The cage of metal rattled and shook as the Ice-Crawler sped through the land. It was crowded and the air was thick to breathe in the dark belly of the metallic beast. The padding to the cold outside was so thick of fabric that the air was almost polluted of dusty particles. Mister Bravo leaned at the wall and stood there for a few hours, his wrist tied to a noose hanging on the wall so he wouldn’t fall over.
Everyone had a hazy headache. And not a single word was uttered through the entire ride. The rumbling engine and the noise of the treadmills working was all that could be heard. Commander Ryder sat in piece, surrounded by all these soldiers. She was thinking, on the edge of meditating. It was as if the thick air made it hard to exist in this rattling cage. Her eyes traveled around the Ice-Crawler and the folks that was surrounding her. People who had lost everything. But never lost hope. Never lost their hopes in her.
Her eyes stopped at Jamie Lund. Who had executed a great assault on two of Avalon’s most dangerous men. Without hesitation, without remorse. Commander Ryder usually had words. Description for each of her men. But not for Jamie. There was something disturbing about this heartless young girl. But also something of great value.
The driver of the Ice-Breaker turned on night vision on one of his monitors. So the dark outside was calling. The dark of the night. Ryder kept thinking how the cell must look like. How the base they escaped from must by devoured by cold now. Cold and darkness. Maybe a few Avalon tried to rescue the base, putting their lives at risk. And maybe that man in the cell. The survivor they had to leave. A twisted vision came into her mind, but Ryder dismissed it straight away. The old man had sealed his fate and was gone. It was best for her to leave it alone.
The ruins of bricks, wood and steel stood out like trees in a forest. But this had once, a long time ago, been the location of a small community. This was far before the land was consumed by Frozen Rain. Now it was a relic of the past. Of how nature had taken over the land forever. Upon seen this, it is nearly impossible to know that the nearby states was untouched by this phenomenon. Some inhabitants call it their rescue against Avalon. Some call it the frozen death of man.
In the core of this cemetery lied a huge construct. A packed wall like a globe of hardened steel. A magnificent giant telescope aimed at the sky above.
Three days had past on since the giant Ice-Crawler arrived at the base. It stood inside a dusty workshop and was worked by mechanics all day and night in shifts. A catwalk stretched over the room and a patrol of armed SnowSnakes stood guard by the glassed windows, eyes focused on the horizon. Some of the civilians and prisoners from the ambush was already back on the job in the shop. Helping out best they could.
Commander Ryder looked outside her window in her temporary office. It was spared of details, just with boring, dull concrete walls. Not so different from the cell where she was near death. Ryder was not at her peak performance. But she had to work around the clock to steer this war in the favor of SnowSnakes. In favor of the innocent.
Mister Bravo stepped in and bowed for her, head held low.
“Commander. I need your attention”, he demanded in a tone of dark serious blackness.
She could tell this was not a social call. This was real.
“Mister Bravo”, she said with a low voice.
“We shipped in a team to examine the base where you were captive. Rainhaim is dead. That has been confirmed.”
She held her breath. Knowing that Mister Bravo hold something in his voice. Deep in his throat as if he is shamed to say it. He tries to stagger it out.
“Bronceheart. We don’t know how it is possible. Maybe someone moved his corpse. But he is not there.”
The silence of the room took over. The walls isolated everything, including the air. A small pin of nothingness came to Ryders mind. A nothingness that she did not like. That only came when real danger was around the corner.
“Commander”, he tried gently. “Maybe someone moved his body?”
“And left Rainhaim?”
She turned to see Mister Bravo in his eyes. He knew. He knew that his words were empty lies. Why would they leave the corpse of their top executioner and only take their commander with them? Both individuals were far to priceless.
“The cold would kill him”, he tried, but stopped himself. She shook his head, knowing he had to act fast. Think from a logical sense. Taking chances was not going to help.
“There is just one thing to do, Mister Bravo. We rig the place with explosives and move. We take Wild Flower Cemetery.”
Mister Bravo shook his head again and shut his eyes. He hated that place. Hated it and every nightmare it gave him. But choices had to be made. Fast if they were going to get out alive. But Mister Bravo knew how the work was going to be done.
“If that is the case we take the planned route. Seven convoys.”
Ryder grabbed a microphone on her desk and started to chatter in it. An announcement that echoed through the base.
“Evacuation within 65 minutes. Seven convoys. Destination will show in each vehicle.”
It took 47 minutes until the Ice-Crawlers ran out from the warmth to the white winter. Twenty big vehicles spitting out in seven directions. Packed with personnel or equipment. Leaving their base alone for the winter to take. Or for detonation in case Avalon would try to plunder and raid.
