you.”

“Good. Remember, we have to take every advantage we can. Don't see it as a human or machine or mercenary. Crisis is an asset nothing more.”

Call ended.

John cleaned armor
quickly, but it already started to stink of rotten flesh and blood. His blade was equally dirty. For what he was about to do he put armor on. When he was done he went to look for Jennifer. He found her in her tent after asking several people for directions. She was writing something on her laptop.

“Oh shit! Why are you wearing that thing again? Something went wrong? Are you going to kill us all this time?”

She almost fell off her chair when she saw him.

“Hey! Calm down I just need something. Gillian told me that you are good at obtaining stuff.”

“Yeah, sure. What do you need?”

She looked like Sanders when he actually cares about something.

“Four metal shipping containers, flatbed cart, backpack and your access card. Wait with it in front of main entrance in a hour.”

John hoped that she can get those things.

“Okay I can handle that. You should know that Gillian really enjoyed your little camping outside.”

She smiled.

“You talked about that?” John was surprised.

“That's what girls do.”

She giggled.

John was about to leave but one more question came to his mind.

“What's your last name?”

Her face said it before she did, those curious eyes, black hair and smart look.

“Sanders. I'm Sander's daughter.”

John left her tent with a smile. He headed to tent where they left their weapons yesterday.

Couple of soldiers were packing when he came there. They looked at him waiting for what might happen.

“Hey guys I have orders from Hudson. I can take whatever equipment I want.”

“
Hudson was here first. We're packing for you.” The closest one said.

“How much?” John was curious.

“Your weapons M4A1, M107A1, M39 EMR, all with enough ammo. Grenades, flashbangs, C4 charges and weapon accessories also we packed you SCAR-H as a goodbye gift. That makes four crates of equipment.”

Soldier was reading from a list. Then he pointed at four crates in the corner.

“We will take them right to Blackburn's car.”

Two of them picked up the biggest crate with sign “Ammo” on it.

“Thanks guys that's very kind of you.”

“Just doing our job.” One of them said with a laugh.

The one with the list spoke again.

“You're John r
ight? I'm Matt nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too.”

John really liked Matt and his squad. They were new here so they weren't like other guards.

“Hey John, heard you are best shooter here. Want a little competition?”

Mathew handled him Dessert Eagle while his squad mates built two rows of empty beer cans on other side of tent.

“You're gonna regret this
. You first.” John couldn't resist a shooting competition.

Mathew took down all cans one by one, it took him about
a minute.

“Now you John.”

John's combat systems prepared firing solution in few milliseconds. He took them all down in fifteen seconds. Soldiers watched him open-mouthed.

“Can you show us more awesome stuff?” They asked all
at once.

John smiled.

“Which one of you is the heaviest?

One of them stepped forward.

“Me.”

John waved him to come closer. Then John lifted him of the ground and held him above his head.

This way they spent entire hour
. John had some fun and he made eight friends. It was sort of sad moment when he left them so he could meet with Jennifer. On his way of he took two breaching charges.

He walked through centre of camp. Everyone was looking at him. His steps were accompanied by 'thud' of his armored shoes. Jennifer was already waiting for him with everything he requested.

“So, what it this we're going to do?” She asked when he arrived.

“Looting. Follow me.”

They walked into underground facility. Jennifer pushed the cart, John walked in front of her.

Now he could see results of fight. Blood, pieces of flesh, grenade explosion marks, bullet impact holes. When they turned right
Jennifer looked around her trying to see everything.

“I've never been in this part of facility. I was always in the labs or apartments. What is here anyway?”

“Storage, manufacturing plant, power plant and morgue.”

Their first stop was morgue.

“Stay here! I have something I need to do.” He took backpack and pushed the door.

He found himself in white room with table, chair, computer, and locker for autopsy reports. He headed to computer, plugged in his contact tablet and started to browse files. All subjects deceased more that six months ago have been cremated and disposed of. But ashes of Tom and Kate are still stored in Cells 02 and 06. He headed to storage cells then. Door was sealed. No way he's going to breach it.

