Red

Red was going to do it. He would kill the wizard and the parents. He would end their suffering. It needed to be done. It would tie up the loose ends. It would be the most horrible thing he had ever done. But for the right reasons. Right?

All the pain he had inflicted in his unnaturally elongated life welled up in him, fighting against his trigger finger, preventing him from doing what needed to be done in the name of cold logic. His chest hurt. His finger refused.

No.

He wasn’t going to stain his soul with another dark deed to save the world. If the world was going to be saved, it would start with doing the right thing. His chest loosened. He was suddenly at ease. This was the right choice all along.

“This is now a rescue op.” Red barked, lowering the Magius-Morder.

Meyer’s tone was neutral. “But sir, the Colonel was clear. We—”

“The dynamics have changed. It is perfectly clear the family are not Sovs. This is my op, and as your commanding officer I am ordering you to—”

“Sorry sir.” Meyers cut him off. “The Colonel told me if this happens, I am to relieve you of command and carry out the mission.” Red noticed Meyer’s had aimed his MEAR at him out of the corner of his eye.

Red couldn’t help but smile at the noble but naïve Meyers. “How long have you been a Wreckie?” he said, without even bothering to look at Meyers.

“Seventeen years.”

“Seventeen years and already a sergeant on FIST, impressive.” These were pups. Very manageable. Red stole a glance to his other side to confirm the position of the rest of the team. “Do you know how long I have been a Wreckie?”

Meyers was trying not to sound intimidated, but his voice still quavered. “No sir.” But Red was a legend in the Wrecht Order. Everyone knew who he was and even with a MEARS aimed at him Meyers was clearly nervous. “But I am sure long enough to know that we have to follow orders.”

Red slipped his right shoe off which was concealed from Meyer’s view by a large rock. He pressed his foot firmly to the ground ensuring solid contact. “The battlefield is dynamic, and situations change and so now your orders have changed. So…as your commanding officer I am giving you one chance to point that thing at the Sovs…” He turned Meyers delivering one last piercing stare like a predator eyeing its meal. “…and here is that chance.”

Red’s breath slowed. He could see Meyers start to tremble before replying. “I’m sorry, sir but I can’t do that and you—” Meyers fell to the ground convulsing from a jolt of ESH Red sent through the ground. Red rolled to his side snatching up his MEARS. He swung it around towards the Wreckies on the right flank and incapacitated them with three well-placed wide pattern stun blasts. His left flank, unable to see what had transpired, were easily dispatched with a few additional stun blasts.

Red looked down at Meyers convulsing on the ground. “When I say the orders have changed, it means the orders have changed.” He patted him on the forehead. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine in a few hours.” He dropped the MEARS and picked the Magier-Morder up. He aimed for the right flank of the Sovs and squeezed the trigger, conscience clear. The weapon kicked against his shoulder as a dark red streak erupted from it with a deafening roar. There was a massive explosion of red rock and Sov bodies. Everyone within a hundred yards, including Red, was knocked off their feet. When the dust cleared the area of the entire right flank of the Sovs was a spherical crater of blackened rock.

“Damn.” Red picked up his MEAR.

Time to get to work. He started firing on automatic, mowing down exposed Sovs. Jim looked back and saw Red. He waved them to his position, which offered more cover.

“Come on, we gotta move back.” Jim yelled, as the remaining Sovs adjusted their position.

“We don’t know who that is?” Adelfried protested.

Baba looked at Adelfried like he was insane. “He’s killing Sovs, that is good enough for Baba.” He made a dash towards the cover of the rocks Red was behind. “Don’t forget about the crying man in the car.”

A bolt screamed past Jim’s head. “He’ll be fine, he always is.” Jim turned to Adelfried. “Come on, let’s move.” Jim urged Adelfried by grabbing his shoulder.

When they got to Red’s position, the first thing they noticed were all the Wreckies on the ground, motionless.

Adelfried looked around confused. “What happened?”

Red continued to fire over the rocks. “Uh…long story, just know everyone wants you dead, except me,” The Sovs started to move in on their sides in a pincer movement, darting from rock to rock.

“Can you get my wife back?” Jim asked, red-faced with tears falling out of his eyes. Red knew that same pain all too well and considered for the briefest of moments to lie to him and tell him everything was going to be alright, if for no other reason than to have another capable gun at his side. But the thought of leading him on any further seemed like the cruelest thing anyone could do to someone in Jim’s situation.

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Red turned away. It was too painful to look him in the eye. “I’m sorry…she’s gone.”

Jim fell to his knees. “What do you mean? There must be something we can do?” He looked so helpless as he turned to everyone around him, desperate for any sign of hope. He focused on Adelfried. “You! This is your fault!” Jim lunged at him swinging his fists. Adelfried did nothing to defend himself as he too was overcome with emotions. Jim punched and flailed his arms at Adelfried, but he was beyond being able to actually hurt him. Jim just fell on top of him sobbing.

Adelfried’s voice was cracked. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I don’t know how to make this right, I’m sorry.”

“Uh, time for crying is later.” Baba picked up a MEAR. “We have bad men surrounding us, getting closer.” He started firing wildly, but at least in the right direction.

“You’re a wizard, right?” Red said, touching Adelfried’s shoulder. “Can you blink these guys away or something?”

