2041 Sanctuary (Dark Descent) (64 page)

‘Yes, in less than twelve months now, I get to go.’

Having had to stay quiet while they journeyed back through the tower complex, Jessica was full of questions when they returned to the buggy; questions that Franz, frustratingly, didn’t seem to be able to answer. As they exited the base by a different route, thankfully without hindrance, Jessica pressed him further for information.

‘But you must know why it was built,’ she said, as they bounced along over rough terrain in the transparent vehicle.

Franz scratched his chin. ‘Well, for protection against the fallout from AG5, for sure.’

‘The GMRC told us that AG5 wasn’t that great a threat,’ Jessica said.

‘And it wasn’t,’ Franz replied, ‘we’re still here aren’t we?’

Jessica thought for a moment. ‘True, unless the fallout is going to be worse than predicted, or worse than we were led to believe? I think that must be it. That’s why they’re siphoning off all the water and food. This is where it’s going, to this base.’ She paused. ‘But no, even a place as large as that couldn’t take all the world’s resources, there’s no way—’

‘This isn’t the only base,’ Franz said. ‘As I told you before, you’re supposed to be from another facility, and by that I mean another EUSB.’

Jessica was dumbfounded. ‘How many of those things are there?’

‘That I know of? At least six in Europe. I guess the Americans and Chinese have similar projects underway.’

‘Then that must be it. AG5 has caused more problems than they expected and these bases are to provide shelter for those lucky enough to be inside, leaving everyone else to fend for themselves on the surface as civilisation collapses in on itself.’

Franz didn’t respond to her theories. Jessica continued to deliberate as they dropped off the buggy and made their way back to the tent, once more plunged into darkness with only torches to guide their way. Another hard slog through the freezing conditions ensued, until at last they reached the welcome shelter of the tent. Back in relative warmth, Jessica realised while she may have found out the disturbing truth hidden by the GMRC, she had failed to document it as Bic had required. She said as much to Franz who allayed her fears.

‘That’s been taken care of,’ he said, ‘I’ve already recorded footage over a number of months and have passed this to
Da Muss Ich
. He needed you to see it for yourself, to give credence to your findings.’

‘How long have you known Bic –
Da Muss Ich
?’ she asked, as she changed back into her other clothing.

‘Many years now.’ He turned his back so as to afford her some privacy. ‘He came to me when I had reached my lowest ebb, my darkest hour. He gained my confidence and over time I came to trust him like a brother. We worked together so I could infiltrate this facility and that was ten years ago now. He has great foresight and a sense of purpose I have rarely seen.’

‘Have you ever met him? In person, I mean?’

‘No – not once in all that time. He says it would be too dangerous for both of us to know his real identity.’

Jessica could understand that; such a disclosure would also destroy the anonymity he had worked hard for so long to maintain. Pondering on what she’d learnt, she devoured some food and water left by the soldiers during one of their security sweeps, which left her feeling sufficiently refreshed to start the final leg back to the road with Franz, once again, acting as her escort.

Reaching the stony, dirt track, Jessica was pleased to see the same military vehicle that had dropped her off was standing waiting, ensuring she didn’t have to wait around in the arctic conditions. Thanking Franz for his help and giving him a brief hug in parting, Jessica climbed into the front of the truck at the driver’s instigation.

The journey back through the forest was considerably more pleasant than the previous trip as she now enjoyed the luxury of a heated compartment. She even managed to drift off to sleep, before being nudged awake by the soldier next to her.

‘They are ready for you,’ he said.

Jessica looked with weary eyes to see a group of people in the road ahead, the light from the truck highlighting them against the white van behind.

Thanking the driver, she got out and, with apprehension, walked to meet the three Middle Eastern terrorists Franz had told her belonged to the People’s Arabian Militia.

The leader, whom she’d had the unpleasant privilege of meeting before, opened the rear of the vehicle and she got in without a word. The door closed behind her, the noise of the bolt sliding into place and catches clipping down announcing she’d been sealed inside.

