Results tagged “exhaustion” from City Eternal

Weeks went by without much excitement after we made it back. Sienna was able to pull the glass shards out of my hands, and they were feeling much better now. Jonathan though, spent much of his time in and out of the hospital, recovering from his injuries. Michael was able to repair his batteries to working order. Once Michael was better, Tobias joined him in helping the RDF analyze the data we retrieved from the dome. Sienna herself was fine, of course, but she was so busy I barely had a moment to chat with her.

That left Anna, who had returned to school. She was far beyond her age in intelligence, so she was placed in the high school. It was challenging for her, which was good, because it kept her mind off of our recent mission. She enjoyed it though, and that made me happy to see. She was growing up rapidly, and I wanted her to enjoy as much of her childhood as she could.

It seemed though, that I was alone. Everyone else had a job to do. I did my best to keep tabs on everyone, and to check in on Jonathan's progress each day. I tried to help the RDF where I could, but I was just in the way. I eventually decided to head topside and do some walking, to clear my mind.

I walked out of the hangar doors, and ran out away from the hustle and bustle of the RDF's various nightly activities. Moments later I reached a rocky hill on the outskirts of the camp, and plopped down. Looking up into the ink-black sky, I imagined I was looking at the stars. It was the one thing I missed from the dome; at night, the false ceiling displayed a beautiful rendition of Earth's old night sky. I couldn't believe that at one time, hundreds of years ago, this rocky cold desert was once a great city. I'd long since forgotten the name, but the dome's name, City Eternal, was certainly a tribute to the majesty of what had been. I continued to lay there, but I wasn't able to sit still. I was restless, so much was running through my mind.

Who would have thought it would have turned out like this?

I fiddled with my new running shoes, tightening the strings. The shoes were specially designed for me. At the speeds I could run at, the average shoe couldn't withstand the impact. More importantly, it tore my feet up terribly. So I had two pairs created. The running shoes I had with me, which had less traction (if the shoes had too much traction, I couldn't slide, and trying to stop at 60 miles per hour without sliding was a painful and long endeavour) and more support were perfect for high speed. The other pair was for more parkour-style running. They had better grip, especially in the toes, where the sole contained a special no-slip grip that allowed me to travel up walls and slick surfaces much easier than I could otherwise.

I pulled myself to my feet, and took off running, full out. Without a real destination in mind, I decided to make a large loop around the outskirts of the camp. The wind whipped through my hair, and pounded my chest, as I forced myself to go as fast as I could manage. I felt like an animal that was finally released from its cage, given the opportunity to run free without restraint. It was the first time I was truly allowed to run in the open air, without be scared or angry. Just peaceful.

My sprint around the camp was short lived, it only took me about ten minutes to reach exhaustion. But when I finally collapsed to the dirt again, I felt happy, for the first time in a long time. Too tired and too uninterested in heading back, I pulled my jacket closed, and watched the dark clouds roll by once more, as I drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, I wasn't sure just how long, my phone began to ring. It startled me awake, and I quickly pulled it from my pocket.

"Jon, what's wrong?" I said breathlessly.

"I should ask you the same! It's 3AM, where are you?"

"Outside, taking a nap."

"Outside? Are you crazy? It's dangerous to just leisure about up there!"

"Seems pretty safe to me," I replied, confused.

"Will you get your butt back inside before Michael has a heart attack? He's practically ready to form a search party for you!" Jonathan said exasperated.

"Okay, okay! I'll be down in a few minutes."

Hanging up, I let out a deep sigh. It seemed my peace had run out for the day. Still, I came away from the time feeling refreshed, and I thanked God I had the chance.

Another month passed. Jon's injuries had finally healed, and the RDF's researchers had finished analyzing the disk. Jon, Sienna, and myself were called down to meet Tobias and Michael in the war room to discuss the findings. Jon and I were official members of the RDF now, complete with our own badges, so obtaining access to the war room was uneventful. Once we arrived, Michael had us take a seat at the table, while he turned on the projector. The table already had many other officers of the RDF seated. General Ratkins walked in moments later, with Tobias and Sienna directly behind. Tobias joined Michael at the front of the room, while Ratkins and Sienna joined us at the table.

"To begin, our research team has finished their work on the data disk obtained from City Eternal. We've processed every last bit, and unfortunately, what we found was sparse. It seems we were had."

"What do you mean, 'had'? We pulled that straight from their stupid computer!" I yelled, angry at the wasted effort, the pain and suffering we endured.

"It seems that the information contained within the CARMEL system was not quite what we expected. Very little of the military's documents and data existed in the system," Michael informed us.

"Then we went in there for no reason, what a crock of shit!" Jon yelled.

"Don't get too excited. We were able to obtain one small interesting piece of information. This was pulled from their dock itinerary of the past month," Michael said, pressing a button to advance the presentation.

