Michael Vey 3 ~ Battle of the Ampere (10 page)

The man rested his chin in his hand and looked at her.

“You have to believe me.”

The man nodded. “I believe you.”

Taylor frowned. “You have to help us. The Elgen are bad, bad people.”

He paused a moment longer, then said, “Thank you. I’ll pass that on to my superiors. That’s all for now.” He reached back and rapped his knuckles on the door.
“Terminamos ya.”

“What are you going to do with us?” Taylor asked.

“You’ll be taken to Lima, where you will go on trial for terrorism.”

Taylor wiped a tear from her cheek. “I told you, we weren’t attacking your country. We were fighting the Elgen.”

“What you did was a direct assault on our country.”

“If they find us guilty, what will they do to us?”

“If you’re lucky, they’ll keep you in prison until you’re a very old woman.”

The thought of it sent chills through her. “That doesn’t sound lucky,” she said.

“It is compared to the alternative.”

“The alternative?”

The man looked her in the eyes. “You’ll never be an old woman.” The man stood and opened the door.
“Traigame el siguente.”

*

Behind the two-way mirror an Elgen captain lifted his phone and said into it, “Four, two, Charley, Alpha, Vixen, Omega.”

“Go ahead,” someone returned.

“This is Captain Moyes. I need to speak immediately with Captain Welch.”

“Just a moment, sir.”

A minute later Captain Welch answered. “What is it, Moyes?”

“We’ve just finished the first interrogation.”

“Which one?”

“Sixteen. Tara’s twin.”

“Anything interesting?”

“The most vital information we’ve gotten yet. The kids aren’t alone.”

“What do you mean, they’re not alone?”

“Someone’s helping them. They’re part of a resistance.”

“You’re sure of this?”

“Absolutely.”

“Well done. I’ll alert Dr. Hatch.”

A
n hour after Ostin had been incarcerated, a single soldier walked into his cell. Ostin was lying on his back on the thin, flea-infested cot, staring at the cracked ceiling. The guard had no gun but held a wooden truncheon in one hand. “Stand up,” he said.

“Qué pasa?”
Ostin said, slowly rising.

“Stand up.
Hazlo!”

“Okay,” he said. “Don’t get your panties in a bunch.”

The guard looked at him without comprehension.

Ten minutes earlier, Ostin had reattached the RESAT to his chest, and when he was arm’s length from the soldier, he tapped on the box. “Can you turn this thing down? It’s too strong.”

“No. Put your hands in front of you.”

Concealing the RESAT wires in his hands, Ostin held his hands out. As the guard brought the cuffs near, Ostin touched the
bare-ended wires to the guard’s arms. There was a loud snap of electricity, and the man collapsed to the ground without a scream.

Ostin looked down at him. “I told you it was too strong.” Ostin crouched down next to the man to make sure he was out. “So that’s what it’s like to be Michael.” He carefully rolled the wires back, then quickly undressed the guard and put on his uniform. The guard was an inch shorter than Ostin, and the uniform fit well except for being a little snug in the waist.

When Ostin had finished changing, he handcuffed the guard’s hands behind his back, stuffed the man’s socks into his mouth, then wrapped a sheet around the man’s head to keep him from spitting the socks out. He took the guard’s key and bludgeon, peered out of his cell, and when he saw no one, walked out into the corridor.

The jail was small, a single corridor about sixty feet in length, with doors on each side. Ostin had no idea which cells his friends were being kept in, so he tried the key in the first door next to his, opened it, and quickly stepped inside. Zeus was lying on the bed, his face bent in a grimace. Sweat was beading on his forehead, stress from a RESAT that was set too high.

“Oye!”
Ostin shouted.

Zeus sneered. “Eat my shorts, you ape.”

“I’ll pass,” Ostin said, stepping closer.

Zeus looked over at him. “Ostin? How did you . . .”

Ostin took the wires from the RESAT and hooked them to Zeus’s machine. “I’m going to unfasten this.”

“No, don’t,” Zeus said. “It sets it off. It could kill me.”

“Shouldn’t,” he said. He set his own RESAT on the bed next to Zeus. “I rewired this to counter yours. I’m ninety-nine point six percent sure that it will work.”

