“What haven’t you told us?” Commandant Pierce demanded. “What are you keeping from us?”

“This was unexpected,” Mr. Petersen said, his usual blandness ruffled. “We were not expecting this many. We thought that maybe there were half a dozen at the most.”

“They’re not equipped to deal with the resistance they’re encountering. If you had even the slightest idea-”

“Commandant, I believe they’re some of the soldiers from the last push.” Dr. Curran cleared her throat before speaking again. “The Inferi Anomalies infected them.”

“So how many are there?” Commandant Pierce’s dark eyes were hard as stone.

“I don’t know. I couldn’t even begin to speculate.” Dr. Curran lowered her eyes, her uneasiness clear.

“I need to speak to the president.” Mr. Petersen glowered at Dr. Curran, then spun about on his heel. He motioned to two dark garbed SWD security officers to follow and walked briskly from the command center.

“He will not keep the Constabulary out of this! Castellan, you’re in charge!” Commandant Pierce strode out after Mr. Petersen.

Dwayne caught Lindsey’s eyes for just a second, then he returned to his work station. Dr. Curran drew closer, lingering just over his right shoulder.

“What else do you know that you’re not telling me?” Dwayne asked the scientist.

Dr. Curran remained silent for so long, he looked up at her questioningly. There was definitely an internal struggle behind the woman’s eyes. “Nothing that will affect the mission.”

“Are you certain? Because if—”

“Yes, I’m certain,” Dr. Curran answered.

Dwayne returned his gaze to the vid screens and the many fuzzy images filtering in from the basement of the hydroelectric station. He didn’t trust anyone anymore but himself, Lindsey and Maria. The city was increasingly a dark and dangerous place.

* * *

When the dented metal door swung open, Chief Defender Omondi’s face was the first thing Maria saw as he peered out at her.

“Vanguard, you’re a sight for sore eyes,” he said. The bluish light from his helmet gave him a spectral appearance, but his smile was genuine. Stepping into the narrow corridor, he appraised the soldiers clustered into the narrow hallway. The remainder of his squad hovered just behind him, waiting.

“We were hit pretty hard. We lost three.” Maria handed over the extra weapon she had been carrying for him, then some ammo.

“There are a lot more of those bastards than we were told,” Omondi agreed.

“We killed eleven on the way down.” McKinney dangled the dog tags from one hand.

Omondi took them somberly. “There are a lot more than that.”

“We know.” Maria sighed. “And we’re basically in the perfect place for an ambush.”

“They’ll be waiting for us upstairs.” Omondi brushed past Maria, moving down the long corridor. “I never should have obeyed the order to enter the basement.”

“Who told you to come down here?” Maria asked, anger edging her words. She followed in his wake, weapon at the ready.

“Mr. Petersen,” Omondi answered.

Maria didn’t respond. The feed to The Bastion was coming back online as they drew closer to the stairwell.

When they reached the heavily barricaded area, Omondi squatted next to the bodies of the Anomalies. He flipped on his helmet’s light. He pulled their eyelids back, exposing their filmy eyes.

“These aren’t the ones.” Omondi killed the light, stood, and peered up the hallway.

“What do you mean?” Maria asked, dread filling her.

“The ones with the red eyes are the truly dangerous ones. I would call the ones down here drones. They’re hungry bastards and fodder for their leaders. The ones with the red eyes are truly sentient in every way. But I didn’t see too many of them. Maybe three.”

As they continued to the stairwell, Omondi took control of the squad as his helmet finally picked up the feed from the command center. Maria was surprised when Omondi allowed her to keep the feed active in her helmet. She was glad he finally seemed willing to include her again in command decisions.

Arriving at the base of the stairs, they cautiously moved onto the steps. Weapons pointed upward, the squad hugged the far wall as they climbed. Maria felt her pulse accelerating again, a disconcerting feeling after it being absent so long. Her breath sounded abnormally loud and labored in her ears. She wondered if everyone else could hear it through her feed.

