Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ All I Have ❯ Teenagers ( Chapter 16 )

: Teenagers :

 

 

 

Drained, Andy sat heavily upon the couch, indifferent of the rats that scurried away from it and hearing Adam's sharp curses of frustration down the hall. It seemed that as soon as he sat every bit of strength he had flit away from him. He wanted to curl up and go to sleep, exhaustion and disorientation making it impossible to think straight. Miserably he took his own pulse and determined, with heavy doubt, that he'd be okay. The FMB had enough supplies in it to give him a boost if his body continued to try and shut down, but it felt as if his foot had fallen completely asleep.

 

He didn't want to think about it, knowing that every minute away from crucial medical intervention would determine the fate of his leg. The medpack had done what it could to rearranged damaged tendons, to push together and rebuild broken veins and set the bone, but the lingering damage of the fracture, combined with the body's natural reaction with shock due to the break and blood loss had set in. He didn't want to put that pressure on Adam, not after being lost within the underground labyrinth.

 

Forcing himself to turn his head, he saw Adam examine the cave-in of a crucial hall, debris and rubble making it impossible for him to push through. The lobby of the underground tunnel service area was a complicated one. Andy wanted to meet the designer of the area and punch him.

 

His shin throbbed with heavy, discomforting pain, and he reached down to massage the area around it, to prompt blood flow, to check the work he'd done hastily with the medpack. His feet burned and ached, and as he bent over to touch the damaged area, he found it impossible to straighten back up. Resting his cheek against his knee, he was minutely grateful he wasn't wearing the heavy gear of his uniform. He'd been through exhaustive efforts before, but at least they had energy gel and company to keep each other awake. Adam hadn't spoken a word to him since that outburst earlier, and Andy wasn't even sure how he felt on the subject. He was just too tired; his body ached, he was stressed, hungry, thirsty and shutting down on heavy thoughts seemed only logical.

 

He closed his eyes, feeling the lids twitch. He figured he'd just close his eyes for a minute.

 

Nearly ripping the map up, Adam turned away from the cave-in with a heated curse. He looked over to see how Andy was holding up and found the other man passed out in an odd position. He hurried over to see if he were okay, saying his name harshly and seeing no reaction. Taking the initiative, he pushed Andy into a sitting position and found how cold he was. He looked down at Andy's leg, unsure of that was the main cause of this unresponsiveness.

 

Glancing around, he figured upon taking a break. He would look over the map for another way out and let Andy have his nap. Swiftly he unloaded his pack near one of the walls, and snatched a couch cushion, brushing off any lingering rat traces. Tossing that nearby, he then leaned down to pick the other man up bridal-style, feeling the strain in his chest and muscles as he did so. His chest felt especially weak, and he knew he shouldn't be straining himself in such movements, but they were necessary. Pain touched him briefly, but he figured he was fine.

 

He hurried over to the wall and carefully lowered him to the floor, using his pack to push under Andy's head, and then gently propping the damaged limb atop of the couch cushion. Andy hadn't made any movement or response to the action, Adam frowning. Quickly, he pulled his vest off and removed his uniform top, figuring the material held enough power to react to the other man's temperature to warm him up. He tucked that around him, giving a heavy sigh as he straightened, feeling the hurt in his chest. Clad in his t-shirt, he pulled the vest back on over, figuring he'd just go without the uniform top, but recognizing that now his strength was limited to Normal human standards. Unsure of where to go from there, he grimaced, moving back for the map and wishing he had some way of getting to the surface faster.

 

The cave-in looked recent; he could smell the dust that continued to settle, and figured it was due to some sinister Underworld figure that knew they were still trapped down there. As he looked back over at it, he figured that it had gone undetected up top due to the area's misuse. The train system had been built completely over the area, bypassing most of their route and the service tunnels were accessed by other routes that had only shown up on the dated map. Shaking his head in disgust, at being so close to the surface and yet so far, he shifted away from Andy and headed for the closest room, which looked to be a management office.

 

Inside was a large area, clear of furniture, but he saw what looked to be heating duct along the floor, along the bottom of the wall. Heading for that, Adam crouched next to the slated cover, and glanced inside. He wondered if he could fit himself through the square tunnel, and shook his head slowly, knowing that his size completely eliminated any possibility. Andy might be able to, but with his leg out of commission, Adam figured that even if they tried, they couldn't escape from that route.

