Chapter 10: Train of Consequences
The decision to kill Schultz weighed heavily on Justin's mind. Even though he was doing it to protect the future on the colony and the lives of his friends, it didn't make him feel better about taking someone's life. On the night he had killed Jenner, there hadn't been even a moment to think about his actions, he just did it right then and there. But Schultz was different. The thought rolled around Justin's head for hours, exhausting him mentally and emotionally. And the hours dragged. There seemed to be no easy way to get to the helicopter. There was always someone nearby. As the hours of the night crept on, their window of opportunity was slipping away as well.
"What's on your mind, chief?" Max asked.
The sudden voice startled Justin, sitting at the base of a tree, lost in thought. "I'm thinking our time is running out," he said. "Is there still nothing?"
"There's just one guy now. He was fueling the chopper. He's kinda checking everything else now. He better hurry up, though. I mean, what are we gonna do if we can't get to that bird?"
"I don't know, Max. I don't know." Justin sighed. There was a long stretch of silence before he spoke again. "It's a hell of a thing to kill a man."
"Hey!" Pollux said, waving his hand. "Hey, he's gone. They're all gone."
The rats jumped to their feet and ran up to Pollux's spot. Sure enough, all of Schultz's men had disappeared into their bunks. If there was supposed to be someone on duty, they were slacking off.
"I think I've got an idea," Dietrich said. The others looked his way. "That thing has an electrical ignition right? All we have to do is cut the fuel line, then when the ignition sparks, that'll light the gas and boom."
"That's a good idea," Justin said. "The only problem is it has to light while there's plenty of gas in the tank. If we cut it too soon, they'll notice all the leakage."
"We don't have much time as it is," Max said.
"He's right, Justin," Pollux said. "It's now or never."
"All right, dammit, let's go," Justin said.
The rats and Mr. Ages quickly ran the distance across the open field to the helicopter. The grass was covered in morning dew as their 7:00 deadline approached. Once there, the helicopter loomed overhead like some kind of hellish mountain face. The size alone was staggering enough, but to hope to sabotage the machine became a very daunting thought.
"What are we looking for, Dietrich?" Justin asked.
"Right up there, there is a panel that opens up," Dietrich said, pointing. "I watched them messing with it earlier. It opens up and on the inside there's a fuel line."
"Okay. Then lets go take a look. Max, I want you and me to go up there. If anything happens, if any men come back, I want the rest of you to hide. Get back to our spot if you can. Just don't let anyone see you." The firmness in Justin's voice silenced any protests that might have come from Pollux, Dietrich, Mason, or Mr. Ages. "Okay, Max, lets do this."
"Gotcha," Max said, taking aim just above the helicopter with a customized crossbow. It had been mounted to fire an arrow attached to a rope. Max squeezed the trigger and the arrow zoomed up in a tight arc over the helicopter, pulling the rope along with it. The black rope zipped out of its coil as it went, the arrow tip slamming into the ground on the other side. Pollux went over to secure it even more into the ground. Justin and Max both put on a climbing harness and began pulling themselves up.
The ground slowly fell away from Justin as he pulled himself up the rope. Once he was high enough, he turned his body around and braced his feet on the surface of the helicopter to climb up the rest of the way. The metal was very cold and felt more unnatural that anything he had ever experienced. Walking up the side of the helicopter felt like walking on the surface of some strange alien planet. It was very unnerving to Justin. Once at the top, Max hoisted him the last few inches. Standing on the helicopter's upper structure, Justin and Max detached themselves from the rope and searched for the panel Dietrich had spoken of.
"Here it is," Max said, finding the latch easy enough to open. The panel lifted up and there was a small post to hold it in place. There was barely enough room for them to get inside the small depression.
"This must be the fuel line," Justin said, holing a small hose in his hand. Squeezing it, he could feel the pressure from the gasoline inside. "This shouldn't be that hard."
Suddenly the front door of the house flew open and Schultz stepped out, Valentine was close behind. "What are you doing? It's early."
