Kid Vigilante Series (Story #5)

Kid Vigilante: The End-Part 2

It’s been a month since the shooting. Mr. Samson, Roger, and I have been planning this event ever so carefully. The mourn session is being held at the local town hall, which we’ve asked for. The guards figured we couldn’t cause too much trouble in there, especially in broad daylight. They were right. The trouble would come after. Security has tightened even more. Armored trucks patrol the streets at night and units upon units of task force soldiers keep a close watch over the city. Nobody says a word anymore. In fact, just yesterday, two people were arrested, and rumor says they were taken to the island. I already saw what was going on in there. The experiments, the torture.

                I am now in the car with Mr. Samson and Roger, driving down to the town hall, to do our “mourn” session. Roger has his speech ready, and all we have to hope for is that the audience agrees to join. Roger walked up to the podium in the front, and took a deep breath.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, we come here today, to observe a devastating event. A month has passed, but it has felt like a year. This regime proves to corrupt our city beyond limit. Mayor Johnston thinks that this is supposed to be his empire. What happened to the ideals of Democracy? That is what we must fight for. We must fight to win back those rights, the safety that was once present here. Now, there are guards standing right outside of these doors, probably cursing us inside their heads. But that does not matter. They are just instruments of an arrogant aristocrat. We are what matter here. If they shoot you, you swarm them by the thousands. If they punch you, you punch them back. There is nothing we will not do to win back what was once ours. Now, this is a mourn session. But I must ask, what is the use of mourning if we do nothing about the losses of these beloved individuals?” A murmur of agreement went through the crowd, and one by one there were snaps. Not clapping, but snapping. If they made it too loud, the guards would think something was seriously going wrong.

“If you want to join the cause, there is a warehouse down the street, which is unoccupied. The mayor has been careless to overlook it and hasn’t stationed any guards. In three days, we are holding a meeting for recruits, and if you seek to join, come in twos down to the warehouse at midnight. No later, no earlier. Security is more careless. Remember the innocent people that died just a month ago. Imagine what they would want.” Roger finished, and walked towards me. I had my head covered by a hood. I’m supposed to be dead, remember?

Roger nodded to me as we got into the BMW, and started to drive away.

“That was good Roger, very good.” Mr. Samson said. “Now, we just need to wait three days.”

My feet were itching for adventure from the moment he said that. 3 days was too long a time to wait. I had to do something. So, I kept pestering Roger with questions. How many do you think will come? Is it really going to work? How are we going to attack? I was like a toddler. But Roger replied patiently to each question and asked me to wait a little bit longer.

Finally, the midnight of the 3^rd day came, and Roger and I got ready. Apparently Mr. Samson had some errands to run. We didn’t question Mr. Samson much, though it was strange for him to leave in such a momentous time.  No point in suspecting my own team anyway. Roger and I wear black clothing, similar to what we had worn on our recon mission to the island, which ended in Rachel getting captured. I’ll never forgive myself till I find her. They could have raped her for all I knew. I pull my mind off such terrible thoughts. I look to my right, and off in the distance, I see Crescent Island. The very place we would be invading.

“Quick, we don’t have much time.” Roger ushers me along. I start up a brisk walk. A few patrolling agents give us dirty looks, but they can’t do anything. No trouble for them, means no trouble for us. In a few minutes, we are at the warehouse, and Roger opens the door. He didn’t bother locking the door, because there was very little security down their anyway to bust them. Inside, was a whole gathering of people, even more than what we had seen in the church. It was surprising how silently they were waiting. As Roger and I walked in, we were greeted by snaps(equivalent of applause, only much quieter). Roger pulled over a stool and sat down. I took a knee next to him.

“I am proud of you… all of you. You have put your life on the line today for those who died so helplessly not so long ago. Your service will go down in history. But only if it is made. In 1 month we launch an invasion of the Island. That is the task as it is.” A murmur went through the crowd.  “I know it seems daunting, but it must be done. Always remember those who died before us. We owe them a lot. We do not have much time, so I will get right to the plan. The south side of the island is perhaps the least heavily guarded side presently. I have speculated, and it will most likely be so in the next month as well. The west has the tallest guard tower, as does the north. The east, is too risky a climb, and is not worth the effort. Given these three possible areas of attack, we will concentrate a majority of our troops towards the southern part of the island. We will have to approach silently in row boats. Parts of our forces will be concentrated to the north and south, to provide an ample distraction. They must be the bravest of all of us. We will go in armed. Sniping is not an option, as our objective is not to be sedentary. We are on the move. Assault rifles, pistols, machine guns, and shot guns are in our loadout, which you will soon see. Grenades are our form of explosives. Beyond that, we have nothing, except for a couple bulletproof vests which our avant garde will wear, when they head into battle. It will be a rush from all 3 directions, to sum it up. We shall discuss this in further detail as our training month progresses. Before I show you the training facility underground, I would like you all to declare your allegiance by signing the paper that is up on the table.” Roger pointed over to the table. One by one the members went over and signed the paper, and sat back down, in absolute silence. After an hour and a half all of the members(about 300 of them) had signed the paper and were waiting. Roger stood up and motioned in silence towards the back of the room. There was a cupboard. Roger moved it to a side, and it revealed a door. He opened the door which unveiled a staircase. Everyone followed Roger down into this mysterious underground area. What I saw down there fascinated me. It was a stacked armory! All the guns he mentioned, the weapons, and targets, to practice the shooting. Sure, it was quite rudimentary compared to a military training base, but who’d have thought that Starville of all places would have this hidden training area. Everyone just stared in awe at the facility that Roger had built underground.

The next few weeks were brutal. The training, and everything. I got the least of it. I almost felt left out. I kept asking Roger why he wouldn’t let me train, and he just kept saying that I’d been through enough. So, I sat and watched, feeling completely helpless. Damn, I was supposed to be a part of a revolution for Pete’s sake, why can’t I train?! Oh well, there’s no point in wondering, Roger’s the man in charge.

The people were extremely committed. Coming in late at night, and risking getting caught, to be trained. But there was one thing that just kept nagging me. Where was Mr. Samson? I finally got the guts to go and ask Roger.

“Why isn’t Mr. Samson here?” I ask.

“Busy getting other arrangements ready. Scouting and other stuff. Don’t worry about it.” Roger said, and kept with the training, fixing people’s aim and reassuring them. He was raising an army.

One month passed, and it was a day before the invasion. The whole training procedure had been completed so smoothly that the security from the Island had hardly noticed. However, I must add, I still am quite angry that I couldn’t train. Anyhow, we revised the plan as earlier, coming in from the North, East, and South directions on the island, with most of the troops on the Southern end. As Roger debriefed the army, and sent them off, he turned to me.

“You ready Rob? This is for Rachel, remember that.”

“Yeah.”

“Rob, I’m sorry you couldn’t train, but you’re just too young, and too…I don’t know the word.”

“Why did you take me on that recon mission of yours then?”

“That was different Rob, that was different. I just don’t know how to explain it to you. But you’re still tagging along with us.”

“Tagging along.”

“Come to the Southern end by midnight Rob. We’ll be waiting there for you. The invasion should last about 3 hours tops. See you then Rob.” Roger finished, and walked out of the warehouse. I was left alone inside, contemplating. How could he do such a thing? Just leave me aside calling me young, naïve, and  oh, “I don’t know the word for it.” This is just horrible. My people are dying out there. You know what. Screw what Roger says, and screw the entire army that he’s built up. I’m going there on my own. If I get caught, well that’ll be a reminder to Roger. I get up and run to the utility section and grab some dark clothing to wear. I grab a combat knife, and a pistol(it’s easier to conceal). The stress is on. I’m going down to the island, and getting Rachel out of there myself.

(everything is in slow motion now)

I run(more like slow walk because of the slow motion thing), down to the island’s south end. I am bristling with anger. Not only at Roger, but at the bastards on the island who think they can get away with the things they are doing. Who do they think they are, to take my family and friends like that.  I am so full of anger that I disregard the rowboat that Roger used last time, and just decide to swim over. The water in the south end is considerably warmer than that of the north end. I squat down, and do a crouching dive into the water. I am a fairly fast swimmer, so I just cruise over to the south end of the island. Once there, I hook on my grappling devices and ropes to the side, and start climbing upwards. I remember the last time I did this, and how scared I was. I am just so frustrated and ready to kill someone right now, that I could care less about my fear of heights. I make it to the top of the island, and peek over. The guards are minding their business and are oblivious to my presence. I clamber over, and duck behind near the fence where Roger had hid last time, with me and Rachel. Rachel…Oh well, no point in worrying now. I had to get in there and get her out. The guards seemed quite stupid to not have tightened security on the southern end of the island even after what we did. I pat my pockets and figure out that I don’t have flash bangs. Damn! Out of desperation, I pull out my pistol, and fire in three random directions. The guards are immediately alerted. Like a complete idiot I make a blind sprint down towards the central facility that leads to the underground “lair.” I attract a spray of gunfire, most of which just whizzes by me. I hit the door and try to open it, when I realize how much more stupid I am. The door is still a keypad lock! I shoot the lock, and the door and it comes open. Surprisingly no alarm! I walk inside, and there are no agents.  Something is wrong, but I have no time to worry about it. I run to the elevator, which we had used last time, and hit the button to the bottom floor.