 

Noises caught his attention, and he stilled, straining his ears, almost in disbelief that he was able to hear something within the dead silence. It sounded like movement, of banging and shuffling at some point away from them. He wondered if those were the sounds Andy had heard earlier, and he rose from his crouch and hurried back to the other man, disengaging his flashlight from his vest and covering the light with one hand.

 

Cautiously he reached for his pistol and switched off the flashlight, heading back down the hall they'd come earlier. The noises were stronger, and as he grew closer to the source, realized that it was a couple of people with flashlights. He wasn't going to call out just yet, wanting to see who it was. If it were either member of the Underworld, he knew that their tendency to shoot first was a problem. They'd surely get rid of him before getting to Andy, to use the blame on the other if his body were ever found. Because they were out of the public eye, Adam was confident that their low tactics would spur their decision in obtaining their prize.

 

He also had the sticky politics to sort through if he were to engage into some firefight. If he shot first, there were people to answer to in why such measures were taken, considered extreme if he made that move against any threat without having the threat engage him first. Exasperation clouding his features, he pressed up against the corner of the hall, listening to them discuss the latest sports figures on the `set, murmuring a comment about the state of the area from time to time.

 

Cautiously looking around the corner, he saw two men rummaging through the antechamber he and Andy had left behind, their flashlights' positioning making it difficult to tell who they belonged to. But because they lacked any sort of gear the Duncan Jones soldiers carried, or any member of law enforcement, he was positive that they weren't any rescue personnel. They had to be either civilians or Underworld.

 

One of them shifted around, and he saw the flash of white in his clothing. With a grimace, Adam slunk away, trying to figure out what he should do. With Andy currently out of commission, Adam would have to find a way to either hide him, or find another way out, fast. Without his uniform top, he'd be slowed having to carry the other man's dead weight. He then paused, looking at the room he'd just left earlier, a thought coming to mind. Quickly, he snatched his uniform top off, sloppily pulling it on over his vest and raced into the room.

 

With a jerk, he managed to pull the air vent cover from its position, and then raced back to Andy, picking him up with a slight grunt. Still unresponsive, Andy lay slack in his arms, and Adam had to wonder what was wrong with him, as his leg was being continuously jolted with his movements and he thought that with some registration of pain he'd awaken. He tried to carefully slide him into the cavernous opening, but ending up bumping some limb against the sides, a metallic clanging occurring with the action. He then tossed off his shirt, sloppily tucking it back around Andy, and then set the cover back up.

 

Knowing that he would have been heard, Adam then hurried out of the room, hearing their voices nearing his position. Exhaling, setting himself up for another firefight and feeling completely vulnerable without his full gear, he pressed his thumb and index finger onto the safety mechanism of his pistol, the automatic readout allowing the safety to disengage. He kicked his pack aside incase he needed room to maneuver.

 

But as he waited, listening to them grow near, he realized that they were complaining. They turned at mid-point and began walking back, grumbling too low for him to hear. As he listened to them walk away, he gave another exhale of relief. He then straightened, to hurriedly look for another way out when he saw the door nearby. It was wide open, making him realize that it hadn't been earlier, and that he was able to see it because there was a light beyond it, showing him that it was a narrow corridor with a slanting floor leading up.

 

As he processed that, he gave a slight jolt, snapping his head around to see Samsara standing there beside him, having made no sound or sign of his presence.

 

“Ah, fuck,” he said aloud in surprise. He expected a round to the head, but Samsara gave a snorting sound, walking empty-handed to the vent where Adam had hidden Andy earlier. He gave a flourishing gesture at the vent and then at Adam, signaling for him to remove the man he'd hidden.

 

Surprised that he wasn't dead yet, Adam stared down at him, trying to guess what would happen next. Samsara gestured at the pistol in his hand, and he slowly engaged the safety, and then tossed it away at his next gesture. Standing off to the side, he waited for Adam to answer, to which Adam muttered, “You're letting me go?”

 

“It ain't my business call,” was the surly answer. An expectant stare ensued, the figure crossing his arms. The silence was deafening at that point, Adam hearing no sign of the men that had marched away.

