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The weapon pulsed three times and I could feel my instincts beginning to rage inside me. This journey was growing increasingly dangerous and I knew, without a doubt, I was going to have to change tactics. Saleos was forcing my hand, that much I was sure of.
Looking around me, I saw a high mountain pass. It was barren, open to the air, and visible from all around Echelon 67. It provided zero cover, which meant there was plenty of rocket-based weaponry he could send our way. It would be more dangerous than the path I was already on now. I scoffed, and my eyes scanned below instead, looking for other options.
I then saw the entrance to another cave system that I’d explored some time ago. I knew it went for several miles and that the walls were thick and strong, withstanding even the few earthquakes that occurred here as a result of some erroneous scientific testing in the past. It would take longer to get to the other side, pushing our journey into the early morning hours, but I didn’t feel as though I had any other choice now.
I had to go below.
I sprinted toward the entrance. A different kind of explosion echoed behind us, and I hurtled forward, putting every ounce of power I had access to into the muscles of my legs. I felt the air burst outward, pushing me onward like a strong wind and I nearly stumbled into the cave. I roared, feeling the skin on my back sear even deeper, but I didn’t let it stop me. I only had a few more feet and I powered through the pain, until I finally crossed the threshold into the cave. Once inside, I breathed a sigh of relief. I pressed my back to the wall, feeling the coolness of the rock and immediately, my adrenaline levels evened out.
We’d be safe for a little while longer. I set her down and she stood tall beside me, looking around and surveying our surroundings. I checked her over, ensuring she had no injuries and was pleased to find that she didn’t. I’d gotten her safely inside, despite Saleos’ efforts to the contrary.
I knew this underground pass went on for several miles and would bring us much closer to the western perimeter of the compound. The searing ache in my skin slowly subsided as my healing abilities finally activated and took over. In less than a minute, my flesh had returned to normal and no longer burned from the power of the ion bombs. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a headlamp that I always carried with me, one that converted hydrogen atoms from the air into sustainable power, allowing me to ensure I had light whenever I needed it the most. I flicked it on and shone it down the descending path within the cave. Everything looked clear, untouched.
I sniffed the air and detected nothing. Saleos wasn’t here. With any luck, I’d left him outside somewhere.
“Come. Watch your step. We should be alright in here,” I told her, taking her hand in mind. Her small fingers squeezed mine and together, we wove through the caves, me leading the way and her following behind. In a few spots, the floor was slick with underground water and she slipped and stumbled into me, but I was there to catch her each and every time.
We entered into a large cavernous space. On one side, there was a rather large drop-off that disappeared into darkness deep in the earth. The telltale flow of water trickled across the rock, splashing down below in what sounded like a small waterfall.
Up above, water dripped from the ceiling, collecting in small puddles around our feet. It would have been serene if we weren’t trying to escape this wretched place and my evil brother, if I wasn’t trying to ensure Cosima made it out of here alive.
The journey passed uneventfully for a little while longer until a soft hum echoed in the cavern. I tried to place the sound but had trouble recognizing it at first. It sounded again, and I wondered if it was just the mountains settling around us. It had been a long time since I’d explored this part of the compound on my own, but I did remember the land being pretty active. Small earthquakes still plagued the region and I wondered if that was what I was hearing.
The humming picked up once more. It didn’t really sound natural anymore.
Almost like a bee as it swarmed its nest.
I racked my brain, trying to remember all the weapons they’d tested with us as bait, all the ones I’d watched the scientists analyze as they destroyed my brethren. I remembered thinking how I was lucky it hadn’t been me in their place.
I felt the air growing thin and warm. It came to me then. I knew what it was.
Nano swarms designed to absorb every last bit of atmospheric oxygen, creating a completely unbreathable atmosphere, but that wasn’t all. The thinning of the air created an explosively flammable environment and was highly dangerous if even a single ember ignited anywhere in the vicinity of the weapons. Shit.
Fucking bastard. I was going to kill him.
I grabbed Cosima and began to run.
It was becoming increasingly clear that perhaps I was being herded in a particular direction. It wouldn’t be above Saleos’ intellect to engineer such a scheme. He had time to study all the functions of the weapons in the compounds, heard the scientists talking about their capabilities, while I had been off training or exploring the compound.
We had led two very different lives.
I thought about the location of each of the ion bombs and now exactly where the Nano swarm was, and I arrived at a place where the pathway split into two. To the left, the air felt fresher, stronger and to the right, I could feel the effect of the Nano swarm depleting the oxygen from the caves.
Saleos was demanding that I follow his previously determined path.
What the fuck was he planning?
I heard a rumbling then and my heart dropped. The air crackled.
I grasped Cosima around the waist and shot forward into the left-side caverns and flattened her to the wall beneath me. I turned my head and watched as a firestorm hurtled down the right-hand path, the flames licking in toward us.
The temperature increased by almost fifty degrees instantly, turning the wet, humid air in the cave into something arid and hot, like in the desert.
It didn’t bother me as much as I knew it would her.
The popping of the flames was deafening and Cosima shook beneath me. The flames whooshed by in the cavern beside us, a never-ending weapon that cut off that particular path for good. I sighed. We had to go on though. There was no turning back now.
Together, we caught our breath, waiting as the flames roared not far from us.