On the screen was an activity list for City Eternal's external docks. Anything that went in or out of the city was listed there.

"We were most interested in this section," Michael added, highlighting a small part of the log.

The log seemed to talk about various military equipment coming in through the docks.

"This record shows an incredible amount of military equipment, far more than we ever speculated existed. Not great news. However, this log also had one other bit of detail to reveal to us," Michael spoke curiously. He eliminated the rest of the log, and zoomed in on a specific area of the military equipment record.

The record said, "Wisconsin Dome".

"Wisconsin Dome? What does that mean?" an officer in the back asked.

"That record reveals the origins of the equipment coming from the docks. This equipment here came from a place called the Wisconsin Dome, possibly the location of some military exercise. The research team was puzzled by the name, so they looked into it. Wisconsin, it seems, was a name of one of the 50 states of America, this country. Wisconsin's borders are far east of here, beyond the Appalachian Divide," Tobias explained.

"We're not sure what to make of this, but the research team seems to believe, and I concur, that this Wisconsin Dome is another dome, just like City Eternal's. We've heard much speculation about the existence of other domes, but City Eternal has had plenty of time to modify historical record, so it's not surprising that they could keep this a secret."

"So what if this is another dome, what does that mean for us?" another officer asked.

"Well, it could either be another area City Eternal controls, and uses for their military. Or, more likely, it's a dome that City Eternal is fighting," Tobias replied.

"If they're fighting City Eternal, then we could use their help," Jon said.

"Right you are, which is why I want to send a ship out to investigate," General Ratkins said, as he rose from his seat. "We've been lucky so far. Based on these records, City Eternal has more than enough firepower to destroy us without a second thought. But if they are at war, then it would explain their general disinterest in our various activities. And if they are at war, we need to talk to this Wisconsin Dome, if City Eternal hasn't already obliterated it. Michael, I want you to organize a small team to travel out east and find this Wisconsin Dome. If they're friendly, organize an alliance, and if they're not, report back immediately."

"I've already started preparations, I hope to leave tonight."

"Good. Take whatever supplies and equipment you deem necessary. This could be the breakthrough we've been waiting for," General Ratkins smiled.

"Okay, everyone, meeting's over. I'll be talking to each of you later to discuss our plans. Don't go too far," Michael instructed.

I couldn't believe what I had seen. Everyone else had begun returning to their stations throughout headquarters, but I was still planted in my seat. How could another dome go unnoticed for so long? And then I was reminded of Mr. Fisher. He said something during our meeting months ago, about the possible existence of other domes. Did he know something we didn't? I had to find out.

"Michael, I'll be back in a little bit. I need to look into something," I said anxiously, and took off for the door.

"Yukari!" Jonathan yelled, turning his head rapidly towards me. "We're going to be in some deep shit! You think you can kung-fu those guys?"

"Kung Fu? Do I look like some sort of martial artist? I'm a swordfighter!"

Jonathan grabbed the console hard, and it started to melt away. Sparks flew, and the tram seemed to cry in pain, as the steel screeched in stress. As the tram slowed, a sword began to form from the shell of the console. Jon worked quickly, resulting in a dirty and unremarkable blade, but adequate for what I needed.

Tobias drew a pistol from his trench coat, his only defense. Sienna also reached for hers, although I had doubts to whether she could bring herself to fire it. She was a strong-willed woman, but killing simply was not her way.

As we began to enter the station, Jon turned around and tossed me the sword. He then sat on the ground, taking cover behind the remains of the console. Anna sat against the wall in the back, while Sienna kneeled in front of her, with her pistol pointed at the station's arrival area. Tobias took up a similar position behind a bench in the middle of the tram, while I knelt against the rear side door waiting for us to arrive. Unfortunately we couldn't cover Michael too well, although I suspected he'd be the least of our problems.

I looked over at Anna who was clenching to Sienna's back, and asked her, "Can you tell how many of them are there?"

"Uhm… I think… sixteen?" She said.

"Oh, only sixteen?" I replied with a sarcastic tone.

The tram finally came to a stop. I peeked over the tram's wall, looking around for these soldiers. They were sitting silently, guns pointed at the tram.

"Not even a word," I thought to myself. "They have no intention of taking us alive now."

It was obvious that they were going to wait for us to make the first move, so I took the initiative. Because the tram was comprised of only half-height walls and no ceiling, I could easily jump up and out without using the door. I'd like to think I was stealthy enough to have moved unseen, but it was really a side effect of my speed.

My goal was to draw their fire away from the tram, so that they could safely get out and defend themselves. I kicked the gun out of the nearest soldier's arms, and tossed it into the tram. By this point, my movements were no longer a blur, and the others began to open fire. They didn't seem to be concerned with friendly fire, and thoroughly devastated the soldier I had just disarmed. I kept moving towards the next target, further away from the tram. Bullets zoomed past me from all angles.

