Infected 8: Impulse: A Whole New Day Page 9

  Some people needed to die, after all.

  War was a great time to make sure that happened too, wasn't it?

  The Major left with the last truck, and Mary closed the store down for the night. The power was still on, which made sense, given that nothing in the town had been disrupted too much that way. Bridget had made certain of that, since she'd gone in as a distraction, not just to make innocent lives harder.

  Then, were most regular people innocent? They were the ones that called for her death, weren't they? True, out of fear and ignorance, but that didn't mean she had to like them. Some were better than others, she knew. Like Cambrin there. Whatever he truly thought about Infected people, he'd been polite and professional the whole time. Most of the military people had been. Even the surly ones were more worried about possible fighting or attacks than they were about her or Doug. How that had happened she didn't know. After all, the Army had a lot of haters in it.

  At least they had, before the attack on D.C. it was just possible that a lot of that type had been pulled from the ranks already. If they were still there, they might just be smart enough to keep their mouths closed on the topic. That last one was a lot worse for her, she realized, since it was loads harder to fight smart people than morons. They were more likely to bide their time and make sure that their actions were effective. Doing things like taking out the base with a nuke, or other large bomb that had been brought in.

  Impulse fought a smile as she and Doug walked around the tiny shop portion, pulling things to the front of the shelves and making sure that what they could stock the shelves with from the back got out. There wasn't a lot left in the storeroom, and what they had was mainly soda, since that was one of the big things that normally sold at Mary's. That, coffee and donuts.

  Some of these guys needed things like razors and Band-Aids, which were totally gone already.

  It wasn't until about half an hour later, with everyone helping to tidy and sweep for the next day, that the older woman grimaced, and waved to her.

  "Bridget... I..." She seemed hesitant, and like there was something so dark inside her that she didn't want to mention it, but had too. Bridget thought she understood why that was.

  Brian. If Ed and Deidre left and Liz went along with them, then he was probably going to die pretty quick. Almost every day he had to go and fight, sometimes three or four times, against all sort of people, including Infected. That meant he got hurt, about half the time. It added up, and no matter how tough you were, a broken arm or leg slowed you down.

  So, it was clear that Braid intended for him to be worn down and die. If that happened, she probably won outright, and the world would fall into a giant battle between a few thousand of the strongest Infected and the normal people. Not just the military, which would drive the death toll up to unimaginable levels. Worse, if what she'd heard was right, it was the very people that feared that kind of thing most, the fringe militias and ultra-right conservatives, that would end up forcing it to happen. Their fear was being used to control their actions, by a being that didn't have their best interests in mind.

  Just their deaths.

  She waited, for once, her impulsiveness getting her to be silent, which worked. It was a bit like freezing, she bet, having never really experienced that before. She didn't know what to do, so instead of just picking something or being distracted, she did nothing. It was kind of nice, and in this case, got the woman in front of her to go ahead, saying something that was a lot different than she would have imagined.

  "I believe we need to keep the situation with the Elcampayns silent for the time being. We cannot allow their needs to jeopardize the lives of so many. Or my mate. It is perhaps best if we simply pass the children to their captors, when Zevron arrives. It leaves my heart sore, but all other options do as well. What say you on this matter?"

  She blinked, since leaving the kids to be horribly tortured, with Ed being cut into little cubes so that his energy production could be used around his home world, hadn't really been on the table, to her mind. Taken apart a bit at a time, so that he could be coaxed to regrow the flesh, hurt over and again for decades, or longer.

  Deidre at least would be left intact enough so that she could be used as a brood mare, made to pump out children until her uterus fell out. They could cut her up too, and take her arms and legs, which would prevent her from running away too easily, next time.

  So, in short, Mary was suggesting that they trade the lives of Ed and Deidre for Brian's. Which made sense, from a sane and logical perspective. Like she'd just been considering, if Brian died, then so did billions. Two lives for one was a poor bargain, but two for a billion?

