Loud, ear-shattering booms rippled throughout the whole structure of the building, shaking it to its foundation.
The dark-haired lady found herself thrown against a wall, then immediately curled up, covering her ears as she screamed out while the explosions continued for what seemed forever. Her earpiece buzzed, but she could barely comprehend what was being said.
“What? Say again!”
The man on the other side of the communicator was struggling to breathe. The crackle on their comms unit didn’t make it easier either.
“Don’t… take… Her…” Was all she was able to discern from it. She nodded to herself and sprang up, only to fall back down; a sharp pain shot up from her right leg. She looked down and realized the source of it: a gash in her right thigh with a jagged piece of wood sticking out from it.
She hissed through gritted teeth and took a syringe from her shoulder pouch, injecting the contents into herself while she looked around. Spotting a fallen, half-burnt drape, she fashioned a tourniquet around her leg and tested it. All the while, gunfire and shouting echoed around her.
She checked her automatic rifle and started to limp down a corridor when two bodies appeared in front of her. Immediately, she went down on one knee and let out two quick bursts, the rounds hitting each body and throwing them down. She flicked her wrist, checking the ammo count on the side of the rifle before continuing down the corridor.
“Three on your Two. Johnson! Launcher on your Eleven! Take it out!!” a familiar voice greeted her as she reached the end of the corridor. Bursts of fire followed as she rounded it.
Three men and a woman in the uniform of her family’s security forces greeted her. The corridor they were in was flanked by windows on one side and doors on another.
She croaked out the name of the voice's owner, but nothing came out. Clearing her throat, she tried again.
“Malik! What’s the sitch?”
The man turned and saw her leaning against the corner of the corridor; a line of blood snaked down from her wound. His eyes immediately told of their concern as he rushed to her.
“Mistress Cassandra! You are hurt! You need to get down with the others; they are already in the evac bay.”
She nodded almost absent-mindedly as she gulped, the pain continuing to shoot up even with the meds she had taken.
“What’s the situation?” She repeated her earlier question.
The man shook his head dejectedly, looking down at the floor before he looked up and shook his head again.
“It’s not good, Mistress. They are overwhelming our defenses; even the Lokh contingents are being decimated. Those blasts earlier? It's a sign that our jamming has gone down, so now their drones are swooping in.”
She nodded, her eyes blinked at the sweat running down her face.
“Okay. Master Maximillian has issued the meltdown order.” She paused and looked at his face. His understanding of what that meant immediately showed.
“So… it’s… over?” He blurted out as if he was on the verge of tears.
She nodded solemnly and touched his shoulder, squeezing it gently, hoping to reassure him.
“I’m afraid so. It's time for you and the others to think of yourselves and what to do after this. You can join the Lokhs; they still have a strong presence in the city and its surroundings, or you can return to your families and live a different life, just… don’t die.” She smiled assuringly,
“We appreciate you for what you have done for us throughout these many, many years, especially you, Malik. You and your family have been in our service for as long as the histories can remember.”
He took several deep breaths and looked behind him. The others with him were still keeping watch and taking shots when necessary before he turned to her again and nodded curtly.
He sighed heavily, “I… understand Mistress. May the winds keep misfortune away and bring good fortune to you and yours.”
She smiled at his recitation of her family’s prayer and greeting and nodded curtly to him.
“And to you, Malik.”
He stepped back and keyed in the code to the door beside him. The door hissed open and slid back.
She slid around the corner and slipped past the door before going down the flight of stairs that ran down from the door.
The door closed as she kept going at her best pace. Her hand dropped down to grip her wounded leg, Her rifle swaying with her gait as she reached the bottom of the stairs, where a different sort of helter-skelter met her eyes.
Three rectangular, sloping-angled vehicles stood side by side with their ramps open. Supply crates were inside and outside the transports. Men and women ran back and forth but did not seem to load the crates still lying around them.
She saw a man about her height seeming to talk to another woman. He had a concerned look on his face as the woman explained to him something that he didn’t want to hear.
