Chapter 202: To open the gates or not.
Major Elio liked to watch. He had been a sniper in the army for three years and he had worked in an intelligence agency for two years. All of these jobs involved watching and patience, two things that he was good at.
At home, he always watched his daughter, protecting her from everything that he thought dangerous. Sometimes it was an innocent, sometimes it was the sand. Sometimes it was her mother’s wrath.
He always joked with his wife that his desire to watch for everything around him all the time was the reason why he awakened his super sight. He could not explain why else of all abilities, that was the one which came to him.
He could have awakened ice related abilities, fire, strength and any other one. But...he got a power that fell in line with something that was like second nature to him.
The Major had been using abilities as he promised Sunshine, keeping an eye on the residents of the base all the time. He knew more about everyone than he wished.
Like the affair Mrs. Clement was having with Old Simon’s son, Barret. Like his neighbor’s love for doing everything naked, taking off his clothes as soon as he entered his house.
He knew about Hades’s exaggerated hip movements as he danced for his wife. He also knew that the book club on the base was a secret fight club.
Elio could name every resident that talked to their flowers. The ones that hid food under their beds and the couples that pretended to be strangers in public.
He knew about the red fang flowers and Sunshine’s space abilities.
He knew all this and more, but he kept it to himself. As long as it was not dangerous, he stayed out of it. Which is why he liked to watch the watchers. Elio wanted to know what they were hoping to learn so he watched them from the watchtower as they watched the base.
He noted down which people they had the most interest in and then kept an eye on them.
It was because he was always watching them that he noticed them watching the distance, eyes glued to the path leading up the mountain. They watched it with a look that Elio could only call fascination.
That look in their eyes frightened him.
It made him focus his eyes on what lay beyond the wall. He was in pain, his mind begged him to stop but he kept focusing anyway.
And then he saw the giant eagles. One had a man in its claws ripping him apart.
Immediately, he pushed the panic button.
The alarm was accompanied by red lights on the wall that flashed like the lights of a police car. They existed to help anyone deaf see the danger signs quickly and find safety.
Major Elio raced from the top of the wall to the nearest communications tower. He pushed the comms officer out of the way and bellowed into a speaker. "Danger is heading our way. Move to your houses or find the nearest safe place. Now!"
These were the words none of the residents wanted to hear, but like they had practiced, they followed the instructions of the Major.
Sunshine was in the training field with other superhumans when she heard his words. As the communication came from Major Elio, she knew that it was something to worry about. She ended the training session immediately and got hold of a walkie-talkie and reached out to Elio asking a report on what was happening.
As she listened to major Elio explain, Sunshine bolted to the car and drove to the command center. Hades had been training with the superhumans too and he took a car to the third all as well but went in the opposite direction. When he stepped out of the car, his long strides carried him towards the gate.
"This is not a drill people, get the children away from the windows." He yelled when he saw curious kids peeking outside the windows of the information center in the first wall.
He entered the surveillance room which was right next to the main gate and stood behind an officer that was keeping an eye on the area outside the gate.
Through the walkie-talkie, he heard someone say that Major Elio had been seen looking up. To him, it meant trouble was coming from above.
Had the watchers finally grown tired of enjoying the pink bubble beach where they liked to relax?
The answer came soon as they all saw the huge eaglelike creatures emerging out of the snowy sky, chasing after those that were running up the mountain towards safety.
"What the hell are those things?" An officer whispered.
Hades clenched his hand. "Whatever they are, if attack us, we fight back." He screamed into his walkie-talkie, "Strengthen the bubble."
The team responsible for reapplying glue on the bubble shield in all parts of the walls scrambled into action. They all knew the role the bubble played in their safety.
Inside the command center, Sunshine burst through the doors, her breath heavy clouds of steam. The room burst with frantic energy screens flashing what was happening outside. The core management team was already in place hunched over controls.
An argument was going on inside.
Hadrian Quinn was the one whose voice was raised when she made her entrance.
"This is absurd." He stated. "Are we really going to let them die?"
"Yes!" Nimo snapped, her dark eyes flashing. She did not care if she they labeled her heartles, they were not going to risk the safety of the base for anything or anyone. "You open that gate, those things will come in here and kill us!"
Dwayne, calm but stern nodded. "It’s better a few people die than the thousands in here." His words got him judgmental looks from a few people in the room. "It’s brutal but opening the gates, means death to everyone inside. Is it worth the risk?!"
To open the gates or not, was the argument. Sunshine was a late comer who had yet to pick a side and all eyes turned to her.
With a swift push of a button, she deployed some of the fortress’ outer defenses. Along the outer first wall, mental shutters rolled back and revealed the rows of mechanical hoses designed to release flames instead of water. They were adjusted to face up, towards the birds in the sky.
But before she could give the order to fire, something caught her eye.
On the screen which had footage being viewed through the eyes of a drone flying low, there was a special person.
A superhuman. A pyrokinetic! He welded fire skillfully and aimed at the creatures, he did his best trying to protect the people that he was with his ability.
Sunshine pressed her face against the screen, scratching her eyes as she recognized Alfred. He had a beard, a scar above his right eye, and he was thinner. But it was him.
Then a voice broke the air behind her, raw and trembling. "Alfie....."
Nimo stood motionless, her face pale, her hands tightened so hard her knuckles whitened. Tears welled in her eyes, her lips parting as recognition hit her like a thunderbolt.
The others traded glances. "Is that the Alfred you went out in search of?"
Nimo nodded. "That is my brother, Alfred." Panic setting in, she moved towards the console table.
Dwayne knew what she was thinking. "You cannot open that gate. You were the first person to say that we should consider the people in the base first." He moved to block her path. "I understand that this is your brother...."
"Shut up Dwayne, I know what I said." Nimo screamed at him. "But I am flawed like everyone else. I am a hypocrite. Sue me later but I am saving my brother even if I have to go out there myself."