  Bridget shook her head, which got her youthful and blue eyed bio-granny to give her a dirty look, like they were going to fight over the whole thing.

  "Nope. We do both. You find a good place for them to hide, and Liz can stay here, to save all those lives by protecting Brian with her skills. We'll send a team with Ed and Deidre. Don't underestimate the IPB, or what's left of it. If we have to, then you and I can go with them. I know that Elizabeth has some kind of tie there, or made a promise, but we won't let that get in the way of common sense. Braid is counting on her doing what she thinks a Carlie healer has to do. We can beat that by making things happen that she just can't see taking place." Of course, that might involve locking Liz in a tiny room to keep her from leaving, against her will, but it could be done. Begging might work, too.

  Mary tilted her head, and then, without speaking, walked away, heading back toward the house. There was a bit of a ripple in space, and a blue flash, as the woman used her power to leave. Where she was going, Bridget didn't really know. She'd figured that the next thing that would be done was explaining to her how stupid she was being. That could still be the case of course. Mary might have just gone to get backup, so that several people could harangue her at one time, for maximum affect. She'd been on the receiving end of that kind of thing before, and it wasn't fun.

  She just worked with Doug and Charity, until it was time to turn off all the shop lights, and head to the little house. It felt strange doing that, without Mary there to let them in, but there was nowhere else to go. It turned out to be the right thing, because, as they sat in the nice, if slightly small, living room, there was another flash, and not one, but four people were suddenly there with them, which got Charity to scream and leap to her feet.

  Bridget did too. The getting up part. She stopped though, as Hobbs, her red headed friend and mentor, smiled and spread his hands, palms up.

  "We come with no intent to harm. Please, be at peace." He had a smile on his face, which was what he almost always did. At the old base a lot of people had just assumed he was Infected, because of that. His first mode being happiness. It wasn't the case. The man simply chose to be that way all the time. It was real too, she thought. He'd simply picked happiness and lived it. Always.

  He also looked a lot more like he should be her dad than Prime did. Red headed and not all that tall. Pale, too, instead of the golden color her father had.

  "Hobbs! Everyone!" She gave the man a hug, since she liked him. Not for having sex with, or at least not yet, but he was in shape, clean, and while he tended to dress like a homeless person, that was about his position in his own world as an advocate. It had taken some work for her to get the idea, but that basically meant he was an appeals lawyer, where he came from. A place that settled a lot of legal issues with trials by combat and ordeal.

  The other people were the Elcampayns, and Elizabeth Carlie, the healer. She was a bit plain looking really, having plain brown hair, and a slightly long face. It was still nice, or was most of the time. Today she was wearing a frown that seemed to speak volumes, for some reason.

  Deidre looked scared, and Edmund simply resigned to his fate.

  He spoke first, his face going hard as he did. Fatalistic, Bridget thought.

  "We have heard what the Timberland witch requested of Mary and you, Lady Bridget. Deirdre and I
will turn ourselves over to the Westers in the morning, and thus short shrift the plans of the evil fortune teller. Please forgive any troubles that you had, fighting her familiar, the Tesseract." It seemed brave, for all that he looked like a little kid suddenly.

  She grinned, and shook her head at him, then winked at Deidre.

  "Not the plan. Really, we need to get Brian in for this. His power should probably let us make the right choices." She held up her hand and took a deep breath, wondering if Mary would try to argue that point, which she did.

  "Nay. Brian's affliction, his very nature, makes it so he would needs sacrifice himself for the welfare of others. I cannot see how he would make sound decisions in such a matter!" She'd moved from a bit tense to fighting, if politely and formally, in about half a second, Bridget noticed.

  "Not... I don't think so, really. Brian is smart and his power seems to be making him do things to save the world. Him standing in front of the kids personally might not be the best plan right now. Provided Braid wasn't just yanking our chains, that is. Really, we need guidance here. He's the one with the special Braid thwarting abilities, so we should let him in on this. I know it's a risk, but if we keep him out and try to do the wrong thing, we could end up making everything a lot worse." That kind of made sense, she hoped.

