Infinity and Beyond
-Chapter 13-
Dark Matter, Part Two
The gun in Wendy's hand is very close to mommy's head. Something inside me feels like it's been poked from the inside.
I crawl to Wendy's side and put my hands on her arm, trying to get her to lower it. "Don't hurt her, Wendy." I whimper tearfully. "She's my mommy…"
Just then, a strong hand tries to pull me away as more Division gunshots are fired around us. I look up to see that it's Jason. "We need to get you away from here."
He's with another man, whose face is bleeding. 'Ryan Fletcher.'
"No! I don't want to leave mommy!" I try to pull my arm away, but he wouldn't let go of me.
"Let go of the kid." Owen points a gun toward Jason. "And here I thought you were an ally…"
Just then, Jason pushes me down onto the ground as more gunshots are fired. Everybody's now crouching down behind the ugly green car.
Both Owen and Wendy have lowered their guns to hide from the gunshots. Something inside me feels like a balloon that's letting out air. I'm glad that Wendy didn't hurt mommy.
"Nikita!" I hear Michael's voice shouting. "You're surrounded, it's over."
I'm crying a little, but I almost smile when I hear Michael's voice. "Michael, help me!" I scream as loudly as I can as Jason still wouldn't let go of me. "I don't want to leave mommy!" I start crying loudly.
Mommy switches places with Owen and moves next to me. Then, she grabs Jason's arm and squeezes it tightly before twisting it in a way that makes Jason gasp loudly.
"Let go of her, now!" Mommy growls at Jason scarily. He finally lets go of me when mommy starts twisting his arm even more.
I wrap my arms around mommy as soon as I'm free. "Mommy, I'm scared…" I sniffle.
"Shh, it's okay, sweetie, we're not gonna be separated, okay?" Mommy hugs me tightly.
"Nikita!" Michael yells. "There's no way out!"
"He's right." Owen pants. "The only way out is through the forest, we'd be totally exposed and running for days."
"Don't be scared, Infinity!" Michael yells again after a few seconds. "Everything's gonna be okay!"
Owen looks a little worried, but he also looks like he's trying to stop himself from laughing. "We could blow up that truck, create a diversion and flank them."
"Or we could be smarter, hide in the forest, pop them off one by one." Mommy says.
"We tried quiet, it didn't work." Owen tells her as he hands her a black box before taking out his handgun.
"Who are you again?" Ryan speaks up for the first time just as Owen runs toward an ugly green truck.
I hear a gunshot, it's not from Owen, but it does land on the truck and blows it up. I scream as I fall backwards, but before I reach the ground, mommy quickly grabs me and holds me in her arms as the ground feels like it's shaking.
"Forest." Owen pants after a few seconds.
Mommy picks me up as I turn to where Wendy and Jason were, but they're already gone. My throat feels like a rubber ball is stuck in it. Where did Wendy go? Is she hurt?
Mommy is running toward the forest with Owen and Ryan as she's holding me.
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Vision
"You sure you wrote this?" Birkhoff asked an almost bald man with glasses. 'He's the engineer who made the black boxes.' Alex was hiding in a hole in the wall that had a lid with cracks.
"Are you sure you're not someone else?" The bald man said to him. "Percy said he plucked you from obscurity, that you're a diamond in the rough."
"That's very cute." Birkhoff muttered quietly. He said something else that I can't hear very clearly before I hear the last part of his sentence. "… And I was never, ever obscure, I was illusive. I was a legend."
'Strictly speaking, this is the type of behaviour and attitude that is referred to as: full of himself.'
"Oh yeah, Shadowwalker, caused a little craziness in the pentagon back in the day…"
End Vision
I remember Birkhoff a little, he's weird, but he says funny things. Mommy's still carrying me as she, Owen, and Ryan are running away as Michael and some other men are chasing after us with big black guns. I know he won't hurt me, but I hope he doesn't hurt mommy either…
Owen fires gunshots back at him as we continue running. "No!" I pout loudly. "Don't hurt him!"
Just then, another group of men pops up in front of us. They're wearing big furry suits, and they are all holding guns too. "Freeze! United States Army! Drop your weapons!"