"I don't care," Schultz said. "I'm tired of waiting. Is the chopper ready?"
"Yes, but," Valentine was obviously hesitant, but didn't know what to say.
The rats below scattered, retreating as fast as they could. With the house so close, Schultz was practically right on top of them. Justin and Max peered over the top to see him advancing on them. "Shit!" Justin said, looking to Max. "We're not gonna make it."
"You are," Max said as he forced Justin's harness back onto the rope and shoved him off the helicopter before he knew what happened.
It happened so fast, Justin didn't even have time to think about it. For a moment he didn't even realize he was harnessed to the rope, thinking Max had just pushed him right off the side. He came to his senses in time to slow his descent, landing hard on the ground. He could see Schultz's boots approaching, just a few feet away on the other side. Justin suddenly felt the rope go slack and fall down to the ground. "Max!" Justin shouted as he heard the sound of the small hatch closing. Just as he was about to run, Schultz appeared. Justin quickly got behind the supporting strut, hiding himself from view.
Max had given Justin enough time to get to the ground before cutting the rope. Without hesitating, he climbed into the exposed opening and closed the door behind him. In the darkness he felt for the fuel line and struck it with his sword, sending gasoline spraying everywhere. As it splashed, some got in his mouth and he nearly choked on the revolting taste, which was only slightly more powerful than the impossibly suffocating aroma. He just hoped that Justin had enough time to get away.
Schultz paused at the helicopter, thinking he heard something funny. He glanced back at Valentine who stood on the porch with a blank expression on his face. "We're going now," he said, sounding irritated. "Get the gear." Schultz looked at his watch before climbing in the left side. He always preferred the left side to the right side. After fastening his seatbelt, Schultz began powering up the chopper, then hit the ignition.
Sparks ignited, sending a burst of flame straight to the fuel tank. The explosion screamed to life from the innards of the metal beast. Glass shattered and twisted metal blew apart as the fiery roar ripped the helicopter apart. The sound was like a high pitched metallic scream on top of a massive clap of thunder. A fireball erupted, nearly engulfing the entire machine. The blast lifted the helicopter up into the air and pushed it forward before landing in a mangled heap. Flaming shrapnel flew everywhere. Several burning metal chunks flew into the side of the farmhouse, some going through windows.
The moment Schultz closed the door, Justin fled as fast as he could. The shockwave of the explosion sent him hurtling through the air and dumped him hard into the dirt. Looking back he saw the huge fireball fly up as cinder and shrapnel rained down all around him. The explosion had broken the helicopter's back and its tail hung loosely from the rear. The cockpit was nothing more than destroyed metal shrouded in smoke and fire. Behind the helicopter, Justin saw as the house became pelted with burning debris. A moment later, more flames began coming from within the house as the dry curtains caught fire from the blast. Soon, all of Schultz's men were everywhere. All were franticly searching for a fire extinguisher, confused looks on their faces.
"Max," Justin said deliriously, getting up and heading towards the burning aircraft. "Max!"
"Justin, stop," Dietrich said, holding Justin back.
"Justin don't be foolish," Mr. Ages said, helping Dietrich hold their leader back. "There was nothing we could do."
Justin gave in under the pressure of the others holding him back. Pollux and Mason had joined them. Justin could only look at the burning helicopter as if he were watching a nightmare unfold right in front of him. "This isn't happening," he said under his breath before collapsing to the ground, burying his head in his hands. The others watched as the men from NIMH tried to extinguish the flames that had engulfed the helicopter and had now set the house ablaze. They watched as the men franticly tried to stop the house from burning to the ground, but obviously didn't have the right kind of equipment. The fire soon raged beyond their control and they had to stand back themselves, powerless to stop the flames. "Not like this," Justin said. "It wasn't supposed to happen this way."
"We did our best, Justin," Mr. Ages said. "The odds were stacked against us from the beginning, but Max sacrificed himself for the rest of us. It doesn't make me feel any better either, but he saved us all, Justin."