 

Adam slowly walked over and began the process of removing Andy from the vent. He cursed inwardly, feeling entirely defenseless without his gun, with the unconscious man in his arms. Despite everything that he'd seen happen in the station, it looked as if the figure had escaped serious injury, even clothing damage. Clumsily, he held Andy in his arms, feeling the strain as he did so. But if Samsara was giving him that opportunity, he figured there was some safety for both of them in that action. Then again, the figure was much shorter than the two men; even if he had to, Andy would still be an awkward carry for him.

 

Samsara shifted, gesturing with a hand at a doorway. Reluctantly, Adam walked, entering the corridor with heavy steps, the lithe young man moving briskly around him to lead the way through the hall. There were a couple of turns and doorways that they took in which Samsara finally stopped and gestured at an open entryway. Cautiously, Adam entered a conference room of sorts and spied Yoshida Smith sitting at the head of the table, smoking a cigarette, her heels propped upon the table.

 

It didn't startle him in that he was facing her; what did was that the light overhead buzzed heavily, powered by her psychokinetic strength. Having been without the light for a few hours made his eyes squint, but to see it was a somewhat welcome relief. Samsara shut the door behind Adam, and Adam felt trapped and suffocated as one East Sider faced him and the other set himself behind him. Being without crucial pieces of his uniform made him feel oddly vulnerable, and definitely made him cranky, feeling his face shift into a moody frown. He could feel the sensation of Samsara's presence just from that positioning; having his back open to any attacks made him jittery and sweaty with anxiety.

 

“Took you long enough,” Yoshida said, young features spread with some cocky indifference. “I made it cave-in nearly an hour earlier. Well, whatever, lay the patient on the table.”

“He's hurt,” Adam said simply. “He needs medical attention.”

 

“We've got it,” Yoshida said, tilting her head at her accomplice. Samsara, with obvious reluctance, stepped forward to the table. “Sit awhile. Your friend will be fixed while we talk.”

 

“I've nothing to say to you.”

 

“Five people, so far, died in that station today. They're still shifting through the rubble,” Yoshida said, stabbing her cigarette out on the table. Her blue eyes were glazed, pupils expanded widely, Adam recognizing that she was on some drug. Her bright red hair was piled into some ponytail, but her facial features looked wrecked, her makeup smeared, as if she hadn't bothered to remove it in the past few days. Her ensemble of sweat pants, plain athletic shirt and heels told him she at least changed. “We don't want to add to that, do we?”

 

Reluctantly, he carefully laid Andy down onto the table and noticed just how terrible the other man looked. He wasn't even sure if the tint that colored the man's skin was normal; sweat dripped from his hairline and his shirt was soaked. Samsara gestured at him to step to the side.

 

“Now then. While Sam here fixes him up, you and I…let's shoot the shit.”

 

A chair forced itself against the back of Adam's legs, and he sat heavily, the chair protesting his weight and the action. One of Yoshida's light eyebrows rose in response, but she flicked ashes to the side and continued speaking. Uncomfortably, Adam sat at the edge of the chair, unsure of what he'd do if he had to move, but definitely ready to do something.

 

“Looking through Center's bullshit records on what Wintour pulled out of him, he had an encounter with Grey Aliens. Shitty little bastards were running operations for the cartels down south. They were smuggling drugs and healthy organs up this way for them. Once the labs were busted, they could have gone on and did other things, but they chose to stay.”

 

Adam watched as Samsara withdrew a different sort of medical kit from his utility belt. He removed the uniform top, and then attended to the crude splintering Andy had performed on himself. Adam moved to look away, unable to face the sight of Andy's feet and that damaged leg, feeling the twinges of bile twist in his mid-section.

 

“Sam's got medical experience!” Yoshida hollered unnecessarily, her voice causing Adam to jolt noticeably. Looking over at her, he hated how people like her were able to see what had been private thoughts and concerns. “Patches the self up all on the lonesome. Just gotta have the tech to do it, so don't worry your big ole head.”

 

Samsara ripped off his gloves. Adam noticed the tanned, scarred hands that were surprisingly thin and short. Almost girlish in appearance. He watched those hands travel up and down Andy's shin, pressing fingertips into vital areas to check the setting. Once he was satisfied with what he found, he rummaged through the medical kit.

 

“See, no one knows what he's got, or what the Aliens burned into him. But it's valuable. It's a receipt form, but who did the receipt? To what, for where, for how much? That sort of thing.” Yoshida continued, wiping below her eyes, at the makeup smeared there. “Whatever it is, Wintour couldn't get it. Useless old hag.”

