United, page 11
part #4 of Protectorate Series
A part of me still clung to that desire and feeling of responsibility. But still, it was a jumbled emotion. My life through that desire had been tightly bound to following in my mentor-Father’s footsteps. Now I wondered if such a thing was possible for anyone.
The light of greed and power that I had seen in his eyes from time to time had flashed across Ursula's as well. In truth, I had no assurance from any instance of interaction with her that she would be any better than he was now.
But I didn’t care. I couldn’t care what outcome swapping my father for Ursula would have on the nation as a whole. I could only care about the ones I now had control to care over. That was DJ and Ella. It mattered little to me that we were trading one tyrant for another, as Ella had so often vented in frustration to me. All that mattered was the assurance that this tyrant saw value in keeping Ella and DJ safe and alive.
If I could do nothing more for this whole crumbling world than see the two of them live long, happy, and hopefully comfortable lives, then that was just going to have to be enough for me.
I could no longer be the Theo Reynolds that fought to keep the Defective hoards at bay, nor could I be the Theo Reynolds that would bring peace and prosperity to all as my father had once wished. I was simply the Theo Reynolds fighting for my family, the little of it I had left. My loyalties were to the two of them and no one else.
Even as I settled on the words staring at the wall in my small room, they twisted in my gut. Deep down in my genes, I was a born protector. It’s why I fell in so well with the Guardians. I had a clear, vile enemy and a clear group of innocents to stand in front of and protect. It was as natural as breathing to me.
Now the enemies were all around, lines were blurring, and I knew innocent lives were going to fall in the crosshairs.
I once thought that, if I needed to, I would take Ella and convince DJ to leave with me. Walk away from all of this, if it meant their safety. We would take up settlement in one of the open lands and let Ursula and Father kill each other.
But even though they were my ultimate priority, I don’t know if I could have forced myself to walk away and let the chips fall as they did. Nor was I truly keeping up my determination to keep both DJ and Ella out of harm's way. For all I knew, at this moment, she could have been captured by the Protectorate.
I shifted myself in the bed at the thought, running my hand through the length of my sandy blonde hair.
I knew I couldn’t have stopped her from going on that dangerous mission even if I had wanted to. I was pretty sure I could have physically stopped her—now that I knew was she was and prepared for it—but my heart would have never allowed me to hinder her from taking on any challenge she set her mind to.
In fact, I was sure if I ever gave her the option to walk away from this all and live a simple, quiet life, she would refuse. As much as she disliked the status symbol she was for the people, she also had that same genetic pull to stand for the weak that I had.
No, I was sure the two of us would stand on that battlefield when it finally came time. I could no more pull her away from the cause of liberty than I could myself. I realized at that moment it wasn’t for my father that I felt this innate desire to protect: it was for me. It was for my own selfish desires to know that I had played a part in setting the world right and making it better for generations to come.
I was sure at one time if Ella had heard me speak such thoughts she would comment that it only proved that I was as egotistical as she thought. A smile spread across my sleepy face as I recalled our first few encounters and how much she had detested me.
I let my mind drift over the memories, shuffling the still not-fully-digested sea of emotions inside of me back into their place. I still had no idea of my self-identity with this world we now were a part of, but I had Ella to support me and I would support her. That was just going to have to be enough of an identity for now.
I had almost drifted off to sleep, finally, when the emergency ringer on my tablet pierced the silence of my room. In an instant, I was wide awake and alert as I crossed the room.
Instead of a call, it was a mass broadcast message sent from Ursula.
“Attack on Settlement 6 by Super Soldier Forces reported at 0313am. All leadership is to report to the conference room immediately.”
My stomach turned in fear as I rushed to slip on a shirt and a pair of pants. Ella wouldn’t be there at that attack and, as relieved as I was over the fact, I also knew that meant she wouldn’t be there to help protect the innocent people who had ventured to settle there.
I couldn’t even imagine the hell that was about to break out across the country.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
THIRTY-SIX HOURS later I opened the door to my still-empty room. Nothing inside had changed since I rushed out a night and a half ago. The blankets were still hanging half off the bed from my haste to reach the tablet, the light was accidentally left on, and my clothes were ripped from my drawer and strewn on the floor in my haste to dress.
I, however, was sure that I would never be the same. I peeled off my bloody and torn shirt and threw it to the dirt-packed floor next to the clean ones. The motion had to be done gingerly around my wounds but I honestly had little care for the pain it caused. I knew I needed a shower but wasn’t sure if I had the energy to walk the distance to it.
Instead, I sat on the bed. Leaning down, I untied my boots, pulling them off one at a time. It was a routine for me, and I guess at that moment I didn’t know anything else but what was once usual for me.
I rubbed my face, trying to scrub the images from my mind to no success. I looked down at my hand and saw it too had the lines caked with dried blood. How many innocents had lost their lives since I was last in this room?