The plume of smoke from the farmhouse extended high into the sky like a black cloud pouring straight out of the ground. The frame of the house could barely be seen through the blurry haze of yellow and orange. The wood crackled harshly as the scent of burning timber, cloth, and, most disturbing of all, flesh permeated the air.
"We should go now, Justin," Mr. Ages said. "Once things calm down, maybe we can retrieve his body, but right now we should seek cover."
Against his own will, Justin agreed, and he and the rats left the field as the Fitzgibbon's house crumbled to the ground.
Jenner's onslaught had continued throughout the night. He never launched into a full scale invasion, but his men kept their assault consistent and the never let up. Many of Orion's rats had been wounded during the fray, but Jenner's men had suffered their own losses. Five of Jenner's men had fallen by the morning. Jenner was not deterred by the casualties, however, and continued the advance.
Jenner had advanced past several barricades into the Lair, but there was still a ways to go before any real threat could be achieved. Daylight could still be seen flooding in from the outside tunnel. With every fallback Orion had to take, he could see the look of worry on his men's faces increase slightly. He did his best to drive them on and tried to avoid showing any signs of stress himself. He had been up for almost two days straight and was on edge. His mind began to zone out as he chambered and fired his weapon with machine like accuracy. The farther back into the Lair they fell, the air became thicker and muggier. They were all sweating through their uniforms. Orion's forearm had a smear in it from all the times he wiped his forehead. The bandage over his severed ear had trouble staying on, but the wound had crusted over with dried blood enough that it didn't matter. He stood at the frontline with his men, taking cover behind their crate fortifications as arrows pummeled them mercilessly, returning fire at every opportunity.
They had reached a stalemate at the fourth barricade in from the back exit, twenty-five feet from the opening; all of the barricades were set at five-foot intervals. Each side had a large supply of rats waiting to fight, but a limited space to fight in. The volley of arrows had lasted most of the morning before Orion had begun to suspect something. Through the chaos, Orion had been able to hear noises coming from behind Jenner's frontline. Strange noises, as if his men were working on something. Of what it was, Orion had no idea since he couldn't get a glimpse past the group of fighting rats.
Orion paused in thought too long, not watching his enemy. He paid the price when an arrowhead sliced sharply across his left shoulder. Orion fell backwards, dropping his crossbow to the ground and gripped his arm. The pain searing and white hot.
"Are you all right, sir?" One of his men asked quickly.
"I'm fine, go, take my spot. Hold them off," he said, looking at his cut. As he clamped his right hand over the gash, blood had seeped between his fingers enough to run down his arm. He removed his hand for a moment to reveal a deep, clean cut. He cursed himself under his breath and headed back to the next barricade. The always kept a group of rats ready on the next barricade back to help retrieve wounded and to help with any medical attention. The next stop back was actually around a slight curve in the tunnels, which would prove very troublesome to Jenner if he advanced to that point. His men were surprised to see him coming back for help. His arm was quickly wrapped in a bandage as his men told him he should head back into the lair to rest, but Orion would have nothing of it.
"How's the position holding?" One of his men asked.
"We're dug in pretty solid," Orion said. "But I don't know, something doesn't feel right."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, something's wrong. Jenner's up to something, I can feel it." Orion paced around, rotating his shoulder as much as he could, wincing in pain. "He hasn't moved in hours. I'm almost expecting him at any minute to try something drastic."
Just then, a loud commotion sounded ahead at the barricade. Orion paused and looked puzzled when he heard static crackling over the intercom. "Captain! Captain!" Came an urgent voice.
"What is it?" Orion answered.
"We did it!" The voice exclaimed. "We pushed him back, Jenner's falling back!"
"What? When?" Orion said.
"Just a moment ago. We took down two more of his men and they just started falling back, we're gonna follow them and drive them out."
"No, wait-" Orion said before a new signal had cut into the transmission.