The squad reached the top of the stairs without incident. Omondi and Maria exchanged worried looks. The doors that opened to the stairwell were slightly ajar. The hallway beyond it would be perfect for an ambush. The tension between her shoulder blades was increasingly painful and she wished her armor wasn’t so old. She was used to armor that responded to physical ailments with injections of painkillers or relaxants. Rolling her shoulders, she watched as McKinney and Holm proceeded ahead to open the doors. Scrutinizing the squad, she saw Cruz with her head tilted down, staring into the darkness below. It was no secret that Mikado and Cruz had been involved. Maria felt for Cruz, but there was no time to mourn right now. Denman saw Maria’s scrutiny and tapped Cruz’s shoulder, then gestured to pay attention. Cruz obeyed.

Maria directed her gaze to beyond the doorway.

The hall was also empty. Gutierrez’s body was gone.

Reenacting the same procedure they had followed when entering the building, the squad crept ever so slowly toward the lobby at the far end. Door by door, room by room, they advanced cautiously. Each step was measured, each action stealthy. No one spoke, obeying Omondi’s silent hand signals.

Maria was painfully aware of her beating heart and heavy breath. She muted her feed as a precaution. The rifle in her hand felt heavy and cumbersome. The building was oppressive in its darkness and stillness. The claustrophobic atmosphere weighed on her as they slipped into the main entrance area. The squad would have to curve around the lobby to reach the stairwells that led to the higher floors. It was the only way up since the elevators were dead.

Outside the empty windows a soft rain pattered against the broken asphalt. She flicked her night vision off and the world returned to the normal hues of an overcast day.

“Come out!” a male voice echoed through the lobby.

Omondi signaled to stop.

A figure shifted into view just beyond one of the windows. Even though the mysterious stranger was in silhouette it was clear that he was in armor and held a weapon. The squad immediately took cover. Maria slid down the wall behind an overturned table, Denman crouching adjacent to her.

“We realize we were...hasty in our attack on you earlier. We’re not so...hungry now. We can think clearer now that we’ve fed.” The man’s voice was strangely familiar. It had a rich baritone to it and the hint of an accent.

Maria felt her heart speed up.

“Please, come out. We’re all soldiers of the Constabulary of The Bastion. We’re all Boon. We’re brothers and sisters.” The voice was calm, collected, and sounded reasonable.

It gave Maria the shivers.

Omondi was speaking in his helmet, but his feed was isolated from the squad as he contacted the command center.

“Please, come out. We won’t attack. You have far superior weapons and can easily destroy us. We’re in the open. Exposed. We wish only to talk. To discuss our situation. You may not realize it yet, but you’re in just as dire a situation as we are.”

A touch on Maria’s arm drew her attention to Denman. From the concerned look his face, she discerned he had come to the same conclusion that she had. This was one of the original Inferi Boon.

“How do we know you won’t attack?” Chief Defender Omondi called out.

“We have more in common than you realize. We’re your future. What you will become. Do you think you will be allowed back into the city? We weren’t. Do you think if there was a cure for us, they wouldn’t have administered it? Instead, they cowered behind their wall hoping we wouldn’t find a way back in. They betrayed us and they will betray you.”

The restless shuffling of feet and shifting of bodies indicated that the squad found the stranger’s words just as disconcerting as Maria did.

“Come out. Speak to us. See your future. We have to work together to get into the city and force them to cure us,” the voice continued. “Come out and see what you’ll become.”

Omondi crawled over to Maria. “Keep the squad back and ready to respond if they attack.”

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Rubbing his lips together, Omondi nodded. “I cut the feed with command. I want to know what the fuck is going on out here.”

Maria bobbed her head in agreement. “Understood, sir.”

Omondi stood and cautiously approached the window. Maria and the others shadowed him, careful to keep under cover. The Chief Defender’s imposing form neared the window and he peered out at the stranger standing in the rain.

“Come out, brother,” the man said.

The Chief Defender obeyed.