Chapter 24

They reached Mayaba at late noon the next day, well they reached what was left of Mayaba.

"What the hell…?" Deunan whispered and Briareos had no answer to give.

During the last couple of days, they had passed several beat-up villages, some of them so deserted and isolated they didn't even had any signs of electricity. But Mayaba was supposed to be different.

Certainly, it wasn't a big city, no name to be found on the world map, not rich enough to be home of big companies. Yet it still was certainly a well-developed little town, or at least it used to be.

Deserted cars welcomed them out on the streets, wind whispered through empty houses, some with broken windows and open doors, some looking like their inhabitants were just on vacation.

"Nah, I don't like that," Briareos mumbled. "They knew we were coming."

"Yeah, but I haven't seen any sniper yet. Shouldn't they have welcomed us?" Deunan wasn't wrong.

He hadn't noticed any living being, except for the two of them, either.

"We didn't use one of the main entries," he explained, "and we took a slight turn, they probably expect us to come from the south. But the further we get into town, the easier they'll notice us."

Deunan nodded slightly and pointed at a small kiosk a couple hundred feet down a small aisle; it looked abandoned as well, the chain around the front-door handle a weak sign of security.

"That one looks promising, don't you think?"

She referred to the advertisement, which seemed just somewhat strange, prices not matching the displayed goods and the windows just a little bit too packed, making it almost impossible to take a good look inside.

He agreed silently. As expected, things weren't running as smoothly as they had hoped for and now, they needed to restructure and fill up their supplies.

Swiftly they made it down the tiny passage and entered the abandoned shop through a neighboring house, leaving no trace behind and the front door untouched. It took them only few seconds within the tiny apartment to find the door leading to the kiosk, it wasn't even locked; probably apartment and shop had been owned by the same person, who had deserted both in order to protect their life.

Within the shop they carefully secured the area, before they allowed to calm down for a moment.

"So, nothing about leaving Mayaba behind as fast as possible, huh?" Deunan commented while both of them skimmed the tiny store for anything they might need. "Found some bottled water, and a town's map."

"And I found Aladdin's cave," Briareos smirked while pulling up the hatch concealed by an old rag just behind the counter.

Deunan came up behind him.

"Gee, I knew this shop looked suspicious."

He had to hand it to her, despite her lacking experience she easily picked up such tiny details. Without answering he slid down the screeching stairs and took a cautious glance around.

"Secure," he called up. "You sure did choose the right spot."

The only light he had was his flashlight and whatever the hole in the ceiling offered, still the openly displayed arsenal made him smirk. Their greatest disadvantage – limited resources – was gone.

Back upstairs he joined Deunan who had spread the map of Mayaba on the floor in front of them.

"Here we are," she mumbled and pointed at the lower left corner, "and we'd have to head this way if we want to reach our meeting point." She drew a line from the lower left corner over the left side of the map until she reached the upper end of town in the middle of the map. "Our goal has to be somewhere here." She continued the line for a few inches, leaving the paper behind and knocking on the cold floor as the map wasn't displaying enough. "So, we could also take a loop over the town's outskirts, if they expect us to come from the south, we should be fine staying west."

"We won't go." He regarded the map carefully. "Whatever happened to the residents, the military is in charge of this town now. After our ambush they probably just waiting for us to show up and they know that the only way we can head is north, so the farther up we go the more likely it is for us to run into traps and soldiers."

"But…"

"Even if we make it out of town, we don't even know if somebody's waiting at the meeting point. If O'Brian sent landmates, they could have been found already. We can't just give it a shot; if we're followed but there's no backup, we can't take cover, we can't outrun them and even the two of us can't fight a whole army."

"So, what's the plan?"

"We need to call for backup," he mumbled, "we can use the town's terrain for our advantage. Unless Russia bombs the whole town, we can hide like in a maze and take them out one by one. They probably won't expect two individuals but a whole unit. This way we can last till backup arrives."

He could feel her uneasiness.

"You disagree?"

She shook her head.

"I just don't like the sound of it. It feels more like we're trapped in a maze till backup comes."

Briareos nodded and took one of the water bottles Deunan had found.

"You're right. We can't go back, or we run right into enemy troops. We can't leave or they see and follow us, if they don't face us before we even make it that far." He pulled his own map out of his pocket and spread it next to the other one. "The only other way we could go is west, but we would need to march for days until we reach the next town. It's a gamble one way or another."

"So, playing hide-and-seek is our best shot?"

"Well given the supply here, the arsenal downstairs and that we're outnumbered no matter what, yes, I'd say this is the best way to do."

"So, we better get comfy, right?"

Half an hour later they secured their little stronghold as much as they could and while Deunan was downstairs, sorting their newly gained arsenal, he was using the ancient satellite-phone he had found – it had to be at least 25 years old – to contact their camp.

