" Took some time, but you finally figured it out. " Said Zy
" You are clever..." Wayne Laughed
" What was your plan, anyway? To find out where I'm going? What am I doing here ?" Wayne stepped out from the vehicle
" Yeah, something like that. But I already knew some things about you. "
" A few days ago I saw this ship crashing down. I couldn't send anyone there. It wasn't my territory. I didn't want to break the deal, so I couldn't send my boys to investigate. And a few days later, you came to me, searching for plutonium which can be used as an alternate fuel. That's quite the coincidence. " Said Zy
Wayne didn't say anything and Zy continued
" Then you walked into my house, acting like a lone wolf. But I was certain that you got back up. You were looking for a perfect opportunity to strike. And I gave you one, as a made-up party. You fell for it. " She stopped
" So you created a character I feel sympathetic to. And when fake Zy accused me of acting, it was her that was acting in reality. Oh! You too...."
" Irwin was trying to warn me. But evrytime, someone took him away." Said Wayne
" But what of the crew? You had no idea what I would do with them. What if I killed them? " Asked Wayne
" I wanted to take that chance. I wasn't sure how you'd escape. I knew that you were getting help from outside. But I couldn't figure out who or how. Infact there are a few more puzzles to resolve.I'm sure you'll tell me as we return to the AntFarm. " Said Zy
" You didn't give a damn about them ? You were willing to sacrifice them for your own good. Wow....! " he shook his head.
" They are soldiers, they are not afraid of sacrificing their lives for the common good. " Said Zy with no regrets.
" What greater good ? You don't even have the slightest idea what I'm upto. You used them for reasons of your own. Don't try to patronize yourself saying it's all for the greater good " said Wayne
" Does it matter ? At the end I won " said Zy
" What was your plan, anyway? Kill me and get control of my ship?" asked Wayne.
" If I wanted to do that, I should have done it by now. "
" If I take over the ship, then what ? I don't know how to handle it or where to go. My initial plan was to remain with you as Mary until I had enough information, until I get all the answers. I just wanted to squeeze some information from you. " Said Zy
" What's next?" Wayne asked.
" Well my plan failed. But don't worry it was just Plan A. And for my Plan B I must change my approach. Once I find your friends, I won't need you any more.I only need one, I'll find the weakest one. Then I will take some extreme measures. " Said Zy
" Captain, three vehicles are coming from different directions ETA, less than 5 minutes. " Said NOVA
Zy pointed the gun to his face
" If you kill me, then you will never get into that ship. That means you are stuck here forever...." He paused for a moment, " Not forever...."
" I will give you a chance, tell me where your friends are. I may let you live. " said Zy
" If I tell you, they will kill me. " Wayne replied
" I guess I don't have a choice " she was about to shoot Wayne
" Ok ok.... I will tell you." he pointed to a tall building
" Search the Skeel building " she took a radio from the jeep
" It is almost dark; they are going nowhere. There's no time for that. " Zy told Ron
The soldiers reached the building in less than 10 minutes
She pulled out the radio and turned it on " Report "
" We surrounded the building, covering all exits." They heard voices from the other side.
" Take 'em, I just need one alive. " Zy gave the order, Wayne was still at her gun point.
" There isn't anyone here." said the voice on the opposite side after about 5 minutes
" Check every room, don't miss a spot " Zy told them
" Where are they hiding? " She armed the gun
" Where is who?" Wayne was looking down at the ground and raised his head when he heard the question.
" ENOUGH .........!!! Tell me where your friends are." she screamed at Wayne.
Wayne looked at her with a smile on his face, a mean smile, " your plan was good, but it wasn't perfect. There was one mistake, just one. You thought I had friends "
" Don't try more stupid tricks. " Zy hot him in the face.
Suddenly, she overheard Wayne speaking and he wasn't speaking to her.
" WHO IS THAT ...... !!! " She shouted
She took the earpieces from Wayne " who are you ? I have your guy here. If you hurt my people, I will kill him "
But there was no response
" Hold on " He leaned over to the jeep.
