Empire (Empire, Book One) Page 14

Sam was in a lot of pain. Although, from what he told Mia, the painkillers were working. The gasps and moans escaping his lips as she lifted him into the car said otherwise, however.

  Mia sat down on the driver’s side and prepared to punch an address into the autopilot. She realized though that in her frenzy to get everything they needed, she never thought to figure out where exactly they were going to go. “We need to get you some medical attention,” she said, thinking out loud.

  “McArthur Army Base,” Sam said, grimacing. “That’s where we were taking everybody in the trucks—plenty of supplies for refugees plus medics to take care of me.”

  Mia nodded, punching McArthur into the search bar.

  “It’s not going to be in there,” Sam said, sitting up. He let out a small shout of pain as he reached forward with a bloody finger.

  “Whoa, whoa,” Mia said, gently pushing him back down. “Stay seated. Tell me the address and I’ll put it in.”

  Sam recited the address for the base and Mia entered it into the vehicle’s computer. She pressed the big green button on the screen to start the trip but a spinning circle appeared. “Oh shit. I’ve never seen that before.” She’d never driven a car made by this manufacturer, so she thought that maybe it was a quirk specific to these cars. An error message popped up on the screen.

  Error Number 0403: Cannot connect to satellite.

  Despair wrapped around Mia and refused to let go. They couldn’t just walk to the base, not with Sam in this condition. They wouldn’t get five miles—especially with those creatures roaming around.

  Mia tried again, just to be sure. The same error code popped up.

  “They must be interfering with the satellites,” Sam said, sounding even more defeated than before, if that was possible. “Can you drive manual?”

  Mia looked at Sam, eyes wide. “Of course not! Nobody drives manual.” She looked at the controls before her. The pedals and steering wheel seemed just as alien as the Mortuks.

  “You mean all that L-Cadet training,and they didn’t show you how to drive a car?” Sam asked.

  “I only did one year,” she reminded him. “They were more focused on the important things, like getting us started with fighter pilot and weapons training. Shit like driving a damn car was saved for Year Two.” She grew more frustrated with each moment that passed. “Maybe I’ll just go look for another car. See if that one’s working.”

  “They’re in the same system,” Sam said, letting out a small chuckle. “Driving is our only option, Mia. I know a few of the basics. I’ll help you out as much as I can.”

  She let out a deep sigh, trying her best to keep calm. “Okay.” Fear rose within her. “Let’s get to McArthur.”

  The first ten miles were rough. Every tap of the breaks sent Mia and Sam flying forwards and every press on the gas sent them deep into their seats. Beth laughed along in the back, enjoying the ride from the safety of her car seat. After that though, Mia started to get the hang of it. By mile thirty, she was even beginning to have fun, wondering why she didn’t try driving manual sooner.

  After close to two hours of driving, Sam spoke up for the first time in a long while. “About three more miles to go,” he said, his voice weak.

  Mia took her eyes off the road for a split second in order to get a look at Sam. Despite the cool air blasting from the vents, he was drenched in sweat. His face seemed as white as bleached linens. “Is it hidden somewhere, or along the road?” she asked, scanning the road. The path was narrow. Trees inched closer and closer to the asphalt with each passing moment. The long shadows from the setting sun reached out, ready to pluck them straight from the car. Mia didn’t want to think about what might be lurking out of sight—watching, following. Yet with every small movement in her peripherals, her eyes darted to the trees, scanning, searching.

  “Up ahead there’ll be a fork in the road. Go right and it’ll take you to the front gate of the base. Given the circumstances, they should let you right in,” he said.

  Mia nodded in response as she continued going forward. Before long, she reached the fork in the road. She went left just like Sam said but she didn’t get far before she slammed on her brakes and parked on the shoulder.

  “What the hell, Mia?” Sam asked, groaning in pain.

  Mia could barely speak as she saw the scene in front of her. “Look.”