I bite my bottom lip and press myself closer to mommy as she hugs me tightly. Mommy's still carrying me, but she takes out her guns and knives and puts them on the ground.
"Drop your weapons!" A man with a beard repeats before Owen and Ryan start putting their weapons on the ground. "You too, Ryan!" The beard man yells.
"Gail!" Ryan calls out.
"Now!" The man named Gail shouts.
"How about you drop your weapons too?" Mommy speaks up.
Gail frowns and narrows his eyes as mommy continues. "My four year old daughter's with me, do you really think this is appropriate?"
"You're all coming with us." Gail says before lowering his gun, but all the other men still have their guns raised at us.
I'm getting scared as I whimper quietly and hug mommy tighter. "Shh… we're gonna be okay." Mommy whispers in my ear before I feel her lips touch my cheek and they stay there until mommy starts walking again.
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We're in a flying plane as I'm sitting on mommy's lap. "I don't think escape is an option, not at 30,000 feet." Mommy tells Owen, who's sitting beside her.
"I almost wish this was a Division job, they could send something in right now, a couple of briefcases full of acid." Owen says.
"I'm pretty sure that's what's waiting for us on the ground." Mommy says. I don't know what acid is, but it sounds like something bad.
"Mommy, is something scary going to happen?" I hug her nervously.
"No, no, no, sweetie, we're gonna be fine." She rubs the back of my head softly.
"Even if I could slip these cuffs, I don't see a way out of here." Owen says.
"I do." Mommy tells him as she looks away from the soldiers that are on the plane. "And we've to get out of here before they find out who Infinity is."
Owen just stares at her as she continues. "My rules, remember?" Mommy looks at him. "Say it."
"Your rules." Owen says as mommy turns to look at Ryan who's arguing with Gail. I don't like it when grown-ups yell at each other, it makes me nervous.
Vision
"There are two Division agents, Ryan Fletcher, and the Container on that plane. Ryan Fletcher is squeaky clean and practiced in the art of pain in the ass. He will go public." John was on the phone with Percy.
"I'll handle it." Percy said calmly almost as if he doesn't realize that John was yelling at him.
"Oversight does not share your confidence, Percy." 'Oversight: a group of US government officials who oversees Division.'
"The group is weighing options as we speak." John continued. "That plane lands and it's game over for Division, and for you."
"You might remind Oversight that I'm still in possession of all their dirty laundry. I'll decide when this game is over."
End Vision
"Who do you work for?" Ryan asks mommy as he's now sitting in front of her.
"I'm an independent contractor." Mommy answers.
"What about the strike team that chased me through the woods, who are they?"
"They're trained operatives, most of them assassins."
"You're not answering my question." Ryan sounds angry, making me shrink back closer to mommy. "What organization?"
"You've gone rogue from them, haven't you?" Ryan says again as mommy just stares at him.
"Where are you from?" Mommy asks.
"What?!"
"Where were you born?"
"St. Louis, why?"
"Why'd you join the CIA?"
"I'm asking the questions." Ryan sounds scary as I hug mommy tighter. She hugs me back.
"They recruit you?" Mommy tilts her head.
"I signed up in college."
"Watched one too many James Bond movies? Want a free dental?" Mommy says. Owen's smiling, he looks as if he might laugh.
"I had an older brother, died in Afghanistan in '03." Ryan tells her as he and mommy just stares at each other.
"Alright, this little exercise is over, come on, kid." Gail interrupts them. I tilt my head; Ryan doesn't look like a kid at all…
"No, I'll talk, but only to you." Mommy says as I play with the zipper on her jacket.
"We can't trust him…" Owen whispers to her.
"We're 30,000 feet in the air." Mommy whispers back to him. "Nothing to look forward to on the ground. I've to trust someone."
"Let's talk." Mommy turns back to Ryan.
"You really wanna go about your A-game on this one, Gail?" Ryan asks Gail. "Cause it's about to hit the fan…"
Gail has a game? I try to get off of mommy's lap so I can ask him if I can play with his game. Mommy's arms stop me from getting off. "You need to stay with mommy, okay?" She whispers quietly into my ear. I nod a little before wrapping my arms around her in a hug.
