Cridex

Chapter Thirteen

The city gleamed. Despite the billowing pillars of white smoke channeling up into the sky, the buildings of silver and glass remained spotless. I had never been able to see them in their entirety, as my vantage point had been limited to looking up at their piercing rooftops from the sidewalks at their base.

But now we- Camden, Jonas, Imogen and I- all stood at the city limits, the grassy plains just outside the urban scrawl that built up higher and higher the further into the city you got.

"This is the furthest that we can go." One of the guards spoke out, "All communication between you and the rebel base has been severed. Any further contact, unless in the case of astounding losses or astounding victories, will not be returned and will result in permanent expulsion from the cause." He finished reciting his spiel, and yet I saw the concern in his eyes carry through.

"We wish you luck," the other guard spoke out. "And we wish that we only hear from you in pcases of astounding victory."t that my life and any chance at

"You will," Camden sauntered forward, his steps unfaltering, "And soon, too."

Imogen smiled sweetly at them, "Tell our people that we are alright, and that when we return we will sure tales of our successes."

They bent their heads forward, pride shining in their eyes even as the fear weighed down their hearts. "Indeed, for it seems the admiral gets more desperate with each passing day that our people are in chains," He looked over to me with a questioning gaze, as if wondering why I- a human sympathizer- would be on a mission to help the very people who stole me from this very city.

I often found myself wondering the same thing- save for the fact that that Zachariah would hunt me down if I did not cooperate, and some unidentifiable feeling kept edging me towards the cyborgs and the rebels.

The guards left, the canvas covered truck blowing away in clouds of disrupted dust.

We stood still, no one wising to make the first move, the first step towards the city and our more than probable demise. Camden had a plan- a plan to liberate the enslaved cyborgs at the auction house- but as I stood among their ranks, a plan of my own began to form.

"Okay," Camden exhaled slowly, and began a swinging gait down the embankment to the city's roads. "No weapons, no armor, but we are fully trained and we have the element of sur-."

Alarms began blaring loudly, their waning cries picking up again once they had ebbed away.

"Surprise?" Jonas grit out, "Were you going to end that sentence with surprise, Camden?"

He shook his head and raised a finger to the oncoming vehicles that were a silver matching the towering buildings ahead of us, "Doesn't matter," he trailed of, muscles tensing visibly, "because we are too far from the city to make headlines, which means-."

"We need to get closer." Imogen finished grimly, throwing me a wary glance.

"We need to run," I spoke out, ignoring their surprise, and picked up my pace as I ran down the embankment. They followed effortlessly, our paths now parallel to that of the oncoming cars.

"Why?" Camden shouted, slipping as the vehicles began to open fire upon the slight incline and we were forced to roll and take cover in the underbrush at the bottom.

"Because," I leapt forward and grabbed him by the shirt collar, dragging him back quickly as another bullet shattered into the mound of earth behind us, "Despite what you may think, I do not want you or anyone else to die today!"

"We are still too far," Imogen called out, "if we want our little show to make a ruckus, we are going to have to find a way past them."

"They have us pinned," Jonas trailed off, his eyes scanning the field before us with military precision, "There is no other way out."

I groaned lowly, rubbing at my temple.

"What?" Jonas' eyes snapped to mine impatiently, "Do you have a better idea than charging face first into armed conflict?"

"The sewers," I grit our, "This embankment surrounds the city, covering the main pipeline that brings us our water supply."

"Are you saying that if we can find a way in, we have a chance at making our way through to the heart of the city?"

I nodded grimly, my old plan of making my escape while they continued forward sinking to the floor. But I could not just abandon them. "Yes, but we have to move quick."

Another wave of bullets showered over our heads and I ducked further down to the ground, not even peeking through the brush to see how close they had come in the time we were discussing.

"They are moving faster," Imogen's tone was higher pitched than normal, "We have to act now."

"Now?" I asked and gazed about, searching for the tell tale insignia of the city skyline imprinted on a disc of metal. I couldn't find one and I asked again in a breathless voice, "You need it now?"

"They are approaching quickly," Camden spoke calmly and directed his gaze to Jonas, "I don't think that they intend to take prisoners."

"We are going to need to confront them head on," Jonas nodded grimly, "Buy the girls some time."

"No!" Imogen objected and her panic began to show through the cracks, "No, I am not leaving without you!"

I felt the tension in my chest rise as another spray of ammunition whizzed by, and yet they continued to shout. I bit my tongue until I drew blood, but the feeling in my chest bubbled up and came to a head. "None of us are leaving if you all don't shut up!"

They fell silent, Camden's mouth hung open, until a bullet grazed his right ear. "Now, then, Ellery!"

I glanced about, panicking as I shuffled the underbrush over, trying to reveal the disc. Sticking my tongue out, my fingertips hit metal. "Here!" I shouted, uncovering it further, "It is right here! Help me get it up!"

Camden shoved me roughly to the side and hefted the disc up, revealing a gaping darkness just as the vehicles parked with a skid and opened fire.