(everything is in real time now)

 I put my weight on one foot, preparing to sprint out. This is exactly what I do. Still no guards. What the heck is going on? I created more of a diversion than Roger, and I get free access to the underground area? Whatever. I sprint down the hallway and towards the end with all the tortured prisoners. There’s no sound. Before going into the actual cell room, there is a small room that you have to pass through, that has two sliding doors. One for the entrance and the other for the exit. Both of them are wide open. I ignore this and just sprint through with all anger. I just make it through when the doors slam shut.

“Hello Robert.” It was Mr. Samson.

“Mr. Samson? What are you doing here? Did they take you?”

“No, Robert, I took you.”

“What do you mean?”

“ I mean, I just played you the whole time, my boy.” Mr. Samson said and pulled a gun from behind his shirt.

“What is this?”

“Simple, you have made yourself a liability. I have plans and you are in the way of them. Shall I take you back to the past?”

“Please.” I say in as nasty a voice as possible.

“You were a fool to watch the mayor’s house like that. Andrei gave me a call afterwards, and I knew what he was talking about. So I was the one who set off and prepared to run you over. I was the one who gave Trump the call, while I was driving, to see if you were alive, and about the drugs. Sadly, he put the phone down just as you coasted across. He told me all of this you know? He tried to shoot you under my orders.”

“But why?”

“Are you that stupid Robert? First your dad, I couldn’t let you…”

“Let me what?!”

“Let you destroy my plan. I was that old man. I was the man that was sent to the HOSPITAL, all those years ago. Ever since that time, I was the one who wanted to gain complete control over the city. Who do you think called the shooting? I did! You don’t realize, Robert…When you want something, you’ll have to be willing to go to great lengths to get it. This is something you are not capable of.”

“But why did you send me off?”

“Two reasons. One, if you went off and came alive, I could use you as a pawn against my enemy, the mayor. Two, if you went off and died, which I really was hoping for, you’d have stayed out of my way. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. But who is to say that the world is not already corrupt. I am merely meeting the standards set by today’s society.”

“What do you mean that you hoped I was dead?”

“The pin! I was the one that gave you the pin. The pin had a beacon inside of it that marked your location. I was the one who sanctioned the sniper and had him try to kill you, Rachel and the doctor. Too bad for me, Rachel was trained-“

“You traitor!” I yell and charge at him, trying to take him down. I realize how stupid I am yet again. Mr. Samson is 69 years old, but he is very robust for his age. Not to mention he is a trained fighter. He served in the military for quite some time. He easily manipulates the force of my charge, and sends me toppling into a wall. He points his gun at me, but I’m fast. I charge again, and this time try to punch him. He grabs my neck in the crook of his elbow, and he squeezes. I feel like the life is being torn from me. I can’t breathe! Sight is blurry! I…

“You should have given up a long time ago, Robert. Too bad your invasion is going to fail!” Mr. Samson said, and just as everything is about to go black, I see Mr. Samson pull out a needle, and jab it into my arm. Everything goes black.

When I wake up, I feel cold. I’m cold as an icicle. Starville is in California. It never gets this cold in California.  I scramble to my knees, only to fall back onto my front. In front of me is a vast terrain of mountains. Snowcapped mountains too. Where am I? I think. I am wearing a thin jacket and my hands are like bricks. My whole body feels rigid. With great difficulty I get to my feet and look over the steep precipice. To one side there are rolling hills and a few scattered trees on the ground, below the mountain. On the other side, I can see a much drier expanse of land. With just a few shrubs here and there.

“Wondering how you got here?” a familiar voice asks.

“Joseph?” I ask, with a curious look.

“Yup. Just like before. That needle Samson put in you…almost thought it killed you for a second.” He says and gives me a hand.

“Come quick. I’ve got someone who wants to meet you. He’s not too happy.”

“Ugh.” I groan, and struggle to my feet. We head along a path that is carved into the side of the mountain. My fear of heights makes me move inch by inch along the edge. Finally, we come to what looks like a little cave in the mountain.

“Right in here.” Joseph says and leads  me through.

“Where am I?”

“Emigrant Peak, Rocky Mountains.”

“What the-?”

“Don’t worry we’ll fill you in.”

There is a small wooden door built into the rock, and Joseph pushes it open and we walk in. What I see inside surprises me even more. There is a network of CCTV’s and it has live feed of basically what is going on in all three cities that I’ve seen, the most obvious being Starville, Animus and also Extremis.

“So you’re Robert Carver!” a man says in a strong voice. He is standing at a corner, gazing intensely at me.

“Yyyy….yes sir.” Joseph and I answer, strangely.

“You’re the one that wants to start a relationship with my daughter.”

My stomach jumps to my mouth. So this was Rachel’s father. I thought he had left on an overseas operation or something, never to have returned.

“But…”

“Explanations will come later. The only thing you need to know is that if you don’t do as I ask, you will watch your city burn to shreds and see your loved ones die. And worst of all, for you at least, you can’t continue your relationship with Rachel.”

“Are you mad? If you don’t let me go back, your daughter is going to die. Your daughter!”

“I have my ways of dealing with things. Without further ado, let me tell you the issue at hand.”

“Sir, I think he deserves some sort of an explanation. Please. He’ll work better that way.”  Joseph says.

“Very well. But you tell him.” Rachel’s father says.

“Okay then Rob. You remember Extremis I’m sure. Before you left, we split up. You, me and Rachel. You took Rachel, and I led the kids the other way.” My mind jumped back to that time, and I started to think it through as Joseph told me.

“So, after I left, I took the kids to the Sierra Nevada Mountains.” Joseph continued “It was a perilous trek. For you the troubles ended in Extremis as soon as you left the camp, but for me there was that walk through the desert. We lost so many little ones along the way. I even considered going back to Extremis. But by the end, our group had shrunk to half its initial size, and we finally reached the Sierra Nevada mountains. We dropped to the ground. Man, I couldn’t believe how tired I was. The next day when we woke up, we were surrounded by a group of rebel soldiers. I asked them where they were from, but all they would say was, Animus. Nothing about the place, and I was just left in the dark. As time went on, I realized that these people were my friends. I asked them if there was a safe place for me to take the kids. They said that the best thing to do would be to leave the kids with them and for me to  go to the Rocky Mountains. The rebel team had one prop plane, and they flew me over to these mountains. The Absaroka range. So it was a journey with ups and downs if you will. So, I finally arrived here and I met Rachel’s father. One heck of a story huh?”

“Here’s your job. I feel you’ll be going nowhere if I don’t speak. You thought that your job in Animus was done after you and Rachel flew out of there, defying authority. You only started the business. This time, you are going to help me finish it. Animus is located in Utah. I don’t think you ever knew that. Anyhow, that’s not important. You started a Revolution in Animus, and the authority is doing its level best to bring things back to the way they were. The people are losing badly and there is only one thing left to do. Animus has a central control system. This system allows them to monitor every aspect of the civilians’ lives. When you left Animus and the whole internet system crashed, so did this central control device. It took them a while to try and get it back up. But by that time, the revolution had started. The thing about the Central control system is that it can be operated remotely. So, the Authority did what they thought was best. They sent a group of their men off into the mountains to fix it. Once they fix it, they are to signal the Authority of Animus about what is to happen. Your job is to prevent them from doing that. I have scouted their location and all that is left is for you to strike it and make sure that there is no chance of them fixing it.” Rachel’s father surprisingly said.

“How long do I have?”

“3 days. Do it successfully and you are worthy. Fail… and your city is destroyed.”

“How do I know I can trust you?”

“Very well then.” Rachel’s father grabs me by the collar and drags me out to the door and yanks it open. He shoves me out and follows. He grabs me again and takes me to the edge of the path  and forces my head down and to look over. “It is a 10,915 foot drop from here Mr. Carver. If you’d like to take the risk of leaving when you don’t even know how you got up here, feel free to do so and get yourself killed.”

“Okay! I’ll do what you asked. Where are they? And show me what is going on in Animus.”

“I suppose a few details shouldn’t be harmful.” He grabs me again and takes me inside to the screens. He points to the one in the far right corner.  

There is gunfire going on in the city. I recognize the hospital where I was kept. The Authority is trying desparately to hold back the rebels and drive them towards the road. In another camera, I can see that there are armored vehicles driving down streets and shooting down homes and whoever came in the way. I was horrified. It looked like what Starville would be in just…a few hours?. I had seen enough. I knew enough. There was chaos, and it needed to be stopped.

“All right, how are we getting down south to Utah?”

“That is up to you.” Rachel’s father says, without flinching.

“Remember I told you how I got to these mountains Robert?” Joseph adds.

“The plane. Where?” I ask after a pause.

“Take him.” Rachel’s father says.

“Let’s go.” Joseph says, and we walk to the back of the room to a door with a keypad lock. He punches in a code, and the lock is opened, and he opens the door.  When I walk inside, I am held in awe. It’s a prop plane, a small four seater.

“Who’s flying?”

“I am.”

“How the hell…?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Joseph and I get into the plane. In front of us, there is an opening in this alcove of sorts, and Joseph fires up the engines.

“Where are we headed?”

“La Salle Mountains. They’re the southern range of the Rockies.”

“Wait, what about weapons?”

“Robert, take a look behind you.” I turn my head and in the back seat are two assault rifles, and two pistols, a sniper rifle, and a bow and arrow.