"Are you there, Orion?" Came Jenner's voice.
"I'm here," Orion spat.
"Do me a favor, Orion," Jenner purred over the speaker. "When you inform your men's families of their deaths be sure to point out how it was your carelessness that got them killed."
Orion's gut twisted, realizing Jenner had set a trap and lured his men right into it. Orion bolted down the corridor, finding the last barricade abandoned as his men had advanced on Jenner's position. "No, get back!" He screamed. "It's a trap! Get back-"
The shockwave of the blast threw Orion back with enough force to knock the wind out of him. The detonation was so loud within the tunnels that Orion was instantly deafened, his head ringing with pain. A hot blast of sulfur and gunpowder blew Orion back against the wall as dirt and shrapnel fell in all directions. The ground had rumbled with such force that layers upon layers of dirt fell from the ceiling. Dust filled the air. Orion couldn't see his hand in front of his face, but through the deafening roar of he explosion he could hear the screams of his men just before he heard the sound of the roof caving in on them.
Orion landed with his back to the wall, in a daze as chunks of dirt fell all around him. He could barely see or hear. His body felt numb. His mouth was full of dust, dirt, and blood as he coughed. With every breath he gagged on the dust choked air. Feeling his energy draining from him with each passing second, Orion desperately tried to cling to consciousness as he felt reality slip away. Why would he do that? He thought. Surely he did it to wipe out some of Orion's men. But why would he seal off his only way in? The front gate is completely secure. The only way to get though it would be to-
Orion was on his feet and running before he even completed his thought, yelling and ordering his men to the front gate.
Justin and the others spent most of the morning watching the men from NIMH clean up the destruction caused by the explosion. Within an hour, Stavros was on the scene. With Schultz dead, Valentine was now the head of the operation and had to handle all the hard questions. The look on Valentine's face was enough to tell the rats they had succeeded. The NIMH project had become a complete disaster. Valentine tried to pass all the blame off on Schultz's near obsessive lunacy, but that apparently wasn't enough for Stavros. The whole operation had become a black eye on the agency and covering up all the damage caused was going to be difficult.
They had determined that Schultz had not died directly from the blast, but that he had actually died from smoke inhalation. He had struggled too franticly to free himself of the seatbelt and had choked on all the smoke. His death had not been quick nor painless as most of his clothing and skin had burnt off before he died. The farmhouse had been leveled and the helicopter had burned out to a shell. After the fire had been extinguished and Stavros arrived on the scene, they began investigating the cause of the explosion. There was quite a commotion when they opened up the access hatch to find a dead rat there. They had determined that whoever had done matanance last on the helicopter had left the door open and then the rat had somehow found its way inside where it was trapped and in a frantic struggle to get free, it cut open the fuel line which was ignited by the sparks of the ignition. The report was somewhat far fetched; but then again, everything about the NIMH project had been far fetched. As ridiculous as it was, the cause of death was good enough for Stavros. He had ordered everyone off site and had called a clean up crew out to take care of the mess. During the gap, Justin and the others retrieved Max's charred body, which had simply been dropped to the ground after it was discovered. They created a stretcher out of their various supplies and left the scene.
The walk back was silent for the rats. Pollux led the way, with Justin and Dietrich carrying the stretcher, and Mr. Ages and Mason following behind. Storm clouds threatened the skies as they went. They headed away from the farmhouse through the familiar trees and shrubbery on their way towards the railroad bridge. As they set foot on the concrete of the bridge's ledge, they could feel the tiny vibrations of the earth underneath their feet. The vibrations grew steadily stronger and louder as they reached the midpoint of the bridge. The roar of the train's whistle sounded just before it passed under and it blew up a huge cloud of steam as it crossed. The rats steadied themselves against the vacuum caused by the train's passage. The earth shook violently as each car snaked its way along the rails.
