The Last Revolution (26 page)

Alden sighed. She was right.

“You’ll be okay. You’ve got a strong team supporting you.”

“They’re desperate, and allowing their fear to dictate their actions. I know what we’re up against. We’ll die attacking that prison.”

“The situation isn’t that bad…is it?” Kira asked with the slightest undercurrent of desperation.

“This place is an echo of its former glory. Thereon thinks they can actually do this, or that somehow their death will bring the world they leave behind a little closer to freedom. When in reality it just means there’s one less person to fight for that future. These people have been ground down so far, they don’t even remember what it means to have hope.”

“They haven’t all given up.”

“No, not all of them, but the situation is quickly slipping beyond them.”

Kira nodded. They stood in silence a few moments longer, and then she let his hand slip from hers as she left the room.

Alden stared at the blue suit; his mind drifted beyond the vault. Back to the Island, to the night his team won the arena combat tournament. Something about his current situation felt so similar to that evening. They had trained as a team for years, dreaming of the moment when they would be champions. When they finally hoisted the tournament cup, the applause came pouring down like an avalanche. There they stood, the four of them, Daniel, Mary, Gabriel and Alden—the center of the school’s adoration.

Father McKinley had been in the stands cheering him along the entire time. In a way, Alden felt it was vindication for the years of time and effort Father McKinley had put into him while he was growing up. No one received personal attention on the Island, except for Alden. He wanted to yell out, tell Father McKinley that everything he had done for him had been worthwhile. He was worthy.

Instead, their team had been summoned to General Sokolov’s office to meet with Polemarch Vasentus. Alden had found himself and the rest of his team in step behind several soldiers. They were still inside the arena, but on their way to an area he’d never been before. His team kept looking at him for answers, but Alden just shrugged. He indicated they keep following the soldiers to find out.

After the events of the last training simulator, Alden had been advanced to team captain in Gabriel’s place. They had been taught to feel nothing, that emotions like jealousy were a sign of weakness. Gabriel had put on a smile and congratulated Alden, but deep down he knew how much losing that command must have hurt him.

They stopped outside a set of solid double doors. Alden entered the room first. It was the most luxurious space he’d ever seen on the Island. The view from the adjacent window looked down on the now empty arena. In front of them was General Sokolov, as well as a half dozen other Council military leaders.

“Omega, welcome,” General Sokolov said.

Alden took the lead and saluted the general. “Thank you, sir.” Mary, Gabriel and Daniel followed his lead.

“At ease, soldiers, tonight is a very important night for all of you. I’d like to introduce you to Polemarch Vasentus. He’s the ViceCouncilman in charge of all military and scientific affairs for the Council.”

The last words rang inside Alden’s ears: a ViceCouncilman, the Polemarch, here on the Island?

A tall, thin, graying man stepped from the shadows of the room. “That was quite an impressive display tonight. I am incredibly proud of all of you.”

“Thank you, sir, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Alden wasn’t quite sure how to approach him; he’d never met a sitting member of the Council before. The Polemarch was clothed in a dark blue robe and he wore a strange looking mask over half his face.

The ViceCouncilman stepped forward and shook hands with each of them. Their questioning looks must have been easy to read because he tapped the mask. “An unfortunate incident left me exposed to space momentarily. Unfortunately the damage was too great to repair. But my misfortunes are not why we are here. I was invited to participate in a rather important meeting that I couldn’t miss. Each of you is being promoted to the rank of lieutenant and moving to active status.”

“Thank you, sir!”

“You have more than surpassed all of our expectations. We are all excited to see how you perform in the field.”

“You can count on us, sir,” Daniel responded.

“Wonderful! Now step up here, each one of you.” With that he gestured for Sokolov to join his side. They stood in line and then stepped forward one at a time. General Sokolov clipped a new yellow pin on their lapels, indicating their new rank.

“Now, I’m sure that you are all very tired. The soldiers will escort you back to your barracks. Rest easy and know that you are the pride of the Council.”

