Chapter Two: Rhapsodic Memory II
The rest of their vacation was spent quietly and privately. Leon and Helena did not call each other like they would have done on a normal day. Leon overslept on his second day of vacation because Helena did not call him to wake him up for a morning jog or a practice match. Helena forgot to take her stress medication because Leon was not there to remind her. Even if it was only the first day without each other, Leon and Helena both suffered the painful reminder of the loss of each other from their side.
When their last day of vacation arrived to an end, they both feared the inevitable meet. Helena feared that Leon would be disgusted that she seduced him and refuse to look at her. Leon feared that Helena would see him as a monster from here on. On the last night of her vacation, Helena sank her worries with distracting news broadcasts on her couch. On her lap, she had a plate of dinner consisting of steak, spinach salad, and steamed carrots she made earlier. She sat picking at her food, wearing her pajamas that was a loose gray t-shirt and black sweats. Her eyes were locked on the television screen, determined to keep out thoughts of her partner. The reporter wore a grave face as he made the announcement. Another safe zone had fallen to the hands of the bio-terrorists. She scowled at the group that claimed the attack. It was the E Lai.
There were hundreds of terrorist groups, all vying to become the supreme terrorist group in the world. In United States, the #1 terrorist group was, the Purge, a group started by teenagers watching too many movies that eventually grew into a dangerously large scale. They were notorious for taking over the eastern giant safe zones, including New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont that were previously heavily fortified and housed more than 10,000 soldiers to defend the safe zones. Like the other terrorist groups, the Purge had a giant collection of the infection that they breed.
However, the Purge was nothing compared to the International scale E Lai was measured on. The E Lai was part of a bigger group in the past, the Sauberung Group. Sauberung was the terrorist group that started the world war between humanity and the infected. The leader of Sauberung, Matthew Alpine, released the infected through major cities using his secret underground tunnels to transport them. He called the day of the chaotic massacre, "The liquidation day for humanity," that echoed through the throats of thousands of terrorists that praised him. Matthew Alpine accused the government of hoarding money and waged a war against anyone who stood against his path. He created thousands of infected subjects, all of which were tested on the public mass.
The war waged for 14 months till Alpine's madness finally got a hold of his henchmen. Alpine's men turned against him and Sauberung fell apart into smaller groups from the civil war. Many of these small groups quickly perished from internal wars or from other terrorist groups looking to cut competition; and E Lai was one of them. The E Lai came out of the civil war, controlling more than 40% of Sauberung's operations and artillery, which helped them claim the #1 seat of threat to the United Nations.
Helena had once gone for an undercover mission to take out one of the many commanders under the E Lai's control. However, she and Leon were overwhelmed with the amount of firepower and backup the E Lai had and were forced to abandon their mission. She hated running away from a mission, but she knew, if she had stayed she wouldn't be alive today. The United Nations' intellect had severely underestimated the amount of communication that went between the hundreds of commanders and the mysterious leader of the E Lai.
Helena, among the thousands of people that survived the Liquidation Day, despised the E Lai. They were widely known to practice misogynistic experiments to further their knowledge in the infected. Many women were kidnapped from safe zones and were practiced upon. They were raped and then forced to give birth until they died of exhaustion. Boys would go into military training to become bloodthirsty as their fathers; and girls would suffer the same fate as their mother, becoming a birthing machine. Once a woman entered her menopause, she would be turned in for experimenting. If a boy refused to kill or showed weakness, he would be thrown in there as well.
Helena gazed at her medium rare steak and got sick to her stomach at the sight of the blood. The rumors that came from the other side of the walls of the E Lai were too vivid, too insane to be real. She heard many tales from the spies that ventured past the walls of the terrifying military utopia. How the men raped little girls while the little boys laughed, how women who gave birth with defects would be thrown into the darkest slums where she would disappear forever. One of the spies blew up his cover trying to sneak a pregnant 14 year old with him back home. The poor girl had died of shock trying to deliver the baby just days before his extraction. Helena shuddered at the thought of a little girl carrying a swollen belly around wherever she went. She was grateful she was in here in the safe zone. However, she felt remorse and pain for the women and men that were stuck behind the walls of the E Lai.
Helena's eyes trailed to a folder that rested on her dining table. Her next mission would put the gears in motion to bring the fall upon the E Lai. She persisted and fought for months and the BSAA had finally accepted her demands to be put on the mission no one wanted to do. They didn't want to send in one of their best agents but someone needed to be behind the walls of the E Lai. It was a mission Helena didn't know how long it would be. All she knew was, if she was successful, she can help put a permanent end to the misery in the world.
