“On three, then.” He kept his eyes firmly on Ley, trying to convey calm. In reality, he was a churning mess of emotions. Pressing down his fears, Eli gave the signal and burst around the corner.

  He snapped his rifle up and shot the closest hyena. His aim was good, and the bullet tore through its throat. Blood spurted out as the hyena lurched forwards, stumbled, then tripped over its own feet. Eli’s next shot hit the merc standing directly behind the beast. Like before, the round did nothing other than to cause the merc to jolt backwards. Eli advanced, moving heel to toe as he fired burst after burst. Ley shot a second beast with three quick shots to the chest, then switched her aim to the other merc in their line of the fire. Eli tried something different and fired a burst at the merc’s legs and ankles. The merc, dropping his guard, stumbled forwards and leapt sideways to avoid the rounds. Nox tore past Eli and Ley and nipped at the remaining hyenas.

  The mercs, having got over their initial surprise, formed ranks into a tight diamond of five, the last four hyenas prowling in front of them. Eli barely had a chance to bring his rifle around to protect his neck as one of the beasts made an awe-inspiring leap.

  Ley crashed into him like a scrag player, knocking them both out of the way. The hyena skidded on the concrete floor, then recovered. In moments, it was standing over the pair, gnashing its jaws. Saliva sprayed them. Eli kicked out and jammed the barrel of his rifle into its mouth as it bit down. He tried to pull the trigger, but the hyena ripped the rifle away like a dog protecting its favourite chew toy. It clattered against the wall and bounced out of reach. The beast turned back, howling.

  “Oh, fuck off!” Ley shouted. She disentangled her carbine and let loose a barrage of bullets. Each round found its mark, tearing chunks of genetically modified flesh from the beast’s skull. It howled, a pitiful, mournful sound, then tilted forwards, dead. Eli nodded his thanks and jumped up.

  The rocky walls and floor rumbled with the strength of a small earthquake. Near the blast doors, a wall exploded in a shower of dust and chips of sedimentary rock. The eyeless head of a storm broke through and clamped its massive jaws over the offending thumper. It ripped it off and swallowed it before biting down on the head of one of the mercs. The merc dropped his rifle, which clattered on the metal floor, then windmilled his arms as the stone worm lifted him into the air. Eli was so captivated by the morbid scene, he momentarily forgot the prowling hyenas. The merc managed to unsheathe his knife and stabbed it fruitlessly against the storm’s hide. With an impressive suck and bite, the storm removed the merc’s head and spine, downing both. The suit, with the rest of the merc’s body inside, toppled over like a marionette whose strings had been cut.

  Eli refocused his attention on the battle. Three hyenas remained, and he could now see four mercs. The problem was, a second storm had joined the first, quickly followed by a third. The third storm slipped under the second and managed to lock its jaws onto the legs of a merc. It pulled back and tore the merc’s legs off. Arcs of blood spurted out, coating the blast doors and the floor. Another merc demonstrated incredible calm. He jammed his rifle against the creature’s head and blew a hole in it. The three hyenas turned on the storms, tearing chunks out of their segmented bodies as the other mercs advanced on Eli and Ley. They were forced to break contact. Eli whistled for Nox and they scrambled to the next intersection, leaving the fusion core behind.

  Breathing hard, he changed out his magazine, then drank a couple of gulps of water from his canteen. “Ideas?”

  “I’m out,” Ley said. “Those suits are annoying. I must have hit one of those kints twenty times. Did jack shit. Nada.”

  “We can’t outgun them, but Jade did say earlier that the faceplate was weaker.”

  “No shit, professor,” Ley said. “You’d have to be point blank to make that shot.”

  “How about we lay an ambush?”

  “Best idea you’ve had in weeks. Cooling tanks?” Eli gestured to the access door leading to the cooling tanks.

  “Has to be lots of places to hide.”

  “If that fails, I say we draw them into the sewers and drown them in shit.”

  Snorting out a laugh, Eli watched their six while Ley and Nox went through the door.

