The Mine Shaft part 4 (finale)

She franticly began dabbing the blood coming from his nose while his body shook. The tissue didn’t last long and the blood kept coming. It was obvious he took too much and at his age, it wasn’t going to end well. “Shit, this is bad,” she got up from the bed, “Sorry, but we gotta call someone, hun.” She took the phone from her purse and began to leave the seedy hotel room as he raised a pleading hand. “Please don’t leave,” Craig Levison cried out weakly, “I’m scared.” She closed the door after she left.

****

The Dragon flew to the destination near the Canadian border. Ryan Bennings had given the Cavalier a set of coordinates and he was able to make the flight from New York City to a remote military base in about an hour. He kept an eye out for Hyperion’s Light and hopped he wasn’t too late.

In Hyperion’s Light, Melanie Manes held Steven Amati and Ryan at gunpoint. “What did you do?,” she demanded.

“We made sure you and I were the last of our kind,” Steven told her.

“Things got a little heated and the serum got cooked along with whatever else the lab guys needed to stay frozen back there,” Ryan told her, “By the way, with you being a private citizen now, you weren’t authorized to get on base, which means you and your fella were compromised by unintentionally leaking classified information. Just something you may wanna remember if you wanna take this to the authorities.”

“You think I got on to your ship and pulled a gun just to call the cops? The way me and Frank see it, you two know too much and it’s our duty to make sure nothing gets out, military clearance or not. Now, tell me everything. What did you see? What did you take?”

“Well, here’s everything I have in my pocket,” Ryan revealed a disk in the palm of his hand, “Take a look.”

Ryan threw the disk in her direction and a magnetic pulse yanked the gun from her palm, which gave Steven the opportunity to rush her. She took a punch to the jaw but then trapped his arm and threw him over her hip. From a crouching stance, he punched her in the gut and delivered an uppercut as he rose. As they fought, Ryan prepared his energy pistol and took aim, but then Manes gave Steven a flying knee which threw him into the air. As planned, Steven fell on top of Ryan, knocking him down and sending his pistol sliding under a crate nearby. Ryan tried to climb to his feet but she snatched him by the back of his jacket and hurled him toward the nearest wall. Thinking quickly, he turned on his forcefield just before colliding against solid metal. Meanwhile, Steven snuck up behind Manes and wrapped both arms around her head. As she struggled, she slammed her heel against his hip, popping it out of socket. Steven began to loose footing but on his descent, he twisted her neck, instantly snapping it. They simultaneously hit the floor across from one another and lay still; there were sickening crackling sounds from both of them as bones began to heal, break, reset, then heal again. Ryan’s curiosity got the better of him and he stared in fascination until he received a call.

“Hey Bennings, I’m coming up on your ship now,” Ryan could hear the voice of the Cavalier in his earpiece, “Open the hangar.”

“I’m actually pretty glad to hear your voice, Cav,” Ryan told him, “Do me a favor. Come in a little hot.”

“Seriously?”

“Trust me.”

Ryan quickly opened the bay door moments before the Dragon burst into the hangar. Steven managed to heal in time to throw himself out of the way but Manes was taken by surprise; the impact made her roll over the front of the craft before bouncing off the rear fins. The Cavalier, meanwhile, skidded along the ground before fishtailing into some crates along the wall.

Manes’ bones began snapping back in place once more as the cuts and bruises healed. Cavalier got out of his hovercraft and faced the two men while strong winds began to enter the hangar due to the altitude, “Anyone wanna tell me why I just ran over a person for the second time today?” Before any explanations could be given, two more figures came in through the open hangar door. They were familiar to Ryan and Steven as they had faced a similar figure on the base. Two security robots flew via thrusters on their backs, landing on their tripod-limbs a few feet away from the three men. Evidently, two of the remaining drones took note of the ship and were programmed to eliminate any potential threats.

“We really shouldn’t let the door open, it attracts flies,” Ryan said aloud and turned to the Cavalier, “Mind drawing their attention?”

“I can try.”

Cavalier fired shield-discs that harmlessly bounced off their metal frames while Ryan activated the ship’s security systems. A robot set its sights on the Cavalier who, taking note of the chain guns attached to it, knew that even his sturdy armor would not withstand the barrage. He dove behind some crates for cover as bullets flew overhead. Steven leapt through the air and shoulder-checked the robot to throw off its aim but in so doing, drew its attention. The robot’s torso swiveled around and when its gun barrel connected, it sent him tumbling down the hangar bay door where he slipped off the side, but managed to grasp the edge with one hand and was left dangling over the dark clouds below. As he began to pull himself to safety, he noticed that Manes had fully healed from the crash and was now making her way toward him.

A laser cannon attached to an armature descended from the ceiling and Ryan set its sights on the two robots. Before he could fire, however, one of them began shooting at him. Luckily, his forcefield was already up but the impact rattled him, making it difficult to control the cannon. The Cavalier returned and slid on his back underneath one of the robots’ tripods. Once there, he ignited the tasers in his gauntlets and sent several volts into the robot’s underside which seemed to scramble it slightly but otherwise did little harm.

On the hangar bay door, Manes grabbed Steven by the hair and slammed him into the metal armatures, splitting his face open. Steven retaliated by kicking the side of her knee, breaking it. She went down but still grabbed onto his ankle in an attempt to throw him off the ship. A few slams with his heel ensured that didn’t happen.

Above, Ryan threw another magnetic disc; the magnetic pulse yanked a robot off-balance just as it began to fire. The barrage of bullets hit its partner as the Cavalier dove out of the way. Moments later, it was sent rolling down the hangar bay doors. Below, Manes and Steven leapt back as the round figure went end-over-end before finally falling over the side. The Cavalier rushed past the final robot and took a swipe with his sword; while it did no damage, it distracted it long enough for Ryan to finally fire the ship’s security canon. A basketball-sized hole was punched through the metallic figure; it stood still for just a moment before its three legs gave out and it dropped to the metal floor.