“Okay… I guess I shouldn’t ‘worry’ about how you got all of that.”

“That’s right.”

With that, Joseph puts the plane in motion, and we leave the cave. We pull outside and steadily increase speed on this fairly short runway. The plane takes off smoothly, and I am impressed with Joseph’s flying ability.

“Impressive Joseph, very impressive.” I say with a smile.

“Yup. So, how are things down in Starville…I mean, for you and Rachel? I know there’s the whole invasion thing that’s going to happen soon.”

“It’s probably already happening. That bastard Samson. I thought he was my friend. Our families have been like closely tied for so many years, why did he have to do this? I still don’t get this quest for power that he’s on. He’s a 69 year old man. What power does he need?”

“Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. That’s all I can say.”

“But the guy actually has to have some power to start off with.”

“Oh, Mr. Samson has always had power. He just never used it. I don’t know what exactly it was. But that’s irrelevant. Let’s just focus on the task at hand now.”

“Wait, I didn’t tell you about Rachel…she was captured.”

“What! How could you…”

“I’m sorry Joseph, there wasn’t much-“

“Like hell there wasn’t!”

“Let’s just focus on the task at hand, like you said.”

“Huh. You’re right. Worrying isn’t changing anything right. Especially when the person you are worrying about is the girl that you grew up with and went through hell with, right?! Am I right?!”

“Look…”

“No! Don’t just tell me to frickin’ move on! She is my friend!”

“She’s my friend too.”

“I’ve known her longer, and will probably always be closer to her than you can ever dream of being.”

“Shut up!” I yell.

“Make me!”

“I don’t know how to fly a plane, but I sure as hell know how to crash one! Don’t give me ideas…” I say, and sigh, “look, I’m sorry Joseph. There really wasn’t much I could have done.”

“Just help me get the idiot who got her.”

“That’s kind of what I’m trying to do.” I say. Joseph doesn’t answer. I can tell he’s still upset.

It is a few hours before the La Salle Mountains came into view. Joseph landed the plane a mile or so away, and managed to land behind a small alcove.  We stepped out of the plane, and looked out at the mountains.

“The base is slightly north west of here. If we hurry, we’ll be there in an hour or so.”

“What if our plane is found?”

“We can’t worry about that now. Chances are they aren’t going to have any security leaving the mountains as of now. Come on, let’s go. We have some spying to do.”

As we jogged down to the La Salle mountains, weapons slung over our shoulders, I contemplated over my conversation with Joseph in the plane. Should I really have brought up Rachel? As much as she probably loves me, Joseph was also just as important a person for her. Right? Ugh, I guess there’s no point in thinking about it, like I said to Joseph.

“Over here!” Joseph called to me, and I half ran over to him. He was crouched behind a small acclivity in the land, peering over, with his binoculars. He handed them to me, and I looked through, and what I saw surprised me. It is a fully functional base. There are people moving into and out of the mountain base carrying loads of equipment. It is quite obvious that this is the spot.

“So, what’s the game plan?” I ask.

“We wait here for tonight.”

“What are you talking about, we only have three days! Now, it’s only two and a half!”

“You only have two and a half, not me. I, have all the time I need.”

“Look, Joseph, I’m sorry about Rachel and I know how much she means to you. If and when we get back, I promise I’ll take you with me to get Rachel out. Like I said earlier…I promise.”

“I leave you with her and you just screw up some more.”

“Joseph! Task at hand!”

“Fine, fine. We have two and a half days. Now, here’s the deal. If we’ve scouted properly, the central command device is about 2 miles into the Mountain base, which even goes far underground. On our way, we’ll be burdened with guards, and even worse, cameras. This is why, I’ve brought EMP rounds. I fire a few of these into the corridors, and we get a few solid minutes to run through undetected. Once inside, we basically, shoot the bejesus out of the command device, and just leave it to rot.”

“Easier said than done. What can we do from here?”

“There are two guards that are always outside the facility, rain or shine. They are the two we are taking out. I still figure it’s best to wait till nightfall.”

“You’ve got a point.”

So that’s exactly what we did. We waited until nightfall, and camped out on the hill. For the whole…I don’t know…. Maybe 4 or 5 hours the only thought that ran through my mind was the mission at hand. We had people to save. I wasn’t going back to Animus, but that wouldn’t stop me from hurting the Authority in any way possible.

“All right. Time to roll.” Joseph said and readied his sniper rifle. He aimed and pulled the trigger, and the shot rang out. He aimed again and fired and another shot rang out.

“What the-“

“You thought I wouldn’t kill? I’ll do anything to bring these lunatics down.”

With that shock in mind, I slowly stood up and started to jog down to the base with Joseph. As we ran, Joseph loaded his gun with EMP rounds and aimed at the opening to the mountain base. He fired two quick blasts. I could see them land inside. In a matter of seconds, I heard a short burst, and that was all.  I pressed harder into the ground and picked up speed. Joseph and I finally arrived at the opening to the mountain base.

(Everything is in slow motion now)

Joseph and I burst through the opening and started spraying gunfire at the guards. Munitions fly in the air, and catastrophic explosions happen around us, but we do not relent. We keep pressing forward, and finally find come cover, behind a metal counter, with some knives, and tools on it. Just infront of us, in a small alcove, is the central control device, but there are four guards left to take out. I look over at Joseph and see that he is running out of ammunition.

“Joseph!”

“We need to try close quarters.”

“Are you crazy?!”

“Yeah. But it’s the only way. You’re almost out.”

“What’s your gun for?!”

“Just listen to me!”

We count down to one, and rush forward to the nearest guard, and throttle them. The other two guards are left confused, and stop firing momentarily. As I throttle my guard down, smash my gun into his face. He is knocked out. I steal a few clips of ammunition form his belt, and stash them into my pockets. Joseph just finishes pulling a knife out of his guard. Since time is slowed for me, this all just happens in a matter of seconds, but it looks like it takes forever, for me.

(Everything is in real time now)

The two guards are ready to fire again, and train their laser targeting devices at Joseph and me. I put my hand up as if I am surrendering, but dive out of the way in a split second. As I roll, I pull out my gun, and fire three bursts into the guard’s chest, knocking him down, unconscious.

“Quick, there’s no time.” I say. Joseph and I race to the control device. I’ve got to admit, it’s the nicest piece of technology I’ve seen in a long time. Too bad. We’ve got to destroy it. If only it wasn’t in these people’s hands. Joseph has already busied himself with pulling the wires apart and smashing the internal components. I just pull out my pistol and start shooting random areas. In a matter of minutes we’ve made mincemeat of the device and are ready to leave.

“Okay, we’re out.” Joseph says, and starts to run, beckoning me to follow.

We ran back the one mile, and made it to our plane. In no time we had the plane fired up, and in the air.

The flight felt very fast on the way back after the commotion that I had just gone through.  Joseph does a great job landing the plane on the mountain runway, and parks it back in the cave.

“It’s done.” I say as I walk back into the little mission room that Rachel’s father had set up.

“Good.”

“When will we be heading back to Starville?”

 “Good, Robert Carver. But do not think you have earned my trust entirely, just yet. We had a deal, and I will stick to that deal, but that is all. I am not coming with you to Starville.”

“But what about you, sir?”

“Why?”

“I’d like to stay back. I have my reasons.”

“But, Rachel?”

“My background with Rachel is none of your concern.”

“I did what you asked, and I deserve some damn answers!”

“Is that how you talk to your elders?”

“Please, it’s only fair I get some. Why are you in this place?”

“I was hard on Rachel during her childhood. Probably too hard. The army made me a bit coarse, and I lost my sensitivity to a large extent. I expected a lot from her, but didn’t give her nearly as much as she deserved. She was such a great child. My  only child, but the only one I had ever wished for. I don’t think I can ever face her again.”

“You can always turn things around sir. When I was in Extremis, in the mines. I was talking to Rachel, and she was telling me about how you taught her all these skills. These fighting, communicating, survival, and god know what other skills. But you must have done a great job. If it weren’t for Rachel’s expertise, we wouldn’t have been able to make it out of Extremis alive. Now, you have something to be proud of. Or rather, someone. And that is your daughter. You have taught her well. Please, sir. Come with us. She’ll be happy. I promise.”

“No, no. I was the only one to escape from that assault on my company in Russia. My commanding officer thought they would send assassins, so he tried to put me away in as remote an area as possible. That is how I ended up in this hellhole. I don’t like the mountains, Robert, but they are my only refuge. At least, that’s what I’ve been told.”

“I think there’s something that you aren’t telling me.”

“I don’t want to face Rachel. I have to stay here.”

“Sir, like I said earlier, you can always turn things around.”

“Turn things around. Hmph. I want Sharon back.”

“Sharon?”

“My wife.”

“Those murders who call themselves the Authority… they took her. They killed her. They even sent me a photo of her dead body. She was shot to death. That’s yet another reason I am staying in here. If I leave this place, I…I’m worth nothing.”

“Man up.” I say.

“Who do you think-“

“I am Robert Carver, and I’m telling you to man up. You are a soldier for god’s sake. Where did all that bravado go? If you are sad about the loss of your wife, then fight even harder to bring down Mr. Samson. Fight even harder to bring down injustice. Staying in here won’t help any. The Authority will probably find you sooner or later, and will trash this place, with you in it. Do you want that?”

“No.”

“Then you’re coming with us. It’s an order.” I say feeling very awkward, and struggling not to show it.

