Chapter 9 Breadcrumb On the Trail

Max

July 21st, 2017

6:13 AM

Caffarella Park, Italy

Castle Camelot Museum

Waking up from a dusty landing, my ears ring from the blast and I cough out the dust from the debris caused by the RPG fire. When my sight gets clearer and my ears stop ringing, I could see Fernando and Kristen coughing it out too. I help them off their feet to make sure they weren't paralyzed from the blast or fall and their feet were still completely functional. The both shook their heads for an "okay" sign to know they could still walk.

The fact that the three of us barely survived a fatal explosion like that and now that we were split up from Alex, Rachel, and Frank, the three of them must believe we're dead already. Time to make sure they think otherwise by finding out where they went after our failed zipline attempt. I'd hate for Alex to blame herself for me dying. Kristen, Fernando, and I step out in the open air to search for the rest of the group.

"Where are they?" I asked.

Fernando turned his head up and could see our other three companions on top of another roof above. Looking back down at us as Fernando waved his arms and hands.

"Hey! Hey!" He called out. "Down here!"

"Max, Fernan, Kristen, you're not dead!" Alex called. "Thank the lord."

"You guys alright?" Frank asked.

"Yeah," I said. "We'll find a way around and meet up with you."

"Jesus Christ, Max," said Rachel. "You almost gave us panic attacks when that rocket nearly blew you up. What would Chloe say if had to tell her you died from that?"

"Stop worrying about Chloe, Rachel, and just get somewhere we can group up again. We're gonna try and get to that tower to find our clue, alright?"

"See you on the other side, cousin," said Alex. "Just be careful down there and try not to blow yourselves up again."

"We won't," I said.

Our three companions on the roof leave us to find a way back to us. Then Fernan spots something behind us.

"Hey, gringas, look!" He pointed out. "It's the tower."

Kristen and I turned our heads to where Fernando pointed and it was the tower him and I spotted on his scope before we were being bombarded with rockets. It was only a click away from us now.

"What about Alex, Rachel, and Frank?" I asked.

"They're fine," said Fernando. "Look, it's right there. We gotta check it out."

"Why are we checking it out?" Kristen asked.

"It's what Fernan and I saw below the north star earlier," I said. "Where our clue could be. We should go."

"Let's just be careful where we walk. These asshole with demolition experts are more oppressive than they look."

"ConDef is known for their brutality," reminded Fernan. "Let's just suck it up and go already. We'll do this quietly and carefully."

Since we were only less than a mile away from our destination, it only took us less than five minutes to walk there. There didn't appear to be any ConDef on duty surrounding the tower. Which is probably a good thing for now. One, they don't know our clue we found. Two, they must believe we died in that blast. At least for the half of us.

The three of us walk up a flight of steps to reach the tower. As soon as we get to the top of the stairs and see the entrance door between the two statues as seen from the scope, we were just another step closer to find the crypt to the Reality Shard. Fernando and I decided to push the door open together as Kristen stood back.

Fernan and I smile as w both opened the doors to our ticket to the Reality Shard. Except it wasn't. What we see instead are nothing but boxes and cleaning supply for custodians. Sad face.

"Oh," I said disappointingly. "This is a-"

"Si," said Fernando. "Oh. I knew it couldn't be that simple."

"Nothing is ever that simple," said Kristen. "Just another fool's errand I have to stumble upon this trip."

"Wait, wait, wait," I said. "It wasn't a storage room a thousand years ago."

"No, no, no, no, no, gringa," said Fernan. "We are missing something."

I close the doors to the storage room disguised as a tower entrance in frustration. Until Fernando decides to be helping some.

"Hey, hold on," he said. "Hold on. The statues, you see? One hand up, one hand down."

"Yeah," I said.

Fernando pulls out the journal to review further. To understand the secret meaning behind the statues.

"Look," said Fernan. "Above, below. It's the same thing again and again."

"So just another breadcrumb on the trail?" I asked.

"Well, it certainly looks that way."

"Let me see the scope again."

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks."

"What are you going to do with a scope?" Kristen asked.

"The same thing I did back on that other tower," I said.

Before using the scope, I spotted the star symbol again. The same symbol marked on the last tower. Only a sign we're still on the right track.

"Hey, here's that symbol again," I said.

I stand on the symbol while using the scope. Understanding how to put two and two together. My eye scopes through the glass to view the castle of our final clue.

"Yeah, maybe it's not in the sky this time," I said. "But below somewhere."

"It's got to be something with the castle itself then," said Fernan. "Some sort of emblem or symbol?"

Then I see a sun-like symbol marked on a platform through my scope. Scanning the castle downward as I turned my head in that direction.

"Wait," I said. "Yeah, there."

"Ah ha," said Fernando. "As below, so above?"

"Yeah."

"Alright," said Kristen. "So now move the scope upward. What do you see?"

I move the scope upwards as Kristen said and spot more symbols on some pillars built on the structure from a higher platform. That has to be our final destination to the crypt if at all.

