The Collective (22 page)

She lifted her hands and stared at the magnets on her open
palms. “Strong.”

Goll acquiesced. “Then it’s settled. Let’s move out.”

The group moved rapidly in a coordinated manner across the
dirt road towards the Facility. Bullets pinged off the side and face of the
riot shields. Brot and Ayilise fired off shots to try and keep the tower
snipers at bay. When they were within twenty yards of the wall, the pair broke
free from the moving shields and ran full speed to their destination. Within a
foot of the metallic structure their vest pulled them tightly face first onto
the structure. Brot braced his body meeting the impact with his head up.
Ayilise was thrown off by the sudden pull and met the wall with the thump of
her head.

She looked over at Brot. “Thanks for the warning.”

“Sorry about that. The warehouse attraction isn’t as
strong.” Brot said stoically.

Ayilise stared up at the seventy foot high tower. “You sure
this is going to work?”

“I sure hope so.” Brot did not look at Ayilise as he
answered. He dug the tips of his fingers into the top of the metal panels
lining the wall and pulled himself up. The magnet in his chest adhered
comfortably to the structure. He was nearly a full story up before Ayilise
began to follow. Now that she was at the base of the building the bravado she
displayed early had gone from her. As she dug in the metal panel seam with the
magnetic gloves she could only think, how did I get myself into this? She
already knew the answer, she was constantly trying to prove herself, show her
skills and show her lack of fear. It had helped her as she had grown to
adulthood in these savage lands. Her grandmother had migrated here from China
before the Collective came to power. She was a well-known sculptress among the
artisans in the House of Vancrew. Ayilise, unlike her mother, exhibited none of
her family’s elegance with stone. She kept close to her father, a transplant
from the Australian outback, who taught her how to shoot. Those lessons at
their makeshift firing range came in handy at times like these.  This was not
the first time a desire to prove her worth had thrust her unnecessarily into a
life and death situation. She pulled herself up feeling the weight shift to the
front of her vest.

Brot was moving smoothly along the wall using the grooved
panels to pull him along notching his boots into the panels below him. He
looked down to his left side to see Ayilise a few feet below him. She was not
making her way as smoothly, but climbing nonetheless. Brot was nearing the
opening to the tower when a bullet pinged off the wall next to him. Another
shot rang out bouncing off the back of his armored vest. He was under attack,
but from where? He turned his head to the right and he could see the glint of
the rifle scope from the tower on the other side of the gate. They apparently
had spotted him. He slid to his left closer to Ayilise as he tried to give them
a less visible target. The guards continued to fire making it hard for them to
continue their ascent. Brot had his shotgun and axe, but both weapons were
useless at this range. Even the small stick of dynamite he kept tucked in the
side of his boot was of little use. He shouted at Ayilise trying to get her
attention, but she was too focused on gripping the next panel. He decided his
only way to get out of harm’s way was to keep going up. Without warning the
gunfire ceased on his position. He looked over again to see a man screaming as
he fell from the tower, splattering against the ground below. His vision was
obscured as he tried to look into the tower to see what occurred. Maybe the
interior forces had reached the tower, he thought. Whatever had occurred, he
and Ayilise needed to move quickly. Brot pulled himself along the wall with
renewed vigor. He rested below the opening to the tower. He could see the rifle
of the guards above him. The first guard would stick his rifle out and shoot
until they exhausted their ammunition. Then the second guard would take his place
firing upon Goll’s position. Brot inched himself closer and tensed as he held
himself in place with his right arm. The rifle fired its last round then
retreated into the room. The next rifle peered over the wall. Before the rifle
could fire a shot, Brot yanked the end of the barrel, sending the weapon and
the gunman nose diving to the ground. The guard was too shocked to scream,
impacting the ground with a thud.  The second guard approached the window with
the end of his gun facing down coming face to face with Brot. The man’s eyes
narrowed as he prepared for the kill, then they expanded and his eyes glazed
over as Ayilise thrown dagger sunk into the side of his neck. He dropped the
weapon instinctively grabbing at the handle of the knife. He gurgled blood and
his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he fell to his death. 

“Good shot.” Brot yelled.

Ayilise repositioned herself. “Thanks.”

Brot and Ayilise climbed through the opening unaware of the
last soldier in the corner of the room. He charged Brot with his sword,
flailing wildly at the mercenary. The blade missed wide and Brot slammed his
fist into the man’s face. As he stumbled back, Brot pressed the attack putting
his left arm behind the man’s neck and right hand in front. As his right
forearm pushed forward, he heard the bone crunch as the guard’s neck snapped.
His head rolled around his shoulders as his body went limp. They looked at each
other and breathed a sigh of relief. Brot looked out of the tower opening. “I
wouldn’t want to do that again.”

“Why not?” Ayilise asked as she searched the room in case
there was another surprise. “I had a blast.”

Brot was not sure if she was being sarcastic or not.
“You’re a real adrenaline junkie, huh?”

“You don’t know the half.” She said throwing Brot a
sideways glance.

They surveyed the room to make sure there were no more
surprises. Brot closed the cloth flap on his vest concealing the magnet. He
pulled the comm device from his waist. “Goll. We’re in the tower.”

“I know I saw the whole thing from here. I guess those
suits worked after all.” Goll said dryly.

“Yeah. Who would have guessed?” Brot said trying to hide
his excitement. “I think Lady Luck was on our side.”

Goll could sense the triumph in Brot’s voice, but was
averse to giving him the satisfaction. “That’s one way to put it.”

“What do you want us to do now?” The arms dealer asked.