"5 minutes." Gail tells Ryan.
Vision
"If that plane lands, Division will definitely get their hands on Infinity." Wendy said to Jason. "We've to divert them away from that plane."
"Yeah, but how?" Jason frowned.
"We can't do anything rash, not while Amanda's in there…" Wendy muttered quietly to herself.
There was a few seconds of silence before Jason spoke up. "What about Ari?"
"If we want Amanda as an ally, then we can't use Ari." Wendy sighed, but a moment later, her head tilts up. "But we can still use Gogol."
"Oh, I know that look all too well." Jason smirked at her. "What are you planning?"
"You'll see." Wendy told him before getting up and walking away.
End Vision
"Division, just Division." Ryan raises an eyebrow at mommy.
"Pretentious, I know." Mommy says.
"How can they be allowed to exist?"
"They've secrets, covert operation details that could go back five administrations. Most of them, the office doesn't even know about. If this program is threatened in any way, the man who runs them will release those secrets."
"How much could he really have?"
"Enough to turn the world against us, our own people against us. This program, it's a cancer, Ryan. We need to get rid of it without killing the patient. You can help."
"How?"
"Help me find co-conspirators in the government. There's a group… I just… I don't know who they are, but they sanctioned Division."
"What's in this for you?"
"What do you mean?"
"What's your angle?"
"There's no angle." Mommy tells him.
"Why did you and your partner go rogue?"
"We're not partners." Owen finally speaks up again.
"We are." Mommy tells Owen before turning back to Ryan. "We're trying to bring them down."
"Why?" Ryan asks.
There's a few seconds of silence before mommy answers. "When I was there, I did a lot of things under orders. I engaged on the black, do you understand? Sins I can never repay sins that my daughter is paying for." Mommy hugs me tightly as she looks sad. "I don't know how to come back from that. Maybe bringing Division down gets me one step closer."
"Okay, if I do this, I'm gonna need proof." Ryan says.
Owen reaches into his bag and pulls out his USB stick. "This is all the proof you'll need."
Ryan reaches out a hand to take it, but Owen doesn't give it to him. "We're gonna need one thing in return." Owen says.
"Name it." Ryan says before Owen gives it to him.
"Get us off this plane." Owen tells him.
"I'll make sure clarity gives you protection on the ground." Ryan says.
"He means now, before we land." Mommy speaks up.
I'm starting to get sleepy as mommy, Owen, and Ryan continue talking. I almost fall asleep before I hear Owen gasping and panting, making me sit up nervously. Owens bending downwards while mommy's rubbing his back.
"Gail! Something's wrong, he's not breathing." Ryan calls out to Gail.
'Owen's pretending, and so are Nikita and Ryan.' I relax and lay my head back on mommy's chest.
Gail quickly runs out from behind some dark curtains. He bents down to look at Owen before Owen quickly hits him and stands up as the fight starts.
Mommy stands up too as she picks me up with her. She takes out a handgun as Owen's choking Gail with his arm. I've almost fallen completely asleep.
"Don't move!" Mommy growls at some other men who's come out from behind the dark curtain. I hear the sound of a door sliding open before I feel wind blowing. I open my eyes just a little to see that Gail's now on the floor, knocked out. I close my eyes again.
"Infinity, eat this." Owen yells over the sound of the wind as he hands me something that's white and it looks rubbery.
I shrink away a little before mommy speaks up. "Eat it, sweetie, mommy's gonna do something very scary in a few seconds. This will stop you from getting scared, okay?"
I rub my eyes before taking the white thing from Owen's hands and eating it. 'It'll put you in a very deep sleep in which you can't hear or feel anything.'
"Arm!" Owen shouts to mommy as he's helping her put on a puffy, black vest-like thing. I feel something wrapping me closer, and tighter to mommy. I feel it go round and round a few times before it stops.
I can feel someone putting a something else on me too. I try to open my eyes a little, but they feel too heavy.