“I don’t know, I uh…” His voiced faded off, still emotional. “I am sorry, Jim, I didn’t want this to happen, this was never my intention, I—"

“Hey! Snap out of it!” Red yelled. “We aren’t getting out of this unless we think of something and fast. What about—”

“Shrimpi!” Baba yelled, with his hand to the ground.

“What?” Red could have sworn the man yelled Shrimpi.

“Shrimpi! Quick shoot the rocks above them, they make loud noises, splash the water.” Baba started blasting the rocks in the general direction of the Sovs.

“That isn’t going to stop them.” Red replied.

“No, not stop them, anger Shrimpi, like we are challenging his territory. He is almost here, I can feel it.” Baba said, smiling.

Red shrugged and started to shower rocks down upon the advancing Sovs, which did slow their immediate progress. What started off as a faint distant noise in the background grew until the distinct and peculiar sound of scales scratching against rock mixed with splashing could be heard. Unfortunately, the sound was coming from behind them and was almost upon them.

Baba yelled. “Oh good, it’s a male. Now, no movement, no noise, no matter what. Freeze!”

A massive green and yellow shrimp-beast almost the size of a passenger jet, rampaged over the small rise of orange rocks behind them. After narrowly missing them, it charged full of fury towards the unprepared Sovs, who were making the most noise, firing their MEARS. It crushed several as it bulldozed over them. Two brilliant aquamarine compound eyes perched at the top of its carapace stared at the invaders to its turf with a rage not normally seen in shrimp. Two large pinchers snatched up Sovs, two and three at a time, snipping them in half like wet noodles. Faced with this new enemy, the Sovs directed their fire towards the shrimp. As their shots bounced off its tough scales, their only accomplishment seemed to be to anger it further.

The pools below Shrimpi started to drain as it sucked up massive amounts of acid, bubbling into its body like a kettle of death. With a sound like a high-pitched screeching locomotive, a highly concentrated acid streamed out of the two pods jutting forward on the shrimp’s undercarriage melting any Sov that it hit on contact, and the front part of Baba’s SUV. The remaining Sovs started to run, but it was too late as Shrimpi finished them all off. Only a lone helicopter was seen leaving in the distance.

“One shot to the eye, and the beast will flee.” Baba said aiming his weapon and firing several shots but missing the eyes. This did, however, get the monster’s attention. Red raised his MEAR and sent one blast into its left eye, causing it to scream and retreat but not before flicking its tail in protest, sending a wave of acid directly at them. Adelfried repelled it with a wave of his hand, finally joining the here and now.

Red followed Jim as he ran to the start of the blood trail. With each step Red’s heart sank a little more. He knew there was no hope at the end of that trail before they got there. As they followed the trail the blood thinned until it was just the occasional drop. The trail ended in a clearing without a trace of Ying.

Jim frantically looked around. “I don’t understand, where is she?”

“They must have taken her in that metallic flying machine.” Adelfried said, looking off to the horizon where the helicopter had disappeared.

“Who wants us dead?” Jim said, turning to Red with fury in his eyes.

It hurt Red, but he had to lay out the facts for Jim. It’s what he would want if he was in that situation. “The Sovs want your ESH source for their own. Last I heard they already sealed off your house with an impenetrable barrier.”

“Are Kae and Evan in the house?” Jim raged.

Red nodded.

Jim fell to his knees, his words strained. “Please tell me your people don’t want them dead too. They’re just kids.”

Red took a deep breath, in most circumstances he had no problem telling the hard facts, he even relished it most of the time, but not this time. “Right now, Mistress Kreeg is more concerned about neutralizing the threat, any threat, that could help the Sovs.”

Adelfried was incensed. “We’re obviously not going help those monsters!”

Red’s head started to race as the adrenaline from the fight was gone. “No, no they don’t give you a choice. But look, right now, we need to hide you two because if the Sovs don’t collect you, Mistress Kreeg will take care of you herself.”

“What about Kae and Evan?” Jim screamed.

“We have to try to save them.” Adelfried said, dismissing Red altogether. “We can’t leave them. Can you get us there?”

Red had to make them see reason. He didn’t just save these two only to have them throw their lives away. “I could smuggle you there through our network of portals. But there’s probably an entire squad of Sovs in there by now. If I thought there was any chance, trust me, I would take you there now. But I need to level with you, we’ve already lost contact with one of our best agents in there. If she didn’t make it, I don’t see how your kids will.”

“No, I can’t…” Jim fell to his knees.

“Jim, look at me.” Adelfried grabbed him by the head pulling his face close to his. “I am sorry, I have…”

Jim looked at Adelfried. “No! You swore to me you would help. You—”

Adelfried gripped him firmly by the back of the head. “You don’t understand, I am sorry I went against your wishes. I uh…Kae is not defenseless.”

“What do you mean? She’s a teenager, what can she do against what we just fought?”

Adelfried’s face flushed with embarrassment. “I let her near the Root and gave her some lessons, on magic. I’m sorry, I know you forbade it.” He stopped as if to think of the right words to say. “But, where I come from, she was already considered an adult, and since she was an adult, I was not really breaking any rules and well, I just wanted to protect her and Evan. And I am sorry, I…I just thought it was the right thing to do and she agreed.”

A hint of hope grew in Jim’s eyes. “You beautiful bastard, thank you. Thank you. What did you teach her? Hopefully more than just moving a coaster.”

Adelfried tilted his head sideways. “You could say that.”