Belligerent (Vicara) (18 page)

A hover-car waited for him right where the nav system led him. A man in his twenties was casually leaning against vehicle. Ryan parked the hover-bike and slid the helmet off.

“Are you Ryan?” the man asked.

“Yeah.”

The man gave a short nod. “Good. I've been waiting for you.” He stepped forward and Ryan caught a glimpse of something that made him jump back. The familiar insignia of a disciplinary squad member was on the man's jacket.

“What's going on here?” Ryan asked, backing towards the hover-bike only to hear the bike start up and drive away - likely under Eloise's command.

“You're being taken to a training facility,” the man informed him, and the doors to the hover-car opened to reveal three more men. Ryan started running. “That's pointless!” One of the men hollered after him. Something that sounded like a gunshot echoed through the forest.

Ryan raced over tree trunks and leapt over rocks. He didn't know which way to turn, but he knew he couldn't stop running. A root tripped him sending him tumbling down a few feet before he scrambled back up. Disoriented from his fall, he panicked momentarily.

Turn right!

Turn right!
Clarisse shouted again through the comm. The comm? Hadn't he taken it out? There was no time to contemplate that. He ran to the right and to the edge of a cliff. He switched his comm to speak mode.

“There's a cliff! You want me dead too?” He wouldn't be surprised if she did.

Look down!

Ryan carefully peeked over the edge of the cliff and stared for several moments at Kenichi, who was effortlessly hanging from the cliff's edge. “Finally here?” Kenichi scaled his way up to where Ryan was standing. “Hurry and put this on,” he said handing Ryan a spare harness.

“What are you doing here?”

“Helping you get away from those guys. Now hurry up.”

“How did you know?”

Kenichi sighed. “There's really no time for this,” he said. “Can’t believe it takes this long for a campus leave to go through,” he muttered under his breath.

Ryan took the harness and stepped into it. “You knew I was planning to escape from the academy?” He adjusted the harness around himself then looked to Kenichi to see if he had managed the task correctly. Kenichi glanced over it and gave an approving nod.

“I think escaping those men is the priority at the moment.”

As if on cue, the disciplinary squad crashed through the trees, firing guns wildly at them. Kenichi hooked a line onto the harness then shoved Ryan over the cliff.

“Watch for the rocks!” Kenichi said.

Ryan plummeted and came to a wrenching halt when the line jerked tight. He waited for Kenichi to appear beside him and now knew at least one skill retrieval specialists were required to master – as if this situation was commonplace. Kenichi's descent was just as fast but far more graceful. Despite that, there was still a grimace on his face when Ryan turned to look at him.

“You okay?” Ryan asked, guessing it was only polite to ask the guy saving his life whether he was hurt or not.

Kenichi inhaled sharply. “Mackenzie's waiting at the bottom with our escape vehicle.”

“Isn't that my job?” Ryan asked.

A smirk appeared on Kenichi's face. “Is this what it takes for you to admit you're a part of our team?” he asked in disbelief. “It's about time. We need to start scaling down.”

The cliff's edge kept them covered from the gunfire as they made their way down to where Mackenzie waited for them. Kenichi paused for a moment during their descent, and Ryan froze wondering what was happening. The climber’s face was paler than usual and there were lines of discomfort around his eyes.

“What's wrong?” Ryan asked.

Kenichi shook his head, then hissed, “We need to keep going.”

“The gunfire's stopped,” Ryan said, cocking his ear upwards.

The retrieval specialist nodded. “They've gotten the alerts then.”

“Alerts?” Ryan asked.

“Yeah, the ones telling the disciplinary squad that Shifter doesn’t like it when people damage his property.”

“Why do you still seem worried then?”

“Because they’re not the only threat we need to worry about at the moment and because the disciplinary squad can still injure us if we continue to help you. They’ll just say there were no other options.”

“Got it,” Ryan said and he kept silent until their feet were on the ground. Kenichi unhooked them and led the way to the car, stumbling slightly.

Ryan shook his head. “Daylan, we're going to need you on standby.”

Details?

“You'll have to ask Kenichi.”

Kitten?

“I was grazed by one of the gunshots.”

And by grazed do you actually mean shot?
There was a pause.
Where's the bullet?

By then they had reached the hover-car, and Mackenzie, who had overheard the conversation along with everyone else. She had the vehicle started and ready to go.

“We'll be there soon enough for you to see for yourself,” Mackenzie said over the comms. “Don't worry. We’ll make it.”

Ryan and Kenichi climbed into the car where Mackenzie relinquished control of the driving to Ryan in order to move to the back with their wounded teammate, who sat gripping his arm to his side. The blood flowed from his shoulder, but the dark colors of his climbing gear made it impossible to see the extent of the injury. The best Mackenzie could do for the moment was to help brace the boy during any sharp turns or sudden stops.

“Where are the others?” Ryan asked.

“Eva, Daylan and Aria are all waiting at the front gate with weapons in case the disciplinary squad members actually try to follow us back. We might be in the clear, but your band has obviously been deactivated which means they could still take you in. Clarisse and Logan are in the villa. They were tracking you in the lab. Logan's waiting with a new band for you... If you want it, that is.”

“And if not?”

“There's also a hover-bike waiting for you at the academy's entrance. This one has no outside controls on it, and you can take it as far as you want. It's your choice. We decided that we don't want anyone on our team who doesn't want to be here.”

Ryan knew she meant her words. Suddenly, he realized he could trust Mackenzie. He could trust all of Shifter's team, just perhaps not Shifter. The others though, they were in the same situation that he was. All they wanted was a chance to change their lives and accomplish their dreams. The only family they had was each other.