“Fine. But I will not see her until the battle in Starville is over. If you can promise me that, I’m game for this fight.”

“I promise. Now let’s stop this mess in Starville.”

All three of us get into the plane, and fly off. Joseph seems to know the heading, so I trust his piloting capabilities. I am bubbling with anxiety. Where is Rachel? In the prison of course. What have they done to her? Why her? How were we going to get her out? Who was winning?

“We will do this Rob.” Joseph says, and pats my shoulder. “We’ll save your city.”

“Yeah.” I can’t think of anything else to say.

The journey is quite uneventful, though we are flying at maximum speed.

“All right, here we are.” Joseph says and brings the plane down a few hundred yards away from the rendezvous point. “This is where I ended up after Extremis. The base of the Sierra Nevada. Oh and there they are. The rebel soldiers.”

I am the first to get out, and I start to hurry over, but Rachel’s father grabs by shoulder.

“Wait. It’s better if we go as a group. Less suspicion. “

We trudged over there and met up with the rebel soldiers.

“Ah, Commander Sherman, and Joseph. How do you do? And, who is this boy?”

“Why? He is the boy who started the revolution in Animus.”

“Really? Hm. Well, I’ve trusted you all my life, and I trust you now Commander. So, a friend of my friend is most definitely my friend. Welcome to Camp Lumina.”

The soldier led us through the small camp, introducing us to various other soldiers. We could tell that they were ready for a fight. Their arms bulged with muscle, and their conviction seemed strong.

“So, how are we going to handle Starville?”

“Simple. We fly in, and blast the mayor or whoever it is over there to pieces.” A soldier said with a cigar in his mouth.

“Strategy, Flint, strategy. The only way we can get over there is by air travel. We have three choppers, and your plane. It shouldn’t be a problem if we plan this out properly. Come on.” The man finished and walked over to a makeshift table they had set up. “Here’s a map of Starville. From the information which we have, which is very little by the way, we’ve deduced that the northern part of the city is where the height of the conflict is. The Island is located in the eastern end of the city, and the mayor’s people have done a good job of keeping the rebels out of there. So, what our plan is, is to deploy in the southeast quadrant of the city, near the industrial complex, closer to downtown, and work our way up. The forces are concentrated in the north, so it should be easy for us to work our way up.”

“But these rebels are on our side. Shouldn’t we be helping them first?” I ask.

“We will be helping them. But we are few in number. It would be foolish to try to land in a hot zone. We should start moving out tonight. It’s best to travel under the cover of darkness, even if we are coming in helicopters.” The man said, and gave a curt nod before walking on. “Until then, just get to know the others, and chill out, I guess.”

                So that’s exactly what we decide do, and we amble around the camp, talking to various rebel soldiers. The stories from Animus are scarier than I thought. Apparently there was a genetic research project, though I thought I was just making it up back then, and many family members were kidnapped and used as test subjects. Any who opposed, were publicly killed. I asked one why he left Animus, instead of helping to fight the Authority. He gave me a dirty look, but still answered my question. Apparently they were driven out by the Authority in the initial stages of the battle. They were forced to take refuge at the base of the Sierra Nevada. In fact they were initially planning to go to Utah themselves, but decided that Rachel’s father was closer to the La Salle Mountains, and decided to request his help instead. So, that was how I got the job…hm…interesting. Looks like everybody is connected in this place. After talking to a bunch of soldiers, I decided to take a break and sit next to Joseph.

“Big day tomorrow huh?” Joseph asks.

“Yeah. Taking over a city in one day. It’s got to be one of the craziest military plans I’ve ever seen.”

“We’ll do it. These guys might look like rag-tag militia members, but they’ll surprise you when put in action.”

“Let’s hope so.”

“We need to get Rachel out.”

“Hey, what did I tell you earlier? Relax man.”

“It’s not easy to relax, when the friend you’ve known for 8 years is in mortal danger. If we lose Rachel, we have to answer to her father.”

“I give you my word, that we will find Rachel. Even if I have to die trying.” I say, surprised at my own words. Joseph looks at me with a surprised expression.

“Brave words, Rob. But these days, the proof’s in the pudding.”

“Speaking of pudding. I’m hungry. Do these guys have any food reserves.”

“Here, I’ve got some in my pack.” Joseph says and pulls out a container of yogurt, and hands me a spoon.

“Good eats.” I say and start eating the yogurt. “So how in the world did they manage to store three helicopters in the mountains, unnoticed? It’s not like there is a government funded base here or anything.”

“I don’t know either. I just know that these guys can work miracles. You give them a task, they’ll go the whole nine yards to get it done.”

“Impressive bunch.”

“Yeah. Listen, Rob, we’re going to have a lot of work tonight. I want to just get some sleep, yeah?”

“Sure Joseph.” I say, getting up and walking away.

                Maybe I should get some sleep too. It is getting late, and we’re going to start quite soon. I head over to a nearby tent, and find a spare sleeping bag. I roll it out, and lie down to go to sleep. Just then, Rachel’s dad enters.

“Good work out there Rob. I knew you could do it.”

“After trying to throw me off the mountain.”

“I’m sorry Rob. It’s just…It’s better if I don’t explain right now. Anyway, good luck tonight. You’ll do great. Now listen, I’m not assigned to your company, but I’ll tell you this. When you see an enemy, shoot. Don’t think twice. We only have one shot at this, and we’d better not lose it. If not for yourself, do it for me or for Rachel. With that I leave you Rob.” He gave a curt nod, and was about to leave, when he stopped and pulled something out of his pocket. “Here, it’s a knife. My father gave it to me before I joined the army. It’s kept me alive in every battle I’ve fought. I hope it does the same for you.” He said, and handed it to me with a smile and left the tent.

I turn the knife over in my hand, looking at the engravings. Ironically, the sides had Peace engraved into them. I flip the blade out, and study it. It was made with precision. The edge was sharp as could be. My eyelids start to droop, and I slowly drift into sleep.

Before I know it…

“Up! Everyone up! It’s time to go! Get up!” a soldier is shouting outside. I scramble to my feet, and grab my knife, shoving it into my pocket. I run out of the tent, and up to the place where everyone is gathered.

“All right, we are dividing into 4 units. Rogers. You are leading the first. Thomson, you get the second. Dunning, you get the third, and the 4^th goes with me. No time for pep talk let’s go!”

I get shoved around and placed in the 4^th unit with the man named Sanders. He leads us up the mountain side. It is pitch black and we use flashlights as we climb our way up. After about 2 minutes. We slow down. There are 5 of us. Sanders pulls down a cover, and underneath it is a chopper, primed and ready to go. Sanders ushers us onto the chopper and turns it on. We lift off the ground. The tension is building, as I see the other helicopters rising off the ground, in the distance. Then, out of the corner of my view, flies a plane. The same one that I went in with Joseph.

“All units are a go.” I hear a command issued from the radio. We head out into the night.

I feel very tense during the journey. Knowing that this might be a one way trip. Dying in my own city. Huh. Go figure. Anyhow, I’ve been given a bulletproof vest, some night vision goggles, and an assault rifle and a pistol, and a couple grenades. I am no soldier, but I do know that the bigger the explosion, the more enemies that go down.  I finger my trigger, and practice aiming, but receive dirty looks in response.

“Approaching Starville. ETA 10 minutes.” The radio crackles again.

“All right, lock and load people.” Sanders yells from the cockpit. “There’s no prep time when we fly in. We are deploying as soon as we enter the Southern region.”

In no time we are above the deployment area. I actually recognize the place. I used to go there every Saturday with my mom. Huh, looks like I have the home field advantage. I knew the town better than the team. We hooked ourselves onto ropes, and swung down to the ground. It was a short drop, so it didn’t really leave me shaken up.

“All right. We press north from here. Stay silent from here onwards.”

We jogged at a decent pace along the road. There wasn’t a single car in sight. If we wanted to get to the island, it would take at least 40 minutes. We’d have to cross Baker Road, and Fornell Avenue, and the arboreal garden. Anyhow, I can’t argue with the commander.

At least they predicted correctly. There was no resistance faced while moving north. But I wanted resistance, strangely enough. This was my opportunity to bring down the bastards that hurt my family, my friends, and Rachel. Nobody could hurt Rachel, and get away with it.

I hear gunfire off in the distance. We are getting closer to battle. 

“All right. Find yourself some cover.” Sanders whispers. I duck behind a banister, and the rest of the team scatters to different areas along the intersection. “Looks clear, prepare to move-“

BAM! A shot rings out, and just barely misses Sanders.

“Down!” Sanders yells as shots fly through the windows of almost every building on the intersection. I doubt they’ve seen me, otherwise I’d be dead by now. The firing doesn’t stop. Sanders presses something on his wrist. In just seconds, the helicopter flies in, firing missiles at the buildings with the shooters, and levels them. It flies off into the distance. We surely attracted a lot of attention. Surely enough, a shell comes flying in, and lands a few yards in front of the marble statue.

“Scatter!” Sanders yells, but we pretty much are scattered all ready. More shells start flying in. I try to get out of the line of fire, even though I can’t really guess it accurately. There is a small alleyway right in front of me. I jog to it, and run through. Thankfully, no shells hit me. I hear explosions just around the corner, but I keep running. As soon as I come out of the alley, I’m see a gunman. His back is faced towards me. I am filled with rage. This man was part of the many crimes that Mr. Samson had engineered. I shoot him in the leg. He goes down in agony, dropping his gun. I’m not going to kill him. Let him feel the pain. I feel no regret. He deserved what was coming for him. I run through the street, and I hear some orders being barked out. It’s Mr. Samson.

