Though Crownbridge was technically its own city, it had always been part of Brighthaven's metropolitan area. To a native like Officer Reeves, however, there was no real distinction; it was all his city, and he was now the only police officer operating in both jurisdictions.
With the oath to protect and serve still alive within him, he led the distressed group of civilians throughout the alleyways, across the streets, between buildings, and finally to the squad car he had hidden from view. The two injured individuals and Qasim were in the back, with Toby in the front alongside Officer Reeves. But before they could hit the road…
Bzzzt!
… static and chatter erupted from the radio. Before blindly moving, Officer Reeves opted to tune in the signal to listen for anything that might be useful.
"We found the girl! The bitch thought she could slip away through a vent!"
"Get over here! You fuckwits! We're being shot at! They're fucking everywhere."
"We don't get rid of her, she'll fuck us over again!"
"I said get over here. This is too fucking much!"
The expressions of Toby and Qasim hardened like stone as they all looked at the squad car's radio in horror. They knew that Megan's chances were slim, but to witness them in real time...
Toby could utter "Shit!" as he covered his face and looked away.
"For God's sake! Why does this keep happening?" Qasim in the back, almost pulling his hair out with stress burning through his guts.
The situation weighed heavily on Officer Reeves, and it seemed no one could do more about it.
"She's not caught yet." He said, looking at the only sliver of hope in this situation.
"She's trapped… in a vent pipe!" Toby said in frustration.
Officer Reeves offered no reply, nor did he escalate the tension; he simply started his car and drove through the alleys. But rather than moving away from the garage vicinity, he was approaching it.
"Hey!"
Toby sat up nervously, looking around him, expecting to run into danger right away. But before they could get exposed, Officer Reeves stopped the car.
The two young men looked at him, questioning what he was doing.
"We can still help her." The officer said as his hand moved to the control panel on the cabin's ceiling, twisting a button and flipping a switch.
YELP! YELP! YELP!
A powerful burst of police sirens echoed through the dead city, which hadn't heard that sound in ages. The gunfight ceased almost immediately as everyone on the scene went into hiding.
Immediately, Officer Reeves hit the pedal to the metal and turned the other way, speeding as far as he could from the place.
"Heh! That sound still scared the shit out of them, even after all that."
With a smile, Officer Reeves drove away, having done what he hoped would be enough to distract the raiders, reminding them of their instinctive fear of the ghost of the law… or maybe attracting something terrible to the scene.
✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧
The cars sped through the night, fifteen armed individuals within, all grim-faced and ready for whatever came their way. Adam and Kave were driven by their need to rescue a close friend, and someone they had known for ages.
Adam felt this most of all, since Megan was his ex-girlfriend, and he believed that their relationship wasn't beyond repair.
Ivan and his eight-man team were also present, pushing for the good of the survivors' camp. They aimed to finalize their bargain: Adam's group would construct a Food Processor machine for them.
Finally, there were the Men-at-Arms, also called the Wartopians, who were simply there for the fight their commander was heading into.
All previous action in the past few days hadn't been anywhere near the metropolitan area of Brighthaven. Adam had been wandering around the city when he encountered Captain Creed for the first time, but ever since he was rescued almost a week ago, he hadn't returned to the place, not even once.
"We have one hour until dawn. We are closing in," Sergeant Elena reported.
Adam nodded, but he was no longer the one driving; instead, it was Hammerhead with Buzz beside him, giving directions. Buzz also reported that, having come this far, they were now out of communication range with the Command Center, which was quite expected.
After an hour, Adam was woken up by Kave, the last person remaining in the van with him. He told him that all boots were on the ground and ready to go. Adam rubbed his eyes, shook his dizzy head, and headed outside to meet the cold, fresh air.
The first to meet him was Ivan, who seemed to have argued with Elena.
"Yo, Adam. I was telling the Sergeant we should get a couple of guys to guard the cars, one from each team. She's against it for some reason."
"Our fire team compatibility is at its bare minimum. It would be against protocol to proceed with fewer members." Elena crossed her arms stubbornly.
"Protocol?" Adam looked at Elena with unamused eyes. "Really, Sergeant?"
"Protocol exists for a reason," Elena replied, unwilling to bend to civilian demands.
Adam turned to Ivan and shrugged, replying:
"Look, you can leave two guys behind. I see you have radios, so give them one, keep the other, and tune in with Private Buzz since he can make sure communication channels aren't compromised," Adam said.
Ivan looked at Elena, as if the two were challenging each other's authority, but he had to comply with Adam, who was the most reasonable voice and the link between the humans and the alien humans.
With that, the group organized, the experienced Men-at-Arms taking the most vital points in the combat formation. While it was Elena who intended to operate with perfection in mind, the survivors didn't seem to mind later on, as she didn't appear to be risking their lives as they had feared.
"Three blocks ahead, we take a left," Ivan said as he reviewed his map on his charged-up phone.
"Is GPS still on?" Kave asked with a curious expression.
"Sat nav is still active, so, yeah," Ivan replied with wary eyes, catching the obvious envy coming from the general direction of both Adam and Kave.
Corporal Sharp made sure that all corners were clear and that no one would expose the team as they moved through the intersections. Just as they reached the third intersection, the turn to the left proved that the previous night's fight might have drawn the attention of more than just raider groups.
Adam surveyed the scene: a street with buildings on two sides and wide sidewalks. The area, devoid of residential signs, consisted only of garages and depots, perfect for establishing a base, indicating they had come to the right place.
What was even more evident were the many bodies lying in the street: some with bullet wounds, others impaled from the ground up by what seemed to be the earth itself turning into spikes.
"Dear Lord!" Adam exclaimed, halting the group with a hand signal.
"This is new." Even Sergeant Elena was disturbed by the sight in front of them.
If one couldn't trust the earth they walked on, how would they have the stomach to fight?
"I've seen that before." But before they could proceed, Ivan spoke with a frown.
"You did? Where?" Adam turned to him along with the others, all waiting for an answer.
"Two days ago, actually," Ivan replied and recounted. "The Alfari Aliens, they could do that. That Samara woman the Sergeant fought, she would jump like a crazy person and cause spikes to explode from the earth beneath her feet. This looks very similar."
Hearing that, Adam's heart almost sank with worry over Megan, as he turned to face the garage she had made her broadcast from.
"So the Aliens were here, you're saying?" he asked.
"Humans, Aliens, and Gobzkin can all use runes," Ivan replied, not confirming the theory of the Alfari getting involved.
While it was a morbid thought, Megan's safety was Adam's top priority, and he could no longer step back from this.
✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧
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