But it appeared to be more difficult than expected, he was just not good when it came to tech other than weapons.

Just as Deunan came back upstairs he was finally able to set everything up to be able to contact their base tag-proof, although it wasn't out of chance that the phone could be tracked down if the call lasted longer than few minutes, he wasn't sure if and how many minutes exactly.

"You're like an old man with that," Deunan laughed, "want me to take a look?"

"Tze," he chuckled. "I'm doing just fine, thank you."

She winked at him. "For such a superior soldier your technology-skills are lacking. Those old versions are so easy to handle, and you took somewhat ten minutes to make it work."

"Yeah, go ahead and make fun of me."

He wasn't in the mood for fighting, this phone was testing his patience.

"Did you turn the GPS off? Wouldn't want to be localized, would we?"

"I'm not stupid Deunan. Did you put on your thermal suit?"

"You really think they're using IR cameras? We don't even know, if they noticed us, not even talking about searching for us."

Now he looked up.

"I would, and even if they haven't noticed us, better safe than sorry."

He wasn't fan of the thermal suits either. Folded up they weren't as big as a wallet, seemingly nothing more than a piece of darkish grey fabric, but stretchable as hell. The suit was worn beneath the clothes and could cover the whole body or everything except fingertips and face, an almost perfect protection from infrared cameras. On the downside they were kind of warm and everything but comfortable.

Still Deunan lifted her chin and showed him the collar of her suit.

"Okay so let's try to contact O'Brian."

"You're late!"

"By one minute," Briareos huffed while Yoshitsune pulled him along.

"Yeah, but everybody is going crazy, we got a tight schedule."

"I know that." Briareos let out a sigh. Today was rough on him.

"So, if you know, why did you show up…"

"Yoshitsune!" Easily he interrupted the bioroid, who acted almost as annoying as Nike could. Often Briareos wouldn't think too much of it, just brush it aside, but today his skin was thin, his nerves were raw.

Not even half an hour ago he had stumbled over Deunan and if he was honest, that short moment had been worse than any fight they had so far. She could grow angry, she could grow mad, she could turn into a damn hurricane if she wanted to, and yes, oh she knew how to use just the right words to put him in his place, to challenge him, and also to hurt him.

But just then she hadn't been neither loud nor fighting, she had been scared and sad, and Briareos knew just why. He knew exactly that his behavior, his words, that he was the very reason she was about to crumble, and it pained him more than he could ever express.

Briareos stayed silent as they plugged some tubes in his body, squeezed some blood out of it, and measured everything about him that was measurable. He payed no attention to them, partly because they were mainly talking about him and not talking with him, but mainly because he hurt.

No matter his education, no matter his upbringing, if Briareos were a man with a normal body he knew he would be crying by now, he knew that while just sitting here with that numb piercing pain, the tears would just silently find their way without him being able to stop them.

But his body wasn't capable of crying and his lacking facial features would never reveal what he felt inside.

He wished for Deunan, he wished none of this would have happened, he wished he had never known what this whole Dr. Wilder mission had been about, he wished he had never risked their Eden.

Up until now he had been certain that he was doing the right thing for the both of them, that afterwards he would be either in a position to offer Deunan the future she deserved or giving her the freedom to move on, unburdened by his weight. Up until now he was certain, that it was all worth it, that he could bear it for the greater good, for the future, but also for himself.

But now he wished he hadn't been so strongminded, now he wished he hadn't challenged Nike to take on this damn experiment, because then he would never had put Deunan in such a position, and he would never have wavered like he did right now.

It was true, Briareos had not been truly happy during the last few years, but Deunan had been the sunshine in his life and for one day being embraced by her light he could have dealt with a lifetime of darkness. But now, he wasn't sure if they could go back to how they were. Now he didn't know if it even mattered if he would survive the experiment, because he had just destroyed everything he was fighting for.

Was this one time, when he acted in selfishness, the one time he would lose anything he lived for? Did he just erase all the years he had sacrificed to make sure Deunan was living the life she deserved? Had he just taken that life from her?

Oh, how he wished he could cry. Not in front of those men and women, not here in this place, but he wished he could loosen that tightness in his chest, how he wished he could bring those emotions out of his body, where they were caged in with him, drowning him.

Suddenly the grand glass tube caught his eye and he looked up, staring at the strange being inside.

No, he wasn't to falter just now. Not after all he had done, not after all he had sacrificed. He deserved that he tried it and Deunan deserved that he fought for it.

It wouldn't do nothing to wish for time to be reversed and it wouldn't do nothing to regret what he had done. If there was an after, he would have a lifetime to apologize to Deunan, to seek her forgiveness and to pay for his sins. And if there wasn't an after, at least he had tried, at least for once, he had tried something solely for himself.