  Once they were inside, Eli activated his comms. “Eli for Colter.”

  “Copy.”

  “We’re no good out here. Coming to you. Sitrep?”

  “Have about…twenty workers to get out. That’s two zero. Shut down is in process.”

  “Good. Hurry it up if you can. Mercs have attracted storms.”

  “Say again?”

  “Storms.”

  “Well, that is inventive. See you in a bit.”

  “Over and out.”

  Switching his radio off, Eli took in the large room. It had a low ceiling, and a distinct smell of chemicals emanated from the tanks. They were roughly six metres deep and lined up in two neat columns of eight. Gangways ran between and around them for maintenance. The sound of running water filled the area with a pleasant noise, contrasting with the intense firefight Eli and Ley had just experienced.

  “Colter said they have twenty workers left to evacuate, and the core is being shut down.”

  “Not much time if those worms start chewing.”

  “Nope.”

  Cracking open the access door, Eli peered out. The remaining hyenas were slinking around in the tunnel beyond, sniffing the air. It was obvious they were tracking him and Ley. As if to confirm his suspicions, a merc appeared in his line of vision, temporarily blocking the light. Eli stepped backwards and let the door shut. Thinking quickly, he locked it and zapped the electronic keypad with his taser pistol.

  “Hostiles incoming.”

  “Sewers?”

  “Sewers.”

  Ley searched the floor, and soon pointed to a narrow trapdoor tucked away in the far right corner. “This has to be it.”

  She shrugged out of her backpack as Eli pried open the rusty metal hatch. It groaned in protest, but soon moved freely. Shining his flashlight into the inky blackness, the beam illuminated a ladder bolted to the wall. He inhaled deeply, catching the unmistakable scent of methane.

  Something clanged against the access door once, then two more times.

  Ley glanced at Eli, then dropped onto the ladder. “Let’s go.”

  The entry door clanged again and shook in the framework.

  “Hurry!” Eli said, passing her backpack to her.

  At the bottom, they got down on hands and knees and crawled through the low crawlspace. Nox, trained to use ladders, led the way, waiting patiently several times until the humans caught up. Five minutes later, they found another trapdoor and pulled it open. The waft of sewage told them all they needed to know.

  Eli waited until Ley and Nox had moved past, then reached into his backpack and removed two small thermal charges. He stuck them halfway up the walls and stretched a thin strand of wire between. It took him a few seconds to set the triggering mechanism. Then he exited the crawlspace and leapt down into the Mocker route, holding his hand and over his mouth.

  “Left the mercs a surprise.”

  Ley kept quiet, taking the respite to gulp down half a bottle of water. She passed Eli a packet of high calorie gel. He hated the taste, but knew it was necessary to take in the vitamins and electrolytes it contained.

  A dull thump sounded out, rattling the small carts carrying the waste. Dust fogged the already tainted air after the concussive wave shook the walls.

  “That your surprise?” Ley said. “Nice work.”

  “Let’s go, smart ass.”

  After ten minutes of trudging through the stench, it was obvious they had reached the fusion plant. The sewer train stopped at a large junction that had several pipes draining into it.

  “Here.” Ley pointed to an access door three metres up. An aluminium ladder led up to it. She helped Nox onto the first rung, then followed the Alsatian up and into the power plant.

  Eli was surprised when he found Pelle, the leader of the Cabal standing, arms crossed, laughing at something Ley had told him, as he ducked through the access door. It was the last place he thought the crime boss would be.

  “Watcher,” Pelle said.

  “Didn’t expect to see you here,” Eli said.

  “Makes two of us.”

  “Pelle was recently assigned to the plant as a janitor,” Ley explained.

  “Got to work my community service hours somewhere.”

  “Colter?”

  “Up front at the blast door. That tasty redhead is helping round up the stragglers.”

  “Jade. Her name is Jade, Jethro,” Ley said.

  “I told you not to call me that.”

  “All right. Cool it. We have bigger shit to worry about,” Eli said.

  “Sure thing, Watcher.”

