Disclaimer: I may or may not own Major Boyer (or maybe he owns me…), but none of the other characters are really mine.
OUT OF THE ASHES
Chapter Thirteen
Calm Before the Storm
Aki wasn't excited about having the chance to study real Phantom cadavers, though it had been something she and Sid had long wished for. She knew the bodies would help her; perhaps even solve the puzzle of their return as well as the revival of the others. Once, she would have been elated by the prospect.
But now… Why had she faltered when it came to attacking the Phantom? True, she was a med tech by training, not a soldier, but the Phantoms had destroyed so many lives. And this one had nearly taken the life of one she had sworn to protect, to make certain wouldn't come to harm. She had lost Gray, and she didn't want to lose his squad. But why had she hesitated? She had seen… something in the Phantom's eyes. It had been as intelligent as she was. She was reluctant to end another sentient being's life.
Aki sighed and settled back into the jeep seat beside Jane. Up front, Ryan was driving, all the while on the lookout for his errant squad member. After Neil's outburst, the others had decided to let him cool off. Aki could tell from the way Jane's gaze nervously swept the horizon that she was concerned for him, despite her calm words.
"He'll be all right," Aki said softly. "He just needs some time to think things through. After all, it helped you."
"No," Jane said bitterly. "It got me captured and abused. What if Boyer's men find Neil? I… don't want that to happen to him." There was something about Jane's face that suggested she was hiding something, but Aki didn't pry.
"Speaking of Boyer," Aki said, suddenly remembering her conversation with General Ryder earlier, "we may have found him!"
Even Ryan turned to look at her, both shocked and pleased. "Where?"
"So we can nail the bastard after all?" Jane cracked her knuckles, a predatory look crossing over her face. "Remember, he's mine."
"We'll have to talk to General Ryder," Aki said. "But if we've found him, and we can retrieve Dr. Sid…"
"Let's get to it," Ryan said. He turned the jeep towards the military headquarters. "The sooner the better."
Galvanized by the prospect of rescuing her mentor, Aki quickly forgot her concerns about her inaction against the Phantom.
Her worries about Neil, however, stayed with her.
* * *
General Ryder looked harried when they entered his office. He was speaking to Councilman Drake, and waved for them to take a seat until he was finished.
Jane sat tensely; her adrenaline was up and she was ready for battle. She didn't want to sit and wait for Ryder! Beneath her fingers, a film of frost crept along the chair's arm, and Jane hastily tried to clamp down on her feelings. She didn't want another accident.
Fortunately, Ryder didn't keep them waiting long. When he turned to them, the gloomy expression on his face lifted for a moment. "Excellent work," he said. "My lieutenant told me what you did. He was a little… shocked by your methods of stopping the Phantoms, but he's been appraised of the situation."
"Thank you, sir," Ryan said. "But holding off a larger force will be difficult with so few of us." He hesitated. "We need the people in New York."
"If I could retrieve them all, I would," Ryder sighed. "All the barrier cities could use people like you. Unfortunately, Hein's men run the city."
Jane's lips curled in a wordless snarl. They had left the 307's in charge when they departed. Hein's takeover had probably been all too easy for them.
"What about Dr. Sid?" Aki interrupted. From the determined gleam in her eyes, Jane knew she wouldn't be deterred.
"Ah, yes. Well, we've run into a little hitch," General Ryder said delicately.
Jane saw Aki stiffen. "What do you mean?"
"The Council wants us to tighten security on the city. We can't just leave the barrier powered up, since the Phantoms will learn sooner that it no longer has any effect on them if we do. I can't send out a force right now to rescue the doctor."
"General Ryder!" Aki jumped to her feet. "We need him! He may be our best hope of surviving this! Please!"
"Send us," Ryan suggested. "Just Jane, Neil, and I. We could sneak in, grab the doctor, and get out."
"I'm going, too," Aki said.
"I can't let you do that," Ryder said apologetically. "The Council doesn't want any USMF to leave the city in this time of crisis. It's a shame," he sighed. "We found their base by tracking a communication from New York to their location. We have the coordinates on our computer files, but we just can't spare the men. Everyone will be too busy fighting." General Ryder gave Ryan a significant look, and the sergeant's eyes widened, before he gave an affirmative nod.
"Thank you, General," Ryan said, standing. "Sorry to have wasted your time."
"But…" Aki began. "We need Sid!" She looked almost hysterical, Jane thought with surprise. She'd never seen the normally passive doctor so emotional.
"Come one," Jane said, taking Aki's arm and leading her out.
"If I spoke with the Council…" Aki said angrily.
"They'd disagree," Ryan said, halting them when they were well away from the offices. "Calm down, Doctor, we're going to find him."
"We are?"
