Kai Langford - March 2121
They keep coming, one after another, emerging from the trees and advancing towards the school, but I refuse to give them the chance to get close enough to reach it. I stay low among the trees, keeping myself concealed within the darkness as I watch them move through the field, waiting for the right moment to strike.
The second one of them steps into the open, I move.
My shadows surge from the ground and wrap around his legs before he has time to react, dragging him backwards as I strike. I don't stay to watch him fall. Instead, I turn towards the next target and send my shadows racing across the ground, catching another attacker before he can raise his weapon.
The fighting is chaotic, but somehow everything is falling into place.
Every now and then, I catch sight of another body hitting the ground, and whenever I glance towards the other side of the field, Finn is already moving on to his next target. He works quickly and efficiently, never wasting a movement, while Monica and Gerald hold their position near the road and keep the attackers from getting any closer.
For the first time since this started, I allow myself to think that we might actually win.
Then I hear the sound.
A low mechanical roar cuts through the gunfire, growing louder with every passing second. I look towards the sky and immediately feel my stomach drop when I see another missile descending towards us.
I break from the trees and sprint across the field, trying to get a better view of its trajectory. My boots tear through the grass as I run, adrenaline surging through me while I track its movement through the smoke-filled sky.
The missile comes into view and it's heading straight for the school.
I throw both hands into the air, and my shadows respond instantly, erupting from the ground and racing towards the sky. They rise in a thick wall of darkness just as the missile reaches us, spreading across its path and forming a barrier between the weapon and the building.
The impact is deafening.
The missile crashes into the shadows and explodes, the force of the blast rippling through the field. My shadows hold, but the shockwave still catches me and throws me backwards. I hit the ground hard, sliding across the grass before finally managing to stop myself.
For several seconds, my ears ring so loudly that I can't hear anything else. Then Ethan's voice breaks through the static of my radio.
"Kai, two more missiles are coming in."
My heart drops.
I force myself back onto my feet and look towards the sky, searching for them through the smoke. I spot the first almost immediately and throw my hands forward, sending my shadows towards it. They wrap around the missile just before it reaches the school, dragging it off course and crushing its momentum until it drops harmlessly into the field.
Then I see the second.
It's already too close.
My shadows shoot towards it, but I know immediately that I'm not going to reach it in time. The missile is moving too quickly, dropping lower with every second, and its trajectory is taking it directly towards the school.
"Ethan!"
I don't even realise I've said his name aloud before I'm already running.
I sprint across the field as fast as I can, every thought in my head narrowing down to the same thing. Ethan is inside that building. Noah is inside.
The missile drops lower.
Then, just before it reaches the school, something collides with it.
The explosion tears across the sky, and for one brief second I think it's been stopped completely. Then the shockwave reaches the school and the entire building violently shudders.
Windows explode outward, raining glass across the ground, while cracks spread through the walls with a deep, awful groaning sound. Part of the structure shifts beneath the force of the blast, and I stop dead as I stare at it.
"Ethan!"
I grab my radio and press it against my mouth.
"Ethan, answer me!"
But there is nothing, only static.
"Ethan! Noah! Finn!"
Panic begins to rise through my chest as I start towards the school, but before I can get more than a few steps, something suddenly wraps around my ankle.
The force yanks my leg from beneath me and sends me crashing onto the ground before I'm dragged backwards across the grass. I twist around, trying to free myself, and my heart stops when I see him.
002 steps out from between the trees, a grappling hook secured in his hand as he pulls me towards him with every movement.
I dig my fingers into the ground, trying to slow myself down, but the hook keeps dragging me closer. My eyes flick towards the school, and for a moment I can only think about Ethan being trapped inside while I'm being pulled in the opposite direction.
I can't let him take me.
I slam my free foot into the ground, sending a wave of shadows rippling across the field towards 002. He reacts quickly, jumping aside as the darkness tears through the grass where he had been standing.
The moment he moves, the grappling hook suddenly disappears.
It doesn't fall to the ground or break apart. It simply dissolves into nothing, vanishing as though it had never existed.
I roll onto my back and push myself upright, my breathing heavy as I stare across the field at him.
002 looks almost amused.
"004," he calls, his voice carrying easily across the distance between us. "Man, am I surprised to still see you standing."
I slowly straighten, forcing myself to ignore the pain running through my body as my shadows gather around my hands.
"How did you find us?"
Neither of us moves. We simply stand there watching each other, both waiting for the other to make the first move.
002's smile widens.
"Let's just say GeneX has some very interesting test subjects up their sleeves."
My eyes narrow.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I believe you've met her already," he says, and something about the way he says it makes my stomach tighten. "Smart little girl who can turn invisible."
My blood runs cold. I know exactly who he's talking about.
Memories begin rushing through my head, and suddenly I'm back months earlier, remembering the strange feeling that had followed me. A girl looking up at me terrified as I was about to kill her.
"It didn't take much for her to follow you," 002 continues.
I stare at him, slowly beginning to understand.
She had followed me, she had found us. And without even knowing it, I had led GeneX straight to everyone I loved.
The realisation hits harder than the explosion did.
"That was months ago," I say, forcing the words through the tightness in my throat. "Why attack now?"
"She tried her hardest to keep up with you, but eventually she lost sight of you," he explains. "After that, we had to search the entire area where she'd last seen you. It took time, but eventually we found the school."
I glance towards the building behind me.
Smoke is still rising from the damaged roof, broken glass covers the ground, and the cracks running through the walls look worse with every passing second.
And Ethan still isn't answering his radio.
The guilt is almost suffocating... They found us because of me.
I led them here without even knowing it, and now everyone I love is trapped inside a building that may not survive another attack.
My hands curl into fists as I force myself to look back at 002.
For a moment, the guilt threatens to swallow me whole, but I push it down. I can deal with that later, right now, Ethan and Noah needs me.
Whatever happens next, whatever GeneX sends after us, I am getting back to that school. And if 002 thinks he's going to stop me, he's about to find out exactly what happens when you put yourself between me and the people I love.