Kyle West - Extinction

It wasn’t hard to imagine what those reasons might be. Ruth was a good-looking woman, and she was surrounded by a bunch of unscrupulous men — men without honor and principles.

“We have to get her out of there,” I said.

Lauren nodded. “I know. It isn’t going to be easy. I don’t think Rey is going to accept Makara’s terms.”

“So Rey is the one in charge?” Julian asked.

Lauren nodded. “Yeah. Jade is sort of their lackey, but they do give him some rein. It’s more Rey and Cain working together. To what end, I don’t know. They must know they’re done, with Makara back. They still hold some pretty powerful cards. Ruth is one of them, and they also have Char and Marcus.”

“If they’re still alive,” Michael said softly.

“I think they are,” Lauren said. “They need that leverage, especially now when the balance is shifting so much.”

I hoped Lauren was right. I couldn’t imagine the Lords keeping either Char or Marcus alive. Still, maybe they’d agree to parley sometime in the next few hours, as Makara had laid out.

“We’ll find a way,” Michael said.

Finally, we were opening cans faster than people could take them. A minute later, we gave our hands a break. I took a can of pork and beans, grabbed a nearby spoon, and started to eat. It was the first food I’d had since breakfast, all the way back in Los Angeles.

With the realization of how busy my day had been, I felt a wave of fatigue. I checked my watch, seeing that it was 21:00 on the dot.

I uncapped another can, taking a cue from Callie and favoring pineapple. Callie watched with wide eyes, sitting on Michael’s lap.

I ate the pineapple, draining the rest of my juice, and set the empty can on the floor. I noticed that a lot of people were hanging around, even if they didn’t want more food for the moment. It took me a minute to realize why they were.

“They want to take some of the food for themselves,” I said. “We should probably keep it in a secure location.”

“Can’t we just trust people to take the right amount?” Lauren asked.

Julian and Michael answered at the same time. “No.”

“Alright,” Lauren said. “What do we do, then?”

“We could keep everything in the Command Center, where it would always be under watch,” I said. “Most people would take the right amount, but some will hoard, which would punish the people who follow the rules.”

“I agree,” Michael said.

“I’ll talk to Makara,” I said.

I left the barracks, following a short corridor leading to the Command Center. Once there, I found Makara, Samuel, and Grudge on the Command Center floor. I went downstairs. They saw me coming down and waved me over.

As I approached, Makara gave me an update.

“Ashton picked up twenty or so, and they should be heading down soon. You might want to get some more food ready.”

“About that,” I said. “We were talking about keeping the food in the Command Center. It would prevent people from taking more than they need. We could take inventory and hand it out only at mealtimes.”

Makara nodded. “Yeah, good idea. Find a way to move it in here.”

“That won’t stop people from going out and finding their own,” Samuel said.

“No, we can’t stop them from doing that,” Makara said. “But we can forbid anyone from leaving level three without an escort. We can widen our range once we start securing more floors.”

“We’re probably good down to level six or so,” Grudge said.

“Probably,” Makara agreed. “But I’m not taking any chances. And that’s too much ground to cover with what we have.”

“Alright,” Ashton’s voice said, coming out of the computer speakers. “I’ve landed outside the canyon. The refugees are worried about the snow, so I’ll be escorting them to the entrance. I’ll be out of touch for the next ten minutes.”

“Copy that,” Makara said. “Good job, Ashton.”

“What’s the head count?” he asked.

“122, so far. 142 once yours arrive. About half can use guns.”

“Copy that. I’ll make one more flyby before calling it a night. I think I got everyone I could on this round, but another sweep won’t hurt.”

“We’ll make the announcement for the last sweep,” Samuel said.

“Copy that,” Ashton said. “Out.”

No emissary arrived from the Lords below, at least not within the first four hours. I wouldn’t have known if any had arrived, because I woke up around midnight, despite my tiredness.

I kept thinking of Anna, hating how I couldn’t see her and how she was locked away on Perseus.

Which was when I realized that I could go see her. True, it meant going through the empty corridors of Bunker 84 alone. But the lights were on, and level three and above were secure.

It would be cold outside, but I had my parka.

A big part of me said it was stupid. And it probably was. The more I thought about it, though, the more I felt like I had to do it.

It took a minute to make the decision. I got up, put on my parka, and made sure my AR and Beretta were locked and loaded. I went to the kitchen, grabbing a couple cans of food and a can opener, and made sure to fill my canteen. I felt a little guilty, taking a can opener, but we had six total now, which meant I was leaving behind five. They’d survive without it for a couple of hours, and if something bad happened up there and I found myself cut off, I’d be prepared.

I didn’t know why I felt so pressed to see Anna, but I wanted to make sure she was doing alright. After Ashton had dropped off the second round of refugees, of which there were only six, they had parked close to Bunker 84 at the canyon entrance, which was a short walk from the Bunker door. All I had to do was reach the Perseus’s door, input the code, and go inside.

Before I had time to second-guess my decision, I lifted my pack and left the barracks by the back way. By going this way, I could avoid the Angels standing guard. We were all under curfew; I wasn’t supposed to be breaking the rules like this.

All the same, I had a feeling that I should see Anna, one that went beyond the fact that I was worried about her. I felt like I was missing something important. It really wouldn’t be a dangerous trip; there were no enemies on the third level and above, and I wouldn’t be in the cold for very long.

I left the dark barracks, entering the lit outer corridor. I walked to the stairs, hearing my footsteps echo off the confined walls. It was quiet, and the faded paint and odd smattering of dried blood on the walls told the story of this place. I felt as if ghosts were watching me when I reached the stairs and began my climb to the top level.

Where it was still dark.

I wasn’t expecting that. Maybe the lights were still out on this level, for some reason. I retrieved my flashlight, clicked it on, and walked forward.

Coldness crept over me. I was out of my element, and for some reason, I just had a bad a feeling. A feeling that I should turn back.

I clicked the flashlight off, pausing to listen. I stood there for one, maybe two minutes, until I heard it.

Footsteps. Dozens of them, coming from ahead.

I backed away slowly, toward the steps. I realized who it was. It was the Lords, preparing a surprise attack. If they could attack from both top and bottom, we would be overrun — especially if we weren’t ready for it.

I reached the stairs in the pitch darkness. Once I was sure I was out of earshot, I ran quickly, trying not to make any noise.

By the time I made it to the third level, I was at an all-out run.

I wasn’t sure what to do first –wake everyone up, or find Makara. I decided on the second option. I didn’t want to cause a panic, but at the same time, we had only minutes.