Chapter 5
As they slowly lowered down to the Earth’s surface, Nix pointed to an area up ahead. “Land just here, outside the city. There should be a supply truck waiting for us.”
Corey looked at the mostly barren desert area stretching away from the city. He lowered the shuttle down while asking, “Why are we not landing closer to the government dome?”
“We have backpacks with human clothes we’ll need to change into, but we’ll change once we reach the city. I want to take our time to look around for potential problems. The fewer people from the dome or the tunnels see us coming in, the better we’ll be able to keep our mission secret. Also, since we’ll be leaving our shuttle, I want to make sure it is in a secure location. We’ll take our supplies to the dome, but our mission is in the tunnels, so we won’t be staying there. We’ll make our way down to the connecting entrance to the subway tunnels and then take the subway to your old tribe.”
“I don’t think we should do that.”
Nix looked at him in surprise. “This is the plan that Commander Estro and his advisers came up with.”
Corey turned off the shuttle, then shifted in his seat to face her. “The resistance isn’t just happening in the tunnels, it’s spread to the domes, too. We don’t know who to trust. Also, there have been problems with your own people betraying you. I know Commander Estro and his family are genuine, but how do we know we can trust any of his advisers? If our mission is exposed, we could be in danger.”
She thought about what he was saying and she couldn’t deny it had merit. That was one of the most frustrating things was not knowing which of her people were helping the rebels. “You’re right. There are spies on both sides who have caused problems. What do you think we should do about it?”
“I think we should deviate from the plan a bit.”
“Look, Mr. Nash, I am a warrior. I follow the orders of my commander. Commander Estro and his advisers have many years of experience. I understand there’s a possibility that one or more of the advisers could be assisting the resistance, but Commander Estro would have reviewed every detail of this plan before sending us out. I’ve been taught to follow the rules and protocol because they are designed specifically to protect us.”
“Sometimes we have to make our own rules when we find that following the same path doesn’t take us where we need to go. We should be able to deviate from the mission parameteres if the end goal is ensuring that it’s a success.”
“If that time comes, I’ll let you know. Until then, we’re sticking with the original plan,” Nix said, ending the conversation by standing and heading for the door of the shuttle. She didn’t wait for Corey to follow her. Who was he to question the orders of her commander and his strategy team?
Even as she thought that, something about what Corey said bugged her. What if the spies and traitors were higher up, part of the strategy team? If that was true, they could be heading into a trap. Nix had always followed orders, always. She wanted to prove that she was the best warrior, even if she didn’t have the size or strength. It went against everything she believed in to disobey her directives. Corey had to be wrong, but the doubts still plagued her.
She shook her head to clear her wayward thoughts, put on her helmet with the built-in oxygen supply and filter, and inspected their surroundings. A radiation storm was coming their way; it looked like it would be there in about thirty minutes to an hour. That was just an estimate, though; these types of storms were always spontaneous and could speed up or slow down or veer off on a different path.
She should check the computer to see how fast and strong the stormwinds were. Would they even have time to get to the city? They couldn’t afford to take any chances and needed to get to the truck so that they would have some kind of cover while they made their way to the city.
The truck was there waiting for them as expected. Again, Corey’s concern played through her mind. As he handed her her pack and shouldered his own, she took her handheld computer and closed the shuttle doors. With the earlier worries that Corey brought up, a sudden idea came to her. She programmed new coordinates and the shuttle lifted off, leaving them standing there out in the open.
“What’s going on? Where’s the shuttle going?” Corey looked at her in question.
“I’m sending it to different coordinates, just in case.”
She tried to ignore the knowing look he gave her. Walking forward, she said, “I’m still sticking to the plan.”
“Aye aye, Captain.”
“I’m not a captain.”
Corey snorted, “It’s just a saying.”
“You’re strange, you know that.”
“I’ve been told that a time or two.”
Nix didn’t understand him at all, but she liked him despite their differences. If only she hadn’t slept with him, maybe they would have been friends. She pushed that depressing thought aside.
She made sure to keep her eyes on where they were going. As they approached the truck, she had the feeling inside that things weren’t quite right. She stopped walking and just stood there to look around them. They were were out in the open, anyone could attack them. She didn’t see anyone else, but the feeling that something was off increased.
Corey stopped next to her. He looked around them, mimicking her. “What’s up? Do you see something?”
How did she explain these feelings of danger? She might sound crazy to him, but she just couldn’t shake it. She confessed, “I don’t see anyone but I have this...feeling.”
“What kind of feeling?”
“That something is off. Maybe it’s nothing.”
