Genji and Tracy left the rest of the group as soon as the opportunity arose. They did not trust the underground facility, or the clones, and had no intention of staying around. Especially not with Genji's brother so close behind. It was a death trap.
Hanzo. Tracy had heard enough about Hanzo to know he was bad news. At least, for Genji. A furious warrior blessed with great intelligence, strength, and spiritual wellbeing, he was in tune with the Shimada ancestors in a way that Genji had never been. And for that reason, he was their father's favourite.
General Shimada. Perhaps the most powerful man in the world. He'd been given great power in Japan before the Fallout, as he'd been the only one strong enough to defy their enemies on an international scale. When Japan became the only country to survive the Fallout, he therefore became undisputed leader of the most powerful civilisation on Earth. It was all very suspicious, in Tracy's opinion. She could understand why Genji had stolen her father's most precious artifact and run for his life.
She could not understand why he'd come to America, a place that had been obliterated by the Fallout, and was now overrun with undead hordes and violent omnic armies.
Genji ran beside her. He was silent, his eyes far away. She knew what he was thinking about. He rounded a corner, stopped, and pulled back.
'More clones, just around here,' he whispered. Tracy nodded.
'Let me take care of it.'
'No, we should…'
Tracy shook her head. 'Genji, please, trust me on this one. I don't want to hurt these men, and I will be a much better distraction.'
Genji did not look pleased about it, but finally gave in with a nod. Tracy moved swiftly.
She ran ahead, almost knocking one of the guards down, and ignored their cries of protest as she continued. They tried to grab her, but missed. She led them down one corridor, then around another. She only had a few seconds, and that was if she could use her ability the way she wanted to…
As she passed the next corner, with two guards still in pursuit, she allowed herself to slip out of time once more and suddenly she was back by Genji's side, standing in almost the exact spot she had been a few seconds ago. He blinked and looked at her, stunned into silence.
'It's true,' he said. 'It's all true.'
'I told you,' she snapped. They ran forward. The corridor they needed was now empty, though they could hear the distracted guards up ahead shuffling around, wondering where Tracy had gone.
They continued through the facility, and did not see anyone else for several minutes.
'So what is the plan?' Tracy asked. 'If we do escape this place – and it's a big if – we'll be stuck in the middle of a desert with no food or water surrounded by enemies.'
'It's not like we haven't been in that situation before,' he countered.
'We got lucky last time. There won't be any miracles for us this time. Not to mention your brother is out there, right on our tail, and…'
Genji narrowed his eyes at her as he walked. There was something in his bunched shoulders that made it look as if he wanted to stop and snap at her, but they didn't have the time. So he settled for some harsh words.
'I know what my brother will do if he finds me. Let me worry about that. If you can't handle the pressure you should have stayed back with the others like I suggested.'
Tracy scowled. There were lots of things she wanted to say back to him, but decided against it. Genji was right, in his own way. They had to be tough, and they had to stick together, or else they might as well give up now.
The nearest exit was far from the dorm rooms that Tracy, Genji and the others had been assigned. It was a trap door in the roof, at the end of a long corridor that slanted upwards. They opened the door and were flooded with light, stepping out with their hands above their squinting eyes. This exit, apparently, led to the top of the mountain. A rocky outcrop with a view of half the desert.
Genji gasped, lowering his hand.
'Oh, shit,' he said. 'We're too late.'
Tracy lowered her goggles over her eyes. They helped considerably against the glaring sun. They had been useful in many situations actually, since the rational world ended. She was going to ask Genji what he had seen but there was no point. As soon as she looked up it was clear.
Two enormous flying warships were bearing down on them. Both were of Japanese design, and clearly not friendly.
The pair ducked, but they needn't have bothered. The two warships were not looking for two speck-sized humans on the plateau below. The first of them rounded the mountain and landed outside the front of the facility, where it began to unload weapons, vehicles, and mounted turrets. The second, much more slowly, came to land near the rear of the mountain, expecting exits. In fact it was not far from where Tracy and Genji were waiting.
It was a trap, Tracy realised. Anyone who survived the initial fight would aim to flee through the mountain and out the other side, where they would meet the second Japanese force. A pincer move.