“Max!” she shouted out. The man turned and saw her. Cutting the other woman off as he waved up a hand before running to her
They embraced tightly, longingly, before he pulled back and looked at her. “Cassie, I… What happened upstairs? All I could hear were those explosions.”
She gulped dryly and licked what she felt were her parched lips: “It’s done, Max. I told some people I found on the way to your decision. Were the comms cut?”
He nodded, “Yes, they finally took out our comms and jamming stations. Only direct LoS comms are working.”
He turned around and briefly looked at the other woman, who was now busy shouting orders to some around her, before he turned back to her, holding her shoulders.
“Shishmakova informed me of that. I guess I should have given the order earlier.” He chuckled dryly, trying to lighten the mood.
She smiled and gently caressed his cheek, leaving her blood on his skin. Her eyes looked at the three vehicles and the crates lying around. “Can’t fly then?”
He sighed dejectedly and nodded. “They have everywhere covered. The only way we hope to get out of here is on foot, on the surface. They found the tunnels and burned everything in them.”
She suddenly darted her eyes around. “The baby?”
“Shishmakova will take care of that. The baby is safe.” He squeezed her shoulder, massaging gently.
She looked up at him and chuckled as she shook her head. “You are such a bad liar, Maximillian Mallifar… is the baby safe? And what about the other children?”
He sighed and nodded, “Okay, Shishmakova has laid out her plan, and it's solid. I trust her decision. Of course, there will be some risk, and a strong rearguard has to stay behind.”
She smiled at him and nodded slowly. “That’s more like it, and I trust you.”
She motioned at the dark-haired woman to come closer.
“Yes, Mistress?”
“Master has informed me you have already planned and will execute what you have planned to keep the baby and the other children safe, yes?”
She nodded curtly, her mouth parting as she started to explain what she had in mind, only to be waved down by Cassandra, who shook her head and waved her hand dismissively at what the woman was about to say.
“I trust you as he trusts you. Just make sure that you get them to safety, then consider whatever obligation you have to this House completed.”
The woman nodded curtly. “Understood Mistress”
“You may go. We will hold off what we can.”
The woman hesitated and looked at Maximillian, who nodded to her.
The woman made a slight bow. “May the winds keep misfortune away and bring good fortune to you and yours.”
“And to you, Shishmakova.”
With that, Cassandra waved the dark-haired woman away before she gripped harder on Max’s shoulder and winced.
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Max gripped her waist and held her close to his side. “Pain meds not working as well?”
She chuckled dryly and shook her head. “Enough for us to see that traitor’s eyes, the things I’d do to him and the rest of them.”
She leaned against his shoulder and looked over at where the dark-haired woman was. Who was again barking orders at the others in her group, checking on their equipment.
Two young teenage boys and a younger girl walked over to them. The boys hugged their father and mother tightly, while the younger girl hugged her unhurt leg.
Her eyes welled up with tears, yet she fought them back and patted their heads lovingly as they embraced.
“You know what to do, yes?” As the boys pulled away, their faces were still bright and hopeful despite what was happening around them. Both nodded in unison at their mother’s question.
“Yes, mother, Aunt Mira has explained to us what to do.”
She smiled, biting her lip as she nodded. “Good, good. Now remember, you listen to what she tells you. We will join you as soon as we are able to.”
The younger girl suddenly piped in, her face and tone denoted severe disappointment. “You and father aren’t coming with us?”
Max knelt and embraced her tightly before he pulled back, a reassuring smile on his face.
“We will. We need to finalize some things first. Just listen to Aunt Mira; she is going to make sure everyone gets out safely…okay?” He then looked up at the older of the two boys, who was wiping a tear away.
He stood up and hugged each boy tightly before pulling back and patting their heads.
“Henry, Christian, you take care of your little sister and take care of yourselves.”
They nodded and replied shakily, “Yes, Father, we will.”