  Eli stared at the leader of the Cabal, trying to assess if the man was going to give him any trouble. He hoped to the Creator that he didn’t. Like he had said, they had bigger shit to worry about. Personal squabbles had to be put aside, including any animosity he felt towards Pelle.

  “Lock the door. We need someone guarding this entry with a radio.”

  “What do you think I was doing until you lot showed up?”

  Glaring at the Cabal gangster, Eli clenched his jaw. “Someone else.”

  “I’ll call one of the boys, chill.”

  “And a welder.”

  Pelle chuckled, the flame tattoos on his head rippling with the motion. “I’ll find someone.” He raised his radio to his lips and spoke rapidly.

  Nox licked Eli’s hand, and he poured some water into a collapsible bowl for the dog. Pelle gestured for the group to follow him.

  Staying silent, the leader of the Cabal led them through a maze of corridors and rooms. A skeleton crew remained, turning off valves and fiddling with dials as the massive fusion core slowly shut down. Some of their expressions told Eli of their fear, but they appeared to be acting professionally. They all knew the consequences if the mercs got inside before they could shut it all down. Eli looked at Pelle’s back and felt a moment of calm. Despite their history, he was reassured that, if it came down to it, Pelle would fight with everything he had. A thriving Lincoln meant profit, even for the criminal organisation.

  The space in front of the blast doors was barricaded with every scrap of furniture and equipment the plant employees could find. Desks and chairs. Crates of equipment whose function Eli had no idea of were stacked in front of those. A perimeter had been constructed with yet more desks.

  Colter looked up from relaying instructions toward a woman wearing light green overalls. He saluted with one finger and spoke to the woman again.

  A man wearing a charcoal suit turned to Pelle. The Cabal leader pointed at Eli. “Chief Engineer Neal. Watcher Miller.”

  Neal wasn’t what Eli expected from an engineer. Not that there was any stereotypical look. But in his experience, most studious types tended to be thicker around the waist. Neal, by contrast, had the appearance of a bodybuilder or an action movie hero. His muscles bulged under his two-sizes-too-small shirt.

  “You my backup?” Neal said.

  “Until a Legion squad can get here, aye.”

  “Great.”

  “Our job is to evac everyone,” Eli said, choosing to ignore the disappointment on Neal’s face. “Here’s the situation. Outside the first blast door are mercs wearing Thule tech suits. They have GM hyenas, and used thumpers to attract storms, which we expect will chew through these walls. I suspect we have little time left. Perhaps it’s better to figure a way to resolve this.”

  “Hyenas?”

  “Vicious dog-like creatures from the old world.”

  Neal raised an eyebrow. “Weird.”

  “How much longer will it take to shut down the plant safely?”

  “Not long. It’s a relatively simple process. Damn things are harder to keep running than turn off.”

  “How long?”

  “An hour… ninety minutes tops.”

  “Can you sabotage the core?”

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “We believe the mercs want to use it to nuke Lincoln.”

  Neal sighed. “The core isn’t nuclear. Not in the way you’re thinking.”

  “It’s an expression, Chief Engineer.”

  “If I may, Watcher?”

  “What?”

  “I can shut down the plant, but it’s against company policy to sabotage such an expensive piece of technology.”

  “I don’t care how expensive it is. People’s lives are worth more.”

  “Not to the Thule.”

  Eli blew out a long breath. He was tired beyond recognition. Not just physically but mentally. The last month had been hell. Neal was being a giant pain in the ass. A stickler for procedures.

  Solutions, not problems. Eli tried hard to live by this ethos, but in situations like these, he struggled. Again he was dealing with stupidity and didn’t have time for it.

  “Tell me what I need to do to make it happen.”

  The chief engineer signalled to a woman, who had been pacing a few metres away, and spoke quietly to her for several moments, then turned back to Eli. “Sign a waiver absolving me of any responsibility.”

  “Fine. Whatever.”

  Neal held out his commpad and Eli squashed his thumbprint to the screen. “And?”