  In front of the front gate to McArthur Base stood two Mortuks, their large brown bodies hidden beneath their new black armor. Their bone-like weapons had a green undercurrent running beneath them bright enough to be seen from far away. They were looking at each other, conversing. Mia and Sam remained unseen.

  Mia threw the car into reverse and backed out slow, keeping her eyes on the Mortuks ahead.

  “Oh my God,” Sam whispered as a group of fighters rose from behind the fence, setting off in the opposite direction to kill more humans, no doubt.

  “Looks like we need another plan,” Mia said as she drove out of sight.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Hayden stood on the bridge next to Ivan, waiting to see Earth for the first time in what felt like forever. After spending hours trying to put aside his fear, he ‘d given up. His only option was embrace it.

  He was terrified.

  He felt strangely brave, however. Just because he was afraid didn’t mean he couldn’t be courageous, too. The two emotions fighting for control drained him. But with every second the Empire grew closer to Earth, Hayden felt them beginning to work together in harmony. They made up a cocktail that, in the hands of a soldier like Hayden, should’ve been terrifying to every Mortuk this side of the ETL.

  Hayden thought of his father, how their last conversation ended so abruptly. He’d heard nothing since then. He hoped, more than anything, that he and his mother were safe. All he wanted was to hug his mom again and talk to his dad about the latest antics of the Tillows family. Hayden chuckled at the thought of his father’s reaction to the idea that Ben Tillows was XO for a few moments, and how royally he’d screwed that up. Jammed elevator. Damn fool.

  “Two minutes until we exit the jump,” Millie said, her amplified voice echoing around the bridge and the Empire.

  Hayden wondered if she had any other family on Earth. She didn’t mention any when she talked about her sister, but he liked to believe for the time being that she did—that they were all safe, awaiting her return. He wanted to believe that his parents were doing the same but it was much easier for him to imagine it for Millie’s family.

  “Ninety seconds until jump completion.”

  “Deja vu,” Ivan said. The words were so quiet, Hayden wasn’t sure if he was supposed to hear them or not.

  “I’m sorry, sir?” he asked.

  “déjà vu, I said, although I was just talking to myself,” Ivan said, his eyes still glued to the screen ahead of him. “In the last Mortukian war, I was standing next to your father as we waited to exit a jump. The Mortuks were waiting for us on the other side. It was towards the end of the war and we had this group that’d been giving our colonies hell finally backed into a corner. They fought hard. We fought harder.”

  “Sixty seconds until jump completion.”

  Ivan tapped the back of the captain’s chair he stood behind. “It was right here on this bridge, too.”

  Hayden turned his attention from the screen, meeting Ivan’s eyes. “You mean the two of you fought on the Empire?” His wide eyes filled with excitement and wonder.

  “Damn son, your father really didn’t tell you much about the war, did he? We were stationed on the Empire for some time. She was badly damaged in the battle after that one. By the time her repairs were done, though, the war was over. Not long after that she was converted into a training ship.”

  “Thirty seconds until jump completion,” Millie said, the words stabbing at Hayden’s gut.

  “She’ll be good to us,” Ivan said, rubbing the back of the chair. “She’ll be good,” he said, this time more softly.

  Hayden’s eyes scan
ned the room, wondering what it’d been like in the last Mortukian war. He wondered if he was standing in the exact same spot as his father did, or if it was two steps to the left or right.

  “Ten seconds until jump completion.”

  Hayden closed his eyes. He tuned out everything around him, prepping himself to see his home world for the first time since this all began. The ship exited the jump and he opened his eyes.

  The screen was almost completely black, save for a small blue dot in the distance. They were thousands of miles from Earth but just knowing he was looking at it filled Hayden with a small bit of warmth.

  “Zooming in on target,” Cadet Lily Norwalk said from her station behind Hayden.

  In just a few seconds, the image shifted. The high-powered telescopes zoomed in on the blue dot. It grew bigger and bigger, until the whole of Earth in all its beauty and majesty filled the screen.