He smiled warmly at them. “Now be off, all of you, and may the winds keep you in good fortune.”
“And remember your training!” Cassandra shouted at the boys over the rising din, her hand still holding the little girl’s hand.
“I don’t want to go! Mama!” She protested as her hands kept a grip on her leg.
Her eyes blinked as she pursed her lips tightly, tears welling as she beckoned at Shishmakova to help.
The dark-haired woman picked up the little girl and was stopped by Cassandra. She hugged the girl and kissed her head and face repeatedly, and tears slowly streamed down her cheeks.
“Make sure they make it! They are the blood and life of this House.”
“I will not rest until all of them are safe and the House returns to its glory, Mistress.”
Shishmakova curtly nodded before she turned and handed the little girl to another armed personnel. She then picked up a smaller container and slung it to her side, making sure the baby inside was safe, before snapping orders at the rest of the uniformed personnel, who had a child each with them.
Cassandra watched them exit the large hall through a door at a corner, then turned to her husband.
“Do you have any adrenalin left?”
He dug into a pouch on his equipment belt and nodded, passing her two vial syringes.
She smiled and nodded in thanks before injecting one and storing the other. She checked her ammo count before she ejected the magazine and replaced it.
“Ready?” His hand on her back, patting her assuringly
She bit her lip and nodded, her expression contrasting with what she felt inside as she moved behind one of the vehicles.
“Ready,” she said.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The dark-haired woman knelt and fired short, controlled bursts at the corner. Before she sprinted toward another cover just as the vehicle she had knelt behind earlier exploded into flames.
A familiar face came into view from the other side, raising his rifle and letting out a couple of shots at the woman.
Anya gasped. She recognized the man—it was Richard. Richard then barked out orders before other men and women appeared in view.
Her eyes grew wider as she watched Richard walk calmly over to the now severely wounded dark-haired woman lying on her side, blood pooling beneath her.
Her hands clasped in front of her as the video continued playing; the woman’s trembling hand reached toward Richard and pulled him closer as he knelt by the woman. She appeared to be saying something to Richard, to which he nodded before he peeled her hand off of him and got back up. His lips moved before he unholstered his pistol and then shot her, eliciting a gasp from Anya.
The screen flickered, and this time, it showed different footage. Anya noted the slight advancement in time from the previous scene. It seemed to be some soldier’s report.
The screen panned, showing a bare, white wall pockmarked with damage from gunfire and explosions. Before it panned back down, the man’s voice briefly narrated what had transpired while he panned the camera.
The screen hovered over bodies on the ground, then panned toward a path heading into a heavily damaged hedge maze. Then it panned back to the bodies, the man now turning the corpses over to identify their faces: soldier, Henry Mallifar, soldier, soldier, Christian Mallifar.
Anya didn’t know what to feel. Yes, these were the tyrant’s family, but they were just children. Anger and crushing sadness washed over her as she paused the video while the reporting soldier walked toward the damaged hedge maze. She could feel what was coming and had enough of what she was watching.
Richard was leaning back on the couch, reading from a tablet. When he saw Anya get up, he placed the tablet down.
“Come, Anastasiya, sit with me; let me continue your instruction.”
Anya’s face had a mix of horror and shock, yet when her eyes met his, it was also interspersed with anger. It wasn’t the deaths that shocked her; it was the deaths of so many High-Rise persons that did.
These were people who were just like her. A resident of High-Rise shouldn’t have to worry about violent, untimely deaths… but what she saw was entirely different from what she was raised to believe.
She sat down next to Richard, still shaken at the series of video captures she was made to sit through and watch.
Richard knelt in front of her and gently clasped her trembling hands.
“Remember the breathing that we taught you; slowly, slowly, I need you to calm down.” His voice was gentle and reassuring as he watched Anya close her eyes and do exactly that.
After a few moments, she opened her eyes and looked at him. This time, her expression told him of the myriad questions on her mind.
“Okay,” he continued in a gentle tone. “Now, let me continue with the history of the Houses and ours.”