On the bay door, Manes slammed Steven onto the edge with his head dangling off the side. He gazed at the long drop below him as she held him by the throat. “You failed your country!,” she shouted angrily, “This is the least you deserve!” Suddenly, her expression turned from rage to alarm. The tip of a broadsword burst out of her stomach and both soldiers took a moment to register. The Cavalier stood behind her, holding on to the hilt as his cape flapped in the wind. “From all indications, you can survive this,” he told her before pulling the sword out of her back. Steven took the opportunity to flip her over his head and she soon disappeared into a dark, thousand-foot drop, shrieking in rage on the way down. “And… she can survive that as well?,” Cavalier nervously asked as he peeked over the side.

Ryan closed the hangar and piloted the ship away from the military base in case more security drones appeared. After some brief explanations and a few drinks, Hyperion’s Light came to a stop in New York City. Cavalier, Ryan and Labrat bid Steven Amati farewell on a sidewalk.

“I’m sorry the military used me to turn you into a weapon,” Labrat told him.

“It wasn’t your fault. I’m actually sorry I attacked you and your friends,” Steven told him and then turned to Ryan, “I guess we were all pawns one way or another.”

“More than once in my case,” Ryan told him, “I’m sure I haven’t heard the end of all this.”

“Have you thought about getting Craig Levison to come clean about everything?,” Cavalier asked.

“No point. He was just a middle man and probably knows even less than I do. If Uncle Sam asked Levsion for a humanoid rat, he’d give them a humanoid rat, cash the check and not ask any questions. Such is the miserable existence of Craig Levison. See also: the Upstarts debacle.”

“At any rate, I don’t know if I’m gonna stay in New York,” Steven explained, “Dr. Ansari can’t treat me anymore after I attacked her and with everything going on in the city, it’s just all too triggering. I realize it was a mistake to get involved in the Resurgence.”

“Trust me, it was the right thing to do,” Cavalier told him.

“Maybe,” he turned to leave, “It’s still probably for the best that I go get a cabin somewhere far away from anyone that might get hurt. Thanks for everything, gentlemen.”

“Lemme know if anyone gives you anymore trouble,” Ryan told him.

“I just might,” with that, Steven disappeared into the night.

“I’m gonna go too,” Cavalier explained, “I’m still living here and I got a lot of work to do.”

“If you’re serious about getting your armor upgraded, give me a call,” Ryan told him, “I have a few ideas that could’ve helped us out today. Because, sorry to say, those robots were kicking your ass a little.”

“Thanks for that,” he said facetiously and climbed into the Dragon then waved at him and Labrat, “Have a good night, guys.” The hovercraft lifted off the ground and flew into the distance.

Labrat and Ryan, meanwhile, got onboard Hyperion’s Light and set course for Boston. As they took off, Labrat turned to Ryan, “The Army wanted you to experiment on me so they can turn people into weapons. You don’t like that,” he said sadly, “Does that mean you have bad feelings about me?”

Ryan placed a hand on his shoulder, “Labrat, as a guy who has few friends, mostly due to his own hubris and hang-ups, I don’t regret our friendship at all.”

“You don’t? Not even for one minute?”

“Not even a nanosecond.”

Labrat smiled, “Can we play a video game now?”

“Absolutely.”

The next day, Ryan woke up, ate breakfast with Labrat, looked over a few business proposals and scheduled the next meeting with the Commission before texting Dr. Ansari to make sure she was okay after the previous day’s events. The TV was on in the background and he sipped his coffee quietly. It was all fairly mundane, particularly in light of the previous day, which made his thoughts wander. Labrat’s mind was at ease but he wasn’t as lucky. He glanced at the TV screen in the hope that something would distract him but he was already lost in thought. His past with Levison and the exploitation from various government entities was always a source of anxiety despite his confident façade.

Labrat’s creation was a source of pride for years and led to one of his few friendships that tested time and yet, Levison and the military found a chance to exploit it. More to the point, that relationship wouldn’t have even existed if it wasn’t for the Army’s need for a super soldier. The murder of the Upstarts was a further reminder that, even when he tried to do some good and be a mentor, it wasn’t enough. It seemed that even when he wasn’t sabotaging relationships himself, they were still tainted by outside forces.

Rex Robsinson had been his own mentor and one of the few intellectual equals he had ever met. Aside from Rex proving to not be the beacon of hope he styled himself as, Rex exploited him in his own way by preparing him for an alien invasion. Rex wasn’t afraid to stand up to the government if they were out of line and he let his disgust of Craig Levison be known but Ryan wondered how much he knew about the CIA and Army involvement in his life as a child. Certainly, a man that intelligent and savvy had to have at least suspected it. Did he turn a blind eye to focus on Ryan’s ability to eventually stave off an alien invasion? Were his delusions so great that he convinced himself it wasn’t happening? These were questions he likely would never have an answer to.

As he contemplated the burdens in his life, something finally caught his eye on TV; he saw a picture of Craig Levison and curiously decided to turn up the volume, expecting to hear some news pertaining to a new show he was producing. He was not expecting to here the following:

“TV producer Craig Levison was found dead in an LA hotel room last night after an apparent cocaine overdose. An anonymous witness had dialed 911 to alert medical personnel of the emergency and police don’t expect foul-play, ruling it accidental. Levison was best known for controversial TV programs such as Brain Boy and The Upstarts. He had no children.”

Ryan sat wide-eyed, staring at the screen, “Well,… shit.”

NEXT: Things get worse!