The moment I entered Ursula’s office I had demanded a transport to depart and help the fight. I knew whatever unit of Fighters she had already sent to protect the settlement wouldn’t be enough for a day attack, let alone one in the middle of the night.
It took some time to convince Ursula to allow me the resources and the people I wanted, but in the end, I had taken my dozen dream team and headed to the settlement as fast as I could push the transport.
It was one of the settlements closest to the Central Community but not the same one that had been attacked before. I almost wished my father had been stupid enough to hit the same place twice. That settlement was still relatively vacant, only housing units left to guard the land.
I could see the muzzle flashes like lightning on the ground as we approached the area. Unlike other areas Ursula had encouraged people to settle, this one wasn’t necessarily a teeming forest. Perhaps the healing process had only just begun. For the most part, it was an open flatland of grassy area. Its borders reached out like tentacles, claiming more and more of the barren desert surrounding it. It was an expansion of plain with not a hill or mountain as far as the human eye could stretch in the daylight.
The night was completely devoid of clouds, making for a bright reflection of the moon on the sea of grass. I could easily make out the cement barrier that had been used as a fortification. I registered as we grew closer that all of the gun flashes were coming from inside the only six-foot-tall wall.
I knew no settlement had been completely barricaded against a Defective attack. There simply hadn’t been enough time with the manpower and resources we had at our disposal. I wished desperately that the fighting had occurred long before the Super Soldiers had found their way in, but clearly, despite one settlement already being attacked, this one hadn’t been on high enough alert.
We entered the settlement through the main gate. It was made of heavy steel but was apparently no match for whatever tool had been used to blast it open. Entering the settlement, it was a scene I had never before experienced. Of all the settlements nearest this Central Community, this one had the most civilians.
Cement brick houses had been built, smattering the inside, as well as what looked like the start of some crops. A small herd of cattle, most likely pilfered from the Southern Community, found the opening just after we exited and ran for the safety of the open plains surrounding the barricade.
I didn’t even pull far into the wall before halting the transport. Already I could see a line of Fighters attempting to sweep the small settlement. It was a small fraction of organization in the otherwise chaos of blood and screams.
Bodies lay on the ground, both families and fighters. The bamboo roofs of almost all the buildings had been set ablaze. In the distance, I could see another rain of fire arching across the sky like shooting stars.
Ursula had armed her units with real ammunition after the first attack, despite the fact I told her it would do little against Super Soldiers’ armor. From time to time my eyes were attracted to the short muzzle blasts as my team fell in line behind me, waiting for orders.
A man broke ranks from the small line of Fighters sweeping the first row of houses. He ran to me, out of breath, shouldering his weapon and removing his helmet that looked about two decades older than the quality the Guardians now used.
“Reinforcements?” he asked with a puff of breath.
The patch on his arm told me he was the unit chief of this installation. I simply nodded the affirmative.
“Catch me up,” I ordered curtly.
“They came out of nowhere, sir,” he said quickly, shaking his head. “We had watchmen patrolling through the night. Still, they got right up to the gate without us knowing.”
“How many?” I urged impatiently.
This wasn’t the time to tell me a story. I looked back at the men and women I brought with me. All were checking their taser batons and twisting the charge to high.
“Not entirely sure, sir. I was asleep when they first entered. The barrier guards didn't stand a chance. They are using live ammunition as well,” he stated.
I furrowed my brow. I was really hoping Father would have stuck hard to his rule of no deadly weapons outside the wall for the sake of keeping it out of Defective hands. Between their armor and fully armed weapons we weren’t going to stand a chance.
“They just spread out like a wild mass. First they lit the houses on fire to drive the people out and then…”
“Alright,” I said, holding up my hand.
I had heard enough. I didn’t need to know the rest of that sentence. Right now I had to focus not on the dead, but keeping the rest alive.
“How many men do you have left?”
I knew that each settlement had units of fifty men. The settlements nearest the Central had been beefed up with more, however. If I was lucky there would be thee units here and hopefully not too many casualties as of yet.
“I did my best to rally the units when we got word that back up was on its way. Only two units made it to the rally point. I haven't even been able to make radio contact with the third. But of those that rallied, half of my unit and ten of the other.”
Thirty-five men. I swore but luckily a fresh blast from the back of the wall muffled the sound. It didn’t help for him to hear me express how desperate the situation really was.
His eyes drifted behind me.
“Is that all the reinforcements?” He said half heated, half panicked.
I put my hand on his shoulder. “It’s all we are going to need. Tell me what ammunition you have left.”
He ran through the supplies quickly as I listened. I saw again the rain of fire coming from the same south corner of the settlement. The Super Soldiers may have come in seemingly unorganized, but clearly they had some sort of stronghold they were firing from.
It was a good tactic for a night attack. Hit them unexpectedly, create mass panic, and then organize a line to systematically destroy the enemy.
“Most of the heavy fire is coming from over there,” I half asked, half stated.
“Yes, sir. That’s where Patriot Unit Six was before we lost contact.”