Justin glanced at Pollux just in time to duck under the swinging rat's blade. Pollux's sword clanged against the concrete wall as Justin lunged forward, tackling the attacker. After a quick exchange of blows, Justin kicked free of their tangle and pulled his blade free and defended himself from a barrage of attacks as the train continued to scream along. The swords clashed against each other as only two master swordsmen could do. For every strike Pollux used, Justin was ready to defend it and attack with a countermove that Pollux knew how to defend, but Justin was stronger and used his brute strength to push Pollux close the edge of the bridge. With Pollux quickly losing room to maneuver, he began forgetting about his swordplay while trying not to fall off. Their swords clashed once more and connected at the hilt, turning it into a reverse tug of war. Justin saw a chance and surprised Pollux by twisting the rat's sword arm behind his back. Pollux screamed in pain as Justin wrenched his arm. Justin grabbed Pollux by the collar and held his body close to the edge of the bridge.
"Give me one reason why I don't kill you now!" Justin said, shouting to be heard over the train's noisy passage.
Pollux's face twisted in pain and rage, but he still found a way to smirk back at Justin. "Because you're not man enough to do it," he said. "You're soft and you know it!"
Justin's grip grew tighter on Pollux's arm. "Why are you doing this?" He said. "Who put you up to this?"
Pollux laughed. "That's for me to know and for you to find out-" Suddenly, Pollux threw his body forward off the edge, pulling Justin with him. The two rats crashed down on top of one of the train's boxcars. The impact separated them, sending them rolling off in different directions. Pollux recovered first, and came full on against Justin, wildly smashing his sword down on the roof with Justin barely avoiding each strike. Justin kicked Pollux behind the knee, dropping him down as well. Soon they were both back on their feet and exchanging blows again. The bridge where they once stood quickly vanished off in the horizon as they each tried to kill the other. The wind was whipping by, making accurate hits more difficult. The constant shifting of the train car made getting a firm footing even harder.
The train passed under another small bridge, sending them into blackness for a moment. They clashed swords once again. Each strike more powerful that the last. Each tumbled several times on the shaky roof, but recovered quickly. Their swords fought until their hands were numb, but as their exchange threatened to turn into a stalemate, Justin abruptly lost his balance on the moving train and fell on his back. Pollux leaped forward, bringing his sword down. Justin brought up his feet and caught Pollux's arms as the rat landed on Justin's crouched legs. They struggled once more, Pollux slowly edging his sword closer to Justin's head.
"Next time you have a chance to kill someone," Pollux said between grunts. "Don't hesitate."
Justin immediately let go of Pollux's hands and dodged his head to one side to avoid the falling blade. Caught off guard, Pollux couldn't react in time, and with all the strength he could muster, Justin kicked Pollux's body high up into the air just as the train passed under another concrete bridge. For a split second, Justin saw Pollux's body connect with the concrete. The sound of the crunching bones could even be heard over the rattle of the train's movement as Pollux's body went sickeningly limp. Justin turned around in time to see Pollux's body fall down and bounce off a train car before falling to the ground.
"Thanks for the advice," Justin said as an afterthought. He then gathered up his sword and headed to the side of the car. Taking some loose rope he had wrapped around his waist, Justin tied on end to the car and took the slack in his hands. Carefully, he lowered himself over the edge and rappelled down the moving car until he was near the bottom. He braced himself there until a clearing opened up. Once a big patch of grass was in sight, Justin kicked out hard with his legs again, catching the air and letting slack rope go through his hands enough to get some distance between he and the train as well as slow his freefall. At the last possible moment, Justin let go of the rope. The grass seemed to float underneath him slowly for a moment before rushing up to meet him wickedly fast. He threw is body into a roll and crash-landed into the soft ground.
When the world stopped spinning, Justin watched as the caboose drove by, picked himself up, and headed back towards the others.