"Yeah, those pillars," I said. "That's gotta be it."

"Alright," said Fernando. "Let's get over there and check it out."

"Yeah, we'll meet up with Alex, Frank, and Rachel on the way."

"They're over there!" An angry voice shouted.

And so came more ConDef forces on the way to make sure we didn't get out of this castle alive. Already shooting at us and Fernan, Kristen, and I hit the deck for cover.

"Shit!" Kristen snapped. "They spotted us!"

"Ah, fuck!" Fernando yelled.

"Come on, guys," I said. "We can't stay pinned down here! We gotta move!"

Before any of us could shoot back at the advancing soldiers, RPG was fired from afar. But not at us. It fired straight onto one of the enemy infantry's firing post on a balcony. Blowing them sky high like gasoline.

"Whoa shit!" Fernando reacted. "Where did that come from?"

From a distance, I could spot our other three companions holding RPGs in hand. Aiming for every ConDef support team posted to flank us. And now they were playing the Calvary.

"Hey, it's Alex!" I shouted.

Another rocket was fired from the three of them and soon our opposing forces would get overwhelmed. Making it a fairer fight for the three of us down here to shoot back at the goons with guns.

"Alright, Alex!" I chanted.

There were still more ConDef soldiers to had with down the stairs from the tower. Fernando, Kristen, and I run down the steps as soldiers were running up the steps. I shoot one of the stairs with my pistol. Then I take the rifle of the soldier I killed and use it to get practical. By swinging the rifle from the barrel grip smack the following soldier in the head for a knockout.

And then, there were snipers up on another balcony aimed at our ground. The three of us hid for cover before they could pick us off. Until our RPG support blew the sniping ground out of harm's way and neutralized the snipers like firecrackers. The rocket fire had also blown a hole in the wall we could use to reach the pillars we spotted with Fernando's scope.

Before I could push through with Fernan and Kristen, we had seen something zooming out of nowhere in front of us. Electricity of some sort was being sparked over to corners of the perimeter. Deep down, I knew what I was in for since I first fought these types back at Blackwell. ConDef strikers inbound and rushing out of their cover like thunder and unloading their SMGs at our ground.

"Get down!" I warned.

I knew we could stay down behind cover for long. Boy, do I hate these fuckers. I'm dead cereal.

"Who the fuck are these guys?!" Fernando questioned.

Before I could answer him, one of the strikers rushed next to us past our cover and I immediately shot him down before one of his bullets could touch us. Then for a split second, I answer Fernando.

"Someone you want nothing to do with!" I shout at him.

Then the other striker advanced next to us and I instantly use my time shield to protect the three of us from the elite soldier's bullets. Then gave to him with my bullets for a quick kill. But it wasn't over yet. More regular soldiers were shooting at us behind out the cover and had to be dealt with.

I think about taking them one with my rifle while Fernan and Kristen could hold them off with their pistols, I spot a fancy looking grenade on the dead striker's gear. For a young woman with a bit more combat experience than my two companions, I reach for the grenade, activate it, then toss towards the ConDef infantry. As soon as the grenade goes off in front of them, it ignites some kind of force field energy around. Freeze framing them in time and stasis.

Whatever the grenade just did, I shoot at the frozen troopers trapped in time with the advantage of the time grenade's power. The bullets from my rifle get caught in the time bubble like paintballs and soon as the field wears down, the bullets hit the flesh of our enemies and spill the blood out of their guts. The soldiers drop dead and the area is clear. Allowing us to rejoin Alex and the others safely. I catch my breath from the fighting of strikers and infantry alike.

"God, I hate those guys," I sighed.

"There," said Kristen. "We can get to the pillars from that tower."

"Come on. We gotta meet up with the others."

Kristen and Fernan follow my lead through the hole in the wall Alex, Frank, and Rachel just blew down for us. As soon as we're at the pillars, we're finally rejoined by our separated companions in the group. Laying down their launchers as the battle had ended.

"You three alright?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah, still in one piece anyway," I said. "Come on. I think we're onto something. Good to see you're alright."

"You too," said Alex.

The six of us now all back together make way for the wall with the pillar symbols. This had to be our last stop. It had to be our final key to entering the shard's crypt. But it was going to take some analyzing to even get as far as inside. Keeping my fingers crossed as we were.

"Right, here's the wall," said Fernando.

"Alright," I said. "The crypt entrance should be here someplace."

"Well, what does Ezra have to say about it?" Rachel asked.

"He doesn't," said Fernan.

Rachel laughed.

"This is as far as he got," I said.

"Well, what are our chances then?" Alex asked.

"Symbolically," said Fernan. "Two pillars are used to mark a gateway."

"Swell, which two?" Frank asked.

"And a gateway to what?" Rachel asked.

"Well, another realm," said Fernando. "A holy place, a place of initiation…"

"More specifically," said Kristen. "The crypt to the Reality Shard."

"Oh, doesn't that sound like fun," said Alex.