Bina and Archie looked down at Brad’s body next to the truck. Archie trembled and whimpered. Bina reached over and held his hand.

“Are you okay?”

Archie wiped his eyes, pushing his glasses up.

“Yeth,” he said, voice soft and hoarse.

Behind them, Astyanax held Danae at arm’s length, examining her for injury.

“What is that vile smell?”

“They subdued me with poisons. They have an evil savor.”

“And they still vex you?”

“Some. I endure.”

“Can you run?”

“Of course.”

Outside, sirens grew louder. Astyanax turned to Bina and Archie, then gestured toward Caleb. “We must make haste. Who is this one?”

“A prisoner we took. He led us up here,” Danae responded.

“And this one?” pointing to Archie.

Bina stepped forward. “He’s part of the groupmind. His name is Archie.”

“I do not have any instructions from the groupmind about him. Danae?”

“I made no pledge to him. Only the girl, Bina, Michelle Shank’s daughter. I do not know this one.”

Bina saw where this was heading. She put her hand on Archie’s arm. “You have to protect him! I’m a Voice of the yunk, the groupmind! I command it!”

Astyanax looked at Bina, standing there with fists clenched, fighting back tears. Archie held the rifle pointed down, impassive. Though Caleb’s trembling had subsided, he was ghostly pale, swaying slightly.

“We cannot travel with him. He must make his own way. You,” pointing again at Caleb. “Can you find a way through the tunnel to a place we can direct him away from the weapons?”

“There are other tunnels. Some lead to neighborhoods where there won’t be soldiers,” Caleb replied in a shaky voice.

“Why can’t he stay with us?” Bina demanded.

“We must rendezvous with others of our people. I am commanded to protect you two, not him. It will be hard travel. You will be difficult enough to safeguard while we move fast. He cannot come with us.”

“He knows my uncle. That’s why we’re out here, to meet up with my uncle. He has to stay with us,” Bina pleaded, confidence wavering.

“No.”

Bina clenched her fists and stamped a foot. Astyanax help up his hand. The commotion outside the building grew louder. He took the rifle from Archie and pointed it at Caleb. 

“We do not have time. Take us to these tunnels.”

***

They backtracked to the stairwell, stumbling single file down steep steps into the tunnels. Once in the main corridor, Astyanax stayed next to Caleb, Bina led Archie by the hand, and Danae brought up the rear, watching for signs of pursuit. They reached an intersection and Caleb pointed down a corridor on the left.

“Down this way not too far there’s an exit to a neighborhood near the highway.”

Astyanax pointed to Archie. “Come with us. Sister, stay here with the girl until we return.” He handed her the rifle. “You know this? Hold it so, point, and pull on this,” he instructed, indicating the trigger. “Keep firing until they are dead.”

“Wait,” Bina commanded. She stood in front of Archie. “I need you to bring a message to my uncle and my mother next time you mesh with the groupmind.” They clasped forearms and immediately meshed. Bina immediately felt the dizzying synesthesia now that she and Archie were synced, and she could feel Archie absorbing not only her message but much, much more.

Astyanax grumbled. “We must go.”

Bina reluctantly pulled back, then broke off. She reached up and touched Archie’s face, then kissed him lightly on the cheek. Archie turned to follow Caleb.

“Keep him safe,” Bina called after them. Astyanax did not look back.

***

Bina paced nervously, processing what just occurred with Archie. Meshing with him this time was a completely different experience – easy, immersive, exhilarating to the point of overwhelming. She felt small in a vast space, the cathedral of his memory, her tiny consciousness a bright spark, a pixel now added to a boundless tapestry.

After several minutes, Danae motioned to her. “Be still.”

Danae faced down the corridor, ears twitching and swiveling. Bina thought she heard something also. Danae put out an arm and brought the rifle up. “Get down.”

Danae crouched against the wall and guided Bina behind her. Bina saw the skin on Danae’s back ripple and change color, blending with the wall and floor. Then she heard the tramp of feet and three armed figures appeared trotting around a bend down the corridor. 