I nodded in understanding. We probably couldn’t count on any of them surviving.
“This is what is going to happen,” I said, taking charge.
It wasn’t a question. If they wanted to get out of this with at least some survivors, they needed to do exactly as I said.
“You are going to take ten men. You're going to split into two parties and sweep the houses and area from north to south, directing any injured here to the transport. Smith is going to be setting up a triage right here. No other transports will arrive until I give Ursula the all clear. We can’t risk any more resources,” I said with confidence though it killed me.
I knew many of these people who were injured were going to die of wounds long before we could secure the area. As much as I hated letting it happen I knew the war was just beginning and we needed to save as many resources as we could, including any other transports that might take the wounded to the nearest headquarters.
“I need the rest of your men here with me with as much ammunition as you can spare and I need them here five minutes ago.”
He nodded and turned, speaking into his radio.
“Hey,” I called after him. “Give us the rocket launcher as well,” I said.
“We only have one shell for it,” he cautioned.
“Don’t worry, I’ll make it count.”
I turned back to my men after he was gone.
“They’re armed,” Ruby said immediately once the unit leader was out of earshot. “What the hell are we going to do now?”
I nodded in understanding, looking them all directly in the eyes.
“When the Fighters get here they are going to be split into two flanks. Ruby, you are going to lead one and I’ll lead the other. Our goal is to get to that southern corner as fast as we can. Use the buildings as cover as much as you can, but keep the Fighters in front of you.
“Their bullets won't do much in the way of damage to the Super Soldiers, but it will give you cover. You’re coming in from the right, I’ll take the left. They are waiting for the last forces to organize and come straight at them for one last attempt. We are going to give them exactly what they want.”
“Your job,” I said, raising my voice and staring at them hard, “is to get to that front line no matter the cost! You keep the rest of the Fighters in front of you! They don’t know how to take one of those monsters down but you do!”
“You're asking us to use these men as human shields?” Ruby argued back, her head motioning to the men running up to meet us.
Already I could hear the pounding of their feet and the heaving of their breaths. I couldn’t bear to face them, however. I knew most of them were going to die, and maybe it made me a coward, but I couldn’t face them with that knowledge. I knew it was the only way to take the beasts out once and for all.
“I know what I am asking, Ruby. Killing these monsters is the only way some of this settlement survives. You eleven are my only chance of killing them. What I am asking of you isn’t right, but it’s the only way. I need to get in range for the missile. If anyone wants to stay here with Smith you won’t be judged for it,” I said.
Our eyes followed a limping woman. Almost entirely blackened and half burnt, she was held up by a small boy no more than twelve. He was bleeding, but clearly his mother had covered him from most of the fire.
“I plan to blow up as many of these bastards as I can and then take them down one by one with my bare hands if I have to.”
A few of them gave me an “oorah” and Ruby resigned to the necessity of the plan.
“Remember to use their weight against them!” I yelled with all the force I could muster. “Stun them quick and use your knife to slit their throats. We can’t risk them coming out of it before they are secured.”
I could see the fire of hate in their eyes. Asking these twelve to kill their enemy when he was down wasn’t going to be a problem for them. I, however, knew that as much as these Super Soldiers were our enemies, they had no say in the matter. Worse, some of them could actually be my old comrades in arms. I couldn’t think about that though. I had to save as many lives as I could and that, unfortunately, meant neutralizing the enemy permanently.
Ursula’s words flashed in my head for just a moment.
“Bring one back to study,” she ordered.
That was going to be the last of my priorities, and I was just going to have to deal with that consequence later.
Twenty minutes later all the men were organized. We made our two flanks and quickly made progress to the south quadrant of the settlement. It was clear that all of the Super Soldiers had organized in one group and luckily we made our progress with no incident or loss of life.
Now we were at the last row of skeletal brick remains of houses. Using whatever they could, the Super Soldiers had created a three-foot high fence. As we neared them, a rain of bullets showered down on us as we inched our way closer.
I had ordered the men to save their bullets until we were at the last row of cover. I peeked my head around the cement remains as the rest of the men kept their cover and caught their breath from our high-speed sprint over several miles of ground.
Between the barricade and our position was a long stretch of barbed wire. I knew it well. We had often laid it out in front of a hoard stronghold entrance if we could. As the Defectives ran out, they were fazed little by the sharp prongs that would embed in their bodies, but it did trip them up and slow some of them down.
“Standby,” I ordered in my radio. “I’m going to measure the distance.”
If I could shoot the missile from here I could at least penetrate the barrier and take out a half dozen of the Soldiers I saw with their heads popped up over its top.
I had already estimated at least two dozen. The rest were just behind the small barrier pacing in anticipation or standing in their full armor ready for the impending onslaught we were about to give them.
Using the scope through my night vision goggles, I measured the distance. Cursing under my breath, I realized it was still too far. I needed to close the gap by at least fifty meters. I estimated it would take me right out to the edge of their rows of barbed wire fields.