 

Adam looked over to see Samsara plunge the thick, long needle into the site of injury, which was swollen and purplish hued. With the action, Adam realized that he'd jammed the needle into Andy's shin bone, which prompted a low, protesting moan from the man. He watched as neon yellow liquid slowly disappeared with Samsara's prompting. “What is that?”

 

“You could say it's a sort of regenerative cream, heals from the inside out. Illegal when not in the use of licensed practitioners. Sam uses it a lot, huh, Sam? Let's make a deal, Byrons,” Yoshida then said, flicking hair from her face. Once the syringe was tossed aside, Samsara spent some time massaging the area, Adam noticing that a couple of fingernails from his left hand were missing, the fingertips bruised and battered. He furrowed his brow, wondering how that had happened even if protected by those gloves Samsara wore. “You allow us to take the information from him, we'll display it for you to see. If it ain't anything, I'll let you go.”

 

Adam processed the words, finally looking away from Andy. “What's the catch to that?”

 

“We'll leave him alone.”

 

“What if it's something that belongs to you?”

 

“You know the evil do that we do,” she murmured.

 

“Well, in any event, we don't have a choice,” he said. “Get it over with.”

 

Samsara shifted away from Andy at that point, tossing aside the wrapping for the medpack. Adam looked over and realized that the broken area was now completely healed, save for some minimal bruising. Yoshida left her chair, wobbling slightly on her heels. Her condition made Adam think she was drunk, and she giggled as she caught onto a chair, Samsara shaking his head at her and gesturing impatiently at Andy.

 

Yoshida heaved herself close to the prone man, reaching out to touch his head. She retracted her hand with a disgusted noise, wiping his sweat onto her mini-skirt. “Yick. Man fluid.”

 

Both of them snickered, Samsara's shoulders hunching as they looked at each other. Their childish mannerisms made Adam feel disgusted, hating that such powerful people were so young. He thought that they could have done better with their lives, hadn't they been caught up in the Underworld.

 

Suddenly he saw before his eyes a scene; of Ken standing off to the side in full uniform, demanding to know what had just happened. He was then pacing around a dark room that looked larger in peripheral vision, and looking down at something curled up on the floor. With some wonder, he realized that he was looking at a scene that had happened through Andy's eyes, and the sheer awe of being able to do so had him mesmerized.

 

He, as Andy, picked up the tightly folded item and opened it with nimble fingers. The price of each crate was in the thousands, and the buyer and seller was registered as numbers and X's. He felt his forehead furrow and the picture dissolved, his eyes blinking back into reality and finding his hands were in front of his face, as if he'd been holding the receipt himself.

 

Yoshida gave a `hmm-ing' sound, Samsara lowering his hands as well. “That doesn't look like something of ours,” she said. “It's too crude. I'm going to send it back to the people in charge.”

 

She looked over at Adam with a frown, Andy starting to awaken with a slight sound. Adam looked at him, finding that his coloring had improved, Samsara taking the time to take his vitals by looking at some hidden watch on his wrist and then appearing satisfied as he then pulled his gloves back on, backing away from the table while Andy oriented himself with the room. Once the blond realized that they were in a lit room with two of the East Siders, he looked baffled, looking at Adam for an explanation.

 

“We're good for now,” Adam assured him lowly, unsure of what to say after that. Andy looked at Samsara, then at Yoshida, clearly uncertain of what had happened until he looked at his leg, examining it with more thorough dedication.

 

Tilting her head, Yoshida then asked, “You haven't known each other very long, do you?”

 

Adam looked at her cynically. “Why.”

 

She smiled cryptically at him, and then retracted away from the table. Samsara reached out and pushed Andy off the table as Yoshida whirled in place with a wail of random noise.

 

“It does not belong to us!” she cried. “Oh, ho, all these problems could have been prevented had this man listened to me the first night! Am I not great at what I do? I, with the power of my awesome, unlocked the damn locking mechanism it'd imprinted upon him and shoved it open with the strength of my unlimited skill!”

 

“So the East Side didn't have anything to do with this?” Adam questioned, looking over to see Andy blearily take in his surroundings. He shifted over and roughly hauled him to his feet, in case they had to move quickly. Andy took that time to continue to examine his newly healed leg, marveling at what had been done.

