RULE #29

Leave signs for anyone that might come after you. Who knows, you might need a rescuing. Make sure it is obvious what they mean! A fucking smiley face is not a sign!

~ The Scavenger’s Handbook

Konrad was in the middle of preparing breakfast for Nikki when the light on the communications console flashed. His wife had left before he woke up leaving the task to him. Ever since he had confessed his sins to her, Jean had avoided him. Two days now, she stayed after hours at work and was gone before he could wake up. She had even moved her clothes to the guest bedroom. He couldn’t blame her, although he hoped she would see reason and support him, he would have done the same thing in her place. Well, Konrad was going to give her some space, if that’s what she wanted. However, he could not wait forever. She would either come back to his side or, as much as it would pain him, she will be put in the detention centre.

Reluctantly, he washed his hands and placed only a single plate of eggs and bacon on the table. He would have loved nothing more than to sit down with his daughter, but that was not going to happen. The people at bio-refining had outdone themselves with the eggs, they were almost like the real thing and smelled divine. But the biggest loss was the bacon. It was one of the last batches of real pork they had left in Axion’s vast freezers. Any call he answered, meant that the crispy brown strips of meat were going to be cold by the time he could get to them. Or Nikki will finish them all off while his back was turned. There was no reason for such a tasty treat to go to waste. Sparing a few more seconds, he grabbed his plate and moved the five thin slices to his daughter’s portion.

“Nikki, breakfast is ready,” Konrad called out and the little girl jumped from the couch and nearly talked him in her attempt to embrace him. Her small arms wrapped around his leg she lifted her innocent face and smiled, waiting for her kiss.

With a chuckle, he bent down and planted his lips on her forehead and ruffled her long black hair. “Come on, dig in.”

“Aren’t you going to eat too, daddy?” She asked him as she climbed on the chair.

“Daddy needs to take care of something first,” Konrad smiled at her, knowing he was lying. “I’ll only be a minute, but you can start without me.”

He gently nudged the plate in her direction. That was all the encouragement his daughter required as she tore into the food with the gusto only a child could exhibit. Axion could burn for all he cared, as long as Nikki and Jean were safe. His mood dropping, Konrad walked to the communication’s console and placed the receiver around his ear.

“This better be important.” There was no trace of the soft, passionate fatherly voice he had used with his daughter.

“I know you are not to be disturbed on your day off, Lord Chancellor, but this is important.” Dr Van Bauren’s husky voice screamed in his ear. Flinching, Konrad removed the earpiece and lowered the volume. Nikki had been playing with the device again as it would seem.

“A moment please, Sandy.” Taking a deep breath, he switched the encryption module the Ministry of Order’s specialists had installed. “It’s safe to talk now. What is it?”

“Ten minutes ago, we received a short-wave communication massive from Master Sergeant Mordrake.”

“That’s expedient. I was left with the impression it would take them four days to reach Sector 7. Have I misunderstood his last report when they left Véi Dron?” It was very likely that was the case. His problems with Jean had quite the impact on his focus.

“Not exactly,” Dr Van Bauren sounded hesitant. “The squad has made it into the ruins proper, but they have suffered losses. Three deaths, one barely clinging to life and one badly wounded.”

An entire team - gone. So, this was how it started, this was how his father had felt. They were only kids not older than Nikki when they took them from their homes. In three months, Sandy’s people had made them into adults filled with all manner of enhancements. And in another two, the Ministry had turned them into killing machines. For what? A third of them dead in less than forty-eight hours. Four lives, stolen and wasted. He was a monster, a part of him knew it, but to have it confirmed in such a way was too much.

“Lord Chancellor, are you there? Konrad?”

“Yes…” He took a moment to recollect his thoughts. “Yes, I just… Were the death’s avoidable?”

“No. I’m sorry.” At least Dr Van Bauren sounded genuine for what little it meant. “Based on Joshua’s input we ran them through the simulator. Obsidian can help them survive in a hostile environment, but it can do nothing for a fatal injury. If I have to be honest, based on the report, it is a miracle they’ve suffered so few losses.”

“That’s the blood of four kids, we have on our hands, and you are telling me to be happy about it?” He could barely contain his rage.

“No, but the simulations don’t lie. They got off easy.” Sandy paused, clearly, she shared his feelings in that matter, but she was a woman of science with far stronger nerves than him. “The Scavenger you had them hire has been the one to tip the scales in their favour.”

“I see. Is there any information about his identity or appearance? Anything we can use as leverage for when he learns the truth? Remer, it is paramount that Véi Dron is kept in the dark about what is happening on Axion?”