  Except there was something wrong—horribly wrong.

  Floating around Earth in a hexagonal pattern were hundreds of the new Mortukain motherships. Their sleek black forms floated above the planet, equidistant, spreading across the planet like a net. There were motherships missing, though. Only about a third of Earth was covered.

  “Where is everybody? There’s no sign of any military.” Hayden fought off the suffocating uncertainty as he spoke. He turned to Ivan. “Did they retreat, or are they…” Hayden didn’t know the right word to use.

  “I don’t know.” Ivan’s eyes darted around the screen, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.

  In the corner of the screen, a white light flashed into existence. It dissipated and, in its place, yet another Mortukain warship appeared. The bridge crew watched in silence as the vessel lowered into position. It situated itself the perfect distance away from the other massive motherships to continue the hexagonal pattern.

  “If they get enough of those things there, the whole Earth is going to be surrounded,” Hayden said. With every word, the fear took away a piece of his courage until, at the end of his sentence, he was completely consumed by it, if only for a brief moment. He remembered his sense of duty. The face of his mother. The face of his father. They couldn’t afford for him to be scared. Despite the fact that they had the entire Secret Service to protect them, Hayden felt as if he was the only one who could save them. Whether or not that was the truth, it’s what Hayden knew he had to believe.

  “It looks like we’re working against the clock,” Ivan said with a heavy sigh.

  Episode Three

  The End of the Beginning

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  “Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Mia asked, peering into the car. The moonlight was the only thing that lit the interior. Sam sat in the driver’s seat, his eyes glassed over. Beth sat outside her car seat in the passenger seat, playing with a set of keys.

  “I’ll be fine,” Sam said, some of the strength returning to his voice. After more painkillers and a bit of food, Mia was beginning to believe that he was feeling better.

  “Okay. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Mia looked past Sam and smiled at Beth. The little girl let out a small laugh. So innocent and sweet—Mia could feel it steeling her resolve. She had to find safety for Sam and herself but she wanted to find it for Beth more than anything else.

  “Bring back a double cheeseburger if you can.” His smile turned into a grimace.

  “I’ll see what I can do. Watch the barrel,” Mia said, pushing the barrel of his T-15 out of the way. She shut the door and left Sam and Beth behind, walking towards McArthur Base—once a secret Army facility, now a base for the Mortuks.

  Mia walked in darkness, trying her best not to jump at every sound. She was making her way towards a secret tunnel Sam said ran underneath the base. It was used for emergency evacuations or when they needed to get something or someone inside the base that not even most of the people working there could know about. Well, Mia needed to get in and she definitely didn’t want anybody to know about it.

  She felt for the watch on her wrist for the millionth time. It was her only connection to her father, her only connection to rescue. In the center of McArthur Base was a high-power, military-grade quantum network communications system. The military network ran on a totally different system than the civilian network. The Mortuks had no use for the latter, but the military system? Mia and Sam would bet their lives that the Mortuks still needed that one to contact each other. It was the only way she and Sam knew of for instant communication even across light-years.

  Mia went over her plan again in her head. Sam had told her exactly how everything was laid out in the base—where she needed to exit the tunnel, where the quantum network tower would be, how to access it, everything. Despite being prepared, she felt nervous and sick. She couldn’t believe she was actually trying to do something like this. It was the exact opposite of what she wanted with her life. Had she wanted to do these things, she would’ve stayed in the L-Cadet program.

  But she dropped out both to spite her father and because she could never do something that reminded her so much of Beth. Beth had been one of the top L-Cadets of her time. To Mia, there was no way she could ever compare to her. It was pointless even to try.

  Yet there she was, sneaking across a field illuminated by just the moonlight, making her way to the large drain that sat in the side of a hill, leading out into what once was a large river. Now the water had slowed to a trickle. Mortuks must be diverting the flow upstream.