 

“Nope. Frankly, dude, I've no idea whose hand that is,” Yoshida admitted. “You might want to recreate that receipt and hand it into Intelligence. Drop the note that it could be the cartels. Those scummy bastards, trying to invade the territories with their cheap shit!”

 

“So you're letting us go.”

 

Yoshida then snapped her fingers, looking at Samsara. “You there! I have a new mission for you!”

 

“What's happening?” Andy asked Adam in confusion.

 

“They found what it was they were after,” Adam replied, as Yoshida continued to blather on randomly over the situation. “Just like that.”

 

Andy took on a bewildered expression, glancing skeptically at the teen. “But…but Major Wintour couldn't even—”

 

“That old hag ain't half as awesome as I am!” Yoshida interrupted, slapping the table with both hands and leaning onto it to say, “I was able to reach in, swat her pathetic little block out of the way and mercilessly extract what I'd needed.”

 

Andy looked much better than he had once they entered the room, and Adam studied him for a few seconds to make sure that it wasn't just his tired eyes playing tricks on him. He was dirtied, his clothes' color was unrecognizable and ripped, but he looked fine. Samsara must have also attended to his feet, for Andy was standing more comfortably in that aspect. It gave him a sense of relief in that it looked as if Andy were going to be okay, but Adam didn't want to dwell on that aspect very long. Not with Yoshida Smith in the room.

 

“Sam, I want you to personally escort these two back to their people!” Yoshida hollered, lighting up another cigarette.

 

Samsara gave a startled gesture, wordlessly signaling `why?'

 

“Because I will tell you later. Do it now, or forever regret it later on!” Yoshida boomed with over exaggerated gestures. “And, trust me, you don't want to regret it.”

 

Samsara gave an exasperated gesture. His body language seemed to speak for him, his black-covered form giving physical influence to unspoken words.

 

“You'll be escorted back up there and, rest assured no more trouble will come to you from our end. Can't guarantee the South's,” Yoshida continued, blowing smoke in their direction. “Sam's the best at what you do, eh, Sam?”

 

“We don't need an escort,” Adam said tiredly, rising from his chair. “Just give us the directions we need to get back to the surface. I'd rather not have any of you involved.”

 

Yoshida studied him for a few moments, and then looked over at Samsara. Some sort of inaudible conversation happened between then, a sort of rising expectation in the air causing discomfort for Adam as he waited for either of them to say something. Finally, Yoshida looked back at Adam with a smirk.

 

“All right. But I'm warning you now, those guys on the other side of the fence now know where we are and what we're doing. Find your way back up. I'll push you from here, cuz I sure as hell ain't ready to go back up.”

 

Adam felt his forehead furrow, but the teen stumbled her way around the table, using various things for support. Finally at the doorway, she clung to that and gave them a drunken expression, Adam catching Samsara shaking his head in disgust at his peripheral vision.

 

“We're down behind 158th and Missouri. The situation at the 127th and Lotus is crawling with every emergency service and media vehicle available within this section of town. Everyone still thinks you both are buried under the rubble. The train crash knocked out that section of the tunnel and the station itself. No one knows you're alive but us. Oh, and them.”

 

“As long as we get to the surface, we should be fine.”

 

“I doubt it. You forget where you are?” she asked, her lipstick smearing along her cheek as she scratched at the corner of her mouth. “You're deep in the South Side territory. Once they get a hold of him, they're not going to be as chillin' as us two.”

 

“We'll make it just fine—”

 

“Sam! To the surface! And get to it, because I am crashing out,” Yoshida then ordered, walking away. Samsara gave a snort, turning away from the doorway to face the back wall. It burst open, revealing a lit corridor with a set of stairs leading up. Samsara withdrew an SMG from under his left arm, and with an unenthusiastic sigh, started forward.

 

`Keep up, now,' Yoshida's voice said from within, causing Adam to wince as the prickly sensation of being crowded within his own skin caused extreme uneasiness. `Don't get left behind! Oh, and both of you? It'll only work if you let it. Yup. Okay, I'm done being mysterious and cryptic, so, peace bums!'

 

Andy looked up at Adam with a questioning frown, to which Adam hadn't a response to. Adam felt completely annoyed that one of the most powerful psychokinetics in the city was also completely nutty.

