Spirits of the Earth: The Complete Series: (A Post-Apocalyptic Series Box Set: Books 1-3) by Milo Fowler (paper ebook reader .TXT) 📕

"Other than Chancellor Hawthorne?"

I nod.

"I would need to connect to one of their cranial jacks."

Careful, Erik warns. If it bumps brains with these units, it could be swayed to their cause. Overwriting his overwriting, in other words.

"You would trust me to do this?" D1-436 faces me as if it heard Erik's warning. But that would be impossible. Clones aren't telepathic.

"Don't give me a reason not to."

It strides forward, walking behind the two immobilized clones. They watch silently as it approaches. D1-436 raises one hand, and the section of the white gauntlet covering its index finger seems to break in half, the finger curling while a spike-shaped data connector extends from the first knuckle. D1-436 takes the helmeted head of one clone in its other hand and forces the chin down, exposing the cranial jack at the base of the neck. Unceremoniously, the data spike slides home, and the clone stiffens. So does D1-436. Both of them are frozen in place, while the third clone looks on. Wondering if it will be next?

"Our orders came directly from the Creator." D1-436 and the clone it's jacked into speak in unison.

"The creator?" I echo. Not weird at all.

"Who now?" Erik steps forward on my right.

Doesn't sound like the Chancellor, I think at him.

Agreed.

"No longer will the Twenty be allowed to live in the world," D1-436 and the clone continue. "It has become an evil, dangerous place, and they are far too valuable. They must be protected at all costs. They will be gathered together in a safe zone where they will live out the rest of their lives in service to the greater good of all Eurasia."

Arienna joins me on the left. "I'm not liking the sound of that."

"Who is this creator?" I need a name. "Nobody outranks the Supreme Chancellor. You are members of her security detail. Your orders should come only from her."

"You will meet the Creator once the Twenty have been gathered together. Until then, you must trust that the Chancellor's security personnel have your best interest at heart. We will escort you to a safe location—"

"How many of the Twenty are currently in this so-called safe location?" I can't imagine anyplace safer than Dome 2. It's so quiet here, so green.

"Ten at present."

I nod to Erik. That's where we're going.

"What?" he blurts out loud before checking himself. Are you out of your mind? We can't go there—wherever it is. We stick to the plan—

There isn't time. They've already captured half of us, with potentially more en route. I pause a moment to strategize. We stop by one of your suppliers, pick up some more EMP grenades, then we fly in like any other aerocar full of precious cargo.

He nods, not liking the idea but understanding where I'm going with it. Then we knock out everybody's augments at once.

As well as the security clones guarding them. I raise an eyebrow.

"Might work," he mutters. If we knew where the hell to go.

That's easy. "Unit D1-436," I say aloud, "tell me where the Twenty are being held."

The clone nods but doesn't say anything. Then D1-436 and the clone it's jacked into begin to tremble, small tremors at first, escalating into violent convulsions that risk severing the connection between them.

"What's going on?" I glance at Erik.

"Not sure." He winces at the sight. "Could be a defense measure to keep anyone from learning the location—"

D1-436 withdraws the data spike, and the clone it was connected to tips over, collapsing limply onto the ground.

"I have the coordinates, Enforcer Chen," it says, striding toward me as the spike folds back into place and its gauntlet returns to a five-fingered hand. "Shall we go?"

"What did you do?" I nod toward the motionless clone. It looks dead, for all intents and purposes.

The one next to it sits there looking stunned, staring at its partner.

"Unit D1-917 refused to share the location with me," D1-436 explains. "We fought. I won."

"You killed it."

D1-436 faces me. "Have I earned your trust?"

Instead of answering, I point at the aerocar. "I'll need you to fly that thing."

"Yes, of course, Enforcer Chen." It pivots toward the car.

I place a hand on its cold, armored arm. "Input the coordinates into the navigation console, but don't share them with anyone." If we're going under the guise of a security team returning with its cargo, we must maintain the air of secrecy. "And stick that other clone in the seat next to you." It'll look better having two of them in the cockpit. Business as usual.

"Yes, Enforcer Chen."

I turn to Erik. "Where do we need to stop first?"

He gives me a sheepish grin. "Oh, you're really not going to like it."

"I'll be the judge of that."

He shrugs. "Dome 10."

"Of course," I mutter. The birthplace of the terrorist uprisings—and the best place to procure illegal weaponry, along with other unsavory substances such as dust. Located on the edge of the Mediterranean, Dome 10 serves Eurasia as a waste-processing center, and it's the only dome with airlocks that open to the outside world. "Very well. Unit D1-436, we'll be making a stop in Dome 10. Then it's straight to our class reunion."

I release the clone to follow its orders.

Don't you want to know where the reunion's taking place? Erik thinks at me.

We'll know soon enough. Right now, I'm more concerned about Commander Bishop's rogue status. It's suddenly all I can think of. What the hell is going on? Why would she kidnap the Chancellor?

Any idea who this creator-person is? Erik scratches his chin. Because, if I had to guess—

Hey…guys? The sound of Arienna's thoughts enter our shared telepathic space for the first time. I think something might be happening to me...

15 Samson5 Years After All-Clear

Cain reeks.

I caught a whiff or two of his stench while he was sitting next to me in the jeep, and I thought that was bad. But being trapped inside this dark shipping container as we roll toward Eden? Nothing I wouldn't give for a breather right now.

The four raiders keeping an eye