He returned to computer, he looked for a way to open the door. He couldn't find anything.

He started to think about using all explosives he had and try to breach the door but then a wild idea formed in his head. He focused on renewed connection between him and Gillian.

“Hey Gillian...you there?” He talked to her
using the connection hoping that his words will reach her.

“What?! John is that you?” Her confused voice came back.

“Yeah me, I need help.”

“Can't it wait? I'm in shower right now.”

“Can you find Caroline or Claire or anyone who can open this damn door?”

“Give me a minute.”

Ten minutes of silence followed. Then Claire spoke over radio transmitter.

“I was very lonely
, sitting on your table, but Gillian came to talk. She informed me that you require assistance.” Was that a hint of sarcasm?

John
was trying to open the door using brute force of his armor.

“Do you still have control of facility system
s?”

Door in front of him unsealed and opened.

“I still possess full control of facility.”

John was glad to hear that.

“If you can open every door in my way that would be fine. And...you can always call me when you are lonely.”

He proceeded to cell 02. There was an urn inside small cabinet with glass door. He broke the glass with fist. Urn was ceramic marked by metal plate:

Subject Sigma

#6572394

Female

Age: 17

Born: 25. April 2003

K.I.A. 24. April
2020

John's thoughts darkened. “A day before her birthday. And I couldn't do anything to save her...It was my fault I should have aborted mission.”

"There was no way for you to know." Jennifer was standing behind him.

"

Same process with cell 06.

Subject Alpha

#65017209

Male

Age: 18

Born: 6. June 2002

K.I.A. 24. April 2020

John put both urns into his backpack and went away from that place.

They walked towards manufacturing facility. The place was huge. Crates, weapons, machine parts, machines, wires, computers and a lot more. John was looking for one machine in particular.

Jennifer broke silence with question. “What are we looking for?”

“3M
D.”

“What's that.”

“Mobile Multifunctional Manufacturing Device.”

John found that name when he was downloading database.

Jennifer turned right after a while. “Got it! Right over here.”

It was prepared for
shipping out packed into wooden crate with sing “3MD.” John used blade to open it then he grabbed handle on it's side and pulled it out. It looked like steel cube with several handles, buttons and lever. John pulled the lever and opened the workbench. Interface was adapted to hybrids. Instead of touch screen there was contact foil.

“Find cable and plug it I want to test it first.” John looked at
Jennifer.

She ran away between crates and tables to find power source. Suddenly alarms went off.

Jennifer returned with fear in her eyes. “I just plugged it...and...and.”

Lights turned off and two of them were left in darkness. Computer voice echoed through silence.

“Reactor malfunction, emergency power supply depleted, system shutdown imminent.”

John peered into darkness.

“Well...shit.”

He lit two lights on front side of his armor.

“See those small boxes? Take as much as you can put in this crate.”

He said and gave Jennifer one of crates from cart. Then he picked up the 3MDand put it on the cart next to empty crates. He pushed cart to separate room where computer components were stored. John kicked down it's door. I looked like someone was looting before them shelves were half empty but there was everything John wanted. He took everything what was left it wasn't much, just enough to fill one crate. He also took few screens and holo projector and placed them on 3MD.

“What do you want to do with all this stuff?”
Jennifer asked looking at empty shelf.

“I don't know yet, but I
have some ideas. Our last stop will be armory.”

“What do you want there?” Jennifer tried to move the cart but she couldn't.

John left that question unanswered. He pushed the cart through dark corridors until they came to armory door. There was no way to open it normally so he put all breaching charges on it. They stepped back and John blew it up. There were few things he wanted, rocket launchers, mortar and some more guns.

“Is this all you want from here? Guns?” Jennifer was upset.

“No I want ammo too. Look for big green boxes
with “80mm” on them.” John said jokingly as he placed mortar to last crate. After they loaded ammo on already overloaded cart they headed out.