“You said choppers flew in?! Get rid of them. Get the Mayor over the the financial building. Hold him hostage there.” Mr. Samson yelled.

“The kid sir? Do you think he’s coming back?”

“I doubt he’d even survive the Rockies. The two guys that took him in promised to give him hell.”

“Let’s hope so sir. This kid was responsible for revolutions in two other cities. He seems like a big deal.”

“If you question my actions one more time-“

“Sir, with all due respect-“

BAM!

A shot was fired, killing the man.

“Anyone else have any questions?” Mr. Samson said with contempt. All the while, I, the boy that was supposedly dead, was listening to the conversation, just around the corner. I wanted to walk out and shoot Mr. Samson, but no. I had a more important task. Something clattered behind me. I turned around, but saw nothing. I kept looking, but there was no sign of anybody. My team was gone. It was just me.

“All right, you heard the man! Get in the truck, and move the mayor downtown.”

“Have him on the top floor. If he tries to act funny, don’t hesitate to put him on the window sill.”

Car doors slam, and their engines rev as they speed away. I walk out, just as they turn the corner. I still didn’t know where they were keeping Rachel. There was only one way to find out. I’d have to find Roger. Assuming he wasn’t working on Mr. Samson’s side as well. I jog on, into the night.

Gunshots grow louder, as I draw closer to the island. The houses around me seem deserted. Then the idea occurs to me. Why not take a bike. I find a bicycle propped up against a fence near one of the houses. I get onto it , and start riding. I’m hardly 10 yards away, when, I’m surrounded by a group of men. Gosh, how careful could I be?

“That’s far enough young man. Drop your weapon, and get off the bicycle.” One of the men says. I look to both sides, there is just enough leeway for me to run to my side, vault the fence, and get behind one of the houses. I’d have to time it perfectly though.

“Okay. We’ll do it your way.” I say, and slowly get off my bike, and lay it on the ground.  I pull out my pistol and assault rifles down. I put down three of my four grenades. I plan to use the fourth one for my quick escape. Thankfully, my knife is in my pant pocket, so it isn’t visible. I pretend to not find anything in my pant pockets, and give a nod. “There you have it. The men, look down at my mini arsenal. Now’s my chance! I edge over slowly at first, but at soon as I get close, I jump over the fence and make a run for it.

(Things are in slow motion now)

“Hey! Hold it!” gun fire pings off the walls of the sides of the house. I pull out my grenade, and toss it back. It explodes, and creates a smokescreen. Now they can’t get me, but I can’t exactly go back there.

“That little runt!” I hear someone yell. I have no time to stop I keep running, like a madman, across the lawn, when I come to where my school property starts. I look at the building. The lights are off. I wonder what’s happened to all of my teachers. Even the ones that were mean to me. Were they happy when I left Starville. Anyhow, no time to stop now. I need to find some weapons quickly. I keep jogging, though my legs are starting to burn with exhaustion. Just when I’m about to drop down, tired, I trip over a body. It’s the body of one of Mr. Samson’s soldiers. The first thought that comes to my mind…weapons! I immediately search him for weapons, and find a pistol with two clips worth of ammunition left over. Something’s better than nothing. I take the pistol, load one clip into the magazine, and keep the other in my pant pocket. I jog on towards the island, anxious to find Roger.

(Everything is in real time now)

“Looking for something?” A familiar voice asks. 

“Roger?” I say, half surprised, and half angry. I point my pistol at him. “You turned on me…why?!”

“Hold your horses there Rob. I never turned. My rebel army is fighting extra hard after they heard about what happened to you. I was actually thinking of coming hunting for you in the Rockies, to get you out of there, but the revolution here had to be taken care of. I never stopped being your ally Rob.” He says, in a calm voice. I lower my pistol.

“Fine. It’s so hard to find someone to trust these days. I mean, Mr. Samson. He was like a close friend of our family. Why would he of all people do this. Do you know where he’s holding Rachel?”

“Rachel’s still on the island. I’m sure he hasn’t been keeping her idle. Mr. Samson was one sly bastard. He had me the whole time. Luckily we had trained the people enough to withstand the attack. Things have changed since you’ve left. The power has shifted to Mr. Samson’s side. He has the heavy guns, and vehicles, and back up support. Rumor says that a city called Animus is sending over extra troops to help him out.”

“Yeah. He’s got the mayor too.”

“Mayor? Where?”

“Financial building in downtown. That’s at least a 20 minute drive from where we are right now. Who do we get? Rachel or the Mayor?”

“He’s probably going to use one as bait for killing the other. We’d have to have a highly coordinated plan to get these two out. Rachel is going to be the easier one, since the soldiers are occupied with battle, near the island. There’s hardly any action downtown, so Samson has tons of time to think, plan, and execute.”

“What if we brought the action to him?”

“I didn’t tell you how I got here Roger. I was flown here by another rebel army stationed near the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We came in with about 4 helicopters. I have no idea where they are now, but if we can find someone who was part of the rebel team, we have to set up a beacon for the helicopters to come to.”

“Impressive, Robert Carver, very impressive. But highly impractical. Who’s to say we won’t be shot dead while setting it up?”

“Yeah…didn’t think of that. What other way do we have?”

“I’d say trial and error is the best way to find out. I might be ex-military, but I still have my limits. This is a turf war Rob. We’re lucky to find this calm moment to just talk. People are just slaughtering each other.” Just as Roger finishes, an explosion occurs in the distance.

“We’d better go.” I say.

“We still haven’t decided on Rachel or the Mayor.”

“Who does he expect us to go after? He thinks I’m dead, so I guess the real question is who does he expect you to go after?”

“The Mayor. Rachel, is a great girl Rob. But I fight for the city, and not Rachel. If we want order, we need the Mayor. I’m sorry Rob.”

“But…”

“I know how you feel. I have to do what is good for the whole town. I-“

“Wait, wait, wait, wait… I just got an idea. He thinks I’m dead, and he’s putting the pressure on you. I could get in and save Rachel. He figures nobody is going for Rachel, and he can kill her off because I’m not in the way.”

“Rob, it is a kill zone out there. If you go out there, well…god knows if you’ll make it back.”

“We all have to make sacrifices in life Roger. It’s something I learned from my travels. Had Rachel not put her life on the line in Animus, the sniper would have killed me. Had I not risked my life in Extremis, the kids wouldn’t have been freed. Had Joseph not risked his life, I wouldn’t have come back. He’s the whole reason I have this chance. Now, we’re running out of time Roger. There isn’t much time to decide.”

“Well, Rob, you do what you feel is best. I support you all the way. Though I can’t actually be there.”

“We have to do what we have to do. It was great to see you again Roger. Now for the beacon-”

“Rob, I was fighting back south, and I encountered a few of your guys. One of them gave me a beacon, and told me that if I ever needed it I could use it. You need it more than I do. I’m heading back this way. I’ll try to find a car and hotwire it or something. Good luck Rob. You’ll do it. You’ve always made things work.” He finishes, and tosses me the beacon.

“I hope you’re right. But thanks Roger.”

“I am right.” With that, he smiles and jogs away in the other direction. Well, now I know where Rachel is. How do I get there fast? The chopper is the only option. The choppers are probably closer to the island. I need to find a dead rebel. Strange. Might as well start jogging there. I start jogging, and just as I get to the bottom of the slope, I trip over something. I look back, and behold, it is a beacon. Is it still working? Why would someone just throw it off like that. Doesn’t matter right now. I grab it, and push the red button on top. I sit down in the grass, enjoying the calm moment. I knew that in just a few minute I’d be in a warzone. Might as well enjoy these moments while I can. I reflect on my journeys. Extremis, Animus, the Rocky Mountains. These were all opportunities that allowed me to grow as an individual. I learned the importance of sacrifice, friendship, and morality. I learned how to make hard decisions. Pfft, these would just have been dreams in my life before all this. In a way, I have Mr. Samson to thank for all of this. Sometimes, the people who give you the hardest time help you grow the most. However, Mr. Samson was still a bad man. He hurt many innocents, and worst of all, he hurt Rachel. I feel like smashing something when I think of her being in pain. Chopper rotors grow louder. I look up , and not too far away is a chopper headed right for me. I get up, with my pistol in its holster. I wave my hands, but know that they already know the beacon they need to come to.  The helicopter lands 30 yards away from me, and a man gets down. He starts jogging over towards me. His face doesn’t look familiar. Then again, I hadn’t met all of the rebel soldiers. Something’s strange about this transport.

“Come on, kid!” the man yells. I hesitate initially, but figure, what the heck, and jog over to him. He leads me over to the helicopter, and we take off. Something weird happens. They turn in the direction completely, opposite the island.

“Hey! We need to get to the island! What are you doing?!”

“Change of plans kid.” The co-pilot says, and fires a tranquilizer dart into me. Everything goes black.

Ugh, I struggle awake. Where the hell am I now? I’m in a room. A well furnished business room. There is a huge, 60 inch plasma TV in front of me. Almost as soon as I am back to my senses, the screen flickers on. It shows, Mr. Samson’s face, smiling wide.