Cameron looked around wildly at the carnage. Jenner's bomb had seemingly shaken the entire earth. The blast echoed like thunder through the land. From his point of view, well away from the lair, Cameron could see all the action. There was a huge pile of rubble where the rear entrance had once been. The firm hillside had been reduced to a gaping mound of dirt. The blast had sent a large plume of dirt into the air and left a trail of dust on the ground. The fortified main entrance had also been bombed. It's steel reinforced structure had been ripped out of the ground and twisted upwards in a scorched, metallic wreck. A large part of the hill towards the main entrance had also been ripped out of the ground. The sliding metal door had been shredded like cardboard by the second bomb. All of Jenner's men were now scurrying to this new point of attack. While his men did the dirty work, Jenner, Castor, Sasha, and a few others had been hanging far back from the action, surveying the scene.
Unaware of the bombings, Cameron became enraged and marched up to Jenner, yelling at the top of his lungs. "What in the name of god have you done?"
"Creating a hole," Jenner replied, somewhat irritated.
"You already had a 'hole.' You never said anything about any more bombs. This is madness Jenner! By the time you're done there won't be anything left."
Castor and Sasha stood by silently as Jenner spoke. "Cameron, you are quickly becoming a thorn. If you continue to question my actions, my motives, and my authority, I can only assume that you are no longer on my side and have become an adversary. Do you want this?" Jenner asked calmly, his face inches from Cameron's.
"Someone has to say something. Your minion and your whore might not have the guts to speak up, but I do. You've completely lost grip with reality! You'll have us all dead by the end of this if you keep up these destructive activities! What good is seizing control of the colony if there isn't a colony left?"
Jenner grabbed Cameron by the collar, raising his voice, but still keeping calm. "This is your last warning. I swear I will get rid of you just as easily as I acquired you."
"What are you going to do? Kill me? I think I'm much too important for you to just-" Cameron's breath gasped out as Jenner ran his sword through his chest, driving the blade between his ribs and out his back.
"Actually, you're not," Jenner said, completing Cameron's thought. Cameron reached out, but Jenner knocked his hand aside, holding him still by the collar. Cameron choked, coughing up blood. The look on his face was of utter confusion and surprise. Jenner twisted the blade and watched Cameron's life vanish from his eyes before pulling out the sword and dropping the lifeless body to the ground.
Castor and Sasha were speechless. "What?" Jenner asked as he wiped the blade clean.
"You never said you were going to kill him," said Sasha, shocked by the sudden murder of her husband.
"He became a liability," Jenner said casually. "He didn't have the balls to go through with this and became more harmful than good Do you have a problem with that?"
"N-no," Sasha said, stuttering at Jenner's cold words.
"Good. No find someone to dispose of this mess," with that Jenner left Sasha and Castor in their own thoughts.
"Cameron was right," Sasha said. "He's gone mad."
"No, there's a difference between madness and ambition," Castor said in a voice that sounded unsure of its words. "Cameron was weak, a bad link in the chain that was only hurting us all. Jenner was just cutting loose the unnecessary excess."
"Just keep telling yourself that, Castor," Sasha said. "Keep saying that until your time comes."
"Shut-up," Castor said, getting in her face. "Just stick to the plan and it will all work out just as Jenner designed it to."
"Sasha!" Jenner shouted, just a few feet away. He motioned her to follow him as he walked towards the tree line. Sasha walked slowly, giving Castor and extra-long glance as she did. "Castor, clean that up," Jenner repeated before disappearing into the woods.
Sasha followed cautiously as Jenner walked well into the woods before turning behind a large tree. She followed him carefully, keeping an even distance between the two, but had no choice but to move up next to him once he stopped. Standing next to the tree trunk, Jenner turned to face her, holding his hands out. After a brief hesitation, Sasha placed her hands in his palms. His fingers closed gently over hers and suddenly forced her back to the tree, pinning her arms up against the bark.
"You're afraid of me, aren't you?" He asked.
"Why shouldn't I be?" She said. "You just killed my husband."
"I've killed many," he said. "And each of those that I've killed had one thing in common with your husband, Cameron. Do you know what that is?"
"What?"
"You didn't care about any of them."