The second warship lowered its loading ramp, and a dozen smaller vehicles hovered out.
'We should fight them,' Genji said, steel in his voice.
'That's a ridiculous idea,' Tracy snapped. 'There are probably hundreds of them, and we…'
They didn't have time to discuss the point further. Five of the hover cars were racing towards them, the sun glinting like camera flashes from their sleek bodies. They had been spotted.
Tracy considered going back inside the facility, but it seemed like a pointless exercise. The enemy would be behind them as well as in front soon enough, and their enemies were close enough to shoot them down now. If Tracy turned her back she had no doubt they would take that opportunity. Besides, Genji still stood, back straight and arms folded, waiting for the enemy to come.
The five bikes circled around them. Hanzo and his squad stepped off.
She knew it was Hanzo immediately. The muscled physique, dark eyes, long hair, tattooed arm, and of course the enormous bow and arrow he carried. He looked like a warrior in every sense of the word, and yet there was an air of calm spirituality to him as well. His family's clan, which Genji had loosely translated as the Emperor's Dragons, were no doubt fond of their oldest son. The way Genji told the story they were much less fond of the younger.
'Brother,' Hanzo said, walking closer, unafraid. 'You have led me on quite a chase. I am not amused.'
It was clear that he was very unamused. The grim expression on Hanzo's face was somewhere between annoyance, exasperation, and fury.
'Hand over the blade,' he said. 'If I can return with the weapon I can leave you here in peace. But I cannot leave without the weapon. Father would not allow it.'
'That won't happen,' Genji scowled. 'You'll never leave us in peace.'
'Believe what you want. We both know the truth of the matter. Because no matter how angry father is with you he will always care more about that katana.'
Tracy noticed the wincing expression on Genji's face, but hoped for the sake of his pride that none of the Japanese hit-men and women did. Genji was young to be an outcast. And in these days, these horrific times, being an outcast from your family was a fate worse than death. Most people were lucky to even have a family.
'Let her go,' Genji said, with something like bravery. 'She doesn't need to be a part of this.'
'Everyone does,' Hanzo shrugged. 'I'll kill every living man, woman and child in this facility until that sword is in my hand. My people are attacking the main entrance now, and they will break through fairly quickly, of that I have no doubt. We know all about this place. It's weaknesses…'
'How?'
'Father helped design it.' Hanzo's bearded face twisted into something of a smile, and he flicked a long strand of hair away from his face. 'There is a lot you don't know about what father did before the Fallout. But let me just say you are on the wrong side of the war.'
Tracy gulped. This was more than a brotherly rival now, this was an answer. The answer to the only question anyone wanted answered. What had happened to the world that could have led to this? Why were the dead rising, and why were there armies of robots hunting the survivors? What was the army of clones for? What had Genji and his family had to do with it?
Genji, she realised, had no clue.
'Wrong side of the war?' he exclaimed. 'The war is over. This is just what's left!'
'No.' Hanzo shook his head, reaching for the katana by Genji's side. 'The war is about to begin.'
Genji drew the weapon and took up a fighter's stance. All eyes were on him now. Hanzo sighed with anticlimactic weariness, and drew his bow. The two faced each other.
'Is this really what you want?' the older asked.
Genji was breathing heavily, eyes narrowed, knuckles white around the hilt of his sword. He did not answer, so Tracy did it for him, not prepared to remain a bystander any longer.
'Yeah, mate, it's what we want.'
She drew her twin pulse pistols and fired one shot at Hanzo, the other at one of the soldiers surrounding them. Hanzo dodged, but the other soldier had not been paying attention, and was hit immediately in the chest. She took three steps forward and jumped ahead in time, so that she slipped from the ring of enemies, and shot two more in the back before she returned to her previous position.
The Japanese soldiers were, understandably, confused. The majority of them had now turned their attention to Tracy, and were doing their best to track her erratic movements through space.
This allowed Genji and Hanzo to concentrate on each other.
She watched the brothers as she darted in and out of her enemies, harassing them, keeping their attention focused. Genji struck first, which she might have predicted, opting for a quick, low slash with the katana. Hanzo stepped calmly to one side, and rapped Genji across the side of the head with his bow. Genji swiped left and right, keeping his momentum, but the older simply took another two steps backwards and repeated his admonishing temple tap.