"You're awfully quiet today. Are you nervous?"

He looked up. Yoshitsune raised an eyebrow and compared two charts on his smartboard without even looking at him.

"I mean you're always more the brooding type, but today is bad. Shouldn't you be excited? You just passed the 99%. Tomorrow will be the last simulation, and then it's about to begin."

Briareos remembered the day Yoshitsune had tried to talk him out of it.

What if you fail and die? She'll be alone.

Yoshitsune had been right all along, even though he hadn't failed yet, hadn't died yet, she was alone. He had left her behind to do this on his own.

Because I do what's always best for her.

And he hoped - prayed to a God he didn't believe in – that he still knew what was best for her, that he wasn't mistaken.

"I am glad you are excited", he stated calmly but without enthusiasm.

Now the engineer looked up and met his view.

"Briareos, are you alright? You know if something's wrong you can always talk to me? I can't imagine what you're going through right now, but you're not alone and if this here is supposed to have the tiniest chance of succeeding you need to be in a stable place of mind, so please…"

"Relax, Yoshitsune. Don't forget who I am. I am never not in a stable place of mind. No need to worry about me. If it's humanly possible to succeed, then I will, because I am the best there is and I have never failed a mission so far."

Yoshitsune leaned against the arm rest.

"That's not what I'm talking about, Briareos."

"I know, but what do you want me to say? It's just like back then. I promised her the world, a future, and then I left her behind to die on some kind of suicide mission. She came back for me once; I don't think she can for a second time."

Slowly Yoshitsune let his view slide over Briareos, the glass tube next to him, the room filled with scientists, doctors, engineers, and whatever, before finally glancing back at Briareos.

"I think that depends," he responded with the gentlest smile Briareos had ever seen from him.

"On what?"

"It depends on if you can come back a second time."

"I'll be back in no time. You just stay here and secure the ground, okay?"

It sounded like a question, but it was none.

Deunan looked up at him and nodded sharply. It was a clear order.

For several days now they were playing hide and seek with that Russian unit, which had – just as they had expected them to – waited for them to head north and try to leave the town.

By now they had taken care of most of their enemies, only few soldiers were left and those had decided to hide from them. Briareos actually doubted that those few people would even follow them if they were to leave Mayaba now, at least not as long as no backup was coming.

But it was fairly possible that the Russians had seen him or Deunan or knew at least that there were only two of them, so he wanted to take care of them before their backup could arrive, if it even would. It wasn't like there were many Russian units out there left after base and supply route were gone, just waiting for another one to be saved while at the same time fighting to survive themselves and it wasn't easy to contact anybody nowadays.

Briareos knew best. It had taken them hours to finally be able to reach O'Brian and the connection had been everything but good. They didn't know if it was an issue with the satellites or something with the dessert or whatever, but apparently technology was going crazy right now. Just one more reason not to rely on it too much.

O'Brian's news wasn't too reassuring as well. He had told them, that they would send a special team to pick them up, but because whatever the hell was wrong with technology right now, the landmate's navigation system didn't work, so their backup would arrive by car, taking several days longer.

So, for the moment, Deunan and Briareos were simply holding out until they were picked up, trying to kill the last few of their enemies, before those could pose a threat to them.

She smiled slightly.

"Since you found that little woodpecker in Aladdin's cave, you're so eager to get some action."

He didn't return her smile, still it lightened his mood. She wasn't wrong. The kiosk Deunan had chosen, was one of those few, which sold weapons illegally and although the selection was very limited past the basics, it was more than they could have hoped for and he even found an older model of his favorite woodpecker, the very version he had used back in the days when Carl had hurried him through California's woods. So yes, he loved to use it.

It wasn't pure luck that she had picked that very store. This area here was a common place for other countries to fight their battles for decades and probably even centuries and at some point the people here had decided to take fate into their own hands. Small towns like this often had stores like this, black market weapon, sometimes with malfunctions or unfitting armor; Deunan and Briareos knew that and they also knew how to recognize such stores, but that she had been able to turn theory into reality impressed him.

Suddenly her face turned serious and she placed a hand at her earplug, with which she tried to follow the open news channel, their only possibility to get new - unfortunately not secret - information from the world, although the connection was lacking and broke off every few minutes for several hours.

"What's wrong?" Briareos regarded her wary, they needed no additional handicap.

"It seems Olympus has just declared to interfere," Deunan mumbled, still listening concentrated. "First units have already departed and are about to reach ground. Apparently not too far from here."

Now she looked at him.

"What does that mean for us? How do we proceed if we come across them?"

"With caution," he replied calm. "Even though Olympus isn't our biggest fan, they're more hostile towards Russia than us."