‘Eric?’ She searched the rear of the truck, but he wasn’t in there. Worrying about his safety, she settled down as the truck moved off over the uneven terrain.

♦

The journey back to the terrorists’ headquarters lasted about an hour, then the truck stopped and Jessica was led back into the monastery she’d grown all too accustomed to during her time in confinement. Corralled into a back room on the first floor, she felt overjoyed to see Eric.

‘Jessica, am I glad to see you.’ He gave her a warm embrace. ‘I wondered if I’d see you again.’

‘Tell me about it. How’s the memory?’ she asked.

‘Better, but I’m not sure why they drugged me in the first place, to be honest. If I wasn’t going with you to wherever you went, they might as well have left me here.’

Jessica took a seat at a rickety wooden table. ‘I guess they didn’t want to leave you on your own, or they didn’t realise only one of us could go.’

Eric shrugged, his face noncommittal. ‘So where
did
you go?’ he asked, intrigued. ‘When those goons brought me back, they finally let slip that
Da Muss Ich
had arranged a meeting for you. Turns out he didn’t betray us after all, hey?’

‘Looks that way. I don’t go much on his choice of partners, though. The guy I met told me they’re connected to a Middle Eastern terrorist cell.’

‘That explains a lot.’ He sat down opposite her.

‘As to where I went, you won’t believe it.’

Eric looked at her expectantly, but before she could regale him with tales of the amazing things she’d seen, they heard people coming up the stairs.

A group of men stormed into the room, at their head the terrorist leader.

‘
Sewf tesjeyl alefyedyew balensebh lena alan
!’ He waved a small video camera in her face.

Jessica didn’t understand.

‘You record video for us now,’ another man translated, Jessica recognising him as the cigar smoker from her trip.

‘Video?’ She looked from him to the irate leader and back again.

The leader shoved the camera into the hands of another of his cohorts then grabbed Eric’s arm, pulled him out of the chair and pushed the designated cameraman down in his place, gesturing at him expansively while spouting a stream of instructions to him in Arabic.

The man with the camera pointed it in Jessica’s direction and then a little red light appeared on one side of it, indicating he’d started it working. The leader then thrust a sheet of paper under Jessica’s nose and pointed at it, demanding something from her in his unfathomable language.

‘You want me to read this?’ She ran her eyes over the paper.

‘Yes, read to camera,’ the translator said.

Having read through it, she pushed it away. ‘I’m not reading that.’

‘
Ma
?’ the leader asked his translator.

The cigar smoker relayed what she’d said, which didn’t seem to go down well.

‘
Teqra alan
!!’ Wild eyed, he pushed the paper back towards her.

‘No.’ Jessica shoved the paper away again and looked at the cigar smoker. ‘I’m not reading out a list of his demands, nor will I condemn my country’s actions on his say so. Besides, I’m a disgraced newsreader; no one will want to listen to what I’ve got to say.’

The leader received the translation and became, if anything, even more incensed.

‘You do what you promised. We kept our side of the bargain,’ the English speaking terrorist relayed to her. ‘That was the deal—’

His leader rattled off another barrage of angry words, pointing at Eric, and the man continued the translation. ‘And
Da Muss Ich
tells us people
will
listen to you. You read or we kill your friend.’

‘What?!’ Jessica and Eric said in unison.

‘I agreed no such thing!’ Jessica half stood in protest and was immediately forced back down by a man behind her. ‘Tell him, I didn’t agree to this; tell him!’

The man told his boss what she’d said, but he threw a hand in the air dismissively before rattling off his retort.

‘You didn’t agree, but
Da Muss Ich
did; he said you would read. That is why we agreed to help you. You read, or your friend dies.’

Jessica looked to Eric in despair as the leader held out a hand and was given a pistol by one of his men. ‘Wait,’ she said, ‘let me speak to Bic,
Da Muss Ich
, let me speak to him.’

The terrorists had a heated discussion and then one of the men left the room. He returned shortly after with Eric’s touchscreen device, which she had used to speak with Bic during their escape from Berlin. The man placed it on the desk in front of her. She looked at it, before typing in a question:

Bic, you promised I would read out their statement?