" Call them " Wayne told Zy
She grabbed the radio and tried to contact her guys. " Ron....respond... This is Zy... Over "
But there was no answer, she attempted to contact the others but the result was the same.
She couldn't figure out what was going on. She stood there speechless, frustrated.
He knew what was coming. " If you pull the trigger, that'll be the last thing you ever do. If you shoot me, you'll die too. Why don't you lower your weapon "
" I don't care " she was going to shoot Wayne in the head. But before she was able to pull that trigger, NOVA knocked her out. She fell to the ground unconscious. He picked up the earpieces.
" Good timing " said Wayne
" Thank you Captain " NOVA replied
Minutes after Zy heard a fainted voice
" Hey wake up "
It was Wayne.
Slowly opening her eyes, she was unable to see anything clearly. She saw someone standing in front of her, but it was still blurry. However, she knew it was him, he was right there.
" Wake up " he poured water over her face.
She shook her head and stared him in the face with anger. She tried to hit him, but was unable to move.
" Woah... Woah..... Stop and listen, look there " he pointed his finger towards the sky, It was almost sunset.
" I won't tie you up, just don't try to follow me. You have a job to take care of. "
" Your boys are still unconscious, if you want to save them, find them as soon as possible. I gave them a powerful shot so they will sleep for a while. Get them somewhere safe as quickly as possible. I recommend that building over there. " he pointed to the tall building
His tone changed, it sounded deeper and darker. " Take them there and hide until the morning, then go back to your little Antfarm and stay there."
" I know you're angry, I know you want revenge, but don't... don't ever come looking for me. If you do, you won't go back."
He came close to her face " There will be no non-lethal shots next time. If you have any doubts, or if you think I'm blabbing, ask your friends from the other camp. "
" So goodbye then, I hope we never see each other again. " he told her on his normal tone..
Zy heard the engine start, had some difficulty lifting her head. When she was able, she saw the jeep disappear onto the horizon.
She tried to get up, but failed. Eventually she succeeds. She ran towards the building . It was a struggle. She felt that she had heavy legs.
When she was close to the building she found one of her guys unconscious she called his name " Willis...." He didn't respond. She tried to call him again and again and slapped him on the cheek a few times. But he didn't wake up.
So she dragged him into the building. Even though she fell over and over again, she didn't give up. Somehow she got him into the building. Then left to look for others.
When she went back to find the soldiers, she heard someone.
" Ma'am ". She turned around, it was another soldier.
" Can you walk ?" She asked him
" I can..... Barely " he replied.
She knew that he was struggling, but she didn't have any other choice. So she told him. " Help others... Get as many people into the building as you can."
" Ok " he replied.
They both went looking for more, some of them had already woken up and were helping each other. They finally got everybody into the building.
It was night, the sun began to fade away . They closed all the doors and windows and sealed the place.
Everybody was tired and exhausted, Zy lay down on the ground..
" Where is Jay "
" JAY......"
Zy raised her head and saw a soldier yelling Jay's name.
She got up from the floor.
" What's going on, Gus...? Where the hell is Jay? " she asked him
" He is not here, he is..." His voice broke down.
She walked to a window, took out a cloth that covered it. It was dark by then. She taped it back.
" We need to go back. We need to find him " said Gus
" NO " said Zy
" But... But.... He is out there, he needs us " Gus was on the brink of crying
" I said no. That's an order." Said Zy
" But..... He will die. We must go back. Please, I'm begging you. " Gus was on his knees.
" STAND DOWN..!! " Shouted Zy " you are not going anywhere, none of you."
Then she sat down, looked round. Gus was crying, all the others were sitting quietly.
The woman sat there in silence as if nothing had happened. However, she was fuming with rage inside. She did not mourn her loss. She wasn't thinking about Jay. Her thoughts were all focused on him...
WAYNE