CHAPTER 13

OCTOBER 22ND 10:11 AM

--LAUREL--

"Wow..."

Laurel stepped through the portal to a dilapidated village covered in dead trees and built on the steep slopes of Nepal's terrain. What used to be flourishing green wilderness thriving in harmony with people, is not a barren, grey, dead landscape. Rows of wood buildings with roads in between striped the hillside. The ambient sound of natives walking amongst each other faintly rang through the air. Other than that, it was peaceful, despite the appearance of illness. In the distance was the expansive Himalayan Mountain range; its white caps reaching up high to the blue atmosphere.

"Where are we?" Leo asked, following through the portal behind her.

"Nagarkot," she answered. "The Himalayan's are over there," she said while pointing to it. "This is terrible..." she whispered to Leo sadly. In the distance, the mountain range was split in two, with a massive crater that annihilated the formation, creating a ravine of sorts between the slopes.

"We know where in the mountains we need to go right?" Boone asked. "Frank?"

"I do not know. It was not in the information I took," he said.

"We'll just have to do some good, old-fashioned reconnaissance," Tommy said as he was the last to walk through the portal. With a sharp zip of air, it closed behind him. "How about we get out of the middle of the street first?"

5 mysterious people just appeared out of thin air. But the locals couldn't be bothered. Their walking seemed aimless, like they had reached their limit and were exhausted. They're facing bore wrinkles and blemishes; this life had not been kind to them. This was her first time seeing what some of the world looked like outside of the states after the war. After what the bombs did. Laurel's heart broke for them, but she couldn't think about that.

"This way," she said.

They settled into a circular table at an outdoor restaurant. They sat near the edge of a balcony, overlooking the village. Cool air gently rustled the cloth draped over the railing. Leo and Laurel sat next to each other, closest to the railing. Tommy sat across the table with Boone adjacent to him. Frank, too big to fit himself into the circle, pulled up a chair and sat just behind Tommy and Boone. Laurel cast normal clothes over everyone's gear, so they blended into the population perfectly. She studied the surroundings while the others were getting comfortable. The restaurant was nearly empty; only one other table beside them. The chairs were bent and disfigured, the table was unsteady, there was no electricity to the place. It was depressing. She looked down over the balcony railing. Just below them was a machine with a wide base and a pillar protruding from the middle. At the tip was an emanating white light that made a soft humming noise. An 'air filter'. Placed around nuclear affected countries after the war. Supposedly to absorb the lingering radiation and keep the environment habitable. Judging by the state of Nagarkot, it didn't do enough. Laurel grabbed Leo's right hand in both of hers, squeezing it tightly. He looked over at her while she stared at the machine.

"Are you ok?" he whispered. She intertwined her fingers in his, clenching his hand. Leo reciprocated, rubbing his thumb gently against her index finger.

"I'm ok," she whispered back. She pried her eyes away from the device and back to the table of her friends.

"This place sucks," Tommy said.

"Yeah, I don't want to have to be here any longer than we need to be," Boone said. "Why can't we just start flying over the mountains? We'll find the place in a few minutes."

"I'd imagine that Rayshe has serious defenses set up," Leo commented. "We'd get detected right away."

"Rayshe is infatuated with the pieces. He most certainly has secured it mightily," Frank agreed.

"So we have to think outside the box," Tommy said. "That train is our best way in."

"We don't even know where the train runs," Laurel said.

"That's where the reconnaissance comes in," Tommy said.

"Right. This is the closest village to where the facility likely is," Leo said. "The train would run from here to there for supplies."

"We need to be observant of individuals who look like they may work for Rayshe," Frank interjected.

"And what may someone who 'looks like they work for Rayshe' look like?" Boone asked.

"American. Rayshe is xenophobic. He wouldn't trust anybody but Americans to run his operations- "

"Namastē, kē ma tapā'īlā'ī kēhi pā'una sakchu?" A server interrupted Leo. His face was sullen, eyes were lifeless, hair was thin and poorly maintained. He looked like he had a foot in the grave, physically and spiritually.

"Hō'ina, hāmī ahilēkō lāgi ṭhīka chauṁ. Dhan'yavāda," Laurel answered.

The server bowed respectfully before walking away. The guys turned to Laurel with surprised looks.

"I've done some studying," she says.

"Anyways, Leo's right," Tommy said. "A few Americans walking around here will stick out like a sore thumb. If we hang around the markets, we're bound to find them making their grocery trips."

"We find them, tail them back and find the train route, then what?" Boone asked. "If all 5 of us hop on, chances are it gets stopped before we make it there."

"We will have to split up," Frank added.

"Not just that, but we're going to have to find a way to not get caught on the train," Boone said.