And what waited for him if he kept running? Most disciplinary squads? A gunshot wound to match Kenichi’s? Worse? Resuming his life with Alex was probably a false hope – one he allowed his angst to cultivate ever since he was caught in Shifter’s trap.

After doing the math with a clear mind for the first time in months, he saw only one true direction.

Gritting his teeth, his decision was made. He sped the hover-car through the entrance gates and came to a stop where the other three were waiting.

“Get in!” he instructed. “They'll be here soon.”

“You're not leaving?” Mackenzie asked.

“I'm not going anywhere. Not right now anyway,” Ryan said.

He punched the button to open all the hover-car doors at once, allowing his teammates to quickly scramble inside. The other three piled into the vehicle and Ryan headed straight to the villa.

“Logan, the gate needs to be closed,” Mackenzie instructed. They waited for a reply. “Logan?” All that greeted them was an unusual static. “Clarisse?” Mackenzie tried next only to have the same thing happen.

“Something's happened. Step on it!” Eva instructed.

The hover-car couldn't make it up the steep incline to the villa, so they were forced to run up the tricky pass on foot. Daylan lingered behind to help Kenichi, who had insisted on joining them despite his injuries. Mackenzie had her wrist up ready to open the doors to the villa when they realized it wasn't necessary. The doors stood wide open.

Betrayal.

There was no time for a plan. They needed to reach their teammates, so they rushed inside. Ryan’s eyes widened when Mackenzie and Eva drew swords. Aria loosened her whip from her belt, the tail falling to the floor. Though Kenichi and Daylan were behind them, Ryan assumed they held weapons too.

Ryan’s heart thumped as he realized he had only his insufficient fists to defend himself.

What greeted them inside made them all freeze. The pool in the foyer was slowly turning pink. Katherine lay unconscious, her wounds feeding blood into the water. A few feet away lay Leon. His blood was splattered around him as well. One of his arms was twisted to an unnatural angle.

“Clarisse? Logan?” Mackenzie called out hesitantly.

Logan wandered in from the main room. His eyes were wide, and he was shaking a little. “They attacked again,” he mumbled.

“What happened here?” Aria asked keeping her voice calm so as to not startle him further.

“They decided to strike while we were weak.”

“Were they listening in on the comms?” Mackenzie asked.

Logan shook his head. “No, no, I fixed those when Clarisse told me that Ryan had let them get a look at his comm. I didn't count on them finding a way to block all the receptions in the villa at once. It was my fault.”

“It wasn't your fault.” Eva stepped closer to him. “Nobody can plan for everything,” she said, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Where's Clarisse?” Kenichi asked. “Is she okay?”

“The labs,” Logan said. “She would have gone to the labs.”

“I'll find her,” Aria said before dashing from them.

“We haven't established that the villa is safe yet,” Mackenzie said, but Aria was well out of hearing distance by then.

Daylan snorted. “You really think that would stop her?”

“It's safe now,” Logan whispered.

“How did you fight them all off?” Ryan asked.

“I only stopped Leon and Katherine. Clarisse handled the others.”

“How?”

“No idea. I know Stewart and Jon both ran away. I'm not sure about the other four.”

Ryan glanced up. “What are these labs you're talking about?”

“She used a sleeping gas on them,” Aria said as she returned to the foyer, carrying a bruised and unconscious Clarisse. “Looks like she couldn't get to a mask. She's completely knocked out.”

“She's okay though?” Kenichi asked before tripping over his own feet. Daylan managed to catch him before he fell.

“Yeah, she looks fine,” Aria said shifting the girl in her arms.

Mackenzie sighed. “We need to get this place cleaned up.” She looked around. “Mystique's team has overstayed their welcome.”

“I'll get them out of here,” Eva volunteered.

“I can help,” Ryan spoke up.

Mackenzie nodded to her combat specialist. “Make sure to take them-”

“Far enough from the villa for us to not be implicated?” Eva said.

“Yeah, that would be right. Logan, you injured?”

“Not really. Bruises and scratches. Nothing new.” Unlike the rest of the team, Logan could actually be trusted to give an honest answer when asked about his injuries.

“Think you could get the tech up and running? When you're finished, have Daylan give you a checkup. Just in case. I'm going to contact Shifter and see if there's a way for him to post an emergency exit pass for each of us before they try to take points away or something.”

“On it,” Logan said. “I'll need to get Ryan's band back on well. If he's staying, that is.”

They all looked at Ryan.

He nodded to them. “Looks like I can't help you just yet, Eva. I've got a band to put on before the disciplinary squad decides to make a house call.”

Eva smiled. “Not a problem.”

“Daylan, can you handle Kenichi and Clarisse on your own?”

“You doubt my abilities?” Daylan nodded to Aria. “Go ahead and put Clarisse in her bed. I'm going to hook her up to a vitals monitor just to make sure she's not having any reactions to the toxin. I'll wait to examine her until she's conscious - and after I've gotten this bullet out of Kenichi's shoulder.”

“I'll help you move the bodies then, Eva,” Mackenzie volunteered. She stared down at the blood coating the floor – it would leave a telling stain.

“I'll get rid of the blood once I've gotten her settled,” Aria called over her shoulder. “I've got plenty of chemicals that'll get it up with no problem.”

“Thank you,” Mackenzie said.

Before joining Logan, Ryan approached Kenichi with a shamed look on his face. “Listen,” he said, “I’m… I’m sorry I got you shot.”

Kenichi waved him off. “It happens.”

*

Everyone ran their tasks quickly and efficiently. Aria was back by Clarisse's side by the time the girl woke and was forcing her to guzzle cups of water to combat the dry mouth side effect of the gas. All evidence of any fighting in the villa had disappeared and Logan had gotten the security system back up and running.