"So? He was your ally. If you can discard him so easily, then what about the rest of us?"
"I'd hoped you would have been better than that," Jenner said, still holding her arms back. "Cameron was less an ally and more an accessory. A tool I used to get something I wanted."
"And what was that?"
"You," he said, flashing a rare genuine smile. He released her hands, pressed his body up against hers and began stroking her hair.
"There are other ways to a girl's heart than running her husband through his."
"Well you know me. I like to be creative."
"You were going to kill him all along, weren't you?"
"Sooner or later. He drove me to choose sooner. Besides, I hated the idea of sharing you with him."
Sasha wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him tighter. "You haven't shared me for a long time. I can't even remember the last time I was with Cameron."
"But you remember the last time you were with me, don't you?" He asked as he started kissing her neck.
"I remember," she said, leaning back. "But it's been awhile. I might need you to remind me about it."
"With pleasure," he said, nearly ripping off his belt and undoing his shirt. He didn't even bother with her clothes, just hiking her shirt above her waist. Jenner lifted her up and pushed her back against the tree. Their kisses became rough and passionate as he forced his body into hers. Sasha had wrapped her legs around him and clawed his back as she welcomed him into her. Jenner held her steady with his left arm against the tree and his right hand grabbing around and underneath her thigh. Sasha's breath became ragged and louder with each successive push. One thing Jenner always liked about her was that she was loud and rough in bed, and he was giving her just what she liked, pounding her back into the hard bark of the tree. He began snarling and grunting loudly himself. Loose pieces of bark and dirt tumbled down from all the action. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was punishing her. Jenner grinded his body against hers for several minutes, his muscles taunt and sweating beneath his loose clothes. Sasha wrapped her arms around his bulky frame and just held on for the ride as she was burning from the inside out in ecstasy. Then Jenner snarled louder than ever, pulling her hair and thrusting his pelvis viciously against hers, slamming her back against the tree, and pushing his organ to its greatest depths before releasing himself inside her. With each discharge his body spasmed and his claws dug into her bare skin, drawing blood. Sasha screamed louder than ever in delight, as she too succumbed to passion. He ran his teeth and tongue against her sweaty neck as she purred with pleasure. His body jerked as the last few drops were squeezed out. Sasha pulled Jenner's body tightly against hers with her arms and legs. Her inner thighs felt like they may have been bruised from his body pounding into her, and her back had been scratched and cut unmercifully by the tree bark, but she loved every bit of it.
He stood pressed against her in silence save for their heavy breaths. After a moment, Jenner ran his hand between their legs were they were still joined. She moaned and writhed as he probed with his fingers. Bringing his hand up found it dripping with both their fluids as he rubbed his fingers along her lips, which she gladly licked up just before he offered his own tongue to her as well. And just as they made love, their kisses were messy and raw.
"You love what I do to you, don't you?" Jenner asked.
"Oh, yes," she said. "And you can do that to me for the rest of our lives."
Mr. Ages was so stunned by Justin and Pollux falling off the bridge that he hardly saw what was happening right behind him. Without hesitation, Mason had unsheathed his sword and marched on Mr. Ages. Dietrich saw what was about to happen and pulled his sword out as well. "No!" He shouted, diving to block Mason's blow. Their swords crashed and Dietrich tumbled to the ground after lunging at an awkward angle. Mr. Ages backpedaled from the fray, staring wide-eyed.
"Out of the way Dietrich!" Mason screamed, then swinging down at Dietrich as he tried to twist himself straight. The blade cracked against Dietrich's shin, cutting into him. Dietrich cried in pain, but had enough sense to react, driving his heel into Mason's groin. As Mason doubled over in pain, Dietrich lunged up, ramming his blade through Mason's heart. Death was almost instant, and Mason's body fell limp on top of Dietrich's legs.
Dietrich writhed in pain again. The sword had cut deep into his calve and the pain was like fire burning his skin. He struggled to push Mason's body off, but the pain became so intense that it was nearly unbearable. Suddenly, Mr. Ages was there, helping to push the body away. They sat motionless, looking at Mason's body as the train rumbled on its way.