The convoy on the mid-east of the Ice-Crawler was consisting of two older models up front. Followed by a freshly made Ice-Crawler and two rusty ones. These were headed to Wild Flowers Cemetery.
The new model was amplified with a defense-system that could track any surrounding enemy a mile away. It was the safest of the bunch and Commander Ryder sat here along with Mister Bravo and Gyro.
From the screen at the drivers seat, the three of them could see the other convoys vanishing into the white horizon.
“Good luck”, Mister Bravo whispered as he clutched his hands around a strange hammer hanging in a chain around his neck.
“I didn’t knew you were a Nordinian?”, Gyro said out loud.
Mister Bravo raised his eyes to the sky and hummed a small hymn. Similar to those who used to believe in Asgardian fate.
“Do what you must, Mister Bravo. I may not share your faith. But I share your respect.”
Mister Bravo looked at Gyro and nodded with a faint smile.
“After your showdown in that hellish prison, I too share your respect. A true brother.”
They both looked at Commander Ryder, who just sat and looked at the screen of white at the drivers seat. The convoy headed to Wild Flowers Cemetery was alone now.
About one hour later they saw it in the horizon. Shadows of buildings like tall towers reaching to the sky. And a beacon standing nearby, emitting a bluish light to the sky. But it was the only light the could see in the town of shadows. For the cemetery used to sprawl of kids playing, markets in the open and happiness. But those days are long gone. To never return again. The Avalon made sure of that, sealing the fate of those poor civilians.
The beacon that emitted the light was an Otrillian Sonar. It kept the temperature in the surrounding area by emitting a controllable pulse. If the sonars would fail, Tundra would become a living waterfall, drowning every citizen. Or create hollow grounds that would swallow one up. Tundra did not like the cold ice and snow. But it was the life they had to live and Otrillian Sonars made sure to sustain that life in better conditions. So far, those beacons was of no interest to Avalon. But for how long?
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
The Ice-Crawlers passed by steel and rust. Buildings left to an empty bone and marrow of what once was. No personal affections left. Apart from the glasshouse.
Gyro leaned forward to see it better, leaning over the drivers head. He had never seen it in his own eyes before.
A round building as big as large parking garage. With massive green plants inside, protected by the cold by thick glass. A plant hidden in the dead of winter.
Gyro looked at Mister Bravo and Ryder and was happy as a child. He could not hide it. The most wonderful view he had ever seen in a long time.
In that moment they forgot what had happened. And was reminded of how interesting and curious the smaller things could be in the darker times of life.
The first car up ahead hit something with the treadmills. A small clinking noise was emitted and the innocence of that sound turned into a flaming hell. A forceful push lifted the vehicle up in the air, smoke and fire been spat out from the mine that the Ice-Crawler just hit.
An ear deafening smash as the car flipped over, crashing into the bone of a building nearby.
A large sound was heard like a big arrow flew through the sky. But it was no arrow. It was a projectile coming straight for the second Ice-Crawler, turning it to fire and dust. The Ice-Crawler started to return fire by bursting out heavy ammo from a mounted cannon.
But it could not take the sides of the vehicle. And a heavily armed, smaller truck, with treadmills instead of wheels, PLOWED into the side of the new Ice-Crawler, pushing it out of the line from the convoy.
The rusty Ice-Crawler behind saw this in time and fired JUST as the truck got in it’s line of fire, SHREDDING it into hollow nothing.
The vehicle with the three heroes opened it’s door and they all ran out. The driver started shooting at the incoming assault of Avalons, who appeared almost out of nowhere.
But the resistance nailed him with tons of bullets. By this time, Mister Bravo had pulled Ryder and Gyro to cover behind a pillar of one of the derelict houses.
“It has gone to hell. It has gone to HELL!”, Mister Bravo yelled as tears ran down his eyes.
Then he looked at Gyro. Pale in his face and with blood over his arm. The fellow had been shot from the run away from the assault.
“Mister Bravo. If Bronceheart is here….WE gotta kill that FUCKER!”, Gyro said with n unconvincing trial to remain his cool and heavy.
“Gyro, no need to be a bad ass now.”
“I never was a bad ass, Mister Bravo. I was your partner. Not for long, but….you get me?”
“Think I do”, Mister Bravo responded with a nod of respect.
Among the Avalon soldiers stood someone. A young figure armed with two swords. Wearing nothing but a sleeveless vest with golden medallions on his chest. The cold did not get to this man as he slowly walked through the snow. He was not wearing any shoes. Barefoot and just in jeans. Untouched by the cold.
He observed as the shooting and mayhem appeared in front of him. Looked on while two of his men pulled down the door to one of the Ice-Crawlers and pulled out the driver, tossing him to the snow.
Bronceheart walked up to the driver and put the sword gently on the mans chin.
