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Sam despondently sat in her corner in the back of the van that had picked her up, seated next to several men she had never met but cared not one ounce who they were. Eyes puffy and red with tear trails and smears across the dust still stuck to her face, she stared emptily through the floor, slouched with her arms propped over her legs.
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“Thank you for sharing that, Samantha,” a calm, yet seemingly impatient male voice spoke up. “Please, tell me, do you think you will ever become that so-called Harbinger?”
“Hmph,” she chuckled under her breath, masking the pain. “No, not yet. Not until I've lost everything.”
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“Negative, we are on detour,” the driver spoke through his radio in her seemingly Slavic accent. “Orders by Rex. We will continue to rally point after a requested stop.”
Sam paid little heed, still trying to reconcile having lost two close friends, not having been able to see Sebastian after being picked up, and even worse, still no idea what happened to her mother despite expecting the worst as things were.
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Danielle lowered her gaze in disappointment. Is that so? “Are you ready to lose everything?”
Sam was so blinded by her emotions she had failed to notice the sudden somberness of the words uttered. “What do you mean, lose everything?”
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So… Is this what they meant…
It almost felt like it took a conscious effort to keep breathing with how empty, exhausted, and helpless she felt. But with each passing second, those memories continued to repeat as if to further torment her on top of her losses. It was only as the agonizing minutes trudged by that the constant speaking back and forth between those near her had finally begun to unearth memories she had forgotten she had; Recollections of exchanges between Sebastian, Renzo, Dani, and her alongside others spoke of the foreigners they found back in Bogota, those who had been captured or killed after cleaning up the sites of pillaged compounds across Kennedy. Various European names had popped up after research, and now the accents sounded all too familiar. These were Rex’s men, the same now as it was back then. Only the targets changed this time, and now she quickly began to wonder where they were headed during this detour she overheard. And soon after, the sense of self-preservation set back in.
Turning her head, she saw they had just snaked through an intersection littered with chunks of concrete and shattered glass scattered about, noting the nearby buildings also with similar damage. Her experiences up until today had only showed her such frightening scenes at the street’s level. Fear-instilling reminders of what had transpired to such an extent reminded her of one place in particular:
The Delmont Building. We have to be nearby.
Her mother then immediately took back over her entire conscious as anxiety from countless directions pressed on. And looking back towards the direction they faced, there it was, and it was a gut-wrenching sight to behold. She remembered leaving it only with what damage it took from the Tiger’s attack, but it only took a second to realize and take in what terrible firepower she cast down upon it earlier after initiating the one-one-nine.
“What a nasty wreck,” the driver mumbled aloud as they pulled nearer. “Six-group, we’re arriving at the back entrance now.”
Mom, please tell me they got to you in time…
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* ● ● Comandante Espora Airport, Bahia Blanca, Argentina, SAU
Marian sat staring down a long stretch of dead-stopped traffic lined up along the exit to the unexpectedly clogged-up airport, hands impatiently tapping the steering wheel of the sedan she drove.
Her mobile had been routed through one of her portable encryption devices she had taken out of her carry-on suitcase, and the call she was awaiting finally connected.
“Marian,” a heavy, tired, defeated voice came from Isaiah’s end, concerning but at the same time much relieving. “ETA.”
“Hours, but good to see you’ve managed up safe hiding. The mess your boys caused naturally imploded the whole fucking air traffic network. I got rerouted to Espora, and I’m still trying to get out now.”
“You never told me what held you up last night. You said you’d be here before nightfall,” Isaiah continued.
Despite knowing she had to own up to her unfulfilled promise, Marian could still pick up on the same desperation that had been building up since the last time they spoke, but something weighed even heavier this time. Something far more painful began to show itself with each word spoken, and she was sure it was something brewing since that call she received after the event involving his mother. “I’m sorry, I really am. Nothing has been easy getting to you without being detected.”
“I will send you my location,” he curtly continued. “I’ll remain here until then. I can’t lose more than what I have… can’t afford any more mistakes.”
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“I understand. And SAU must be well on their way- it’s been past two hours and fifty minutes according to that poor sap’s plans,” she spoke in reference to Adrian, having heard the news on him from her inner circle.
“Marian…”
She brought her nervously drumming hands to a standstill upon his change in voice. “Are you really alright?”
“I feel like such a failure,” he mumbled frustratingly. “Rex is winning at this rate, and now… my sister is about to have her sights locked harder on me than ever.”
Marian immediately knew he was referencing her mother. She knew it was a matter of time before she found her son, but she didn’t how much to assume had transpired.
Isaiah continued: “I showed my face to the world, and now I can’t stop the delivery of Hexa’s weapons back into the hands of Rodgers, alongside Samantha as well.”
“But you’ll have yours,” Marian quickly interjected. “We all still have your back. Everyone does, and you’ll have your chance to make your stand.”
“I know that, but it’s who will remain to forgive me for what I did.”
“You did nothing wrong,” Marian attempted to keep things positive, knowing well he was no murderer. “And you’re not a failure, either. You are one step away from everything we aimed for.”
“Marian… I was right there…”
The long pause hinted enough to her how much pain he must have gone through and what he must have witnessed. And it was just that which urged her to break her silence on what she had learned from Alexander the other night. “You know… I…-”
“-And it wasn’t Rex who sent my mother, either,” he interrupted with such an unexpected claim. “Rex took her life. She found me herself and he took her from me…”
“Isaiah,” Marian so badly wanted to console him the second she realized the worst in fact transpired, much less how apparent it was it all happened in front of him.