Alden felt like he was walking on air as he turned to leave with the rest of his team.

“Alden, please stay for a few moments longer.”

He nodded at his team and then waited as they continued out. The doors slammed shut behind them. He was left standing in front of the military brass.

“When you return tonight, we want you to start prepping your team. We’re going to be sending you on your first mission very soon.”

“Can I ask what our mission will be?”

“You’ll be traveling to the Siberian province of the SRF. We believe they may be in violation of the 2085 Helsinki Accords.”

“Do you think they’re building a nuclear reactor, sir?”

“That’s what we want you to find out,” Vasentus answered. “This is an incredibly dangerous threat to world peace, and we must know what is going on. Now, can I trust you to keep this confidential?”

Alden saluted him, despite the earlier handshake. “Yes sir. We won’t let you down.”

He was back in the vault, staring at the blue suit. They hadn’t been ready then, and they weren’t ready now.

Chapter 8

Alden stood in the cockpit of the stolen prison transport. The silvery surface whipped past as they flew towards Traterous. Earth hung low on the horizon; lights from hundreds of cities illuminated the dark side of the planet. He was forced to grip the hand railing as they dodged a large boulder and then sailed over the edge of a crater. They floated down the inside. The crater was easily twice the size of the one New Tranquility had been built into. Several other meteorites had pounded the surface and created a channel system they were able to fly down.

He was wearing the blue and red zero-gravity suit and stood at least a foot taller than the resistance fighters around him. In order for their plan to succeed, the suit would have to work long enough to provide them an escape route. Unfortunately, he’d only had enough time to test that the suit worked. How effective it would be in combat remained to be seen. Liam took a soft left as he piloted them down the ravine. Apparently their pilot had been one of the most skilled fighter pilots in the resistance. Liam had been a member of the air corps in the Sino-Russian Federation before being dishonorably discharged. He’d spent some time in Traterous, and when he was released the resistance swooped in to offer him work. They’d been relying on his experience behind the controls ever since.

They were getting close; Thereon would need him. He took one heavy step after another as he moved towards the back of the ship. If it wasn’t for the exoskeleton support, he’d never have been able to lift his leg, let alone walk. Although it still felt a bit clumsy, he was adjusting to the suit. The back of the transport ship was broken up into two sections. Directly ahead was the guard’s area. There were no seats, but plenty of room to move and walk around. The other side contained several rows of benches where the prisoners would be handcuffed to the seats. The unlucky ones would be locked away inside the solitary tubes along the walls.

Today, however, the gate separating the two areas was wide open. Dozens of people wandered back and forth, securing their military suits or slipping into prison uniforms. The fighters dressed as prisoners and strapped guns into their pants or ankles. The rest were dressed as guards, covered in black from head to toe. They wore high boots, shoulder pads, and imposing helmets that featured ocular enhancements similar to his own. Their anti-gravity bullets glowed inside the clips of their rifles.

They were nothing in comparison to what Alden was wearing. Their suits were slim and easy to maneuver in. However, they provided little protection in case of a suit puncture. None of them could generate any form of artificial gravity on their own. They would have to be secured inside a prisoner transport for movement from the landing area to the complex. Otherwise they’d be forced to slowly hop along the surface until they reached their destination.

Thereon was off to one side, locked in an intense discussion with several of the soldiers, including Callisto and Solana. They were fraternal twins and had been part of the resistance since they could walk. Over the past twenty-four hours, the group had transformed before his eyes. They were no longer despondent and hopeless, but determined to free General Stone. He’d expected the group to be more nervous, but everyone was focused on their role.

Alden stretched inside the suit. Thereon was right, he was dangerous without any of this, but with it, he was unstoppable. It was a welcome feeling and one he hadn’t experienced in a long time. Not since the Siberian mission. He had been confident and in control then too. Polemarch Vasentus and General Sokolov had followed through on their promise. They’d sent his team on their first mission, the first mission for any students from the Island. Omega team was supposed to have been the finest military force in all the Council Military. It was to be their defining moment.