“Hello Robert. You are one sly bastard. With all sincerity, I think it’s great that you survived out there. The Rocky Mountains is usually a death land for someone who is unprepared. Very good Rob, but not good enough. Did you really think your little rebel army could overthrow my army of 15,000 men. We even have reinforcements arriving. I haven’t revealed my secret weapon yet. Surprised I’m telling you all of this? You’ll be dead in an hours’ time, so don’t worry you are not a liability. Might as well die knowing the whole truth right.”

“What did you do to Rachel?” I ask, anger boiling inside.

“Oh, let’s not get too hurried. I’ll show you that right now. But first, look behind you.” He says. I look behind, and I see a bomb, set with 1 hour remaining on its timer.

“Where the hell are you?!”

“Oh yes. Just a couple buildings away. Not giving specifics. Sorry.” He says with a nasty smile. I start studying the background. There is some sort of plaque mounted behind him, there is a wooden desk, and a… dang, there isn’t enough. The time is ticking on the bomb’s timer.  55 minutes left.

The screen split into two sections. One had Rachel, and the other had Roger.

“Your friends were a bit foolhardy in trying to come after me.”

“Robert…” Rachel croaked.

“Shut up!” Mr. Samson smacked her across the face. She spat on his feet, only to be smacked again. Rachel was stripped down to her bra and underwear, with electrical cables attached to her skin. Roger was in his underwear, with similar wires  attached to his skin. Mr. Samson comes into the background, and pulls down a lever, and a bolt of electricity shoots through the wire, and zaps Rachel. She screams in pain. I can’t take it anymore. I struggle against my bonds, and stare desparately at the ticking time bomb, hoping that it will magically stop, and that I can break out of my bonds. Mr. Samson does the same for Roger, and he too doubles over in pain. Mr. Samson does this several times, and comes up to the camera with the same wicked smile.

“Enjoying the view Rob?” He says, gesturing at Rachel’s near bare body.

“You are a sick, twisted man Mr. Samson!”

“Uh-uh, didn’t your mother teach you about manners.” Mr. Samson said and zapped Rachel again. She yelped, and stared at the camera lens, her eyes having a tortured look. The girl I thought was the queen of my dreams was now a bruised, helpless girl. I had to do something. I couldn’t go down in vain. I start to shuffle my feet, so as to move my chair over closer to the large window there is to my left, looking out into the downtown. The TV is still on.

“Now, for Roger.” Mr. Samson says, and brings a knife. He is about to cut him. I start to back my chair into the window as hard as I can. At least if I fall I have some chance of survival. I hit harder and harder. The bomb only has about 40 minutes left on it now. Roger lets out a scream, as Mr. Samson slits his arm.

“You’ll pay for this Mr. Samson!!” I yell at the top of my lungs. Just then, the door bursts down, and in walks Sanders. He looks over and sees the bomb before anything else. Like a pro, he strides over, with a very focused expression, and studies the bomb. There are only about 35 minutes left before the bomb explodes but he does not hesitate. He looks at the wiring, and runs his fingers along it. Then, he plucks out two wires.

“What!!” Mr. Samson yells across the tv screen. He zaps Rachel and Roger repeatedly. They are barely conscious. The bomb is defused. Sanders, quickly and quietly comes over, and cuts my bonds. I flex my hands, and quickly stretch my legs.

“Ready to go?” Sanders asks.

“Yeah. Let’s take this madman down.” I say, through gritted teeth. Then, outside the window, a chopper lowers, with a machine gun at its side, manned with one of Mr. Samson’s soldiers.

“Good bye Robert!” he yells. Dang! He must have ordered it over.

“Down!” Sanders yells and we both dive behind a thick sofa. The bullets tear through, destroying the television, and any view I had of Rachel. I was glad. I couldn’t bear to see Rachel like that. I was going to find Mr. Samson and…yes, I would kill him. The bullets kept tearing through, and I knew the sofa wouldn’t hold for long. I look around for another exit, but only see one, to my left. Going out there now, would be like suicide. I look over at Sanders.

“Why don’t we use this sofa as a moving cover? We’ll pull it as we go to that exit!”

“Good thinking!” he yells, and puts his hands on the sofa. I do the same. We push with all our strength  and start moving towards the door. The bullets keep tearing through the sofa, and then, through the door.

“On three!” Sanders yells to me.

“One! Two ! Three!” we jump to the handle and yank open the door, and roll into the hallway. The trouble wasn’t over yet. We could hear the chopper moving position. There was another window directly in front of us, though it was down the hallway.

“Stay to the side!”  Sanders orders me. I do exactly that, and glue myself to the side wall, as we inch our way along. The helicopter comes into view, and we start moving faster, towards the stairwell.

“Do you have a car?! Or something to get us the hell out of here?!” I ask.

“Yes! How do you think I got here?! No time to talk! Go!” Sanders yells, and we run for the stairs, bullets tear through the walls, but they are much less accurate, since the pilot can’t see us. We run, and finally, reach the exit. Right outside, as a military jeep, with the top up.  We run outside, and get into the jeep immediately, and Sanders starts it. The jeep screeches off. The action isn’t over yet. The helicopter comes behind us and starts laying in bullets behind the jeep. We drive till we are out into downtown, where all the high rise buildings are. Sanders turns into an alleyway on short notice, and the pilot tries to follow, but hits the building. Instantly, the helicopter’s frame is torn apart, and the aircraft crashes and burns.

“How did you find me again Sir?” I ask.

“I followed you the whole time. That can that clattered across, that was me. I was trying to warn you from going any further. I even tried to keep an eye out on you when you were talking to that…Roger? But if I had come out, I’d have risked my cover. No time for explanations. Do you know where these two are. They are obviously in the same building. He said it was just a few buildings away from the one I was in. Nothing specific was mentioned.”

“Damn! How are we supposed to find these guys?!”

“Let’s think logically. He said a couple of buildings away. When he took the mayor away, he said he was going to put him in the financial building. I’ve got a hunch that that’s where they are. It would be too much work for him to put all three of them in separate buildings. He’d want to stay close to the mayor, since he was the man who robbed him of the power. Now, which financial building is the biggest in the city? Think….yes! Alan & Greenfield.  It’s the one that manages the mayor’s personal finances. It’s got to be the place he’s at!”

“And if he’s not?”

“Well, then this is going to be a long night. Longer than it has been already.  Lets’ go!”

Not another word was said. I just pointed to the Alan & Greenfield building, and Sanders raced towards it. It was easy to get there because there were hardly any cars in the street. We drove by the helicopter crash again, and finally, pulled up at the front of the building. I looked into the backseat and found it filled with arms. Guns, grenades, knives, and other equipment. I grabbed a rifle, and a few grenades and headed out . I bet Mr. Samson has something planned for us. Like I guessed, he did. Two soldiers walked out from behind a wall, and tried to tackle me. I was too slow, but Sanders had my back. He fired two quick bursts without hesitation and killed both of them.

“Come on! Let’s go! Time’s ticking!” He says.

There is a staircase in front of us. Mr. Samson would probably not keep the hostages on the bottom floor. Besides, the room he was in looked like the CEO’s office. It had to be in one of the upper levels. It is a 30 story building, so we make a gamble and enter the elevator to go to the 25^th floor. From there we could use the stairs. With a ding, the elevator doors open, and we walk out into the hallway. No guards. Surprising- Crap! There is a big one. He is standing right in front of us, with a smug look on his face. He drops his gun, and cracks his knuckles. This guy was a brawler. Sanders looks at me and gives me a faint smile. I know he’s got this. The guard charges at Sanders and me. Sanders waits till the last minute, and pulls out his pistol in a flash, and fires 5 rounds into the guard, knocking him flat. He is unconscious, but that is all we need for now. We keep moving. It would not be this quiet if this were the floor on which Rachel and Roger were kept…unless they were dead….no! I cannot afford to think like that.

“We have to go higher.” I say.

“What are you talking about. We’ve skipped 25 floors already, and now you want to skip this one too?  Are you crazy?!”

He was right. I give him a nod, and run to the opposite end of the hallway. One by one, I break down the doors of the rooms, and look inside. No sign of Rachel or Roger.

“Lets’ keep moving.” I say again. For the next three floors it was the same case. None of the rooms were occupied, and there was hardly anybody to fight. My suspicions about Mr. Samson’s master plan grow stronger. Something is definitely waiting for us. We climb up the last flight of stairs, and open the door.

“Welcome, Robert.” A voice says.

“Mr. Samson.” I say and turn around. I am right. There he is, with a wide smile on his face. I am blinded with rage and charge at him. This time, he lets me take him down. I start laying in punches to his chest. Mr. Samson grabs me by the lapels of my shirt, and flips me over. He pulls a gun out of his back pocket, and points it at my head.

“Not so fast, Robert. You have to beat someone else first. I am grabbed, and flung back at least 10 feet. I look up, and a realization hits me like a lightning bolt. It was the man who had stabbed the guy in the hoodie. It was the guy who had tried to snipe me near the mayor’s house.

“Remember me punk?” He says with a smirk. I get to my feet, and draw my gun. He kicks it out of my hand, and punches me in the shoulder. He then me in the shin, and knees me in the face. I’d much rather be choked out by Mr. Samson again. At least the pain would be over. Now I am blinded with it. Blood is flowing out of my nose, and my eyes are tearing up. My cheeks are searing with pain, and my shoulder feels smashed. No other way to describe it.