  She looked at Ed and then Deidre, since they were already willing to be tortured for the rest of their lives, rather than cause her world any more trouble. Rather than help her with that, Edmund just went on about how it was his duty to protect them all. A thing that he was failing at, in his own mind.

  No one even told him that it wasn't, which should have happened. He was only thirteen. Yeah, if he were Jewish that might make him a man, but very few guys were expected to leave their bar mitzvah directly for a life of being tortured and kept prisoner by people that thought a life as a battery should be fulfilling enough for anyone. No need for learning or even entertainment. Not for the likes of him, if she'd heard correctly.

  Not that she knew that was how they thought, but still, it seemed that way.

  She let him go on for a while, and then ignored his words almost completely. Not totally, since that would be rude, but she didn't nod and agree, while looking sad, which was what Hobbs and Liz were doing.

  Instead she cleared her throat.

  "Fine. We'll keep that as a backup plan. If Brian and I can't come up with something that will work better, and save more lives, Mary will get you back to your home world, so that you can be tortured like that. I have to ask though, if it's all the same, that you let me try first. I won't handle this well, if you both go off to die like that, and I could have come up with a better plan." She wanted that to come out being manipulative, but it was, she realized, just the truth.

  Doug finally chimed in, looking away at the far wall.

  "I think that's right. Brian will need that, too. We all will. You might have to do that, in the end, and if so... That's going to be pretty sucky. Let us try to fix it first? You know..." He shook his head and then looked at Mary, his face a bit twisty at the mouth, like he was trying to be cuter than normal. "If there are infinite realities, why don't the Westers get some of your family to find a place where a lot of people have the Elcampayn energy? Hire them to come in and work. You know, give them a lavish life in exchange for pumping out power for eight hours a day? Run multiple shifts so that no one has to work too hard?"

  Mary sighed, but Hobbs grinned and started to chuckle.

  "Aye. Aye! It should be possible. Noble Douglas, were you to be our leader, that would have happened and more by now, and all be the better for it. Our home however, is ruled by the political and boundaries set by laws, far more than your place here. Even as we face the death of our world, changing our ways is thought too much to ask. The Westers have yon and fore suggested such a proposal, but none of the other families has allowed such, fearing an imbalance of forces that would make them less, if only in their own eyes."

  Bridget was used to following what Hobbs said, so understood a big chunk of that, she thought. She paced a bit, tapping her hand on her right thigh as she did, stopping when something occurred to her.

  "Wait, so these Westers, the big brains there, are in on that? I mean, they want either a new energy source or more Elcampayns? Could we, I mean, if we found some of them that were willing to go, could we ensure that they'd be treated well? Not cut to bits for easy handling, for instance? That one would be a deal breaker and people have got to be figuring that one out about now, right? If we just bring them in, and get them settled, then the ruling families will have to swallow it, or die."

  Hobbs froze and looked first at Mary, then Liz. Something passed between them, but it was baffling to her. A reluctance to even talk of the subject.

  Finally, sounding confused, Hobbs let his habitual smile fall from his lips.

  "Mayhap. To what end however? If the other families do not wish for it, then it may not be allowed. It has not been to this point."

  She shrugged. It was probably just that she didn't understand things well enough, but it seemed pretty simple to her.

  "We can start our own family, right? Go in and make an alliance with the smart guys, and set up an energy system that everyone can use. If we don't abuse that, then eventually the rest of them will get the idea and play along. Or try to kill everyone, but if they do that, they're morons." She waited to hear that they really were, but smiled a bit, and glanced at Charity, who was nodding.