Danae brought the rifle up and waited. Bina held her breath, eyes tightly shut, hands over her ears. The footsteps drew closer, and she heard muffled voices. She jumped at three sharp bangs, painfully loud in the confines of the tunnel.

“Get up. We must move,” Danae commanded. Bina stood up, glancing at the three bodies on the floor a distance away. Danae grabbed her roughly and pulled her a short distance down the corridor into the shallow recess of a doorway. “We cannot go further. We must wait for my brother.”

As if on cue, Astyanax and Caleb came running. Danae stood up with the rifle.

“We have pursuers,” she reported to Astyanax.

“As expected.”

“Where’s Archie?” Bina demanded.

“We left him on a quiet road. The boy showed him where to go. He is safe.”

“We should have stayed with him.”

Astyanax stepped toward Bina, towering over her. “Enough. Our destination is in a different direction, to the east and north. We must join our brothers,” Astyanax turned to Danae. “Ready?”

They set off, Caleb and Astyanax in front, Bina and Danae close behind. Danae watched for pursuers.  At intervals, Astyanax commanded a stop and consulted equipment he carried, confirming that their route was correct, estimating distances. 

“These walls are thick. The device does not see the path clearly.”

Caleb nodded. “They were built that way, to be invisible. That’s what they say, at least.”

After trying a number of doors, Caleb indicated one that lead to a stairwell, then up several flights. Bina and Danae crouched on the landing below while Caleb lead Astyanax up. They returned a short while later.

“It appears secure. Come,” Astyanax commanded from above. Bina and Danae climbed up.

They emerged into a modern barn full of farm equipment, smelling faintly of hay, manure, and animals. Upon closer inspection, the structure was more sturdily constructed than a typical barn, with thick concrete walls and heavy doors.

“I will go outside and survey the area to plan our route. Stay here.”

***

“Are you okay?” Bina touched Caleb’s trembling arm. Splatters of vomit dried on his pant legs. He nodded unconvincingly. Danae paced, stopped to listen, then resumed.

They all startled at the sound of gunfire. Astyanax burst through the door.

“He betrayed us! There are enemies everywhere out there!” He secured the door and turned to Caleb.

“I didn’t! I…” Caleb stammered, stepping backward.

“How much further do the tunnels go? Can we get past them?” Astyanax growled, closing in.  Danae moved to Caleb’s side.

“I don’t know! I swear. I never went farther than this before. We’re near a residential area. I thought this we would be safe because of the houses. I have friends who live here. I swear!”

He was interrupted by a muffled explosion from below and they all looked at the door leading down to the tunnels. At the same time, there was more gunfire from outside, and something heavy moved on the roof.

“Protect the girl!” Astyanax commanded Danae, who pulled Bina into an enveloping hug and moved to one of the walls. Astyanax grabbed Caleb by the neck and lifted him.

“Who is out there? What do you know?” Caleb kicked futilely, pulling at the taloned hand squeezing his throat. He gurgled and Astyanax shook him like a rag doll, growling with frustration.

Almost simultaneously, the stairwell door burst open and a heavily equipped soldier charged out, yelling. “Down! Down!” Above, a skylight lifted and another heavily armed, cloaked figure swung down, hung, then dropped. A tall grendel straightened up and looked at Astyanax, shaking his head. The other soldier turned back to the stairwell and pointed his weapon back down the stairs, listening.

“Brother. What have you done?”

Astyanax lowered Caleb’s body and bowed his head. “Telemachos.”

“Your lack of restraint is unfortunate.”

“He betrayed us.”

“He is barely grown. You are confirming what they say about us. You must master yourself.”

The human soldier looked over and shook his head, smirking. “Ain’t that some cruncher shit.”

 “I will do better,” Astyanax muttered, still holding Caleb’s limp bloody body by the neck.

Telemachos addressed the soldier by the doorway. “Pedro?”

“Looks like the charges brought it down. No one is getting through, at least not yet. We have some time.”

Telemachos walked to Danae. “Little sister.” Danae dipped her head and made no response. He turned to Bina. “And this is the human child who is the cause of all this?”

Bina managed a defiant scowl to conceal her terror and wonder at seeing these creatures walking and talking, revealing more about their world she knew so little about.