He regarded Deunan for another moment.

"I wonder why they decided to become active just yet. Usually that artificial island keeps its position of neutrality pretty high and doesn't participate outside of its own home waters."

Deunan shrugged her shoulders and dropped her hand.

"Well, Africa is close to them after all, and maybe they were just waiting for something to happen - like us blowing up the Russian camp and supply route - to take action. Like you said, they have never been friends with Russia."

He nodded in agreement and turned for the door.

"Whatever it is, doesn't mean they're on our side. Stay alert and in doubt be the first to kill, not to be killed."

She waved it aside.

"Don't worry, like I trust anybody here, but you."

Without replying he left. His goal for the day was to take out the last few enemies. During the early morning Deunan had been able to locate their hiding spot and count how many of them were left, four probably plus a scout.

Their original plan had been to locate the enemy's stronghold and to attack together at night, but while retrieving a scout had noted Deunan; she had taken him out of course but it was likely that she had been traced by someone.

So, they were probably alarmed by now, but Briareos didn't mind. Those soldiers were no highly trained, specialized unit. Right now they simply tried to stay alive, praying for backup, and if he had mercy he wouldn't come for them, but this was war and he was an assassin, there was no place for mercy.

Olympus taking action worried him way more than those few rats in his maze, their influence was hard to predict. But he would worry about that later, as he hunted through broken houses and empty streets, circling his prey and getting closer.

He preferred doing this on his own, while Deunan was the bait in the trap.

It was fairly possible that one or two of their enemies had traced Deunan back to the kiosk. In that case they would try to take her out, now that he was gone.

But if they really went for that strategy, they were already doomed, for Deunan was awaiting them. In silence Briareos corrected that those soldiers had been doomed the moment he and his pointman had entered town.

Suddenly he paused as an all too familiar noise came closer. Hastily he made it into the fourth floor of an abandoned building to be able to skim his surroundings.

"Damn it! Not now," he hissed under his breath.

From the East several jets were heading his way, probably Russian origin, and at the horizon in the South he could see the almost science fictional airship of Olympus. He remembered very well the first time he had seen a picture of the flying stronghold, but it was even more impressive in real life.

Still, he had no time to stand there in awe and watch. He needed to get Deunan and then they had to get out of town or take cover.

The least likely was about to happen. The one thing both of them had not expected to happen. Russia, at the moment suffering from terrible losses and not able to reach most of its forces located in Africa, had decided to shell this town just because of the slight chance that this way they could get rid of the unit they feared, just because of Deunan and Briareos.

This act was nothing than revenge and they didn't even care if they were to kill several of their own people, who might have even somehow informed their leading operator about Briareos and Deunan.

Briareos ran as fast as he could, neglecting his cover and everything else he should pay attention to. They wouldn't make it out of town in time, the only chance they had was to take cover in that little Aladdin's cave and pray that it would withstand the impact. Briareos knew that, but he didn't know if Deunan knew it, if she even knew that they were about to be under attack.

They had no way of communicating with each other, the faulty connection and the possibility of being tracked had seemed more dangerous than not being able to talk to each other for a few minutes, so now he had to be fast.

The ground trembled and for a moment he lost balance, which didn't stop him from running. That had probably been the first impact, more were to come. He could only hope that Deunan wasn't misjudging it for a small earthquake and he could only pray that she would stick to the rules and take cover. He feared that she would do the same mistake he was doing in this very moment and that fear made him run even faster.

He passed something that could have been a school, the dooming shadow of Olympus' airship hovering over the sports ground, but he didn't care for that moment. If they wanted to kill him, they should get in line.

For a second time the earth quaked, this time longer and sound of several impacts growled through the air like a thunderstorm.

He had to be faster, needed to run quicker, leaving the school and Olympus' flying town behind him, less than a mile was between him and his goal, between him and Deunan. He would make it, if he was just…

Breathing harsh he turned to his left, he was just about to pass the main street, a long multilane road, almost parting the town, when he could see it, how the bomber came and suddenly everything became slow.

Briareos turned around and ran for the closest cover he could see, knowing very well, that he wouldn't make it, knowing very well that if a bomb would fall, he could as well.

Deunan!

For a moment he thought he had seen her in a window, but it was nothing than wishful thinking – although he was happier that she wasn't there, he prayed that she was somewhere safe – but then he saw the reflection of Olympus' airship.

The glass broke and he jumped over a small brick wall only to realize it was too late. Time froze when he saw the aircraft bomb almost beside him.

There was nothing he could do; nothing could save him.

Briareos realized that he would die right here and now, but all he could think about was that she was hopefully save. Hopefully she had taken cover after the first quake. He prayed to this God he didn't know that she was save, that she would survive, that she would…

Deunan

BOOM!