  "Or, you could just get the Westers to do it? An alliance with the um, Ed and Deidre and those people you bring in? I'm basing this off of Survivor, so I'm probably wrong, but yeah, that might work. I don't know if it stops the other things, what that lady said earlier, but..."

  The words actually started a very polite, but very loud argument. Perhaps calling it a discussion might have been better, Bridgie allowed to herself, not able to get a word in as Ed and Mary screamed at each other, and Hobbs started to laugh, as Liz looked on in abject horror at the very idea of doing something without permission, or at least tradition, to fall back on.

  "I can find such a place, ere the morning comes! We need not sacrifice you and your sister, the last of your kind! This can work, if but we allow it." Mary looked ready to punch Ed in the face, her fist doubled up at her side, and face going red. He was actually calmer, if about the same color at the moment.

  "Nay, tis wrong to go against the ways and practices of the land! We are of great families, but none here is the head of such! None have the right to act without consultation, in this! None here!"

  It was Deidre that stopped them all, speaking a few words, at barely above a whisper.

  "No? You and I stood for Charity earlier, and claimed her as our own. Was that not due to being the head of our family? There are no others left of the Elcampayn line. Ye and me, and the remnants of our parents dying corpses, unable to think or plan. If we find such as like we are, and make alliance, as our first vassal, Charity, has advised, do we not have that right? If not, then who does? We have been left without a voice for too long, but no one has ever taken that from us. We simply haven't learned to speak or challenge what others proclaim. Indeed, we would be voiceless now, if not for the illegal acts of Advocate Hobbs, who stood for us, when not even his Order of the Circle could."

  Bridget was pretty sure she was lost, after that, but Hobbs smiled again, being back to normal and Liz suddenly looked considering. Her face looked better that way, than it had before. Plain, but in a wholesome way. Her face smooth and unlined, and free of mark or blemish, if not perfectly symmetrical.

  The healer looked at Hobbs however.

  "There is wisdom here, in the words of this girl. We ran, but if we gather a force for them, and return with a plan to save all, then perhaps it might work?"

  "Mayhaps." Hobbs stroked his decently fuzzy looking beard, nodding. "Yes. If we could find such as discussed, and entreat them to join our cause, then make agreements with the Westers, it may well function. Tis it not a West
er plan to recapture yon Elcampayns? Could a message be sent to the head of the Wester family, to buy time in this? Explaining that the people here will aid us in such an endeavor, if they but back our actions? We have found powerful and unexpected allies here, in this land."

  That got rather excited agreement from Mary, but it wasn't lost on Bridget that there were things left unspoken.

  Like asking Brian what he thought of the plan. For all they knew this was doomed to fail, or exactly what Devorah Timberland wanted them to do. It was kind of important not to let that happen. She muttered something along those lines, which got a sour and narrow eyed look from her grandmother.

  "You think that a room of worthies such as we, are not capable of simple planning?" There was venom in the words, which Bridget had never had directed her way before. It was enough that Hobbs actually moved to stand between the two of them. Using his own body as a wall, to stop a fight.

  Not that there was going to be one.

  "Don't try to pull that, granny. We have a plan, but if it needs to be tweaked, then Brian should be in on this. I get why you want him left out, because you don't want to risk him, but... This all seems right, doesn't it? Hard, and a bit scary, but like it could work. That means it's probably either correct, or exactly wrong. So, let's get that done? Do you want to get Brian for us?" The answer to that wasn't spoken, since the room simply flashed blue, as far as Bridget could tell, and changed around them.

  It was kind of neat, how it happened. It wasn't a blink in time, but the world turning a solid color, and then all the objects in it bending and warping, until they were something new. It didn't take too long, a few perceptual seconds perhaps, and while it did dump the sitting people on the floor, no one complained.

  Not even when several people rushed them, in a huge space they found themselves. The first ones to reach them were Katarine, which made sense, given her hyper reflexes, and Marcia, who might well have just been doing it for fun. She did love a good fight, given that she couldn't be hurt by anything.