 

-

 

Samsara hustled through the corridor, keeping a pace that both men had to jog to keep up with. Adam took rear, keeping an eye out for anybody that might be giving chase. He could hear the South Side's movements, but he couldn't see any sign of their presence. Moving up the staircase, Samsara gave another heavy sigh.

 

“Stay close, stay tight,” he then commanded, pausing outside of a door. “Don't wander off, don't try an' be a hero. I ain't chasin' after ya'll just ta watch yer dumbasses. Clear?”

 

“This isn't a setup, is it?” Adam asked, wishing he had some weapon in his hands. “You're not leading us to some death trap?”

 

Samsara paused for a moment, Adam sensing from his body language that it was to give him a look.

 

“We're almost there,” Andy interrupted with a start. “I can hear the trains!”

 

Adam stilled, realizing that he was able to hear the familiar rumble of the trains somewhere off to their left. Samsara continued on, a shadow merging into others as he then pushed Andy to hurry after him. Still completely uncertain as to what Samsara's role was in their escape, Adam kept up, cautiously glancing behind him. The darkness was stifling and suffocating, and hearing their movement to run through the concrete hall seemed so loud.

 

Samsara shoved open another door, this one spilling out into a train tunnel. The air was welcoming, filled with the familiar smells of an overcrowded population. The sounds of a Fast Trac train were fading, the walls ringing with its squealing brakes. He shifted aside, and gestured to their left.

 

`The 1012 is about to come through, so make it quick,' Yoshida's voice filtered in, causing Adam to stumble as he moved over the tracks. `You've also got annoying people coming your way. Instead of the usual melee of henches, Trek sent out the big dogs. You've got hired Hounds on your asses, moving to drag you back.'

 

Hearing the proclamation of hired space mercenaries being sent out to retrieve them sent chills up and down Adam's spine. Facing the large brutes in uniform was difficult enough, but being without was something that made him feel small and vulnerable. Utterly disgusted at having relied on his uniform for far too much, Adam glanced behind him, expecting to see the shadowy figures right at their heels.

 

Focusing forward, he saw the platform, the rumbles at his feet telling him that the 1012 was coming in, its headlight visible along the curved walls of the tunnel. Seeing people milling about on the platform was also welcoming; there was something warm and homecoming about the sight as Samsara raced for the platform and then gestured at them to hurry up. A businessman holding a magazine looked at them, frowned, and then returned to the article he had been perusing over. He shifted over to give them room as Andy scrambled onto the platform, Samsara gesturing impatiently at Adam to follow. Despite their obviously worn conditions, the shadowy figure in black holding a gun, no one reacted with more than perusing glances. That's what Adam was used to in New Park occupants; their willingness to ignore the obvious until the obvious started firing or throwing heavy things.

 

At the bellows of alarm from down the tunnel, Adam whirled to see the doorway they'd left behind spilling with several large, dark figures. Samsara lifted his guns and fired, causing people on the platform to grow alarmed, racing away from the scene. Not wanting to be caught in a similar scene that had taken them underground in the first place, Adam pushed Andy into a run, following the crowd down an adjoining hall. Samsara followed moments later with a curse, the train coming in with a bellow of noise.

 

Racing up the stairway and onto the streets, the sun bright and the pollution thick, Adam covered his eyes briefly, Andy doing the same as people streamed out around them in panic. Samsara shot out from the stairway and gestured at the street, where vehicles in black were parked. At the sight of them, doors opened and men spilled out.

 

“Jesus Christ, can't you just tell them that you got the information already?!” Adam shouted after him, moving into a run.

 

“They want it for themselves,” Samsara said with irritation.

 

“Then let them take it! Keep them from killing him at least, but let them take it!”

 

“No can do, fat head.” Samsara paused in place, then reached under the bottom of a mid-size vehicle. With one arm and a faint grunt, he hefted it through the air in a clumsy throw, tossing the car into the middle of the street and causing a pile-up amongst the civilian vehicles and those in black. He fired into the air a few times, civilians immediately racing for cover, causing chaos and panic in the streets and effectively hiding them from the men in black's sight.

 

“Why not?” Andy asked, before Adam could. “If it's nothing—”

 

“Because `Shida unlocked it. Get it back to Wintour an' have them extract th' shit outta it. It might be one of theirs,” Samsara answered impatiently.