“Hey!” Sanders yells from the back, and tries to fire. Mr. Samson, in a split second shoots him in the head. “Noo! Sanders!” I yell, running to his side. Rage fills me. I stand up, clenching my fists.

“Bring it on!” I yell in as harsh a voice as possible. I swing at his stomach, and actually hit him. The man stumbles back in pain, but it is brief. His pain is replaced by anger, and he grabs me, and he takes me down over his shoulder. I’m winded. I try to get up again, but he has his knee on my stomach, making it even harder to breathe. Just then, I realize, Mr. Samson is gone. This fills me with anger, and I bring my knee back and hit the back of the man’s ribs as hard as I can. He cries out , and tries to choke me. I’m too fast. As he leans back in pain, I use his momentum against him, and push him to the ground. I get on top, and start slugging him in the face. With every punch, my anger grows. The crimes that these people have committed have left me so indignant. I punch and punch until I know he is knocked out.  I pick up my pistol which was knocked to the ground, and yell

“Rachel! Roger!” I hear muffled yells in return. I yell out their names again, and the yells are a bit louder. They are coming from the room in front of me.  I run with whatever energy I have left, and shoot the lock. I don’t have the time or patience to try it. I walk in, and there they are…Rachel and Roger, in their undergarments.

“Robert!” They both yell, but it is not out of happiness. I look behind and there is another bomb attached to the wall. This one only has 1 minute left on it.

“Robert, listen to me!” Roger yells. “Find the two yellow wires that lead around the timer. Find the place they are connected to and yank them out! Quick!” I find the two wires quite easily, but finding their connection point is the difficult part. They just are entangled with the rest down there. The timer only has 45 seconds. Time is ticking. I move my fingers up the wire, and find the insertion point. I pull the wires with all my might and they come out. The timer stops. I sigh, relieved.

“Come on guys… let me get you out of this dump.” I say. They have a weak smile.

“I knew you’d come for us, Robert.” Rachel says, weakly. She has cuts and bruises and is drained. I have a knife in my utility belt. I pull it out, and cut Rachel’s bonds, and then do the same for Roger.

“Where are your clothes?” I ask.

“They’re gone.” Rachel says.

“Damn! Let’s move!” I say, and haul Rachel out of her chair. Roger surprisingly has the strength to keep up with us, and we move down the hallway. Just as we move out into the hallway, we start to hear beeping noises. On both ends of the hall, there are bombs strapped to the wall.

“Faster!” Roger yells. I drag Rachel along as fast as I can. We get to the elevator, and I hit the button to go down.

“Come on.” I say with frustration. The elevator finally reaches the bottom floor, and we move out. Surprisingly, the jeep is still outside. “I don’t have the keys.”

“That’s what hotwiring is for.” Roger says, and we leave the building. We hurry to the car, and open the door and pile inside.

“Quick.” I say. The building was going to blow any minute. Roger gets his hands on the wires, and in seconds has the jeep started, and moves back into the passenger seat. I jump behind the wheel, and screech away from the building. As I suspected, the building blew up. Debris hit the rear window, but we were a good distance away.

“Thank you Rob.” Rachel says, and squeezes my shoulder.

“Yeah. Don’t mention it.” I say smiling.

“We don’t have time for emotions here. Samson has reinforcements arriving as I’m sure you know. We need to figure out a way to stop them. These reinforcements are coming from Animus. There is only one local highway that leads from here to there. We need to get out there fast.”

“Well we can’t run them over or something.”

“The helicopters.” Rachel says.

“What do you mean? As far as I know all of the helicopters are taken over by Samson’s men. I was almost mowed down by one of them as I was escaping my building. It was one of my own. Our airpower is gone, Rachel, gone.”

“We have to pull the same stunt we did in Animus. Only this time it is with a helicopter.”

“I know where the airfield is.”

“How are we going to get rid of the guards?”

“I’ll handle that.” Rachel says.

“Rachel, you hardly have any proper clothes on. They’ll tear you to shreds. No bullet proof vest, no knife, or gun.”

“Robert, I’m going to say this one last time. I’m the best weapon you will ever find. I got you out of Animus; I can get you out of here too.” She says with surprising confidence.

“Fine. Roger, where’s the airfield?”

He gives me directions and we race down there, through the abandoned streets. As we come around a hill, he tells me to slow down. We drive around at an antlike pace.

“Pull over next to that small hangar over there.” Rachel says. I do just that. We get out of the car. On any ordinary day, people would have burst out laughing. A man in his underwear, a girl in her bra and undies, and a guy fully dressed in battle armor. What could possibly go wrong? No shoes even. I set jokes aside and focus on the objective.

“Okay, this hangar has a little prop plane, it’s not going to be of much use. It’s all or nothing. We go to that bigger hangar over there, and get a hold of the helicopter.” Roger says, and gives me a nod.

“Sure, assuming they won’t shoot us to pieces by that time.”

“Rob, it’s 2:00 in the morning. Mr. Samson’s side is winning. The security has probably grown complacent. Let’s run across.”

We sprint like madmen. Time is running out, daylight is breaking, and we had to get the helicopter fast. We reach there, and put our backs up against the wall. We hear chatter inside the hangar.

“I’ll go in first.” Rachel says. She slips in like a shadow, and climbs up some heavy duty metal shelves on the right. There is a guard standing a few yards away from me, but I’m hidden by the outer wall. I am calculating how I should take him out if things go wrong, when Rachel falls down out of nowhere onto his shoulders, and wraps her legs around his neck. She flips him over, and chokes him with her legs until he falls unconscious. She looks at me and gives a quick smile and a nod. Then out of nowhere, Roger, who had apparently left my side, comes in and knocks the soldier on the opposite side, with a single punch. They quickly take the soldiers’ clothes, and are ready for action.

“Couldn’t let you look at me like that for too long Rob.” Rachel smiles, and gives me a friendly shove.

“Quick guys, we are running out of time.” Roger hurries us. We board the helicopter, with Roger as the pilot. Rachel mans the gun in the back, and I have my assault rifle ready. We head out of the hangar, and the rotors start to spin. I brace myself as we lift off. Since we didn’t attract too much attention, they would probably figure that it was just some urgent need for air support for Mr. Samson, and let us go. Roger expertly flies the helicopter away from the base, and towards the highway. “Remember, these vehicles that are arriving, will have tons of explosives in them. Missiles, bombs, bullets, and everything. Fire into the supply trucks, it will send the explosives haywire, and will handle everything else. We need to conserve ammo. I can see the highway in the distance, abandoned except for a  caravan of trucks, and jeeps, and APCs that are arriving, as backup for Mr. Samson. Boy, were they in for a surprise. Rachel, gripped the gun harder, and I got ready. Every bullet had to count.

“On three we fire!” Roger yells, “One! Two! Three! Fire!”

Rachel starts unloading into the trucks and vehicles, and makes sure that she focuses on the supply trucks. As Roger predicted, the trucks explode and the flames lick the other vehicles causing them to explode as well. Now it’s my turn. Roger turns the helicopter around. I aim as best as I can and fire down into the trucks and jeeps. More explosions ensue, leaving my ears ringing, but I don’t relent. I keep firing. After my clip is empty, I give Roger the signal, and we turn back to Starville.

“Looks like Samson isn’t getting anything. Now it’s going to be easier to turn the tide. I feel it happening very soon. All that is left now is looking for Mr. Samson.”

We fly back to the city, and daylight has set in.

In the distance, shots ring out, and people shout as they defend their territory with all ferocity. Roger tells us to get ready again, and that we are going to turn the tide of the battle. I load my gun. Rachel does the same for hers. We look at the war torn landscape around the island. Houses are blown to pieces. Streets’ roads are completely crumbled like the buildings around them. Only the island remains more or less untouched. Roger gives us the mark, and we start firing. We lay into Mr. Samson’s troops and take them down. The rebels see us in the air and with a cheer they press forward driving the troops backward. The island is still in the background, relatively untouched.

“Roger, can we get the island?”

“No time!” he yells back.

This is when I realize our grave error. I look into the sky and see jets flying in.

“Roger! We need to evacuate!”

“Rob, look more closely!” Roger replies. I do so and am overjoyed. These jets are not enemy ones, but they belong to the rebels of Animus. One of the planes had a hovering feature, so it just made a quick turn, and came to a hover right in front of us. The doctors quote, “A butterfly breaks from its cocoon, and opens its wings to fly. It spreads its color to the world so that they can also try,” is painted on it.

“So that’s what you sprayed onto that plane that day.” I say to Rachel with a smile.

Rachel looked at me and smiled back. It was honestly, the widest smile I’d ever seen on her face, since Extremis.

“All right, let’s go!” Roger yells, and pulls away.

“Where’s Mr. Samson?” I ask.

“Oh, I know.” Roger says. He continues to fly the helicopter off the coast of Starville, into the Pacific. The waves are moving in a calm manner. Then, in the distance, I catch a yacht, moving away at a rapid pace.

“How are we going to land this thing on that yacht?”

“Just wait.” Roger says and I just stare out into the distance. A larger ship comes out of the mist. A freighter.

“We are landing there.” Rachel says.