Jane grinned. "General Ryder can't officially let us go," she explained. "But he told us where the information can be accessed. He knows we have a tech that can hack into the files. He also hinted that no one will be around to stop us when we leave."
"He's letting us go?" Aki asked in disbelief.
"Not if anyone asks, but yes. He just gave us his blessing… unofficially, of course," Ryan said.
A slow smile spread across Aki's face. "Think we can do it?"
"Who knows? Let's find Neil and see what we're going up against!" There was almost a spring to Jane's step. Maybe now they could find some answers!
But… would Neil be up to it? If what Jane suspected about him was true, he could end up being more of a hindrance than a help.
Please… Let me be wrong about this!
* * *
Neil was seriously regretting his outburst. Yeah… Great way to keep things secret. Think they still don't suspect something's wrong?
Still… For a moment, that other mind had flared up and overwhelmed him, making him a prisoner in his own body. If it hadn't been for that protective shield, he would have died all over again. But I don't think I made that barrier… Did the other personality do it? A horrifying thought seized Neil. What if it has powers, but I don't? It could overwhelm me! I could lose myself completely!
Frightened, Neil roamed the empty streets that were slowly coming to life. As citizens stopped him and thanked him for the USMF's successful battle against the Phantoms, Neil began to calm himself. The other personality was trying to help… I just fought it because it wasn't me!
As he made his way back to the Hilton, he began to wonder: Just who did he have inside of him? Was it another soldier? Someone who had fought valiantly before tragically dying? What if… what if it's the captain? Neil stumbled as the thought struck him. Gray would have tried to help them in any way he could. Maybe, with his body destroyed, this was all that was available to him.
Neil decided to keep these thoughts to himself. There was no sense in getting anyone's hopes up. But if it were true…
He went up to the apartment, hesitantly opening the door. He wasn't looking forward to the questions of the others.
But to his surprise, the others were gathered around the main table, looking as if they were deep in conversation. Jane finally looked up and saw him. "Hey, Neil," she said. "It's about time you got back." She was, Neil thought a little jealously, sitting quite close to Ryan.
"We need you to get some information for us," Ryan said.
"What's going on?" Neil asked.
"A rescue mission," Aki said, her face more alive than Neil had seen in awhile.
Quickly, they filled him in on what was transpiring. "Can you get the files?" Aki asked.
Neil lifted his head and said cockily, "Of course," he said. "Just let me use your terminal and I'll take care of it right now."
He was grateful for the relative solitude hacking into the military data files afforded him. With his mind on dodging complex alarm systems, he couldn't spare any thoughts for the others in his mind.
Swiftly, he located the information, downloading it to a disk before wiping away any traces of his intrusion. These skills had gotten him into a lot of trouble in the Houston Military Academy. Just because he'd tried to alter a grade once… or twice…
"Neil?" Jane said softly behind him. Neil tensed, but he refused to let any emotion show. "Can I speak to you a moment?"
"No one's stopping you," Neil said without taking his eyes from the screen. He didn't like the tone of her voice. She had something important to say to him.
"Do you have the base's location?" Jane asked, her eyes on the softly glowing icons.
"Yep. I'm just covering my tracks now." He doubted she'd come in here to check on him. She knew he could handle such a relatively simple task.
"Good." Jane closed the door behind her, then drew up a chair next to him. If she's not planning anything romantic, then this is not good. Neil's eyes met hers and took in the unaccustomed concern. Definitely not good. "Neil," she began softly, "can you handle this? The rescue could get rough."
Neil scowled. "Jane, you know how many rough missions I've been on. What makes you think this will be any different?"
"I saw you other there. You froze up against that Phantom."
Neil stiffened. "It caught me by surprise… I didn't have time…"
"What if you do something like that during this mission, when lives are at stake?" Jane countered.
"C'mon, Jane, you know me better than that!" Neil bristled. "It's one little incident after years of an excellent record. Why do you doubt me now?"
"Because you're a Duo, aren't you?" Jane said, her voice barely audible.
"What?" Neil choked out. She knows! "I don't know what you're talking about."
"You've been acting oddly since our return, despite the fact that you seemed to be one of the few who hadn't manifested any powers. And I heard you over the radio – 'Get out of my head,' you said." Jane's face was hard. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"That I'm going to go mad, you mean? That I'm suffering a split personality that's going to tear me apart? Do you think I wanted to admit to you that I know my end is coming? I don't want to talk about it, Jane. Let me do this while I still can. I think I can hold together long enough. If not… well, leave me, 'cause I don't want to end up like those others in New York – I'd rather die bravely."
"Neil," Jane whispered. The sorrow in her voice tugged at him.
"I don't want any sympathy," he said bitterly. "And don't tell the others, either." Neil ejected the disk and tossed it to her. "Just let me do what I can. You can decide what to do with me afterwards."
To Be Continued…