"It seems we will all have to be in disguise," Frank mentioned.

"We're past reconnaissance now, this is full on espionage," Tommy said.

"Ok, so let's say that you, Boone and Frank group up to sneak on the train," Laurel began, "Leo and I do what?"

"Wait until we find the train route," Tommy answered. "That'll tell us where the facility is. Then we'll have to find another way for the two of you to join us there."

"If we stay low and hug the mountains, Laurel should be able to fly us up," Leo said.

"That's two of us covered," Boone said. "What are we going to do," he said to Tommy.

"When we find one of Rayshe's people, Frank we turn into them. After that we figure it out," Tommy said. Boone scoffed as he sat back into his chair. "What?"

"I don't like the sound of 'figure it out'."

"Nor do I," Frank said.

"We'll see what kind of stuff it is they're peddling," Tommy assured. "There is no train station in the village so they must be driving in from somewhere. We'll hitch a ride with the shipment."

"Sounds like you boys got the easy job," Laurel remarked.

"We do. You have to put up with Leo for a while," Tommy said.

"Fuck you, Tommy," Leo said over Tommys bombastic fake laughter. "Sorry, Frank."

45 MINUTES LATER

//////////

TOMMY

/////////

"I don't see anything," Tommy said. He stood in the corner of the market, leaning against a corner of a building wearing a hat with the brim covering most of his face. He looked across the assortment of stands and tented overhangs, through the steam of hot stoves and the bodies of people browsing.

"I'm starting to think you should've gone up here Tommy," Boone said from a third story roof top above him. Boone's voice echoed in his head, the vibrations causing uneasiness, even for Tommy.

"I am having difficulty focusing with the sensation of voices in my head," Frank said. Laurel linked their voices together telepathically, letting them hear each other from long distances. The feeling, however, was quite unpleasant to the unacquainted.

"Just remember what you are looking for," Tommy reminded.

"American, military attire," Frank said.

"Exactly," he replied.

"How much longer until we start looking elsewhere?" Boone asked.

"Soon," Tommy answered. "We're starting to run out of time here."

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Patience friends," Frank said. "I have a good suspicion that we will find them here."

"As much as I trust your intuition Frank, we can't spend all day here," Boone said.

"Patience," Frank repeated. "And please limit the conversations."

Tommy scoffed as he stepped away from the building. He scanned the crowd thoroughly, easily using his optics to see through obstructions. His restlessness was starting to get to him. Nearby, Boone dropped from the rooftop onto street level and walked up to Tommy.

"You getting anything?" he asked.

"We wouldn't be standing here if I was." Tommy answered.

"We're wasting time being discreet. If we find one, we can make him tell us where their facility is at," Boone said.

"I can still hear your speaking," Frank said agitatedly.

"Nothing we can do about it Frankie," Tommy said.

"Can you at least see me from your position?" he asked. Tommy shifted his focus to start looking for Frank. In a matter of seconds, his massive stature was identified.

"See you, buddy," Tommy confirmed.

"Good, I believe I have found a target," he said.

Tommy began towards Franks location. "Follow a little bit behind me," he whispered to Boone. He slipped his way through the clutter, lightly moving pedestrians out of his path. As he walked deeper, the overlapping voices grew louder, all of which spoke a language unfamiliar to Tommy. Some began to stare, but still none put forward any effort to question the strange machine that walked through their town. Once he finally made it Frank, he pointed into the outskirts of the market. A man stood, wearing all black with a beret. He stood in front of a small building with the front completely open, like a garage. He was being handed large wooden crates, which he loaded onto an industrial cart. Through Tommy's sight, his he appeared invisible; only his head appearing to him in his enhanced vision.

"Figures..." Tommy muttered. "Boone, see our guy?"

"Yeah, I'm right up on his shop," he answered. Tommy saw him peeking from around the corner on the opposite end of the market.

"Stay at a safe distance," Frank said. "I will approach him."

Frank began towards the soldier. As he approached, he quickly changed to copy his outfit, but with a different face. The soldier loaded the last crate onto the cart when he noticed Frank approaching him.

"I am ready to depart," he said to him. The soldier looked at him accusingly.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I am new," Frank said. "I was assigned to shadow you. I just returned from the restroom."

"What's your name?" the soldier demanded.

Frank grunted, "Not important." He forcefully smacked the man, knocking him unconscious immediately. He caught him before he hit the ground, laying him down gently.

"Frank, what the hell?!" Tommy asked frantically.