'I'm sorry little brother,' the elder said, 'but you will not win this fight. The sword has not chosen you.'
'It has not chosen you either,' Genji spat back.
'That may be. But I will take it all the same.'
They exchanged blows. Genji came close to landing one, but Hanzo deflected it with the leather wrapped grip of the bow. Another flurry of blows ended in similar fashion, this time with Hanzo using the untied string of his weapon to trip Genji to the ground.
The older brother took one of the arrows from his sheath and flung it at the ground, where it impaled itself beside Genji's head. The younger brother looked up, eyes wide.
'I could have killed you a dozen times already this fight,' Hanzo shrugged. 'You should be…'
He twisted to the side as Genji's wrist flicked and a shuriken star flew up. Now it was Hanzo's turn to be wide eyed, but he nodded with some kind of grudging respect.
'I wondered whether it was you who had stolen the shurikens. Father suspected so, but I lived in hope that the blade was enough for you. Apparently not.'
'It would have been enough for me if you had simply let me live in peace,' Genji retorted.
By now Tracy had wounded or killed most of her enemies. She was hoping that, if she kept her cool, she would beat them down and help Genji in his fight against…
A shot took her in the shin. She had waited too long to blink, and she had been hit. She flumped to the ground and turned over, covering himself in dark brown dust. The soldiers gathered around her, pinned her down. She looked up, keeping her eyes on Genji, but trying not to look too much like a damsel in distress. This was not a plea for help. If escape was not a possibility she wanted him to fight to the bitter end.
'You see, brother, we have your girl,' Hanzo said.
Tracy tried to move back in time, but her energy was seeping away as quickly as the blood from her leg. She was down now, and could not imagine it would be easy to get back up.
Genji had a hopeless expression on his face. He turned to Hanzo.
'Very well. I will go with you.'
Hanzo smiled smugly, and turned to the enormous warship in the distance. Already more transport and offence vehicles were on their way, possibly to lead the flanking attack, possibly to collect the wounded. When Hanzo turned back to retrieve the katana from his brother he was surprised to see Genji had whipped the weapon up once more, and it was slicing through the air toward…
Hanzo leaned back with uncommon grace, and the blade cut through empty air. This time when Hanzo attacked it was entirely without mercy. The bow rapped down and across Genji's face again and again, beating him into submission. The long, heavy weapon was as effective in Hanzo's hands at close range as she imagined it was at distance. Within seconds Genji was on the ground, hardly a match for his brother.
Hanzo snatched the katana away.
'This is mine now,' he snapped.
Tracy's eyes flickered with darkness. She could only hold onto consciousness for a few more moments, but she had to see how the fraternal struggle ended.
When she thought about it later she wished she had allowed herself to slip into a coma.
Genji made one lost ploy. It was desperate, wild, and fruitless. He lashed out, bare-fisted, and Hanzo kicked. It was unexpected. Since his first defensive sidestep everything about Hanzo's style had screamed of subtle grace and confidence, as if fighting itself was beneath him. He had hardly had to move at all to beat Genji down with the bow. But now, with the kick, his entire body moved with rhythm, speed, and force. His foot, suddenly at head height, moved like lightning, and caught Genji in the face.
The younger brother stumbled back, alarmingly close to the edge of the cliff that led straight to the foot of the mountain. Tracy would have cried out, but the men holding her down were causing great pressure to her chest and had stifled her voice.
Genji looked, for just a moment, as if he would find his balance. Hanzo reached out. He looked hesitant, as if deciding whether or not to pull his brother back from the edge of the mountain. He hesitated just slightly too long, kept his arm just slightly out of reach, and then it was too late. The decision was made for him.
Genji made a noise, and flailed his arms…
And fell over the side of the cliff.
Hanzo yelped as his brother fell. Then composed himself and turned to his soldiers.
'Collect the bodies of our own. Someone retrieve my brother. But you can leave the girl. We're going.'
Hanzo's cutting voice was the last thing Tracy heard as she was tossed away.
Then the world went dark.