  “Yanna and I will stay in the control room until everything is shut down, then melt the titanium shield. That should seal the core. Weld the doors shut. We can follow you out later, through the old cabling port.” Neal shrugged, as if reading Eli’s mind. “Risky, I know, but it’s the only way.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Get everyone to safety, Watcher.”

  “That’s the plan.”

  The two men stared at each other for a moment until the chief engineer nodded at Yanna, then entered the control room, shutting the door with a bang. Eli had judged Neal wrong. He had thought he was another annoying company man, but Neal had proved he was willing to risk his own life to save others. He and Yanna were going to take a chance for Lincoln.

  Ley nudged him with her elbow. “Well done. Kept your temper.”

  “It was a struggle.”

  “Okay, listen up!” Ley barked. “We need several lines of defence. Get those fire hoses ready. We have storms incoming. Let’s get to it.”

  Pelle whistled to three men carrying welding equipment. He grabbed a set of tanks and began to weld the control room doors and scraps of metal into place. More desks, tables and chairs were piled up in a staggered pattern, turning the corridor to the blast doors into an obstacle course.

  Nox bounced next to Eli as he joined Ley and Colter at the barricade, facing the blast doors. Already, the walls next to the shields of concrete and steel were shaking from the stone worms’ chewing.

  Jade returned. “That’s all the workers safely evacuated.”

  “And you’re just in time for front line duty,” Colter said.

  “Same as always,” Jade said, slapping Colter on the ass.

  “Thought you’d need someone who can shoot straight,” Pelle said, hefting a bulky crossbow and loading it with a magazine.

  “Centre position, then,” Ley said.

  “What? No comeback?”

  “Read the room, Jethro.”

  Colter and Jade went to the right of the blast doors and rested their rifles on a desk. Eli, Ley and Nox took up their position to the left. Eli dropped his backpack, still grinning at Ley’s quip. It was one of the things he loved most about her. Her sharp mind, and always knowing the perfect thing to say. Especially to people like Pelle.

  “Something going on with those two?” Eli flicked his chin to the right.

  “Probably. Colter is never one to stay settled for long.”

  “I wish her well.”

  “He’s going to need it.”

  They had both known Colter since elementary school. Their friend fell in and out of love quicker than a guilty husband in one of the pleasure houses.

  “One hour,” Ley said, holding up her watch to count down the minimum time they had left before the evac teams were clear of the danger zone.

  “One hour,” Eli repeated.

  He sat down next to Nox and ruffled the dog’s ears. Sixty minutes, and the residents of Lincoln should be evacuated. Then his plan, which his father had approved, could be executed. A lot could happen in three thousand, six hundred seconds. First, they needed to keep the mercs from getting to the core.

  Shouldn’t be too difficult.

  CHAPTER 13

  Near San Francisco.

  United Countries of America.

  Simon had once told Kora about something he called post-traumatic stress disorder. At the time, she had not understood anything he was saying. Simon had warned her that people who go to the surface were prone to it because of how different everything was. She was going to experience so many new things her mind would struggle to handle. That was why he spent hours teaching her coping techniques. Meditation and breathing exercises, mainly. He’d explained that her mind, though unique, was still human. That she could fall victim to it just like anyone. He’d said she would face things that would cause anyone to shut down, and she had to recognise the stress for what it was. Work through it.

  Kora had nodded and assured him she would. That she would do anything needed to complete her mission. That was before she realised it was all bullshit. Simon had sold her to Helstrop to find a cure to the wasting disease plaguing the Echoes. Maybe something else. She was nothing more than fresh DNA to be used up like a commodity, then discarded.

  Curling into a ball on the hard mattress, Kora pulled the hood of her jumper over her head and squeezed her eyes shut. She felt so hopeless, so out of her depth. She wasn’t a resistance fighter like Rose or Agnes. She had no combat training. She was just an eighteen-year-old kid. The crushing weight of what she had gotten into descended on her like a black fog. Rocking back and forth, Kora let the tears flow. It was all too much. The determination and confidence she had felt at her escape vanished, to be replaced by despondency and pain. What was she even doing? This was madness.