Helena's eyes narrowed and felt chills on her skin. She had planned on going alone but it was inevitable that Leon found out. As soon as he heard about what Helena was planning to do, he signed up. Helena was mad at first, but soon realized she was literally taking on an entire army on her own. She needed help wherever she could get and she knew Leon was worth more than 6 BSAA agents combined. She believed that with Leon, she can take on anything. But that didn't help her ease her worry for his safety.
Helena turned the television off. The bad news was depressing her. She didn't bother switching to another channel when there was only one channel available. No one couldn't afford the luxury of living in complete bliss. The single online channel broadcasted news 24/7, updating the people with the slightest change within the world.
She turned her attention to her large cracked window that showed the ruined cityscape. The dark red skies bathed the entire cityscape in an eerie, warm glow. Nearly all the windows of each buildings were shattered and streets were destroyed by the infected swarm that broke into this city years ago. The city never recovered from the swarm and the people built their livings around it because they never knew when they would be attacked again. There was no point in rebuilding a city if the threat was still at large. Helena pulled a plank from underneath the window and used it to cover a large crack on the window that was letting the cold air in. It was starting to get cold now that autumn has arrived.
Loud, heavy knocks from her door surprised her. "Agent Harper," a deep voice called from the other side of the door.
Helena recognized the voice. It was her operation coordinator and dispatcher, Jason Squalo. Since war between the terrorists and United Nations started, all ranked agents, like Leon and Helena were assigned their own operation coordinator. When the war stroke, many people heeded to the calls of their country and stepped up to help in any way they can. Jason Squalo was one of them. Leon kept Hunnigan and Helena was assigned to Squalo.
Squalo, much like Hunnigan, was a professional agent dedicated to his work. Whereas Hunnigan eventually softened up to Leon and Helena, Squalo refused to even budge an inch of opening to his assigned agent. He was a man in his late-30s, liked eating grilled garlic squid so much his fingers always smelled of them, and reading books. The closest thing Helena got to a connection with Squalo was him recommending books for her to read. She could always smell the faint stench of garlic on the books he lent her.
"Agent Harper, open up immediately," Squalo muttered. The tone of his voice was hasty and full of panic.
Helena opened her door quickly and was greeted by a team of fully geared BSAA agents carrying duffle bags. They entered her suite before she could say anything. Squalo stepped in after them and closed the door behind him. He was a very tall man with a thin build. He was wearing his usual attire of a black turtleneck and gray slacks. His short black hair was neatly combed back. To Helena, Squalo was a man of enigma, with brown eyes that refused to reflect anything.
"What's going on?" Helena asked as she watched BSAA agents take out equipment from the duffle bags. They quickly handed Helena a black thermal turtleneck and matching sweats. Helena wordlessly took them and wore them, watching Squalo walk through her living room. Squalo picked up the E Lai profile from her couch and handed to her. The single gesture stopped Helena's heart in its tracks.
"The E Lai has dropped shores into the Purge's territory as you know. However, they are being pushed out by the Purge's reinforcements. They are on the verge of being extracted back into their main base. This is the opportunity we've been waiting for." Squalo clasped his hand on Helena's shoulder forcefully. "It's the opportunity you have been waiting for."
"What about Leon? Is he notified too?" Helena asked.
"I'm sorry. Agent Kennedy has been transferred to a different mission," Squalo replied. Helena's sucked in her breath sharply. She should be happy that he wasn't coming with her to this dangerous mission. "He will not be assisting you, but we won't be sending you alone." Squalo motioned to the 4 BSAA agents in the room with them with a tilt of his head. "They will go with you. And I will also be there with you through the radio, helping you. You won't need Leon with us by your side."
Helena nodded as a BSAA agent strapped a heavy bullet proof vest on her while another strapped knee-guards on her. Squalo continued his assessment of the mission. "The E Lai and the Purge are at war right now but, it won't last long. From our sources, the E Lai has scheduled an extraction for their men in 0400 hours. If we leave now, we will have just enough time for you and your team to sneak onto a copter. Your job is to secure you and your team in a copter heading to E Lai's land. Your current attire won't do so once you get to a safe point, wear the uniform inside your bag. It's an old E Lai uniform and should get you unnoticed. Don't wear it until you get to the safe point or else you might end up getting shot by one of ours."
"I'm a woman, I will get caught," Helena said. "I'll need a helmet to cover my gender."