“Where are they? We know they are in this convoy”, he demanded in a harsh voice.
The driver looked into the eyes of Bronceheart and saw how inhuman they were. For a moment he wondered if this man in front of him was a mutant. Or maybe he had developed Iceotophia. Immunity against cold, but rendering a decease against heat. But then he saw it in the edge of the eye. A small spark. Indicating a bad reparation on a cyborg or robot.
“Robot. You are a robot!” he yelled as loud as he could. So loud that if anyone of the SnowSnakes could hear, they would.
“Not robot. Not that simple, little one. I am HAMMER!”, Bronceheart yelled out even louder.
With a simple move with the sword, he chopped of the head of the driver, without even twitching.
“You hear that, Commander Ryder?”, Bronceheart smirked.
Ryder heard what the man had said. She heard everything and sat there, in fear. In silence, thinking. Plotting. Commander Ryder and her merry men was down. There was nothing they could do to asses the situation. Their enemy was not human, it was machine. Cold could not kill him and neither could the fire in the generator room.
Ryder turned to Mister Bravo. He sat in silence, looking back and fourth between Gyro and Ryder. And Gyro, the young guy. The young newbie. He was at his last, final breath.
Mister Bravo tried to calm him down, but it was in vain.
Gyro looked at Mister Bravo and back at the snow on the ground.
“I hate this place. The snow, the winter. Fucking hate it, man.”
Gyro stopped moving. He was gone forever.
The Avalon soldiers was facing the ruins of the old city. They knew their adversaries was still there. And the daylight started to fade, slowly.
Bronceheart heard the rumbling first. The sound of thundering machines running their way. He slowly turned to see at the horizon, how Ice-Crawlers came driving at them with great speed.
Calculating them to be around fifteen. And they all opened fire with their canons.
Bronceheart took a dive behind the wreck of a dead Ice-Crawler. Hearing the heavy thumps of the enemy canons. The white, clean snow on the ground started to get stained. Tainted with red liquid.
Some of his soldiers tried to hurry to cover, but was shredded fast. Split into nothingness.
The massacre only took a few seconds before the fire seized. And all that was heard was the howling wind and the treadmills working themselves closer to the ambushed site.
Bronceheart tried to calculate his error. A touch of arrogance must had taking over his objective. To assassinate the leader of the pack. Bronceheart picked up his double swords and got into the ruins of an old house, taking cover behind walls as he strutted along. Trying to find Ryder and end his job.
He didn’t feel the pain when he fell face-down on the snow. But he turned over and saw the leg, hanging loose. Blue blood poured out of the wound.
“Dammit”, he muttered then he saw the arrow pointing out from the leg. Was it her again?
He looked up and saw her. The girl who shoot him before in the prison.
“You again? Like from a recurring nightmare”, he whispered.
She looked at the wounded leg. The blue blood.
“So, you are one of those fucking robots”, she said loud and unimpressed.
“Not one of them. I am Hammer”, he said.
She aimed again at the head of Bronceheart. Her eyes told him that she really, really didn’t care.
The arrow pierced through his forehead and left his body trembling on the floor of ice.
Commander Ryder sat with her back against the cold wall of steel during the entire firefight from the Ice-Crawlers. She was too tired to move and too cold to care of the battle and gunfire. But Mister Bravo had a curious energy in his bones and marrow. He had moved to cover to look out at the war, his entire posture was tense like a nervous dog.
Ryder heard the gunfire stop. But the treadmills kept going forward in the distance.
Mister Bravo leaned back to the wall again, next to the corpse of Gyro. He laughed, with beads of tears rolling down his skin. His forehead of steel glistened in the light snow. It was wet of sweat and ice. She had never seen any SnowSnake so happy in her entire life. A second chance of life.
“Thank you, mighty Ice Giants, thank you!” he praised to the sky. “The thunder you chose for rescue. Oh, what a show!”
In the distance of the ruins, Ryder saw the shadow move. The shadow of Bronceheart was getting closer to them. But did not seem to see them both in their hiding in plain sight. He would any minute now, though. Ryder grabbed the laser gun from Bravos hand and aimed at the shadow up ahead.
Then she saw the shade behind Bronceheart. He didn’t see the shadow of the young girl before she shot him in the leg.
He flopped over to the ground like a fish and she talked some. After a short while she shot him again.
That girl. The bravery of her. Ryder got a sudden surge of energy back into her body and soul. A warmth of not been alone.
Ryder aimed the pistol at the ceiling and blasted of a beam of light. Enough to get the girls attention.
The girl stepped up to the three of them. Well, they were only two now. And for the second time in a very long while, tears of joy rolled down Ryders cheeks. Jamie Lund, standing before her with a hardness in her eyes. The young girl who saved them all.