“Clear the area, figure out a way to get that gate open,
then wait for my orders. Goll out.”

Brot looked at Ayilise as he placed the comm back in his
belt.

“He’s a gem.” She said with a smirk.

“You don’t know the half.” Brot said. They shared a laugh
as they searched the room for some way to open the gate.

CHAPTER 17

ADVANCED
TECHNOLOGY

While Tommie had the guards occupied, Abel decided this was
his chance to make a break for the tower entry. He looked back at Keera and
grabbed three others from the ranks behind them, while instructing the
remaining fighters to provide cover. They needed to make their way past the
guard barracks to the left side of them. There were two openings into the
building, one near them and the other at the far end. As he passed the first
entry, Abel shot blindly into the open space in hopes of dissuading Distor’s
armed guards from advancing on their position. He motioned for Keera and the
team following him to do the same as they moved along the metal wall. On the
opposite side of them Tommie was continuing to spray the courtyard forces with
his new found weapon. Abel neared the other end of the barracks and he could
see a guard emerging with his gun raised towards Tommie’s position. Abel waited
for the foe to lock in on Tommie before he fired sending the guard crumpling to
the ground. The second adversary pushed forward swinging his machine gun in the
direction of Abel letting off a few rounds. Abel ducked the ensuing barrage,
but one of his team members reacted too slowly taking the hot lead squarely in
the chest. Shooting from his crouched position, Abel cracked the helmet of the
guard sending him falling backwards to the ground. Abel quickly rushed the
opening pulling a small grenade from his vest. He stripped the pin and flung
the grenade against the interior wall. It bounced into the room and exploded.
The guards inside yelled out as the shrapnel shredded their bodies. Abel
capitalized on the confusion by shooting into the room as he walked past. Keera
and the others followed suit. They were past their first obstacle and facing
the door leading upward to the tower. Abel laid his weight against the heavy
door as he turned the knob slowly. The hinges of the door groaned as he pushed
it open revealing a small hallway leading to a dark stairway that led straight
up. The stairs were lined with small, square yellow lights inset in the wall.
Abel crept quietly up the stairs with his gun intently focused on the darkness
above. He was not sure what he would find at the landing, but he knew whatever
it was his tiny band had to complete their task; clear the area, reach the
guard tower and get the gate open. Nearing the top of the stairs, Abel could
hear voices echoing from the hall above. Abel peered into the hallway where he
could see three guards standing in front of a door.

The Captain was barking orders at the other two. “No one
gets through these doors. We need to hold the gate until reinforcements arrive
from the city. Is that clear?”

“Yes sir!” The man and woman answered in unison. The
ranking officer turned and walked through the door into the guard tower. He
could hear the guards inside the tower firing their weapons on Warden’s forces
beyond the wall. Abel leaned his head against the wall. He knew a direct
assault would alert them to his presence and they would barricade access to the
tower. They only had one shot at getting through. His thoughts were interrupted
by the hushed whispers of one of the men with him. His name was Shashak and he
had served with Warden for a few years now. “How many are there?”

“Two on the outside.” Abel responded. “Maybe three to four
more in the tower.”

“What are we waiting on? We can take those guards easily.”
Shashak stated boldly.

Keera chimed into the conversation. “We kill those guards,
they lock down the tower, mission over.”

Shashak dismissed Keera’s comments. He had never taken
strategies of war from a woman and he was not about to start now. “We have
another bomb. We can blow the door.”

Abel and Keera looked at one another astounded by the
ignorance of Shashak. Abel explained why his plan was flawed. “If we blow the
door we risk damaging the controls. If we damage the controls how do you
suggest we get that two ton gate to slide open?”

Shashak looked back as he tried to reason out his approach
in his mind. It was obvious he had not thought his plan out thoroughly. Abel
turned back to Keera. “We need to figure out a way to get down the hall quietly
and get past the guards without alerting those within the tower.”

“I’ve got an idea.” Keera said.

Abel shrugged. “Good, because I’m all out.”

Keera reached out her weapon to Rheem, the other man from
Warden’s compound that joined them. He took the weapon unsure what Keera was
planning next. A puzzled look crossed Abel’s face as Keera removed the belt
from her waist with the gun holster and dagger hanging from it. She handed the
items to Rheem and he placed them over his shoulder. “I’m going to walk up to
guards unarmed, act like I am lost and was ushered into this area. With any
luck the two of you can shoot the guards as they start to let me into the
secure area.”

Abel stared at Shashak then back at Keera. “That’s the best
plan we’ve got?”

“Not unless you have another idea?” Keera said as she
ruffled her fingers through her hair trying to present a more haggard
appearance. “But time is running out.”

Abel had exhausted his ideas and she was right, they had to
get in the tower soon. “Okay. Let’s go with it.”

Keera brushed both hands through her hair and breathed out
slowly she began to step into the hallway when they heard the door to the tower
come open and the guards inside clamoring about.

The Captain stepped forth. “You two get in here. We need
more firepower. These filthy rebels are scaling the building somehow.” His
voice was tinged with anger, disgust and disbelief. The guards rushed into the
room.

Keera grabbed the gun back from Rheem and strapped the belt
around her waist. She was a few yards behind the exterior guards as they
entered the tower. Two men were positioned inside shooting out towards the
trees where Goll’s forces were located. The Captain pointed to the rifles on
the wall then out to the tower across the breadth of the gate. Keera could not
make out what they said, but she could tell their movements were urgent. She
knew they would not be occupied long. As she continued her cautious approach
she could hear one of the guards as he grabbed the rifle and took aim across to
the next tower. “I see him. I got him. Watch this.”