Telemachos flipped back his cloak and unshouldered a heavy pack. “Do you require sustenance?”

Bina stepped forward. “Yes, please. She hasn’t eaten for days,” she said pointing to Danae. Telemachos looked at Bina, surprised by her bold assertiveness.

“And you?”

Bina nodded. Telemachos stared at Astyanax, and for a moment, the thought crossed Bina’s mind with blooming horror that there was a suggestion that Caleb might be the meal. Telemachos saw the look on Bina’s face, glancing back and forth between her and Astyanax. He shook his head.

“That is not what I meant. You have much to learn. We are not animals.”

Astyanax laid Caleb’s corpse down. After a moment, he picked it up again more reverently and carried it to a far wall and concealed it behind a tractor. Telemachos watched, then dug into his pack withdrawing several small parcels. “Do you have water? These are dry.”

Telemachos distributed the packets and Danae and Bina tore theirs open and crunched the dry bar. It didn’t taste bad, hard milled grains and honey. The human soldier unpacked equipment. He withdrew a water bottle and slid it across the floor. 

“Share that. I’ll have comms up shortly.”

As she and Danae munched on their bars, Bina watched the newcomers. She was struck by Danae’s behavior toward the older grendel. With Astyanax, she argued and debated, but this one had her completely intimidated. Astyanax as well. Despite the hardships and danger, this was all so fascinating to her. What would her mother think when she told her? With a sudden pang of guilt, she realized how much her mother must be missing her and worrying. For the first time since they left, she started seeing the larger picture and the complexities of the violence and hatred her mother tried to shelter them from. And Bina ran right to it.

She watched the human soldier, Pedro, working on his equipment, setting up a spindly antenna, assembling other items. He wore an official looking military camo uniform, underneath the same cloak the grendels wore. His weapons looked like the conventional ones she’d seen in pictures and videos. Then she noticed his right foot.

The soldier shifted position, folding his right leg underneath himself to reach for something, and Bina saw that it was a prosthetic leg, terminating in a metal foot that looked more like a claw. 

“I’m going up to place the receiver. I’ll take a look around. Once we have uplink, we’ll have a better view of what’s out there.” He slung the spindly antenna over his shoulder and scaled the wall, along the roof, and out the open skylight, the prosthetic claw foot grasping like a third hand. 

Telemachos and Astyanax began speaking in a strange language. Bina tried to follow.

“Where were you?”

“There were complications.”

“What of this time spent pursuing their gods? Are the beliefs of your people insufficient?”

“Surt rejects the belief in the Heliodromos. You yourself say there is more.”

Telemachos fell silent, tapping his talons on the metal of his weapon. He looked up and fixed Astyanax with a glare.

“You overstate my thinking. My time as the instructor of the young, and the teacher of the beliefs, showed me how important molding beliefs are for motivating younglings. But then the massacre happened. Yes, we won our freedom, but the hardships persist.”

“And so you ally yourself with the alloioi? To what end?”

Telemachos looked to where the soldier worked on the roof of the building with his equipment.

“Seeing our children cut to pieces by their machines, scattered in the dirt, taught me that belief is not enough. This man Pedro and I have shared the kill, mingled blood, and bound each other’s wounds. We are brothers. We must learn their ways, gain their tools, treat with allies as we must, to ensure our enemies never have that power over us again.  Beliefs still matter, but they are not enough. Seeking Shaddai entails overcoming obstacles. I now dedicate myself to removing obstacles.”

Bina touched Danae’s arm. “What are they saying?” she whispered.

Danae turned to Bina, but kept her eyes on the other grendels.

“They argue about duties,” she replied loud enough for the others to hear. “But they forget that the real argument is who has the power to choose and dictate.”

Telemachos turned sharply and switched to English.

“Little sister, you know you have other obligations.”

“Yes. I am now pledged to keep my human oath sister safe and fight with my brothers against the alloioi.”

“Your oath sister?” Telemachos asked in disbelief.

“We exchanged the rites. We too, have shared the kill and mended our wounds.”

