Secure The Bridge

Secure The Bridge
Gatrina’s POV…

We had Abigail. That should have been enough to make me feel relieved. It wasn't. We had barely left the town behind when the silence settled over all of us. The streets of New Lagos were already distant, replaced by the cold, empty landscape leading toward the outskirts. The secret lab was somewhere ahead, hidden inside the wrecked ship.

Amara walked beside me, counting her digicoins for what had to be the tenth time.

"I told you," she muttered, separating another stack. "That child was a good bet."

I glanced at her. "Amara, she nearly got herself killed."

"But she won."

"That isn't the point."

She counted another coin. "Yeah, I guess the point is I won too."

I shook my head. Abigail walked several paces ahead of us. She hadn't said much since we left the fight club. Not an apology. Not an explanation. Nothing. That bothered me more than anything.

I kept watching her small figure moving through the snow-covered ground. She looked so different from the child I remembered. She was growing impossibly fast, but there were still moments when I saw the little girl we'd rescued. Then I remembered what she'd done. She had run away from the lab. She had entered a Krug fight club. She had fought an eight-foot Krug champion. I couldn't keep quiet anymore.

The wreck came into view in the distance. I stopped walking. "Abigail."

She stopped. Everyone else did too. The girl turned around. "What?"

"We need to talk."

She looked toward the wreck. "Can't we talk when we get back?"

"No." My voice came out sharper than I intended.

Abigail stared at me. I walked closer. "You disappeared without telling anyone. We had no idea where you were. We searched the entire lab for you. We followed your tracks all the way into town, and then we found you fighting for money in a place filled with Krugs."

"I won."

"That's not the point!"

She didn't flinch. I could feel my anger rising. "You could have been captured. You could have been killed. You don't even understand what you did!"

"I understand perfectly."

Her response stopped me. Abigail folded her arms. "I was tired of staying inside that place. Everyone keeps telling me I have to stay there because I'm dangerous. Everyone keeps talking about me like I'm something that needs to be protected."

"Because you do!"

"No." Her voice became firmer. "I'm not helpless."

I stared at her. "You don't get to decide that you're old enough to put yourself in danger."

"Why not?"

"Because you're a child!"

"I'm not."

The words came quietly. Almost casually. But they hit me harder than I expected. Abigail looked at all of us. "You keep calling me a child because that's what you want me to be. But I'm not."

I didn't know what to say. "Please. Tell her." I looked at Amara.

She shrugged. "I mean, technically Abigail is a child. She’s not even one year old yet. But, this is family business."

I looked at Gary. He said nothing either. I sighed. "Fine."

I looked back at Abigail. "We'll deal with this when we get back."

She simply turned around and started walking. I watched her go, frustrated beyond words. Eventually, we continued toward the wreck.

.

.

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Gary's POV…

Something wasn't right. I couldn't explain it. Nothing looked unusual. The wreck was exactly where it was supposed to be. The landscape was quiet. No patrols. No vehicles. No movement. Yet every instinct I had was screaming at me. I slowed down. Jarox noticed. "What is it?"

"I don't know."

I looked around. The others kept walking. The hull of the old ship was now only a few yards ahead. Then the entrance opened. Morgan stood in the doorway. I stopped. She was staring at us. But she wasn't smiling. She wasn't relieved. She looked terrified. Jarox stopped beside me. His expression changed immediately.

"Everyone stop."

The group froze. I reached for my weapon. Amara did the same. Abigail turned around. "What happened?"

Nobody answered. Jarox stared at Morgan. His eyes narrowed. His empathic senses were working. I could see it in his face.

"What are you feeling?" I asked him.

He didn't answer immediately. Then he whispered. "Fear."

I looked at Morgan. She wasn't looking at us anymore. She was looking behind us. No. Not behind us. Behind her. Then a hand appeared on her shoulder. My blood went cold. Emperor Feran stepped out from behind her. Several armed soldiers emerged from the shadows around the wreck. Weapons were already pointed at us.

Feran smiled. "Surprised?"

Gatrina immediately stepped toward Morgan.

"My sister!"

Morgan's eyes widened. "Don't—"

Feran tightened his grip on her shoulder. Jarox stepped forward. "How did you find us?"

Feran ignored the question. Instead, his eyes moved across the group. "You really thought you could disappear from me?"

His gaze stopped on Abigail. The expression on his face changed. Admiration. Possession. Something far worse.

"There she is."

Abigail took a step backward. Feran smiled. "The key to permanent victory."

I tightened my grip around my weapon. Jarox looked at his father. "You won't touch her."

Feran laughed. "And you."

His gaze moved to me. "The assassin. You work alongside the creature who killed your mother," he told Jarox. "Your own blood, and you choose him."

Jarox didn't move. "He fights for the same thing I do."

"Peace?" Feran laughed. "How noble."

I raised my weapon. "Release Morgan."

Feran looked at me. Then he looked at Morgan. And before any of us could react, his claws moved to her throat.

"Wait!" Gatrina screamed.

Feran pulled and ripped a good chunk from her neck. Blood spewed everywhere and Morgan's body went limp.

"No!" Gatrina's cry tore through the air.

I felt something inside me snap. I raised my weapon. "FERAN!"

But he was already giving orders. "Now."

The soldiers fired. Tranquilizer darts struck us from every direction. I tried to move. My legs suddenly became heavy. Amara stumbled beside me. Gatrina reached for her necklace.

"Get down!"

Another dart struck her. She collapsed. I fired blindly before another dart hit my shoulder. My vision blurred. I looked toward Abigail. She was still standing. The darts had struck her too, but somehow she remained upright. Her hands rose. The ground around her began to move. Twigs. Broken pieces of metal. Small fragments of debris. They lifted into the air around her.

She screamed. The objects shot forward. Then one of Feran's soldiers came from behind her. The butt of his weapon struck the back of her head. Her eyes closed. The objects crashed harmlessly to the ground. Abigail fell.

My knees finally gave out. The world tilted. I could barely keep my eyes open. Feran's voice reached me through the haze.

"Take the prince. Take the girl."

Someone lifted Abigail. "And take the assassin."

Hands grabbed me. Feran paused. Then his voice became colder.

"As for the others..."

I struggled to remain conscious. Gatrina. Amara. Morgan. They were all lying motionless.

"Burn them. Destroy the lab."

The last thing I heard before darkness swallowed me was Feran's final command.