I didn't have time to get fancy, so I brought my sword to bear. It was a more traditional short sword, rather than the katana I was used to. The weight was much different, so I had to be careful not to accidentally lose grip. I took down the next couple of soldiers in short form, using their bodies as shields when possible.

It was then that I heard additional gunfire, from the direction of the tram. I took a risk and glanced back, to see Jon wielding some sort of rifle. It must have been the other thing he was melting earlier. I also spotted Tobias opening fire with his pistol. I was confused as to why no one was using the rifle I had tossed them, until I saw Sienna of all people holding it.

"So much for not killing anyone," I thought to myself.

A bullet then whistled right past my abdomen. I felt a slight twinge of heat, and looked down to see the bullet had traveled through my shirt. That was enough motivation to finally stay focused at the task at hand. I didn't have time to check in on the rest of the group.

I moved towards the next soldier crouching behind a bench. Just before I reached him, another soldier popped out from behind a support column, and aimed directly at me. I dropped to the ground as fast as possible, attempting to dodge his fire, when I suddenly noticed he wasn't firing. I raised my head to see that he had dropped the weapon and was now clenching a bullet wound in the chest.

I flicked my head around to find my savior, but whoever had shot the soldier was already moving on to other targets. Taking a deep breath, I hopped back on my feet, and forcefully disarmed the man behind the bench. With him gone, the right side of the station was cleared. There was a loud call from the other side, ordering everyone to fall back to the surface. The gunfire suddenly dropped off, and the station fell quiet. My heart was beating so fast I thought that even Michael could hear it.

I absentmindedly tried to put the sword into the hip hilt, forgetting that it wasn't a proper katana. Annoyed with having nowhere to put it, I wiped the blade off as best I could, and haphazardly slipped it through my belt. Hopefully I wouldn't trip and gouge myself with it. Shirking the responsibility of helping the others off the tram, I followed the exit path of the soldiers, to make sure the area was clear.

The stairwell seemed clear. The team slowly worked themselves off the tram, and we made it over to the stairs.

"Is there seriously no elevator here?" Sienna complained.

"We can't flick Michael on yet, there's no way he'll make it all the way up from here." Jonathan informed us.

"Tobias, what does your reference manual say?" Sienna asked sarcastically.

Tobias glared at Sienna distastefully, but pulled his notebook out anyway. He grabbed a yellow bookmark hanging out of the top, and flipped to its page. Paging forward a bit, he finally found something.

"There's a service elevator about 50 yards down the track."

We turned around and walked back to the track. Although this was the last station, the tram line continued for a distance into a tunnel. There appeared to be a walkway along the side of the tunnel as well. Tobias and Sienna pushed Michael's stretcher along the grated walkway, the metal wheels rattling wildly.

The tunnel grew dark as we progressed. I was surprised just how dark it became, as the underground was barely lit itself. Finally we arrived at the service elevator. The elevator was locked by a key, which Jonathan made quick work of. Once inside, Tobias quickly covered the escape plan. The elevator went up to the 15^th floor of the surface maintenance area. After the elevator arrived, we'd need to activate Michael and run like hell. It wouldn't take the army long to figure out what we had done.

As Tobias finished up his review, I looked at Anna, who was sitting on the stretcher looking over Michael.

"He looks so peaceful; I wonder what he's thinking," Anna wondered aloud.

"He's probably worrying about us," I offered.

"He may look peaceful, but I doubt he is. Imagine being completely cut off from the world… no sight, no sound, no touch, no smell, not even taste." Jonathan explained.

"That almost sounds like… being buried alive," Sienna said worriedly.

Jon nodded in agreement. "It couldn't be pleasant."

"We're almost to the top, let's wake up Michael," Tobias said readily, as if he suddenly felt guilty for Michael's situation.

Tobias slowly and carefully rolled Michael on his side again, and pulled his shirt up. Jonathan hobbled over, and reopened the access panel. He pressed a couple of buttons, and the strange voice once again detailed the revival of Michael's robotic body.

As it continued, the elevator reached the final floor, as high as it could take us. I grabbed the back of the stretcher, while Tobias grasped the front. A hard push and a couple of thuds later, and we were out. We were once again on a grated walkway, except now we were suspended nearly 100 feet in the air. I tried not to look down.

Anna didn't take too kindly to the heights, hopping off of Michael's stretcher and hovering close to Sienna. Jon was careful not to trip or have his crutches become stuck in the grating. There was a silent sense of urgency as we moved, although it seemed there was no immediate threat. We had all seen enough action for one day.

By the time we reached the end of the walkway, coming closer to the walls of the dome, Michael had finally awakened.

"How much farther?" he asked Tobias.

"About five flights of stairs straight up," he said, pointing above us.

I followed his arm and saw, through the walkways above, many large metal tubes. There was a low hum, the hum of the ventilation fans.

