Page 46 of Merciless
If at all.
Seventeen
MARIPOSA
Outside of our bike engines, the ride to New Ireland was silent. Externally, anyway. Gunner, Jandro, and I didn't speak, but our bonds to each other, tethered and strengthened by the gods, were full of activity.
The best I could describe it would be like having a conversation without words. Like when two partners or best friends know exactly what the other is thinking just with a look, a subtle hand gesture, or a facial expression.
It was like that between the three of us, only amplified and solidified into an invisible thread that connected all of us. Without words, touch, or even looking at each other, we expressed worries and fears at what we would find. We also reassured each other and validated each other's strength and determination. We were completely in sync, my two men and I. And when that first glimpse of the fortress broke the line on the horizon, I felt the cold, steel-like focus straighten all of our spines.
Jandro and I picked up speed, maneuvering to let Gunner hang back slightly in the middle. I didn't need to look to know Gunner was pulling his first rifle from the holster on his back. We were still thousands of yards away, and his rifle didn't have a sniper scope, but he didn't need one.
Gunner's shots broke the low, constant hum of our bikes. He took out the guards atop the front perimeter wall cleanly, despite them looking like specks in the distance.
In my head, I could see the layout of the interior, thanks to the map Gunner drew with help from my dad's memory. I wanted to veer left, to start sneaking around the back of the compound and send the Sha's zombie army on a wild goose chase. But Jandro and Gunner urged me back into the middle of our formation with our mental bond. They wanted me between them, shielded at all costs.
I gave in to their tugging, veering back to the center while Gunner drove out to take my place. He was reloading his rifle one-handed when the enemy returned fire.
The bonds made me aware of the returned fire from all angles, like I was in multiple places at once. More soldiers spread out on top of the perimeter wall. I sent Jandro a tug of warning about a cluster of soldiers aiming straight for him, and he zigzagged to avoid their shots.
I pulled out my rifle and aimed straight ahead when my shots were clear enough. My shots were true from the first trigger pull. I returned fire with no fear of the bullets whizzing past me and plinking off my bike. I hit soldiers in the chest, even the head, while keeping the balance of my bike rock-steady with my left hand. If I had a moment to think, I'd wonder if I borrowed Gunner's marksmanship and Jandro's natural ease on the bike, thanks to our bonds.
But my mind was calm and blissfully blank. Like the glassy surface of a lake, so still and tranquil. My whole body was the weapon, and my mind, the clean, efficient mechanism.
Jandro took out the ground soldiers guarding the gate to the inside of the fortress. Like me, he also had better accuracy than normal. When the men fell, he shot at the heavy chain and lock system holding the doors together. But those on the inside did our work for us.
The tall doors burst open, and an endless stream of black poured out to greet us, like ink spilling on a page.
We were ready.
The three of us pulled the pins on our grenades and tossed them. Mine bounced toward the front of the swarm, Jandro's landed in the middle, and Gunner's sailed the farthest. Three simultaneous explosions rocked our eardrums and the earth beneath our tires, but we stayed upright and drove straight through the carnage.
Did you hear that, Reaper? Shadow? Mom? We're coming for you. Another thought followed on the heels of that one.Can your earthly body hear us, Set? We're coming for you too.
The explosion cleared enough space for us to drive into the first courtyard and form a circle with our bikes. With the swarm quickly recuperating to close in on us again, it was time to bring out the big guns.
Our motions were fluid, well-practiced and confident as we readied our assault rifles. The spray of fire we rained down was merciless. All the panicked shouts and rapid spraying of bullets was just background noise to the cold, rigid focus in my mind. I didn't even care in that moment that these were people being puppeted and forced to attack us. They stood between me and my loved ones and would kill me first if I let them.
The swarm's assault was never-ending, but thankfully so was our gunfire. These weapons had come from Gunner's prized stash and had been altered to fit long, winding bandoliers of ammo rather than magazines. Too destructive for typical warfare, Gunner had originally procured these as collector's items. Now the three of us were draped in yards and yards of ammunition, firing endlessly into the crush of bodies closing in on us and barely making a dent.
I ground my teeth against my gun becoming so hot that it burned the palms of my hands. My whole body was numb from the constant rattle and vibration of my firing. But I couldn't stop to rest, not even for a moment. They just kept coming.
My bonds to Gunner and Jandro were wide open, keeping me aware of everything from their perspectives as well as mine. Gunner was in a precarious spot, having to swing his weapon in a wide arc to keep the enemy at bay. Every time he swung in one direction, they creeped in closer from the opposite side. Back and forth he had to do this, never missing a single shot, just to keep us covered. I felt his worry, his realization that he couldn't continue like this forever.
Really, none of us could. We had just entered the compound and how long had we been sitting here already? Minutes? Hours? We still had the Sha to deal with, and then getting our people out. Spending all our energy and firepower here would kill this mission before it ever began.
I pushed all my determination and support to my men and just kept firing. What else could I do? The bodies piled up all around us, but it did no good. Soldiers walked or jumped over them. Some started dragging or shoving the bodies away to clear more paths to us. They never,everstopped, so how could we?
My arms ached all the way up to my shoulders. The gun was heavy, and while I was pumped full of adrenaline, my physical strength could only carry me so far, and I was reaching the end of my limit. My hands were surely burned and blistered from gripping the hot metal by now. As my strength faded, my shots went lower and lower, hitting at waist and leg height. I pulled up on my barrel as soon as I realized it, but my arms screamed in protest.
My guys weren't faring much better. I could feel the fatigue in Gunner's arms, taste the blood in Jandro's mouth from biting his cheek so hard. The longer we carried on, the more we began to slow down. And our enemies took every single opening they saw.
"Gunner, your left!" I cried out, still without taking my eyes off of the onslaught in front of me.
Gunner swung wide with his weapon, his weariness making him overshoot the arc and allow a pocket of mind-controlled drones to creep in closer on the other side. Jandro took them out moments before they could touch Gunner, but then that left Jandro vulnerable and I swung to protect his open side.
"Mari, watch out!"