  She stepped down into the water, the ice cold liquid seeping into her sneakers. That woke her up quick. She didn’t even realize how tired and exhausted she’d been until now.

  She made her way towards the tunnel opening. It was about five feet in diameter so she ducked her head down as she entered. Once inside, though, the tunnel sprawled before her, the ceiling at least fifteen feet above her head. She looked behind her at the tiny opening, wondering how they got things they were trying to sneak into the base through the five-foot opening. She figured there must’ve been some secret way to open up the side of the hill, allowing them to bring larger items in.

  The lights in the tunnel were still on but Mia pulled out her flashlight. She wanted to be ready just in case anything happened. The path ahead of her slowly slopped downward. Before setting off, she looked around to be sure no one was hiding in the shadows. According to Sam, the area was usually heavily guarded. Given the recent circumstances, they both doubted the area would be anything but deserted.

  After confirming they were correct, Mia set off down the path, every step she took bringing her closer to the hive of Mortuks right above her head.

  E-7584. That’s what the sign next to the ladder said. Mia studied every number carefully, making one hundred percent sure that’s what it said before climbing up.

  It would open up into a manhole in the middle of the road inside the base. She took a deep breath before beginning her ascent, leaving the relative safety of the tunnel she’d been walking in for the past half hour.

  The ladder was sturdy but Mia’s nerves weren’t. With every rung she climbed, she wanted to stop and turn around. She felt ashamed at those thoughts. Beth needed her. Sam needed her. She needed her. Contacting her father was the only way they’d find safety. He’d come. He’d save them.

  The ceiling of the tunnel was curved but the ladder cut straight through the sloping roof and up into another smaller tunnel. Mia’s backpack scraped across the walls of the cramped tunnel as she climbed. She didn’t even want to think about how far up she was. After a few more moments of tedious climbing, she reached the top.

  A manhole cover sat just above her head. She thought about the last time she’d been peeking out a manhole cover, just a few days ago. Before she was a surrogate mother. Before she felt like a daughter again. She wondered what the Mia of just a couple days ago would think about putting her life on the line just to save two strangers.

  What she’d think about never finding Nick.

  Mia pushed that out of her m
ind. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t think about him. Not yet. Not while people’s lives depended on her.

  She eased the cover up just an inch and surveyed the area around her. All the lights were off inside the base. All she had was the moonlight to guide her. The Mortuks had almost perfect night vision so the lights were useless to them—unfortunately for Mia. Although her eyes did their best to adjust to the darkness.

  Speaking of which, there were none. Had she not seen the Mortuks guarding the front gate, she’d have assumed the base was abandoned.

  She waited a few more moments just to be sure no Mortuks were right around the corner, waiting to pop out and surprise her. Once she was certain the coast was clear, she opened the cover up a bit more. She looked around, searching for the communications tower. This was the closest tunnel exit to the tower, according to Sam. To her immediate right was the tallest building in the base, with all sorts of antennas protruding from it. Looks like Sam was right.

  She took a deep breath, trying her best to calm her nerves, before climbing out of the hole and making a dash for the communications tower.

  Chapter Forty

  “How much longer until the renovations are complete?” Ivan asked as he sat at his desk.

  “The MetaBots are at forty-two percent,” Angelica answered.

  Ivan sighed and bit his tongue. He wanted to let out a slew of curse words. The process of retrofitting the Empire’s guns to fire bullet munitions was taking too long. “Let me know if there are any complications.”

  “Of course, sir,” Angelica answered.

  Ivan waved a hand and Angelica retreated back to her computer core. Ivan pulled out his tablet and contacted Cadet Roscoe.

  “Yes, sir?” she answered, her face filling his screen.

  “Any update on the Mars colonies?” Ivan asked.

  She shook her head. “We haven’t been able to get into contact with any of them. We’ve tried the emergency comms, but they seem to have taken those out as well. Also, sir, we’re unable to get into contact with any of the military channels on Earth. They’re still there, I can see them, but I can’t connect to the network.”