Michael left the stretcher behind, and walked carefully with us.

"Think you can make it?" I asked, concerned.

"Hard to tell. Only one way to find out," he said, smiling.

"I'm glad you're not concerned," I muttered.

Michael made himself useful, and practically carried Jon up the stairs with him. Flight after flight, we kept moving. We were about halfway when Anna grabbed Sienna's arm.

"What is it, baby?" she asked.

"There's more coming, from below!"

"The stairwell," Tobias realized.

"We don't have time to stop and fight. We need to keep moving," Jon said, ushering us as much as he could with Michael holding him up.

"Jonathan!" I called from the back.

"What?"

"Couldn't you melt these stairs down? They don't seem too rigid."

"Good idea. Everyone get up here, I'll reform these stairs into a wall."

We slid past Jon, and he limped back down a few stairs. Grabbing the railings first, he proceeded to melt the stairs down into bars, like a jail. He continued to work as fast as he could, not attempting to secure the bars, just to deter the army and remove their passage (as around five stairs were suddenly missing). Once he made it up to the floor, he melted the floor up as we moved, ensuring that no one could jump or climb over.

The scaffolding and stairs seemed to moan, and I wondered if Jon had mistakenly removed some supports in the process. We didn't waste any time to find out, though, and charged onward. Jon had moved as quickly as he could, but Anna let us know they were rapidly approaching. I could actually hear them clambering up the stairs below, and many shouts for us.

As we approached the floor we were heading for, Michael suddenly let go of Jon. He grasped the handrail tightly, but kept moving.

"Michael, are you alright?"

He nodded, but was silent.

We kept moving, only one more flight to go. He slowly crept up with us, as if every step he took would cause him to fall. He was waiting for his legs to finally fail him. We were on the last steps, I could see he was struggling as much as he could. Then he stopped for the final time.

"I'm sorry," he said, and collapsed there on the stairs.

"Shit!" Jon yelled. He grabbed Michael's arm, while gesturing to Tobias to grab the other. Sienna and I realized it was going to take more than one and a half men to drag Michael up, so we went to grab his legs. We pushed and pulled as hard as we could, and little by little, we moved him up those last few stairs. Once we were on the floor, Jon struggled to make another stretcher for him.

While Jon worked, Tobias walked across the walkway towards the ventilation fan. We could hear the wind howling through. He looked up and down the round vent duct, and grabbed onto a handle. He struggled with the handle for a while, finally resorting to using his leg for leverage, he popped the door open.

Without warning, a red light flashed and an alarm blared.

"The alarm is for the filtration system being bypassed, just ignore it!" he called over.

Jonathan had just finished with the stretcher by now, and he was looking visibly worn out by the effort. He had used his powers a great deal today, and I'm sure his head was pounding. Unfortunately, Anna's visibly worried face told me we didn't have time to sit down and relax.

The new stretcher was much lower to the ground, so that we could easily roll Michael onto it. Once we managed to get him on, we took off for the vent door Tobias had opened. The alarm continued to sound, and I couldn't help but worry about what sort of trouble it would cause. We fumbled our way into the ventilation shaft, and the wind ripped us apart. I felt like I was going to fall over. Tobias led the way, carrying Anna on his back. Sienna and I pushed Michael, while Jon carefully pushed his way forward.

It wasn't a long walk before we reached the ventilation fan. The fan was massive, over 10 feet in diameter. It became harder and harder to push forward toward the fan as we approached.

"This is the last obstacle before we make it out of here! We need to shut this thing down!" Tobias yelled over the roaring motor and wind.

I felt guilty, but I looked back at Jon once more. He nodded, and we helped him up to the fan, holding him so that the force of the wind wouldn't knock him back.

He placed his hands on the motor, and concentrated deeply. He was straining and fighting the pain in his head again, and I could tell he was having difficulty. Suddenly, with a cry of pain, he let go of the motor and grasped his forehead.

"Jon, are you alright?" Sienna asked, also concerned.

He shook his head, but placed his hands back on the motor again anyway. Again he tried to melt it down, to stop the fan in any way he could manage. However, just like last time, he let go, yelling out in pain.

"I… I can't do it, it hurts too much to concentrate!" he cried.

"Sienna, isn't there something you can do?" I demanded.

"I can't do anything for the mind. It's too complex," she explained.

Left with no other option, I grabbed the generic sword Jon had made for me earlier. Drawing it from my belt, I looked around the fan for some place to stab it, possibly jamming it or breaking it. Having difficulty finding a weak spot in the motor, I took my sword and jammed it as quickly as I could in the blades.

Milliseconds later, one of the blades struck the sword, and to my surprise, snapped it cleanly in half against the supports I had jammed it against. I let the remaining half drop to the floor, and looked back at the others.

"Well, I'm out of ideas!" I yelled.