"You should've listened to me!" I hear mommy yell, but that's the last thing I hear before I start seeing purple unicorns…
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I'm lying on a bed. I feel something furry beside me. I touch it, it's Lily. I must be back home. I hear a beeping sound and footsteps.
I open my eyes sleepily. Mommy's in front of her computer again.
Alex: All I got was the name of one city, London.
Mommy: Got it, see anything else?
Alex: Yes, I saw what Percy's capable of.
'John and the engineer are both dead.'
"Mommy…" I try to rub my eyes awake.
"Oh, you're awake." Mommy smiles before she walks over to me.
I raise my arms up toward her. "Hugs and kisses, mommy?"
"Of course." Mommy picks me up and kisses my neck as my head is bent backwards. I giggle a little as it tickles. "You wanna go swimming again?"
"Okay!" I grin happily. "Swimming with mommy's fun."
"I'm glad you think so." Mommy kisses my cheek as she tickles my back, making me giggle loudly.
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I'm using a rainbow swim ring as I make splashes with my hands. Just then, I feel myself being lifted, making me gasp.
But when I realize that it's mommy, I give her a big smile. "Hi, mommy!"
Mommy smiles back at me before looking behind me. Her eyes widen a little.
"This is me standing in the light." I turn around when I hear Owen's voice.
"Good plan." Mommy laughs a little.
"Owen!" I squeal happily.
"You happy to see me, kiddo?" Owen smiles at me.
"Uh-huh." I nod. "Did you get me pink cotton candy?"
"Yep." Owen says. "Right here." He shows me a bag of pink cotton candy that's in his hands before turning back to mommy. "What did we get from the engineer?" He hands her a towel as she's getting out of the pool with me in her arms.
"There's a new one." Mommy tells him. "Percy replaced the old one, permanently?" Mommy puts me down on the wet floor before wrapping the towel around me.
"You get anything?" Owen asks.
"London." Mommy says as she's drying my olive skin.
"When do we leave?" Owen says.
"I've a few things to take care of here." Mommy says as she's now making my curly dark brown hair less wet. "It's getting worse inside for my contact."
"Well, if it's a guardian in London, I'll know what to look for." Owen tells her. "I'll get an answer."
"Then call me." Mommy tells him.
"No more surprises." Owen nods before he reaches into his bag and takes out a black box. "Oh, I told you it was safe."
Mommy takes it from his hands before reaching into her bag too. "Well should we talk about aligning; there might be some secrets we could use on that." Owen says just before mommy pulls out her gun and shoots at the black box, breaking it.
"Or not…" Owen finishes as mommy glares at him a little.
"One down, six to go." Mommy says. "Seven if it includes Percy."
"Well, here's the cotton candy your daughter asked for." He hands the bag to mommy. "Make sure she doesn't eat too much at once."
"I know how to take care of my kid." Mommy narrows her eyes at him, but she also sounds like she might smile.
Owen grabs his backpack and is about to leave when he turns back around. "Oh, you were wrong by the way, you know, back at the camp, what you said."
"About going in quiet?" Mommy frowns.
"About not being a hero." Owen tells her, smiling before walking away.
I turn to look at mommy to see that she's smiling too. I pull on her arm. "Mommy, up please."
She smiles as she picks me up into her arms before I hug her. "I like Owen, mommy."
"Oh?" Mommy says. "Why? Because he brought you pink cotton candy?" She sounds like she might laugh.
"Nuh-uh." I shake my head. "I like him because he makes mommy happy."
There's a few seconds of silence as mommy looks surprised. "I'll love you forever." She kisses me on the lips before grinning happily.
"I'll love mommy forever too." I smile before laying my head on her shoulder. "But how long is forever, mommy?"
Mommy laughs. "It's a long, long time, sweetie."
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Author's note: Alright, here's another chapter guys. As always, please remember to review me your thoughts. Oh, and here's a little teaser for what's coming up in the next two chapters: more Michael and Infinity scenes, Alex and Infinity are going to finally meet, and there might be some Infinity and Amanda bonding… meanwhile, a tiny bit of Wendy's past is going to be revealed.