“Remember how there was a drug trade going on? Here’s the ship that carries them.”  Roger says. “We’re going to blow this up. It’ll force Samson to turn back, and we’ll get back before him, and be waiting at the docks. Roger opens up the missile bay of the helicopter, and fires an array of them into the freighter. There are explosions on the deck, and the crew men, run to their lifeboats. Rachel fires into the hull of the ship, and I can even see from a distance, that there are holes in the hull, and the ship was going down.  The fires crawl across the ship like insects and in seconds the entire ship is torched, and we hear the screams of the sailors. As Roger predicted, the yacht turns back, and starts racing back towards Starville. We fly back with all anxiety, and land our helicopter in the distance. We can see Mr. Samson’s soldiers being taken captive one by one.  We have just about won this war. The yacht pulls up at the dock, and out walks Mr. Samson, furious as ever. He pulls out his gun.

 “Guys, leave this to me.” I say. I crack my knuckles.

(Everything is in slow motion now)

“Come on Mr. Samson, what happened to fighting like a man?” I say in a mocking voice. Mr. Samson tosses his gun aside, and comes face to face with me. Out of the blue, he tries to swing at me with a punch, I am so angry but at the same time so calm. I dodge the blow, and counter with a punch to his ribs. Mr. Samson stumbles back, but his strength is renewed again. I charge at him with all force, and try to knock him off balance. He grabs me, and flips me over. He puts a leg over my neck, and grabs my arm and leverages it between his two legs. Aaaaah! My arm burns, as it is being bent the other way.

“You should have given up a long time ago Robert.” Mr. Samson crackles.

“Robert!” Rachel yells and tries to help. Roger pulls her back and tells her something quietly. I’m being blinded with pain. I will not give up. With a burst of energy, I twist out of the joint lock, and grab his ankle, and proceed to break it. He kicks me in the face, knocking me onto my back.  He puts his knee on my chest and punches me in the face. He chokes me. Air is cut off. I….I can’t breathe…I grope for some support, but find nothing. I grab his lapels, and pull him down and lock my arm around his neck and squeeze with all my strength. Then, I move my leg back, and put my foot on his hip, and kick him back, tightening my choke. He is struggling. Just then, he does something like a burpie, and kicks his hips up. He yanks my arm off of his neck, and puts me in a rear naked choke. Once again, my vision becomes blurry. I take my fingers, and gouge his eyes. He screams, and releases me. I turn around and kick his head. He falls back and just as he tries to get up, I kick him again, and pin him down at the edge of the dock. I find Mr. Samson’s gun, lying behind me and grab it, and put it to his head.

“It’s time you paid for your crimes.” I say through gritted teeth.

“You are only proving how much of an animal you are. Do it Robert. You’re only helping me succeed. You’ll be my weapon, even if I die.” Mr. Samson says with a wicked smile. I can’t let go of the gun. I want to make this man pay. Just then, I feel a hand on my shoulder. It’s Rachel. In the background I see her father waiting. She hasn’t seen him yet. So, for his sake, instead of shooting Mr. Samson, I slam the gun but into his forehead and knock him out.

(Everything is in real time now)

Rachel hugs me, and I hug back.

“Wait,” I say, realizing something. “Let’s check the yacht.” Rachel, Roger and I run inside and find the mayor tied up on the ground. I pull out my knife, and cut him loose. I pull the tape off his mouth. He looks thankful.

“I can’t thank you enough. Once I have brought order to this city, Mr. Samson will pay dearly.”

 Looks like that’s how this adventure ends. Just me, Rachel, and Roger on the boat. But wait!!! There is something left. I’m sure of it. We jog out of the yacht, and find Rachel’s father kneeling on the ground, clutching his stomach, blood staining his hands. He was obviously shot.

“Dad! No!” Rachel yells and runs to him.

“Rachel…Rachel, I’m so…so sorry.”  He says, with tears in his eyes. “You’ve made me proud. Always remember that. You have nothing to prove to anyone.”

“Dad. No! You can’t go just yet. No!” she said and hugged him tight. “You can’t leave me. Damn it!”

“Rachel, things must come to an end at some point. But I will always be by your side. And, Robert…thank you very much. Rachel deserves a man as great as you. A butterfly breaks from its cocoon, and opens its wings to fly. It spreads its color to the world so that they can also try. You broke out of your cocoon Rachel, and inspired others to follow. May you ever be a beacon of light for others.” With this blessing, his eyes close, and he passes away. We all huddle around, in silent vigil. So, this is supposed to be the ending…a tragedy, huh? Surprising what you can get in return for saving everybody’s butt.

“We still have something left to do.” A voice says. It is Joseph.

“Where did you come from?”

“We were a little bit west of here, and heard that it was all going down right now. I couldn’t miss it. Rachel…how’ve you been?”

“Joseph…I….I didn’t think…”

“I’d come back.” Joseph says with a smile. They run up to each other, and embrace. I can’t help but to smile. Tears are rolling down her cheek. She looks at me, and opens her arms, and all three of us embrace.

“Joseph.” Roger interrupts as usual. “You did one hell of a job out there. What’s this one task?”

“We need to get the people off the island.”

Roger, Rachel, Joseph, and I board the helicopter, and are about to take off, but Rachel suddenly jumps off.

“I can’t leave his side guys. I…he…I just can’t. Get everyone out of there for me.”

We nod to her, and take off. I reload my assault rifle, and glance over at Joseph. I give him a high five.

“Good job partner.”  I say.

“Likewise.”

We fly to the island, and it is unscarred. This is a point of concern. We land our helicopter in the distance, and get out, our guns ready. We run to the main building, hunched low to the ground. 

“Surprising that there isn’t a single guy left.”

“They must have fled. Anyhow, let’s get these guys out of here.”

We jog into the main building, and head straight to the elevator. It is very empty. Not a single guard is present. The doors weren’t even locked. They left in a hurry. We go down in the elevator, and head to the bottom floor.

“This is the horror you haven’t seen yet Joseph.” I whisper. We walk out into the same corridor we were in just a couple weeks ago. There are people moaning and groaning in the background. I remember the way really well, so I just jog down to the prison cells, and I am shocked. People are bruised, and blinded, and bleeding. They are banging on the cell door.

“Robert.” One of them calls out. It’s my father. “Get us out of here.” I shoot the locks without hesitation, and everyone floods out. Roger directs them to the elevator, but my parents, siblings, and surprisingly, Mark, decide to stay back a little bit.

“Thank you, Rob. You made me proud today. To know my son was out there fighting those bastards who hurt so many. I couldn’t ask for more.”

“You did well honey.” My mother says, and she hugs me. I almost break down. My siblings join in.

Now it’s Mark’s turn.

“That took some balls dude.” He says. “I mean, going out there and shooting those idiots. Look…I’m sorry for the crap I put you through in school. I really learned a lot here. I saw the kind of shit people went through in the world and…I don’t know. I guess I feel…changed. Looks like I have a lot of apologies to make. Anyhow, thanks Rob.” He says with a nod. We pound knuckles, and high five. Then after a group hug, we head out.

The helicopter is waiting outside, and we get inside, and fly away. I was wrong; stories do have happy endings after all.

It’s been two years since the battle. Mr. Samson was transferred to a penitentiary far away from Starville. Apparently he tried to put up a fight with one of the guards but got his ass kicked. Guess he won’t bother us again…huh. His bakery was searched, and they found bombs, and guns and all sorts of other weapons in there. The people whom he was trading with were based out of some Eastern European country, and Interpol tracked them down, and imprisoned them as well. All of Mr. Samson’s money was requisitioned by the Federal Government, so it could be repurposed for a better cause. The damage done by the battle was so great that they still haven’t finished up fixing everything. However, I daresay, for a city that just had a war, we’re doing pretty well. As for Roger, well he’s the commissioner of the police force. As commissioner, he had a wall constructed that had the names of all those who died fighting Samson that day, and in the back was a statue of Rachel’s dad. Speaking of her, I’d say we have a pretty strong relationship. We are really busy, but still make it a point to speak to each other every day. We mostly reflect on our adventures together, and talk about how much we love each other. It never gets old. I have a picture of her on my phone, in my bedroom…oh, and in so many other places. We go on dates every once in a while, and when we do, oh boy, we have some serious lip action. Anyway, that’s beside the point.  Roger has adopted her, and so he takes her on duty every once in a while so that she can get a better idea of the crime fighting career. It’s illegal, but after how much she’s given to the city, who gives a crap? Joseph is off in military school. He writes to us every so often, but for the most part he has his own things to do. I’ll never forget that guy. As for me…what can I say? My family and I have gotten back together. Dad is a lot calmer now, and mom is much closer. So are my brother and sister. Mark and I are actually pretty good friends now. Good to see some positive changes come about in our school. I’ll be going to college next year. But that’s not all. Every member of the Authority was exiled to Africa, where they were most likely killed, and Animus became a free city. We were even given a victory tour. The hospital where I was held lay in ruin, and everything was just about leveled, but the people were happy that they didn’t have to listen to those jackasses anymore. I wish the doctor could have seen all of this. I found out later that they had a special grave for him. The prison camp was destroyed in Extremis, and anyone associated with the project was also sent off to Africa as well. The city that I saw in the post card that day was actually real. It was just really far away. Looks like the citizens pooled up a truckload of money, and started an orphanage for the kids from the prison camp. Things may be going well, but I will never rest, as long as there is crime in this world; for I will always be… Kid Vigilante.