"No matter," Frank answered. "His vehicle should be close by," he said as he fully transformed into the soldier's appearance. The shopkeeper came out, protesting to him in Nepali about the unconscious man laying in front of his store. Frank easily lifted him up by his shirt and stuffed him into the nearby trashcan, shutting the metal lid over top of it. The store owner waved Frank off as he turned back into his shop; still unhappy but satisfied without the crime scene on display for his potential customers.

"Follow me," Frank said.

"Wait, hold on a minute. Where are we go-"Frank ignored Boone as he pushed the cart along, exiting the market.

"Frank?!" Tommy loudly whispered. Seemingly now in full character, he did answer. The others, left with no choice, scurried along after him. Beyond the market, their cover began to dwindle. The strip of building on either side of the road opened into dead trees and grassland. From around the corner in front of them, a large military truck pulled in backwards in front of Frank. Tommy and Boone quickly went prone, laying behind dead, dry tree stumps.

"What took you?" said a soldier sticking his head out the driver side window.

"Haggling seller," Frank said in his disguised voice. "I handled it."

"Whatever you say man," the soldier said while bringing his head back into the cab.

"Get on, quickly," Frank whispered to himself, but was heard clearly by Tommy and Boone. He deliberately took his time loading the cargo to give more leeway to their boarding.

"We can't climb into the bed, somebody is bound to see us," Tommy said frantically.

"Where do you expect us to go then?" Boone asked.

"Under!" he said while standing up, moving quickly while staying low. "Under the truck." Tommy crossed the stone roadway hastily and slid under the truck, grabbing hold of the metal underbelly, and clinging to it. Soon after, Boone slid and joined him, stealthily stowing on the vehicle.

"Sufficient," Frank commented as he finished loading. He climbed into the passenger seat as the driver began towards the train.

////////////

LAUREL

///////////

"C'mon, you're dragging."

"Just slow down a minute."

Leo stood up on a short hill while Laurel tried to catch up. They had taken a transit to drop them off close to the mountain, and now they would have to make the rest of the trip on foot.

“Can’t I just fly?” she asked.

“Not until we’re closer to the mountain,” Leo dismissed. “Can’t risk being caught.”

”Ugh,” she huffed.

"Here," Leo said while extending out his hand to her. She took it as he hauled her up effortlessly. Laurel put her hands on her hips as she panted, trying to regain her breath. They were just a short distance away from the beginning of the ascent now.

"Let's kill some time, gotta wait for them to give us a signal anyway," Leo said while sitting down on a stone nearby.

"Let's," Laurel agreed, joining him on the improvised seat. "I don't know why you need to go so fast."

"Only because I'm showing off for you," Leo said wittingly.

"Well, color me impressed. You can slow down now," she answered.

"Yes ma'am."

Laurel lifted her head up once she got some more air in her lungs. The wind whipped through her hair, whistling as it went by. They sat along a valley, just a bit beyond the bottom. On the other side was the village, sitting higher than they were up on its incline. Its distance signaled the progress they had made so far. She admired the scenery as best she could, while trying to ignore the near absence of life. The grass was brown, and the trees were void of leaves. At least the snow-covered peaks retained their original beauty. She took in everything else optimistically, trying to imagine what it would have looked like before the destruction. Leo caught her in the middle of her staring.

"Not a terrible view as things go nowadays," he said.

"Taking some inspiration," Laurel said. "Maybe I'll make the backyard look like this sometime. But as I imagine it would look like when it was healthy and vibrant. When it was at its best."

"Think you could restore its former glory?" he asked.

"I hope so," she answered. "It would've been nice to have a reference before the bombs."

"Give it a shot," Leo said. Laurel looked over at him quizzically. "We're here now. Breathe some life into it."

"I don't know, I usually like to work on my projections alone until I get them figured out."

"Are you embarrassed?"

"If it turns out bad, yeah."

"I want to see," Leo persisted.

Laurel blinked at him while the gears in her head churned. "Fine." She shuffled closer to him so he could see closer to her perspective. She captured her surroundings, committing every detail to memory, while repainting life into it. She held her hands out in front of her, causing a pink spark in the air a few feet in front of them. Laurel separated her hands, and the spark began expanding like a giant canvas, overlapping the drab background with a refreshed, vibrant green version, an insight to the land's former glory. The projection stretched out wider and wider until its present appearance was gone.

"See?" Leo said. "It's perfect."

"It's one of my better works," Laurel said humbly.

"So, how does it compare?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" she said.

"To your projections at home," he clarified. "Being out here, actually seeing the world, is it any different from your art?"

Laurel pursed her lips as she absorbed her surroundings. "I suppose it is different," she answered. "Like, I actually feel it, the life that used to be."

"Almost like you're looking into the past," Leo said.

"Yeah..." Laurel said. The two enjoyed a moment of silence between each other, taking in the artificial environment while they had the chance.