 

Adam rolled his eyes, glancing at the street signs and noting their proximity from the scene on 127th and Lotus. It would be a few miles, so he searched for a vehicle. Samsara was already in the action of pulling a woman out of her car, bellowing for the passenger to leave it. In the melee, Adam felt incredibly bad for wearing what was left of his DJ uniform and cooperating with a person of ill-repute, but seeing the men in black nearing them with their guns and intentions caused him to push aside his guilt. He climbed into the back seat while Samsara injected the computer dash with some sort of virus, Andy climbing into the passenger side seat and locking the door with a sheepish expression at the furious previous driver.

 

The car's tires squealed as Samsara shut the door and adjusted the seat, jerking the wheel around and cursing at automatics as he played with the handheld comp that he held and with the mess-ups he made trying to create commands with a thumb while operating the vehicle with his other hand.

 

Ducking at the gunshots that caused metal to bend and glass to break, Adam cursed and covered his head, Andy doing the same while Samsara drove through both lanes, cursing at having to recreate the commands in the handheld. Negotiating a turn with a knee, he then used both hands to complete the task, the computer dash flashing in compliance to his commands, the comp shoved back into one of the pockets on his utility belt. An SMG was pulled, Samsara bashing out the driver's side window and firing without looking as he then resumed control over the wheel. Cautiously looking up, Adam saw that the black vehicles were overtaking civilians, their drivers causing a ruckus on the city streets.

 

From the sidewalks he could see large, shadowy shapes plowing through startled civilians, and looked back out the windshield. Samsara flew through the stoplights, nearly avoiding being hit by those in the right, their squealing brakes and startled drivers painfully obvious as they shot by. Adam cringed, hating to be put into a position that put him on the other side. But he looked out the window and saw their pursuers slowed by the accidents that had occurred at the stoplight.

 

`Good one,' Yoshida said, slurred and ragged.

 

“How many are there?” Samsara asked, shooting blind at the sidewalks, people ducking.

 

“Jesus they're only civilians!” Andy spoke up, looking horrified as he debated on doing something to stop him.

 

“Hunters. In the crowds. And don't you even think about it,” Samsara then warned, pointing his SMG into Andy's face. Andy reached up and shoved the gun out of his face, a look of annoyance on his face.

 

`Seven,' Yoshida replied. `I'm trying to get on those guys' ass down on Locus, but their fuckin' tech is so annoying! So I'm getting the nubs to intercept.'

 

“At least let them know we're coming,” Adam said, leaning forward and finding it hard to be comfortable, with his size taking up the backseat. “They could send people out and we can get out of here.”

 

“You don't like my driving?” Samsara asked, yanking the wheel hard to the left, nearly plowing into civilians crossing the street and sending both men slamming to the passenger side windows. Before Adam could answer, the car jolted forward, and he glanced back to see a large SUV type truck slamming into them from behind. Bullets sprayed the car, and he ducked down low, covering his head with both hands.

 

Samsara used his knees once more to steer, and turned in his seat to fire back out the window. Using one hand to do that, he then reached behind him for a clip, Andy watching to see where he pulled such things from and seeing the new clip emerge from his left thigh subspace holder. The moment Samsara ejected the older clip he was shoving in a new one. He returned his attention to the road, firing blindly as he made another turn, nearly plowing into a police car with its lights flashing.

 

Samsara lowered the gun and hit the gas, the police cruiser turning sharply to move after them. The vehicles in black quickly separated and drove off into different directions, Samsara forcing another turn to avoid the cop as well.

 

“No! Drop us off here!” Adam growled, lifting his head to see the cop choosing to follow them.

 

“He works for the South Side! Goin' after us when there's others back there that done the chasing!” Samsara growled, fitting the gun underneath his chin and reaching back for the handheld. His thumb moved quickly to input a command.

 

`Gets paid weekly,' Yoshida murmured. `Here. I got this one. No need to virus his ass.'

 

Adam looked back to see the cop cruiser jolt to a stop, rubber burning on asphalt. The car flipped back end over front, crashing into the asphalt with a crash of sound. Almost immediately the black vehicles emerged from various streets, almost as if choreographed. They resumed the chase as Samsara took a side road through a small neighborhood.

