Jay Posey - Morningside Fall

Cass surveyed the team; they were all switched on, ready to move. It didn’t seem to faze them in the slightest that they were talking about heading outside the wall for some unknown length of time. They were just focused on the job. Not a single one had asked why.

“Alright, let’s roll it up. Check with Finn and Sky to see what they need, and then get out of here. I want to be outside the wall by… oh-three-hundred GST. Forty minutes.”

“On it,” Swoop said. He and Able swiveled and headed towards the back room.

“Thought I had forty-five,” Wick said.

“Less every minute you fuss,” Gamble replied.

“I’m just going to sit back there,” Wick said, pointing to the far back corner. He moved to a table, and Cass saw him throw a little wave at Kit as he passed by. Kit didn’t wave back, but she smiled a little and looked at the floor.

“Governor,” Gamble said, “Painter, and Miss Cass, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get your help pulling some supplies together.”

“Sure,” Cass said, “of course.” Wren and Painter both just nodded.

“This way,” Mister Sun said. He headed towards the back room and motioned for them to follow.

“What about me?” Kit said. “Do I need to stay?”

Gamble stopped and looked back at her. “Yes, ma’am, I’m afraid so. Just until we’re gone.”

“What do I do in the meantime?”

“Keep Wick company,” Gamble said, flashing a smile.

Sky watched the streets below with an anticipation that bordered on nervousness. Patience usually wasn’t a problem. But knowing they were planning to leave made every minute they had to wait seem that much more painful. Each extra moment they stayed inside the city brought a chance that they might be discovered, and the way things had been going lately, there was really no telling what might go down if that happened. He’d never had to hide from his own people before. And the thought of things going sideways, of having to shoot their way out… he shook his head. It wouldn’t come to that. He wouldn’t let it.

He checked the time. 02.48 GST. Gamble had said she’d wanted to be outside the wall by oh-three-hundred, and unless she was planning to make them all sprint to the closest point, they were running late.

“Sky, Finn,” Finn said over the channel. “How’s your angle on the east side of the building?”

Sky checked. He didn’t have a full view, due to an overhang from another building. “Partially obstructed. What’s up?”

“Maybe nothing.” That didn’t sound promising. “Just picked up a little traffic spike from somewhere out that way. I can’t see anything over there though.”

“Alright,” Sky said, “stand by, I’ll check it.” He drew up his rifle and swept the area with his optic. As far as he could tell it was clear. Ever since the three-man patrol had quit poking around and moved on, they hadn’t seen another soul in the streets. “I can’t see anything down there from here, Finn. You want me to reposition?”

“No, that’s alright. Just keep an eye out.”

“Check.” Finn was the cautious type, so it might very well have been nothing. But that didn’t really make Sky feel any better.

They had reconvened in the main room, and laid out supplies in a few meticulous piles across several of the tables. It’d taken them longer than Gamble had anticipated, mostly because Mister Sun’s storage room wasn’t arranged with efficiency in mind. It was clear she was becoming increasingly anxious to get moving.

Cass had dumped the contents of her go-bag out to see what she could contribute. She couldn’t help but feel a little proud when Gamble had complimented her on her preparedness. Cass didn’t mention how much she’d learned from her first flight into the open.

“Alright, I think we’re good enough,” Gamble said. She was doing one final survey of the supplies. “Anything we don’t have, we’ll just have to make do without. Let’s get all this loaded up and get moving.”

Cass quickly repacked her go-bag and reorganized it so she could fit as many of the new additions as it could carry. Mister Sun had provided them with a couple of large storage sacks as a temporary solution until they could meet up with the others and redistribute everything more evenly. Painter and Wren were loading one, while Gamble worked on another.

“Wick,” Gamble said, “we’re out of time.” Then to the others, “Don’t worry about trying to keep it organized. The piles were just to make sure we had enough for everyone. Wick?”

“Yeah, I heard you,” he answered from the back of the room. Cass noticed Kit had joined him at the table. She was sitting across from him, resting her head on her folded arms. “I don’t have a full route worked out yet, G. It’s a tricky run.”

“You got us a place to stay for the night?”

“I think I found a spot, yeah, but–”

“Then figure out the rest on the way, we need to move.”

“You know I hate that.”

“You don’t have to like it, you just have to do it.” Gamble switched over to the team’s channel. “Sky. Finn. We’re wrapping it up in here, make ready to move.”

Wick exhaled in obvious frustration, but he bounced up out of his chair and helped the boys finish stuffing the supplies in their storage sacks. Neither Wren nor Painter had spoken much since Cass had brought them downstairs. They both looked exhausted, though neither of them had complained at all throughout the entire process. The boys slipped their coats on, and Mister Sun buzzed around making last-minute gestures of good will, trying to be helpful and reassuring any way he could. Wick grabbed one of the supply sacks, and Gamble took the other, and with Painter they started towards the back door. Mister Sun lingered by the entrance to the back room, half in and half out, seemingly at a loss for what more he could do.

Wren came over to Cass and stood waiting for her. She saw him check something in his belt, realized it was his knife. He zipped his coat up over it.

Cass tossed her coat on, and made a final check on her pack. Everything seemed to be in order. She slung the single strap up over her head, onto her right shoulder, and then adjusted it tight across her body. She bounced up and down a couple of times to check it for weight and balance.

“We’re really going to do it, aren’t we?” Wren said. His smile was gone, but he didn’t seem afraid.

“Yeah, baby,” Cass answered. She put a hand on his shoulder, and then bent down and kissed the top of his head. “Like old times.”

He reached up and placed his hand in hers. “Not too much like, I hope.”

“Not too much.”

They joined the others at the back door. Gamble lined them up against the wall, and stood in front of them, quickly scanning each of them head to toe, like she was taking inventory. Cass felt a surge of nervous energy. It’d been lingering in the background ever since they’d started making preparations. But now that everything that could be done had been done, now that they were standing at a door, ready to cross the threshold, it was like she’d given herself permission to actually feel the strange mix of emotions. Anxiety certainly, maybe some fear, but also an underlying sense of exhilaration. Maybe life inside the compound had taken more of a toll on her than she’d realized.

“Alright, listen up,” Gamble said from the front of the line. “We need to stay light and fast out there. Wick’s going to lead the way, then I want Cass, Wren, Painter, in that order. That clear?”

They all nodded.

“Just keep your eyes on Wick, go where he goes, don’t worry about the people behind you. Whatever else happens, your job is always to stay with Wick. What’s your job?”