Zeus looked at it a moment, then said, “Are you sure?”

“I just told you how sure I am.” Ostin grasped the closest fastener on Zeus’s RESAT, then unlatched it. The RESAT immediately lit up.

“It’s powering up,” Zeus said anxiously.

“I know,” Ostin said. Suddenly the machine began to squeal.

“Ostin . . .”

“Does it feel different?”

“No.”

“Then don’t sweat it.”

Zeus didn’t feel it getting stronger. If anything, his pain was diminishing.

“I think it’s working,” Zeus said.

“For a minute,” Ostin said. “We’ve got to get it off you. The capacitor can only hold so much electricity before it will blow.”

“Now you tell me.” Zeus frantically unfastened the rest of the clips, then pushed the box away from him. He fell back against the wall and took a deep breath, groaning in relief.

“You’re welcome,” Ostin said, grabbing Zeus’s RESAT and prying off its back.

“Thank you,” Zeus said. “I’m going to blast those guys to the next city.”

“Bad idea,” Ostin said. “We’re still surrounded, and they’ve still got guns.” He yanked a few wires off the RESAT, then snapped on the back of the RESAT and gave the box back to Zeus. “Here, put it back on.”

“I’m not putting that on,” he said, looking at the flashing lights.

“It doesn’t work anymore,” Ostin said. “It just looks like it does. If you walk out there without it on, they’ll know something’s up.”

Zeus slid his arms through the straps, and Ostin clipped the fasteners back in place. He looked at Ostin. “What’s next?”

“We need to find the others. Then we’re going to capture a few soldiers, put on their uniforms, and walk the rest of us out of here. That’s the only way we’re going to get past all those guards.”

“Do you know what’s outside this place?”

“Other than like ten thousand soldiers? No. We need Ian. If there’s a weakness, I’m sure he’s already found it. Do you know what room he’s in?”

“No. I had a hood over my head when they brought me in.”

“Yeah, we all did.” Ostin walked to the cell door. “All right, I’m going to open it. When no one’s watching, I’m going to cross the hall and open the door across from us. Get ready to run.”

Ostin opened the cell door a half inch and peered out. No one
was in the hall. He turned back to Zeus. “It’s clear. Come on.”

Zeus walked up behind him. Ostin looked out again, then they both ran across the hall. Ostin shoved the key in the door, unlocked the cell, and pushed the door open.

“It’s us . . . ,” he said, as the door swung open. There were at least twenty dirty and angry-looking Peruvian convicts staring at him.

“Sorry, wrong room,” Ostin said, stepping back.

“Atacquenlos!”
a large, bearded man shouted.

“Vámonos!”
another shouted, rushing toward Ostin.

Ostin froze in the doorway, paralyzed by fear. Zeus pushed Ostin aside and with both hands extended, blasted the approaching men. The electricity from his bolt splintered off, traveling through all of the men simultaneously, and all of them fell to the ground, one of them grasping his chest. Zeus grabbed Ostin and pulled him out of the room.

“Wrong curtain, man,” he said, pulling the door shut. They went to the next door, which Ostin, though still shaken and fumbling with the key, managed to unlock. This time he opened the door more cautiously. At first neither of them saw anyone. Then Zeus pointed to the corner. “There she is.”

Lying on her back on the concrete floor next to the far wall was McKenna. Her back was arched and her long black hair was splayed out around her. Zeus pushed Ostin inside the cell and shut the door behind them.

“McKenna,” Ostin said. Then he realized that she was convulsing. “No!” He rushed to her side. Her entire body was seized and her eyes had rolled back in her head. “It’s killing her!” Ostin shouted. “It’s too high!”

“Shut it off,” Zeus said.

Ostin fell to his knees on the ground next to her. He fastened the wires of his RESAT to hers and practically ripped the machine off of her. She immediately gasped, then fell still.

“McKenna!” Ostin shouted.

Zeus put his finger on her throat, then his ear to her heart. “It’s not beating.”

“CPR,” Ostin said. He began pressing on her chest, then listened. Then repeated. “I can’t get anything,” he said.