 

Adam saw heavy movement from his left, and looked just in time to see one of the large Hunters leap from the sidewalk and onto the hood of the car. With its wide, muscular shoulders on display, its scarred and gray head with humanoid features glaring into the car with beady red eyes, the Hunter gripped the sides of the windshield with a massive growl and yanked. Cracking glass and metal overwhelmed the sounds of the brakes Samsara applied, the Hunter shifting back slightly but didn't lose its place.

 

The back end sunk as another Hunter pounced, punching out the rest of the broken back window, snarling Alien words with a red-colored mouth, rotten teeth displayed. The smell of its heavy body odor, of worn leather caused Adam to cover his nose briefly. He shifted in his seat to kick or punch at the arms that swiped into the car, feeling as if he were hitting something metal. Samsara cursed, shifting in his seat to fire repeatedly up into the chest of the Hunter on the hood. Andy reached forward and shoved it as hard as he was able, the heavy body shifting backward as the Alien shifted to absorb the bullets.

 

Instead it roared, reaching in to grip Samsara's gun with one hand and twist it away from him. Samsara made a wild turn, wheels squealing upon asphalt as the Hunter adjusted his grip and rode with a snarl. It reached in for Andy, Adam shifting between the seats to help him shove that burly arm away, finding it sweaty and leathery against his naked palm. Both of them struggled to keep its meaty fingers from closing in on Andy, the Hunter roaring with displeasure at their combined strength. Samsara stomped on the brake again, Adam hitting the dashboard, Andy hitting the window, and the Hunter losing its grip.

 

With another gas, Samsara turned wildly again, performing donuts on the street while gawking civilians watched from the safety of the sidewalk. A handgun was pulled, and he applied it to the Hunter's chest once more, firing repeatedly while keeping the wheeled turned and the gas down. It finally flopped away, and he straightened the wheel and gunned the engine, to run over the body and send the two men inside of the car hitting the ceiling with awkward yells.

 

Samsara fired behind him, at the Hunter still perched on the back end. It instead began to crawl onto the roof, so Samsara dropped the gun, pulling out a thin, black bladed-katana from his subspace halter and slammed it upward into the ceiling. He retracted the sword and performed the move several times, stabbing through the ceiling and into the Hunter. Adam knew they were killing blows, for dark yellow blood began to spill through the ragged slits, and he shifted closer to the passenger side door to avoid the liquid. Samsara stopped stabbing and left the katana in place, shish-kabobing the Alien to the roof of the car. He calmly located his dropped handgun, replaced the clip with a fresh one, and continued to drive on.

 

“We're almost there,” he reported. “Don't wait for me to slow down, just tuck an' roll.”

 

“You're kidding,” Adam muttered, looking at the speedometer, while he rubbed at his forehead, where he'd connected with the dash earlier.

 

“Nope. Ain't waitin' on those guys to jump me. Killing soldiers cuts down on my paycheck.”

 

Adam frowned at him, unsure of that was a true statement or a troubling one.

 

“Thanks. For all this,” Andy said.

 

“Would've been easier to off you both back there.”

 

`Remember what I said!' Yoshida said in sing-song, that sensation of being occupied suddenly leaving Adam.

 

Furrowing his brow as he wondered what she'd meant by that, he looked over at Samsara to ask him when he made a sharp gesture at the door. Looking out, he saw the media vans, emergency response, firefighting vehicles, military and police posted streets down from the station collapse. Already military figures were moving their direction, guns drawn, ABAVs shifting in mid-air to monitor the situation.

 

“Holy FUCK!” Samsara suddenly screamed, causing him to jolt. But he was looking at both of them, and though his face was covered with his hood and mask, Adam could tell he had some expression of disbelief on it. “You could have told me that EARLIER!”

 

Figuring it was some ongoing convo between him and Yoshida, Adam looked away and intended to follow through with Samsara's earlier command. He opened his door and hoped that he at least slowed down just a little. He wasn't looking forward to hitting the pavement at their current speed.

 

Samsara reached out and opened Andy's door, then jerked the vehicle into a sharp left turn. Before Adam knew it, he was spilling out from the car, hitting the asphalt in a jumbled mess, the back end of the vehicle nearly running him over. The car sped away, the sight of the Hunters fading away as they retreated due to the proximity of the soldiers that reached them. Feeling sore, pained and utterly grateful to be back, Adam slowly picked himself up from the street, Andy following suit with a low complaint.

 

They were immediately surrounded by the protective figures of the Duncan Jones military forces, escorted back to the scene to receive treatment.