“You transgress. Keep the girl alive. She is defenseless. We will deal with the others,” Telemachos responded sharply. “You have not endured the rite of phratria and earned the privileges of those rituals.”

“I am twice blooded,” Danae responded, holding up two taloned fingers. Telemachos shook his head and looked at Astyanax, who shrugged.

Bina spoke up. “She saved me several times. She’s tough.”

 “Do not mistake her,” Danae added, nodding at Bina. “She wields hidden claws.” Bina grinned.

Telemachos considered this. “Some duties are chosen. Some are imposed. Your clan sister understands this. Freya makes new younglings and now sits with the Elders. It is she that commands your obedience.”

“Freya sits in Council? Since when?”

“Just after you departed on this folly of a quest. Her third infant survived to naming. She stood against Tiras and won the dispute. Her power is one that the Elders could not challenge, both in words and deeds.” Telemachos turned back to Astyanax and continued in English. “We are in this situation because you put your personal pursuit above your responsibility to the Laos. You will face the Council when we return to answer for the hardships this you created. The alloioi will demand sanctions for what we are about to unleash. Your desire to join this…church, that is what caused this.”

Astyanax raised his hands, as if in supplication. “We were given general instructions by the groupmind. I was not forbidden other activities. Reconnaissance is always encouraged.”

“That is not what the groupmind tells us. Besides, you sought out the priest. You entrusted the primary mission to this youngling while you….”   He waved his hand dismissively.

Astyanax hung his head. “If I have transgressed and brought dishonor to…”

Telemachos gave a short barking laugh. “Be of good cheer, little brother. Our enemies are arrayed against us, ready to receive the consequences of their folly. There is no dishonor too great that can’t be washed away with the blood of our oppressors. Lay waste, young warrior, and revel in their destruction.”

Pedro swung down from the skylight, laughing at the exchange. “We’ve got work to do.” He landed on the floor and pulled out a small tablet. Telemachos turned to him.

“Instructions?”

“They want us to clear the area with a pulse, then create cover so these three can move.”

“Adversaries?”

“Hold.” The soldier worked the tablet. “We’re pretty well surrounded. Shredder and Sigurd are in position. Nireus is maneuvering behind them, should have clear line of fire shortly. Your war dogs have the area pretty thoroughly scouted. They haven’t been spotted or any of your other folks. There is a lot of hardware in the air,” he concluded, looking up.

“My people?”

“Coming in hot from the northeast. The command post is tracking them as best they can. We’ve got good access to all their drone feeds. Your guys are moving through the lines of the various groups to the east without engaging. Inbound to our coordinates, looks like. Man, things are getting pretty spicy on the other side of the highway.”

Telemachos turned to Astyanax and Danae. “The alloioi fight amongst themselves. We will keep you safe until the others arrive.”

“Vesta made contact?” Astyanax asked.

“Yes. She scouts with the other companions. She wished to accompany us to assist with protecting the younglings. I said no.”

Danae stepped forward. “I am no youngling.”

Bina stepped to Danae’s side. “Me either.”

Telemachos chuckled, a deep rumbling.

“They have spirit. Still, we must protect you.”

“I have no weapons,” Astyanax protested.

“You should not need much,” Telemachos advised. “Returning fire only gives away your position. Our military allies are setting up a command post about two clicks south, through some trees behind a rise. When they give the signal, we’ll take out the enemy drones and comms, then make the move. You have comms?”

Astyanax patted the pack on his harness. The human soldier gestured for Astyanax to give him the communication gear. While Astyanax unpacked, the soldier unfolded a black shiny fabric with metal rods at the corners. He detached his leg, handed it to Telemachos, who collected other pieces of their equipment and arranged it in a small pile, then draped the fabric over it. He pushed one metal rod into the dirt floor of the warehouse, ran a shiny cable over to a metal pipe that penetrated the ground. “Anything else?” he asked.  He pounded a metal spike into a joint between a pipe along the wall and the cement slab, filling the space with ringing. The spike connected to the fabric with a thick black cable. The human soldier looked up from his data pad.

“EMP ready.”

Telemachos finished reloading his weapon and chambered the first round. “Now we wait.”

NEXT