YES _
  came the immediate response.

I can’t read it out.

Pass the device to their leader _

Jessica handed the screen to the leader, who snatched it from her grasp. Jessica looked at Eric, who was justifiably worried. Not much time passed before the terrorist threw the touchscreen back onto the table, pointed his gun at Eric and fired.

‘No!’ Jessica screamed.

Eric slumped to the floor, blood smeared on the wall above him.

‘Read,’ the leader said to her in English, cocking the hammer as he did so.

She hesitated and the gun fired again.

Chapter Forty Two

Jessica looked in shock at the smoke rising from the end of the terrorist’s handgun. She looked down at her chest. No blood spot appeared and she felt no pain – anywhere. He’d missed on purpose. A warning shot. Before anything else happened, the touchscreen bleeped and Jessica instinctively picked it up to see what Bic had said. It was in Arabic, but as she watched another message appeared in English, a single word.

DUCK _

Duck?
she thought, her mind in turmoil. A bright light and a deep hum from outside the first floor window caught everyone’s attention. More guns were drawn and Jessica threw herself to the floor. The windows shattered and thunderous gunfire tore into the room. Jessica covered her head with her arms as the onslaught continued, glass and shell casings raining down around her. And almost as soon as it had begun the noise ceased, only the light and hum remained, and the occasional tinkle of glass dropping to the floor.

Jessica raised her head to see that all the terrorists were dead and the room riddled with holes. Getting up, she couldn’t help but notice a large black drone hovering at the window, on its front a stark white GMRC logo. Unthinking, she rushed to Eric’s side. Putting two fingers to his neck she was relieved to feel a strong, steady pulse.

He opened his eyes. ‘Jessica?’

‘Yes, I’m here.’ She checked for the wound and saw blood on his right thigh. Probing with her fingers she located the hole and tore open his trouser leg to reveal the damage. ‘It doesn’t look too bad.’ Her experience as a roving war reporter in her younger days stood her in good stead to make such judgement calls. Moving his leg, making him groan in pain, she confirmed her first thought. ‘It’s a through and through,’ she said, more to herself than him.

Moving away, she took a belt from one of the terrorists’ bodies. Returning to Eric, she wrapped it tight, extracting an agonised cry from her young patient. With difficulty, due to her small stature and his height, she helped Eric over to the table and the one remaining intact chair. The drone that had come to their rescue still hovered outside the room, lights ablaze. A beep from the touchscreen, which had somehow survived the brief firefight, made Jessica turn it over.

Jessica Klein, bring Eric to the drone. You don’t have much time _

Much time for what?

The GMRC will be with you shortly _

How did they know we were here!? Why did they help us?

She was fearful of getting assistance from anything branded with a GMRC logo.

They aren’t helping you. I am. I hijacked their drone. They know you are there as I told them _

What?! Why?

Because I didn’t know if I could save you. The terrorists are unpredictable and I needed to ensure yours and Eric’s survival. Redundancy. Now hurry, get onto the drone _

Pocketing the screen, she helped Eric get back up and over to the window. The hovering black drone moved closer to the building, the backdraft from its enclosed twin rotors whisking up her hair in the process. Trying not to look down, she stepped onto the window ledge, Eric managing to get up alongside.

‘I’m not sure I can do this!’ Jessica said to Eric over the noise.

In no fit state to contribute, Eric gave her a weak smile of support.

As she looked out of the first floor window, the sound of approaching vehicles drew her eyes to the left and then to the right. Two convoys converged on the building, and in the distance a helicopter approached. The GMRC had arrived. Grabbing Eric firmly around the waist, she braced herself.

‘On three,’ she said.

Eric nodded.

‘One, two – three!’

They leapt out into the air and dropped down onto the drone, which fell a few feet as it compensated for the extra weight. Gripping onto the central body of the machine for dear life, her other arm holding Eric in a death grip, Jessica repositioned them both into a more secure position. With their enemy closing in, the drone’s blades angled them away from the monastery and propelled them, with gathering speed, out over the surrounding rooftops and off into the night.