“Sounds like a good plan,” Layla said.
Charlie would’ve credited the suggestion with smart strategic thinking, considering they didn’t know the state of the place. But Vingo had done everything for himself so far, so his decision was probably based on self-preservation.
Another lie or misdirection would lead to a swift end for the tredeyan. Charlie decided that Vingo had no more chances to burn. If they only found the information in the vault that would be traded with the Amalgam, and no filters, that would be the end of Vingo, and probably Denver, Layla and himself shortly after.
The vehicle slowed and drifted over the ridge. The central part of the city was two miles wide, designed in a grid system of single-story buildings on well-lit roads. A good sign that they still had electricity. Small clusters of lights from other buildings sprawled into the distance.
After seeing the city and the previous village with the nice house, Charlie eventually got a sense that a civilization lived on Tredeya. Before that, the dangerous caverns around the command center and the slavers’ cave seemed slightly out of step with the technology on display.
Halfway down the slope, Vingo directed the vehicle behind a copse of trees and they bumped to the ground. “We can access the underground system from the edge of the city.”
“You better hurry,” Layla said. “A flashing light’s just appeared on my visor display.”
“You still have half a unit. We have enough time.”
“No more bullshit from you,” Denver said, in tune with Charlie’s previous thoughts. “I’m gonna be right behind you every step of the way. Take us to the filters first.”
Both rods retreated into the dashboard. The hologram reduced to a single red spot and vanished. Vingo gargled and felt his leg when he stood. Charlie struggled to feel any sympathy as the tredeyan trudged toward the edge of the city, moaning through the intercom.
Along one of the distant streets, croatoan soldiers walked along either side of a vehicle the size of a harvester, with a swiveling turret on the top. Several of the buildings along their route were reduced to rubble.
Thanks to Vingo’s bargaining with another species, bumping into that procession would mean serious trouble. Charlie found it slightly ironic that they’d probably be left alone, mistaken for human soldiers in an alien force, if they appeared without the tredeyan. They still needed him, though.
The group descended toward the edge of the city. Vingo paused behind the first building they reached.
A beam of light punched through the air and shone on different parts of the hill. The sound of a croatoan engine grew louder.
Denver crouched alongside Vingo. “Are they looking for you?”
“I don’t know their instructions.”
“Cut the crap,” Layla said. “If they see you, what will happen?”
“They’ll kill me.”
Charlie groaned. “Where’s the entrance?”
“We need to wait for them to pass,” Vingo said. “It’s on the same road.”
The beam of light continued to dance around the hill. It focused on the copse of trees where they parked.
A red bolt zipped overhead and slammed into their vehicle. A hundred meters to their left, croatoan soldiers ran from the edge of the city toward the burning wreckage. The harvester’s engine groaned and cut.
“You need to find a route, Vingo,” Charlie said and glanced at the croatoans darting through the grass toward the copse. “I know when that lot mean business.”
“Follow me,” Vingo said.
A light on Charlie’s visor display winked. He didn’t need to broadcast the fact. Layla was a couple of minutes ahead in terms of the end point.
Vingo palmed a black panel outside a small, square cream building. The door clunked and smoothly slid to one side.
“If this isn’t the entrance, where does it go?” Denver asked.
“We can reach the vault through our natural waste system,” Vingo said. “Be careful of anything that moves.”
“What kind of extra risk are we talking about?” Layla said.
“Not significant.”
From what they had already faced, Charlie imagined it couldn’t get much worse. The bigger risk would be staying outside, being killed by the croatoans hunting Vingo or suffocating to death. Whatever was down there surely couldn’t be as bad.
Chapter 34
MIKE SAT at his tool-scarred workshop bench and rolled the small black prism in his fingers. He readjusted his LED headlamp and the beam reflected off its smooth sides. This reminded him of when Pippa first brought the strange blue bead to their office thirty years ago. Nobody guessed what it was or could’ve predicted what was about to happen. He wondered if the prism would have any similar significance.
Mai brought three steaming mugs of herbal tea over, pushed one across to Maria and sat next to Mike. “What do you think it is?”
Mike shrugged. “I don’t know, but it vibrated twice in the last ten minutes.”
“It can’t be anything good, coming from Augustus,” Maria said.
“How’s your elbow?” Mai said and gently caressed his sling. “Don’t push yourself and do some permanent damage.”
“We’re all permanently damaged.” Mike groaned and took a sip of his sweet fragrant tea. “Sorry. I’m not great company today.”
She wrapped her arm around his shoulder and gave him a comforting smile. “You’re alive. That’s all that matters. And you saved Unity.”
“What’s left of it. You’re still alive, and that’s the most important thing to me.”
Gib’s leather waistcoat hung on a spare stool to Mike’s left. He would miss the little genius and vowed to never forget that he saved his life. The place felt less alive without his presence. Gib was always curious about human technology and attempted to integrate as much as possible, helping to create tech to bring about peace.
Every time Mike made a new friend since leaving the basement in New York, they were taken away. Gib, Ryan, and Aimee joined the list of his old friends who were missing in action on an alien planet.
Mike leaned over and switched on the radio scanner, paranoid that another attack might come and finish Unity off. He wouldn’t put it past Augustus to have a backup plan, even though the old emperor was confirmed dead.
The remaining population were convinced that the threat was over and had started clearing away the charred remains of two-thirds of the town. It was a miracle that some of the buildings survived considering the raging inferno that took hold during the attack.
The prism buzzed in his fingers, stronger than the previous vibrations. Mike dropped it on the bench and stared down as it inched across the surface. Mai hunched forward and squinted down. Maria rocked back on her stool, clearly not as curious.
“It’s doing something, Mike. Where’s the power coming from?” Mai said.
A small purple beam shot out of the top and spread into a cone, casting a glow against both of their faces. A holographic keyboard appeared on the bench in front of the prism.
“What the hell?” Mike said.
Mai jerked back and knocked her cup off the bench. It smashed to pieces across the floor. Both of them ignored it and stared open-mouthed as the shape of a three-dimensional elongated head with a human face appeared inside the cone. Its dark eyes focused on them.
“I am Drone 21. Please provide a status update on Agent 3982, Flavius Julius Valens Augustus.”
Mike attempted to speak but only managed a grunt. He cleaned the lenses of his glasses on his cuff and put them on. Mai’s bottom lip quivered and she clasped her hands together.