The cold in Siberia was unlike anything he’d experienced before. He could still feel the chill wrapping around his core, it made him shudder. There was blood on his hands; now he was running—sprinting through the frozen woods. The snow was so deep that he struggled to move forward. The sound of gunfire was everywhere.

“Unload everything you’ve got!” Gabriel screamed at the top of his lungs.

Alden stopped running and ducked behind a tree for cover. He lifted his assault rifle and fired several shots in the direction they’d just traveled.

They couldn’t stop running; their survival depended on them reaching the rendezvous point. “Keep moving!” Alden yelled. “We’re almost there.”

Trees disintegrated under the hail of bullets. The enemy forces were getting closer. Puffs of snow popped up everywhere.

Daniel let out a blood curdling scream. Blood splattered out of the back of his leg and covered the pearly white snow in a deep red. He collapsed to the ground.

“Gabriel,” Alden yelled. “Grab Mary, keeping moving. We have to get out of here!” Alden pushed through the snow towards Daniel. He dropped his gun and grabbed him by the shoulder. Alden slipped his head under his arm, helping him to his feet. “Come on Daniel, we’re not dying here. I just need you to keep moving.”

A deep pain crept up his spine and gripped his chest. Alden shook his head inside the combat suit and pushed back at the memories. He was still on the transport ship headed towards Traterous. An uncomfortable ache had been gnawing at him since they’d left Apollo City. Would he be forced to endure another tragic failure? If this mission took his life then at least he’d be able to see his team again. Although that would mean he’d have to leave Kira.

He peered out the window. She was out there, somewhere; hidden beneath the vast expanse of the lunar surface. Her team would be getting close to the outer wall of Traterous by now, ready to provide the diversion they needed to escape. On cue, a tiny structure appeared on the horizon. The building was perched atop a hill. It was isolated by a giant wall that encircled the entire formation. The peak had been flattened; replaced with the main jailhouse he’d seen on the holographic map.

Guard posts dotted the wall, like giants protecting their keep. Several smaller buildings were scattered across the courtyard inside the walls.

Thereon walked up, gave Alden a solemn nod and then clicked his guard helmet into place. The glowing red eyes came to life. He was now indistinguishable from any other guard.

“That’s where we make our landing.” He pointed at an empty docking pad off to the right. It was bathed in light, awaiting their arrival. “Everyone take your positions! This is it.”

Liam dropped the craft into a low approach. “If we’ve been discovered, they’ll never have a better shot than now,” he mumbled.

Liam increased his grip on the steering wheel. He’d have to make it look like he’d done this maneuver a hundred times. As they came in low Alden could see that every guard post along the wall was affixed with giant anti-meteorite cannons. They swung around and locked onto their position.

“Is that normal?” Alden asked.

Liam shrugged. “If not, we’ll find out soon.” He held the control steady and brought them out in a wide curve before dropping towards the launch pad. The guns continued to follow them until they had dropped below their line of sight. They swung back around and pointed out beyond the gates.

With a soft bump they touched down on the surface.

Liam flicked several switches on the overhead control panel and killed the engines. He glanced back at them, “And that was the easy part.”

“Nice job, we’ll take it from here.” Thereon turned to Alden, “You’re on point, I’ll take the rear. The rest of you take up positions around the prisoners.” Thereon pitched Liam the spare helmet he’d been holding. “You’ve got the ship; keep her hot while we’re gone.”

“You got it boss. Good luck.” Liam locked the security helmet into his suit and then flipped the switch to vent the cabin’s oxygen. It was sucked up into small retainers under the ship to keep it from being released into space. Liam flipped another switch and the back hatch opened. Bright white spotlights from the surrounding towers were fixed on their position in the back of the shuttle. Alden was the first to step forward and he walked down the steps and onto the lunar surface. Several rows of prisoners fell into line behind him and disembarked from the ship one at a time.