Zeus pulled him off her. “Stand back.”

He put his hand over McKenna’s heart. “Hold on.” He shocked her, and her entire body jumped. He put his head on her chest. Nothing. He leaned back and tried it again. “Come on, McKenna.” Her body jumped even more. Then she groaned. He put his ear to her chest. This time he could hear her heart.

“It’s beating.”

Her eyes opened, then she began to cry.

Ostin knelt back next to her. “I’m so sorry,” he said. “I’m so sorry.” He wiped the tears off her cheeks. She looked up at him gratefully.

When she could speak she said, “Thank you.”

“Anything for you,” he said.

“We’ve got to hurry,” Zeus said. “Before they find out we’re gone.”

“Can you stand?” Ostin asked.

“I think so,” McKenna said. “Just help me up.”

Ostin stood, and, taking her hands in his, helped her to her feet. After she was standing, her legs buckled a little and she fell into him. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her up until she could stand on her own. “Sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay,” Ostin said. “Take your time.

Zeus looked at them impatiently. “Not a lot of time.”

“We can go,” McKenna said.

Zeus pulled open the cell door and looked out into the hallway. “It’s clear. Give me the key.” Ostin gave him the key and Zeus crossed the hallway to the next door and opened it. Inside was Ian, who in spite of the effect of his RESAT, was still able to see what was going on and was sitting up expecting him.

Zeus waved McKenna and Ostin over. Ostin took McKenna by the arm and helped her across the hallway into Ian’s cell.

“I saw you do something to this,” Ian said, touching the RESAT.

“I can disable it,” Ostin said.

“Then do it,” Ian said. “It’s killing me.”

Ostin attached the wires from his RESAT to Ian’s, then began
unfastening the buckles. Ian slipped the box off, groaning in relief. “Thanks, man. I owe you.”

Ostin began dissecting the RESAT. “You’re welcome.”

“And for saving McKenna.” Ian walked over to McKenna and put his arms around her. After years of being imprisoned together in the academy’s dungeon, McKenna had become a sister to him, and he had yelled out for help as he watched her struggling with her RESAT. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m better now,” she said, glancing at Ostin.

Ostin smiled, then continued working on Ian’s RESAT. When he’d rewired it, he replaced the rear panel and handed it back to him. “Here you go. It’s best to keep them on.”

“I get it,” Ian said, rebuckling the machine.

“Where’s everyone else?” Zeus asked.

Ian said, “Jack, Abigail, and Wade are in the next three cells on this side. Taylor’s in the last cell on the opposite side, but she’s not there. They took her down to interrogate her.”

“Not good,” Zeus said.

“No, it might be good,” Ostin said. “It’s just the opportunity we need. We’ll wait in her cell for the guards to bring her back, then jump them. But we still need to get the others. Ian, you need to tell us when to move.”

“Jack’s in the cell next to us, then Wade, but we should get Abi first. She’s in a lot of pain.”

“Then let’s go,” Zeus said.

Following Ian, they hurried down to Abigail’s cell. Abigail didn’t see them come in. She was lying on the ground facing the wall, writhing in pain. Zeus ran to her side. “We’re here,” he said.

She rolled over to look at him, her cheeks stained with tears. “It hurts.”

“I know. We’ll get it off. C’mon, Ostin. Hurry!”

Ostin fastened his machine to hers, and Zeus pulled her RESAT off. She rolled onto her stomach and sobbed, while Zeus gently rubbed her back. “It sucks, you know? You can take away everyone’s pain but your own.”

“Are you okay?” McKenna asked, crouching down next to her.

“I think these guys are meaner than the Elgen,” Abigail said.

“I don’t think so,” Ostin said. “I just think they don’t know how to use the RESATs.”

“Where’d they even get them?” Zeus asked.

“I’m sure they’re a gift from the Elgen,” Ian said.

“You can bet on that,” Ostin said. He stood. “We better keep moving.”

Zeus cradled Abigail in his arms and lifted her. “Thank you,” Abigail said, draping her arms around Zeus’s neck.

“What’s going on out there?” Ostin asked.

Ian said, “There’s some activity in the front, but we’re still clear. Let’s get the other two.”