"Makes me want to start traveling," she said.

"You, Laurel Morgan, leaving your home?"

"Pssh, you make it sound like I'm a hermit."

"I'm not wrong."

"It's different when I can change my yard, change my house to whatever scenery I want it to. It basically is traveling."

"But now you've felt the real deal," Leo said.

"Exactly," she confirmed. "Maybe that's what I'll do when this is all said and done. Travel. Even if the place is... sick. I'll draw it with life. Maybe even see what I can do to help the locals."

"Sounds exciting, but peaceful too," Leo said. "In a spiritual way." Laurel looked over at him, watching him enjoy her projection. It warmed her heart; not very many people had seen her magic before, but no one had looked at it the way Leo did. She watched how the breeze blew through his hair, how the sun touched his skin, how his eyes glowed as he admired her work. She raised her hand, gently pushing his hair back into place; her soft skin caressing his forehead.

"Would you go with me?" she asked quietly.

"Absolutely," he said, looking her in the eyes. Laurel felt her chest get hot as she smiled. She reached down and grabbed Leo's left hand which lay limp on the rock between them, interlocking her fingers with his. They squeezed each other's hands firmly, moving closer together as they went back to nature watching.

“Why did no one tell me Frank doesn’t like swearing?”

Leo laughed. “Did you get in trouble?”

“It was so embarrassing!” Laurel admitted. “One of you guys should have told me.”

“Yeah, that would’ve been a good idea.” She bumped his shoulder with hers.

“What did you say?” he asked.

“I told Tommy to fuck off.”

“The mother of all curse words too?”

“Yes!” she said, suppressing laughter of her own. “He was all like ‘Please do not swear’,” she said, mimicking Frank’s deep voice.

“When did this happen?” Leo asked.

“This morning. Before you woke up,” Laurel answered. “Oh, and that reminds me. Did you know Boone left in the middle of the night?”

Leo pursed his lips. “No?”

“I heard him leaving,” she explained. “Tommy did too.”

“Are you sure it was him?”

“Yeah. I got up and checked the house just in case someone got in.”

“No one would ever be able to find the house,” Leo explained. “Much less get in.”

“Besides the point,” she said. “But don’t you think that’s weird?”

“I don’t see a problem with it,” Leo said.

“You don’t think it’s weird that he took off without saying anything?”

“He came back didn’t he?”

“Yeah, but where did he go?”

“You could ask him,” Leo suggested.

“I don’t know him like that,” Laurel said.

“Alright, I’ll ask him.”

“Frank already said he was going to talk to him,” she clarified.

“It might be personal,” Leo started. “Don’t tell him I told you this, but his wife isn’t doing well. Sick.”

Laurel gasped quietly. “Oh. I didn’t know that.”

“Yeah. She was a nurse. Spent a lot of time here and all around Asia after the bombs. Got radiation poisoning. Almost passed away then. But after she got cancer. Doesn’t have much longer.”

“Well, now I’m definitely not asking,” Laurel said. “Should he be here? Maybe he should stay with her.”

“It was his idea. He agreed to come along,” Leo told her. “I think he’ll be okay.”

“I’d hate for her to pass away while he’s over here,” she said. “That’s one of my biggest fears.”

“What is?” Leo asked.

“Dying alone,” she clarified. “Sounds awful.”

“He’s a grown man,” he said. “He knew the possibilities. I think it’ll be okay.”

“I really hope so.”

"Hey, shitheads, we're at the train." A robotic voice suddenly intruded in their heads. The two of them shared a laugh as they stood up from their rock, turning to the mountain's façade before them.

"I don't know how to tell you where we are," Tommy said.

"I know where you're at," Laurel said.

"Good," he replied. "We're on the side of the mountain. The train runs east. Can you meet us halfway?"

"We'll try," she replied. She turned to Leo who stood just beside her.

"You ready?" she said to him, holding out her hand.

"Take me away," he said. His hand stuck to hers like a magnet, just like before. Laurel lifted off the ground, surrounded in an aura of pink and blue. She started along the slope of the mountain, staying close to it to keep hidden. She looked down at Leo who she pulled along with her; the rapid winds blew his hair straight back, his skin was pressed into his face, and his eyes were drying. Despite all that, he still managed to flash a smirk to her in that witty, nonchalant demeanor that only he could do.They flew quickly up the mountain, covering hundreds of feet in seconds. Soon, they reach the summit. The top was narrow, with only a few feet of standing room. The air was thin, and the wind was racing by, screaming in their ears. Below them on the other side of the peak, running along the side of the mountain, was the train track.

"We see the train, Tommy," Leo yelled over the roaring winds.

"Great, now you can actually do something."