“Alas, nothing about his appearance to give to the Ministry. The report states that he has been very cautious around them.” That was expected but the pause was not, and it was a long one this time. More bad news, which the doctor was trying to soften. “About his identity… Well, it is something the Representatives can use against us if they catch wind of it.”

“My day can’t get any worse, so spill it out Dr Van Bauren,” Konrad rubbed his eyes and looked at the half-empty bottle of liqueur on the coffee table next to the sofa, left there from last night’s drinking session.

“Before the massive cuts off abruptly, Joshua mentioned,” Sandy cut him off before he could ask the obvious question. “Don’t worry, we checked the background noises, there was an unknown person calling for the Master Sergeant’s attention, which forced him to end the transmission prematurely. But, as I was saying before it cuts off, he mentioned and I quote – he is military.”

“That’s impossible!” Konrad shout startled Nikki and the girl looked at him worriedly. “I’m sorry honey, daddy’s just angry because of work. Go back to your breakfast.” Walking into the bedroom, he practically hissed at Sandy. “Val Roux was the last known place to house remnants of Arrê’s military forces. And that place is no more! All other known bunkers and facilities in a thousand-kilometre radius from here were destroyed centuries ago.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” She hissed back at him. “Look, I understand. I really do, that’s why I had the bloody words examined a dozen times before I called you. There is no way in hell, what Joshua said can be misinterpreted. You should know this Konrad; those kids notice far more than we can account for. So, I suggest, before you get blind drunk, as I will shortly, that you check this with the Ministry. Not as a Konrad de Dragon, but as Lord Chancellor. And do it fast, before Sullivan and those vultures around him learn of this. If they do, the streets will scream for our blood.”

The day shift was as boring as the night shift. Actually, the entire work-month was a festival of boredom, however, there was no way around it. All they had to do was take down the readings at the start of every hour and make sure nothing flashed red. An entire month of strictly fixed schedule; six hours to sleep, twenty minutes for breakfast, forty minutes in the bio-scrubbers and to get dressed in the hazmat suits, followed by an hour exchanging logs with the previous team before you got into the meat of things with a nice ten-hour shift with another hour to exchange logs with the next team. But that was not the end of it, when it was all done, go into the bio-scrubs again and off to get some nutrient paste for dinner before you got three hours before bedtime during which you are expected to relax by preparing for the next shift.

No matter how she looked at it, Alexis could not see any chance of finishing the work-month with her sanity intact. The only saving grace was to be paired with someone who could hold a conversation. Yeh, she was screwed. Moira was the perfect lab-tech, no idle chit-chat, strict and pedantic to a fault. All she did was have her nose buried in the reports and additional literature the Directorate provided. The damn woman left Alexis with nothing to do but to sit on her chair with one arm under her chin and elbow resting on the disinfected steel desk and count the minutes until she could return to her room. Why did she have to become a lab-tech?

“Well, because your folks were and now you get to be one too” She murmured to herself.

“Did you say something?” Moira asked without lifting her head from the pile of reports on her desk.

“Nah, just didn’t slip all that well,” Alexis lied. The last thing she wanted was another lecture on how everyone should be happy with their position for the better of all.

“I see. It happens to junior techs around the middle of work-month. There are sleeping pills in medical, top right shelf when you enter. I suggest taking half an hour before going to bed.” The woman signed the report and placed it in the inbox of Alexis desk, again, without so much as lifting her head.

There was no need for her to read it since the madman sitting across her had triple-checked everything before officiating it. All the young tech had to do was co-sign it, but if she did that without taking a few minutes to pretend she was reading it, Moira would report her. There was no way she was sitting through another work ethics lecture. Alexis already had one strike on her record, two more and she would be sent for re-evaluation, which usually ended with the offender being sent to the lower levels never to be seen again.

“What do you think is in there?” She asked without thinking, looking at the thick blast door at the end of the laboratory.

“Don’t know, don’t care.” Moira lifted her head and scrutinised her with her emotionless green eyes. “That’s maintenance area with Beta-clearance or higher needed to access it.”

“I know,” Alexis sighed. “I mean, don’t you wonder what is in there? It feels like we are measuring literary everything. Radiation levels, oxygen saturation, amount of photon-bombardment per square meter, UV-light hours – everything.”

“That is our job.” The woman looked at her as if the girl was not making any sense.

“But those readings are clearly from the outside and have nothing to do with the lab.” Alexis signed the document in front of her and moved to the next one from the dangerously increasing pile. “Why do you think that is?”

“Don’t know, don’t care.” At this point, she could recite her superior’s answer. “It is not our job to know, as it is not our place to question the task the Directorate allocates to us.”

“I’m not questioning the Directorate! Geez…” Alexis felt her sweet and firm but cheeks go numb from sitting on the uncomfortable metal chair for so long. “I’m just curious what all this effort is all about? Our folks did it, so did their parents and now we are doing it. Aren’t you a little bit curious as well?”