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Noa scoffed as she waved the documents away from her HUD.
“What? Found something you didn’t agree with?”
Bug Bunny’s voice came over the communicator.
Noa shook her head. “Some of these official reports don’t make sense.”
“Which? I passed you a ton.”
“Well, for one thing. It states that the guards, led by their security head, turned on the Mallifars, tired of the oppression that the heads of the House were inflicting on the population.”
“And?”
“The head of their security detail…”
“Mira?”
“Yes, your idol… The family practically raised her, and her family had been serving with them since as far back as I can bother to read through.”
“Are you saying the official reports don’t tally with logic?” Bug Bunny’s voice contained a heavy dose of sarcasm.
Noa scoffed; she could feel the frustration rising inside her as she tried to make sense of everything she had just gone through.
“We… I really need to sit down with her. Have you had any luck with it?”
“Not yet… I’d just wait for it, Noa. I’ve already put out feelers for her on the networks; I know she has seen them, so… let’s just wait for her to drop a line?”
“And Father still has no time to see me; what the heck is going on that he’s suddenly so busy anyway? This can’t be just wedding prep.”
Bug Bunny chuckled on the other side “Daddy’s girl frustrated that she’s not getting any attention?”
“Anya’s the daddy’s girl… She is clearly their favorite,” Noa retorted back almost immediately.
“Ahuh, sure, miss, I already have everything, so I’ll start risking my neck instead.”
Noa couldn’t help but giggle at that. “Oh, shut the fuck up, Bunbuns.”
A familiar icon appeared just under Bug Bunny’s communicator icon, blinking.
“Hey, I have a call incoming, so I’ll talk to you later?”
“Later, Noa.”
Bug Bunny’s communicator icon faded and was replaced with a new one.
“Yes, Denis?”
“Noa, heeey, how’s my silver-haired hunter?’
Noa rolled her eyes.
“You have something for me?”
“Yes. Retrieval gig, easy peasy.”
“Uh huh, ok. What are the deets?”
“I’ll pass you the scrip. Call me back when you agree to it?”
Noa chuckled softly as she shook her head. “Ya, sure, pass it along.”
FILES RECEIVED
“Got ‘em.”
“Okay, well, you have a great rest of the day then! I shall await your yes.”
Noa cut the comms and opened the file. As she read the document, her eyebrow rose. She hurriedly opened two other files, using her hands to move the documents around on her HUD.
“Huh.”
Her fingers moved, and Bug Bunny’s icon reappeared when she picked up.
“Yes, Noa?”
“Bunbuns, new job from Denis.”
“Okay… and?”
“It's at a location with a nice, well, pretty indirect route to where the shipment was dropped off.”
“And what’s the job?”
“Retrieval, says on the scrip a couple of crates containing items that interest the client.”
“So? Could be a coincidence.”
Noa scoffed. “You and I both don’t believe in that shit Bunbuns.”
Bug Bunny chuckled on her end. “Okay… when?”
“I’ll pass you the deets. I gotta call Duke, too.”
“Okay, later, Noa.”
The line cut, and Noa zoomed in on the locations marked on her map. Her eyes traced out lines of sight for possible overwatch positions. After experiencing more than several gigs with Anya on overwatch and her prepping the details, she was so used to doing so before she paused.
Her fingers moved, bringing up Anya’s contact and dialing it. A busy tone greeted her.
“Dammit… Richard,” Noa fumed; what the heck is Father doing anyway? And no contact from the house either.
Noa leaned her head into her hands, fingers running through her scalp as she grunted in frustration before getting up and dialing Duke’s contact.
“Yes, Noa?” Duke sounded out of breath on his end.
“Oops, did I catch you at a bad time?” Noa chuckled.
“Oh,” Duke laughed... “No, no, I’m at the gym. What’s going on?”
“Meet up, that cafe we met first time? In thirty”
“Okay, you got it, boss lady; see you then.”