“It still doesn’t matter what can or can’t be proven. When Samantha sees what she’s about to see, it might already be over… and Rex will have won after all.”
“Rex is in Space,” Marian blurted out unintentionally by reflex in response to the dire need for something to keep Isaiah going. “Isaiah, do you hear me? He’s confirmed in Space.” And after the tense silence that ensued, she couldn’t help but finish spilling what she learned. “Your father’s contact helped me connect more dots. I only need one or two more connections and we find the bastard. Just you wait, and you keep doing your thing. I’ll be there as soon as humanly possible, because the rest of what I need to get done can be done from anywhere.”
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* ● ● North Palermo District, Buenos Aires, Argentina, SAU
The fighting had been over, and the chaos settled as quickly as the dust, allowing crowds of those too curious to stay back out of caution to cluster around the blocked-off Delmont Building. Firefighters barricaded off one level of access for the continued effort against the spreading of the flames coming from the third through seventh floors, ambulances and police encircled an area of their own to evacuate the civilians who had been trapped inside, and the final barricaded circle was manned off by over thirty armed men without any uniform or mode of identification, a common sign of Underground activity allowed by local authorities.
And it was each barricade Sam had to fight to get through despite the help she had from her Rex-affiliated escort. Each presenting that much more of an infuriating obstacle as she fought to find any sight of where her mother might have been brought to. Each passing of an ambulance gave no reward of discovery, each being another unknown face, and each passing of a paramedic offered similar results.
And no one cared to hear her pleas, nor did they care to ask for details to help identify or point her in the right direction. Everyone had their own pleas for assistance or demands for information, drowning Sam’s hopes with each step into a seemingly endless march of futility towards the center of the unstable building.
Her pace began to slow to a stumble as she could no longer keep her eyes focused after her sustained dizzying search, and the front lobby she approached seemed to be already emptied ahead of time, as empty as her soul had become. She now questioned why they brought her here if it wasn’t for bringing her to her mother. But then a cold tug of her shoulder from the man in front seemed almost interrogatingly, dragging her through the propped-open doorway.
She felt the cold even stronger, now as an indescribable chill ran up her spine. She that instant knew why it was so empty there in the lobby; She saw two figures standing in the farthest corner behind the reception desk as if guarding the office behind.
“No, no- don’t tell me…” Sam mumbled aloud, refusing to believe what her doubts began screaming to her inside, but the push from behind forced her onward. She didn’t realize how uncontrollably she was shaking, either, only to be made aware the second one of the guards approached her with a worried look and a sorrowful, turned lip.
[Why- who sent her here?] the soft-spoken, dust-covered operative in full gear and armor instead directed his question to her escort. [Who the hell thought this would even be remotely acceptable?] He now continued in scorn, knowing good and well who she was.
“Rex’s orders,” the man directly behind Sam bluntly replied.
[Just because we cooperate with Rex doesn’t mean we accept something as fucked up as this-] the man continued in futility before being interrupted once more.
“-Rex’s orders,” were the stiff words once more. And it didn’t matter the guard’s concern any longer as Sam pressed forward on her own, much to the guards disbelief but had no intention to put up resistance.
And into the office she went as if drawn in by a calling, seeing other armed men look, then step away from what they stood around.
Her breath left her body in one gasping exhale, quickly falling halfway to her knees as she was caught from behind. She knew what had happened, but seeing her mother silent, still, lifeless on the floor took every ounce of her strength unlike any way she could have ever imagined. “Mama…” she pitifully sobbed with what miniscule air she had left in her lungs, much in the same way she called for her when she was a toddler.
Another man from in front came to help hold her steady as she lost all will to stand, yet fought to free herself from the grip of the man behind. Frantically fighting for each breath in between cries of agony, she won the fight with those around her out of pity, allowing her the freedom to muster the strength to feebly crawl next to her mother’s side. “Mama…” she continued in her teary, half-choked, strained voice, teetering on the verge of insanity.
Laying next to her in a collapsing manner, she looked over her mother’s face as if she were in a slumber, imagining seeing the rise and fall of her chest. Instead, she looked to find a gaping hole in her clothing just over her chest, further sucking away her grip on reality. “No, not you, too, not you too!” She began screaming louder through her sobs, finding it harder and harder to breathe without choking. “Mama!” She continued on, over and over, now squeezing the cold hand she latched onto like a child seeking consoling, only to receive nothing in return.
Minutes passed as her denial eventually faded, giving into complete abandonment of her hopes, now yielding to her anger. And that very anger directed towards what she had taken away from her led her to a brief window of awareness; She felt something from the hand she held, sitting up just enough to get a closer glance and notice something amidst the streak of blood that had dried: fingerprints. Dried fingerprints.
And she snapped.
“That bastard!” She shrieked as a surge of energy took over her, rushing to an upright, seated position as she took a closer look before turning to the others. “Find him! Find out who this is and find him!” And without confirming if anyone registered her demands, she looked back once more, swearing she wasn’t hallucinating. There they were, a full set of four finger prints that could only come from someone who had gently clasped ones hands as if parting ways one last time. She knew only one person who would be anywhere near there that would be in such a position. “That fucking son of a bitch!” She screamed out again, now pounding the ground next to her in pure, unadulterated fury. “I hate- I hate that son of a bitch! I swear I am fucking killing him!”
And after collapsing from her rage, she no longer cared where she was carted off to. She only saw one thing and that was the sight of her brother over her dead mother. And that was all she remained fixated on during the trip back, uttering not a word to any other.