“Junior technician Pierrot, your curiosity was encouraged during tenure at the schola and her served you well to advance you to your current rank in a surprisingly short time.” Moira played with the pen in her hands as she switched into lecture mode. “But that was then and this is now. You are expected to do your allocated tasks as they have been outlined by the Directorate.”

“We are Gamma-clearance lab-technicians,” she continued after taking a deep breath, quoting verbatim the text from the orientation pamphlet. “We are essential personnel for the continued functioning of this facility and the protection it has provided our predecessors and ourselves. In exchange for that, we have agreed to wave away our quarterly state-provided vacation to work within these valued halls, in order to advance the Project.”

“Yes, I’ve attended the orientation session during and after I graduated from the schola,” Alexis rolled her eyes, knowing that this conversation was pointless and would end with her getting a second strike.

“Then what it is you don’t understand?” Moira expressed genuine concern, which was unexpected.

“Don’t get me wrong, I am thankful that the Directorate does all they can to protect us from the horrors that await outside, but what is it that we do here?” The junior tech asked, unsure if she should, but her curiosity was getting the better of her. “Over twenty generations have worked on the Project, but does anyone know what that even is?”

“If it will help you focus on your work and cease these pointless questions, I am allowed to share as much with you. However, you are contractually forbidden to share this information with others.” This was an unexpected turn and Alexis focused her attention on what would come out of her superior’s mouth.

“I thought you would have figured it by now, considering how well recommended you come.” Moira was clearing enjoying belittling her, but that could be ignored for now. “I mean, this is your third time working in Statistical Alpha…”

“Will you spit it out!” Alexis finally broke, this is torture.

“It’s simple, my dear. Chaos theory.” The woman’s smug smile was infuriating, but the junior tech had larger things to ponder on.

Days of reports and gathered date took a different meaning. The charts that made no sense suddenly became readable. For so long, she thought she was missing something, but getting that little piece of information changed everything. Cracking something so monumental required generations. Alexis froze, realising that indeed generations had worked on it, which meant that they had to be close to seeing actual results.

“How long can the Directorate predict?” She asked, trembling with excitement.

“Don’t know. Don’t care.” And there was the inevitable cold shower. “Our job is to make sure the machines work and to feed the gathered data into them.”

“Oh, come on, Moira!” Alexis pressed her head against the desk, wishing she was able to bang it there. “This is the most exciting thing to happen around here…”

“This is a general warning. Security Alert level 1 has been initiated. Remain calm and focus on your tasks.” The sudden message from the speakers caught them off guard.

“Huh… Must be a drill,” Alexis said after a minute without a secondary notification coming through.

“Perhaps, but we need to follow protocol,” Moira stood from her chair and retrieved a pair of reinforced containers in which they were supposed to store the gathered reports. “Please have all hardcopies ready for transfer and archive any and all electronic copies.”

“Yes, yes. Still, don’t you think this is going too far for a simple drill…”

“This is a general warning. Security Alert level 2 has been initiated. Remain calm and focus on your tasks. All security personnel, report to your gathering stations.” Another message issued from the speakers, forcing Alexis’ gut tighten in a knot for a brief moment.

“A security… test?” This time, she was not so sure of her words.

“Doesn’t matter. Prepare your key.” Moira commanded and fetched the dreaded piece of plastic from the pouch on her belt.

Following the orders of her superior, she retrieved her own and placed it on the desk. Her eyes darted for a moment to the lockbox on the near wall, containing the two guns meant to be used in case of an emergency. While they waited for the all-clear or new instructions, they placed all the research in the reinforced containers and prepared them for transit.

After half an hour, nothing happened and Alexis allowed herself to relax. “See, just a test for the security staff…”

“This is a priority warning! Security Alert level 3 has been initiated. All non-essential personnel should return to their quarters. Security forces are to report to their respective posts. Repeat, Security Alert level 3 has been initiated.” At this point, she was convinced the system was making a joke on her expense.

“Must be a stray animal, that has wondered in the outer perimeter…” She gulped. It had happened before, fairly often actually. Four or five times every year.

“Doesn’t matter,” Moira flashed her a withering glare. “Protocol dictates handguns need to be dispensed. Now, would you please, insert your key into the lock.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” Alexis hurried to her side of the lockbox and at the same time as the infuriating woman turned her key.

Inside were two pistols that had not seen proper action in what had to be decades. Despite that, they were kept in pristine condition and went through maintenance biannually. Taking deep breaths, she inserted the clip.