"It's all covered. We've already sent in a team to secure a safe house for you to gather. I'll make sure they will have a helmet for you to wear."
Helena lowered her eyes. A BSAA agent held a pair of black boots in front of her. She took them and slipped them on her feet and fastened them tightly. She took her duffle bag from one of the BSAA agents and threw it over her shoulder. Squalo gave her one more pat on her shoulder and she walked out of her suite with the agents trailing right behind her.
Now the time came for her dangerous mission, Helena felt herself engulfed with fear and anticipation. She was heading to the E Lai, the zone where the few agents that took her mission and survived paid a heavy price with their sanity.
There was a heavy feeling in her chest. She knew it was obvious. She was terrified to go without Leon by her side, protecting her. She felt vulnerable, even with 4 highly trained BSAA agents walking alongside her.
Even though she knew she could take on anything, without Leon, she felt like she was walking in an open road in a quarantined city without a gun.
Leon felt something cold press up against his bare neck. He raised his head from the table he was dozing off on. It was Chris, holding a water bottle. Leon grunted and sat upright on his chair, lazily.
"Sleeping at the bar now, Leon?" Chris said. He took a seat next to Leon and cleared away the empty beer bottles on the table and put them on the floor.
"You got me," Leon said bitterly. He rubbed his eyes. After he left the motel, he headed straight for the bar he frequented and camped all day, surrounded by alcohol and a feeling of familiarity. He remembered getting wasted every time he failed a mission. But now that the world was dying, he didn't consider the fact that he could drink himself to death and free himself from the stress. All because he couldn't bear the thought of leaving Helena alone in a world like this.
"What happened to you?" Chris asked. "Are you all right?"
Leon placed his arms on the table and raised his hand to call on the waitress. Chris lowered Leon's arm and glanced at the water bottle. Leon scoffed and looked at Chris. "I thought you would be at Las Vegas for 2 more weeks. What are you doing here?"
A darkened expression fell over Chris' face. "That's why I'm here. We're losing Nevada." He spoke quietly, so that the people in the bar wouldn't hear them. The last thing they needed was to cause panic. Leon woke up from his drunk stance and stared at Chris, trying to figure out if he heard the words right.
"The Noches Boys surrendered to the Purge bastards. They were the last standing force against the Purge in the Western zone. Those two fucks head-butting gave us time to build a fortitude to protect Las Vegas. But the Noches Boys surrendered and the wall isn't even close to being finished. At this rate, the Purge has a good chance of taking control of the Las Vegas safe zone."
Leon stared at Chris. "The E Lai are already locking horns with the Purge's eastern states," Leon said. "What happens if the Purge takes the Las Vegas zone?"
"It's critical that we protect the Las Vegas safe zone because they are linked to the biggest safe zone in the western side: the Los Angles safe zone. Before Los Angeles was taken by the Noches Boys, the President called for an underground route between the two cities. The Noches Boys nor the Purge knows about this. That's why it's critical that we protect the Las Vegas safe zone. Los Angeles safe zone is big enough to put all of the people in. And we will have the Las Vegas zone as a barricade to stop any oncoming attackers."
"If this is all so important…why are you here?" Leon said.
Chris took a deep sigh and rubbed his temples. "I need your help."
Leon stared at him. "…What?"
"I need you to come with me. I need you to spear head a task force dedicated to wiping out the Purge's food supplies. The Las Vegas safe zone is in the middle of the desert. If Purge had little food and water—
"I can't go."
Chris gave Leon a hardened look. "Are you listening to me? The Las Vegas Safe Zone is our ticket to insuring that we have a place to go to in case Arizona falls. Once Purge' headquarters in New York falls, all E Lai has to do is cross the empty states all the way to Arizona. With their infected riders, they will get to us in a matter of days."
"It's not going to be any easier for them to cross those states in a matter of days. Even with their own infected leading the way, it won't be a walk in the park for them to navigate through the millions of infected already wandering around between the states."
"God damn it, Leon-. " Chris paused for a second and sighed. "People from Texas are coming into Arizona by the hundreds. Arizona is not big enough to fit all of them in here. We are very low on food supplies."
"Helena and I are expecting a mission into E Lai soon. We already signed up. End of discussion, Chris."
Chris closed his eyes in contempt and shook his head. "God damn it. No wonder they asked me to come to you so early," he scowled.
Leon stared at him. "What are you talking about?"
Chris pursed his lips and let out a deep sigh. "They sent Helena on the mission alone."
.
2 days later, all connections to Helena and her team was lost.