"He was supposed to kill me," Mr. Ages said blankly.
"We both were," Dietrich said.
"What?"
"We were all sent to kill you. Mason, Pollux, and I. We were to complete the mission and then kill everyone before we returned."
"But... why, who?" Mr. Ages stumbled.
"Jenner. We were sent by Jenner."
"Jenner's alive?"
"He's alive, and he's back in Thorn Valley. We were all working with him."
"Why?"
"Because we believed in a cause..."
"And just what made you change your mind?"
"I don't know," Dietrich said after a long pause. "Somewhere along the way, I just realized it was wrong."
"Well, now what? For all we know, Justin may be dead. And I assume Jenner had some kind of plan for Thorn Valley while Justin was away."
"It's a long story," Dietrich said, as he tore open a supply bag, looking for a bandage. "But right now, we should follow these tracks and look for Justin. We need to get back before it's too late."
After bandaging his leg, Dietrich and Mr. Ages dragged Max's body across the bridge. Dietrich's wound was deep, making it almost impossible to put any weight on his right leg. After they hid the body and supplies, they headed off following the train tracks, proceeding slowly due to Dietrich's limp. They traveled for several hours before finally running into Justin. Dietrich explained what had happened, but Justin had already figured out in his head what was going on. The journey back didn't take as long with Justin helping Dietrich along. They returned to the landing spot and explained to a confused Brenda and Archer what had happened. A return to Thorn Valley was needed immediately, but neither Jeremy nor his mate were anywhere to be found.
"How many are dead?" Nicodemus asked.
"I don't know. Ten, maybe twenty," Orion said, speaking to Nicodemus in the confines of the library, where many of the rats had barricaded themselves. Their position became even more desperate now that Jenner had breached the unprotected side of the lair. "There's too much ruble to tell now."
Nicodemus sighed deeply. "He simply will not rest until he has destroyed us all. He must be stopped, before anymore lives are lost."
"That's the hard part. We never anticipated a move like this. He's moved in deep now. It's hard to say where he may be, or where to concentrate the most defensively. God dammit this is a big fuck up!" Orion shouted to himself bitterly. "I should have known better."
"Do not hold yourself for the blame, Orion. None of us could have predicted such a monstrous attack. You mustn't dwell on your mistakes, and instead concentrate on you strengths."
Sarah had been kneeling next to Nicodemus, after taking a brief leave from the Brisby children. "Listen to Nicodemus," she said. "He's right. Jenner can be stopped, and you can stop him."
Orion turned away, scratching his wounded ear. "I don't know," he said softly. "Maybe..."
Sarah stood, moving in front of him. "Yes, you can. I know you can." She took his hands in hers. "I've always believed you could accomplish anything, and you always could. And I still believe in you."
Orion looked at Sarah, gazing into her eyes. She may have been a generation older than him, but she had an innocence he admired. She was trusting and loving. She was the sweetest person he knew, and he knew he would rather die then let any harm come to her. He ran his fingers through her hair, watching the smile that had always made him feel alive, when suddenly, the thought hit him.
"What is it?" Sarah asked, noting the abrupt change in his expression.
"I have an idea," he said.
"Tell me, what is it?"
"No, it's better if you don't know."
"But, Orion-"
"No, hush now. I need you to stay here and keep yourself safe. This will all be over soon." He kissed her on the forehead gently before rushing off into the darkness.
He ran into Arthur shortly after. "I've got a plan," Orion said.
"What is it?" Arthur asked.
"I've got no time to explain, just trust me. I want you to order all the men to hold their positions. Do not make any advancements on Jenner's positions, no matter how safe it looks."
"Orion, wait. Why not?"
"You'll know soon enough, just go, do it." Before Arthur could reply, Orion was off running, only he wasn't running towards the fight, he was running towards the destroyed rear entrance.