“Have you gone through your mandatory hours on the range?” Moira asked as she struggled to pull back the slide. Well, Alexis was not one to mock, since she fumbled with the safety a couple of times, before having everything as it should be.

“Almost,” she reluctantly admitted. It was the first time she was essential personnel during a level 3 event. “Forty-nine out of sixty. I had to take a break because of work-month.”

“At least you’ve had the basics covered. Just breath and take your time if it comes to it.” The woman spoke motherly and sat back on her desk, placing the gun on top of it.

“Moira, we are the closest station to the surface, right?” Alexis asked, trying to find anything to keep her mind occupied, while they were on alert.

“Yes…” Her colleague was not that happy about the topic she chose. “Six meters from here to the surface. But anything that manages to enter the complex needs to go through the other stations first.” She paused for a moment before giving the door a worried glance. “Unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Well, there is the emergency exit, but that is behind three bio-locked blast doors.” Moira’s stern expression did not correspond with the tremor in her voice. “We are safe here, don’t worry.”

Another two hours went by, with them sitting and taking turns to stare at the door leading to the rest of their section. All the while, they eagerly waited for the notification system to come back to life and give the all-clear. The only sounds they could hear were the faint clicks and whines of the various delicate research equipment around them.

“Has to be an animal, that’s why it’s taking so long,” Alexis smiled, albeit nervously. “If it wasn’t, there would have been another warning by now…”

“This is a priority warning! Security Alert level 4 has been initiated. Support Research Facility 75-C is hereby placed on lockdown. Repeat, Security Alert level 4 has been initiated!” The system chose that exact moment to come back to life.

“Come on! Seriously!” Alexis raged, shouting and pointing accusingly at the camera that constantly monitored them.

“Will you shut up!” Moira yelled at her. “Listen to the instructions!”

Right, she had to focus, the system was still issuing orders. The first set was for the none-essentials, followed by those for security and finally, the orders they were most interested in. That last one was different for each section.

“EOP SA 1 to 4, full evacuation is in order. Malfunction detected in outer blast-door locks at auxiliary exit 2a. A designated security group has been dispatched. The Directorate will be praying for you.”

“What does this mean? What does it mean!” Alexis in an all-out panic mode. This was their station. They were External Observation Post Statistical Analysis 1. Whatever had breached the facility was just beyond that door. But that was impossible. The facility had never been breached. It was the only safe place where a person could have a normal life, protected from the horror that lurked on the poisoned surface. This was what the Directorate promised – keep them safe.

“Calm down!” Moira shook her and grabbed one of the boxes. “Take the other one! Don’t bother going through decontamination, we need to get out of here…”

“This is a personal message to the staff of EOP SA 1.” The system barked, just as her superior was inputting the code with which to open the door. “Junior technician Alexis Pierrot, senior technician Moira Grimm, you are to stay at your posts and ensure that the mainframe is not damaged. Your sacrifice will be rewarded. Your genetic material will be recovered and included as the priority batch in the nest fertilisation cycle. This is a direct order from Caesar and cannot be superseded by the Directorate.”

“Wait? What?” Alexis felt like she was falling into an abyss. This couldn’t be true, was the Directorate expecting them to die here?

“Shit! I thought it was only a rumour…” Moira’s words came out as gibberish, as she hyperventilated and paced around the room like a caged animal. “Caesar is real! The one the Directorate answers to… You hear whispers about it, but you dismiss them…”

“Moira,” she grabbed her superior and pushed her against one of the large servers. “Stay with me! What do we do?”

“I… I don’t…” They both froze at the muffled sounds of gunshots from the other side of the door. “The desk! Hurry, we can use it as cover!” The woman pushed her aside and grabbed the edge of the heavy still table. “Give me a hand!”

A couple of grunts later and the two of them managed to turn the sturdy piece of furniture to its side, turning it into an improvised barricade. Alexis had just crouched behind it when the door slid open. Their killer was a girl. A young girl with no protective suit. Nothing at all to protect her from the deadly environment of the outside world, save for a torn t-shirt and tight-fitting leather pants. Her face hidden behind a pair of dark sunglasses and a scarf with a crudely painted smiley face on it. She looked unreal. Yes, she had to be a figment of Alexis’ imagination. But the dirt and blood staining her clothing looked all too real and the rifle in her hands was nothing the junior tech could have imagined.

Moira fired wildly at the intruder, in her panic missing horribly the single unprotected target. Before any of them could react, the woman has emptied her entire clip into the door-frame and the wall around it. The large menacing gun barked twice. The first bullet hit Moira in the stomach. The second one went through her hazmat suit and into her eye. Senior technician Moira Grimm was dead before her body fell to the sterile floor of the laboratory. Alexis stared into that terrifying crater as the world around her went dark.