myself to nod. I know he’s right. The man behind us has given his life trying to get Sebastian and my family to safety, I won’t dishonor that effort by wasting the time that we have to get away. I turn to make the run back to the cars through the surrounding darkness, and that’s when I see lights come on towards the perimeter of the compound. By those lights, I can just make out a dozen or so men in black combat armor, carrying very intimidating looking assault weapons.
“Oh dear,” Lionel says from the front, hefting his rifle, “it seems that we’ve kicked a hornet’s nest here. Do those look like elite troops to anyone else?”
“They’re not that elite if they light themselves up neatly rather than ambushing us in the dark,” one of the Faders points out. Then he dies, shot from the side, away from the group under the lights. They’re nothing but a distraction. We’re under attack!
FIFTEEN
G rayson pushes my family to the ground as bullets fly past us, and suddenly, it’s like I’m in the middle of a war zone. The Others come at us from all sides, and for cover, we only have the buildings around us. I try to stay near my family. I know they don’t remember who I am, but I’m going to keep them safe, no matter what it takes.
The Faders around me react in different ways. A couple of the ones from Location Six panic, firing blindly. It just makes them targets for the gunfire coming our way, and they’re quickly brought down by bullets. Jack and the rest work on getting low, finding what cover they can before firing back. Jack fires in his customary careful bursts, always seeming to know exactly where the danger is coming from. A little way from him, Lionel has managed to scramble onto the roof of one of the compound’s outbuildings, letting him pick people off with that rifle of his.
One of the Others comes into view, heading for us with his gun raised. I react on instinct, firing off two shots with the pistol Jack gave me, and he falls back. In the darkness, I don’t know if I have killed him or not. Right then, I’m too busy worrying about where the next threat will come from to even think about that.
There’s an almighty bang and a blinding flash of light then, and a second after, I find that two of the Others have a grip on my arms as they move in close behind their flash grenade. Grayson, who’s just a feet away, charges forward even though his own ears must still be ringing. He kicks one of the Others viciously, whirling away as the second tries to go for his gun, releasing me in the process. Grayson goes into him hard, throwing punches and knees that don’t give his opponent time to react. He forces the man back long enough that Grayson can clear his weapon, and two shots later, the fight is over.
“Thanks,” I say, but Grayson is already moving again, rejoining the fight. He fights well now, and I guess those lessons with the Fader instructors must have done something, though there are plenty of other people there who can fight better. Jack, for one. He isn’t even affected by the flash grenade, and I realize it’s because he had the foresight to move back from it even as it landed. His whole fighting style is like that. It’s like he knows exactly what each of his opponents is going to do before they do it, so that he’s always ready, turning to face them with his gun ready to fire, or meeting them with a quick attack as they come in.
Lionel’s down from the roof now, and he pauses just long enough to throw one of the Others to the ground before waving over at us.
“We need to fight our way clear. Make for the vehicles.”
He’s right, of course. We can’t stay there. We scramble for the gap we made in the fence, and I herd my family towards it. Sebastian helps, which makes me think a little better of him, though I guess it’s just because he doesn’t want them slowing us down. Behind us, the fight goes on. I see Others and Faders struggling, and
“Oh dear,” Lionel says from the front, hefting his rifle, “it seems that we’ve kicked a hornet’s nest here. Do those look like elite troops to anyone else?”
“They’re not that elite if they light themselves up neatly rather than ambushing us in the dark,” one of the Faders points out. Then he dies, shot from the side, away from the group under the lights. They’re nothing but a distraction. We’re under attack!
FIFTEEN
G rayson pushes my family to the ground as bullets fly past us, and suddenly, it’s like I’m in the middle of a war zone. The Others come at us from all sides, and for cover, we only have the buildings around us. I try to stay near my family. I know they don’t remember who I am, but I’m going to keep them safe, no matter what it takes.
The Faders around me react in different ways. A couple of the ones from Location Six panic, firing blindly. It just makes them targets for the gunfire coming our way, and they’re quickly brought down by bullets. Jack and the rest work on getting low, finding what cover they can before firing back. Jack fires in his customary careful bursts, always seeming to know exactly where the danger is coming from. A little way from him, Lionel has managed to scramble onto the roof of one of the compound’s outbuildings, letting him pick people off with that rifle of his.
One of the Others comes into view, heading for us with his gun raised. I react on instinct, firing off two shots with the pistol Jack gave me, and he falls back. In the darkness, I don’t know if I have killed him or not. Right then, I’m too busy worrying about where the next threat will come from to even think about that.
There’s an almighty bang and a blinding flash of light then, and a second after, I find that two of the Others have a grip on my arms as they move in close behind their flash grenade. Grayson, who’s just a feet away, charges forward even though his own ears must still be ringing. He kicks one of the Others viciously, whirling away as the second tries to go for his gun, releasing me in the process. Grayson goes into him hard, throwing punches and knees that don’t give his opponent time to react. He forces the man back long enough that Grayson can clear his weapon, and two shots later, the fight is over.
“Thanks,” I say, but Grayson is already moving again, rejoining the fight. He fights well now, and I guess those lessons with the Fader instructors must have done something, though there are plenty of other people there who can fight better. Jack, for one. He isn’t even affected by the flash grenade, and I realize it’s because he had the foresight to move back from it even as it landed. His whole fighting style is like that. It’s like he knows exactly what each of his opponents is going to do before they do it, so that he’s always ready, turning to face them with his gun ready to fire, or meeting them with a quick attack as they come in.
Lionel’s down from the roof now, and he pauses just long enough to throw one of the Others to the ground before waving over at us.
“We need to fight our way clear. Make for the vehicles.”
He’s right, of course. We can’t stay there. We scramble for the gap we made in the fence, and I herd my family towards it. Sebastian helps, which makes me think a little better of him, though I guess it’s just because he doesn’t want them slowing us down. Behind us, the fight goes on. I see Others and Faders struggling, and
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